Blueberry Muffins

 

Fog

 
Why is it that fog instantly makes things look mysterious? I find it interesting how the trees aren't completely shrouded by the fog, it's almost like we can peek through it.

Two Wheels

 
Carter has graduated to 2 wheels (well, actually he has 4). He was a red blur up and down our street. He's finding out he doesn't have to pedal as much as he did with the pink tricycle. As you can see by the picture (or can't since it's black and white), he has a more "manly" bike now too.

Hair

 
Not too often for us that all the girls get their hair cut at the same time. They always look so fresh after getting some inches chopped off. We have never been able to get enough cut off for Kenna. I am curious the next time how short she will get it.

Surprise!

 
We had a visitor over Christmas Break. I was told by my mom that they were coming over sometime the following night. Blake and I were so curious. We didn't know what they were up to. I didn't know it could get any better, but really, how can you top Santa and Opa rolled into one?!

Monkeys

 
We had some tree-climbers the other day. We spent a lovely day as a family. One of the things we did is hang out at a park for quite awhile.

Gooey

 
Does this picture give you warm fuzzies just thinking about all the memories we created or make you cringe at the sight of a mess? I have to say I really enjoyed decorating and didn't care at all that Carter would pour out the whole bottle of sprinkles on the butcher block so he could lick his hand and eat them.

Cookies

 
Since we only had a couple days free before Christmas we crammed a lot of our baking into one day. We were baking and cutting and decorating and dipping. We usually decorate cookies and dip Ritz crackers in chocolate. We put peanut butter in between 2 Ritz crackers and then dip them in chocolate. Yummy.

Guess?

 
Are there any guesses as to what this is that adorns our Christmas tree each year? I have to say it started out as my least favorite ornament in the beginning of our marriage. I couldn't believe he wanted it on our tree and especially competing for the height and rank of the star. Each year we have "sparred" over it and each year it has made his way back on. Some years, it has appreciatively made it to the backside of our tree (or I would prefer maybe to say the dairy ere of our tree :) ) and some years he is just a bit too high up. Blake insists that it is always the FIRST ornament on our tree which only adds to the audacity of it. Well, we're going on 12 years of this and it actually holds quite a bit of fun memories. I would never mention this to Blake, but it actually is a fun one now because of all the memories tied to it. If he ever asked me point-blank whether I liked "him" (him being the ornament), I would never admit it.

Socks

 
Jacie brought these socks for a gift exchange at church a couple weeks ago and ended up coming home with them as well. At the last minute someone grabbed her gift so she grabbed these. I wouldn't mind owning a pair of these so I can wear my flip flops. I don't think they would be thigh-high length for me though. It kind of looks like Carter has chicken feet when he walks around in these.

Scarf

 
The scarf provided many minutes of fiddling and twitching time for Avery on stage. I don't know what she would have done with her hands had that not been there to act as an outlet for her. She loves looking at other people too. I would almost label her as a semi-professional voyeur. Even while singing she was ensconced with the other class. It was quite entertaining to watch. They did a good job. I always think it's quite a fete to get a couple hundred kids to sing and follow directions. What a lovely thing to watch and hear. Real recently I read "The Pearl" by John Steinbeck, there's a theme throughout the book about music. Kino, hears 2 songs playing throughout his life, the "Song of the Family" and the "Song of the Enemy." The "Song of the Family" makes up the sounds of everyday life for them, beit the clanking of a pot made by his wife or the crackle of the fire. These Christmas programs have contributed to my "song."

Avery's Program

 
No, it's not a repeat of the last entry. It is however the same background. Last night we were able to hear Avery and Grace and Ayla in their Christmas program. Avery even sang in an octet? There were 2 groups of 4. As you can see, we were flabbergasted that she was able to get the part as it required an audtition and she swims in a gene pool lacking in musical ability. She did a great job and I was glad I had her wear a scarf as it provided an outlet for her fidgeting as you will see in the next post.

Christmas Program

 
Last night was the 2nd/3rd Grade Christmas program. The kids did a great job. Kenna surprised us one afternoon by telling us she tried out for a part for the Christmas program. We were trying to prepare her for a possibility of not making it (based solely on our own singing abilities). We were excited for her that she made the cut. Although she forgot to go to a couple rehearsals, which painfully to a 2nd grader was during last recess, she was still able to sing. She said before the performance that she was nervous. I don't blame her one bit as I am not inclined to stand out in front of many people. I could tell her nerves were in high gear as she sang with 7 other children because I don't think I saw her smile once. This picture of she and Jacie is before the performance.

Thankful

 
Thanksgiving service is always such a treat at our church. We were able to write our thankfulness down on a rock and bring it to the front of church. The annual open mike is always a great way to reflect with others on what we are thankful for. After church we were able to spend a wonderful day at my parents. Oma always has crafts for the girls. Opa always goes fishing with them. We were blessed with so much food and beautiful weather. The kids also performed a play for us. They are getting better and better. There was a storyline (which helps a lot for viewing :) )

Contortionist

 
Can we say, "future circus performer?" This hurt me just to watch.

I am trying to play catch-up on the blog, so there will be a stream of entries. You may want to scroll back or forwards to see others.

20-minute jog

 
Another year (technically 1/2 a year since they changed the run to the fall. I liked it, it wasn't so hot) down, another 20-minute jog done. The girls reminded me that I did not participate last year because I had sprained my ankle a few days before. It was fun to run with them. I didn't see Jacie until half way through the race or I would have taken a picture of her too.

Big Sis

 
This is Jacie leading Carter around. Sooo cute, almost makes me forget the "other" times. :)

Cousins

 
We got to play with Tommie today. It's a lot of fun to have him over.

Cotton Eye Joe

 
Tuesday was field trip day for 3rd grade. We had a good time learning about how cotton is picked and separated from the seed. We wore ear plugs in the gin because of the loud machinery. This was a first for a lot of kids. Afterwards we got to eat lunch in a hangar. After we ate lunch the kids were able to see a crop-dusting plane take off and land.

Halloween

Though we're not a big proponent of this holiday it sure is fun to dress up. It's always more difficult this time of year to explain the creepy decorations around town and the downright scary ads. We didn't give this much effort either. About 10 minutes before we went out we figured out our costumes. Jacie was a lawyer, Kenna and Carter were soccer players and Avery was Tinkerbell (which might be a repeat performance). We ate a quick bite of food with our friends and then Jacie and I headed home while the others went to a couple of houses. Our goal was to get them in bed on time so we wouldn't have tired children the next day. I think it worked. We wanted to be rested up for Jacie's fieldtrip the next day. Pictures to follow.