Saturday night the kids got to tell Santa their Christmas wishes when the big guy paid a visit to our church's Christmas Party.
Of course all Xander wants for Christmas is Star Wars guys.
Savannah wants the Barbie Diamond Castle and all the barbies that go with it.
All Noah seemed to care about was the candy cane that Santa gave him.
It was a fun party other than the horrible stomach flu bug we unknowingly brought home with us.
Yes, yes, I know...it's been awhile since I last blogged. But here I am, getting back into the swing of things. There is no way I'm going to try and catch up with all the many things we've been doing over the past few weeks. In a nutshell, David's parents came out for 10 days and we had an absolutely fabulous visit with them. The kids loved spending time with their grandparents: going fun places, being read to hour after hour, being tied up (yeah, that was a strange activity but evidently I have a few potential Houdinis living with me), playing games, and the list goes on and on. Thanksgiving was nice and relaxed, the weather hasn't been too bad, and except for the horrible stomach flu that's hit several of us, we're doing pretty well and looking forward to Christmas.
Yesterday Xander had his Preschool Christmas Program and Party. Because I was still down with the flu, David got to attend. Not only did David take some really great pictures of the various activities at the party, he also captured all the wonderful songs and recited poems the kids did for the program on video. I was able to convince Xander to wear his nice Christmas sweater although he didn't want me to style his hair. Oh, well...he still looks cute. Here he is painting an ornament for the tree. Although the paint didn't dry until today (we're talking preschool gobs of paint on this thing...I'm surprised it even dried at all), it's still really cute with his picture in it. Well, the picture is a little obscure, being covered with paint and all. 
His cute reindeer hat.
Decorating Christmas cookies.
The future Mrs. Xander Pierce, Miss Cutie-Pants Dominique, as we like to call her.
Sitting on Santa's lap. On the video, while Xander is sitting on Santa's lap, Santa asks all the kids what they are going to leave for him to eat. The kids start mentioning different kinds of cookies and milk but one little kid replied, "And wine." The parents initially thought it was Xander who said it...pretty funny. If Santa likes wine, he's sure going to be disappointed when he comes to our house.
The book Santa brought Xander. Does Santa know Xander or what? Xander was pretty excited and some of the other boys were jealous of the "cool book" that Xander got.
I may not be a teenager but I am a romantic at heart and absolutely loved Stephenie Meyer's "Twilight" series. So of course when the movie came out I had to go see it. I wasn't actually planning on attending until Friday or Saturday but my group of friends who are Twilight freaks like me purchased tickets for the midnight showing on Thursday night. Crazy, I know...but I went and had such a great time. And not once did I nod off. The guy who played Edward was not my favorite...I had Henry Cavill, Stephenie Meyer's personal choice for the character of Edward, stuck in my head...so no one else was going to cut it. This is a picture of Henry, an actor who did NOT play the part of Edward but should have...yeah, he's a hottie and pure Edward!
The critics have trashed the movie...okay, so it's not going to win an Academy Award but I think these reviewers are forgetting that the target audience is teenage girls, not your mainstream adult. I thought it was great, though a little cheesy in parts, but I do look forward to watching it again.
Savannah LOVES to make crafts but crafts ordered from Oriental Trading Co. only come in bulk orders of 8 or 12. So, Savannah and I decided to invite 7 friends to a Fall Craft Party this past Saturday. They came over for an hour and a half, made 2 fun crafts, ate snacks, and ran around the house screaming. It was loud but fun! 
Savannah displaying her new bracelet and her scarecrow tin bucket!
Last Friday I headed off to California for a church reunion overnighter. My plane had a layover in Salt Lake City and, as we backed out of the gate to continue our trip to LA, my plane crashed into another one. So, yes, I can now say I am a plane crash survivor. Unfortunately it put me behind schedule as the airline scrambled to get all of us on another flight to LA. I didn't get there until much later that evening and ended up missing my reunion dinner. The good thing was I was able to hook up with everyone for the Chinese massage (which at some points was actually Chinese torture!). Then we spent the next few hours talking in our hotel room, catching up on everyones' lives since high school.
Here is a picture of a few of us that attended the reunion...Poppy, Shayla, me, and Pam with her little boy Weston. 
On Saturday Pam and I met up with my old best friend Lisa for lunch and some more catching up. Lisa was such a good friend, one of the few truly close friends I've had in my life. We had so much fun growing up together and I have missed her friendship over the years. She stayed in Calabasas and has two beautiful little boys. And she has the same wonderful laugh as she always did. 
After spending time with Lisa, Pam and I drove around our old neighborhood and then I headed up to Fillmore to spend the night with my grandpa and Aunt Pat. It was so great to see them though it was really hard to be there without my grandma. I kept expecting to see her walking down the hall or sitting on the couch reading. Even though my grandpa is blind, he can still cook and he made us some really great steaks for dinner. We spent the evening eating and talking and then I headed off to bed. I had a flight home early Sunday morning and did not reach Baltimore until 8:30 Sunday night. It was a long way to go for such a short visit but I truly treasure the time I got to spend with old friends and family.
For all you "Twilight" fans, I took this quiz today and found out that I most resemble the character Esme. I guess that isn't too bad. Take the quiz and let me know who you resemble.
Take the Quiz and Share Your Results!
Did you all know there was a blackout last night in Salt Lake City? It was awesome!
Utah defeated TCU in the final minutes of the game, 13-10!
Go Utes!!!!!
As a lover of history, I can honestly appreciate the significance of the election of the first black man as President of the United States. But at what price did we make history? When Martin Luther King made his great "I Have a Dream" speech and he said "I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character", I don't think he envisioned this. I'm sure he hoped for the day when a black man would hold the most powerful position on this earth but not that he would be placed there DUE to the color of his skin. I'm afraid that's exactly what happened in this election. Too many got caught up in the moment of "making history", judging him by the color of his skin rather than looking at the content of the man's character. There were too, too many citizens interviewed that said the only reason they were voting for Barack Obama was because he was black. Isn't that just as bad as voting against him because he is black? When did we stop looking at his policies, his ideology, his voting record, his plans for this country?
I'm not saying that everyone voted for him just because he is black; I know there are many who agree with his policies, especially those who believe he is going to lead this country to greater pastures. (Wasn't it interesting that at all of McCain and Palin's rallies people would shout "USA, USA" but at rallies for Obama and Biden the chants were always "Obama, Obama!" Very telling, I think.) But frankly, I am scared of our president elect. He said that he knows there were many that did not vote for him and that he is going to listen to us and be our president too. I just don't believe that. He is so far left of everything I believe in, it's going to be hard for me to get excited about any of the changes he makes. For instance, on the stance of abortion...I am extremely pro-life and he is definitely NOT! How am I supposed to accept his policies on abortion? The following story comes to my mind of the child that had been killed that has been much talked about during this election, at least by conservatives. The parents had discovered that the baby had down syndrome and, since the mother was in her second trimester, opted for an "induced" abortion. This procedure, as indicated by name, induces the mother into labor, but a by product of this is that children may been born alive, even though they are severely under developed. This child was one such case. As the baby was about to be put into a utility room to die alone, a nurse took the child and held him for the 45 minutes that he lived. Going in front of a committee, which Obama was a member of, she testified about this and pleaded for the rights of these children. Obama voted that since this was a child that should have been aborted, he had no rights and should receive no medical attention. He should die. And that he did. This is our president elect. I am judging him by the content of his character and I find it lacking.
I pray for my country that we will stay true to the values and ideals that helped form this great nation. The current generation has been taught by our educational system to hate America, to focus on all the flaws and mistakes that have been made rather than seeing the growth and progress that came to our nation in recognizing our faults. We as a people have truly tried to be a better people, to be a better nation, to help others in the world, to be generous. I fear that this great change that Obama has promised us, this "Guaranteed Outcome" will take us where we really don't want to be. We will fall just as other great nations fell because we will have become unrighteous, forgetting God and the hand he played in forming this great nation. I am concluding my blog with several quotes that I love because I am not a very good writer and these people have stated how I feel much better than I ever could.
Let us fight. Let us fight against socialism, against big government, let our voices be heard. Let us fight for life, let us fight for freedom, let us fight for the good of America, let us fight for the values so many of us hold dear. Let us fight for the Lord. We know it will be not be easy. But let us not shirk from our duty, let us not shirk from the fight. Remember how our country began. We must decide now what we are willing to give for our country. (That was my sister Heidi..aren't her words powerful?)
Another wonderful quote is by Alexis de Tocqueville, "I sought for the greatness and genius of America in her commodious harbors and her ample rivers, and it was not there; in her fertile fields and boundless prairies, and it was not there; in her rich mines and her vast world of commerce, and it was not there. Not until I went to the churches of America and heard her pulpits aflame with righteousness did I understand the secret of her genius and power. America is great because she is good, and if America ever ceases to be good, America will cease to be great."
From The Crisis by Thomas Paine:
"These are the times that try men's souls."
Taking advantage of the 5 straight days of no school, the kids and I headed to my parents' house in Cincinnati. My sister Heidi and her girls were also visiting from Florida so we got some extra time with them as well. Xander, Savannah, and McKenna spent Thursday evening and most of Friday running around the house, dressing up, and playing together. I love watching them hang out but it also makes me sad that we don't live closer so they can spend more time with each other.
Friday morning we decided to make some chocolate Halloween suckers which turned out quite yummy!
We started getting ready for trick-or-treating around 4:30. It took about 35-40 minutes to get Savannah ready with her curled hair, make-up, and all other little details. Poor Xander got tired of waiting and fell asleep right on the stairs.
Cute girls! Savannah as Medusa and McKenna was a cat.
All the cousins...aren't they all so cute?
I was so surprised that Noah did as well as he did with the whole trick-or-treat thing...he was a pro! I gave him his candy bag and he just headed off with the other kids. He went right up to all the doors, let them put candy in his bag, and then headed to the next home. He walked pretty much the whole way and that was quite a feat in my parents' neighborhood; it is a far cry from trick-or-treating in a townhouse neighborhood.
There are always so many fun activities that precede Halloween that get the kids even more excited for the big night. Tuesday night we headed to our church for the annual Trunk-or-Treat activity. There were yummy soups and pies to eat as well as plenty of candy. The kids got to showcase their fun costumes; Savannah looked awesome as Medusa and the boys were skeleton pirates.
Noah was so proud of himself and knew that he looked dang cute.
David got to sit out in the freezing wind to pass out the candy.
We had some of our neighbors join us this year and we had alot of fun with them.
On Wednesday Xander had a Halloween party at his preschool. There were crafts, games, and tasty treats. 
Two CUTE pirates. Xander and Miss Cutie-Pants Dominique. (Xander has a little crush on her and says he wants to marry her.)
Monday night we headed to the Pumpkin Patch to pick out some BIG pumpkins to carve. We had to settle for a small produce stand that sold pumpkins since it was raining cats and dogs. The kids still had fun picking out their pumpkins and Noah just ran around pointing at them and saying, "Pump! Pump!"
Later that evening we got out the knives and did a little carving. Both Savannah and Xander are very good gut-removers!
Thanks to some really great stencils, we have really cool pumpkins again this year!
