Good Bye 2007!

Wow, what a year!! Here are a few of our "sugar-coated" pictures from 2007. We have LOTS of pictures, but these are a few of my favorites.

I'm so glad that I started this blog. It's been our family journal and it's been fun to do. It's nice to have a way to keep in touch with friends and family all over.

It's been a big year for T, who started preschool, and for N, who started Middle School. J had to adjust to going to school for a full day. B settled easily into 4th grade with the teacher he wanted.

We've been busy, healthy (usually) and happy. We love having FHE and our weekly Friday Night movie night, where we project a movie onto our wall (so it's HUGE). We love sharing our "happies" during our dinner time (and "sads" if we have them). We may squabble, but we love being a family and being together ... most of the time!! ha-

We look forward to 2008 and all that it brings.

Happy New Year!!

Get me OUT of the house

I just HAD to get out of the house today. I'd been pretty sick over the weekend, as well as J & B. We were a fun bunch for sure!! Even though it was only @ 40 degrees outside, I needed to be outside. I grabbed some cardboard, the boys and we headed to the cement slides. We took a few runs and then ran back to the van -- too cold. Plus, the slides weren't as slippery. I guess there was some residual water or something. We stopped by McDonald's for lunch and headed home. Wasn't much, but it sure felt good to go somewhere and do something outside.

Happy 15th Anniversary!

Can you believe it's been 15 years? Amazing. It's hard to believe that we've known each other for more than 22 years. It's been a great ride and I look forward to many, many more years together. Love you tons! -- S

Our Day @ Six Flags Discovery Kingdom

Mom took the 3 older boys and spent the afternoon/evening @ Six Flags Discovery Kingdom. We had free tickets to use by the 31st. Dad wasn't feeling well, so T stayed home with him. It was SO cold, but so much fun. It wasn't too crowded. We got to ride just about everything. J was so excited when he found out that he could ride one of the bigger roller coasters, called the Boomerang. He rode it twice! There were lots of Looney Toon characters, plus Christmas characters, at the park. It was cool to see all of the lights and decorations around the park. It started to sprinkle just as we were deciding to call it a night. Good timing! We were chilled to the core, but no one complained. We were having too much fun. We just warmed up in the van on the ride home. Oh, since Dad & T didn't come with us, we surprised someone in the ticket line with 2 free tickets. The woman we gave the tickets to was so stunned, that she could hardly speak. That felt really good.

Christmas Eve Celebrations

Christmas Eve began with B putting the final piece on the Advent Calendar, which is ALWAYS Santa.

N with his cousins

B with Ashley

N with Mason

T & J with cousin Sean

Kayla & B

Leslie with her Gingerbread Houses ... one for EACH child

Construction on the Ginger Bread houses begins!

Santa dropped by for a QUICK visit. He brought a small gift for each child. Here, T
gets a quick word to Santa.

Mom with her brothers and sisters

Christmas Eve was so much fun! We met at my sister's home and had so much fun just being together. The kids just played and played and played. The kids LOVED decorating their own Gingerbread house. What a treat that was! Then, Santa made a surprise visit and the kids went wild! It was fun to watch. Our parents called us from overseas to wish us a Merry Christmas. There was SO much great food and we topped that off with a Honey Baked Ham dinner. We were stuffed. We sang songs and had a small gift exchange. The boys got their traditional new PJ's from Mom & Dad, too. Mom even bought Dad a pair like the boys. We left late, and were really tired, but we had a great time and enjoyed being with family.

Merry Christmas!

HOW did Santa get one of these?!?!

T was excited to get anything from "Kachow" (i.e. Cars)

J with his new bike

B quickly put together one of his Lego creations

Chef G cooking the Ebelskivers, a family Christmas tradition

J with his cousin P, enjoying Ebelskivers

We had a great day today. The boys didn't wake up TOO early for one thing. Santa came and surprised the boys with many nice things. They were very excited about a new WII. After gifts, Mom's brother & sister and their families came over for our traditional Christmas breakfast of Ebelskivers, a Danish pancake. We visited all day long, with a small break for a much-needed Quiet-Time. Then we had a nice dinner together. The cousins just played and played. The men played several rounds of games on the new WII. Fun to watch. My favorite part was being with my family. All 5 of Mom's siblings were together for Christmas Eve.