shaking off the tinsel

Well... it's time to shake off the tinsel and get back to something that resembles normal life. Brett went back to work the day after Christmas, and I started teaching my music classes again on Friday. We had to rearrange both of the girls' bedrooms, bunk the beds, and clean out closets, cupboards and drawers; out with the old and in with the new. All things Christmas are put away for another year. Except for my Christmas cards... I will get them out eventually.

The girls got new ice skates from Santa (thank you Santa) and sleds from their Nana, so it gives us good reason to spend more time outside and enjoy all the snow we have. Savannah and Meggie have really been doing well on their ice skates and Brett has worked hard to keep a clear ice skating rink with all the snow that has been falling.

Some of my favorite memories from Christmas are Ava yelling through the bottom of our bedroom door with her face smashed sideways against the carpet..."Are you done wrapping presents yet Mom? Can I come in yet Mom? Mom I really want you; can I come in and just close my eyes?"

Meggie going over to Ava and giving her a big kiss and hug saying "I love my present Ava, thank you." I don't think that would have happened if I would have had either of the cameras out.


Savannah reading countless stories to Meggie and Ava by the Christmas tree; and reminding them to "choose the right" so Santa can bring them presents. Savannah also directed a little Christmas concert one evening with all three girls shaking jingle bells and singing Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree..."You will get a single-mental (yes, you heard me 'single-mental') feeling when you hear, voices singing let's be jolly, deck the halls with boughs of holly".... and some other Christmas favorites.

Brett and I were able to stay up until midnight for the last 12 days before Christmas (we are usually in bed by 9:30pm) and finish all three blankets that we made for the girls. I did the sewing and ironing, while he did all the measuring, cutting, and pinning. It was fun to work on a project together and I told him I already have more in mind that I could use his help on!

We all have eaten more than our share of garlic stuffed green olives...a new holiday favorite???

What are some of your favorite memories?

Merry Christmas

For one FHE a month this year, we each made a homemade ornament for our Christmas tree. Here is one of the more involved ornaments we did.

Well, Meggie and Ava have colds and low grade fevers. I guess it's time to snuggle in with the kids and get everyone better so we can enjoy some Christmas cheer.

Merry Christmas everyone!

santa sightings

(Never underestimate the power of bubble art. The girls spent an hour playing with bubbles and straws and I couldn't resist; I had to turn them into something, they were so cool!)

We have seen Santa a couple of times this week. Last Saturday we went to a local farm where they have a little cafe, great sledding hill, and a wonderful Santa. It is the same one every year and he is so great with the kids. It is never busy there, so the girls can roam back and forth and visit with him and ask questions. I'm pretty sure this will be Savannah's last year with the whole Santa story. She is pretty astute and asks a lot of questions about how Santa does all that he does. They also had a great hill so we got to go sledding all afternoon. Which turned into all evening once we got home. Brett hung flood lights outside so the kids could keep sledding. Needless to say they all slept really well that night.

We also took a cruise around the lake to visit "the North Pole"and Santa was there to read of his list of good little boys and girls. Of course Savannah, Megan and Ava were thrilled to hear their names. GMA featured all the lights around the lake and the excursion you can take to see it all. I don't think the cameramen did their job because they really didn't do it justice. It is really beautiful in person.

We celebrated Brett's birthday on Wednesday as well. The girls picked out a SpongeBob Squarepants ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery. It was so good!

Brett and I have been up late this whole week. He got the wild idea of making blankets for each of the girls for Christmas. I made him one a couple of years ago and everyone seems to fight over it. It is so warm and heavy; the perfect blanket for winter. So we are piled high in 200+ squares of corduroy and flannel and I'm keeping my fingers crossed the sewing machine holds up through it all.

Christmas "tagged"

Here are my "tagged" responses from Sheila's blog. Brett, I, and the girls were just talking about some of these very questions at dinner the other night...so I felt a little prepared!

1. Wrapping paper of gift bag? I hate wrapping because I'm not good at it; but I do gift wrap. Sheila got that gene from Mom. They always have beautifully wrapped gifts.
2. Real tree or artificial? Artificial. We always had artificial when we lived in AK and never went back. I lobbied pretty hard for a real tree this year, but we heat with wood and it is exceptionally dry in our house. Brett said I wouldn't be able to keep it alive until Christmas.
3. When do you put up the tree? Thanksgiving weekend.
4. When do you take down the tree? No later than New Years Day.
5. Do you like eggnog? Not really.
6. Favorite gift as a child? My Barbie house with all the accessories. Sheila ran into the bedroom Christmas morning and told me I was going to pee my pants when I saw what was under the tree.
7. Do you have a Nativity scene? Yes, but it is not pretty. One that the kids have played with. Pieces have been glued and re-glued many times.
8. Hardest person to buy for? Brett's Mom and Grandma.
9. Easiest person to buy for? Brett's Dad. (A gift certificate from Home Depot or Cabella's and he's good to go.)
10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? A pillow that said "Merry Chistmas" (no "r")...I believe Sarah is the proud owner of that pillow now thanks to last year's white elephant exchange!
11. Mail or email cards? Mailed with pictures. I don't know that mine will be out in time this year though....oops!
12. Favorite Christmas movie? I wish I could say something really lovely like Miracle on 34th St. or It's a Wonderful Life... but I have to be honest and say Elf. My kids quote it and it just cracks me up. They'll walk into a store and start singing..."I'm in a store and I'm singing... I'm in a store and I'm singing...." It doesn't get any better than that.
13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? I like to start December 1st. This year I'll start mine tomorrow.
14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Absolutely! Whether it be something I got or something my kids got.
15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Brett's favorite is the "egg bake breakfast casserole" type food. I don't know about mine. I love all sweets and cookie trays. We do look forward to buying boxes and boxes of Clementines. Yeah Costco!
16. Clear or colored lights on the tree? We usually alternate years. This year it is colored...the kids' favorite.
17. Favorite Christmas song? (Sheila, we were just talking about Oak Ridge Boys Christmas Album! They put on a Christmas concert in the area so I was telling Brett and the girls how much we loved it!) My favorite hymn would be "Oh Come All Ye Faithful" and my favorite "fun" song would be "Sleigh Ride". I love watching my girls dance to "Bring the Torch Jeanette, Isabella" and my favorite cd's right now are Hillary Weeks Christmastime, Diana Krall Christmas Songs, and the Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack. They have been playing continuously for the last 2 weeks.
18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? I love to travel. It is always crazy and hectic, but I love the idea of families coming together. Maybe I'm just being a little melancholy because I haven't been home for any holidays this year.
19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer? Yes, if I sing the song. I think Brett tried calling one Dunder. Is he watching a little too much of The Office?
20. Angel on top of the tree or a star? Star
21. Open presents Christmas Eve or Christmas Morning? Christmas morning. Usually one on Christmas Eve. Although tradition of opening one Christmas book every night has been successful and helps ease the pain of waiting for Christmas morning.
22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? People trying to be too P.C... It's ok people, get over it! Go ahead and call them Christmas lights, Christmas trees, and yes you can say Merry Christmas.
23. What I love most about Christmas? Sitting in front of the fire, drinking spiced cider, listening to Christmas music while basking in the glow of the Christmas tree. (I usually get to do this early in the morning, rather than late at night.) Love all the snow and sledding too. Sure wish we had family up here to enjoy it with us!
24. Do you always get a new pair of pajamas for you or someone else? No. This was something I tried to do (I guess I can still try) just because I remember getting new pj's or slippers on Christmas Eve when I was younger.
25. Do you decorate your home on the outside? We just have our snowman who is as cute as can be and a wreath on the door. Thought about lights this year... maybe we'll start next year. Brett's leaning towards blue.

what we study

Have I told you how much fun I have homeschooling? For those of you interested, here are some things we are reading and doing in Savannah's curriculum. In math she is learning place value. We also have an art and P.E. curriculum. I have a co-op that meets at my house on Tuesdays and there we all share teaching responsibilities.

The books we read. Savannah woke up really early one morning so I sent her back to her room to look at books until I was ready to get up. She came out with "Little Bear" and said "Mom, I can read this!" and she hasn't stopped since! It is not unusual to see her reading stories to Meggie and Ava. What a good help when I'm trying to cook dinner... or blog.

We are also studying continents, countries, and landforms. Meggie and Ava also like to participate and help us create posters for each of the countries. When they don't want to participate they are good playmates for each other. Meggie is getting really good at bouncing back and forth between the roles of little sister and big sister!

our snowman

I love our snowman "yard art". I've taken the girls' picture in front of it every year... here's a sneak peek of what you may see in your Christmas card (if I get them out!).

slide on ice

Life is a slide on ice....until someone gets hurt

how did we get from this...

to this...

to this...???

(Maybe I should have helped her up instead of continuing to take pictures. Bad mommy!)