Christmas Surprises

So many surprises! So much waiting! It's the best time ever! Our Christmas was extra special because my mom and step-dad had all their kids together for Christmas for the first time since they were married! We've got plenty of photos, and a few highlights are in a web album:

Christmas 2007

Christmas Cafeteria Style ... a first for me! Best part? No cleanup! Worst part? No leftovers!

Christmas came early! Sigh ... when you have to spread the holiday between families, it's almost impossible to keep Christmas pinned to one weekend. The kids have been going head-to-head with their cool new toys ... but even I have Christmas early! You can see part of it in the background. My parents gave this new little homeowner (ME!) $$$ and I now have curtains and a table!

I don't recall ever BUYING curtains on purpose (other than an odd chance one here or there on clearance) ... I guess I moved often enough and mini blinds were quite the comfortable standard. And from my first auction last night? I have my first "wood" table! I feel so grown up now.

But I think the most special early surprise is Kevin's HUGE disc/plate/whatever (also a wonderful find from the auction - I'M GOING BACK!) with the most unusual "carving" and inlaid copper. It might be made out of pewter? I don't know, but it really is unique.

The best part? Now I'm starting to feel like I'm finally moving in! This is the first furniture of Oklahoma. I didn't bring anything substantial from Georgia. The living room furniture is a gift from mom that has been passed back and forth since Jeremy was a toddler, so that doesn't really count. VOILA! My "cinnamon bun" table (the legs curl at the bottom) is the first real piece.

I have to admit I'm a little too excited about this ... well, maybe not "too" excited. But it's a new sensation for me!

Weekend in St. Louis ... it was Christmas for the kids, work for me and for K both (though it seems more like play to take pictures), and honestly pretty emotionally exhausting! But we all survived, waved goodbye at the airport (K was going on to Florida for more business meetings), and drove 6 hours back home. Now that the kids have had a taste of Christmas, I feel like I've officially climbed the big holiday slide and hit the "no turning back" point! WHEEEEEEE ... This time next week, IT'S CHRISTMAS EVE!

The Arch in St. Louis was a new thrill for me. I had never been up inside of it - WOW - is that amazing or what! K and I traveled our little pod to the top and I was SO relaxed that I think I could have napped and been quite happy! It offset the stress of the day. That sounds strange, but it really did. We took our time and were able to watch the sun begin to set at the top and see an amazing sky deepen into nightfall.

This was another one of my thrills this weekend ... an EAGLE! I was between appointments, standing by a river, and was getting ready to get into the car when I saw "a bird" and almost thought, "Nah, I'll won't take more time. I'll just hop in and go." But for some reason, I couldn't resist and decided to pop a couple of photos as I stood in the car door while the bird flew overhead. I couldn't see it this close, of course, when I was taking it. But I had my telephoto lens on and was curious to see if i could follow the bird and have a clear image. The thought crossed my mind, wouldn't that be cool if this was an eagle? I squealed out loud when I looked at the photos. AN EAGLE! How amazing is that?

Annie! Look what I found!!! I laughed and thought of you today, courtesy of skateLAnd (and Wonder Bread - I was in their parking lot with K when I noticed the sign). LA-language still lives! Oh the good (and very silly) times we had. You're a treasure!

My two happy goonies ... "Little I" is about to experience her first varsity basketball game (under the wing of Mr. Sports Writer). I thought she would be enthralled with the cheerleaders, but to my surprise she now wants to play basketball!

My first Christmas Party with the Girl Scouts ... and I had to steal to come away with this ornament! (Actually, it was stolen from me first, and I was able to creatively steal it back once another turn had passed ... I'm working on the guilt.) But how cool is that? My first Christmas in Oklahoma (note the date) with K! It's romantic! And considering our "Santa Talks" lately, it's the perfect ornament. Come to find out, Pier 1 has a series of these. They are handpainted from the inside! We may have started a tradition!

My laugh for the day ... I found a girl with a belly button in the cheese curds! 

It was winter concert time tonight. The bands did GREAT. The advanced band was awesome. The only complaint (from my son) was that they cut out the hard piece. But since the parade was cancelled because of the weather, we got to hear that piece here - impressive cadence and all! GREAT JOB BANDIES! (I hope that's a "good name" to call them ... not always sure with Kevin's teasing!)
Click on the clip below to hear them (the video itself is terrible - sorry - but you'll get a little Christmas cheer from the band and even see my handsome young man at the end when they stand).

My cousin's twins! I think I'm starting to figure out which is which. It sure is nice to have a school function and be there with family!

The decorators were hard at work tonight ... well, not all of them. Daisy isn't a lot of help! 

Look at this craziness! OK - let me grab my camera. "NOW GO GET SOME JEANS ON!" 

Sledding

There's nothing like a day of sledding! There's a hill near us, and it was worth it to navigate the uncleared roads to get there! Naturally, I have a whole album of photos (click the square photo for more) ... but I have a good reason. I wanted Grandpa to see his sleds in action. My little one figured out how to steer hers and had a ton of fun. My son looked like a model out there - until he landed spread eagle in a puff of snow!

It is still a winder wonderland today. My mom laughed at me via email (if you can do that) and told me I have been away from the north too long (I grew up in North Dakota and Minnesota). I told her how I woke up the kids early yesterday because I saw the bright sun and didn't want them to miss any snow time (just thinking things would start melting). Back in Georgia, we were lucky to have snow at all much less overnight! 

Can you believe this is OKLAHOMA? Grandpa visited recently and brought the 2nd sled (a project he was doing for the kids) ... and it looks like it came just in time!

IT'S SNOWING IN OKLAHOMA! The kids are home from school. I've taken a few photos. The dog is running circles in the yard. I think everyone is excited!

Here's the web album for more pictures! Just click on the square picture.

Snow Day

It seems these things don't open easily when you want them to -or- open when you least expect it. As I was trying to open this crescent roll can (which was an event in and of itself), it brought me WAY back to my late teens. It was the summer I turned 19 and was trying to get my life back together. I spent a couple of weeks out in North Dakota and upon vacating my grandmother's farm, I took the rest of my food things with me. I had a similar tube of biscuits in a small cooler.

Evidently I forgot about it by the time I arrived at a camp I attended with my cousins. When I got back in my car at the end of the week, something smelled a little strange ... and I couldn't open my cooler! At first it was just weird and I couldn't figure it out. Finally, I was able to pry open the cover just a bit and shortly found the exploded biscuits AND the odor!

How's this for a near-December outfit? It was unusually warm today, but snow is in the forecast in less than TWO DAYS! I say unusually warm not because it was warm, but it was warm in a strange way. This morning was overcast and I was prepared for a chill. Everything looks cold, but the day seemed to get warmer. It just felt strange. Maybe it's because of the upcoming shift in weather! We'll see ... maybe I'll finally have some SNOW PHOTOS!!! 

I found a "wave" in the sky tonight. At least that's what it looked like to me. I wish I lived on the wide-open plain sometimes so I could capture the horizon instead of squeezing my lens between rooftops. Actually, it's only minutes away ... I could hop on the bike left in our backyard by the previous owners but as quickly as the sun moves and as slowly as I might ride (I haven't done it in YEARS) I think I'd miss the sunsets! 

We scoured the Christmas trees and came home with a beauty! Not only did we have the adventure of driving home holding a monstrosity through the sunroof, I trapped my kids in the car after my marvelous engineering of string and tree! I still haven't washed my car since my cousin's son's band won ... YES - WON! ... the 2006 Grand National Champions! You can view some clips at the Bands of America site online at http://www.bands.org/ Not only was it fun to celebrate something big with my extended family, I also thought it might get me to a car wash a little sooner!! How'd that work?? HA!