We Party 'Til The House Comes Down

Or at least the lights come down. No joking! We had an Open House today for a whole bunch of friends. We were just starting to gather around the piano for some Christmas Caroling when what to my wondering eyes should appear, but a light fixture dangling by it's wires in the kitchen. (There was some jumping going on in the bedroom above it) After some new holes were drilled by the men, the light was rehung and the party continued like nothing had happened. We're a wild bunch.
BTW- for those of you who saw our Christmas Letter about The Nielsen Mouse that lives in our house.....he is no longer. You get my drift.

Chloe Christina is 8 Today

Chloe had her 8th birthday today. I will never forget the night she was born. We had her at home with a midwife. After 5 births before her that were all fairly easy we figured let's try the homebirth thing. We had a great midwife and the pregnancy was one of my easiest. She was about 10 days overdue and I felt like she was never coming, no twinges, nothing. I went to bed that night and had a dream I was in labor. Sure enough I woke up about 3am with contractions. John figured he'd better call the midwife, she lived in the country and it was about -24 degrees outside. (A typical Minnesota winter) She said she'd come right away and just sleep on the couch since the weather was so cold. By the time she got there my water had broke and the contractions were coming on very strong. Chloe was born around 4am. It was the quickest labor from start to finish that we had ever had. It was the least amount of weight I had ever gained during a pregnancy but one of the biggest babies at 9lbs 4oz. She's a sweety!

Chloe wanted a Heath Fudge Cake for her celebration. We improvised and it turned out pretty good.

We also made some homemade ice cream and found out what happens when you fill the container too far and freeze it. Looks pretty cool.

Hannah's 12th Birthday- Let's Party!

Hannah celebrated her birthday in style with a birthday party for 10 friends. They decorated cookies, played games, went outside (for about 2 minutes), ate homemade pizza, drank hot cocoa, picked up Skittles with chopsticks, and exchanged white elephant gifts.

Mystery Of Christmas, The Nutcracker

This was the second year our kids were involved in The Mystery of Christmas. It is a Christian version of The Nutcracker. The other night we watched The Nutcracker on PBS and I was struck at what a wonderful job Dramatic Truth has done in just tweaking the story a little and making it about Jesus. The music is the same, the dancing is excellent, and the message is fabulous. I'm very impressed.

Sarah played the role of Clara, she worked hard and has a wonderful stage presence.

Rachel and John played parents and danced together. They were one of the most animated couples on the stage.

Josiah, Chloe, and Hannah all played boys in the party scene. Hannah also danced in a Russian dance in the 2nd Act but my camera locked up and I couldn't get anymore pictures.

Sophie was in the American Dance as a little cowgirl. She was on the stage for literally 30 seconds and she stole the show.Sarah dancing with the Holy Spirit. Then dancing with demons.Angels leading her and the shepherds to the baby Jesus.

Update

Just a quick update on the van.....It's now fixed. Thanks to you, our faithful supporters, we had enough to fix both cars. We shopped around to get the best deal and were happy with the service they gave us.
Now the car.....we've been driving it for months now thinking it needed a new heater core. We brought it to a new little shop in the area and found out the problem was a water pump and clogged hoses. This was also a much cheaper job and now it has heat. Hooray!

We Do Have Sleds

You would think being from Minnesota we would know how to sled. Moments after this picture was taken Josiah's head collided with the hanging saucer swing. Lots of blood poured out of his eyebrow but thankfully no stitches were needed. Do you think concealer will cover up those wounds while he's on stage for the "Mystery of Christmas"?

Our Crazy Life

First of all, the van is fixed. Hip Hip Hooray!

Our week is filled with birthdays and rehearsals for The Mystery of Christmas. It's going to be a special show. I will definitely have pictures of this. It's a family affair with only Zach and myself not in the show.