We finally got some winter weather!  While it was too warm to snow, it was still fun to go out and play in the rain.  Around here the rivers overflow and rush so strong that they will carry large logs down into the gorges with or without our help.  We prefer WITH...

 

Then the best part is stopping by the malt shop on our way out of the forest to warm up and get a treat!

Unseasonally Warm

Since the weather has been so unseasonally warm this winter (we have had almost no snow), we put the boat back on the lake the the boys decided to try a little fishing.  It paid off!

A Rough Way to Start Your New Year

Luckily we were just posing on New Year's Eve and it wasn't our car. 

Have a blessed Christmas everyone. 

Say CHEESE!

All together NOW!  "All I want for Christma-th ith my two front teeth".  My little cuddle bug is SO stinking cute right now.  I admit that he has gotten out of a couple of sticky situations with me in the last couple weeks just because I can't get mad at him with that adorable little smile.  I guess it's a "mom thing".

European History

This year, instead of doing a Christmas program, the second grade classes decided that they would put on a show about all of the geography and ancestry work they have been doing.  My daughter, having almost entirely European heritage (25% Danish, 25% Italian, Lots of German and English and a dash of French), got to participate in the European portion of the show.  She even got to go down center stage with two friends and say the only non-group speaking part in the show.  They did a great job, as did the three second grade classes.  Here she is with her friends in all of their glory:

The Star of the Show

It's my daughter's job every year to put on the star atop the Christmas tree and this year was no different.  This is a great time of year to establish traditions and this is one of ours.  I will be sad when she's too big for him to lift up there.

Best Tree Ever

We wandered around the tree lot, looking for our perfect fir.  Was it this one? No, too spindly.  Was it that one? No, it's lop-sided.  How about that one? Nope, there's a big bald spot on it....

 Then out of no where, the kids (plus a friend of my daughter's) carried across the lot this nice douglas fir.  They picked it out themselves and with their enthusiasm at it's peak levels, how could we deny them?  It was, after all, a pretty nice tree.  So they carried it up to the counter, then out to the car all by themselves, pleased as punch to be the primary contributors to our decorating decision.  Who knew they could be so strong?  Now if I could only get that kind of enthusiasm about taking out the trash...

Merry and Bright

I just love a good children's Christmas production at the church.  The worse it is the better it is. There is no ruining it for me.  I love it when the kids do great and I love it when things go wrong.  It reminds us that we are all human and fallible and covered in His grace.  This year the kids did a wonderful job performing in the church choir and although my daughter was right in the middle row, singing her little lungs out, my son decided it would be a good time to try to wiggle those loose front teeth out of his mouth.  As it turns out, he was unable to wrench them free of their captor gums but in the mean time everyone else put on a great show.  In his defense, he his the youngest of the group and it was past his bed time so he (and his two kindergarten buddies) was pretty sleepy and absentmindedly looking around instead of singing.  Oh well, it was adorable and I wouldn't have it any other way.  By the way, kudos to my good friend who's son spent the better part of three songs with his shirt up over his shoulders, playing with his belly button to the delight of the crowd.  He is a another little charmer :)  At least they both stayed on stage and didn't fall asleep!

My Beautiful Nieces

They are obviously not little girls any more.  Haven't they grown into beautiful ladies?  My sister just sent me this picture this afternoon and I miss them terribly. 

Character Counts

Congratulations to my darling daughter for being chosen for an award for her outstanding character.  They chose a girl and boy from each class and the character trait they were exemplifying was "respect".  Well done my darling girl.  We are so proud of the person you are becoming (shown here with Daddy and with the principal).

Sugar and Spice and Everything Nice

Some girlfriends and I get together every year and make LOADS of candies for our christmas season.  Here is a sampling of part of what we put together this year.  It's a nice excuse to get to spend time with some wonderful ladies and eat a little chocolate too - what could be better?

Another Nutcracker

Every year the kids get to go to the nutcracker performance with their grandparents.  They were particularly lucky this year because BOTH sets of grandparents were in town so they got to go with all FOUR of them!

Another Snapshot in My Brain

Dear future me,
While the kids are driving you crazy and not listening and being, well, BRATS, remember that there have been times (although it may be hard to remember right now) when they have been sweet and quiet and darling and that you wanted to keep them...

This was one of those moments.  She is SUCH a good big sister to him.

Silly Kids

The kids had some friends over this weekend to play and do crafts.  At one point, I walked into the back yard to find them using my hubby's lumber (intended for a future deck expansion) like they were life-sized Lincoln Logs!  It was such an industrious use of their imaginations that I could bring myself to get mad about it.  Besides, they were having such a good time and agreed to put it all back when they were done.  I'll let you guess who wound up putting it all back over a week later when the snow melted...

Run Forest, RUN!

We took a little trip to Vegas to watch Erika run her half-marathon.  The kids were excited to cheer her on and see Uncle Eddie for a couple of days.  We stayed in a hotel too, which means that jumping on the bed was permitted...

...note to self - Jumping on the bed may result in loss of teeth....

 Congrats to Trevor on losing his second tooth and congrats to Lily for being the one who kicked it out!  In her defense, it was already so loose that it was sticking straight out, but it's a pretty cool story to be able to say you kicked someone's tooth out!

Their First Concert!

A girlfriend and I took the kids to a christian concert this month and there were mixed reviews.  The girls loved it and were up on their seats dancing for a lot of it but the boys...well, it was a little too much noise for them.  To be fair, it WAS really loud, but we were right by the stage!  Either way, it was a good introduction to concerts for them.  There were 12 bands there and the headliners were the NEWSBOYS!!  I didn't get to go to my first concert until I was in high school  What a bunch of lucky kiddos.

Baby H

Our newest little cousin, H, was baptized recently up in Paso Robles and we were able to fly up to see her big day.  We are so excited to get to be part of her welcoming to God's family.  Thanks Aunt B and Uncle M for letting us stay with you while we were visiting.  It was a nice service, at the local mission and we got to visit afterward with lots of family.  It was also neat to see Great-grandma with both of the newest baby girls in the family.  Doesn't she look tickled to get to hold them both?

Colonial Visit

The second graders recently took a trip to Riley's Farm in Cherry Valley.  

There they learned about  colonial life and got to do weaving, make candles, see a blacksmith work, hear about soldiers' lives, play old-time games, take a ettiquite lesson, press

apple cider, and see a perpetual motion machine work.  And at the end of it all they got to get locked up in the stocks and see their teacher in them too!  I need one of those for the house when my little angel is being "uncooperative".  Hmmmm....

Cute Cousins

My daughter is just barely reaching that "I wish I could babysit" stage and is absolutely enamored with her new baby cousin.  She likes to hold him and sing to him and cuddle him and read to him and play with him and do pretty much anything she can think of to make him smile.  To her credit, I do it too.  Who wouldn't with such a chill little happy guy?  He's got us all wrapped around his finger already.