When absolutely everything makes you happy...

This girl is a delightful piece of work!  (I really can't describe her any other way;)

Prior to her 9th birthday last week, Jess and I would often talk about what she might like as a gift.   She'd think about it and then come back to me, every time, sincerely exclaiming, "I don't know Mom.   I just can't think of anything that I need or want!"    

Um...hello child, are you for real?!!!!

I figured that as her big day drew near, she'd surely think of something to request, but nope - 

she never did, and instead, only ever remarked on how happy she was with what she had!   

I was proud of her.   Impressed with her.   Humbled by her.

...and stumped.  

What do you get the 9 year old that doesn't want for anything?

I tried my best:

Due to a really really busy weekend, we decided to throw her a big birthday breakfast, first thing in the morning, with her local cousins.    Waffles, sausages, eggs, ham...and cousins!

Now, who wouldn't want that?

That evening we let Jessica decorate her own cake and open her presents.   We ended up giving her a giant stuffed dog that she can cuddle with at night (this girl needs bedtime snuggles!), money, and a darling little umbrella.    Despite the fact that none of those gifts were things she'd actually asked for - she did seem very happy to receive them.   Seriously, if every kid could be this easy to please!   (Sam, for example, is the opposite and keeps insisting that for his birthday, I can just chose between a cello or a boa constrictor;)  

Sandwiched between those two celebratory activities was my favorite gift to Jess.    

Her and I went on an afternoon date out to Waterton!!!   (Again, not something my other kids would necessarily enjoy?)   It was a chilly day, but we searched for eagles, took pictures, dined at our favorite restaurant Vimy's for lunch, and sat by the shore and pretended it was a beautiful summer day.   

Oh yeah, and while sitting there- we both witnessed our first skinny dipper ever.

Imagine it.  There we were, sitting on two giant red chairs staring out at the lake, when Jessica, (binoculars in hand) suddenly spotted a naked man emerge from the water just below the prince of whales hotel.  He was absolutely freaking out (uh...yeah buddy, the waters cold;) as he gathered his clothes and ran back to his car.   

Luckily, there was an entire lake between us?   

FYI - It was at this moment that I pleaded with Jessica to never grow up to be a moron.

It was a pretty great day spent celebrating this kid.  

I loved having an afternoon with her to just talk and laugh and visit.  

I'm pretty sure that's all she really wanted, anyways.

She's kinda awesome like that!

Family Day= Ski Day

We're just wrapping up a most relaxing week off of school.   It's weeks like this that make me feel grateful that I am married to a school teacher.  Our holiday week began on Monday, which also happened to be Family Day.  We thought of heading to Castle Mountain for a bit of downhill skiing, but decided instead to X-country ski in Waterton.    There was still lots of snow higher up in the mountains despite the fact that we've been enjoying above zero temperatures all week.   This day was no exception.    The kids started their trek wearing winter gear, but it was a fight to get our kids to keep their coats on.  

The trail was pretty busy but occasionally we would find ourselves alone on the trail, enjoying this perfect day together.   Nate probably enjoyed it most of all.  Due to the fact that he only wore his gum boots, he was forced to ride on the sled the whole way there and back.  

A punishment he didn't seem to mind very much;)

As we reached the Cameron Lake parking lot I was shocked to see that construction has already begun.   It looked SO different!!   Hundreds of trees have been chopped down so far and all around us were stumps and logs, waiting to be hauled away.  (Probably when warmer weather comes.)

I understand why the park is expanding the parking lot, but I have to admit, seeing all those trees really did make me sad.   It was a little to Lorax-y for my liking.  

(Cue Joni Mitchell singing "Paved Paradise"...;)

After safely making it back to the van we met up with Jewel and Kendall and their kids down in the town site.   Nate and Sam were able to test out their Bitty Qs and we finished the day with some swimming and hot tubing at the Lodge.   

Mountains...Wiener Roasts...and a pool party.

It's a pretty sweet way to celebrate Family Day!

Iphone Update (Take two) and Valentines Day highlights

I know, I know.   Again with the iphone photos.   

Man, I wish I'd take the time to write a real journal entry and document all the good things happening in our family life - but 7 pictures from my phone are all I have to show for the past few weeks.   Perhaps, instead of always feeling guilty about not writing, I should take this as a sign that I am off living a great life and am much too busy to blog?    (Or maybe it's just that my priorities are all outta whack.  If I spent the time blogging that I do watching Netflix....)

Anyhoo...  Another iphone update, coming right up:

1.  February began with a birthday party in memory of Grandma Hardy.   Grandpa joined us for dinner, as always, but he surprised us by bringing KFC from Lethbridge.   This made me smile, because nothing says party to some of my kids like KFC does.  haha.   Rachel, Maddax and Savanna joined us for dinner as well - which made it feel extra special!   I'd gone down earlier in the day and purchased a few pink balloons with helium and we gave the kids a few minutes to write a quick memory/loving thought about Grandma.   We tied those notes to the balloons and then sent them up to Heaven.   Well, of course not really up to heaven.   They probably ended up in a tree somewhere along Lee Creek - but still.   It was meant to metaphorically turn the kids thoughts to Grandma, and for a few short minutes, I think it did.   Besides, who doesn't love letting go of a helium balloon and watching it disappear into the pitch black winter sky?    

2.  The second picture was taken one evening as I was cuddling with the girls.   Of course no one in the photo was actually asleep, we were all faking it.   We took about 100 shots of us pretending to sleep.  Then Jessica stood up and performed her "footloose" routine that she's been learning.  Then Abby tried to weasel a few more minutes worth of studio C on her ipod.... but eventually they did fall asleep.   Sigh...our bedtime routine could use some fine tuning;)

3.  Abby is going to Ottawa this spring with the Girls choir that she is a part of.  It's kinda a big deal.   For starters,  Abby has never really travelled away from home before without us, which has got me nervous.   In addition to that, she is about to travel further east then John or I ever have, which has got me kinda jealous;)     Early in February she (along with her choir mates) prepared almost 400 pizzas as a fundraiser.   I'm telling ya, that was a LOT of pizza!

4.  For about a week, Sam was obsessed with a science experiment he was doing at school.   John and I were largely in the dark about it, which was frustrating, especially because he kept adding to the list of items we needed to procure for him.     A bike pump, rubber stopper, hose, , matches, water jug...

Sam kept insisting that he was supposed to bring all of those items to school, and I insisted that if he was supposed to - then surely I'd have heard about it.  Turns out, his teacher had given them a chance to do any experiment they want to and had left it entirely in their hands.   I was actually impressed at how excitedly Sam took that and went with it.  The result - he was able to make fog. Cool beans!   

5.  Nate is a genuine Picasso in the making.   I adore his sly little smile.  That's all there is to say about that.

6.  John and the kids LOVE perusing the YouTube channel "King of Random."   They've made all sorts of things (inspired by him) from homemade stress balls to apple swans.   Recently John and the boys whipped up these darling little "Bitty-Qs" for future hot dog roasts.  They are each made out of an emptied pop can.  (The hardest part of this project was waiting long enough for John to find some discarded energy drink cans at school.  They're the perfect little size)   Once made, you just place hot coals in the bottom, lay a wiener on the grill, and BBQ until your hearts content!   

Yup folks - this is what happens when John gets his craft on!

7.  The last picture to share in this post is of a beautifully sunny February day in which John, the kids and friends enjoyed an impromptu game of Jackpot.   

It's been an unusually warm February, one in which tossing around the ol' football and making tiny BBQs makes perfect sense!

And what would a February post be without mention of Valentines Day!
I truly love watching my kids prep their classmates valentines each year.   Nate and Sam cared little about it, I admit.   Abby took a bag of heart shaped chocolates to pass around.   And Jess - well, she worked her darling little fingers off making homemade Valentines for everyone remotely dear to her.  Her teachers, siblings, favorite elderly couple, Grandpa ... they all got hand made Valentines.  This one that she made for Abby was particularly delightful:

"Dear Abby.  ...You are my only sister and my favorite.  Even though we are having a big fight, you are still fairly nice and fun to be around.   I am sorry that I have been doing and saying things that I shouldn't have. ...Love, your sorry sister Jessica "

Um...could she be any sweeter?!

"I must have flowers, always and always!" - Monet

January via the iphone

Because January flew by, all I have to show for it are a few photos from my phone. 

I'll try my best to recap:

1.  Right around Christmas time I booked my entire family in for their annual dental checkups.  BIG mistake!   Though my kids love going to the dentist, most of them required a follow up visit or two this time around, which has meant that our holidays and the entire month of January consisted of visits to the dentist.   Nate had to get two teeth taken out (due to overcrowding) and was nervous about it in a big way.  I was so proud of the way he went, quivering lip and all, and handled it so bravely.   Last week, we finally spent our last afternoon there for the year (touch wood).   It made me laugh though, when the other night, John and I ran into the receptionist at all smiles.   He jokingly came up to me and commented on how nice it was to actually see me outside of the dental office.    

2.  Nate has been hugely independent lately.  He bathes himself, does his chores on his own, cooks his own ichiban, hot dogs and hot chocolate.... what else does a 6 year old need to know?   Well on one particular evening he was building something that involved cardboard and a whole lot of duck tape.   Suddenly he came running to me, crying that he'd cut his finger really bad!   And he definitely had.   Poor boy took a pretty decent chunk out of his thumb.  He cried from the pain of it most of the night.   It's so hard watching your kids suffer and not being able to take their hurts away.   :(  

3.  Jessica's good friend Courtney Rowe was sick and needed to spend a week in the Lethbridge hospital.  While visiting her, Nate got a kick out of the fact that this was the same hospital that he had been born in.   He made me take a picture of him out front.   It's only after taking this picture that I realized that a) he was wearing shorts in January  b) his shorts were on backwards   c) those gumboots are actually Jessica's  and d) he had no shirt on under his spring Jacket.    Seriously!!  How did we get all the way to Lethbridge without noticing the state this kid was in?

4.  Despite Nate's crazy antics, he sure is a lot of fun.  I love the days when I don't have to work and him and I have our mornings together before he leaves for school.  On days like that, Monopoly, Sorry, War and Go Fish are our activities of choice!

5.   Jessica has been enrolled in the Children's Theatre Academy for the past few weeks.   The play she is a part of is called "On the Radio" and her performances will be later in March.   It has been fun to watch her learn her lines and practice her music and dance moves.    She even experiences her first audition and she recited the poem "Snowball" by Shel Silverstein.   Two other kids also recited the same poem as well.  Clearly us Moms were all on the same page and turned to good ol' google for inspiration.  haha.   She nailed it though and I was soo proud of her!

6.  There are a couple of days in each week that are busy for my kids from 8am-7pm.  School, cubs, activity days, young women's, choir, piano lessons etc - all happen on a Tuesday or Thursday.  For the most part, I love the fact that my kids' commitments fall efficiently on those two days - but it does mean that, while they all rush about after school, Nate is largely left out.    One Tuesday afternoon, after dropping the other three off where they needed to be, Nate talked me into making a key lime pie with him.   I couldn't get over how delighted he was.   For the record, there is no better distraction, when you are feeling sad or lonely, then Key Lime Pie! ;)

That's January for ya!

Happy New Year!

It's always hard to go back two months and try to remember the things I wanted to record.   In an effort to catch up, the next few journal entries will be a reflection of the pictures I found on my camera.    

These New Years Eve shots brought back some fun memories!  

As per our family tradition, we spent New Years with my siblings and their awesome people.  We always feast on finger food and we always prepare way too much.  There was a lot a lot of eating throughout the course of our holiday (like a LOT) and New Years Eve was no exception.   Ham and Cheese sliders, ships and dip,  rollmops....  yummmmm.

(ps:  google "rollmops" - you'll barf.   No one could actually muster up the courage to eat one)

It was a great time playing games, visiting, and catching up.  Unfortunately, I had to help chaperone at a Stake youth dance and so John and I sadly left the Hardy Party just before 9, to head to the church.   We weren't sure how many youth would show up (there was also a youth dance in Lethbridge that night) but we ended up having a great turnout.   Good thing to because we had ordered pizza for 200 and it was being delivered at midnight.  We definitely needed kids there to eat it all!  I did spend a large chunk of the evening wondering how my kids were doing and wishing I was with them to welcome in the New Year together.   Next year!;)

New Years day was just as fun.
We drove out to Waterton with every intention of going cross country skiing.   Everyone was equiped with either skis or snow shoes, and we were going to trek in to Cameron Lake.    We were feeling optimistic that, despite the cool -15 temp in town, it'd be much warmer up at the trailhead?  

Nope.

It was a blustery, frigid day in Waterton, and by the time we got to the starting point - none of us wanted to leave the warmth of our vehicles!   

We drove back down to the town site and found a camp kitchen where we could enjoy some hot chocolate and try to warm up by a small fire.   

I totally give us props for trying though.   

We're awesome like that!

That evening, Heather and Crystal served us all the most delicious Indian food for supper.   Butter Chicken, naan bread...baclava and dates for desert...    I don't know how I managed to feel hungry after all that food the day before, but it was delicious!   Jewel had invited the missionaries over for supper as well and once we had finished supper, we all rolled ourselves downstairs for some fun games of Mafia and Kahoot.   

Yup, that's right.  There's no better way to welcome in a New Year, then with this fun group!

  

Anniversary Family getaway!!

For Christmas this year, John's brother Aaron gave our family a ski package for Castle Mountain.   To say my kids were excited, would be an understatement. 

"Elated" wouldn't quite cover it either.

They went skiing for the first time two years ago and have been wanting to go back ever since.   Not a single one of them were the least bit worried about the 1 hr drive that it would take to get there, and that's saying a LOT for my non-travellers. (Especially Nate;)

We got up bright and early on December 28th.   This day was actually John's and my 14th wedding anniversary and (because we aren't really the "romantic getaway type") we figured there was no better way to celebrate the day then throwing ourselves down a mountain with our children in tow!;)

After a hurried breakfast, a frantic rush to find gloves and snow pants, and a fair amount of delay - we were off!

It was nice to watch the sun rise over the snowy prairie landscape that morning.    

Small flakes were starting to fall but we could tell the real snow was ahead of us and we felt hopeful that conditions would be great.   We got to the mountain just after 9 am and were shocked to discover that the parking lot was full and there was a huge line up all the way out the door and to the rental shop.

We stood in line for a bit before realizing that we actually would need to talk to someone at Guest Services instead, so we started over in a new line.   They then sent us up to the "Ski School" part of the resort.    We were there for a short while before being sent back down to Guest Services one last time, prior to being sent over to the Rental shop. 

  I tell ya, us "newbies" were like a bunch of bulls in a china shop.   We had NO CLUE what we were doing!  haha.  

Finally, we found ourselves standing at the base of Castle Mountain and miraculously- we actually looked like skiers!   We had our winter gear on.   Boots and skis on our feet.  Helmets secure.   Poles in hand.

We were ready!

...and we were starving.  

Seeing as it was 11:00 already, we decided to break for an early lunch!  haha

The kids do not often hear John and I say, "You can order whatever you want from the menu" so when we told them just that - they were doubly excited.   

As we were eating lunch I couldn't stop looking at Natey.   He looked so SMALL to me all bundled up in gear and helmet, trying his best to unwrap his straw.   Was I really going to take this kid up a mountain and send him flying down it?  I had zero belief that this boy would actually end up skiing.

My older three disappeared as soon as we hit the slope.   They each reported that their first run was a little bit wobbly but their "ski legs" came back fast.   For the rest of the morning I just caught glimpses of those three as one of them went whipping past me!   (Occasionally I'd hear one of them call down to me from high up on the chair lift and shout something like, "Good job Mom!  You're kind of getting it!")    Yes, I'm afraid it is not Nate that I should have ever been worried about;)

John didn't leave Nate's side that entire day.  He rode the carpet lift twice and did two practice runs on that teeny section so that John could teach him how to form a "pizza" with his skis.   After that, it was straight to the top of the bunny slope for Nate.   

...and me.  

The first time I had to stand and get off the chair lift, I fell.

same with the second time....

and the third...

and the fourth....

Clearly, I had some major issues with the exit strategy, but that was the least of my worries.   For some reason, I could not figure out how to control with my left leg.   As a result, I gravitated to the east side of that hill every time!  Worse than that though - were the times when I found myself going straight down.    Going straight = going scary fast, and I desperately tried to never do that.   

In those moments when I'd find myself going straight, I'd immediately panic, which would result in a wipe out of epic proportion.  

Seriously - the wipe outs were so so good.

(I even had strangers come check on me after to see if I was okay.)  

Occasionally I'd call over to John and demand that he'd tell me how to do it, and his response was always the same - "Just do the "pizza!"   

Perhaps he was busy trying to teach our 6 year old how to make it down the hill, but I found his method of teaching to be incredibly flawed.   I mean, how could "the pizza" be the answer to every problem I was having?     (And he calls himself a teacher;)   I was having some serious flashbacks to our honeymoon 14 years prior when John thought it'd be fun to take me snowboarding for the first time ever.    I remember sitting on that very same bunny hill, throwing a very similar tantrum, all those years ago.   haha.     Now all these years later, I was tempted to yell at him and tell him that what he was saying still made no sense, but then I'd remember that it was our anniversary and I'd bite my tongue.  

 Looking back, I think I just needed to give myself a chance.  And some time;)    With each run, John's very vague advice started to make a little bit more sense, and by my 7th or 8th time down I was definitely winning.  I hated to admit it, but he was right, things did eventually start to click.   

And once things clicked - it all got so so fun!!!!!

I loved these shots of my older kids.   Abby and Jess riding the chair lift with their arms around each other - how sweet is that?   Sam and Jess, on the other hand, make me laugh.  People sometimes mistake them for twins and I can understand why.  They can seriously be the best little buddies, though they often show their affection for each other in oddly aggressive ways.   They can't just hug each other and smile at the camera. 

Our family skied for hours this day and, by mid afternoon, I was shocked to see Nate coming down that hill all by himself.   My little boy!!!  He was beyond proud, but (after successfully conquering the bunny hill myself) I could hardly blame him.    It is such a fun feeling to zig zag your way down that hill.   

Our family stayed until the hill closed for the day and I'm pretty sure most of them would have stayed indefinitely had that been an option for them.   It was a beautiful day and such a fun time!

Somehow, awkwardly careening down a bunny hill (out of control most of the time) seemed like a delightfully appropriate and fitting way to celebrate the past 14 years of our marriage and family life!  

We're already making plans to go back and do it all over again!!

Favorite Night of the Year

 My family doesn't care what anybody says:  Steak and Lobster is the only way to celebrate the eve before Christ's birth.    I don't know when this type of gluttony became a tradition for us, but my kids think about it, talk about it, dream about it all.year.long!   It is a good think that we had a couple of John's siblings and their families here for dinner because Grandpa brought more seafood with him than you can imagine!    It was an absolute feast!   Think: french onion soup, the obligatory shrimp cocktail, hearth side bread, potatoes, carrots, steak and mushroom sauce, Lobster and mussels with a butterscotch layered dessert to top it all off.    I literally felt like I had eaten so much, I was going to have to roll around the house from that point on!    

Eating that much food is simultaneously gross - and delicious! 

Things I loved about this particular Christmas Eve dinner:   

*Prior to cooking up the Lobster, Jess made sure they all received a name.   Jess' was "Tiny Tim" and I think my nephew Maddax may have named one of them "Sebastien."

* Due to the cold, our Barbecue wouldn't light, so dinner was delayed as John took the meat over to Grandpa's house to cook the steak.  As inconvenient as this may have seemed to some, it was a drastic improvement from last year when our BBQ actually caught fire!  (Though Grilled cheese sandwiches and Lobster was not bad either;)

* Going through all of the work of a big meal feels much much more worth it when family is around to enjoy it with you.

I always marvel at how kids are able to be friends and re-connect in moments - even if they haven't seen each other in half a year!  My four were delighted to have Caleb, Malachi, Maddax, Savanna and the very new Vivian, to play with.   Kahoot, Things in a Box and Exploding Kittens were especially fun games to pay this year!

Our annual tradition of new Jammies on Christmas Eve was a success.  (As in, for the first time ever, every bodies Jammies actually fit, which is all that mattered to me!;)

As soon as Nate was dressed for bed he was asking when he'd be allowed to go to sleep.   

Seriously, when else would that happen?!

My favorite Christmas Eve moment is always (ironically) once my kids to bed.   I can almost see them dreaming of Christmas morning, the busyness of the day is done, presents are under the tree, stockings are ready - and all is quiet!

Every year we tape up a wrapping paper barricade (a tradition we stole from Jewel and Kendall's family) for the kids to crash through as they run to their stockings.    This year we had to get a little bit creative and ended up putting it at the top of the stairs.   It was a little touch and go there for a second with 5 kids racing down the stairs Christmas morning.  

Of course, Santa was way too good to our family this year.  Within a few short minutes the basement floor was covered in boxes, torn paper, opened packages and unwanted mandarin oranges.     There is a lot of beauty in a mess like that, if you ask me.    I let it linger a lot longer than I normally would have;)

By noon on Christmas Day, all of our family had gone and we were left to bask in the awesomeness of a fun 24 hours.   We spent the day resting, playing with gifts and eating - way more than should be humanly possible.

I worry this may be a hard routine to break free of.  

On the 12th day of Christmas...

This post encompasses some of our days this entire month (not just the 12 days before Christmas) but it is a description of our pre-holiday fun, nonetheless.  December is always jam packed full of lots to do, isn't it?   Early in the month, John and I sat down one Sunday evening to do some Calendaring and laughed when we realized that we had something going on (some sort of Christmas event) each evening from Dec 1st- Dec 13th.   Under normal circumstances this would have had me whining and complaining the whole month long.  

But it was CHRISTMAS for goodness sake, so I tried to make the best of the busy feeling.  And it helped that most of our evening plans involved the entire family!   Christmas concerts, broadcasts, outdoor nativities and plays down at the theatre, just to name a few.   What better way to usher in the holidays then to get to spend every evening with the ones you love most.   

When I managed to look at it in that light - it was perfect!

Other fun happenings within December:

Lots of baking!

Nate was my main helper during this Christmas season and became quite the expert cookie maker.  

We spent a few days baking several dozen assorted cookies to give away to friends and neighbors.  

Nate was always willing to keep going.  (Even when I wanted to light the kitchen on fire;) 

(The picture of our piano in the top right corner features a banner that I received as a gift this year.   It became a favorite piece of Christmas decor to me, for sentimental reasons.)

We attended LOTS of Christmas concerts!

Jessica and Sam both performed in the annual CES Choir concert which is just cute as heck.   Abby has joined the Cardston girls choir this year and put on an absolutely breathtaking performance.  The song Carol of the Bells used to drive me crazy and now (thanks to them) it is a favorite!

Naturally, we tried to continue our annual tradition of eating supper via candle light for the entire month of December.    (Which subsequently meant we carried on our annual tradition of arguing over who gets to light the candles, who gets to blow the candles out, and who plays with the candles when they aren't supposed to.)    One of these years, this is going to bring peace and tranquility to our meal time.    I just know it!

Nate and I both managed to catch the flu.  Which again, would normally really stink, but since we'd all been so busy - I was perfectly happy for the opportunity to be immobilized for a day.   So, on this one blessed snowy Sunday morning, Nate and I skipped church, watched movies, cuddled in bed and caught up on some obviously needed rest.   Minus the aches and nauseousness, it was positively dreamy!

(Note:  When Nate asks for a pillow or two for a backrest - he doesn't mess around!)

Much to my dismay, Buddykins the Elf showed up at our house again this year.  (I sometimes joke with the kids that this is the reason we move around so much.   In hopes that Buddykins will not be able to find us;)   Our little Elf's antics were relatively lame this year, probably because a certain someone failed to consult pinterest for ideas, like she should have done.   This became apparent to me one day when I caught Nate moving her around with a set of kitchen tongs.  Clearly he was being very careful not to literally touch her, but it gave him the ability to move her around on his own.
Which subsequently gave me the ability to stress a little bit less over it;)  

(PS: I think it is cool that I've used the word subsequent twice so far in this post.  Cool beans!)

As you can see, the Christmas spirit oozed into all we did throughout the month of December.  

The kids were constantly crafting fun wintry scenes, like this Santa sleigh and Rudolf that Jess made out of Lego.    Abby started going to school dressed as though she belonged in Whoville (just kidding, it was dress up day;) and what would Christmas be to me without the obligatory kindergarten Rudolf hat?!
(For the record- it'd be nothing!  Much like Thanksgiving wouldn't be Thanksgiving without the ol' turkey hat.  Both are a must, in my books!) 

By mid December, my brain was fried.   Which might explain why, when Jessica asked if she could have a Christmas party on the last day of school, I agreed.  The last day of school!!!  All those kids, hopped up on sugar from classroom parties and excitement that school is out?   That is pretty much the kiss of death right there and I should have known better, but like I said, my brain was too tired to think clearly by this point.    So...on December 18th Jessica and 12 of her best friends came over for a gingerbread house making party.   It was loud.  It was chaotic.  It was messy.   

And they were cute.    The end.

When Nates school teacher texted me this photo of Nate I almost started to cry.   He looks too big to be sitting on Santa's lap.  Stop growing kid.  You are making me sad!!!!!     

Our Christmas tree though made me happy this year.   It was a giant fir tree that John bought downtown.   It smelled great and (despite the fact that we argued mildly about how much shorter John should make it before setting it up) it looked great too!

One Monday night, some friends in our new ward invited our family (as well as my sister Jewels family) over for Family Home Evening.   The Wolseys are such a kind family and it was such a fun evening filled with yummy food, Christmas messages and games.    I'm only mentioning this because my sister used her mad paparrazi skills to snap a photo of Nate and I snuggling by their tree.  

  I love it, so it needs a place in our journal!

Just a few days before Christmas (Dec 22nd to be exact) John's sister Rachel had her baby.   Her expected due date was only a few days away, but we were all shocked (in a good way) to hear of her arrival.    It was the happiest news of the day!   Jessica told me later that she had used up 10 pages in her journal writing about that happy news, she was that excited.   She wasn't kidding either.   When we were able to see little Vivian on Christmas Eve (more about that later)  - Jessica hogged her the whole time!!!    At one point I wanted to hold Vivian and Jess wouldn't give her up.  Thinking I could wield a bit of extra power, I told her that for every minute that it took for her to pass Vivian over, I would take away one of her presents.   Jess looked up at me and said flatly - "That's ok.  I like her more than presents."   

While Rachel was having her baby, we had invited a sweet couple of friends of ours over for dinner.   The Gladdings are so dear to us and we love them very much.   They gifted our kids with a chess/crokinole board that they used to use.   The kids had a blast that night learning how to play.   We also took this as an opportunity to read through the account of Jesus' birth (luke 2) and act it out.   Jess took it upon herself to be the set designer and turned our piano bench into a donkey.  My favorite part though is the sign she had hung on the door of her "inn" which, unfortunately can't be seen.   She'd mispelled the word NO and instead wrote, "There is now room at the Inn."   haha  

I'm pretty sure I will laugh about that a million more times before it stops being funny to me.

Is there anything better than sleeping under (or beside;) the Christmas tree?   (Nope.  There just isn't)

Well, that pretty much wraps up all the highlights leading up to Christmas Eve that I just don't ever, ever want to forget.    As great as Christmas Day is, it really is the days before it that make the season special to me.   

So, from our house (well not our house but our temporary house) to yours - 

We hope your Christmas season was all you'd hoped it would be too!

Magic mornings

The fall makes for the most BEAUTIFUL sunrises.    

Like, absolutely stunning!

There were a couple of autumn mornings when I actually got up and out of bed early enough to go for a morning jog around the temple.   (Seeing as we spent a large part of this past year leaving kitty corner to the temple, I really should have taken advantage of this opportunity more than just a couple of times.;)   Still, on those rare mornings when I did get up early enough to be greeted by the sun, I was always blessed with truly majestic scenes!

One morning a group of walkers (three sweet ladies) stopped me and told me that they had been walking around the temple for years and had seen so so many beautiful sunrises, but few people ever really see them.   Can you believe it?  What a shame!!!

I resolved then and there to never miss another sunrise again!

Of course, that goal lasted all of two days.  Now when my alarm clock goes off, I'm lucky if I don't hit snooze a billion times.    

But I do remember!  

Oh boy, do I remember.

There is absolutely magic in the early morning hours!

Tooth Fairy mishap

The tooth fairy in our home has dropped the ball more times that I can count.   It has never been unusual for one of our kids to wake up and bring us their unclaimed tooth, explaining that for some reason the "tooth fairy just didn't come!"  

No biggie, right?

I usually suggest to them lots of reasons why this might have happened:

* "I bet your room was too messy.  Perhaps you should go clean it and see if she comes tonight?"

* "Well did you practice the piano this week?   The tooth fairy isn't allowed to come when little girls and boys haven't done what is expected of them."   

...etc..

One day though a couple of months ago, our flaky tooth fairy messed up in an epic way when Jessica lost a tooth.   Not only did the tooth fairy forget to stop by on the first night, but even after she'd cleaned her room, practiced her piano, done all of her homework and done everything RIGHT - 

the tooth fairy forgot to show up - AGAIN!

Two nights in a row?!!  tsk tsk.   That is pretty inexcusable, even by my standards.

Seasons end

I never  did record how John's Volleyball season ended this past year.   It was a truly awesome couple of months for him and his team!   As I think I'd mentioned before, John had a strong group of players this year.   Many of them had been on the time for a few years, by this point.   One boy was one of the best setters in the league.    They ALL played great together and worked hard - which made it a really fun season to watch!!!

For most part, these boys won more than they lost.  They went into the zone finals with a pretty good chance at making it to provincials.   Ultimately, they lost that opportunity when they lost to Eagle Butte (Medicine Hat) in the third set by just a few points!    

Arghh!!!!!   It was so sad.  

(Though I felt sad for John and the boys, I managed to feel better every time I pictured what that 12 hour drive to Grand Prairie for provincials would have looked like!)   All is well that ends well;)

Shortly after the season ended, we had the team over for one last get together.

We fed them Cafe Rio and John showed them a video he had prepared, highlighting their season.   

It was fun to watch them interact together, wrestle each other and do all that stuff that older boys do.    I'll admit, the Mom in me sometimes feels a bit nervous as I contemplate my kids' future teenage lives and I think I will worry less if they are able to find a good group (or team!) of friends that will be there for them!

It was a fun couple of months, watching them all, for sure!

That time Sam's hair was dark (and other Halloween fun)

The fall is my favorite time of year and I love all the fall holidays so much, but despite that, there is something about Halloween that makes my brain hurt, just a tad.   I'm just not creative enough to easily help my kids with their costumes.   We spend weeks planning and deliberating, gathering little odds and ends in hopes of building some awesome costume, and then the week of - they all change up their ideas on me anyways!  

This wasn't the case for Jessica, of course.   She went as an old granny, just as she did last year, and much like she will in the years to come.  (Or so she says;)   Jessica LOVES being an old granny and she plays the part so perfectly.   For example, without me knowing, she'd put some yarn and knitting needles in that big bag of hers, before going to school on dress up day.  Apparently during recess, rather than play with the other kids, she sat herself down in the middle of the playground and knitted away.    Without fail, as soon as she would don that wig she would begin walking at a snails pace.  Without breaking character, she'd inch along, hunched over her cane and move at authentic granny speed.  

Thanks to a autumn morning walk down to the Dollar Store one day, Nate settled on being a pirate.    This costume was actually pretty easy.   

Cheap dollar store hat and sword?   check!

White shirt?  Check!

Eye patch?  Check Check!

Parrot sidekick?   ....um, well...we couldn't find one of those, but thankfully Nate didn't bat an eye at the idea of wearing a cardinal on his shoulder;)  

Sam struggled with his costume the most.   He just could not decide what he wanted to be.   At first, he planned on going as Harry Potter, but that was only until he learned that one of the girls in his class was going as Hermione.  ;)   He thought of going as a storm trooper, Samwise Gamgee,  and a wizard.   Nothing really seemed to suit him for long.      Finally, after much contemplation (so much so that we'd almost run out of time;) and after the promise that he'd be able to color his hair for the part-  he settled on going as Waldo!

It ended up being a cinch and he had fun hiding throughout the day "pretending" to be unnoticed.  But really, how could anyone not notice this handsome character, right?    

(That dark hair kills me!;)

Abby decided on her costume simply because she has braces of her own.  Since (pretty much) the day she got her braces, she has planned to dress up as Darla for Halloween.  You know Darla, right?   That crazy kid from Finding Nemo (the Dentist's niece) who can't help but torture the little fishies.  Yeah - that girl.    I can't be too hard on her though - she did come up with the idea herself, which saved me from having to exhaust anymore brain power on costumes, and (as far as Darlas go) she was quite darling!

Here they are all dressed up before our ward Halloween Party.

This year Abby was busy canvassing for a Junior High food drive and was unable to join us trick or treating and John was in Edmonton at a Volleyball tournament.    That meant I was flying solo here at home.  I threw a couple of giant bowls of candy on our front steps with a sign that read, 

"Please take 1" and the kids and I headed out to some trick or treating of our own.  

The weather was perfect.   Granny inched along, of course, but that only meant that she got to fewer houses than the boys did.   By about 7:30 the kids were definitely running out of steam.   They were tired and ready to go home, but they still had their two favorite homes to visit!  

(Grandpas and Paulsons.)   

The kids love stopping by Grandpa's house because he always gives them extra candy.   

They love going to the Paulsons house because they always get to step inside and watch the cool toy train run along its track in their kitchen.  It's seriously a Halloween highlight for these goofy kids;)  

The kids were finished and home shortly after 7:30.  They all dumped their candy into piles on the floor and took inventory of what they'd earned before stowing it away for the night.   

Naturally, I snuck some of it once they'd all gone to bed;)

Oh and I have to share this photo of Abby's Halloween Party.  She's held a Halloween party for a few years now and it always makes for a fun time.   I love how willing her friends are to dress up and they sure are a funny group of girls.  This year they spent their time eating, playing air hockey and board games, and competing with each other in a lip sync battle that even Jimmy Fallon would have been proud of.   Too fun!  (unfortunately a couple of girls had already gone home before I thought to snap a photo, but aren't those some fun costumes?)

Halloween was also John's birthday, but seeing as he chose to spend it in Edmonton and not with us, I figured he doesn't deserve much air time;)  

Just jokes.  

We missed him and were so happy when he finally walked in the door late Halloween night.  It was the perfect way to end a very fun day!

That's one way to end a game...

John's Volleyball season is almost over.

It has seemed to fly by and has really been a most ideal season.   

His team started out so strong and won most of their league games.    They've been tough contenders against some of the leagues best teams the whole season through and now they find themselves approaching zones ranked third in the league.   That really isn't too shabby.  

A couple of weeks ago we had a most adventurous experience watching his team play at a nearby tournament.   The kids and I had gone to Magrath that Friday evening to watch a few of the games.   Everything was going just fine.  And when I say "fine" I mean that  I was watching John's team and the kids were all running around the halls of the school.  (Yes, I was that parent;)

Anyways, about halfway through John's second set, Sam came to me and whispered to me, 

"Mom.  Can we get out of hear.   I really want us to go.  Right now!"   

Feeling a little annoyed, I brushed him off and explained that he just needed to be patient and wait as Dad's game wasn't even close to being done.   At that point Sam grabbed my arm and said, "Mom.  The police are here.  There is a man in the school with a gun."    I could tell that Sam wasn't kidding.  he was genuinely afraid.   I got up and started to collect our coats and get the kids ready to leave out a side door.   At this same moment, a few police officers and a school administrator entered the gym.  The principal shut down the two games and got on a microphone.  He explained to us that there was a serious situation going on and that everyone in the school was to stay in the gym.    There would be no going out or coming in.   They told us that under no circumstances were we to text or phone out.   We just needed to hang tight until they could guarantee our safety.   

The kids and I were up on the mezzanine and John was down on the floor with his team.   Several school staff immediately began to tape black paper over the windows.  We all sat in silence and wondered what was going on outside those doors.  It was such a scary feeling and I regretted not listening to Sam earlier.   (Apparently he'd been in the hallways when the police entered.   They told the kids to go find their parents and stay with them.   As Sam was leaving he'd heard the police exchange a description of "a man with a gun wearing camo."    Gulp!!!

This all began shortly after 8:30 pm.   By 9:00 the kids and I began to relax a little.    Actually, they began to relax so much that I began to worry more about their levels of boredom more than the possibility of a raving lunatic with a gun.   ;)    In truth, after a couple of hours) and with three police officers guarding each door, we did really feel perfectly at ease.   

Despite the fact that the rest of the games for the night were cancelled, a few of the teams began tossing around a volleyball.   We watched, and visited and eventually everyone in the gym started getting on their phones and taking pictures.   

(Everybody say Cheese  "Lockdown!")

Just after 10:30, one of the officers told us that they felt it was safe enough to begin evacuating us to our vehicles.   We were given instructions to gather our families and line up at 1 of 3 exits depending on where our vehicles were parked.    They were going to let 20 people out at a time and we were to get to our vehicles and drive away.  No stopping.  No looking around.   Just go.  (Suddenly the idea of sleeping in the gym seemed like a pretty comfy idea;)

We all gathered by the exists and visited for another 40 minutes as we waited for the first group to go.   We were all so anxious to just be home!

John and his team were one of the first out, the lucky ducks!   There seemed to be a good 20 minute wait in between each group that got to exit.   I was really starting to wonder what was going on outside that would cause things to take so long!    

Just before midnight we (the last group) were allowed to leave.   My friend Betsy had so kindly offered to stay back with me to help get my kids to the car.   As our turn to leave approached they had grown increasingly nervous again, and frankly, so had I.     As we ran to the van I was fully prepared to throw myself into a Rambo style dive roll, should the need present itself!   

Fortunately, all was fine.  

As we left the building we did as we were told and walked straight to our van, but not before noticing the dozens of cop cars, the police dogs searching the area, and the officers lining the street with how powered rifles.   

We shut the van doors and the kids all helped each other buckle up (that's a first) as I drove away.   

We were so tired, but really kinda wired too.   As we drove home, I enjoyed a comforting conversation with Betsy and felt reassured that we are all blessed with family and loved ones on the other side of the veil who will protect us in times like this.   I plan to remember that when future scary moments arise.   

We got home just before 1:00 am and the kids fell asleep without even brushing their teeth!

They woke up the next morning still reeling from the drama of the night before.   (John of course was only reeling from the fact that his team had been forced to forfeit their game.  haha)  

The police report was released later in the day shedding more light on what had actually happened.   Turns out, a father of one of the Taber players had gone hunting for pheasants in between his daughters games.   A Calgary coach had witnessed him transferring his gone from his vehicle to his wife's and had called to report that there was a man on school property with a gun.    

The reality is that by the time the lockdown really actually happened - this man was most likely already back home in Taber. 

I could not believe it!

All of that - for nothing!!!

I'm not saying it should have been handled any other way, I'm just saying it all felt pretty anti-climatic, you know?     

And so was.  My kids' first experience with a real lockdown.   I hope and pray it will be their last!