Reflections at Year's End

Something about New Year's Eve always makes me a bit nostalgic. I'm sure I'm not alone in this. It's the sort of holiday that lends itself to reflection. I always feel abit weird about ending a year and beginning another. Funny, really, since it's only just the next day. But I feel like we go through a door at midnight-plus-one-second, leaving one year and entering another.

We were very blessed this year!

Here's a recap of 2006:

January: Emily got glasses and joined the Berks County 4-H Rabbit & Cavy Club.

February: Edward turned 5 on Valentine's Day, and we celebrated his birthday adventure at the Reading Museum. We had our annual 12th Annual Valentine's Day Tea. Earl Grey (Emily's 4-H project) and Clementine (Himalayan Dwarf bunnies) were born.

March: My sister, Shelly, turned 40! Stuart spent nearly the entire month in Qatar in the Middle East.

April: We celebrated Easter and gave a little homeschool seminar about bunnies. Emily went to work with Stuart as part of Take-Your-Daughter-to-Work Day. She spent the WHOLE day there and learned lots.

May: Stuart and I made it to our 10th Anniverary! Yeah!! And the greatest part is we're still best friends! Edward signed up for kindergarten, and Emily finished 3rd grade. I started this blog.

June: Emily had her dance recital. We went to the annual company picnic at Hershey Park. My parents celebrated 45 years of wedded bliss.

July: Independence Day! W. City celebrated 100 years this year and the annual 4th of July Parade reflected that in the floats and displays. I had my first ever Jury Duty!

August: Stuart debuted in our church's annual Vacation Bible School skit as Captain Chris P. Cookie. We enjoyed the summer, getting together with friends and having movie and game nights. I met up with two college friends I hadn't seen in 10 years.

September: A hurricane delayed our annual vacation to Nags Head, N.C., but we made it down there by Sunday night. When we came home we had to jump into a new school year with both feet -- especially since we'd left PAVCS for Agora Cyber Charter School. Stuart turned 36 on 9/11. The kids joined AWANA and started at their homeschool learning group. Stuart and I headed in to New York City to see the screening of I Trust You to Kill Me and met KIEFER SUTHERLAND in person.

October: Emily and I had our joint-birthday with her turning 9 and me turning 36. She had angel tryouts for the Nutcracker and made it. Our birthday adventure took place at the Children's Zoo in Central Park. We even took a ride on the subway, going through the station at the World Trade Center. We also spent a long weekend in Atlanta -- our first ever "just-us" vacation -- to see the I Trust You to Kill Me movie again with Kiefer Sutherland doing a Q&A afterwards and 99X hosting Rocco Deluca and the Burden in concert at midnight.

November: We plodded along through the month, enjoying Thanksgiving at my aunt and uncle's house with 35 people in attendance. Stuart and I headed to Baltimore to see Rocco again in concert, this time meeting him and getting a photo and an autograph.

December: I headed to my annual shopping trip with a friend, and Stuart and the kids planned and filmed a funny movie for me. We enjoyed a wonderful breakfast with Santa, courtesy of Stuart's company. Emily received her Year One Award at 4-H. She spent the following week in the theatre at rehearsals for the Nutcracker and performed in all three shows. We celebrated Christmas, Boxing Day, and Pagoda Day...enjoying each other and the blessing of good food, family, and friends.

God is good!

Happy Pagoda Day!!

Happy Pagoda Day!!

To all of you out there who have no idea what that means....well, it means nothing, really. But it's so special to our kids.

Two years ago, Edward (then 3) fell in love with the Reading Pagoda. He watched it light up on the side of Mt. Penn each week when we took Emily to her dance class on that side of the city.

One day, about a month before Christmas, he decided that we should start a new holiday. He and Emily planned and planned. They even made up a song.

We humored them by listening to their plans but realized the holidays are already too busy to add more confusion to the mix. Still, it didn't have to be anything too elaborate...and it would please them.... It was to take place on December 27th, the day after Boxing Day. And we'd sing the song and do a dance of sorts, I guess.

The first Pagoda Day arrived, and my hubby sent us the first-ever Pagoda Day e-card he made using a photo of the Pagoda. We made Pagoda-shaped sugar cookies with red sprinkles on them.

But the "icing on the cake" came when we surprised them by taking them up to the Pagoda at night for our first Pagoda Day photo. They were ecstatic! The lights were wonderful up close and personal like that and you could see all the lights of Berks County it seemed.

So each year we board the car and head up Duryea Drive on Mt. Penn to see the Pagoda at night and get our annual Pagoda Day photo.

It's the simple stuff in life that keeps kids happy...

Happy Boxing Day!

No, it doesn't have anything to do with boxing...

My husband has been celebrating Christmas in the United States for the past 12 years, and he decided that -- apart from his family -- the only parts of the holidays he really missed were Boxing Day and all the trimmings of a good ol' English Christmas dinner. You know, turkey, stuffing, roasted potatoes and parsnips, brussel sprouts, cauliflower, leeks, Christmas pudding, mince pies, etc.

So last year we started celebrating Boxing Day, complete with all the tradition English fare and Christmas crackers.

There are lots of stories about how the tradition of Boxing Day started. For Stuart, it was the day he and his family had dinner together with other relatives. He said they usually stayed in and celebrated Christmas Day as a family and then went "a-visiting" the next day.

I personally think it's really just another excuse to eat more yummy food...but who's complaining??

* * *

Christmas Cracker-Me-Ups:

Q: Where should a dressmaker build her house?
A: On the outskirts.

Q: How did the human cannonball lose his job?
A: He got fired.

Q: What does the word minimum mean?
A: A very small mother.

Q: What do you get if you cross a stereo with a refrigerator?
A: Cool music.

Q: What do you get if you cross a skeleton and a detective?
A: Sherlock Bones.

Q: Why didn't the skeleton go to the New Year's Eve party?
A: He had no body to go with.

And the winner....

Q: Why don't ducks tell jokes when they're flying?
A: Because they would quack up!

Happy Boxing Day!!

Christmas Greetings!

Merry Christmas

from all of us

to all of you!!

Christmas Eve Traditions

Where do we get some of our family traditions?

Occasionally born out of laziness -- or a lack of time -- we've developed "traditions" at our home.

For instance, we realized in the pressure to get everything finished in time -- ie: presents wrapped, living room cleaned, tree decorated, Santa's cookies-and-milk put out, Christmas cards/letters mailed -- we decided to forego the wrapping paper and open gifts at 12:01 a.m. on Christmas. By "opening" we mean hand a present to the other person who has his/her eyes shut and must try to guess what the item is.

Another "tradition" is to decorate the Christmas tree on Christmas Eve so that the kids wake up to a decorated tree with prezzies beneath it on Christmas. That works great if you don't store the tree in a bucket of water the week before you decide to "install" it indoors....so that the trunk swells to a size just slightly larger than the old-fashioned tree stand....and you end up outside at 2 a.m. with a circular saw trying to figure out how to get the tree to fit without it shedding all of its needles.

And "Shhhh!"....don't tell the kids, but we forget nearly every year to put out the cookies and milk so we stage the event for a photo by placing a tiny bit of milk in the bottom of a cup and dusting a plate with cookie crumbs. I know, bad parents! Bad, bad parents!!

And what if you try really hard to get out all of your cards and Christmas letter before the big day...but fail miserably? You just call them "New Year's letters." As long as they're out before Easter, you're good to go.

Still in all, I figure traditions are what you make of them.

Sometimes you have to do what works for you....and, in the end, have fun....or at least make funny memories.

Isn't that what it's all about?

The Eve of Christmas Eve

18 years ago today....

That's when my hubby and I -- along with two other friends -- had a picnic in Lydiard Park, just outside Swindon, England. We had peanut-butter-and-jam sandwiches, a pint of milk, salt-and-vinegar crisps, and a Schweppes Ginger Ale the one friend brought for me since I was missing some familiar drinks from the States....and had ordered Ginger Beer instead of Ginger Ale at the pub a while before.

It was freezing as I recall....and we got some rather strange looks from the few passers-by who must have wondered at this group of 17- and 18-year-olds having a picnic on the 23rd of December.

1988.

Half a lifetime ago.

Still makes me smile.

Celebrating a Celebrity

In honor of actor Kiefer Sutherland's 40th Birthday today....a video I love from YouTube, celebrating some his movies and shows. Enjoy!

On the Eve of Turning 40...

It can't be that bad, right?

You grow up the day you have your first real laugh, at yourself.
- Ethel Barrymore

No man who has once heartily and wholly laughed can be altogether irreclaimably bad.
- Thomas Carlyle

Christmas: 24-style

Here's a very fun and clever holiday commercial done by FOX.

Santa Jack?

(Can't wait for Santa to hang up his boots and bring out the "real" thing though...such a long wait...)

Oh....and, by the way, only 5 more shopping days left until Christmas!!!!

The Dance of Angels

Here's the angel dance from the Nutcracker. I took this during the dress rehearsal from the balcony with my digital camera...sorry it's so tiny.

Sweet Nutcracker Memories

Well, we survived the "Nutcracker Season." And now the Christmas season can really officially begin for us!

After two months of Saturday morning practices and two weeks of Sunday afternoon practices and three-hour tech and dress rehearsals and then "living" at the Sovereign Performing Arts Centre through three performances....we're officially finished with "Nutcracker 2006."

A bittersweet moment for all.

(And all the above was for our little "angel." I can only imagine how the amount of time involved will increase exponentially if she ever gets bigger roles.....)

It truly is a fantastic experience for all involved. Even as just an "angel parent" watching and waiting in the wings, I can see the thrill it gives to everyone participating.

Emily was especially excited to have gotten autographs and photos of the Sugar Plum Fairy, the Nutcracker Prince, the Dew Drop Fairy, and her own ballet teacher who was correographing/directing this year's show. Since the main roles are danced by professionals, it was quite an honor for her.

It gives her something to aspire to.

And allows her sweet and cherished memories!

Nutty-n-Crackers Sweets

Silliness divine...what you get when you have to wait too long between shows...

A Nutcracker "Sweet"

Well, the Christmas season can officially begin.

We've made it through the first of three performances of the Nutcracker... with flying (literally... Emily was an "angel" this year) colors!

What an absolute treat it was to watch Emily dance on stage in a professional performance with a live orchestra and over 100 performers!

I remembered as I walked her down the stairs to her dress rehearsal the other night how I came to the Sovereign Performing Arts Center -- then known as the "Rajah Theatre" -- when I was in 6th grade to see the Nutcracker. Little did I know that I would one day bring my own daughter there to dance in the performance.

Emily has dreamt of being in the Nutcracker since she was 2. So every year she is privileged to fulfill at bit more of her dream.

Her biggest wish is to one day dance as "Clara."

I keep telling her to dance toward that dream, and we'll be in the front row, smiling up at her!

Quaking with Fear

Well, it's official.

We had another earthquake here in W. City, Pennsylvania.

Okay, so it wasn't quite 3 points on the Richter Scale, but it was still felt by most everyone I know. And tongues were wagging with everyone saying his or her thoughts of what it was before the realization hit.

I thought it was a truck hitting something outside...then I thought maybe one of the kids rolled off a bed...then I thought: EARTHQUAKE. It's not the first one we've had in this area...though it was perhaps the first that most people recognized as such.

Funny to think that can happen anywhere outside of California.

It's like we think they have some sort of monopoly on this kind of occurrence...

Theatrical Debut on Trebor Place

A gift for me...

The Eyes of a Child...

Initially, I chose the video this week based on the song: "Happy Christmas (War Is Over)." I always enjoyed this song -- though I've never really been sure why since I'm not really a John Lennon/Yoko Ono fan.

But this Sarah McLachlan version is really sweet since she is joined by a children's choir of students from the music school she personally funds and oversees in Vancouver.

(The Sarah McLachlan Music Outreach Program was founded in September 2003 to provide free music education classes to inner city youths whose school music programs have been hit by budget cuts. "As a kid," Sarah recalls, "music saved my life; having that one thing that I knew I was good at made all the difference. It feels so good to be able to see their lives impacted. There's hardly any joy comparable.") From her website: http://www.sarahmclachlan.com/

Watch the children's faces and catch their excitement and enthusiasm at being able to sing with someone famous. I especially liked Sarah's expressions as she watched them join in.

It's joy all around. Perfect for this time of year!

Oh, Deer....

If this doesn't get you in the mood for Santa Claus, you're hopeless.

Turn the volume up - these reindeer can sing.

I'm Dreamin' of a White Christmas

Oh, and only 13 more shopping days until Christmas!!

Santa Letters, Part 2

The above letter to Santa Claus was written by our 5-year-old. He disappeared while we were visiting his grandparents the other day and came back with this list. His choices are hilarious! (Click on the photo to make it bigger.) I especially like #18...and #10. 'Cuz every kindergartener needs a cell phone to go with a suit of armor.

A classic in the making...

Donut Ask Too Many Questions

While I'm on the subject of past memories....

I went into a Dunkin' Donuts years ago and was happily perusing the wide selection of flavors, trying to decide which one sounded most yummy, when I happened on the "plain jelly" one. I found it sounded less than appetizing when I considered what plain gelatin looks like. Besides, all the other jelly-filled ones had fruit names in front of the "jelly" part.

So I asked the donut clerk what flavor jelly this variety had in it.

"It's plain jelly," she said, looking at me as though I had three heads and "kindly" refraining from adding a "duh!" at the end.

"Yes, I know, but what sort of jelly -- cherry, strawberry, raspberry...." I persisted.

In her eyes, the number of heads on my body multiplied by a factor of 10. "Just plain," she repeated firmly, figuring I was dumb or at least hard of hearing.

I gave up and chose a cream-filled one. Less complicated and less likely to provoke the "Donut Nazi."

"Achtung! Achtung! Ve only serve de donuts vith plain jelly at ziss location."

Just plain scary.

Punny Stuff

Years ago when I worked for the newspaper, we had the dubious duty of writing headlines for the various articles our co-reporters wrote in our section. I wasn't particularly good at it since I could never think of anything "catchy" on the spot.

But one particular day, we were running a business "close-up" story about a local septic cleaning business called Bailey, and I was watching my co-reporter try to headline it.

Well, being that we were the business section and ran lots of stories on businesses....and that there was a jewelry chain in our local mall called Bailey, Banks, & Biddle, I suggested the pun-filled "Bailey Banks on Piddle" on a whim. We had a great laugh about the pun and then went back to thinking of a real headline.

The managing editor instantly LOVED it and told us to run it....much to my chagrin.

I begged my co-reporter -- who was acting as editor while our boss was on vacation -- to pull it since I wasn't sure either business -- or our own editor -- would find it so funny.

He agreed but not in time to stop it from running in the morning edition.

We were biting our fingernails, hoping our editor didn't see it while reading his newspaper at home on vacation.

He didn't.

Fortunately, he subscribed to the afternoon edition...and so saw the story with the boring, pun-less headline.

I don't remember if we ever shared the original with him when he got back from vacation....

It doesn't always pay to be clever.

Santa Letters, Part 1

Christmas 2001

An imaginary letter from the kids:

Dear Santa:

We've been very good this year. Of course, we've grown up some since this photo was taken, but we're still just as cute! Hard to resist, we'd say.

So please, please don't include any coal in our stockings this year.

Very sincerely yours,
Emily and Edward



FYI: Only 20 more shopping days until Christmas!!!

One of Those Days....

Ever have "one of those days?"

Things That Make You Go...Huh?

Passing a billboard on my journey to a Pennsylvania county just north of us:

"giftsonline.com

The name says it all."

Huh?

Did I miss something? Or maybe it's just that simple....

First Things First

A pinch and a punch on the first of the month.

Happy 1st of December!!

Only 23 more shopping days until Christmas!