Blake's Broken Arm

On Christmas Eve the kids were really getting wound up. I suggested they go outside to burn some energy. They took the dog for a nice walk, but when the returned Emily was begging to go to the playground. I was busy wrapping presents and talked Blake into taking her for a few minutes. He didn't want to go, but did for me. About 10 minutes later I was still wrapping when Blake came in. "Mom" he said. "I've got some bad news. I think my arm is broke". No tears, no panic. He showed me that he could hardly move it. Now, all who know Blake know that he tends to be dramatic so I casually asked if he needed to go to the hospital He calmly said "no, I'm just going to sit down for a few minutes". He also explained that Emily had forgotten her doll and had went back for it. I could hear him starting to groan and fuss a little out on the couch and within a couple minutes he called out that he couldn't take it anymore. When I went to check on him his face was white and his lips were blue. Yikes! I quickly put some shoes on, and called Sam who was at work. I knew where the nearest hospital was, but wasn't sure if we REALLY needed to go there. I called an urgent care center who said they could do an xray, but had a 2 hour wait. Blake didn't want to go to the hospital, so we headed to the clinic. On our way, we noticed a closer one so we stopped in there. I went in first to make sure they could help us and then went out to get the kids. Blake never shed a tear and after about a half hour we were in the xray room. They wanted to start with just one picture to assess his condition. It took a few minutes to develop and when the doctor opened the door we could clearly see the break on the screen across the hall! I started to panic a little when the doctor started talking about surgery. He was kind enough to call an orthopedist he knew for a consult before sending us to the hospital. The ortho advised us to keep his arm immobilized until Wed morning when he could take a better look, but didn't think surgery would be needed, WHEW! So equipped with a sling, we headed home and were very grateful to the urgent care physician who saved us the expense and drama of a hospital visit.

Birkdale Christmas

I'm moving these photos over from the sidebar so they are not lost. They were taken at the shopping center next door. They held a cute pet parade, brought Santa in a horse-drawn carraige, and lit the big tree. It even "snowed"!

Breakfast Treats

A couple of the fun breakfasts the kids enjoyed during Christmas break.

Class Parties

On the 21st I was lucky to join the kids for their class holiday parties. I always enjoy spending time with the kids in their school enviroment and getting to know their classmates. Fun was had by all!

Home Sweet Home

The kids decorated their annual gingerbread house on Monday. Sunday evening I started the process of assembling it and quickly remembered why I swore them off last year (and probably every year before that). What a pain in the romp it is to get all those walls to stick together! I gave up in a fit, but after gaining composure got the house assembled. The kids did the decorating all on their own and are quite impressed with their skills!

Shipped With Love

Today being the biggest mail day of the year reminded me of these pictures I took last week. I managed to get our things sent a week ago, but admit I left out a few things. Oh well, it's the thought that counts, right? You all still know we love you and are thinking about you!

I also managed to get out some Christmas cards. For the first time in nearly 10 years they weren't handmade, but sometimes life's just that way. I did manage to get a picture of the kiddos to include without too much ado. I hope all of your mailboxes are being filled with holiday greetings from near and far. I love going to the mailbox everyday this time of year!

Trimming The Tree

I can hardly believe I did it, but ..... I did. For some reason I just didn't feel like dealing with the hassle of picking out, setting up and maintaining a live tree this year. So I bought an artificial tree. *sigh* The second I put it together I was disappointed. It's a pathetic little tree, but it will do. It took me a week to bring the ornaments up from the garage, but once the kids started decorating my spirits picked up. I decided not to use the matching themed ornaments and go with the collected ornaments instead. All my life my grandmother got me an ornament for Christmas. Most years she engraved them, but not all. The oldest one labeled is from 1974! Wow, how cool is that? We also have added to the collection ornaments given to us by my mom and mother-in-law. Once it was complete, the pathetic little tree turned out to be pretty special. In the dark I sat back and looked at the tree aglow with 35 years of memories hanging from it's branches and my heart was so full. I can't wait to hear 20 years from now about all the memories we've created with/for our children. This is Christmas!














But next year, I plan to put this tree up in addition to a real, live, perfectly decorated tree. =)

This Is How I Roll

This past weekend we finally purchased a second vehicle! Sam really wanted a truck, but it will have to wait until after we get in a house. We feel like we got a good deal on this and we'll trade it back in when we're ready. Sam is still driving the Expedition because he and his passengers are bigger than me and mine. =) I am so thankful just to be able to get out and about!

Ruff-ruff-ruff-ruff-ruff-ruff (Hap-py-birth-day-to-you)

On December 2nd, little boogie man turned 4. Happy Birthday Boogity-boo!

Sounds Of The Season

Thursday night the school's 4th and 5th graders performed a collection of songs during a program titled "Paint The Town December". Much to Blake's displeasure, dress slacks, a white shirt, and tie were required.
As you can see, once he was dressed, Blake felt stylin! With Blake looking so handsome, the rest of us decided to dress up for the occasion.

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The kids did a great job singing. I'm working on uploading video to share, but it hasn't proved an easy task yet. I'm still working on it though.