hustle bustle 2014 edition

this year, kindin was let in on the big secret!  after crying incessently about wanting an elf on the shelf for the 3rd year in a row, we decided it was time to clue her in.  the devilish grin that immediately spread across her face was priceless but it was only 3 short days before she realized santa followed suit.  

a legos party for the boys

a day of tears following the ornament exchange with some of my most beloved and missed phoenix friends

a religious version of shake it off for the yw christmas party

stinky cast removal (it wasn't stinky- kindin just wanted to be prepared.)

it's practically a gingerbread factory around here: a party for k and 11 friends and a gingerbread event for the 1st graders   

a nutcracker tradition with our closest omaha allies

the longest date night we've had since newlywed dates with these most fun friends! 

a ridiculously humongous christmas tree

reaching 25# weight loss (sponsored by overnight oatmeal)

and dolly growing up really fast 

some things never change

jack loves his bath.  every night, jack loves his bath.  even when time is of the essence, jack loves his bath.  and... (as implied) jack loves his bath irresponsibly!  for years we have gone in and out of the bathroom at least twice nightly to police his bath-taking. (there almost always has to be a 'time to turn the water off now' reminder and an 'it's time to stop playing and get yourself clean' speech.)  we've tried various tactics to help him love bath time a bit more responsibly-  allotting more bath time, switching to showers, cutting back on showers to every other night, and giving strict time constraints- but continue to get plenty of nighttime exercise up and down the stairs a few times managing jack's bath time.

living in husker nation

some friends invited us to the unl cornhuskers game.   we had been somewhat interested in finding out what all the fuss is about so we happily obliged.  my brother was kind enough not only to watch our children* but also to boldly exhort us to wear husker colors.  we'd heard it all before in this crazy land where football is religion- how can you not?  it's hard to escape all the fuss: the supermarkets blast the game to the few shopping souls not watching the game intently; you simply can't find a donut that isn't slathered with red on game day; and a surprisingly shocking amount of households are decorated with huskers paraphanilia.  with 15 minutes before departure time, panic set in!  (we didn't want to be asked over and over how long we'd been in nebraska and we genuinely worried that our generous hosts might be annoyed if we showed up colorless.)  so we raced to target for college gear. here we are -feeling silly but embracing our billboard attire:   

here's the craziness we speak of:

and here's our wonderful friends (who yes, might have been annoyed if we weren't wearing red and black):

aahhhh... the cornhusker game is truly an experience.  and yes, we were so glad we had red on!  



*while we were gone, a funny thing happened.  justin was making mac and cheese for lunch and jack chided 'yuck' when asked if he'd like any.  he was quickly but quietly escorted out of the kitchen by his older sister and came back solemnly with his tail between his legs stating, 'I'll have a little bit please.'  

family pictures 2014

is it that time again?  the time when errands are never-ending, the house only gets clean for visitors/ parties, and every time i think my christmas to-do list is done, it's most definitely not!?!  

standing on the shoulders of giants- maxine thompson

i was recently tasked with presenting the my family story badge to kindin's brownie troop.  when i searched through family history stories, i was shocked by how much they touched my heart.  crying as i read,  i truly felt my own very fortunate circumstances are because i 'stand on the shoulders of giants'.  their lives and sacrifices have given me so much more than they ever had.  in particular, i was touched by the story of my great grandmother, Maxine, who sacrificed her own education in order to provide for her siblings.  truly it is a blessing from giants all the way back to great grandparents that both dave and i are blessed with good educations.  i trivialized her story a bit in order to make it relatable to the 8 year old audience (but i still almost cried while doing so).    

The cold toilet:

Maxine was Kindin's great, great grandmother.  Kindin never knew her but she lived all through my childhood so I knew her well.   Maxine was 1 of 10 siblings!  As a little girl, her family moved to SD when the government was giving away land for free.  Her family of 12 lived in a tiny, white house in Cavour, SD.   The tiny white house had 1 kitchen, 1 living room and 2 bedrooms AND a really cold toilet- an outhouse!  I remember going to see this tiny white house.  The floor was dirt and a wood burning stove took up a very large amount of space in the center of the room. 

Maxine was one of the oldest children and after high school she went to work to help provide for the rest of the family.  The younger 6 children were able to have college educations because of her. 

The tiny white house with a really cold toilet stayed in their family for a very long time.  It even became famous- as the oldest house in the county!  Maxine had a sister named Lucille who never moved out of that house.  She cared for her mother when she got old in the house and she cared for the youngest child, Dean, who was handicapped in that house.  She lived in the tiny house her entire life- she never moved!  The funny thing was that she did eventually build a bathroom onto the house but not a tub or shower- just an indoor toilet.  But, it still didn’t have any heat, so in the winter it was still... a very cold toilet!   And there are lots of jokes in Kindin’s family about the tiny white house with a cold toilet! 

dad's extracurriculars

dave is one committed father- 100% available to our kids with his playful and engaged interest.  and he is an impressively goal-oriented guy who undertakes a variety of creative extras with them. (call them "dad's extracurriculars" if you will.)  kindin learned to play the piano because of her time with dad.  kindin and jack have memorized the articles of faith because of their time with dad.  and most recently, i was shocked to find kindin indexing!

he correctly assumed she would love it and my heart is happy that he steers our children to such worthwhile pursuits!  

me mid- transformation

i have to document this rather mindless and mediocre shot of myself because i never want to forget the feeling i had when i saw this picture!  i was pleasantly surprised that sans clever camera angle and sans flattering filter, my face looked skinnier!  having recently abandoned my gym membership- opting instead for weight watchers meetings- i've lost 16 pounds.  (though i still have a ways to go,) i'm anxiously celebrating and remembering me mid-transformation.