The Good Stuff

Thankful indeed. 

The Last List

For the final Ten on Tuesday, and since I’ll officially be able to turn on my Christmas lights in less than forty-eight hours, I thought I’d share ten of my favorite holiday traditions.   

1.  The Bowl Schedule.  I mentioned this in my football post a few weeks back, but the Bowl Schedule going up always means that the holidays really are here.  I love it!

2.  Nachos.  Nachos are pretty much my favorite thing ever; I’d eat them every day if possible.  Knowing that I can’t, the Christmas break is always especially exciting for me as that is the one time of year that I buy the big can of Que Bueno from Costco.  We eat lots of nachos over the break!

3.  The Way That We Unwrap Gifts.  We’ve never been one of those “everyone tear into your gifts” type of family.  Gift opening takes hours as the six of us (my parents come over) take turns, each opening one gift at a time.  After a sufficient amount of oohing and ahhing, the next person may begin.  I love it.

4.  My Santa Rule.  Obviously when the kids were little, Santa couldn’t come until they were fast asleep.  He’s still like that.  Santa can’t come, therefore the stockings can’t be filled, until they’re in bed.  I love being the last one up, putting the finishing touches on everything.

5.  My Christmas Tree.  I love, love, love my Christmas tree; it makes me so happy!

6.  Shopping With My Dad.  Every year, for as long as I can remember, my dad and I have a shopping date.  He takes me to dinner, and then we go shopping for my mom.  I look forward to it every year.

7.  Christmas Eve Breakfast.  Ever since the boys were babies, we all get up super early (6am…that’s early for holiday time) and go to breakfast.  Since December 24^th is actually my favorite day of the year, it’s the perfect way for me to start the day.

8.  Peanut Butter Balls.  I only make them in December and I don’t give out the recipe; a true family favorite.  They will be loaded in both the fridge and the freezer the day that John gets home for Christmas break.

9.  Christmas Movies.  There are seven that I must watch every year; there are more that I watch every couple of years.  Can’t wait.

10.  Stille Nacht by Mannheim Steamroller.  It’s my ultimate, favorite Christmas song.  If I hear it coming on the radio, I immediately turn it off; I avoid it for the entire season.  Then, when everything is done and everyone is in bed on Christmas Eve, at the end of my favorite day, I get ready for bed, crawl in, turn off the lights, turn on the song, and close my eyes.  I let the beauty of the music wash over me.  It’s the only one of my traditions that is truly, solely for me.  It’s my moment of perfect peace.

 

2008, Part I

When it rains in San Diego, you do what you've gotta do to enjoy it.

 

Last week I mentioned a broken thumb that I couldn't find a picture of.
Apparently I had the timing wrong - it was in January of '08.
Bagged and ready for a water ride.

Bumping into friends at Disneyland is always fun!

The Lesson:
Don't get in a fight with your older brother
or you might walk away with a torn cornea. 

Hikes with Dad!
(I don't hike.)

Bon Jovi!

John's 12th Birthday

Little League:
The only time that a San Diego girl can say, "Go Dodgers!"

Despite the goofy uniforms, I love my
AWANA Bible Quiz winner!

Speaking of goofy uniforms....
Whatever it takes when you're an All Star, right?

Manning x2

The things that Dad teaches them...

VIP's for a day at Petco.
It. Was. Awesome.

A little blurry because she moves around alot...Amy Grant!
It was the 20th anniversary reboot of the Lead Me On tour,
which I indeed did see in 1988.  Such a fun night.

Not sure why we all took a turn in the hat.
Probably Matthew's idea.

Love.

Our big family, all together!
If I've counted right, there are eight more of us now.
(This isn't extended family or anything - it's Andy's folks,
his siblings, and their children.  I know...there are a lot of us!)

Sigh.

I've mentioned that we love Disneyland, right?

The year that our Christmas picture looked like a band photo.

She was surrounded....

It wore her out.
Merry Christmas, Sophie.
(I miss you.)

I love pictures.  I called this Part I...
In the summer of '08 the Mr. and I went to Europe. 
Next time I'll do a Part II with some of our vacation highlights. 

That would have made this post entirely too long! 

2007

When you're too cheap to buy a jersey for the Super Bowl,
you make one out of a blue shirt and masking tape.
(When #18 next was in a Super Bowl,
one of my favorite people bought me a real one.)

Two cute members of the 2nd place Yellow Team at the AWANA Games

John's 11th Birthday

The last time that we dyed Easter eggs.  They're growing up!

All that for a broken toe.  I'm still not sure why it was necessary.
The toes are exposed!  The break was in a growth plate at the base of the big toe, though. 
Maybe they just wanted to keep him from abusing it while it healed.

Andy's one and only season coaching baseball.  Go Yankees!

This was a pretty fantastic group of friends.  Unfortunately, they had to say goodbye.
This was their last night together...they haven't all been in the same room since.
I miss them.

When your team goes 26 and 1combined for the
regular season and the tournament,
receiving a major award from the best coach
ever is pretty great. 

Andy traveled to Green Bay multiple times for work,and he got to tour Lambeau. 
They ate at some fancy restaurant in there and got to go play down on the field. 
I was extremely envious.

Summer just isn't summer without spending a week playing Pool Football.

He turned 10 and he wanted to go to Laughlin to eat at the breakfast buffet.
Lucky charms, pancakes, bacon, donuts and Mountain Dew.
Man, it's good to be 10.

Andy and I visited Chicago.  I actually don't mind this photo of me.

First time at White Castle!  Had to see what the hubbub was all about.
Unfortunately, it wasn't my last time at a White Castle. 
(Shudder.)

R2-D2 mailbox, best deep dish ever, Soldier Field (of course I took a picture of that)
and the view from the top of the Sears Tower (after I stopped crying and in between hits of my inhaler.)
Good times. 

Nate's Butt Farm!  (Sorry.)
And another broken bone for Matthew; an arm this time.
He also broke a thumb over the summer,
but I didn't manage to get a picture of that cast. 

Disneyland with my boys and parentals.  The best memories.

Love.

Our neighborhood was hit hard by fires; hundreds of homes were lost.
We were fortunate; many friends weren't so lucky.

I loved those boots.
But they weren't mine.  I think I need to buy some boots.
(Getting ready for a piano recital.)

Can there ever be too much Disneyland?  I say no.

Putting up Christmas trees, no matter which room they're in,
is one of my favorite things to do!

This was the last year that they slept "under the Christmas tree."
The next year, if memory serves, they decided that their beds
really are more comfortable than the floor.

Finishing the year right!
A spontaneous, day-after-Christmas trip back up to Monterey
to spend the last week of the year with our favorite people!