Holiday Wrap Up

There was much for our little clan to celebrate as we close out another wonderful year together. We were blessed to see many of our family and friends over the course of this Christmas break. We didn't get the chance to all gather at once, but that just means we got to spread the holiday cheer a bit longer this year.


We started off our holiday tour of Texas with a trip down to Wharton to visit with Nanny and the crew down there. They rolled out the red carpet and welcomed us with open arms and a stuffed table. Our time ended too quickly, but at least we got to spend the afternoon together as a family. Nanny has had a rough year, health-wise, and it was a joy to spend this time with her. I am hoping that our visit helped to bring a bright spot to her day as well.

Just a few days later, the 3 of us enjoyed our traditional-for-us Christmas Eve festivities: an early service, a special dinner, a reading by Wonder Boy, and an always anticipated gift exchange! There were some FUN THINGS under the tree this year. One of the highlights (for me) was watching Wonder Boy open a seriously surprising gift: a melodica. As he unwrapped it, he looked rather confused and it was obvious he just didn't even know how to react to it! But by the time he unboxed it and tried out his first tune, he was hooked! I'm also pleased to say he entertained us throughout our holiday travels with it. NOTHING breaks up a 3 hour car ride like a lively tune from the back seat.

Christmas Day brought the Huntsville family into town. We enjoyed another over stuffed table and another afternoon of catching up with family. The 3 youngest had a great time unwrapping gifts and playing with Wonder Boy. Wonder Dad and I enjoyed having the littles around too. There is just nothing like the holidays with young kids. And while I am in no rush for grand-kids, I do get glimpses of things to come and it warms my heart.

After 3 separate family Christmas celebrations, we were able to prolong our holiday gatherings with trips to see friends in San Antonio and in Katy. It was a great way to wrap up our vacation. And it was our yearly reminder of the things that truly matter in life - precious time with those we love the most. I feel renewed after this time away from the hustle and bustle of life, surrounded by those I love the most, my heart completely full.

Happy Ho, Ho, Ho!

This holiday season, once it got ramped up, was about a 5 day extravaganza! We visited with friends, had quality time with family of all shapes and sizes, and still managed to garner some special just-the-three-of-us moments as well. I took a BOAT LOAD of photos and have a few here to share. You will see that I had a hard time cutting down what to post. But I just didn't want to leave anyone out!


Honestly, I couldn't cram half the pictures on here that I really wanted to share. So for now, this will have to do.

We enjoyed a small gathering with friends the weekend leading up to Christmas. We spent a wonderful Christmas Eve with a traditional-for-the-three-of-us feast. And then Christmas day almost all of my family made it in for a wild and wooly lunch with kids ranging from 2 to 13 running, playing, joking, eating, and infecting everyone with a good dose of holiday cheer.

I don't think I could have scripted it any better - aside from some family members that need to pay more attention to their watches *ahem* and the addition of a couple of folks who couldn't make it this year. It was a good day. A very good day!

I think what I will remember most about Christmas this year is the feeling of contentment from being around those that I love and who love me back in return.

Merry Christmas! And may God bless us, EVERYONE!

Sights & Sounds of the Season

Our tradition is that, the day after Thanksgiving, we kick off the Christmas season by putting up the Christmas tree. We rushed that by a day this year since Nanny was in town for Thanksgiving and starting dragging out boxes and lights and tinsel as soon as the turkey feast was cleared from the table.


I'll admit though, despite all of the Christmas cheer around the house, I have had a hard time getting into the spirit this season. I'm not really sure why that is the case. We did our shopping early, so I'm not dealing with the stress of holiday crowds and frenetic shopping. Maybe it's work. Maybe it's just the hot-then-cold weather (but that's pretty typical for TX at this time of year). I don't know. I've just had a hard time FEELING IT, this year.

But that has all changed in the last few days.

So what sparked the big change, you ask? It's actually a very simple answer - Christmas tunes! Wonder Boy loves everything Christmas: the lights, the tree, the specials on TV, the PRESENTS, and Christmas carols! He belts out his holiday favorites in the shower, in the car on the way to school, judo, and anywhere else we might travel. He even reads (in his head) questions on his math test to the tune of his favorite holiday anthems (he admitted to that one yesterday when I asked about the math test)!

So I wanted to share with you a few of the tunes we are enjoying this season. Hopefully they will inspire you the way they have our family!

Straight No Chaser - The 12 Days of Christmas:

Straight No Chaser - The Christmas Can-Can:

Straight No Chaser - The Nutcracker:

The Bobs - Mambo Santa Mambo:

Los Straightjackets - God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen:

Los Straightjackets - Feliz Navidad:

There are many more tunes, of course. But these are the ones that are being played (& belted out) most often!

Take care and Merry Christmas to you all!

Merry Christmas!

I'm actually posting this on the way far side of Dec 25, 2013 (it's now 2014, but I'll be back dating this post). I'm not sure why it's taken me so long to work on this. Perhaps it's because our holiday this year was so nice and peaceful that even taking the time to write a blog post seemed like an intrusion on our family time. Whatever the reason, here is a brief review of our 2013 holiday ...

Instead of one big family gathering, our celebrations were a bit more spread out this year.

We launched our family festivities with the Christmas-ification of the house, both inside and out, on Thanksgiving day. And we kept adding decorations and other such signs of the holidays all the way up until the week of Christmas!

On Dec 20th as schools (both big and small) shut down, we kicked off our long winter break with a family wedding. The next day Wonder Boy tested successfully for his purple belt in judo (post coming soon). And the day after THAT we welcomed our first visitors and had a great lunch and early present exchange.

Christmas Eve found us at home, just the 3 of us. We enjoyed an early service, had a super special (though quite non-traditional) dinner, a reading by Wonder Boy, loads of Christmas movies, and the exchange of our gifts to one another. Christmas day started pretty early with more presents and was followed by another wonderful family visit for yet another great lunch and even MORE gifts.

*WHEW* That was exhausting even to type! Honestly, It was a whirl-wind of excitement and we have all enjoyed it immensely. Here are a few sights from our season of celebration:


We'd like to wrap up our holiday re-cap by wishing each and every one of you a happy and healthy 2014!

Traditions

Traditions. I can't hear the word without hearing the music from "Fiddler on the Roof."

Regardless of the tune in my head at the moment, we are all about tradition in our little family. Traditions, schedules, routines ... might sound boring to some, but to me they spell order, reliability, and comfort. OK, so maybe schedules and routine are nothing to crow about, but tradition is another matter all together. Traditions have an aura of importance and reverence to them. Traditions are those things that can at once make us anticipate the future and remember the past.

We have many family traditions sprinkled throughout the year, but like in other families, the holiday season is chock full of them. What are some of your favorite holiday traditions?

We put up our tree (usually) the day after Thanksgiving. Lights go up on the house fairly shortly thereafter (weather and energy permitting). The Nativity and Christmas village are displayed. And stockings are hung by the chimney with care (sorry, couldn't resist).

These stockings are one of my favorite Christmas displays. When I was even younger than Wonder Boy is now, my mom labored away to create these amazing felt stockings for each member of our family. I looked forward to seeing them each year. Mine had a Santa on it with his bag of toys. She made each toy individually and then stuffed them in the Big Guy's sack. They were sewn in place, but oh how I longed to take them out and play house with them! Every stocking she made for us was equally as detailed, but all these years later it is that sack of toys that comes to mind and makes me smile.

When Wonder Dad and I married, I couldn't wait for the holiday kits to hit the craft store. The first thing I got that year was a felt stocking kit - just for him to hang alongside those my mom would put up. I barely made the holiday deadline, but by the time the ornaments were pulled from storage and the bits and bobbles placed everywhere around the house, Wonder Dad's stocking was ready to hang with the rest!

In years to come as Wonder Dad and I developed our own holiday customs, our stockings hung in our own home. When I found out we were expecting Wonder Boy I made a bee line for the craft store for my next felt project. I was so proud to have finished it in the weeks before he officially joined our family. And even more so when I hung it next to the others that Christmas.

I don't know how many more stockings will find a home over our fireplace in the years to come, but I always stop and check out the new offerings each year. You know, just to be ready.

Sounds of the Season

It is our family tradition to start our Christmas holiday decorating the day after Thanksgiving. This year we put the tree up on Thanksgiving itself since we had some minor changes to our plans for our Turkey Day meal. Usually, we put off all signs of Christmas until after Thanksgiving - I am not one to ignore any holiday and I like to make sure that Thanksgiving gets its time center stage.

But there is one exception! The week leading up to Thanksgiving, I relent and let the Christmas music play. Wonder Boy and I usually start with a playlist or two in the car. After Thanksgiving, all bets are off though and you'll find holiday tunes in the car, at work (my trusty iPod is loaded with good tunes and if I need a change of pace, I'll fire up Pandora and let them deliver up some Christmas classics), and of course at home.

Here are a few of our family favorites ...

Each year Wonder Boy tends to have a different favorite. This one is the one he always wants on the drive to school in the morning:
the Brian Setzer Orchestra perform the Nut Cracker Suite:

Wonder Dad likes a bit more bounce in his tune:
John Mellencamp's "I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus"

Right now I'm feeling drawn to the classics like this one:
Nat King Cole's "the Christmas Song"

And Wonder Boy watches the Charlie Brown Christmas show almost daily. I think this is his favorite tune from the show: Hark! The Herald Angles Sing

Our list could really draw on and on, but I wanted to share a few of these here with you now.

What are your favorites?

Holiday Wrap Up

For us, Christmas is not just a time for presents and food. Most especially, Christmas is a time for family. We treasure the time we have off and the opportunities we have been given to spend time with our families - both those related by blood and those friends who make up the family of our hearts.



Christmas is a time to fully understand the overwhelming blessings in our lives, to know we are loved and to celebrate the many with which we get to share our love.

God bless us, everyone; this year and always!

Deck Them Halls

Today was an early release day from school for the local boys and girls! And what better way to kick off the long winter break than a play date with a favorite fellow elf?!

Wonder Boy and his school bud spend a great couple of hours bouncing around the house, playing video games, and trying their hands at some holiday confection creations.



I think they did a great job considering none of us had ever given it a try before. It is unfortunate that the house didn't stand for very long and Santa's sleigh never really got off the ground either. But the boys had fun and were able to dive head first into the spirit of the holiday.

That spells success for me!