Christmas Eve 2009

There are 3 essential elements for a proper Christmas Eve: family, singing, and food. We were blessed to have each of these elements as part of our holiday, in varying degrees and in newfound ways. We expanded our FAMILY circle to include ward friends this year, since we were far from our blood relations. Some of our favorite Perrysburg friends, the Wards, organized a group to go SINGING at a nursing home. What was originally intended to be a small group of carolers turned into 7 families that totalled about 35 people.

We descended upon the seniors with our instruments, Christmas cards, and banners. Our enthusiastic group sang favorites such as "Up on the Housetop" and "Silent Night". Jacob accompanied some of our numbers with his flute. The Wilkin sisters used Boom Wackers to perform "The First Noel". It was an ecclectic performance to be sure.

In keeping with our newfound tradition of eating out on holidays, our foursome went to Nagoya to enjoy fine Japanease Tempenyaki. Our chef did some of the classic tricks like the onion volcano and spatula juggling. More importantly, he cooked our FOOD to perfection. This was not the highlight of the evening, however. We met a single mother and her 8-year-old son that shared our table. Her husband ad been killed in the war 2 years earlier. She and her boy were trying to carve out some new traditions because it was hard to be with extended family this time of year. We got to talking and found we had a lot in common. We also exchanged contact information so that we could catch up in the spring to go bike riding together. Meeting this woman was an important reminder that we are so blessed to have each other at the holidays.

Holiday Traditions

Christmas is so close we can taste it (and it tastes like fudge). Our minds can't help but wander back to years past, when our family was newer and forming our own holiday traditions. Here is a random sampling from our 14 years together (in no particular order):

No Christmas music until after Thanksgiving

This one was Rick's idea, not mine. Perhaps it's because I play holiday tunes 24/7, all season long. He has to give me some limits or he'll go crazy. I have 30+ Christmas CDs, and the collection grows every year. Whether it's Harry Connick, Mo Tab, or The Muppets, I'm sure to play it all.

Caroling

We've sung to the neighbors, family members, and to senior citizens. It's just not Christmastime unless we're "entertaining" others with our Saunders Family Favorites.

The Christmas Eve Gift

It's hard to wait for Christmas morning, whether you're a giver or a receiver. Jake and Em get to open one present the night before the big day so as to warm up their gift unwrapping muscles. It's also a great time to practice those magic words like, "thanks" and "I love it" and "you're the best Mom ever".

Zoo Lights

This one was a little easier when we lived in Arizona. Winter evenings were barely nippy in the desert. You could get by with a sweatshirt and some Dollar Store mittens. Here in Toledo, one must don a minimum of 4 layers to view the Zoo Lights. I've vowed to wear my snow bibs next year.



Dressing the Dog

We've found that putting clothes on Shelby is endlessly entertaining for us. The poor girl has worn many goofy sweaters over the years. Last year we found a Santa suit that gets us all in the mood for Christmas. She knows she looks good in it.




Crafts

Gone are the days when we had to make our gifts. I'm sure our family is glad that Rick gave away his jigsaw and that I've put away my paints. Emma still loves crafting though, and there are ample opportunities at Michael's and Home Depot.



Nativities

We have a growing collection of nativities and we find new ones every year. Since we've moved to Perrysburg, our nativity stash has come in handy since our church hosts and Interfaith Nativity Celebration. Here are a few that we've loaned for the exhibit:

Car lights

Rick decorates the family car with a string of lights each year. Guess who gets to drive it around town? Ya, I do. Sometimes I forget that the lights are up there and I catch other drivers checking me out. It's really unnerving. It does seem to put a smile on a person's face though. I've had a lot of waves and thumbs up signs the past few weeks.

Santa brings wrapped presents

It's funny. When I was a kid, Santa's gifts were never wrapped. They were just hangin' out by my stocking. Santa changed his ways once Rick and I started having kids. Now the big guy brings presents wrapped in special Santa Claus paper labeled with mysterious labels not seen on any of the family presents. I guess Santa must have had a change in management up at the North Pole.

Gingerbread Houses

Whoever thought of making a house covered in frosting and candy must have been a genious. We've long enjoyed constructing delicate dwellings of graham crackers and Skittles. This year's structure was built from a store bought kit from Michael's. It was our best attempt yet. I would post a picture, but the kids have already eaten most of it. You'll just have to take our word for it.

Potpourri

This one comes from my Mom. She used to make her own holiday potpourri using orange slices, cloves, and cinnamon sticks. She would simmer the concoction on the stove and it would smell heavenly. Now we do the same thing using our little holiday warmer.

Nat King Cole

Here's another carry-over from childhood. When Rick's family would decorate the tree, they'd always play a tape of Nat King Cole singing "I'm the Happiest Christmas Tree" in the background. That's always the first song we play when we drag out the Christmas ornaments.

Pictures with Santa

We stole this idea from Rick's sister Amy. It's so fun to see how the kids change from year to year. When they're little guys, the pictures show them looking suspicious of Santa, even terrified. As they get older, the expressions change from happy to "this is so lame Mother". From 18 months to 18 years, we're going to have a picture of our kids with Santa. (See last year's post for a sample of Saunders family Santa pics).

Tools and Books

Rick has always given the kids tools for Christmas with the hopes that they'll each have a full set of Craftsman tools when they move out of the house. I wanted to have a cool legacy to pass on too, so I started giving the kids books a few years back. Sure, they're not as useful, but it sends a message. When something breaks, go read a book.

Christmas Countdown

This one kinda goes back to my crafting days. The ladies at church used to have Super Saturday Activities where we'd get together and make cutesy Christmas decorations and eat yummy food. I have a few lingering crafts that the kids won't let me keep in the box. One is a painted wooden Christmas tree with 25 miniature ornaments that you can hang on the tree each day preceeding Christmas. The other is a painted wooden snowman from which you can hang a string of 25 candies to count down to the holiday. Yup. They're both displayed right now.

Christmas Letters

We haven't been faithful about sending Christmas cards every year. I guess you could say our tradition is to procrastinate sending cards. One year we sent an Easter newsletter instead, because we never got around to it. This year was no exception. I had to change the greeting from Merry Christmas to Happy New Year. Check out my poem below:

A New Twist on an Old Poem

Twas the week before Christmas, when Audrey exclaimed,
“Not a letter I’ve written, no accomplishment named!”
So she sat down to pen season’s greetings and more
With hope that her family’s news would not bore.

The year had been kind to the Saunders indeed.
Rick loved being Doc, and the kids grew like weeds.
The new home was settled and feeling quite cozy.
Two thousand and nine had turned out mostly rosy.

Emma continued to draw and to craft.
She made many friends, she sang, and she laughed.
Her talent for writing and reading increased.
Her cleverness shocked her folks not in the least.

Jacob bid farewell to childhood at last.
Junior high school seemed to come way too fast.
His hard work in Scouts gave him plenty to do.
He took up the flute and the violin too.

Audrey kept busy with cycling and teaching.
Her work with the youth came with blessings far-reaching.
She spent every day either planning or napping.
Seminary was so energy zapping!

Rick spent his time with the injured or ill.
Home maintenance projects he tackled with zeal.
He installed the sprinklers and rough framed the walls.
It’s a wonder the poor man could wake up at all!

When Audrey had finished her Christmas card task,
The deadline for shipping had already passed.
So she chuckled and on every card she did write,
“Happy New Year” to all and to all a good night!

Best Wishes for the New Year!
The Saunders Family

Black Friday Shopping

I told you this was a list in no particular order! Rick is one of those crazy shoppers that gets up at 4:00 in the morning the day after Thanksgiving so he can score some major deals. Since he was working a 30-hour shift this year, he had to wait until 10:00 am to catch those Black Friday deals. He claims it was still worth the lines and the traffic.

Movies

Some movies just bring it all home, right? Our top 5 holiday movies have to be:

1. It's A Wonderful Life

2. White Christmas

3. Frosty & Rudolph (claymation classic)

4. Charlie Brown

5. Polar Express

Luke 2

Not a year goes by that we don't read the Christmas story straight from the scriptures. When we're gathered with extended family, we always act it out (including the costumes). Sometimes we watch the church video that they show at the temple. You can see that here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLWYgMmFET4&feature=related

Christmas Eve Dinner

Since we NEVER get to go out to a restaurant (ha ha), we've started eating out for Christmas Eve. We've had our reservations at Nagoya for several weeks. Sure, it's not Frito Family Mexican Food with orange juice and Sprite, but it'll do. And, there's no clean up!

Well, if you've made it through this post you must be really bored or you gave birth to us. Merry Christmas! We love you. Now get back to your families!

Emma's Winter Music Concert

'Tis the season for school music concerts. Emma and the rest of the Woodland 4th graders showed off their new recorder skills last Thursday.

They entertained the audience with such favorites as "Let It Snow" and "Here We Come A Wassailing". That was as Christmassy as things got though. It was a pretty vanilla evening as far as holiday programs are concerned.

We're not sure why Emma got to be in the front row, but we were sure glad. It made for some better pictures.

Emma had to fill in last minute on a speaking part. You can't really hear her at all in this clip, but it does give an audio sample of the recorders.

Could this kid look any more like her mother?

Emma looked lovely in her new Christmas dress. We are so proud of our young musician!

Festivus

So, our Thanksgiving really wasn't much to write home about. I learned a few things about what NOT to do next year:

1. Don't turn down a friend's invitation to a real Thanksgiving dinner because you think it will be too depressing to hang with someone else's family on Turkey Day.
2. Don't eat pressed turkey loaf from the hospital cafeteria instead.
3. Don't expect to sit down with a resident on trauma call because his pager WILL go off.
4. Don't spend the evening in the doctor's lounge WITH your kids and WITHOUT said doctor.
5. Don't "console" yourself about not getting pie by finishing off that container of ice cream at home in the freezer.
6. Don't stay up until 3 am watching random stuff on Youtube.
7. Don't feel sorry for yourself - that's not what Thanksgiving is about.
8. Do plan on cooking a real Thanksgiving meal next year, even if it means eating without Rick.

Pretty lame, right? This post gets better in a minute...

Friday was my 33rd birthday. It started out great and got better from there. The kids made me breakfast in bed. Jake warmed up some whole wheat waffles while Emma scrambled an egg. They managed to carry the tray up the stairs and down the hall without spilling. Bonus! Soon after, Rick came home from working his 30-hour shift. He brought me a beautiful bouquet of flowers. Here are some of the cards I received from family and friends:

The kids also decorated the house with balloons:

That night, Rick took me to a Japanese restaurant in our area called Nagoya. It's a timpenyaki (sp?) place where they cook the food right in front of you. My swordfish was delish and the veggies divine. We also got an extra treat for the ears. Shortly after we sat down to eat, live music started playing at the front of the restaurant. We ended up hanging around for awhile to hear Toledo's own Crystal Bowersox. She was remarkably good and we bought her CD.

Later, we stopped off at New York & Company so that I could spend my birthday money and gift card (Thanks Lala, Papa, Mama Jo, and Pa Saunders). I got a red cable neck sweater, a side ruched top in pink, and some dressy costume jewelry. I'm going to be fabulous at my next holiday shin-dig!

On Saturday, I taught my aerobics classes while Rick and the kids hung Christmas lights outside. Next, we ate for $10 at Arby's (woot woot) which sabotaged my efforts from the morning - ha! After our wholesome lunch, we spent some time at Bass Pro shop taking pictures and taking advantage of all the holiday activities. They really do it up right in that place!

Every square foot of that store that is decorated for Christmas. Wow!

What do you think? Should we embrace country livin' and get Emma her very own gun for Christmas?

Nothing says Merry Christmas like the sound of an air soft gun.

Saturday evening was the big tree lighting ceremony at Levis Commons. We bundled ourselves up, snagged some hot cocoa, and enjoyed the show.

We caught the tail end of some country singing and fire baton twirling. Interesting combo, eh? At 8:00, they lit the big tree and the people peeled out. It was pretty funny. All that hoop-la just to turn on some lights and go home. We stuck around though. We forced the kids to get their annual shots with Santa.

We will continue to make them pose with Santa each year until they move out of the house. It's a tradition for Pete's sake!

Girls Just Wanna Have Fun

Last weekend was just for chicks. The gals in my ward started things off right by eating a yummy lunch at El Vaquero. We visited, laughed, and passed around the newest baby in our circle of friends. Later that evening we had a Twilight-themed bash while the movie played in the background. We debated the Jacob vs. Edward issue and mocked the poor acting and visual effects from the first movie. By 8:00ish, we were out the door to go stand in line at the local theater (all 20 of us). Of course we had purchased our tickets weeks earlier, but we were determined to get a decent seat too. The lobby was absolutely packed with girls of ALL ages. It was really pretty ridiculous and we had to laugh at ourselves.

When the show started there was cheering and clapping, even a howl or two. We couldn't stop giggling. We marveled at Taylor's 30 pounds of muscle and cringed at Robert's creepy pastiness. It was a great time - a fluff film with fun friends. What could be better?

On Saturday, Emma and I got to join a group of moms and daughters on an excursion to Cleveland. We got to see Wicked at the remodeled Playhouse theater. On the drive over, the little girls watched The Wizard of Oz while the moms chatted about everything under the sun. We forked out a little extra money so we could park right across from the theater (one of our more brilliant ideas of the day). The Playhouse was worth the drive by itself, especially since it was decorated already for the holidays. After snapping a few pictures with our camera phones (we ALL forgot our cameras), we hiked up to our seats. We were waaaaaaaaay up in the balcony. Once the show started though, it didn't matter as much because the music was fantastic! Emma's eyes were fixed on the stage the whole time. We both LOVED it.

To finish the day, we took the little girls to The Cheesecake Factory. It was a long wait, but we killed time checking out the holiday decorations at the outdoor mall. We also got "appetizers" at a nearby Trader Joe's ( we don't have one in Toledo). We stuffed ourselves and gorged on the famous cheesecake. It was a delicious ending to a wonderful weekend!

Jake's Band Concert

Jacob has only played the flute for a couple of months with the 6th grade band, but they had a special concert a few weeks ago showcasing what they've learned so far. It was easy to see why Jacob loves band so much. His band teacher seems really fun and energetic. He really had those kids wrapped around his baton. Here is the classic song, Hot Cross Buns:

Jacob's Ordination

Papa flew out this weekend to be part of Jacob's priesthood ordination. We were thrilled to have him participate in this very special milestone in Jacob's life.
Jacob was recognized in Sacrament Meeting for graduating Primary. He recited the 7th Article of Faith in front of the whole congregation. It only took him one breath!

Jake also went to his first Fireside last night. Because Rick is the Scout Master in the ward, he got to go too. Jake's pretty lucky to have his Dad serving as a leader!


In other news...I was released from my calling as Primary music leader yesterday. I was very resistant to giving that up, as it's always been my favorite calling in the church. However, I did have to breathe a little sigh of relief that I'll now have one less lesson to plan each week.

Jake's Birthday Party

We threw together a last minute laser tag party for Jake's birthday. He invited 4 of his good buddies and Rick drove them to Sylvania for some fun. I think they played 7 or 8 games. They had a total blast!

When they got back, we had pizza, cookie cake, and ice cream. I tried to balance out all the junk food by making the boys eat some grapes. It's all good, right?

Jake had a very Bionicle birthday. Somehow his friends knew exactly what Bionicles to get for him. Amazing! At the end of the evening, the knocked each other around with some Wii boxing. Good times!

Inside at the Henry Ford Museum

Now that it's getting chilly outside, we look for indoor adventures. On Tuesday, both the kids and Rick had a day off. We celebrated by driving to Michigan and spending the day together. After enjoying burgers at Fuddruckers, we made a visit to the Henry Ford Museum. We'd never done the indoor stuff, so it was all new to us.

The museum has a whole section dedicated to the evolution of flight over the past century. We saw some crazy footage of early stunt fliers, inventions by the Wright brothers, and fully assembled airplanes. It was so cool!

Jake just couldn't get this guy interested in the airborne acrobatics.

For a limited time, the museum has a whole Lego Knights Kingdom display. It's all interactive and hands on. The kids would have stayed there all day building castles had we let them.

We learned all we ever wanted to know (and more) about the progression of farming equipment.

We couldn't resist taking a family picture in front of the wiener mobile.

Are you hungry for a hot dog?

He looks good enough to eat.

The Goldenrod still holds the title for fasted land speed record.

Our favorite part of the tour was climbing on the bus where Rosa Parks sat.

I'm so glad Emma still has some years ahead before she is officially behind the wheel. Instead of a Model T, she'll be driving a tank.

I'm not sure what this is, but doesn't Jake look cute?

All aboard!

This is a snow plow-type train.

We need this so our whole family can ride in the Amtrak Century next year.

All in all, it was a GREAT day trip. If you ever come visit us in the great state of Ohio, we'll be happy to take you to the world famous Henry Ford Museum!

What the what?

Jake is 12! We celebrated as a family on Monday evening by going out to dinner. Jake's choice for fine dining was Olive Garden. This was not because he loves Italian food (if you can even call Olive Garden Italian food). He just really likes the breadsticks there.

Whatever. We indulged him since it was a special occasion. We even had the staff come sing to him.

Now, do we look like the parents of a 12-year old? Wait! Don't answer that.

Old Pictures Found!

Our camera is dying, so we've not been diligent about taking pictures lately. We've resorted to using an old camera that we'd given to the kids. This "dinosaur" came out when digital photography was just getting underway, so it's both slow and grainy. Here are some pictures of the kids on their first day of school:

Jake's a little blurry. Sorry.

And here are some more shots provided by Jake's Scout leader:

I think they took this hike about 2 months ago. One of the kids is still in shorts so it MUST have been 2 months ago!

The leader in this pic is our good friend David Luce. His son Michael is Jake's best buddy at church.

I can't figure out if they're resting or drawing a map in the sand.
Michael on the left, Jake on the right.