Welcome to our World

Our Christmas week included ice skating, tennis, and busting out the Nintendo Switch that probably hasn’t been used since last summer.  Michelle got plenty of ice time between going with Natalie and I on Christmas Eve, going with her viola section on Friday, and for half an hour as part of a tri-stake youth activity and her first Church dance. Beware of playing tennis with a baseball player, especially if he’s an outfielder. Poor kid had to take it easy on me after he accidentally hit me with the ball. Yes, there is a bruise, and in a place I have only showed my spouse. Lol Hubby made us a wonderful prime rib dinner for Christmas Eve and I bake ham for Christmas Day. My meal was much easier, especially considering he had so many leftover potatoes we used those instead of making new.  Natalie and I baked a cake for these meals using a Christmas tree shaped pan my mother had given us. She was an amazing helper this week!  One thing that apparently was long over due was clea...

There is something wonderful about being able to go to your child's school and watch them do something they are passionate about.  Danny's first home games were great to be at.  All of us except Michelle have gotten to see him play in both JV and Varsity games and so far their teams are undefeated! Michelle decided to bake homemade sugar, gingerbread, and peanut butter blossom cookies for her friends and she did a magnificent job planning ahead and taking all day on a Saturday to make dozens of cookies.  She even made enough for our entire family to have as well!  I was so amazed that she spent 7 hours in the kitchen.  That's true love right there.  All I did was deliver hot chocolate in cute holiday boxes with Christmas cards.  This took way more effort!  Then the next day she spent all day working on her English final project (pictured below + an essay), helping us plan for our upcoming trip, and delivering said cookies.  Oh, and one of the...

My last post ended up being way too long so I'll overcorrect by giving you one week's worth of photos this time.  First up: Danny's first official games of the high school season.  I was thrilled I didn't have to work that day so I could get there before the JV game began.  It is interesting to see how they play a little differently with mostly new players on their team.  The varsity team is the JV team from last year plus a couple freshmen, one of whom is swinging up like Danny.  The boys who are swinging up are promised lost of JV play time but have to wait and see and cheer on the Varsity players during those games.          While Danny was playing in the JV game my coworker, Coach T, was kind enough to send me a couple videos of Natalie playing in her first ever intramural basketball game.  How I wished I could be in two places at once.  Natalie was so sweet about it and let me know there was one other girl who didn't have ...

Our first snow, of course, came soon after Halloween.  We had a Friday night and Saturday with nothing on the calendar and the same went for Natalie's best friends so we had a slumber party at our house.  They ate at the E family's house, set up beds in our play room, watched Tangled , played, hung out, slept from about 11pm to 5am, giggled, got themselves breakfast, played board games, played a pioneer role play game, cleaned up the play room without being asked, and made themselves lunch before separating around noon.  I'm missing one friend in this photo but I just had to grab a photo of what the girls ended up doing after ME went home and they were suddenly "bored."  I love the way they can have fun! Natalie's first orchestra concert was incredible, per usual at our middle school.  It was so fun to see students we've known since Natalie was little all up there on the stage together.  KT got a great picture of her for us that I am so very grateful for! ...