2nd Day of Christmas - Christmas Miracle

It's a Christmas miracle. If all goes as planned, I will actually PUBLISH this blog post on the day it was lived. ::snort::

After the past four weeks of Advent - I find my heart, soul, and spirit READY to celebrate Christmas for the next 11 days. We planned to have a quiet down day.....

We began setting up a game of Dominion. This is Nolan's last day off work.

Josiah called. He discovered his bank is closed due to structural damage in the quake. He was driving out to the Valley to go to the bank and stop at the Fish and Game in Palmer. Would we like to meet him for lunch at the Noisy Goose? YES - we don't go here often and I like the veggie options.

Josiah and Krista from toddler-hood through high school everyone thought
they were twins. Krista is older. 

My boyfriend 😉

 Krista went with Josiah to run his errands. We are learning about the Moose Federation and moose teams - but that's another blog.

Michael and I got home and found an eagle circling the chicken yard. Rosie likes to go out on her own - she's a Cochin and is fluffier and sturdier than our other breeds. She has feathers on her legs and feet and hardly any comb. She handles the cold better than they do.  She'd also be a prize catch for the eagles.  We shuffled her inside and shut the door.

When Josiah and Krista arrived, these five jumped into a game of Dominion. We have so many expansion packs now, and the game moves so fast, that Stacia and I usually opt out.

Stacia and I planned to work on a project she wants done before the family gift exchange on NYE. One thing led to another and we put the project off for tomorrow.....

Arielle and Stacia have been working on the sledding run in our yard. They built a starting ramp and packed down snow earlier....then it snowed again. They went out to start packing it down again....and to see if they could sled on it.

Arielle wins the wipe-out award! 

With Dominion over (Michael won),  the other Gherkins went outside to help Stacia and Arielle. There is nothing better than a big brother to get projects moving along. They built the starting ramp higher, shoveled and packed down the run, built side walls along the run, and sprayed it down with water. It will run across the side of the yard from the front to potentially the garden or woods. I can't wait for bonfires, hot chocolate and an icy sled run. It's coming.

We didn't buy sleds in time. They are all sold out. I suspect everyone else knew with Christmas break this would be the perfect time for sledding - we were slow to realize this.  We haven't gone out to the hills we planned on as we're down to one sled. This will provide a bit of solace until the stores restock sleds. Surely they'll do that after Christmas. There is still a lot of winter left. We may make a few.  Or I may have to pull down the sled I had as a toddler. 😁🐽😂

The wood-stove is amazingly wonderful after an hour in the cold. They got inside just in time for us to watch tonight's Spurs game against the Denver Nuggets. This was fairly dangerous. We've noted whenever Josiah and I watch a game TOGETHER they lose in the 4th quarter. THEY WON - another Christmas miracle? The blanket-covered lump in the photo is Yuuki.

Josiah headed back to Eagle River after the game and the rest of us did our first Christmas Scavenger Gift Hunt. 

Riddle/Clue: Forgotten Hooks

I missed this last year as I was in Oregon for quite a bit of Advent. I had forgotten the difference in personalities amongst the Gherkins. These two took off hunting for places where they might find command hooks or fishing hooks. Krista joined them. 

Nolan sat alone in the living room. I was disappointed to think he was "adulting" and would be too old for the fun this year. HOWEVER, I was wrong. He was thinking. As they ran from spot to spot he eventually got up, walked to the exact hiding spot, found the gift, indicated that to us and waited for the others to find it.

Riddle Solution: In the back of this entry closet, there are coat hooks....behind the coats. We really aren't sure how this was used in the past. I suspect, lots of little kids and no long coats or snow pants to hide the hooks....it was a great place to hang tonight's gift.

Gift: Woodlawn DVD 

It's not 2 Turtle Doves, but it will do! 😜😊😃

We didn't feel like watching a movie. We played, ::drum roll::: FARKLE!  This is all I NEED to say....this is one of my rolls. 🎲🎲🎲

I won. 

Nolan has gone to bed; he works bright and early tomorrow. Alex opted for personal time. Michael talked Krista and Stacia into playing Dominion. She's hanging in there - the pace is slower tonight.

 I am beside them at the table. I've sorted and edited photos, and blogged.....

1st Day of Christmas 2018

What is the 12 Days of Christmas? Why would a non-Catholic, non-Liturgical, evangelical, Christian family research the 12 Days of Christmas? WHY would they celebrate the 12 Days of Christmas?

When Michael entered the Air Force chaplaincy we learned about many new kinds of church traditions. One was "Advent," the other was the "12 Days of Christmas," and "Epiphany."  Lent, too! Certainly, NONE of these days MUST be celebrated...but we learned they have a purpose and a wisdom.  Our Christmas' have changed over the years.

We added an Advent focus. Advent is a four week period celebrating Jesus' coming (advent) to the world in the flesh, as well as looking forward to Jesus coming again in the future. Adding an Advent celebration brought a focus and an element of anticipation to  "Christmas Day."  We shifted our focus to celebrating Jesus, rather than the busy-ness of our family life.  Around the same time we arranged our budget to match our theology. We gave the kids most their gifts on their birthday - the day we celebrate them. We slashed the Christmas budget to no more than $50 a person, as the goal was celebrating Christ. We gave the kids money to "shop" for things like wells, water buffaloes, chickens, sewing machines for impoverished countries.  We loved the changes.

We were a busy chaplain's family....it was common to have 10 - 12 official Christmas parties to attend, as well as children's plays, chapel parties etc.  The stress was great and often we were exhausted by Dec 25th - too exhausted to enjoy the day.  This led to us moving the "gift exchange" from Dec 25th. We moved it to New Year's Eve - because it was convenient. The 25th now was free for worship, family and celebrating Jesus.  It also meant we weren't trying to get all the gifts purchased and wrapped by the 25th. We were free to focus on things like gifts for others and shop the clearance sales with our small Christmas budget. LOL

Last year we realized, with so much extended family in town, the older Gherkins had come to love the way we do NYE and wanted to have a family exchange (all pick one name) as part of our NYE celebration.  That's what we did.....but we wanted another day to give gifts to those kids still at home.  We landed on Epiphany because that was the day when it all came together.

This year - we have been deliberately considering changes. What will allow our married children to have their own traditions? What will keep our focus where we want it for "Advent" (no rushing and stressing to purchase gifts)? What allows fun and gift giving at a leisurely pace?

The 12 days of Christmas is the period in Christian theology that marks the time between the birth of Christ and the coming of the Magi (aka wise men). It begins on December 25 (Christmas) and runs through January 5 (Twelfth Night) or  January 6 (Epiphany, sometimes called Three Kings' Day). I first learned of Epiphany when Catholic friends at the chapel mentioned they NEVER take decorations down until after Epiphany. Sounded good to me - though I failed to grasp it was more than a "take your decoration down day".

In some traditions, the 12 Days of Christmas celebrate a different saint each day. I would like to do more research before next year and celebrate the ideals the various saints represent. For this year....we are simply going to spread out our focus...continue celebrating Christmas with some activities, a few gifts, outings....and  have our gift exchange (the 5 of us) on Epiphany. We never got around to our scavenger hunts this year and so we are thinking we'll work that in now.

So...WHY are we celebrating the 12 Days of Christmas? Because we want 12 more days to celebrate. Because it allows us to slow down and focus on Advent and Jesus during the lead up to Christmas. Because  I stress with shopping and it works best for our whole family to BREATHE during Advent. Our church activities are on break until after 12 Days, and so it "fits" well for us. Each change has added depth to our celebration of Jesus.

Today is the FIRST day of Christmas. Beware of the traditions you begin with young children. For a few years I made my Grams' cinnamon rolls for breakfast. It  is now our traditional Christmas Morning breakfast.  This year, I cheated. I used Rhodes and we had eggs from our hens.

Alex commented, "Your rolls are better every year, mom."

I snorted. CoRielle has continued the Christmas breakfast tradition and she insists the Kroeger rolls are to die for.

Michael replied, "Are you saying frozen are better than your mom's homemade from her grandma's recipe?"

That is when I confessed......but they were good. AND QUICKER.

It was still dark enough at breakfast for candles! Yay. 

Early afternoon brought Josiah and Jamin out from Eagle River. This crew set up a card table in the living room and set about to rule the world play Monopoly.

Josiah, Jamin, Stacia, Alex and Nolan 

Krista is reading a book and Michael is shopping for cars. 

I worked on prep, set up a munchie table in the living room.....

...and 2 tables in the dining room. We like one long table, but I decided to try something new as the kids are getting old enough to need their own space at the table. Two tables seemed more convenient, less crowded, and we found ourselves talking back and forth between tables more than if it were a long table.  We had 15 out today - when we're all here it is 17. Within a month or two it will be 18. 

CoRielle came up, BreZaak arrived and we had dinner.....we enjoyed having all around today. We were going to start monthly dinners (vs weekly dinners of last year) when winter came. It seems about time to begin. It's a lot of work to get photos with kids - but Michael worked with the wiggles and we got em.

Try # 1 - Ah, Bella

Try #4 or so - What you digging for, Gideon? 

Try #11 - Hang on tight, Bre. 

Ah, BreZaak - The D Family 

Gideon, Bre, Izaak & Bella 

Try #1 - Benny, pull that shirt down! 

Try #3 - I like it, Cory. 

CoRielle - the S Family

Bennett, Arielle, Cory 

Our Family - excluding Jared & Larissa....

Front - Krista, Stacia, Arielle, Benny, Cory
Middle- Bre, Gideon, Me, Michael
Back - Izaak, Bella, Alex, Josiah, Jamin, Nolan

Nolan is glad to have two days off this week! He's feeling better, too! 

We decided to open Christmas stockings. I am going to look for stockings on clearance before next year. I'll keep them here to fill. This will eliminate the need for the older kids to haul their stockings back home. I can hang them all on the mantle and enjoy them throughout the season.

Alex guards the stockings

These parents are smart! They set up a barricade of chairs and people to keep all the toddlers in the center!

Benny 

Bella loved her baby diapers

Alex and Bre

For the guys I went with a survival theme. They each got neon shirts to be spotted when hiking or hunting, thermal blankets, blister repair kits, straps etc. I told them I was preparing them for the next Resurrection Pass Hike....or they could put them in their glove boxes for winter safety.

Izaak 

Jamin's sweater plays MUSIC

Cory and Arielle

Stacia

Krista 

My favorite stocking stuffer - and it wasn't one I put in myself. BreAnne created a family calendar for us. I used to do these yearly for us and our moms, but got away from it. I LOVE it. She has a little photo of each person on their birth date and anniversaries....I've already filled in the January appointments and hung it up. 

Auntie K and Gideon - he's warming up

Uncle Cy and Benny

BreZaak and kids went home soon after opening stockings. The rest of us visited, played Farkle, and broke out the Jesus cake.

Stacia with the cake she made

Merry Christmas! 

Christmas Eve 2018

The countdown seemed to move quickly this year! 

We had a few errands to run. Krista stayed home and started  Tortilla soup in the crock pot. It's wonderful having her home!  Alex stayed with her. Nolan was working.  Stacia and I dropped Michael at Great Cuts. We stopped by the library and then on to Fred Myers. I needed to buy a couple of things for tomorrow's dinner - the ingredients for a Jesus cake. The decision was finally made.

I also looked for another air popper. I don't think I've mentioned three of my appliances didn't seem to fare well in the quake....the toaster, air popper, and instant pot all quit working last week. I didn't find an air popper I wanted. I'm not 100% sure what features matter to me. The one I had was a wedding gift. It did send out blue sparks when I unplugged it, before the quake. LOL  I know I want one with an on/off switch this time.  It was fun running into friends at the store. One always feels like they "belong," when they begin to run into friends at the commissary or local grocery store.

We got home about the time Jamin and Josiah arrived to spend the afternoon. Benny continues his fascination with the bells around the house.

Jamin and Benny 

 Group hug! 

Uncle Jamin, Uncle Josiah and Benny 

 Hello, Bright Eyes. This little man has cut 4 top, front teeth this week. 

::Drum Roll:::  This year's Jesus cake  - I was out-voted and we settled on an ice cream cake.  We compromised, one layer is EXTREME moose tracks and the other is cookies and cream. It turned out well. STACIA made the entire cake HERSELF.  This is the most laid back family meal I've prepared in a long time.  These two were happy to take care of the left-over ice cream.

Note - they are eating from the CARTON!!!!!

 A different Uncle and a different bell - Benny knows how to play the people in his life. 

Everyone needs an Uncle Cy

 Nolan was home,  Krista is home, Arielle is done with this semester, the boys are out....fun times.

Day One of munching on sugar - maybe Day 2 as we had quite a bit at the
Christmas Adam Tea

We haven't found a lot of Christmas lights in the area. We are used to neighborhoods lighting up the season. We heard about Vicki Way in Wasilla and drove out to check. It was by far the nicest we've found - but not as fantastic as I'd hoped.  We lived in the midst of Christmas lane in TX. Buses and church vans went up and down our street all month. ::snort:: 

 We headed from viewing lights to Matanuska Assembly of God for our Christmas Eve Service. Seven of our nine kids were with us - who would have foreseen this in our retirement years? CoRielle went to their own church service and JaRissa are in TX for the season.

Via Facebook....

We headed home and enjoyed Tortilla soup and Gorditas (Krista's gift). CoRielle arrived home and BreZaak and the kids joined us. We feel truly blessed for this period of time when all the Gherkins are nearby. 

Izaak, Bre, Jamin, Alex (behind Jamin), Krista, Bella on the floor

Gideon playing the keyboard, Arielle gesturing, Stacia in the "man chair" 

 These big brown eyes are to die for. Gideon enjoyed wearing the reindeer hat. 

Most often called Bubbie - as that is Bella's name for him. 

 Checking out the snow. 

Bella is a sweet-heart. She is FULL of energy. Her new thing is NOT to smile for pictures. In fact, as she saw me taking the one of Bubbie by the keyboard, she ran across the room, yelling, "No, Bubbie! No, no, no," and leaped in front of the camera. She's very photogenic and used to love having her photo taken - it's a phase.  She was playing with Auntie Arielle and nearly forgot the "no smile" edict.

Today was a great day for connection. Everyone is off work...nothing big on the agenda to steal our attention from simply being family - together. Eight of the nine kids, two of our three in-laws, and three grands.

Merry Christmas Eve, y'all!