Christmas Day

Christmas morning, the girls slept soundly (though I don't know how)--Krista on one of the two queen beds in the room, and Leah on the floor ("because Krista is a bed hog and she snores and I don't want to sleep with her again.").






The stockings were hung on the drawer knob with care . . .
(Krista had to borrow Ryan's because her hanger thingie tore.)





Trying to wake up.



Leah read the labels on all her candy, because she no longer eats candy from the Mars company, because apparently they do animal testing. The gummy lifesavers were okay.


They each got a $25 Disney gift card.

Krista likes her new ankle bracelet and toe ring so much that she wore it to Disneyland even though they was covered up by her tennis shoes and long pants.

M & Ms are made by Mars.




As you can see, Leah needed some new nail polish!

Krista just likes candy--she doesn't care who makes it.

Leah sporting her purity ring. (This was all she kept asking for in the weeks leading up to Christmas.)

Back at Disneyland, the girls found Pluto.

Leah posing in front of the A outside California Adventure.

And this is a photo of the photo taken of us on California Screamin'. We're too cheap to buy the photo, so we just take our own. : )

Hope you all had a wonderful Christmas!

Christmas Eve at Disneyland

Our Christmas trip to Disneyland was great! The rain held off until the second day, and even then, it wasn't too bad. It was probably just enough to keep the crowds away, which was perfect. Here are some pictures from our first day.

In the hotel lobby, waiting for the Disneyland shuttle.

Our first ride (the Main Street trolley bus)



















The girls on the California Screamin' roller coaster (this was a great ride)!



"It's a Small World" all lit up for Christmas - so cool.

All the characters gathered at the gate to wave goodbye.

Back at the hotel, the girls opened their Christmas PJs.

Merry Christmas!

It doesn't feel much like Christmas. Maybe it's because we don't have any presents under our tree. Maybe because Ryan won't be here and Ashley and her family won't be coming either. Maybe because it's raining. Or, maybe it's because I always miss Dad and Carla more during the holidays. I don't know, but it just doesn't have that magical feeling . . . yet.

But we're packing our van and heading up to Anaheim for our Christmas at Disneyland trip in about an hour. We're bringing the girls' Christmas Eve pajamas all wrapped up, and we are bringing their stockings--just in case. And, don't tell them, but we bought the Kung Fu Panda DVD for the trip up there. We may buy another DVD at Disneyland for the trip home. But no other presents. We decided the girls didn't need any more "stuff," so we're making memories instead (hopefully good memories). Besides, their birthdays are both at the beginning of January, so they'll obviously be getting presents then.

We cashed in almost $500 in change this year. We took the girls Christmas shopping for Toys for Tots to teach them the importance of giving to those less priveleged, and we gave some to our church building fund. The rest will help pay for our trip. Ryan also contribulted generously to our fund (thank you, Ryan!).

Unfortunately, heavy rain is in the forecast, but we're determined not to let it "dampen" our spirits. We've never been to Disneyland when it is all decorated at Christmas, so we're excited. We're hoping the rain will keep most people away, and that we will not have to fight the crowds we probably would have if the weather had been sunny!

So, we hope you all have a wonderful Christmas with family and friends. If you are traveling, I hope you have a safe trip. And I hope you take a moment to focus on the Reason for the season, too!

God bless you all!

(Here are a few photos of the girls making Christmas cookies.)

Thanksgiving 2008

I know, it's taken a long time for me to get around to posting some Thanksgiving photos, but things have been really busy around here. And, we didn't really take many photos on Thanksgiving. (I hate when that happens)

Ryan came over, and we had a nice, quiet family day. As always, we missed Ashley and her family. And, thoughts of Carla and Dad brought back fond memories of years past. But, all in all, we had a good day.

I'm Gonna Miss This, Too

I just read Ashley's latest post about appreciating what we have and where we are in life right now, and started thinking about how quickly time is going by. Gene and I were talking last night about how it seems to speed up as we get older. It's unbelievable that it's the tenth of December already! Didn't we just celebrate Independence Day?

Anyway, Ashley's post reminded me of a country song, by Trace Adkins, called "You're Gonna Miss This." This song really hits home with me. It makes me think back to all the times I wanted life to "hurry up." And now, as I race towards the big five-o next year, I cherish all those precious memories.




When the girls are driving me crazy with their messy rooms, and their typical tween/teenager drama, and the kitchen is a big mess, and the laundry is piling up, I try very hard to be thankful, but it's challenging sometimes. But I know that, one day, I'm going to look back, and I'm going to cherish the memories of these days, too.

TGIF - My Grandchildren

I have the most amazing grandchildren. I know every grandparent thinks that, but in my case, it's true. I know this even though I don't get to see them very often. In fact, I've never even met my only grandson, Alex. But I still know they're the best grandkids in the world.

Our oldest granddaughter, Jenna, sent us a most lovely letter last week. Apparently she has been sick lately (according to her well-written letter). She even drew one of her famous pictures, which was a nice surprise. And Marah, who is four, also sent us a beautiful, hand-drawn picture.

We are hoping to see them again next Spring, and I can't wait to meet Alex. I hate that I'm missing his newborn months. Those are such precious times. But Ashley keeps us posted on his progress with her fantastic blog, where she posts lots of pictures, so we don't get too depressed about not living near them.

And Ashley calls me and tells me all about what's going on with them as they grow. I can't believe Jenna is already eight years old! Time is rushing by, and they are growing up way too fast.

So, while I'm bummed that I don't get to watch them grow up, and that they don't really know their Nana and Papa, I'm thankful that they are healthy and well-loved. And maybe one day they'll move closer, so we can really "know" them. I can always dream.

"What Did You Say?"

"My feces itch!" Krista says in a loud, whiny voice from the back seat of the car.

What?!!!

I look back at her to make sure I understood her correctly. She's frantically scratching her foot, her face all scrunched up like she's in serious pain.

"Krista, I don't think you mean 'feces,' that's your urine and your poop." Leah says in her loving, sisterly way. "If your urine and poop itch, you'd be scratching your butt, not your feet." Then she just turns and looks out her window like this was a normal exchange.

Krista just says, "Then why did you say your feces itched yesterday? Did your urine and poop itch?"

"First of all, I didn't say, 'feces,' I said, 'feetsies,' because I know the difference. Second of all, stop scratching your dirty, filthy dead skin all over the car! That's disgusting."

"Whatever, you knew what I meant."

End of conversation.

Home School?

I've always thought I could never home school Leah, because she doesn't believe anything I say, even when I try to help her with homework. But as she continues to struggle to keep up, and with all the drama that seems to follow her around, I've been seriously considering it lately.



She's such a bright, funny kid, but she obviously has a unique learning style, which has been a constant source of frustration for all of us. I've never known a kid who could come up with so many excuses for a missing assignment. I cannot believe all the incompetent teachers who keep losing her papers!



So, with her grades continuing to go down, and the drama getting steadily worse, I'm starting to research the idea. Working full time obviously will make it more difficult, but, since I work at home, I can be somewhat flexible. If anyone has any advice, I'd love to hear it!

TGIW - Trees!

OK, I know it's only Wednesday, but I didn't post last week, and I don't know if I'll think of it on Friday, so I'm doing a "Thank God It's Wednesday" post instead.

It's so exciting to see some (not all, unfortunately) of my trees doing well. Our Little Gem Magnolia tree has several blossoms on it. Here are some photos of the first ones to bloom since it's been in our yard.

Now if we can just figure out what's wrong with our Bronze Loquat tree, I'd be really happy.

Happy Wednesday!

Oh, and Gene caught a gopher! It was really sad. He used a trap. Nuff said. I sure hope there aren't more (but we probably aren't that lucky). But our front yard has been torn up by one or more of the darn things.