Greetings from the Depths of Sunny New Mexico
Christmas is Wonder Full	See my personal page.	Happy Holidays

This year, as you probably know, we had a new addition to our household - a little cherubic fellow by the name of Jack Edward Rains, but we call him JJ for short. JJ has big blue eyes, blond hair and a charming smile, and he is going to be tall. Before he arrived I was too fatigued to do very much, now I seem to be too fatigued and harried to do very much. Those of you who have had children will understand this part - those of you who didn't are better off not knowing. JJ is wonderful, he smiles and giggles and wiggles and sleeps less and less as time goes on. He expects a high degree of attention when he is awake, and sees no reason why either of us should even consider doing any of those boring old chores, when we can get exercise picking him up, bouncing him, chasing his toys etc. etc. He also expects to eat every two hours, day and night, with occasional snacks between whiles when his blood sugar gets low. We are already looking forward to the day when he goes off to college. As I write he is coming up on 5 months, so I guess it's going to take a while. He has kept us amused and occupied without a break since he was born on May 27, so consequently we really do not have much other news to tell you.

Our business does seem to be slowly growing - we have had a few people come to us wanting web pages and we are hoping that the growth will continue. When we moved here two years ago the valley did not even have local internet access and Jack had to do everything long distance which was pretty expensive. Now the local phone company has invested in the hardware to offer internet access, and next year is planning to start building infrastructure with new Data Service lines, and hey presto, the valley will be wired into the 21st century whether it likes it or not. If you have web access go visit our sites at rains.org, arco-iris.com, moravalley.com, and cap-n-ball.com. If you have email then let us have your address as well. (Email to jack@arco-iris.com) Jack is adding pictures and stories to our personal page (rains.org), especially pictures of JJ along with some of the other critturs hanging around. I am planning to get myself a stove with an oven next year - this will be a real novelty as I have been without one since the Thanksgiving of 1997 when we moved here. The wood stove that I used then is still sitting in the same place with a camp stove on top of it - the chimney from the cookstove had been plumbed into the same chimney as the heating stove in the living room - and the result was potentially extremely pyrotechnic, especially since said chimney looked like it had not been swept in many years. We traded the cookstove for 2 cords of wood 2 years ago and are still waiting for the new owner to pick it up. To say that the pace of life is slow in the valley would be a bit of an understatement - in fact we are so behind the times that we do not expect to have any Y2K problems until at least 2005. Yesterday we went to the inauguration of the new Firehouse for the Chacon, Holman, Encinal and Tramperos Volunteer Fire Department. A surprising number of people turned up and brought food - it was definitely the social event of the year. The fire department is entirely volunteer, and their efforts are variably successful but it is a wonderful example of community spirit. Jack and I attended the class on "how to hold and climb a ladder" - we were surprised at how much we learned about climbing ladders.

I am the Treasurer of our local Water Association - Holman has about 300 residents, and three Water Associations. Quite remarkable. A water Association is a small cooperative that supplies drinking water to its members, (and sewage services too in Mora, which is the County Seat and has a population of about 1000). No municipal supplies here - we pump and distribute it, and are strongly resisting state and Federal efforts to make us chlorinate. No way - the water here is totally clean and just marvelous and needs no interference. I am also a member of the Source Water Protection Council, which has been set up to formulate a plan to protect our source water and keep it clean and beautiful. Getting involved in projects at this local level is very interesting, and for me at least so far has been very rewarding. I have got to know some of the more concerned people in the Community, and also to understand exactly how things work around here. What you can change, you do, and what you can't you just have to live with. This valley will probably see more change in the next few years than it has seen in the last two centuries.

I am now picking up this letter in the second week of December - so much for good intentions. JJ is now 61/2 months and seems to want only to stand or walk - but he can only do this with one of us holding him. He is trying to pull himself up on everything he can grab now, and if we pick him up those little feet just start planting themselves one in front of the other. We have ended up in some very odd corners of the house and we are both on the ibuprofen now for muscular aches of the back, as JJ explores all over the place. I am positive he is planning an escape through the front door just as soon as he can make it unaided. Everyone tells me that that is when the fun really begins - but I figure at least that he will be supporting all his own weight and I can chase him around with my spine straight. His favorite static exercise is shredding the Wall Street Journal and then stuffing the shreds in his mouth. Every time I walk past him I open his mouth to see if there is anything to hook out - what a spoilsport I am huh. Tissues are the other irresistible food item. I am continually astonished by the speed at which he is developing, although he has slowed down growing at least. I was imagining him being 40lbs on his first birthday, the rate he was going. He is now on solid foods as well and I have cut down on the amount of nursing - I am now working on getting him to sleep for longer stretches through the night. All night is still a pipe dream.

We have had a couple more snowfalls and some of the ice is hanging around, but other wise it looks like another dry dry winter. We had to get more wood in and seem to be going through it faster and faster, so we are hoping it will warm up again. A white Christmas would be nice though. We are planning to stay quietly at home over Christmas, with maybe the odd excursion to our favorite bar, and New Year's Eve we shall be most restrained and watch Disney's Fantasia, as usual. I went a bit over the top and made a Christmas pudding - the first in 25 years. It is now soaking in Jack's best brandy (Jack complaining that I should have used cheap stuff of course) so that will be a touch of English in the wilds of the West. My brother is going to be with us over the holidays and I am hoping he will be willing to do some baby sitting while Jack and I catch up a bit on a years worth of chores. Scooping up about 3 tons of pony poops is one of those urgent chores - Jack gave up after 11 wheelbarrow loads a couple of weeks ago and hardly made a dent in the mess.

JJ is helping me write this letter by sitting on the floor of the computer room destroying whatever he can get his paws on, and whining when he overreaches himself and falls over. His interest in anything seems to be in direct proportion to its importance and fragility and the speed at which he can reach out and grab something is astounding. He is the original velcro babe - carry him anywhere and he ends up with his little hands full and a trail of fallen objects behind. No question he has had a very large impact on every aspect of our lives - I can barely remember what life was like B.C. (Before Child). I do remember that sleep (Ours) used to figure a lot more prominently in our daily schedule. Who wants to waste their lives unconscious anyway, when there are all those glorious dawns to watch. (Me, me, me!!).

Well, here's to Christmas and the new Century to come - we wish you and yours all the best, with health, wealth and happiness top of the list, and we look forward to hearing your news in the near future.

Love and kisses,

Shelley, Jack and JJ, a.k.a. the Velcro Babe