More Christmas Pics

Just HAD to post a few more......................

Evan, Rayna holding Mckenzie, Kylan

HERE and GONE

It just goes too fast - one minute you're anticipating Christmas and the next minute it's the day after...........

Even though I had 4 1/2 days off, I believe I need another day at least to catch up! But work beckoned.....sigh.....and life continues.............

Christmas was pure joy -(and maybe a little LOUD at times)! But the best part was just being together with one another - lots of smiles, packages to open, great holiday goodies, fun games, and watching the antics of a 6 year old, a 19 month old, a 22 month old, and a newborn! It really doesn't get much better than that!

And AS USUAL, we didn't get to bring the frog home this year -in fact, Glenn and I did pretty lousy at the predictions and came in 3rd place!! The Smith's and the Savage's tied - but since there is only 1 frog, we always have a tie-breaker question and the Savage's WON!! So Jill and Robby, after carting the frog and all his clothes down to Jaime's, got to haul him back to their house!! I really hope we do a LITTLE better next year as the frog would sure look cute in our house!

Our fondue was EXCELLENT - we all love doing it - but decided since there is SO much work involved and so much cleanup, along with 2 little boys who didn't want to be in their high chairs over 10 minutes, that we will table the fondue for a couple of years at least! After all, next Christmas there will be 4 little ones to contend with!

Even though it hadn't snowed for a few days, it was still a white Christmas at our house - plenty of snow to play in! The little boys and Rayna loved being outside when they could and since Papa had been feeding the deer the last couple of weeks, we had plenty of wildlife to watch! Rayna specifically asked me if Malachi (the deer head that hangs over our fireplace) was one of the deer that had eaten the food that Papa put out - I assured her he wasn't!

Although I believe it is more fun to give than receive, I truly loved the gifts that were given to me! I can't wait to thumb through my book of "1000 Places To See Before You Die", start turning my day to day calendar of "Islands", drink my Caribou Coffee, use my "Scrabble Dictionary" in a game of Scrabble and wear my new comfy pants!! I have already listened to my Casting Crowns Christmas CD "Peace on Earth", worn my new crocs, watched my new DVD "The Lake House" and sat in my body massager - wow does it feel great!! Of course there are a couple of gifts that always stand out and this year was no different - the grandkids gave me a new mouse pad, printed with their pictures and the words,"We love you Nana" - I'll get to use that every day and think of them! And Glenn used his woodworking skills to make me a huge log sign that reads "Nana and Papa's, 876 Obsidian Dr." It will be posted at the bottom of the driveway for everyone to see!!

As you can tell by the pictures, we had a wonderful time together and have lots of memories to remember Christmas 2008!

Christmas Eve

I love Christmas Eve, almost as much as Christmas Day! The anticipation, the short work day, everyone telling you "Merry Christmas", the last minute hustle to get everything done - it's all part of getting prepared!

Although the midwest and the east are getting pounded with snow, we didn't even get the couple of inches that was predicted for last night! The cold weather, yes - but no snow! We still have plenty of snow though at our house and more is predicted on Friday so our Saturday Christmas will still be a white one!

We didn't celebrate Christmas at our house last year since the lower level wasn't finished and there just wasn't enough room to sleep everyone! But this year I get my wish - to celebrate together in our new log house! I can't wait - may your Christmas celebration be as special as ours is going to be!

I Knew There Was A Reason.............

I had absolutely nothing planned for the weekend except for the usual cleaning, laundry and last minute stuff to get ready for Christmas! And now I know why............

Granddaughter Rayna (who is 6 years old) went in for an emergency appendectomy late Friday morning! She had been complaining off and on all week of a stomach ache and Jaime and Brad took her in about 3:00am to the emergency room - and yes, she needed her appendix removed!

I left work about 11:30 and raced up to Denver - of course she was in her room by then and looked so little in that hospital bed! But she was a real trooper and came through the surgery just fine!

Since mom and dad were exhausted (Jaime and Brad), I offered to spend the night in the hospital with her - she looked so cute sitting in bed eating her popsicles and whispering to me when she needed something as her throat was still raw from the tube. I would help her of bed to walk a little ways down the hallway to pick out movies, unhooking the finger monitor and dragging the IV pole with us!

Before we went to bed, I told her she would have to talk a little bit louder so I could hear her in the middle of the night and she whispered to me that if I couldn't hear her, she would clap her hands! (As if I had any problem waking up - how could I POSSIBLY forget the every 2 hour vitals check???)

Rayna got to come home around noon on Saturday and is doing just fine! Little kids sure do bounce back fast! You're a real trooper Rayna and I'm glad I was there to help you!

Holiday Traditions - #4

I believe this will be the last blog on our holiday traditions - I'm sad to say I'm running out of them!

One of my favorite things to bring out at Christmas is the nativity scene that my mom made at ceramics, many many years ago! It graced her buffet and was a real work of art - she was excellent at doing ceramics and I believe the nativity scene was her best! There are many pieces to the scene so it fills up the area on my hutch nicely - I love the huge camels and the many animals!

After my mom passed away, the nativity scene seemed to have disappeared for a few years - and one year I decided I was going to find it as it was one of the few things that I wanted to remember mom by - I called around and finally located it - my brother had it - and he graciously offered to let me have it! The navitity scene is extremely special to me and always will be!

On Christmas Eve, we not only read "Twas the Night Before Christmas", but also the Christmas story out of the bible. And it's always been tradition to go to Christmas Eve service at church.

I remember many years ago when I was growing up, the Christmas Eve service was always held at midnight! It was a candlelight service and I loved lighting my candle from the person next to me and singing Silent Night with the lights out, and only the flickering candles glowing.

Somebody must have decided that midnight was just too late for services because then the time seemed to change right around the 10:00 time for the last service of the night - and that was OK too!

As I wrote before in a former blog, some of my most memorable Christmas Eve services were when I lived in Missouri Valley and my good friend Helen and I would do the late service on our guitars! That was back when I could play the guitar! I guess I still can but I haven't picked it up in years! Helen and I would spend hours practicing and perfecting each song and the service included at least 2 or 3 special songs that we would sing and play together in harmony! My, my those were the days....................... I miss you Helen and wish we were doing a service together this Christmas Eve!

After moving to Woodland Park, I spent many years singing in the choir for Christmas Eve services -and although I don't sing in the choir any more, I still love singing all the carols during the Christmas season!

Last year we were in Denver for Christmas and attended the girls' church on Christmas Eve - and this year we will be doing the same! It doesn't matter what church we attend - it's all about hearing the Christmas story of the blessed baby and praising our Lord for bringing that tiny baby to us at Christmas! May you all attend the church of your choice this Christmas Eve and remember the TRUE meaning of Christmas!

It's ARRIVED!

I have never paid much attention to the release of a DVD - that is until the movie Mamma Mia came out - after my 3rd time at seeing it in the theater, I searched my Netflex to see when it would be available to buy! December 16 was the magic date!!

Guess where I was December 16th at 7:30am??? Yup - Walmart - picking up my own personal copy of Mamma Mia!

Did I watch it last night?? ABSOLUTELY! And I loved watching it in the comfort of my home where I could laugh and sing and cry right along with the movie! Believe it or not, Glenn watched it with me and I think he even enjoyed it! Probably because he NOW knows all of the songs since I have relentlessly played the CD for the last 2 months!

The girls and I have decided that instead of watching our annual "The Sound of Music" over the Christmas holidays, we'll now watch Mamma Mia - and now you know ONE MORE of our holiday traditions - watching a movie together! I can hardly wait.................

Traditions - Part 3

Who doesn't like to play games? It has become a little harder to do this with little ones around but we make do the best we can!

In a former blog, I explained our "Predictions" game which is an annual one we do every Christmas Eve! Jill will be bringing the "frog" and his clothes this Christmas Eve to pass on to the next winner! I actually had to peek at the predictions to see if there was anything that needed to be counted before that day and yes there was - I have to remind Jaime and Jessi to weigh their boys AND I must look at the price of gasoline at the Western Store as we drive by on Christmas Eve - trust me, after looking at our answers, Glenn and I won't have a chance of bringing the frog home this year!! Boo - Hoo! We haven't had him at our house yet!

Another one of our games usually involves Christmas carols - remember all those fun sheets where there is a picture of something and you have to relate it to a Christmas carol?? Or a written phrase of weird put together words that actually mean a carol?? Those are always fun to do and are done as couples! Rayna gets mazes and coloring pages and fun sheets to do while we're playing the games! I have a little bit different game this year which does revolve around the Christmas carols but I don't dare tell you as I wouldn't want any of the girls to get a head start on this game!

2 years ago we played The Newlywed Game - I made up a list of 50 questions and oh my, did we have fun with that! The questions were not hard, but it's really amazing how much you really DON'T know about your spouse! Luckily there were no physical altercations during the game, just a lot of VERBAL communication between the couples! Since some of them didn't do so well 2 years ago, I decided this year we would play once again - only with a twist - the SAME questions we had 2 years ago!! I can't wait to see if we do any better this year! It SHOULD be interesting!

Rayna has learned to play Mexican Train so I'm sure we'll be playing a few games of that and usually the guys end up playing Glenn's favorite game, Hunting and Fishing Trivia - gee, I wonder why he's never asked me to play that one? (Actually, I think he did ask me one year to play, providing I wasn't on his team - ha ha!)

Christmas is next week and I'm looking forward to our "game night". And I'll let you know who gets to take the "frog" home this year!

Holiday Traditions - #2

FOOD - isn't it funny how a lot of traditions center around eating? I'm sure most people have several traditional items in this category and we're no exception!

First on the list is the holiday baking! Memories flood back to me as I remember distinctly what my mom made for the holidays! Her specialty item was divinity! It's a type of candy that is very sweet and I have to be honest, I have never made it as it was never one of my favorites! But I remember her making this and always bringing it to the different Christmas's that we attended! Divinity is one of those candies that can be difficult to make - especially if the conditons aren't quite right!! I remember mom saying several times that the divinity just didn't set up well because of the humidity! (Not that we EVER have a problem in that area here in Colorado!)

Another of mom's favorites was Norwegion Cookies - and yes, I have made PLENTY of them! I don't make them any more though, mainly because I was the ONLY one who ate them and the recipe makes a huge batch!

Mom ALWAYS made Peppermint Dessert to take up to my grandma's house on Christmas Day! This dessert is really yummy and yes, it's made out of peppermint!! Back when mom used to make it, they didn't have the blenders and choppers that we have today, so mom would buy the peppermint sticks and dad would put them in a clean gunny sack type thing and crush them with a hammer! I remember that I really didn't like it when I would bite into a large piece of peppermint that just didn't get crushed properly! And of course the recipe calls for real whipping cream - cool whip just doesn't make the grade!

Because of the high elevation that we live at, it's difficult to bake good cookies - they come out very flat and sometimes quite hard! So I now leave the cookie baking to the girls (our favorite is snickerdoodles rolled in red and green sugar!) and I am basically down to 3 items that I make for the holidays.

First is my Peanut Butter Balls - I really wish I could remember who I got this recipe from so I could give them credit but I can't - I only know I have been making them for years and years! They are fun to make and dip in the melted almond bark but are quite time consuming too!

The second thing I make is called "Clusters" and here again, there was no name for this recipe so the girls and I just dubbed it Clusters! It's VERY easy to make and I usually end up making a couple of batches of these!

3rd on the list is "Pecan Bars" and these I've only been making for probably 6 or 7 years! I found the recipe in a magazine and it sounded good so Jessi and I tried it! Oh my gosh, the bars are SO GOOD!! But something that good to eat of course takes some time and talent! Again, elevation plays a huge part in getting the caramel just at the right stage! We've had years where the caramel is so sticky, you have to eat the bar with a fork, and we've also had years where we cooked the caramel TOO long and the bars turned out hard as a rock - I think I cried those years! But they are well worth making!

When I was growing up, we always had a traditional meal on Christmas Eve - chile and oyster soup! I don't care for oyster soup as I don't like milk so never ate it, but I'm a chile fan! I remember at Christmas mom would buy the little oyster crackers to eat with the soups and we always thought that was a treat!

We did the chile for a while at our house but soon started a new tradition of fondue! And no, I hadn't kept the old fondue pot so had to go to Goodwill and purchase used ones!! We have it down to a science now and our menu is fondue grilled chicken, shrimp and elk meat, cheese fondue with french bread for dipping, vegetables, and a chocolate fondue for dessert!

Jaime and I both purchased table top grills that are heated by sterno candles and that's where we all grill the meat! Our cheese fondue is out of this world and of course I can't say enough about the chocolate fondue that we usually do later in the evening - we dip pound cake, brownies, marshmellows, bananas, pineapple and strawberries - YUM!!!

Christmas day breakfast has been traditional for many years too - we have cinnamon rolls and fruit with yogurt dip while we do our socks and then have an egg casserole with cinnamon toast and coffee for later!

Our Christmas day lunch is an easy one - baked ham, baked potatos and baked beans - all put in the oven during breakfast and by noon it's all ready - it's also pretty easy to clean up and I'm all about EASY these days!

Afternoons is when we bring out the dips and shrimp ring!! I have a new dip I tried last year, given to me by a friend and I will definitely be making it again this year - it's with fresh bacon bits, green onions and lots of cream cheese! Other favorites are shrimp dip, veggie dip, fruit dip and the lil smokies cooking in the crockpot all day in a sweet beer sauce! YUM!! I'm getting hungry just thinking about all the good food we eat over the holidays!

Guess I better get to the store and start stocking up on all the items I'll need this year!

Traditions - Part 1

I'm not sure if a lot of people have Christmas traditions or not - and I sometimes wonder if WE as a family have enough of them! Nevertheless, we have a few and those are the ones I want to write about!

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care! Oh, those wonderful and delightful Christmas stockings that we hang on the fireplace! This tradition started when I was a little girl - mom and dad always had a sock for each of us and of course we would rush in to open our socks on Christmas morning before breakfast!

I fondly remember part of the contents of those socks - there was always an apple, orange, banana and some mixed nuts in the shell! Little did I realize at that time, that the purpose of putting fruit in the socks was to fill the space!! That way, you didn't have to put so many other things inside! I'm sure we also received a couple of small items in our socks, along with the fruit but the fruit is what I remember!

When I got married and had kids, the sock tradition continued! After moving to W. Park, a good friend of mine had her mom make us all socks on her knitting machine - they were red, green, and white with our names at the top and a neat pattern in the middle! We all LOVE those socks and of course continue to use them to this day!

Of course, once the girls married, I had to add 3 "manly" looking socks for the guys and as the grandkids are born, there are more added all the time!

As far as filling the socks, we change from year to year - I used to do all the filling but then it got to the point that the stocking stuffers were costing more than the gifts!! I also used to WRAP each stuffer - try wrapping 10 stocking stuffers per person times 7 adults plus kids - it was just TOO MUCH!!

I DO NOT wrap the stocking stuffers now - and the 4 of us girls now buy 3 items for each girls' sock and we fill our husband's socks ourselves - they're much harder to buy for! And we limit the stuffer to $1.00 per item! You'd be amazed how many things you can buy at the dollar store!

I'm sure our stocking tradition will continue throughout the years! And I sometimes believe that the socks are more fun than the gifts!

The TRAVEL Tree

I put our tree up over a week ago - in a different spot from last year since the TV is now in the lower level - and I like the location of the tree much better!

Decorating the tree is like a walk down memory lane! I call our Christmas tree the Travel Tree - because it's loaded with ornaments from our travels! Years ago I decided to start collecting an ornament from each vacation that we took - and now one of the most exciting parts of our trips is to buy a Christmas ornament! Not always an easy task I might add! Sometimes it takes a LOT of shopping (mainly looking) to find an ornament and many times I've had to improvise but I ALWAYS bring one home!

Our tree boasts ornaments from Paris, Venice, Switzerland, Denmark, Austria, Hungary, Germany, Canada, Jamaica, the Riveria Maya, Tulum, Puerto Vallarta, Loreto, Lapaz, Isla Mujeres, Bahia Kino and many states in the US! Come February, I'll have one from Cabo!

And my favorite ornament? That's a tough one! I know 2 of my favorite ones from Europe are a velvet bell from Paris that opens up to a miniature nativity scene and a hand-blown glass ball from Venice - a couple of my favorite ones from the states are red jingle bells in the shape of Mickey Mouse from Disneyworld and a glass ball full of shells and sand from Sanibel Island!

I love decorating the tree and reminscing about all the trips we've taken - every time I look at the tree, I see one of the "special" ornaments and the memories take over!

Come on over and see my "Travel Tree" - just be prepared to listen to my memories!

A Precious Baby Granddaughter!

Mackenzie has arrived! No, we DID NOT KNOW it was going to be a little girl - Jessi is one of those moms that likes surprises so she did not know the sex of the baby before she was born! And the other unique thing about this baby is that she was born at home! Yes, another home birth for Jessi and Gary!

I got the phone call at 2:00pm that it was time to come! 15 minutes later I was out the door from work and headed to Denver - and none too soon either - this little tyke didn't wait around! Gary had arrived home about 3:00 from work and Jaime was already there helping Jessi and taking care of Evan - I arrived by 4:00 and we were glad when Glenn arrived about an hour later to take Evan over to Jaime's house for a while - he just didn't understand why he couldn't be up with mom!

Soon the mid-wife arrived and before we knew it, Mackenzie was born! 6:06 to be precise on the 2nd of December - a chubby little girl at 8# 12 oz and 19 1/2 " long!

Jessi had a "water birth" and as soon as Mackenzie was delivered, she was immediately put on Jessi 's chest and we didn't know the sex - after a little bit, Jessi turned the baby around and looked down and said "it's another boy" - but then looked again and said, "no, it's a GIRL!" She had first seen the umbilical cord which was still attached at that point! We all had a chuckle out of that!

Mom and baby are doing just great! I took a couple of days off at work to help Jessi out so I've had lots of special times holding this new little baby! She is so precious! One more grandchild to love and spoil!