It was our annual church family ice skating night, and it was a lot of fun! Clint skated around with a camera so we got a few shots on the ice. Sarah and Ben are pretty slick on skates, so they are independent with their friends. We really enjoy times having fun with our church family.
We finished our "Charlie Brown Christmas," puzzle today. It is a holiday tradition Becky brought with her when she married Clint. We have added in watching the movie each year too. We like to end the puzzle with one piece left for each family member, and we put the last pieces in altogether. Sammy didn't get to put one in and we're trying to console him.
The first day of the year we spent out of town hanging out with friends. Becky made applesauce and gluten steaks for the first time. It was done on a wood stove too, so that was another first. Yummy! 
New Year's Eve is always a fun time at our house. This year we continued our yearly tradition with Charmaine's family for food, games and a lot of noise! Dutch Blitz and Catch Phrase were the evening favorites. We came home to snuggle up and read stories until midnight.
We're ready for 2010!
We scurried over to the local sledding hill to take advantage of the bit of snow on the ground. Sammy has shown a great delight in being out in snow, so he got to come along to the park. It is fun for Becky to try to capture Sammy in a photo, and it isn't easy!
The kids had fun meeting up with friends to sled, but we're really hoping for more snow to come!
We were blessed once again to be able to spend part of our Christmas break at Grammie's home. The weather cooperated in letting us make the trip, and we even got to see the sun a little while there. As you might expect, we were treated to wonderful meals and delicious treats during the visit.
Sarah & Ben received unique gifts from Grammie at the end of the gift opening time. They received Christmas 'Mittens', instead of the traditional stockings. Of course, they were still filled with lots of little surprises, as well as plenty of goodies. Smiles were in plentiful supply
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We scurried down to spend a chunk of our day with Clint's Grandma, Ruth. Clint's mom went with us for a pretty long day of driving. We caught up with Grandma for a late lunch at Hometown Buffet. She has been moved to a different room since we were there in the spring. It is ideal with a great view out her window, with loads of birds which she enjoys. She is also quite handy to the dining area. Grandma likes to show the kids the fantastic fish tanks in the building. They had fun watching for a shy eel in one tank. The time went too quickly, as always!
Another annual tradition at our church, is to enlist three very talented dads to travel through the children's Sabbath School rooms to share the good news about Jesus being born in Bethlehem. They alternate each year being wise men or shepherds, and always say "yes" when Becky calls to sign them up. Clint, Paul & Paddy are so wonderful, and all the classes look forward to their visit. The little kids just look at them with such wonder and delight, and the older ones will ask lots of questions. They come loaded with facinating facts about how things would have been in that time. The photo with the blue background is Ben's classroom.
Well, it happens every Christmas! We can't resist letting our true colors show! We're really sort of a goofy family under that mild-mannered exterior, but we manage to have a lot of fun despite a crazy-busy schedule. The kids love this tradition, and every year we have to come up with another silly pose for the holidays. Stay tuned for next year's photo!
Becky's work celebrated Christmas with a chilly trip to the Antarctic this year. We decided the best idea was to dress like the natives. :) Actually, it was a fun evening, loads of visiting with friends and coworkers, yummy food, and a chance to take penguin family photos.
Tonight was Ben's first official piano recital. The weather was not particularly cooperative, and we sort of slid our way to the downtown church. Luckily, we made it just as the recital was beginning! He played "Jingle Bells," as a duet with his teacher, and then also played "Go Tell it on the Mountain." This is his first year for lessons and he's doing such a great job!
Sarah's 5th/6th grade class put together a performance of the Christmas musical, "The 6th Grade Scrooge," tonight. The kids all did a great job! Of course, our eyes were on Sarah since she had a solo part. She was the expected nervous/excited. It was clear the kids and teachers had really been working on this to make it special. To top it all off, there was a spread of yummy treats! We made mini chocolate cupcakes with candy cane frosting. Strangely enough, there weren't any leftovers...
Sammy is really pretty lucky to have so many opportunities for walks outside! The last couple of days the weather has been nice, so Ben has walked Sam to Sarah's school, and then Sarah walks him home. He stirs up a lot of attention at school. Today someone asked if he was a mini-Golden Retriever! We really don't know what he is although several have suggest Corgi, Sheltie, Terrier, and Border Collie. Let us know what comes to mind when you see him.
We couldn't pass up the leaf piles today. I'm sure we were supposed to be doing something productive, but we pulled over for a spontaneous leaf stop. The kids rolled down a hill into a pile of leaves, ran across big rows of leaf piles, and buried themselves in leaves. Yippee! Fall is going by too quickly this year and we haven't had enough good leaf days. This will have to do for awhile!
When Clint & Becky were married a few years ago, we agreed that we were dog people. Clint has some difficulties with cat allergies, so that ruled out cats. What we couldn't seem to agree on, was what dog would work with our lifestyle, home/yard, and personalities. About a year ago, we got serious about praying for the right dog to come to our family. Our kids are at a great age for a dog. There was always something in our way to stop us from getting dogs we heard about or saw online.
Today Clint had to help out at a college career fair, which is something he normally enjoys. His table is all set up with cool imaging information. He was surprised when another colleague from the hospital pulled out his display. It was another version of the billboard with his smiling, reassuring face splattered on it. He is still on the billboard near Safeway, in ads by the baggage area at the airport, in the promo spots at the movie theater, and in local magazine ads. Thankfully, he is still managing to maintain his pre-celebrity charm. Now, if you'd like an autograph, just give us a call!
We feel like we're in a new house! We have been talking for a long time about updating our house from its original white with light blue trim. We struggled to agree on the colors, but now we're thrilled with the results!
We have been running like crazy for our first days here at the International Camporee. We walk several miles each day going back and forth for meals and to the programs or activity centers. We're just thankful it isn't raining! Having a blast running into friends from all over the country! Trading pins is a favorite pasttime for kids and adults. Sarah and Ben have their trading pins on their floppy hats.
Here is Sarah when we found her cousin Elizabeth outside the talent tent (in tan shirt with backpack). We had tried for days to call, but Heidi's phone was dead and we couldn't find them for most of the week. Another shot is with friend/neighbor, Charmaine, waiting for the main program and drama to begin. One more with lifelong buddy, Kelli, from Michigan (in maroon shirt).
How great to watch for the signs for Wall Drug over the past couple of days. Once we got there, we had time to check out some shops and even try our hand at mining! We ran into a couple of other Pathfinder clubs while we were there, and took time to search for a geocache before moving down the road.
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