Happy New Year!

We're off visiting family so I'm taking a little blogging break. 

We'll see you in 2011.  Thanks for keeping up with us and our crazy, silly, funny boys!

We took these pictures this fall as a surprise for Kevin so he would have some new pictures for his office. 

I Wonder If Santa Has This Much Trouble With His Elves

Don't miss Luke's big finish at the very end. The boy has some lungs!

Christmas Cards

I love getting Christmas cards in the mail.  I love seeing pictures of family and friends from all chapters of our lives. 

This year we didn't do Christmas cards. I had every intention of doing them.  Even bought coordinating outfits for the photo.  But then Tucker went into the hospital and suddenly what mattered most was helping our friends during a tough time (Tucker is home and is recovering very well, by the way).  We also heard about a family through our church that needed some help this year with basic stuff so we decided to spend the money we would have spent on cards and postage and help them instead. 

So our "card" this year won't come in your mailbox.  Instead it will be some photos on the blog and on Facebook of two of our biggest blessings in our lives. 

From all of us on Snickelfritz Lane, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

Note to self:  Next time you find really cute elf pjs, don't wait unti December 21 to try and find matching elf hats or Santa hats because they only sell them in stores in July!

Dear Santa

It took a couple of tries because he kept forgetting things he wanted to add to his list.  We finally had to tell him that a letter to Santa wasn't a list of everything he was going to get.  Instead it was a list of suggestions for Santa of things Fletcher might like to have.  If every child got every thing on his/her list then the poor elves would have way too much work to do and Santa's sleigh would be way too heavy.  Plus there would be some ponies and puppies in some very tight spaces. 

Baby It's Cold Outside

I like this song and I especially like this rendition by this husband/wife duo.  She has a great voice. 

Here We Come A Wassailing

Well, I guess we call it caroling.  But wassailing is just one of those words that you only get to use around the holidays so when opportunity knocks I am all about throwing out a fancy Christmas word.

Some members of our church went Christmas caroling Sunday night to some of the senior adults in our church family.  Fletcher asked earlier in December if we could go Christmas caroling sometime so this was the perfect opportunity.  We had at least 40 people crammed in 11 vehicles and we went to 7 houses.  Our repertoire included the first verse of these five songs:
O Come All Ye Faithful
Hark The Herald Angels Sing
Silent Night
Joy To the World
We Wish You a Merry Christmas

As the temperature dropped throughout the evening, we shaved seconds off our singing time.  It was seriously cold!  I did have a hard time taking our music minister seriously.  He was wearing one of those fur hats with the ear flaps.  Every time he started singing Joy to the World I couldn't help but think about Clark Griswold in Christmas Vacation singing that same song when he went to plug in his lights after the drumroll. 

I told Kevin that I couldn't remember the last time I went caroling.  I remember doing it when I was in the youth group many years ago, but I don't think I've done it since then.  The people we visited were so thankful we had come.  Many of them joined right along in singing with us. 

At one point after about the third house, Luke had been watching and listening.  He started "singing" too.  He didn't know all the words so he was just belting out nonsense sounds as loud as he could.  Everyone around him was cracking up laughing.  The Bible does say "make a joyful noise" and doesn't exactly specify that one has to use words!  :)

What a fun Christmas memory!

Minute To Win It

Fletcher decided it might be fun to have a birthday party based on the "Minute To Win It" television show.  Kevin brought home a projector and his laptop from work so the kids could see the "blueprint" that explained each game and then see the 60 second countdown on the big screen.  I thought I picked games that would be relatively easy for 5, 6 and 7 year olds to do, but some of them were a little too hard.  I think the kids had fun anyway.  If you've never seen the show, all of the games are based on pretty common everyday objects.  They did the Candy Elevator where they had to move string along their ears to raise a platform that had Skittles on it (too hard for them).  Another one they did was Face the Cookie where they had to put an Oreo on their foreheads and get it into their mouths without using their hands or feet -- only their face muscles. The game at the end was called Junk in the Trunk where they had to get ping pong balls out of the tissue box strapped around their waist without using hands or feet.  The other ones we played just for the record were Hanky Panky, The Nutstacker, Noodling Around and Movin' On Up.  I am so glad my friend Jen and Kevin were there to help me!  Even though we only had 6 boys and I had all the games planned out, it was still quite a challenge to explain the games, make sure they were following the rules and transition to the next game.  The cake had miniature replicas of all the games they played. 

The fun thing about these games (there are hundreds of them on the NBC Minute To Win It website) is that they really can be enjoyed by all ages.  My family needs to be warned...we're planning to play some of these when we get together for Christmas...so you better bust out the Oreos and start practicing. 

Tidbits

(This one was last week around the time of my birthday)
Fletcher:  Mom, you are so lucky.
Mom:  Why's that?
Fletcher:  You're lucky you lived long enough for them to invent TV so you can watch it.
(Guess I need to cut back on those "when I was your age..." lectures.)
--------------------------------------------
(Driving in the car listening to Christmas Carols)
Luke:  Mom....Mom....dey are singing "No way, no way"
Mom:  No, actually they are singing "Noel Noel"
Luke:  Oh....well what does that mean?
Mom:  Um....something Christmasy
(Note to self:  google "noel" to see what it means)
--------------------------------------------
(Driving in the car to dinner)
Luke:  Mom....I just saw some Cwistmas wights.
Mom:  Yes, those are cool aren't they?
Luke:  Mom, I see a cross too. (As part of a nativity display)
Mom:  Yes.
Luke:  Bebus lives on the cross 
(Still have work to do during Bible time, I see.)

7 Years

Happy Birthday, Fletcher! 

Last night I watched you sit with your friend Tucker at the hospital and read cards to him that you and your classmates made for him.  You made a card for him and copied Bible verses out of Daddy's Bible (some that were highlighted) for Tucker.  You purposefully walked slowly with him down the hall because you knew he couldn't walk fast because of his surgery.  You let him go first playing Wii.  You were very concerned when his heart monitor flatlined (the sensor had fallen off his finger).  You were so glad to see that your friend was ok. 

We went downstairs to a hospital Christmas party.  Santa was there and after you talked to him he told you that you could pick out a toy.  There were lots of toys.  I said that maybe we could leave the toys there for the sick kids or for them to donate to someone else.  You asked if you could donate something too.  You picked out a scarf, hat and glove set because in the car on the way to the hospital you heard me talking to Mrs. Teresa about how we were gathering coats and hats and gloves for a family who lost everything in a fire.  I said we had found everything except gloves.  You skipped out on a toy so someone you don't even know could have warm gloves.

You have a heart of gold and we are so glad we get to be your mommy and daddy. 

Happy 7th Birthday, Fletcher!

We love you!

Tucker

Sunday night and Monday turned out very differently than what we thought would be the beginning of a normal week of school, Christmas party and Fletcher's birthday.

I've mentioned our friends Grant and Teresa and their son Tucker on our blog many times.  We've had many adventures with them at the fair, the pirate museum, the beach, carving pumpkins, etc.  On Sunday, Grant and Tucker invited Kevin and Fletcher to the Panthers game.  The boys were so excited to go to a "real live" football game.  Towards the end of the game Tucker started complaining that his belly hurt.  It was more than just a tummy ache so they took him to Urgent Care.  The docs at Urgent Care took xrays and bloodwork.  His white blood count was high so they sent him to the hospital for a CT scan thinking it was most likely his appendix.  The CT scan showed some "free air" in his abdominal cavity which usually indicates a perforation somewhere in the stomach, intestines, colon, etc.  So at the recommendation of the surgeons and radiologists at 3 am Monday morning they did an emergency surgery to repair the tear. 

But the crazy thing is that they couldn't find a tear.  We think it was an answered prayer.  The surgeon said this was only the second time in his career that he has seen "free air" on a CT scan but not been able to find a tear.  Now Tucker has the long road of recovering from a major surgery.  He will be in the hospital for about a week and out of school for a few more weeks.  Please pray for this family and especially pray for no complications or infections.  Tucker is strong and he is a fighter.  But being at the hospital is so hard - hard to eat, hard to sleep with nurses coming in and out at all hours, hard to focus, hard to be out of routine.  As a mom, I can't imagine how hard it is to see your child in so much pain and feel like there's nothing you can do.

But Grant and Teresa know that God is Jehovah Rapha, the God who heals.  They know God knit Tucker together in Teresa's womb and that Tucker is fearfully and wonderfully made (Psalm 139). 

Fletcher has been very concerned about his friend through all this.  He has been praying for him and made Tucker a sweet "Get Well Soon" card.  He has such a tender heart for those who are hurting. 

Silent Monks

Postings to the blog in the next few weeks may be very random.  I'm trying to slow down a bit and take time to reflect on what Christmas is all about.  This is Fletcher's last week of school and his birthday too so our week will be filled with school parties, teacher gifts, birthday celebrations and fun. 

In the meantime, here's another great rendition of the Hallelujah Chorus from some high school students.  Creative, yes?

Feliz Navidad

Last year at Hallmark I bought a couple of Christmas ornaments when they were "deeply discounted" after Christmas.  One of them was a little Santa holding maracas and singing "Feliz Navidad."  I regret that decision.  It has become Luke's favorite ornament.  He played it so many times the first day we had the tree decorated that I finally had to move it to where he couldn't reach it just to regain my sanity.  I hear the song in my sleep.  He likes to dance to it.  These aren't his best moves, but if they do a remake of Flashdance, Luke should try out. 

So Sweet!

Gettin' Your Craft On

If you are into making gifts instead of buying them and if you need some fun, cute gift ideas for teachers, friends, family or neighbors, check out these sites:

I especially like the photo ornament shown here (scroll down past the mistletoe).

These 30 gifts are corny, but fun and inexpensive.  Great for a white elephant party.

This Question Jar is great too.  I love her story behind how and why she made it. 

I am always amazed at just how creative people can be. 

It's Beginning To Look Alot Like Christmas

We put our tree up Friday afternoon.  Since we will be traveling some over the holidays, we decided to get a pre-lit fake tree.  I found a good deal online during the Cyber Monday sale.  It's a 7.5 foot tall Blue Spruce with 1000 lights.  It fits in the corner (well, not really the corner) of our family room quite well.  It took us awhile to shape all the branches, but I think it will work out great for us.  Since we live near lots and lots of tree farms, we should let our kids experience the joy of going to the farm, cutting down the tree, strapping it on top of the car, etc.  But not this year. 

Fletcher has always enjoyed putting ornaments on the tree.  This year Luke really got into it too. 

Luke thought the ornaments looked best if they were "weally, weally cwose to each udder."  I tried to move them, but he would move them back so I'll just let them stay that way.  Our tree has no theme.  We've just collected ornaments through the years.  Some are even ones Kevin made when he was a kid. 

The boys and I made these this year with some friends. I painted their 4 fingers and the top part of their palm with white paint.  Then they grabbed the ornament and their fingerprints made four snowmen.  We added hats, scarves, eyes, noses, etc.  They turned out so cute.  We found the instructions here.  However, we couldn't find shatterproof ornaments so these are glass.  They are waaaaay up at the top of the tree.  I am so afraid they are going to break. 

Luke's

Fletcher's

I did manage to get one small video during the decorating process and almost caught Luke on tape singing "Jingle Bells" but then he quit. 

Something Christmas-y

Our neighbors are making us look bad.  Many of them put up exterior Christmas lights right after Thanksgiving.  We are surrounded by festive lights.  Kinda made our house look like the dark "Bah Humbug" house on the street.  Fletcher asked if we could put up lights too.

I told him that Daddy was in charge of any and all exterior lighting.  Kevin is not much on decorating for Christmas.  I think it isn't the decorating part, it's the "where to store everything the other 11 months of the year" part that he doesn't like. 

But I think he is coming around. 

On Saturday he took the boys to Lowe's.  His words to me as he left were, "We are headed to Lowe's to find something Christmas-y."

I'm not gonna lie. I was a little scared.  I've seen the Christmas-y things they have at Lowe's. 

They returned. They were successful.  I've never seen two little boys more excited about a purchase. 

So now this resides in our front yard:

 No, your eyes aren't deceiving you.  That is Santa...

 On a rocket ship....

With two penguin passengers. 

Apparently Santa is used to the thin air in space and does not need a space helmet. 

Special Request

Fletcher got a new Lego set at Thanksgiving (thanks, Grandma!).

Earlier this week he was playing with all of his Legos and he asked, "Mom, can we take some pictures of my Legos and put them on the blog for everyone to see." 

So without further ado (lots of opinions online whether that should be adieu or ado), here are some of his creations:*

*He likes to build using the instructions included in the box, but he really likes to just use his imagination and create his own stuff.  The base with wheels in the picture above is actually motorized so he was making it drive over his jacket on the floor.  We do need to try to take more pictures with Kevin's good camera.  It has a better zoom feature than mine.

Reprimanded?

I have a dream this year. Not quite as meaningful and vast as MLK's, but important to me none the less. I am really trying to get all of my Christmas shopping done as early as possible. I hoped to be done by December 1. I am very, very close. In this dream I also don't go into many stores. I sit at my computer and complete the majority of my shopping online. I like to wander around aimlessly in stores looking at things (it has always been a stress reliever for me), but I won't buy unless it is a really good deal. I've found over the years that most of the time, I can find a better deal online. As an added bonus this year, American Express now allows you to use points to pay for amazon.com purchases! How cool is that?!

So on Wednesday I was completing an online purchase and the website gave me an error message and said "Transaction could not be completed". This wasn't one of my usual shopping websites like amazon so I tried to resubmit the order. Again, same message. Then my phone rang.

Caller ID said it was an 800 service. I picked it up and said, "Hello?" An automatic voice message came on and said, "This message is for Kevin or Rachel _______.  Press or say 1 if you are Kevin or Rachel.  American Express has discovered recent activity on one of your cards that may be fradulent.  The card ends in XXXX.  Press 1 if you have that card in your possession...."  It went on to ask about that exact charge from that website I was trying to make only seconds earlier.  Talk about Johnny On The Spot!  Sort of creepy if you think about it too much.  I verified that it was in fact me and AmEx allowed me to complete the transaction. 

I really am glad that they are watching out for their customers.  Because I so rarely use my AmEx, their computer system immediately recognized increased activity and called to make sure the card hadn't been stolen. 

But I kinda felt like I was being reprimanded and the subliminal message was "Hey YOU!  Step away from that computer and quit spending so much money.  Your kids have enough toys already!"   

The good news is I am almost done so AmEx can relax.

Forever and Ever

By now you know I love a good flash mob.

Here's a great one to kick off this Christmas season.



I still get goosebumps every time I hear this song.

Someday I hope to either participate in a flash mob or be randomly surprised by one.