Christmas time 2024

 It is quiet and sunny. This has been the sunniest, most blue skied January that I can remember. Every day is just beautiful and bright!  

Evelyn was happy to return to school and get back to the social scene. Christmas break ushered in her teenage years as she turned 13 on Dec. 27. 

We spoiled her big time this year, and she had a big party at the nail salon. 15 girls in the salon made for quite the party, and then the outdoor mall was taken over by teen girls. It was perfect. 

Afterwards I took her and another friend to get their ears pierced. Two other girls wanted to join the experience too, so it was a crazy ride over to Clackamas mall where we found the piercing parlor. Originally, Evelyn's friend's mom made appointments for the girls at a nice place downtown, but at the last minute, the piercer got sick so we were scrambled to find another place that had openings. 

When we pulled up to the mall, the police were securing a large section with caution tape. Apparently, 30 minutes before we arrived there was a shooting in the parking lot. At first I was hesitant to park and get out of the car, but the mall was bustling and Evelyn had been waiting 13 long years for this day. So, I walked up to the cop on sight and asked if it was safe to go in the mall. His reply was that it was never more safe now that all of Clackamas county law enforcement were on the premises. 

Well, that calmed any worries I had and I trekked through the mall with the four girls to find a piercing place. After a short wait, the girls huddled together in the room, nervous and excited at the same time. 

I'm glad they all had each other for support. The anxiety and fear in the room was palatable. 

Alas, they found the courage and ears were pierced. This was a big milestone for Evelyn. She has wanted her ears pierced for a very long time and the agreement has always been when she turned 13. 

I think it was important for me to have her wait because it was a "coming of age" privilege that  are far and few. We live in a culture with instant gratification as the norm and having to wait and anticipate this privilege made it all the more special. 

We have a teen. 

We celebrated our family Christmas exchange around our tree the night before we left for Chicago. The kids get more excited about giving the gifts they buy for each other than receiving them. Watching them give gifts to each other is my favorite part about Christmas. 

Evelyn spoiled them this year with new Nike shoes. 

We flew to Chicago for a few days for Christmas. It was cold but not terrible this year. It didn't snow and it wasn't below zero. 

We walked around good ol' Warrenville's light display.

Caleb discovered my old game of Mouse Trap in the depths of Grandma and Grandpas' closet

One of the great Christmas thrills was seeing a herd of these guys run through my parent's backyard on Christmas morning. 

Grandma, Evelyn, Caleb and I went skating at an indoor skating rink.
We even participated in the skating race. 

As always, our trip to Chicago is full of family and get togethers. We gathered at my Aunt Penny's house for Christmas and then two days later at my parent's home for Evelyn's birthday.


 

Another fun memory is Grandpa taking the boys swimming at their gym's the pool. On the way home he got them king sized slurpees and hot dogs. They thought that was the best day ever. 

The boys in their bed at grandma and grandpa's.

Since Christmas break ended, our days have been full of getting back into the routines of school and playing basketball. The boys played in a 5th/6th grade team at West Hills before Christmas and they once again were undefeated. Their final game against the French International school was quite the match up. But the boys pulled through and clenched the number 1 title again. 

It's difficult to recap everything that has taken place in the last two months so I'm just going to dump some photos and hope that this captures the joy and craziness of the season. 

Hats: Unable to get cash for his broken fishing pole, Caleb decides to purchase hats with his gift card and sell them in the neighborhood, thus receiving his cash he wanted. 

Our Christmas tree this year was the most beautiful one we ever had. We found it at a family Christmas tree farm for much less than the ones near us...however, we cut down the wrong type of tree, hence paying just as much.....😦

Gotta love the alpine glow.....

Always fun to decorate.....not fun taking it all down.....

It was Levi's turn to put the star on top. 

The boys did their Christmas show at school. Caleb got the part as "a nerd."
 He had a little solo and really hammed it up! I have a feeling this is just the beginning for Caleb......