New Year's Eve

We spent the afternoon at the Amazing Mirror Maze with friends Katie and Susie. Amazing is stretching it, but we did have to walk like zombies to avoid crashing into mirrors, and actually got lost! (And slightly nauseated.)

We had plans to go to a party that evening, but Joe was not feeling great, so we stayed in and did our fondue like usual. Yummy!

Day of Service

Proud of our girls for always wanting to volunteer. We attended Matter's Family Day of Service. We bagged oatmeal for food shelves, organized food donations and helped clean their office kitchen!

Steep driveways...

Are fun at times!!

Sound of Music Singalong!

The songs were alive at the Sound of Music singalong! Plenty of edelweiss, yodeling, and nuns!

A Very Merry Christmas

This Christmas was very relaxing and just plain wonderful. We had a nice dinner on Christmas Eve at our house:

And an easygoing Christmas morning at home:

We really missed the snow...but it did allow Jia to try out her new skates!

 

Then we went to my parents' house for a fun Christmas meal:

 

 

Auntie Susie was a fantastic shopper as usual!

 

 

One can never have enough whipped cream!

 

Holiday Traditions

Some of our holiday traditions: Sweet Delights doll bakery with homemade treats (pretend, this year's dough flavor - peppermint candy cane) and Tomte Christmas porridge (real, very yummy with cinnamon and sugar).

Gingerbread and Santaland

We had fun making gingerbread houses with the Thompsons as usual!

We also visited Macy's Santaland. Every year, it's the same elf display, crazy crowds, and difficult parking. But also the same gasps of excitement, giant treats, and happy kids!

Folkways of the Holidays

We attended Folkways of the Holidays with our friends to learn about Christmases of yore. The biggest hit: the ice push sleds! The biggest takeaway: an appreciation for all we have now.

Class Parties and Student of the Month

At Willa's class party, we made a bird feeder, painted a picture frame, decorated cookies, and took a blurry family photo. I love the "love" in Willa's family portrait!

For Jia's class party, the kids made lunches for residents at a homeless shelter. I was touched by their drawings and inspirational messages.

She and her cousin were also Students of the Month on the same day! Way to go!

 

Hello Santa

We visited the Arboretum. It was the perfect remedy for a dreary day: visiting Santa, playing an intense game of checkers by the fire, and strolling around greenhouses!