Monday, December 31, 2007
Christmas Day
On Christmas Day, my Mother stayed around until about 11:30. At 2 (more like 2:15 - we were late as usual) we went to my Dad's house for lunch. My favorite parts of Christmas this year were 1. The season was extra-long with the early Thanksgiving 2. Doing advent devotions, even though we only did them a couple nights a week (since we were out a lot)... esp. singing Christmas hymns together - I think that we have weirded out my poor sister, Amy every year. 3. Spending time with family.
Christmas Eve
This year, my mother spent the Christmas Eve night with us. It was a lot of fun. I decided to surprise her with our Katzenmeyer traditional Christmas dinner - served on Mimi Katzenmeyer's table, both my grandfather and mother grew up eating this same Christmas meal at this same antique table.
Here we are with the Standing Rib Roast(prime rib), mashed potatoes, rutabegas and peas, yorkshire pudding (kind of pop-overs) and salad.
Here we are with the Standing Rib Roast(prime rib), mashed potatoes, rutabegas and peas, yorkshire pudding (kind of pop-overs) and salad.
Christmas in South Carolina
We went to SC the week before Christmas to Stimart Station for an early Christmas celebration. Hannah and I were treated to manicures and pedicures, we all went out to see lights, and the kids got to see Alvin and the Chipmunks. On the way home, we took a minor detour to go to the American Girl Store in Alpharetta (outside of Atlanta)
Cousin Christmas
In our family, the 7 cousins exchange names and buy gifts for each other. We celebrated on the 17th, but missed Antarctica, Benjamin, Bradley Bear and Unc. Kevin!
This was the first present that EmmaKate ever opened!
The tree cutting
We revived one our past Christmas traditions and went down to Ringgold to chose our tree. This year, we got a Leyland Cyprus and even a month later, it is still green! We can keep this one up til Epiphany!
Hannah was a bit grumpy, until she saw the animals. Joseph found a cute "Charlie Brown" tree, we ended up going with Jack's pick, because it was our favorite, too.
Jack's Birthday
Hannah hi-jacked Jack's birthday. Actually, she didn't have a choice in the matter, but she was pleased, none-the-less. Her piano recital was scheduled for Dec. 7th, and Jack was not pleased.
Hannah played a duet with her Grandma - "Trepak" from the Nutcracker (dance of the Russians), and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". The recital felt like a church event in the wrong sanctuary; several kids from our church performed.
Jack had been planning a Basketball Birthday since the end of last Basketball season (in years past, he dreamed of having his birthday at the Yeary's house, like Harrison did years ago) He wanted to rent the Bethel gym. Instead we rented the small gym at the Y (only $30 per hour). It was an experience in chaos. The party attendance was actually quite small compared to years past, but even a small group of 8-year-old boys in a small gym with NO sound absorption, could drive a mother in sane.... his grandparents sure were good sports for hanging around so long. But he had the party he wanted and had a good time. I plan to take a year off from party planning.
Oh, and for those of you that haven't had a child reach 8 yet. At least in boys, 8 is "still a baby : )"
Hannah played a duet with her Grandma - "Trepak" from the Nutcracker (dance of the Russians), and "We Wish You a Merry Christmas". The recital felt like a church event in the wrong sanctuary; several kids from our church performed.
Jack had been planning a Basketball Birthday since the end of last Basketball season (in years past, he dreamed of having his birthday at the Yeary's house, like Harrison did years ago) He wanted to rent the Bethel gym. Instead we rented the small gym at the Y (only $30 per hour). It was an experience in chaos. The party attendance was actually quite small compared to years past, but even a small group of 8-year-old boys in a small gym with NO sound absorption, could drive a mother in sane.... his grandparents sure were good sports for hanging around so long. But he had the party he wanted and had a good time. I plan to take a year off from party planning.
Oh, and for those of you that haven't had a child reach 8 yet. At least in boys, 8 is "still a baby : )"
Saturday, December 22, 2007
An idea
I came up with a new tradition for our family: A Family Yearbook.
You can upload pictures to Snapfish, Shutterfly, Wolf, Walgreens, etc. to make a bound book at a very reasonable price.
I never made it very far with scrapbooking, and like that this is neater and more uniform.
Now we need to turn our dining room closets into bookshelves to display our yearbooks. I think that I can go back and do as far back as 2003, and possibly make special books for big events like special vacations.
Thought I'd share - as it may be an idea that would interest you!
You can upload pictures to Snapfish, Shutterfly, Wolf, Walgreens, etc. to make a bound book at a very reasonable price.
I never made it very far with scrapbooking, and like that this is neater and more uniform.
Now we need to turn our dining room closets into bookshelves to display our yearbooks. I think that I can go back and do as far back as 2003, and possibly make special books for big events like special vacations.
Thought I'd share - as it may be an idea that would interest you!
Living the Dream
A funny Jack Story:
Our kids do not like to be constricted by clothing. Hannah has always had clothing issues. Joey hates to wear underwear. Many times as we are helping him zip his pants/shorts, we find that he does not have any on. Both boys do not like to wear pants; only shorts.
On cold days, we insist that the boys wear pants to school. They complain mercilessly about this. As soon as we get home, they break free from the tyranny of pants and change into shorts.
Last week, after school, Jack walked into the house, stripping from his pants, on his way to the bathroom. Experiencing the freedom of his boxers.
After about a half hour, a friend knocked on the door, inviting Jack out to play. He ran in red faced after a few minutes when his friend's Mom asked him why he wasn't wearing pants. - He had gone out in a sweatshirt and boxers!
Our kids do not like to be constricted by clothing. Hannah has always had clothing issues. Joey hates to wear underwear. Many times as we are helping him zip his pants/shorts, we find that he does not have any on. Both boys do not like to wear pants; only shorts.
On cold days, we insist that the boys wear pants to school. They complain mercilessly about this. As soon as we get home, they break free from the tyranny of pants and change into shorts.
Last week, after school, Jack walked into the house, stripping from his pants, on his way to the bathroom. Experiencing the freedom of his boxers.
After about a half hour, a friend knocked on the door, inviting Jack out to play. He ran in red faced after a few minutes when his friend's Mom asked him why he wasn't wearing pants. - He had gone out in a sweatshirt and boxers!
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