It's the holiday season and time for family pictures! Thankfully, we had pictures taken late last December and we got a few good ones throughout this year, but I am who I am, and I always like to try some more :-) We couldn't do the professional route this year, and honestly, I think I can do just as good sometimes...so, when my mom visited last, we tried to pull together a few ideas. These are the result. Not everyone was totally cooperating, but I think we did okay. I love the ideas and lighting at least, so it works! After a weekend of photographs, it was Thanksgiving - and then we started to get into the full swing of Christmas. I love being home now and not rushing with work. I feel we can take things a lot more slowly and just enjoy the month. Mark is also off for almost two weeks later this week - and I cannn'tttt waaaaiiittt! :-)
One of our traditions as a family is decorating gingerbread houses, trees, trains, etc. John is finally able to participate, so I just basically stand back and let them do their thing now. We found a train this year, and of course John wanted to do that. Once we had it, John wouldn't leave it in the closet for later, so we broke it out early. The kids also have a gingerbread class at the rec center later this month and that is a lot of fun too.
Thanksgiving weekend we went on the Polar Express in Hood River. John is in love with trains more than ever, so I wanted to do something involving a train for him for the holidays. It's not the best experience out there, but for the time you get to spend on the train, I think it is worth it. I was a little worried Mel wouldn't enjoy it, but by the time Santa came around, she was all smiles. I thought this year was going to be iffy with her and Santa, but she seems to still believe in some of the magic :-)
Mel of course, knew JUST what she wanted to tell Santa she wanted for Christmas. John on the other hand, is still pretty unsure. He wanted to hide under the seats, but Mark said he would hide him under his coat. He wouldn't even peek out! But, we all finally coaxed him a bit. This was as close as he would let Santa get! Maybe next year...
We had a great time over all and it was a great kickoff to the Christmas season.
To end our VERY FULL Thanksgiving weekend - we headed out to get our tree at our favorite tree farm, Holly Hill. We TRIED to not get one too big, I think we met in the middle :-) We don't have really, any room in our house for a tree, but we put it in our office in front of the window in between all the furniture. It ended up being more full than I would have liked, but its beautiful. Holly Hill has the best prices in town and this year we drove away with THREE trees! Haa haa! For $21 though, we couldn't pass them up! Mark and I were just cracking up all the way home. We got our 8" Noble and the kids talked us into getting tiny ones for their room as well. They turned out so cute! Mark put a string of lights on each one and nailed a wood stand to the bottom. We split all our ornaments between the three trees and they turned out adorable!
Again, the kids have taken over decorating the tree. I love that it is a family affair and have kind of just let them have at it. The following weekend, Mark got a few lights up on the house and we are all set! I have a couple more things to get, but the frugal person I am, I am waiting for some sales to come through. :-) I have started wrapping and have a few sewing projects yet to finish. I wanted to be a bit further along at this point. But, oh well. Mark is off later this week for the next two weeks, so I am just looking forward to him being home and catching up on some projects and just being able to spend the time together.
Other than holiday stuff, we still are just going and going every day. Mark and I TRY and sit, we just aren't those type of people! :-) Mark has been going to Salem a lot to help out there, so he's pretty exhausted with that. But, it has helped us tremendously with Christmas since he gets mileage reimbursed. I think he is ready to be done with that though.
Mel is doing really well at her new school. She is challenged a lot more, but its been good for her for sure. Since school started she has been involved in the Lego Robotics team. They meet 2-3 times a week for two hours at a time. We had heard a lot of this "Lego" thing, but didn't really know what to expect. Well, on Sunday, they joined 18 other teams for an all day competition to showcase their robot. We weren't expecting much - until mid day - when we realized her team was actually in 3rd place! They not only had to build a computerized lego robot, they also had to give presentations in front of judges, answer very technical questions, and had to create a device that showcased how it could help an elderly person. They developed a chair that was shaped like a banana that basically gently leaned forward to help a person get out of their wheelchair if they did not have the strength to get up on their own. Impressed?! Their overall score earned them 4th place. The top 4 teams are going to STATE! It was pretty amazing and fun, I have to admit. I am a PROUD mama! The team got a trophy and they presented to their principal today at school. We were wondering what all the work was going to produce, but now we are glad we stuck with it and I think Mel is happy she did too. Soooo, in January, we will be joining Mel and her team at the state competition!
John is home with ME all day! We drive each other a bit batty at times, but this is why I am home (to spend time with him) - so, I try and remember that :-) I am always trying to cram so much in my days, but I am really also trying to have that good quality time with him. He will be in school before I know it, so we definitely just spend days just playing and hanging out. He is just a wild child half the time and so cute and cuddly the other part. He loves to have friends come over and we meet up with them at places to play as well. I have become a lot more involved in Mel's school too, so we are spending a lot of time there. He is a handful there at times, but it is probably good that I take him with me. He is getting more used to the atmosphere and how to behave and getting to know the school and people. Hopefully when he goes there, he will be just that much more comfortable.
I am still home and I hope to be here for awhile. Not even looking for a job at this point. I am still wishing and hoping to further my "business" crafting and selling, but it is sporadic. I just finished an apron that I really am loving, but I think I will delve further into that after the New Year. We will see what next year brings with all that. I am now volunteering at the library at Mel's school once a week. I help when classes come in for their checkout/library time. I LOVE it in there. If I went back to work, I would love to be able to get into the library. Of course, I have always loved to read and books have always been a comfort to me, so I am just loving helping and doing whatever I can in there. I also am starting to take over the school's Box Top program. It's a bit overwhelming right now, but the lady who was doing it before is very helpful and very eager for me to take it over so she can work on grant writing. We just had our first "run" and raised over $500 for the school. Pretty exciting! I hope to beat last year's earnings. It's exciting to me to bring in some money for the school and be a part of that. It's also not asking anyone to bring in any cash, its something that is available on the products we buy, so people seem very eager to help. I am loving Mel's school and the small, community based feeling it has. I am SO glad we transferred her.
Well, dinner is calling - looking forward to posting Christmas pictures and talking of our goals for the New Year!
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