Happy 5th Birthday Jaelyn!

So Jaelyn is now proud to say she is five years old, and she grins from ear to ear whenever she says it. She has also reluctantly given up her blanket, because isn't that what you do when you're five (at least that's what we told her)? If you have seen Jaelyn sleep, you know she shoves half her blanket in her mouth to suck on, and has since the first day she has been with us. We were really proud of her for giving up her blanket so easily, that is, until we find that she substitutes anything around her bed to suck on to put herself to sleep. So much for breaking the habit...might as well give her the blankie back:)

She loves her Beaver sweatshirt...just like Daddy's! Unfortunately the baby stroller has been a source of contention between her and her sister. It's hard to watch your sister get all the good stuff, when your birthday is still 3 months away...

With a New Year's Day birthday, Jaelyn got to celebrate twice; once with family, and a few days later with friends.

Memorable Christmas...

To say that the Christmas season of 2008 was memorable is an understatement. It began with one of the longest drives to Oregon ever, with the record snowfall on the ground. What is typically a five our trip ended up being an eight hour trip. We saw motorists wiped out everywhere, just sitting in their cars, facing the wrong direction on the interstate. Our goal was to be like the "Tortoise and the Hare," just keep on moving at the same slow pace and let everyone race around us. Fortunately we made it to Portland just before the ice storm hit. There was literally seven inches of snow on the ground with a sheet of about 3/4" ice on top. We were housebound that Sunday, so the kids went outside to play in the ice! On Monday we braved the weather to head out to Klamath Falls. We had to chain up to get out of the Portland area, then took off the chains for the Willamette Valley, then put them on again for Willamette Pass. Again, our trip took us almost twice as long as usual, but our Tortoise method paid off again.

Once there we enjoyed four days with family and lots of snow. The kids even built a giant igloo that could fit three. Of course, two of those bodies had to be the girls:) All ten cousins got to be together for Christmas, which was wonderful!

Thankfully our trip back to Portland was much more uneventful than the one going south. We had a belated Christmas with my family, then spent the next day with my Grandma, and getting to say our goodbyes. She passed away Sunday morning at the age of 89, and being married to my grandfather for 70 years. Incredible! The upside of her passing over the holidays is that a lot of family had already been around, and most of those who weren't were able to fly up for the service. We celebrated her life yesterday and I enjoyed seeing family that I had not seen in 30+ years. Grandma sure was surrounded by a lot of wonderful people!

Due to us being with my grandma on the 27th, we celebrated Kaia's anniversary of joining our family four years ago (Gotcha Day), a couple days late. Our usual celebration is gorging ourselves on Chinese food, and that we did. Our memory of that day four years ago in China is so fresh in our minds. That too was a memorable Christmas, but in a much different way.

So the holiday season comes to a close today, not because this is New Year's Day, but because it is Jaelyn's 5th birthday! She is quite excited about it too, and reminded me this morning before I even had a chance to speak.

Thank goodness for a couple days rest and recovery before we have to head back to school on Monday. Now to sort through the photos and decide which ones to post (and delaying the laundry, grocery shopping and decorations to take down)....

Another Snow Day....

So we have another snow day today, but these videos are actually from yesterday. We just couldn't get them to load.

SNOW DAY!!!!

Well so far it is a snow day, but with the way it is still coming down, and with the forecast, it may turn into plural snow days! We spent the morning playing building a snowman, throwing snow balls, and sledding down the great hill in our neighborhood. The snow is fluffy and dry, not wet like it usually is here, and we have all had a blast.


Check out Josh's sick sense of humor...what can I say, he's a middle schooler!
This adorable photo is from the girls' school's Christmas singalong. We had Kaia's hair cut again this week into a little better shape, now that it has grown out a bit, so their haircuts are similar.

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas....

No, it hasn't snowed here, but the lights are up and the tree trimmed. It is a joy to watch the girls enthusiasm for Christmas this year. They remember every detail from last year, and they jumped up and down as we took each decoration out of its box. Their joy is contagious!

It all began with our family trip to cut down the Christmas tree. As you may remember from last year, and from Halloween this year, that Jaelyn is deathly afraid of Santa. The whole trip there she kept repeating "I don't want to see Santa." to which we kept answering "You don't have to talk to Santa, just wave and keep walking." When we got there she immediately spotted Santa, so kept within a 20+ ft. radius of him. Kaia ran right up to talk with him, along with Josh, so I got my camera out. I called Kellen over for photos, and Josh scooped Jaelyn up and told her he would hold on to her. Surprisingly she let him stand right next to Santa, and she even "pet" his costume when Josh told her to. She would not speak to him though, but for the next couple of days, all she would say to anyone she met was "I so brave. I not scared of Santa!" That's a huge improvement for her.

As you can see, we were a bit tuckered out by the time we were all through, so getting a halfway decent photo of the whole family around the tree was a challenge. Tomorrow is December 1, which means "No-shave November" is over for Kellen. Yep, he and some of his buddies took on the challenge for the month. I think he's anxious to get rid of it too.

What we're thankful for....

Each family members reply at dinner to what they're thankful for this year, which is one of our holiday traditions:
Kaia - "Spraying my brothers with water"
Josh - "Being able to spend time with my family and this wonderful Thanksgiving dinner"
Mike - "My family and all the blessings I have"
Kellen - "God and the 2nd Amendment"
Jaelyn - "My dogs, Romeo and Caesar"
Toni - "The many freedoms I have in the US"

May you and your family have as many things to be thankful for as our family does, and remember, you can show your gratitude more than once a year.

Advent Conspiracy....

Our pastor shared this at church this morning.....something for you to think about as we move into the holiday rush this week. I know I will be.