New Year's Revelries

This year Rob took the kids skiing at Brighton on New Year's Eve and New Year's Day. They had a great time, and we ended both days with some Ticket To Ride. Maybe I should learn to ski. Although next year Clara will be old enough to go. Hmmm, maybe I won't learn!

Some Projects Over The Break

Lu got a sewing machine (Uncle Tony's old Bernina, which is a great machine) and Grammy gave her lessons and got her started on making an apron.

Santa brought the kids wooden models. I don't do crafts/projects with kids because they make me mean, angry, frustrated, irritable, and annoyed. But fortunately Rob was home all last week and he got roped into helping them out. (Combing hair was not on last weeks to do list).

It's Just Impossible. . .

. . . to get all four to cooperate at one time.

Christmas 2009

Here in pictures, I give you, our Christmas 2009:

Ready to go see the loot

(The kids got geodes in their stockings)

(Lucy got the fixing's for a 'fairy' terrarium and put it together)

Clara got to color this lovely Tinkerbell

Tucker the chemist got to do crystal growing experiments

Anders made this robot

Clara is going through a swimsuit/crown/tights phase.

This is what she puts on in her middle of the night

wardrobe change. Clothes are overrated.

Our dinner of pork verde

We were glad Todd and Court could hang with us

A Merry Christmas was had by all!

Christmas Eve 2009

It has been another great holiday season. I think the highlight for my kids was being introduced to the classic A Christmas Story. We watched it to kick off the school break and they fell in love. I forgot how funny it was. The highlight of our movie viewing that night was when whats-his-name licks the flagpole. We were all laughing and Clara burst into tears, "They are going to cut off his tongue." She was horrified. And Scott Farkis scared the tar out of her. Oops. The kids, minus Clara, have been quoting the movie constantly and have now watched it about 100 times.

Christmas eve is the point of this post, so moving on. The day began with a few last minute errands and some tidying up. Ask my kids, all we ever do is tidy up. Funny how my house is a perpetual disaster. Anyway, that is neither here nor there. Anders spent some time tracking Santa's progress on the NORAD website. He was mezmerized. Tucker could hardly believe it. "How do they know where he is?" "Satelites, I guess," I replied. "Wow, so he is real after all?" he said in wonderment.

In the afternoon we schlepped down to my Parents for a delicious Prime Rib feast. (some of these pictures are courtesy of my Dad. I am becoming a notorious picture thief).


After dinner the kids participated in a cousins talent show. Lu recited a poem, they all played the piano, and Tucker wowed us with some pretty sweet magic tricks.



Jayson had every family make a year in review DVD and we watched them all in the spirit of slideshows past.
We then headed back home. Clara fell asleep on the drive home and was a bit of a disaster until she realized she got to open a present. The kids were pleased with this years jammies. Then after the reading of the Christmas story (the real one) it was off to bed.

Snow Shoeing at Silver Lake

A few days before Christmas we dusted off our snow shoes and drove up to Silver Lake. Lest these pictures decieve you, we did not in fact have much fun. Kids and snowshoeing don't mix. And (now this chaps my hide) we were heading to the trail around the lake, NATIONAL FOREST property and a young man with a Solitude jacket comes running out saying, "This is a Solitude Fee area." And I was like, "Um, we came last year and there was no fee." And he was all, "It is always a fee area." And I know that last year we walked all around the lake with Todd and Court and it was FREE. So instead of paying we bypassed the lake and went up the road a little and did our own thing, for like ten minutes, until the kids were whining and complaining so much we bagged it and went back to the car. Rob and I will get a babysitter next time, because I love snowshoeing and I hate doing it with children. So there you have it.