cheers

To five wonderful years together!

We celebrated with a trip to Orlando, which just so happened to coincide with the FOCUS conference that Jude needed to attend :) Amidst 4,000 fabulous college students, lots of great speakers, airport runs and social events, we did manage some time alone for drinks and dinner at a Japanese steak house in our hotel. The drinks above are Geisha Delight (honeydew liqueur, pineapple juice, vodka, lemon sour) and Bonsai Blossom (honeydew liqueur, rum, fresh strawberries). A perfect celebration for a romance that blossomed as we worked together in youth ministry!

water fun

candids

...from this year's Christmas card shoot. Leo had a green elf hat, but liked the Santa stocking better!

early celebration

In anticipation of Christmas and a huge ice/snowstorm, we celebrated with my immediate family this evening. The boys had great fun with Uncle Brian-the "easy peezy" to assemble teeter-totter is from him! The animals from my parent's nativity set were jailed courtesy of Joseph, who also enjoyed practicing his bowling skills. Leo loved tearing open the packages and roving through the remains. The burning bush, and everything else were glazed over when we left.

starlight cookies

We made these cookie mixes from Catholic Cuisine as gifts to celebrate the Holy Family's journey from Nazareth to Bethlehem.

seventy

My mom and her siblings (l-r: Rose Ann, John, Judi and Alice) celebrating John's 70th birthday with a Husker-themed surprise party. Happy Birthday!

gingerbread house

One of our fun snow-day projects while Jude was in Denver.

cookie exchange

These Chocolate-Peppermint Wafers from Real Simple's December issue were my contribution to our Bible study cookie exchange. As yummy as they are pretty!

puppy pillow

I love sleeping kids!

farm show

snow much fun

daredevil

Maybe, just maybe, this is why he has two chipped teeth:
That or the fact that he thinks it's fun to belly-flop from our window seat to the ground!

our elf

santa

Here are the photos from our visit with Santa this year. Leo was not overly enthusiastic, but he did not shirk away either.Joseph wanted nothing to do with the jolly ol' gent, even a candy cane could not entice him-he doesn't like mint! We did get his gift request, not quite as challenging as last year's pumpkin and gourds. This year he would like a green plate (it's his favorite color) and always a source of consternation when dirty!
Happy Feast of St. Nicholas!