The very first Christmas present

I should have posted this a week ago, but was having too much fun walking on the beach.

For purposes of family documentation, here's Vivian's very first Christmas present ever.  As you might expect from somebody 7 1/2 months old, she had lots of fun ripping the paper off and wapping it to make noise, and paid absolutely no attention to the present inside.

Family lore has it that the Christmas when I was 18 months old I loved to unwrap gifts.  In between, I would yell "More packies!  More packies!"  My parents cleverly rewrapped empty boxes and put them in front of me for several days of delight.  Perhaps all parents should do that for all children forever, to increase fun and decrease consumption.

Over the decades, "More packies!" has been our family euphemism for greed.  We forget that at first, the only greed in very young children is to learn new things, to practice and get better at them, and to delight in the world around them.  May we all stay greedy in those ways for the rest of our lives!