Christmas 2012

Merry Christmas to all of our family and friends!  Happy Birthday, Jesus!!!

We have had a wonderful Christmas day.  The kids woke at 6:30, and by 7:00 we were busy opening gifts.  Avery and Silas were excited that mom and dad got them an xbox 360 with kinect, and Santa brought them games to go with it.  Good thing mom let Santa in on that secret!

Nolan and Chaille got an indoor trampoline for the bonus room, and Chaille wore herself out jumping!  She is feeling MUCH better today, however has a cough and snotty nose.  Still no fever though!  Santa brought lots of games and we should be able to stay very busy through the snow storm that is on the way.  They say that it may be blizzard-like.  I'm praying for all of us who may be affected.  And I'm looking forward to lots of playtime and eventually a SLEDDING trip!

Steve has a mandatory work meeting tonight ahead of the storm.  I imagine that he will spend the majority of the time up in Carmel, as they typically use the administration during big snows.  I don't look forward to being apart during the storm, but I understand that it is part of his job.  I'll know more after the evening meeting.

We enjoyed having my mom and dad and grandma for lunch today.  It isn't often that we have a big meal here at our house.  It was very nice to have a "feast" with the family here to join us.  So far, it has been a very delightful day!

I'll finish with pictures from today.  Some are from the camera and some are from my phone.  Merry Christmas!

Silent Night

Tonight we are reflecting on that night so many years ago. The night our Savior was born. Thank you, God for the gift of your Son.

The kids went to bed well, at 10:00 and have not made a peep since. Steve and I are too excited to sleep. What a wonderful phase of life we are living. Four anxious children will wake us bright and early! Thank you, God for the gift of family. We are beyond blessed!!!

Germs

Apparently this family is harvesting a multitude of germs...

Yesterday Chaille was so snotty, with a drippy nose and lots of sneezes. She really acted fine for as miserable as she looked. Well, this morning she is vomiting. :0( She is handling it well, and I'm so proud of how BIG she is acting despite feeling crummy. I've been praying for our health. Now I will continue to pray only more fervently. We don't want this bug hanging out here!!! I've lysoled everything in Chaille's grips.

Please pray with me that we didn't pass the bug to any of the family we saw yesterday. Chaille sneezed on everything and everyone :0(

Merry

We had such a nice day. We first enjoyed Christmas at Randy and Deb's, at lunch time. Then we had supper at my mom and dad's. We couldn't have asked for more fun, or better food. The kids were a joy to be around despite a fairly long, late day. I'm certain that they will not be bored while waiting for Santa to come. They have SO much stuff just from the grandparents. We enjoyed getting to celebrate with Great Grandma Grinstead this year too! What a blessing that she could come for both Thanksgiving and Christmas this year. I didn't take nearly enough pictures today, but here are a few good ones:

Strep again!

Silas had strep throat three weeks ago. We felt we had dodged the bullet of anyone else getting it. Yesterday Avery came home from his time with Steve at work and said that he had a headache, belly ache, and sore throat. He had a fever and we started Motrin and Tylenol for him. He woke up in the night screaming that he couldn't swallow and he couldn't breathe. That was exactly what Silas did when he woke up when he had it. :0(

So, we are starting antibiotics and hoping to have a new kid in 24 hours!!! And praying that no one else comes down with it!!!

First snow

We woke up to a blustery morning with our first snow fall. We had about 2" of snow, although it had blown around into drifts from the 40 mph sustained winds. Of course, the kids wanted to get out in it, even before breakfast! My work day was cancelled, so we let them at it. Steve took them to work with him after breakfast, and I was able to do my grocery shopping for Christmas and finish up some odds and ends. I believe I am officially DONE shopping for Christmas! :0)

Ahh, Christmas Break

School just ended for the day and we are officially on Christmas break!  I am so looking forward to some family time.  I'm thankful for a job that allows extra time off when it is very much needed.

Tonight we are using some tickets that we were given for Christmas to attend "A Christmas Carol" at IRT. (Thank you mom and dad Frye!) I'm excited to start this break off with something festive as a family.  Tomorrow I have a teacher work day and the kids get to go to work with Steve. I bet he gets a LOT of work done! ha ha...

Lots of pictures to come over Christmas!  See you soon.

You Are Beautiful

Our students have been working with a street artist to create some art for
our school. The artist came in and talked to the kids about the difference between vandalism and street art. She had a great message for the kids. She taught them that art needs to have 3 P's: Permission, Placement, and Purpose. She also had the message that EVERYONE is beautiful. She talked to the students about beauty being from the inside. Each child and most of the staff members created a piece of art that symbolizes themselves and it was made into a mural for the gym wall.

I'm going to love seeing this reminder each day:

9 Days

I truly can't believe that it is just 9 days until Christmas! It is warmer than average and just doesn't really feel like Christmas.

We have school until Thursday and then a teacher workday on Friday. I'm honestly looking forward to the break from school. I can't really explain it, but while I love my job, I'm still feeling the need to get away from it. I've been having some mixed emotions lately, and I'll blog about that sometime later. Let's just say for now that I need some time to rejuvenate for the second semester!

This weekend has been pretty relaxing. We had a Christmas party with my mom's side of the family yesterday, but otherwise spent the weekend as a family. We have played board games and card games and watched Christmas movies together. So relaxing and so wonderful!!! Unfortunately, Silas has been nursing a low grade fever and we have been wondering why. He is a tad congestion and a little achy. I'm praying for him, that he feels back to 100% soon.

This coming week at school we have a lot of interruptions, but I'm guessing it will make the week go fast. I have two students who have earned a chance to be "gym helpers" for their AR prizes and on Tuesday they are putting a mural on the gym wall. I can't wait to see it. Wednesday the kids who met AR goals get to go to the movies, and Thursday will be class parties for Christmas. I'm hoping that the busy-ness of it all helps us all not think about what happened in Connecticut this past Friday. Unthinkable and very heartbreaking!

Well, Steve should be home soon with pizza and then we are going to play a game of Life before starting our bedtime routine. I promise to blog more this week with pictures.

Family

The month of December is full of family for us this year. Last weekend, we had our Dotson and Moss Christmas party. And, we have enjoyed having my cousins, Mindy and Dena, here with us this week. Last night we enjoyed having nearly my dads entire family at our home, including my cousin, Dennis, who surprised us ALL by showing up from California! Christmas with family is quite wonderful! The kids also helped pick out papaw Randy's Christmas tree yesterday too. (Included in the pics is one of Silas from 10 days ago when he was diagnosed with Strep Throat.)