Happy 2009!

It's almost 11:00 at our house. One more hour and it's 2009. Megan begged to get to stay up until midnight. We were sure Steven would poop out early, because he didn't have a nap today. We were wrong. Here's what it looks like at our house right now...Happy New Year!

Had A Merry Little Christmas...

Well, it was a happy Christmas for us this year. Beginning with lots and lots of SNOW!
And that was just the beginning. We've had 18 inches in the last 2 weeks. That's a lot for Boise.

Then there was Christmas Eve. It was a perfect, candle-lit service that was everything a Christmas Eve service should be. After service, was the party for the pastor's kids where they received movie tickets. (Which were used last night, Despereaux-ing.) That intoxicating, little, blue-eyed beauty is Kenzie Francey...the long awaited first grandchild of our senior pastors. (The first of many ::wink, wink::) Isn't she scrumptious? Cleary, Megan thinks so. Steven, on the other hand, looks like he's got more up his sleeve than his "just-like-daddy" dress shirt.Then (after dinner at the Wilde's) the annual Christmas Eve "mad-present-stack"...do you think we MAY have overdone it this year??? Well, not ALL of those presents were from Ken and me...just most of them.The kids were gracious enough this year to let us sleep until 7:15 on Christmas morning (last year it was a 6 am wake-up call.) And then the ripping and tearing and exclaiming began.

Did I mention my momma was here for the week? It was nice to have an extra set of hands for baking and wrapping, even though those hands spent the first few days laid up with a thrown-out back. She more than made up for it as she felt better. I think I might fly her out every Christmas...
It's not Christmas without a few Wii games. Now we can be cheer-mii-ders...
But the clear winner this year, was the playmobil company. Between Uncle Joel and Aunt Michelle and Momma and Daddy, Steven got 6 or 7 sets. We didn't see him again for the first 24 hours, lost in a sea of plastic people and tiny accessories.And what's a Holsinger holiday without good food? (It's not...in case you were wondering.) Prime rib, roasted vegetables, rosemary-sage mashed potatoes, red wine gravy, and sweet potato and apple casserole. (And now begins "diet-season"...)

Hope you and yours are well, and have a happy new year!

Dear Santa...

On Saturday, Megan and I were shopping downtown between ballet performances (more on that later!) We went into Macy's where they were sponsoring a fundraiser. For every letter to Santa that customers wrote, they would donate a dollar to the Make-a-Wish Foundation.

Now, some parents just love making Christmas magical for their children, flitting around buying wonderful gifts from Santa (did I just say "flitting"? Is that even a word?) They hoist their kids on Santa's lap, posing them for the obligatory "scared-of-the-stranger-whose-lap-I'm-sitting-on" picture. (I mean really...what other time of the year, would we ever encourage our children to sit on the lap of a man we have never met and know nothing about?) They write letters, hide presents, and tell tales....

...yea, we're not those parents.

It's not that we have some strong aversion to lying to our kids, or some legalistic view of what Christmas should look like. We just don't think Santa should get all the credit for the good gifts! We treat Santa kind of like Mickey Mouse, it's fun to talk about him, etc, but come Christmas, it's Mom and Dad who spent the hard-earned money and time for the gifts.

Well, anyway...we're all about charity, especially Make-A-Wish who blessed my niece with a nice wish last year. So I encouraged Megan to write a letter. This is what she wrote:

"Dear Santa, I want a Webkinz...Tinker Bell movie....etc...etc...etc...
Sincerely,
Megan Holsinger
P.S. I like Jesus better than you, but have a merry Christmas anyway."

Thank you Albertsons...

Even though they are the more pricey grocery store in the area, I still usually shop at Albertsons. It's really close to me and easy to get in and out of. Well, recently Albertsons instituted a gas rewards program. Last night, after grocery shopping, I bought gas at $.40 off a gallon. I only paid $19.98 to fill up my car. I can't remember the last time I paid so little for gas.
(Now, I'm not naive enough to think that Albertsons isn't offsetting the gas savings in their grocery prices...but looking at the gas pump tonight made me happy. Don't burst my bubble!)

Deck My Halls with Boughs of Holly....

Thanksgiving Update

We had a wonderful time on Thanksgiving, eating too much and hanging out with our Idaho "family", the Wilde's. Armed with a turkey baster, oven mitts, and more butter than should be legal, we cooked up an obscene amount of food, and then proceeded to stuff ourselves like turkeys (who really aren't supposed to be stuffed anymore...something about e.coli or salmonella...whatever.)

Ask Tracy about her contribution to the dinner...yam bake. It was a hit! (And Tracy cooking was our Thanksgiving miracle.)
The three things that scream "Thanksgiving"...food, football (notice the TV in the background), and games. Yes, this is the retro game "Rock 'em, Sock 'em Robots". If it's old and uncool, then it's dated, but if it's old and cool, it's retro! And nothing says fun like 2 plastic robots trying to knock the snot out of each other.Kelly cut Megan's hair. She has bangs! I really like them, except they make her look older, which I will never like.And somehow I managed to break the holiday tradition of never appearing in any of the pictures. This is proof that I do exist and I was actually there...at this gathering anyway.There you go! Happy Thanksgiving everyone! (And can anyway say, "Are there really less than 3 weeks until Christmas???? Aahhh!")

And the Winner Is...

...me! For my table at the Women's Holiday Brunch. Yea for me!
You can just call me Martha...And speaking of beautiful things, here's one of my BFF's, Jonnie. I adore her...but there's a lot less of her to love lately! Proud of you Jonnie!! I can't wait to cheer you on at your triathlon!