Merry Christmas 2009

We spent the holiday at our sunny and warm home and welcomed Nana from bitter cold, snowy, icy Kansas. Here's how we spent our lovely holiday...

Throughout the Christmas season, elf Leo kept watch over Lilly and Claire's behavior, each night flying to the North Pole to report to Santa. This year, it appears both girls made the "nice" list, thanks Leo. This is Leo on Christmas morning. He flew back to help Santa deliver the gifts and stayed long enough to watch their delight Christmas morning.

But first... on Christmas Eve, Lilly and Nana made a beautiful gingerbread house...
good enough to eat!

The Christmas elves, encouraged by Leo, we think, delivered matching pajamas to the girls. The elves rang our doorbell just after we returned home from church. Claire and Rob weren't able to make it to church, unfortunately, due to Claire being a bit under the weather. Just after she put on her beautiful Christmas dress, she threw-up all over it. Nice. Nonetheless, the new pajamas were a huge hit.

Hannah and Lilly even had their own gift exchange on Christmas Eve... they were super excited to see each other. Hannah wanted Lilly to stay to help open ALL of her gifts, so I had to tell Lilly she could open ONE gift if we could go home.

So, as a result, Lilly was excited to open one gift on Christmas Eve- princess dress-up tiara, jewelery and crown from her special friend Grace. Thank you, Grace.
She was eager to share with Claire. The purple clip on earrings were their favorite.

The evening ended with The Night Before Christmas- soon Lilly and Claire were nestled all snug in their beds.

The next morning, I was sure Lilly would wake at 4am and on her way to our bedroom she would spot Santa's overnight delivery. Instead, she came to our room at 7am and didn't say anything about Santa. I had to ask her, "Did you see if Santa left anything under the tree?" She ran to the tree, ran back to our room and said, "Santa left a pet!" Zhu Zhu pet, that is...4 to be exact.

We thought the Zhu Zhu's would be the biggest hit, and this would have been nice considering how hard Santa must have worked to find the silly things, but once the stockings were opened, the zhu zhu's were old news. We could have actually stopped all gift opening after the stockings.  Santa left plastic Cinderella figurines... Prince Charming, Stepsisters, Stepmother- the entire crew, and this fascinated Lilly. She played and played. We asked if she wanted to open more presents, and she said "No." Later we asked if we could resume gift opening and she emphatically said, "Just five more minutes. I need to play with Cinderella." Claire was most interested in eating the candy Santa left in the stockings.. mini Kit Kats and Dove dark. Those also happen to be my favorite- wow.

Claire took a quick liking to the purple flapper dress-up outfit. Thanks, Nana...

But perhaps one gift topped the popularity of the Cinderella figurines... a doll house. Nana gave this to Lilly, and boy was she amazed from the start. Kate and Emma got one too. Lilly played nonstop from this point on with the dollhouse. The Cinderella figurines moved in to share the house, the zhu zhu's moved in also. Oh what fun to be little.

On Christmas evening, we celebrated Jesus's birth with dinner: fillet mignon, butternut squash risotto, sweet potato crunch, yeast rolls, steamed asparagus, chardonnay and chocolate cream pie.

Delish!

Perhaps Rob's favorite gift :) was a K-State Snuggie. Thanks Amy- Football season will never be the same...

Thank you for the many wonderful cards, gifts and merry wishes you have sent. We hope your Christmas was memorable, just as ours was.
May 2010 be the best year yet!

Santa's everywhere these days...

This afternoon before Hannah's big party, we went to Sam's for a bit of shopping. While in the freezer section, a man with a white beard, black boots, red hat and red velvet suit was doing a bit of shopping himself. This "Santa" was obviously on a break of sorts. Lilly saw him and just stared and stared, then she said with much assurance, "That is a pretend Santa." Rob and I looked at each other and smiled- what a keen observation for a 3 year old.
For the past several years, Santa has visited Hannah at her home, and Hannah has been gracious enough to invite her friends. Several years back Santa heard of Hannah's battle with cancer and has come to see her every year in hopes of spreading joy to her family. Here are some photos from our party today.
Lilly asked Santa for a  Darby Boll (Barbie Doll) and Santa asked Lilly if she'd like a Barbie house to go with the Barbie Doll. She of course said "yes." Thanks a lot, Santa.

Claire and Santa... Santa asked her questions, but all she did was smile and lick her candy cane.

All of the kiddos listening to Santa's stories...

One more of Hannah and Lilly making gingerbread cookies earlier this week. Wearing their matching gingerbread aprons, they were very serious about their cookies. They were delicious too.

Merry Christmas!

Wonderful Weekend

Where do I begin? Last January I decided to give myself a little kick in the pants to finish my dissertation. My grand idea was a bit of financial motivation- purchasing nonrefundable tickets (hotel, train, food) to the Polar Express in Williams the night before December graduation in Flagstaff. That way, I had the proverbial carrot hanging in front of me and was sure to graduate in December, right? If I finished, it would be the best weekend ever; if I didn't finish it would be a long drive of shame to the mountains in Williams. Well, I made it, and the weekend was absolutely fabulous.

My mom, Rob's mom, my sister Amy and nieces came for the weekend, and oh what a weekend it was. Let's start with our trip to Williams...Just 3 hours north and at an elevation of 6,776 feet, Williams had just received 20 inches of beautiful snow, a far cry from Phoenix's desert elevation of just 1,117 feet. The girls loved playing in their first snow encounter. Here's Grammy building a snow man with Lilly.

And Miss Claire loved it too.

After dinner we boarded the Polar Express... nonstop to the North Pole. The old Grand Canyon Railway train, built in the 1920's, was prepared for this incredible journey. Dressed in their matching jammies, the cousins sipped hot cocoa, ate chocolate chip cookies and listened to the story of the Polar Express...

After viewing the snowy North Pole from the iced windows of the train, Santa came on board. He visited each child (and Nana), giving each a silver bell, just as in the book. Santa was quite friendly to Nana... maybe she's been on the naughty list a few too many times.

Claire was quite taken with her silver bell.

Here's all of us on the train...

The next day was graduation day. Just as the snow began to fall over beautiful Flagstaff, the graduation ceremony began. This marks the end of my doctoral program.  Maybe my sister Amy will be the next to earn a doctoral degree??

Once back home in Phoenix, the girls enjoyed playing with everyone, including their little red noses. Thanks, Rudolph.

And last but certainly not least, Nana treated us to a fabulous dinner in the wine cellar at Lon's at the Hermosa Inn... an evening to remember, for sure. Thank you, Mom.

Here are a few photos of our group with Santa in Williams....

and the girls...

Here's to the best weekend ever!

Stocking #2 Completed- just in time

For months (7 months to be exact) Lilly's stocking has been under construction. I let her choose the stocking she wanted, and she chose the most complicated one - of course! After hours upon hours of stitching, embroidering, beading, stuffing and becoming cross-eyed, I finished Lilly's masterpiece- The Sugarplum Fairy. For the past several months she's voiced serious concern that the stocking wasn't done and hence Santa would not leave any toys. Nightly edicts sounded like this: "Mom, work on my stocking. Now! Now!" 

You can relax now little Lilly, your beautiful stocking is hanging on its hook. 

Pay attention Santa: Lilly already has a list of things to fill her stocking- a ballerina Darby Boll (Lilly speak for Barbie Doll) and candy. Time will tell whether or not Santa fulfills his end of the bargain. I've done mine- I've made the stocking. Santa can do the rest. :)

Happy stocking stuffing everyone!

First Christmas Program

She sings! She stomps! She claps! 
Today was Lilly's first school program, her first Christmas program. It was also her first time to get on stage and "perform" in front of people. She did well. They've been practicing their Christmas songs for weeks, so despite some minor confusion with a few silly hand motions, Lilly was right in line with the other 3-year-olds. It was adorable to watch, I must say.
Here's Reindeer Lilly just before the program began-  super excited for the big show.

Here she is with her little classmates. I think she's the cutest one, of course.

Happy Birthday, Jesus!
Merry Christmas everyone!!

Oh Tumbleweed, Oh Tumbleweed

Each year I look forward to Rob's Christmas party, his work party, that is. When he used to work for Motorola, Christmas parties, or any party actually, was nonexistent. Not anymore... the advantage of a smaller company is a social calendar and quite a nice social budget, it appears. So besides the many family events and my personal favorite: date-night-casino-night, the Christmas party is a huge hit, with me at least. For the last few years the party has been held at a swanky resort in Scottsdale, but this season it moved to our own backyard, a resort not far from our home. We dressed up and enjoyed food, drink and fun with friends... some new, some old. To top off an already splendid evening, we visited the tumbleweed Christmas tree in downtown Chandler after the party ended. The party was held the same night as the tree-lighting and parade. Rumor has it some of the tumbleweeds used to create this tree came from Kansas... hard to believe considering there's plenty in the field next to our house. In any case, here's what a HUGE pile of tumbleweeds looks like when stacked to form a tree, painted white and adorned with lights.
It's a Chandler tradition. Enjoy.

A Thanksgiving to remember...

Thanksgiving 2009 was a great one... great company, great food and a great weekend relaxing with our family. We welcomed Hannah's family for the big meal this year. She is still undergoing chemotherapy and was in town receiving treatment all week, so what better way to celebrate all we're thankful for than with Hannah and her incredible family? It was great fun, as it is always with them. We have lots in common and always enjoy time with them. Before the big meal began, Rob brined and smoked a turkey on our grill. Here's the beautiful result:

What's an Arizona Thanksgiving without the meal on the patio? Here's the "kiddie table" -
Lilly, Hannah, Sam (Hannah's cousin) and Claire.

Belle wanted to be part of the meal also. Whenever anyone returned to the kitchen to refill their plate, Belle hopped in their chair. Here's the sneaky pup trying to pilfer a morsel or two...

And of course, what Thanksgiving weekend isn't complete without decorating the house for Christmas? On Thanksgiving morning, Lilly asked Rob if it was time to put up the tree- a girl after my own heart. She was very excited when the Christmas decor was hauled out of the many storage places throughout the house. Before she went to bed she asked if Santa was coming already. We'll have to wait on that, Lilly. Patience, my dear. Here's Lilly just after we finished the tree.

Rob was thrilled, of course, to hang lights on the house. Lilly and Claire thought it was cool to see Dad on the roof. Here's the crew just after the process began...

Since the weather was so nice, the girls took turns taking rides with Hannah in her Escalade. Here's Hannah and Claire. For some reason the girls always tune to mariachi music when riding in the Escalade. Who knows.

Saturday we enjoyed an evening with the Michie family. Lilly calls the twins "the boys," but Claire was more than eager to have her photo with them instead. Here's Tyson, Claire and Trent.

We ended the weekend with a lazy Sunday... stayed home for most of the day and played, watched football, read books and played some more. Here's the girls and Rob as they watched themselves dance in the elf video (see older post) over and over and over and over again. At the conclusion of each dance Lilly quickly proclaimed, "Again!"

We hope your Thanksgiving was a wonderful time spent with those you love most.

And now, let the Christmas season begin!!!

November highlights

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving and before we know it December will be here. With the excitement of turkey day and the looming "holiday" of black Friday, I though I'd better post more photos before the month ends. I have just finished baking a multitude of goodies for the "big meal" tomorrow and have a few minutes to spare.  

First- Lilly and Hannah once again find fun in everything they do. On this day oranges made the lunch menu. The girls had play time in mind instead. Say, "orange?"

The weather has been absolutely beautiful outside- 70's and sunny. This makes great play weather and a good opportunity for Claire to practice her swinging skills. In this photo, Claire tries to perfect Superman's flight, with the support of the swing, of course.

Lilly still loves to help in the kitchen. Every time I use the stove she climbs in the pantry and hauls out her little step-stool. She knows touching the stove could lead to burns which could lead to a trip to the hospital- or at least she is trying to learn these concepts. During this cooking session Lilly utilized her problem solving skills. Instead of worrying about touching a hot stove, she simply went to her room and put on her mittens. That way, she could stir the noodles. Smart girl. You can see her pink mitten behind her back if you look closely.

Lilly's preschool held a Thanksgiving feast this week. Here's pilgrim Lilly-

A local tradition is to visit Zoo Lights at the Phoenix Zoo each Christmas season. Since the lights officially "turn on" for the public Thanksgiving evening, those who have zoo memberships were able to take a sneak peek all this week. Of course we took advantage of fewer crowds and free carousel rides. Did someone say carousel?

And here's another one just because it's cute...

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Food Drive - a good start

This year I tried something for the first time with some of my students. All semester they have pleaded for extra credit, so we began a food drive as a way  to earn extra points. In my main online class there are approximately 150 students. With one week's notice, more than half of the class donated 1147 pounds of food to local food banks... simply amazing!

Here's a photo of one eager student just as the class finished filling my car with food. This was donation #1 which equaled 749 pounds...

Here's a photo of the same food on the scales at the food bank in Mesa:

It's amazing how much of a difference a small group can make. The food bank estimated we provided enough food for almost 840 meals. Next semester... let's double it!

All done!

It was a monumental day, one I've been working for for over 3 1/2 years. The long process of my doctoral degree pretty much ended yesterday at my doctoral defense. For almost 3 hours, I presented my research and answered questions to my committee. It reminded me of my Master's thesis defense, but it was more intense. Rob and my dear friend Natalie were there for support, and I very much appreciated it. Throughout this entire process I was sincerely blessed to have the most amazing advisor who eventually became my dissertation chair, Dr. Luna. She reminds me lots of Dr. Canter from my undergrad program and Dr. Penner my Master's major professor- all strong women who are gifts to their profession. My defense was a success and was invigorating for me to once again become excited about the research that has been at the forefront of my life for the past year. At the end of the day, my chair told me my dissertation was being nominated for a state-wide award. She also asked me if I would be interested in teaching for the university part-time in the fall. What a great honor to top off an already unbelievable day. The entire experience was more than I could have hoped for. Thank you especially to Rob and Natalie for being there for me. I know that many of you were there in spirit, and I thank you. 

Here's a photo of Dr. Luna and me..

So now what? Hmmm... let me get my list.

Holiday Spirit... Already

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Giraffe Encounter

This morning we had an interesting encounter- a giraffe encounter at the zoo. We took advantage of the beautiful 65 degree weather to visit our animal friends.  The purpose of going early was to take part in the giraffe feeding. Here's our family photo with the giraffe- he looks like he's about to eat Claire for breakfast.

They ate romaine lettuce and special pellet nuggets right from Lilly and Claire's hands. Here's a close-up with Mr. Giraffe and Lilly:

What a neat experience! We will have to try that again.

The girls also had a great time watching the tiger and lions. Here's a view of the girls trying to take a peek at Mr. Tiger while he cruised his enclosure.

As always, the zoo adventure ends with a spin around the carousel. This always brings the best smiles from both girls. Today Lilly chose to ride the zebra, and Claire defaulted to the jackrabbit.

We hope you had a great weekend too!