It Was Sweet

The school break is over and I wonder if my children will ever believe that I don't like sending them back into the crazy routine of school and after school activities any more than they want to give up most of their free time. So while they cling to the hope of another week off in February, here's a brief recap of our holidays.

~The first glimpse of evidence that Santa had stopped by for a visit.


~This was shortly after she learned that Santa had forgotten to buy one of the three things she requested and just before she learned that while he had purchased fragrances for her, they were not the fragrances she took him to the store to show him. This may or may not have impacted her decision to lobby us to let her move to Kentucky to live with her grandparents.

~Steady rain and wet wood made for a slow and steamy fire. (That doesn't sound exactly like I intended to say it...)

~Although there are no pictures (my mother thinks that maybe I don't exhibit the best editing skills in my pictures of her), we had a very nice visit with my parents. It's never easy to leave and the visit always seems inadequate.

~New Year's Eve brought my lovely friend by for a night of pizza, conversation, boardgames and a gaggle of kids in a hot tub.


~And then there was finally New Year's Day.
No appointments. No obligations. Just a book. A fire. And pajamas.

A very fine holiday season indeed!

Week-End Update Although the Week-End Ain't Over

Notable points of interest:

The boys got out their air soft guns and the first thing they shot was their youngest brother's backside. Ouch.

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  The family made a fairly good attempt at a healthier lifestyle by planting. Premature planting, most likely.
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  The dad began the work of opening the pool; the water is 64 degrees. At this rate, it will be 27 years before the pool is warm enough for the mother to put her toe in.
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  Boy #2's trombone arrived. He can make a sound with it, and although his parents think this first year of band will be a long one, they never dreamed that a child who struggled with oral motor apraxia would one day be able to blow enough air into an intrument to make a sound. Interpretation: to the neighbors we do apologize, but to us, it was a sound of triumph.
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  The mother of the family traded bagel slicing duty for nursery duty on Sunday. She actually prefers the bagels.
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  The daughter and oldest son were overjoyed when their mother and father offered them the chance to go to Kentucky this summer to spend time with their grandparents. How much more thrilled they will be when they learn their Texas cousins will be there, too.
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  And lastly, asthma continues to taunt this boy and his parents' efforts at taming it.
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  And now to enjoy the last of the long week-end.

Procrastinate!

Maybe other people post Halloween pix the day of or the day after, but I am not a fan of predictability.

Labor Day

Hooking the boat up to the van: 10 minutes

Buying gas, snacks, and bait: 15 minutes

Driving to the lake: 20 minutes

Getting the boat into the water: 5 minutes

Realizing the boat battery is dead: 2 minutes

Opting for Plan B - ice cream at the Dairy Maid: Priceless

Our 4th: Simple and Good

We spent our 4th of July in the most conventional of ways.

We did some of this:

Lots of this:

Enjoyed these:

Had a few arguments over this:

Continued the arguments here:

Cozied around this:

And oohed and awed at these:

A good holiday indeed.  Thanks, America!