One week and counting!

Hola--I started this 2 weeks ago and I'm sending it anyway. Happy New Year in an hour :) :) :) But I'll get credit for posting this IN 2016!

Happy Sunday! Today is exactly 1 week before Christmas.  Are you ready? We love December, when we get cards from lots of people we don't see very often. We can catch up that way, and learn about highlights of their year. If we just get a photo, we can see how much their kids have changed, at least!

MUSIC PROGRAM. We had our nice Christmas program in church this morning. Actually I guess it's "one of two" Christmas programs. On Christmas Day, we'll have special messages about Christmas. Today's was the choir program, with lovely instrumental numbers and different groups of people, including the Primary children, singing beautiful Christmas songs. Many people travel for Christmas, and it may have diminished our choir to not very many people...I think that's why they had the musical Christmas program today. Anyway it was beautiful.

OVERNIGHT FLIGHT. David and Teresa came home on Friday! (And there was much rejoicing.) It was frigid when Frank picked them up at 5:40 in the morning. Teresa didn't even bring a coat, actually...and it was about 6 degrees!?!?!? It has since snowed, rained a LOT to melt that snow, and it was in the 50's today. Can't quite figure out that New England weather!

our raspberry bush out back right after it snowed

Their finals are done, though, and that feels good. They have some breathing time before next term starts.  BYU almost always gets 2 weeks off, and this year they get 3.

Kara has a normal schedule for another week. Seminary and high school go through Friday, for Pete's sake! Yes, Christmas Eve is their first day off! The stars aligned so that she only gets a week and a day off this time around. She goes back January 3. Bummer. And actually, I checked next year's school calendar and it's the same.

GAMES AND COSTUMES. Our friends the McDonalds had their annual Christmas party last night. White Elephant gift exchange, costume contest, and so much food you wouldn't believe it! Great chance to talk to some neat people. It's a highlight.

Frank and I have figured out the strategy for the White Elephant game. We EACH bring a gift, so we can BOTH open presents or steal the good ones from other people. The opened good gift can only be stolen twice, then it's frozen. So if we see something we like, Frank or I steal it from whoever has it (steal #1), then the other (Frank or I) steals it from each other: steal #2. We get the gift :) :) Sneaky, huh! Haha.

PUZZLE TIME. We have a Christmas puzzle that I really like...I pulled it out this afternoon. After 20 years of me taking photos of my kids, they don't usually go for the "smile" or for "natural-looking" photos. This is what I got. :/

Oh, and here's the fun thing Kara made for her teachers this year...hot chocolate snowmen, 3 jars stacked on top of each other like snowmen. marshmallows in one hot chocolate in another, and peppermint candies in the bottom. She finds things online and makes them. Very fun gifts!

Next post: January 2017! Love, Kari

December Fun and Some White Stuff

Hola and Happy December!

front yard lamp post

LITTLE BIT OF SNOW. We are starting out the month with a dusting of snow this morning! I took a couple of pictures. Just light snow, not too much today, but enough to tell you it's December :)

raspberry bush in backyard

CHRISTMAS BREAKFAST. We had a fun weekend, with a Christmas party/pancake breakfast at the church on Saturday morning. FIRST it was a challenging feat of spreading cords all around the whole gym and beyond, to accommodate all the griddles and waffle irons going. After tripping a few circuits, they did manage to do it!

There were amazing selections of different types of pancakes -- blueberry, coconut, even chocolate chip and mini MandM's. Also fancy types of waffles, with tons of toppings!

Then there was hot chocolate bar...you could add peppermint, candy bar bits, sprinkles...the table was full of options!

ELF spaghetti (Internet photo)

Of course, there was the 3-year-old who combined the food on the breakfast table with the chocolate bar ingredients...she brought back a pancake that looked like when ELF (movie) dressed up his spaghetti! There were sprinkles and candy AND syrup on top of her pancake. Her mother's gag reflexes kicked in, I think. She said, "We are not eating that..." The poor child was very distraught.

NYC reflection

JOB SEARCH. Frank has interviews in NYC today. The job would be in Waltham, just 2 towns over from us, so we're hoping. This is about his 4th round with this company, and would be an interesting opportunity for him. Crossing fingers!

NYC pigeons

He has also had a couple of phone interviews with other companies (in Boston and Cambridge, MA) and recruiters the last few days, and tomorrow.

We thought it would be really slow between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and we have been happy to be wrong about that! It would be SO great to get a new job this month. (I know...just like we've said every month! Ha. Thanks for keeping us in your prayers :) )

PUZZLE TIME. We're re-discovering our games and puzzles. It's fun to just play a quick game as a 15-minute breather or part of date night sometimes. Here's a puzzle Frank pulled out yesterday. The Grand Canyon is so amazing!

Christmas 2005

summer 2016

YOUTH DANCE. Kara had an 'ugly sweater' dance at the church in Belmont (30 minutes away) last weekend. She took a sweater but I told her it wasn't ugly enough :) :) I didn't get a picture before she zipped out the door but here are some pics of all 3 kids, I've just been browsing through.

NEW AWNING. And, here's a picture of the awning we had put on, as the final piece of the hail damage renovation. It's just for shade in the summer, stretches out about 10 feet. (The old one was faded, kind of a puke green, and torn by the hail.)

Well I should probably get to my "Monday list." I have exceeded my allotted blog time! I just have so much fun with pictures, I could keep going and going.

Hope this week brings good things your way!

Love, Kari