Merry Christmas

My gosh I loved this year's Christmas card! I've never put so much work into a card and I probably never will again. There aren't really any Christmas cards with an art deco style to them, so I edited a wedding announcement and yes, paid extra for the gold foil so it would really stand out!

I chuckled over the update- throwing every gangster reference I could think of. Brent heartily approved and it felt sooo good to finally click "approve" because man I'd spent hours and hours perfecting it. Yes I know these eventually end up in the trash and a lot of people don't even bother but it is my way of sending a little love out into the world during the holidays.

The girls patiently (or maybe impatiently) waiting as Brent finished up a breakfast which was a tater tot casserole with a choice of orange juice or eggnog with coconut whipped cream. Gita and I discovered that at Trader Joes and with 1/2 eggnog and 1/2 regular milk it is now our favorite holiday drink!

You know the kids are growing up when they walk right past the Christmas tree and presents- ha!

I loved this year's pajamas although I'm confident Liesel's somehow were switched with Gita's. I have no idea why Sydney has only one sock on but hey- they all look fabulous in this shade of blue.

"Sorority girl squat!" This year I put Liesel in charge of taping up the Christmas cards we received and she did it with such meticulous perfection I think she will need to do it every year!

The girls mentioned they would actually enjoy the Christmas pajama tradition a bit more if Brent and I joined in. Since I'd bought these right after Christmas last year when they went on sale, I am making notes for next year!

I have to laugh at myself because sometimes I forget little details and sometimes I go overboard. The girls have plenty of ornaments but I some Mickey ear photo frame ornaments and thought they would be perfect since we had just taken a trip to Disneyland. But when we actually set up the tree, everyone commented on the glut of ornaments we have. So I think I'm going to back off on those for a while!

I didn't do individual advent calendars like I did last year, still not sure how I feel about those. Somehow come Christmas Eve I don't feel like I've done enough for Brent which always escapes my notice until we are stuffing the stockings. It always feels like I've done a ton because I help each of the girls with their gifts for him and of course I've taken care of a gift for him, but I still forget the little things like his stocking stuffers! I managed to have a few, but I felt like I could have done better. 

When I landed my new job, I wanted to get a new tree, a really BIG tree, a pre-lit tree! I measured the ceiling height which was 10' so I insisted we get a 10' tree. The fat one. Because we had space, right? Oh man, that thing is HUGE! It came in 2 heavy boxes and fluffing it took me hours and when I secured the final section in place, it scraped the ceiling. Brent gave me a wry look. Oooohkay so we would not be putting a tree topper on this one! I felt like a proper idiot for not taking that into consideration. I have to say, it looked incredibly festive from the street! Once it was all set up up, that tree was on 24-7! We enjoyed it all season long, for sure.

On to gifts!

Typically I'm happy to just sit back and enjoy watching everyone else but this year there were several gifts that really got me. Brent and the girls gave me a bottle of Chloe which I've always wanted. I've mentioned to my sisters how I'm motivated by "little Danika" and how I want to make her proud. Whitney gave me this:

In case you can't tell, that's now me hugging little me. The card said Danika I know that "little Danika" is proud of you and it caught me so off guard I started crying.

The gift that elicited the biggest reaction was this ugly Christmas sweater Whitney gifted Brent!

Ha ha- can you see our old tree behind him positively dripping in ornaments?

Traditional Pringle pics!

Another lovely addition this year was having a bit more furniture meant fewer people sitting on the floor! Slowly but surely we are transitioning into a more grown-up house and I have to say, that is nice.

Christmas Eve

 I worked overtime in the days leading up to Christmas so I could get off work early and join everyone downtown. Sure I would have preferred to just have the day with the family, but it warmed the cockles of my heart when he sent this photo of them all dressed up and ready to go.

Initially I was just planning to meet them at Rockefeller Chapel but I ended up working through my lunch so I just left for the day (rather than take lunch, log in for 20 minutes and then leave for the day).

It was just enough time to get a full family photo and check out some of my favorite Christmas trees.

Of course I have to get a good shot with just the girls!

We only had time for a couple of exhibits and so we stopped by Extreme Ice where the girls were shocked and dismayed to find the ice wall was gone! Turns out it's being moved to another part of the museum so it will be back... eventually.

We headed to Rockefeller Chapel to get a good seat (and good parking!) before Lessons and Carols.

Turns out we were very early and found amazing seats right up front! In years past, I would have been concerned about little kids squirming and complaining but they were all fine to hang out and wait for the program to start. They even explored the amazing chapel a bit and we considered the possibility of sitting in the balcony next time (see Ireland up there?)

Sydney accidentally sat on her candle so she swapped hers with Brent and I have to say he managed it without dripping wax on himself quite skillfully! As the girls have grown and developed their own love for music, this tradition has only become a richer part of our Christmas. 

After all of the hustle and bustle of December, the Silent Night part of the program always brings me the peace I'm looking for. Something about raising that candle on the last verse and seeing the chapel in the warm glow makes it feel like everything is going to be okay. 

We've done Christmas crackers for years but it was when I watched With Love, Meghan: Holiday Celebration that I found out people usually cross their arms and crack them together. I mentioned it to a friend from South Africa who said, "Ooooh yes! It's bad luck to open one on your own- they're meant to be opened together!" Well that explains several years of bad luck! I was determined to break the streak so we all crossed our arms and pulled at the same time. Gita must have tugged a bit harder because she ended up with two, uncracked crackers in her hands.

We tried again and finally got those suckers to crack! A little Notorious B.I.G. homage with those colorful crowns.

With the girls in their Christmas pjs, they began laying their presents under the tree and one by one went off to bed. After a looong work week and a late night, I was fading fast but I managed to help Brent stuff stockings before falling asleep watching Christmas movies. 

I'd had most of the presents bough and wrapped before October- a record for me. Between a new job and Disneyland I knew it would be a stretch to throw in more expenses. Even so, there's always last-minute preparations that demand some time and attention (usually the girls gifts to each other and to Brent) and now it was done. Christmas was ready at last! And that feels so very satisfying!!!

Dance Showcase & Winter Choir Concert

I love watching my daughters dance. I do. That said, the dance showcase always seems to fall within two weeks were: 1- Brent is out of town, 2- I am horribly sick or 3- We have a million other things going on. This year Brent was not out of town and miraculously I was not sick BUT Gita's classes were doing their showcase the same night as Liesel and Ireland's winter concert. Brent and I knew we'd have to divide and conquer on that specific night to make it work. He took Sydney to the concert and I watched Gita at dance. 

Brent was able to make it to Sydney's Intermediate class which was the previous week and it was great. She has some fun friends in this class and as always, I'm amazed by her progress. For the tap portion, her teacher tapped out a Christmas song and then asked students and parents to guess which song it was. It came down to the very last one and none of the students could figure it out so she threw it to us parents. I leaned over to Brent and said, "Somethin' Around the Christmas Tree???" ROCKIN AROUND THE CHRISTMAS TREE! Brent called it out and we won. We even got stickers!

I remember when we scheduled dance classes for the year and realized Brigitta could knock all but one of her classes out in one night. How convenient! Just two trips to the studio! Oi vey- that was a bit myopic. As I sat in a hard, metal, folding chair I realized what she was putting her body through in the course of the evening. By the end of the night I was exhausted, and I was only watching! However, I have a renewed appreciation for how very dedicated Brigitta is to dance. 

Lyrical

This tap warmup was pretty darn cute!

They finished learning this combination that night and then the teacher drilled them with it.

I've always loved hip hop because it's so fun! It's also pretty high energy and yeah, this is a lot of dance to cram into one night.

While I was taking all this in, Brent was enjoying a lot of Christmas music at the high school. Liesel's favorite song to perform was Veni Veni Immanuel.

Liesel's balled class was also a different night than the concert so I got to watch her for the last time. I teared up when I realized that and just soaked in watching her move so beautifully and gracefully. 

November Tid Bits

First some flowers!

 

These double tulips caught my eye- so beautiful!

Sydney: I HATE IT when you say "Up and attem!"

Me: Well what would you prefer I say?

Ireland: *quietly to self* Up and Eve?

Having figured out the e-bikes by my work I have been enjoying lots of beautiful fall rides on my lunch hour. I'm sure the trail makes a loop, but I am directionally challenged and got a little lost. I had to call Brent for location help to get back and by the time I made it to the office my knees were shot and I was walking like John Wayne. 

We see lots of deer in these parts, but not a 10-point buck! Just casually hanging out there by that house in the morning as I dropped the girls at school. 

Love the sunrises I get to see from my building!

We had our first Thanksgiving at a proper dining table with our wedding china and everything! What was kind of a playroom is officially a dining room and I'm feeling so grown up now. We did the traditional gratitude ABC's and music kept coming up so we did one round of just songs we love. Then we listened to some of them as we cleaned up. It was so fun! And the most popular dish? Rud kohl!

I had a massive craving for Texas sheet cake and was hoping I could get Gita to make it for me. 
Me: Remember the story of the First Thanksgiving when the pilgrims and the Indians had a feast with celery and fish and Texas sheet cake?

Gita: Huh?
Brent: The pilgrims didn't bring Texas sheet cake!

Me: No the Indians brought it because back then it was still their territory. 

Brent: Right... and they called it Texas? We are already having cherry crumble pie which you requested!

Me: Well that would go good with the Texas sheet cake!

I lost. We did not have Texas sheet cake.

Because I'd already taken time off for Disneyland, I had to work the day after Thanksgiving. Brent brought the girls by to meet me for lunch and then dropped them at the mall to do Christmas shopping while he mailed our Christmas cards. The office was pretty quiet and seeing them in the middle of the day broke things up really nicely! I'm glad they could meet some of the coworkers I've been talking about.

They were excited to check out my workspace which has some pretty cool areas like this one with the swings. We also have a cooler filled with ice cream treats and I showed them the game room. Next time they meet me for lunch, we'll eat down in the game room!

For my birthday, Brent took me to see CSO play How to Train Your Dragon. The weather took a nasty turn and we were a little worried but decided to take the train. The initial plan was to go early and grab dinner downtown then go to the show. Liesel was having a night and in tears and I didn't want to leave in a rush. We talked and when she was in a better place, we knew there was a slim chance of catching the train. So we decided to have dinner in Crystal Lake and catch the next train, which was great! We feasted on pad thai and found a whole bunch of people at the train station who were also headed to the concert! It was actually really fun and during the commute Brent came up with a great Christmas wish list. He's one of the hardest people to shop for and it really took a load off my shoulders to have some suggestions to throw to the girls.

I had worn my Uggs but they are old, and definitely not water-proof. The streets of Chicago were filled with slush and pretty soon my shoes and bottom of my jeans were too. By the time we took our seats, my feet were wet and freezing. However, we were in the balcony on the very end so I discreetly took off my shoes, soaking wet socks and rolled up my pant legs. My sainted husband loaned me his sweater which I used to dry and wrap up my feet and then I laid my coat on my lap to cover it all. If it weren't for Brent's sweater, I would have been miserable but we settled in and enjoyed the concert. 

During intermission, Brent used the restroom and grabbed wads of paper towels so I could try to dry off my socks and the inside of my shoes. Having made the walk to the concert hall, I knew I could survive the walk back but by the end of that train ride I was DONE! They say there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing and I am a testament to that! Waterproof winter boots are now at the top of my own wish list! 

I was eagerly anticipating Romantic Flight as I think it's one of the most beautiful songs in animated cinema. To my surprise, it began with a beautiful solo performed by the concert mistress. We have been to many CSO concerts so of course we have heard her play- but to get to hear her play solo was such a treat. It just made my heart soar and as the orchestra filled in and we were enveloped in that incredible music, I smiled at Brent. The perfect birthday gift. I'm partial to strings but this concert really made me appreciate the percussion and horns. Oh it was so beautiful!

Do you think maybe Ireland needs some new snow pants? Or could she make these work for another year- haha!

Brigitta was complaining that making herself lunch was too hard and I said her ancestors were going to hear her moaning about instant mac n cheese and haunt her.

Madrigal Dinner

 With much fanfare, we attended Liesel's last Madrigal Dinner.

Families of seniors were given priority seating, so we had a great view.

Ireland makes the most adorable wench!

Liesel was Miss Babygotback and she entered with Sir Mixalot. This was their introduction:

Percy: Oh. My. God. Becky- turn thy gaze toward her hind quarters.

Liesel: Indeed, she doth have a large rumpus and I cannot lie. Ye other brethren can't deny.

Both: Fair maiden hath back.

One of my favorite Christmas songs is I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas so Liesel told me to look out for that one. 

The number that blew me away was this rendition of Say Something. Brent and I volunteered the next night and I was able to record it when we were done with the warm cider down in the kitchen. 

Brent's favorite was When I Think About Angels and I have to admit that's a pretty good one too.

It was nice to hear it again and see this view at the end when they sing Silent Night. Brings all the feels!

It's enough to bring the tenderhearted to tears!

A sensitive soul that one!

Madrigal Dinner has become our kick off to the holiday season- and I truly love it!

Mad props to Mrs. Scherrer who puts her heart and soul into the choir program and loves our girls as much as we do! 

It takes a village and I'm so very grateful to have her as part of our village.