Back into the Swing of Things

Hi!


The kids have been back in school a week now. Back to waking everybody up early and making lunches, you know the routine!
Before Christmas, all the 5th graders had a "Fruit and Vegetable Derby." In teams of 5 or so, they could use any fruits and vegetables they wanted and 4 toothpicks or something, to make a car that would go down a ramp in the auditorium. Awards were given for distance and most colorful, and a few others. Teresa had a lot of fun with it. Here are a few pictures of the day. (As you can see from her Derby Team group shot, Teresa is very comfortable "Playing with the Boys...) :)

Then, I took a few photos from Kara's events of December. There's a Santa shot, games we played after Christmas, and one from the ward Christmas Breakfast, where the kids could do crafts.
Have a happy weekend! Love, Kari

Gingerbread House

Hola!

Wow, we are down to the wire now…David told us Saturday night in the car, “Do you know, there are 60 hours left until Christmas. Actually it’s 54 until midnight Christmas Eve, but I won’t get up until 6 o’clock, so 60 hours.” (Even when you are 12, Christmas is still exciting!)

Frank went the extra mile this afternoon…I had a couple of projects I wanted to finish and the kids wanted to make a gingerbread house, from a kit I had picked up. I asked him to please make the house with them?

Little did either of us know, it was a 5-hour project!!!!! Ugh! It turned out beautifully, and the kids had a good time making it with him, to be sure. What a good sport, huh?

They were all so detail-oriented…down to the gumdrop tree at the side of the house, the lattice pattern on the roof, stained glass in one of the windows, and they even lined the roof with Christmas lights. So, I don’t know if we’ll ever do one again, but here is this year’s gingerbread house!

12 Days Until Christmas

Hmmm. Today is the First Day of what? insanity? Perhaps. December always kind of throws me for a loop. I can say "I love Christmastime," but in reality there is just a little too much going on for me to keep track of. Between school activities, volunteering in the classroom, Christmas baking, buying gifts, wrapping gifts, ordering photos, Christmas letters, sending gifts, standing in lines and then standing in the SAME lines AGAIN when I discover I have forgotten one thing...and this year I also have the church family Christmas Breakfast to organize and execute.

My shoe broke yesterday. I really liked those shoes, too! Not the repairable kind of breaking. It had a rubber sole and the whole thing cracked, right where the ball of my foot kind of bends when I'm going to kneel or squat down low. It's not that they were expensive shoes--probably Payless or Kohl's. It's the fact that now I have to go find new ones. I'm supposed to make time for that kind of shopping, in DECEMBER. Are you kidding me??

Well, listing my responsibilities reminds me that I need to get to some of that! Happy Thursday and now it's 12 Days until Christmas!!