Christmas Is Getting Closer

I wasn't sure we were going to decorate for Christmas this year, but Greg surprised me by bringing up the decorations on Thanksgiving.  We waited to put them up until today, since part of our tradition is to put in Christmas music and have some eggnog while we're putting up the tree.  I've been thoroughly enjoying the music and am *so* happy to have my decorations up.  I'm excited for our "Twelve Movies of Christmas" - that starts on the 12th, so we watch the last one on Christmas Eve.  It's a new tradition and we're still working out the finer points, but I'm excited nonetheless. 

We have some of my all-time-favorite CDs in rotation right now: Trans-Siberian Orchestra - Christmas Eve and Other Stories; Jimmy Buffet - Christmas Island; Garth Brooks - Beyond the Season; Big Bad Voodoo Daddy - Everything You Want for Christmas; Chris Isaak - Christmas; and a new album: The Brian Setzer Orchestra - Christmas Comes Alive.  There's nothing like some good tunes to get me in the Christmas spirit!  If you care to contribute (the few out there reading this), I'd be interested to know what some of your favorite Christmas artists/albums are.

Now to sit back, enjoy the lights, listen to some good music, and enjoy the eggnog.  Oh!  And try to keep the cats out of the tree (always a losing proposition, but we've got to try)...

Christmas Cheer

Christmas was a low-key event this year.  Since we've been so busy, it was nice to have some time together where we didn't have any outside pressures and we could relax.  But it was different too.  None of our usual traditions: almost no socialization (and none at all that we normally host), no luminarias, no decorations, none of "our" Christmas music, no Christmas movies.  Going into the holiday season, we knew we weren't going to decorate and our normal traditions would be put on hold.  What I didn't realize was how much those little things mean to me.

Moose across the street on Christmas Day

This year was definitely different, but not terrible - just... odd.  There was plenty of Christmas music on the radio, so when I finally did set up The Wrapping Center, I was able to listen to Christmas music and have my spiced eggnog, just like always. We did attend a lovely holiday party and got to spend Christmas Eve visiting with friends.  And it was nice to spend time together - just the two of us - and relax for a bit.  It's been a hectic winter, thus far.  We met more friends at the theater for a nice chat, some popcorn, and eventually to see a movie (everyone was at the movies Christmas Day - who knew?!? - so we had to get tickets for a later show, then stayed at the theater until we could get in line for decent seats).

Pretty icicles hanging from the eaves

I'm looking forward to next Christmas - when I actually have time to participate in the season; when the remodel is done and we can decorate and bring out our music and movies; when we can plan for some of our other traditions (like luminarias and maybe caroling again - never as harmonious as what I remember from childhood, but always fun and a wonderful way to spend an evening).  Even so, I'm thankful this Christmas for the bounty of our lives; our health and happiness; and the wonders that constantly surround us.  Hope yours was as lovely as ours.

Merry Christmas!!

Family Fun - Day Three

We split the group today. Greg & Jeannea got up early to go to Antelope Island. We had people at work, school, shopping, and visiting friends. Sara & I went shopping for the chili & cornbread makings. While we were at the local grocery store, I saw yet another new (to me) vending machine - for movie rentals. (Chad tells me there's one in some airports that sells iPods... I'm going to have to look for that one!)

We spent lots of the day cooking. First getting the chili ready and into crock pots, then baking the cookies that Jeannea had already mixed up. Two kinds of ginger/molasses cookies for testing - there was supposed to be three kinds, but we ran out of time. Dave helped with the cookies, rolling the dough balls in sugar and swapping the trays. Sara helped with the chili and cornbread. We pulled the bread out of the oven just 15 minutes before we needed to head out to Auntie Dianne's house for the party.

The rest of the evening was a blast! All my cousins except two (and their families) were in attendance, with spouses and babies in tow. I think the group of cousins (not counting spouses, kids, or parents) is about 22 people - so if you add in the rest... I think we're looking at 60-80 people. It was great to see everyone - it's been quite a while since I've been able to attend one of the big Family Gatherings. I do miss visiting and catching up. I wish we had more time this trip (I wish this every trip), as I'd arrange some one-on-one time with people to do more than "party chat". I absolutely *love* seeing everyone and getting the hugs - seeing how we've changed and yet are the same. I just wish I had more time. Maybe on the next visit.

We had loads of great food and spent time chatting and catching up. Then it was on to the important stuff - the talent show & gift exchange. One of the cousins-in-law recited The Cremation of Sam McGee by Robert Service; Aunt Bonnie did her family rendition of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas (a tradition I haven't been around to hear for *years*); and the Killpack brothers put on animal puppets and got the kids to dance around. It's interesting to see that so many of the little kids respond to the same music - it means there's enough interaction between the families that activities, music, and learning items are shared. Like a great, big family! =)

Greg got a tub of cookie cutters and I scored a great travel game (that we're going to use on the trip down to Zion this coming weekend). I was hoping that we'd sing some Christmas carols - the whole reason I started the tradition in AK was because I miss singing with the cousins. We have lots of fun when we do it at home, but it's all about enthusiasm as there's no time to get together and practice or do any "serious" prepping. We did try to get a couple songs in, but it was amidst the chaos of people starting to leave and calling for a group photo since this is the most of us that's been in one place in almost 10 years. So I heard the ghost of memories past, and made lots of new, wonderful memories - it'll have to be enough for now...

On tap for tomorrow: Shopping and hanging out. Skiing was cancelled, as Greg & Sara both opted not to go (and now Sara has a cold).

Family Fun - Day Two

Today is the day that the whole family - absolutely everyone - will be together. We've got fun things on tap, but the best will be spending time with everyone. If you get up early (like Greg) to go for a run because you're training for a marathon, you catch things like this:

I, however, slept in until the last possible moment - yay! (*Definitely* NOT going to be running a marathon - that's me...) Sheri, Sara, Jeannea, Greg & I met for breakfast at IHOP. Even though we have one back home, this one has sentimental ties - we had breakfast here with Grandma, Dad, & Aunt Anna a year and a half ago. The food wasn't special - even though they offered steak and shrimps (apparently not meaning short people) - but the company was good. Sheri & Sara took off too quickly to be part of the photo op. Oh well - there's always next time.

In preparation for the family eat-a-thon, we stopped at Costco. Turns out there's a cache in the parking lot. They didn't find it, but they found the one in the other parking lot Greg "accidentally" pulled into when he passed our destination. And on the way home, we were going to stop and get the car washed (it's filthy outside, and not all of that is from us), but the line was too long and the price too steep - I'll just say they better offer inside detailing too...

The rest of the day was spent playing, cooking, visiting, laughing, and enjoying each other's company. A very, very lovely day! We spent hours & hours playing Rock Band, with people rotating in & out or changing instruments when they got tired. I played bass guitar (on easy enough for morons with no rhythm - EEMNR) and did okay. Then I moved to the drums... Let's just say that there are 4 drums, you have to work both hands, and somehow incorporate the foot pedal. I opted to work the red & yellow drums with a partner to work the blue & green and the foot pedal. Apparently when you're used to doing the whole set on your own (and probably on a higher setting than EEMNR), it takes a bit of adjusting to use only one stick and do half the drum set. But my various partners & I increased in skill from 72% (not really my lowest) to 94%. From there, I moved into Backup Singer - which really just means I sat with Sheri and tried to sing along. She did GREAT - me, not so much. But it was fun and there was lots of laughing and hilarity.

I'm not 100% sure about everyone else, but I had a marvelous time. While we were cooking, we didn't want to have anyone left out, so we crammed as many people as we could in the kitchen and overflowed into the dining room. People were so close together doing so many different things, we had to call out to move outside our particular location. =) Then we had our gift exchange. Baby Amy made out like a *bandit*!! She's got lots of aunties and uncles that seem to think she's pretty spiffy... (myself included!) =)

On tap for tomorrow: cooking chili, cornbread, & cookies for the cousin's get-together; a trip to Antelope Island (in the middle of the Great Salt Lake) for Greg & Jeannea; getting Sara prepped for skiing with Greg tomorrow; more family fun - this time including the extendeds.

Family Fun - Day One

We had a red-eye flight direct to SLC leaving Friday night. The flight home has a layover in Seattle, but only one plane going down. Which was great because our flight was delayed by a couple hours because of bad weather in Chicago, but we didn't have to worry about missing our connecting flight. We sent email & texts to family that was supposed to meet us in the morning, then settled in to hang at the airport for a while.

The flight was uneventful and our bags were waiting on the carousel when we got there. I found a new vending machine - it supposedly serves hot pizza. This will eventually go into my (currently non-existent) Flickr album for strange vending machines. (I found some other interesting ones while we were in Florida last May - they're here & here.)

From there, we headed to the rental car company. We thought we were going to beat the family to breakfast, but that was before we stepped into the building. Let's just say that for *several* reasons, we won't EVER rent from this company again. (Complaining customers about blown tires and bad maintenance; rental cars that are delivered to the new rentee with apple cores & trash still inside; we were supposed to get an all-wheel drive vehicle & didn't; won't guarantee 4-wheel drive - whatever's there when you get there is what you get; our car is out of windsheild washer fluid; because of undisclosed extra charges, our "good deal" turns out to be as mush as we would have paid at one of the national rental companys like Dollar or Alamo... not to mention pretty piss-poor customer service all around.)

Anyhow, after what seemed like an eternity, we got the car and headed up Emigration Canyon to Ruth's Diner for breakfast before wandering around taking family photos. The canyon has lots of great scenery, and we even stopped at "This is the Place" historical site. (Heath, I found a barn star and took a picture for you!)

From there, we headed out to Liberty Park to take some more pictures, then split the group. Some went home to rest, and others of us decided to head to Gateway Mall - more pics and shopping, wahoo! I saw several areas that have outdoor fire pits so people can congregate and stay warm - very neat!

We enjoyed hot beverages and some shopping - I found some really comfortable jeans and Greg picked up a pedal stand so he can sit at his desk and exercise. We finally checked into the hotel around 6:30pm and headed out to dinner. The first restaurant we were going to try (a new Olive Garden in Lehi) told us the wait was 2-1/2 hours for a party of 10 - definitely too long to wait. We went to the one in Provo, thinking we might have to pick another joint but we got lucky - only 30 minutes and we were in! The food was great, the visiting was better.

We stopped at mom's house to visit for a while and then headed back to the hotel. It wasn't an early night, since I still had wrapping to do and we didn't get to bed until after midnight. On tap for tomorrow: family fun... breakfast, Rock Band, family cooking, gift exchange, more pictures (since we'll have *everyone* - Sheri was missing today), and general enjoyment.

Christmas Fun

Christmas Eve we spent with friends at Todd & Anita's house. It was a great evening! We had lots of food and did the visiting and gift exchange things. We also continued the tradition of putting up the luminarias - another beautiful display. The holidays are always a time when I feel especially blessed with friends that are like family. This year is no different - although it's even better because we'll be visiting my family shortly.

Christmas day was very relaxing. We slept in - Greg got up earlier than I did, but we both slept later than normal. Ahhhhh! Then we enjoyed the Christmas bread we got from Greg's mom - yummy! - and opened presents. We played with the new gifts & gadgets for a while, then went to a movie. It's *crazy* at the movies on Christmas Day! I had to drop Greg off at the doors to get tickets and then be that annoying parking vulture to get a spot. We barely got settled before the movie started. We saw Australia - it's a *great* movie, but it's very long so make sure you go to the restroom beforehand and don't drink lots of soda during the show. ;-)

We'll be celebrating Christmas for a while yet, as we're heading Outside to see family. There's an extended family get-together, and lots of immediate family events - including the gift exchange. I'm looking forward to the trip! I wish for you the feelings of contentment, happiness, and love that I feel right now... Merry Christmas!

Festival Fun

One of the ways you know it's getting close to Christmas is the number of festivals & bazaars that are advertised around town.

It's always nice to go shopping with someone else - that way you have someone to chat with, get ideas from, or just to help pass the time. After the 3G get-together, some of us attended one of the bazaars downtown. There's a new convention center in Anchorage (the Dena'ina Center - pronounced de-nine-ah), and this was the first time I've been there. Parking isn't great (but it's downtown - parking is never great there), but the design and structure were very pretty. And there were plenty of wares to browse. This was my 1st official "Shopping for Christmas" trip. Found some stuff, but have a ways to go yet...

The girls finished our shopping before the boys even made it to the second level. So we took a break and chatted while enjoying the view of the city. After a while, we decided food was in order, so we left for a close restaurant to wait for the boys there.

So the first Christmas shopping venture is a success, the new convention center is lovely, and I had a *fantastic* time visiting with Stacy. May the rest of the holiday season be so successful!!

Luminarias for Christmas Eve

ChristmasTime

We had loads of people over on Christmas Eve - it was so nice to visit with everyone and share some fun times. We did the luminarias again - and they turned out beautiful, just like last year (and every year we've ever seen or done them). It was a special way to spend the Eve of Christmas - with people we love.

The Christmas Tree

Christmas was very relaxing. We spent most of the day at home, playing with presents, and decided to take in a movie. I did not realize how many other people take in movies on Christmas Day. We left a little early, but when we got there I was worried that we wouldn't make it in to the theatre. But we were lucky, and we enjoyed National Treasure - The Book of Secrets.

New Cell Phone Handset for Greg =)

New Robe & Adjustable Height Tripod

New Book and iPod for ME!!

We're going to have more people over to the house on Monday - getting ready to greet the New Year with much ado. It's been a good year. Now I'd better get on the ball and finish our Christmas Letter - I hope to have it done and mailed by sometime in January... =)

Christmastime Again

It's amazing to think that it's Christmastime again. I thought we'd be on top of things, but it looks like the Christmas letter is going to be late, and probably the out-of-state gifts too. We won't be getting to the post office quick enough to get them delivered in time. =(

On the bright side, this weekend was our third annual Christmas Caroling get-together. It's a tradition from my side of the family - one that I've missed greatly. I remember getting together with all the cousins, and going to sing to people with grandma & grandpa. We had quite the spectacular group!

So I spent this weekend baking and getting crock pot food ready (stew - yummm!). I made all my favorites (since I only make them once a year): ginger snaps, gingerbread rounds (they were supposed to be people, but I just made balls and smashed them flat), no-bake cookies, red & green chocolate dipped pretzels, three kinds of fudge (toffee, almond/peppermint, & peanut butter), and pecan sandies (with cashews instead of pecans). We also had actual gingerbread men & sugar cookies donated to the cause. For after singing refreshment I made stew, bread, pumpkin dip (new recipe), buscuits, & spiced cider. We also had eggnog on hand. It took some time, but it was well worth it!

We don't practice at all, so whatever we lack in harmonics we make up for with lots of enthusiasm! A very nice way to spend the evening! We also made plans for Christmas Eve - going to visit with friends - we'll bring our candelaria makings to set them up there. Oh, what fun!

The Carolers

Merry Christmas!

So I still haven't sent out the Christmas Letter. It's written. We have the list of people to send to and most of the addresses. It's just a matter of printing the letters & envelopes, then sending them. But somehow there just hasn't been enough time. We were up until after 1am last night, just wrapping presents. The time crunch must have something to do with my habit of procrastination. It's probably why I didn't get the last of my shopping done until yesterday (the 23rd, although Greg remembered one last gift and had to go out today - it was *crazy*!). Oh well. I think we're ready for Christmas - but the letters will be late. Hopefully we'll get them out this week.

The day before Christmas Eve (the 23rd) we had a *huge* snowstorm. This is the third storm in the past week - according to the news - all dropping loads of snow, but this was the most. Lots of big, fluffy flakes that came down for a long, long time. Greg had to shovel the driveway, deck, & stairs since we had company for Christmas Eve. This pic is only from the last snow dump - we'd already cleared away the snow from the previous ones. Fortunately the snow was light since the snowblower isn't working.

Huge snowfall - but light & fluffy

So tonight (Chrismas Eve) we had friends over, ate food, visited, set up luminarias, visited more, had a gift exchange, and then visited some. Very nice. I was reminded once again of what great friends we have. We are truly blessed.

This is the 4th year we've done luminarias. We saw them in New Mexico years ago (has it been that long?!?) when we went down for Christmas. Dad sent back supplies for us, and the next year we set them up. They're beautiful. And (funny enough) this is the first year we've done it at our own house - previous years we've spent Christmas Eve with friends or family and shared the fun with them.

Luminarias - closeup

Luminarias lining the deck railing

Cool shot of the luminarias - didn't hold still for the long exposure

We hope that your day tomorrow (today) is filled with happiness. Merry Christmas!!