what i've learned

Let's just pretend that it hasn't been thew longest stretch I've ever gone without blogging since the blogging began years ago.  I know ALL you faithful readers have been wondering what oh WHAT have we been up to.

I'll tell you of a few things I have learned over the past weeks in no particular order.

-ummmm, don't order your christmas cards on December 20th, you will have a pile of half of them left on January 2nd.  (Ashley, you are too kind, and so cute for making these, thanks! click to see the full picture.)

-Sickness can really linger in a house when it gets passed person to person. ( but james is never too sick to give a little cheese for the camera)

-Christmas shopping was much MUCH easier in the city.  Don't get me started.

-Derek's gramma is still awesome and playing away with her band, even for her own 60th wedding anniversary party.  Derek is dancing away right in front of her playing the piano.

-Global warming does not affect Canada.  It's freezing cold.  What the heck?  Sure I can handle this ridiculous cold and mounds of snow, but I don't want to, didn't I just leave Edmonton?  Where are these so called chinooks anyway?

Am EVER going to get rid of that soother from that boy?

-Alli apparently gets her tolerance for the cold from her dad.  She also has the best aunt Gabrielle and gramma who will take her in the snow for 30 mins (she wanted to stay out longer) when it's -25 out while Derek is gone snowboarding in the ridiculous cold.

-A delicious 8 course Christmas eve meal is possible to do in a house full of 30 people, 15 of them kids 8 and under, followed by the worlds fastest nativity and pj opening, then kids in bed and house clean and ME in bed by midnight that night!

-Wrap your presents before Christmas eve so you can go to bed at midnight and laugh at everybody else still wrapping.  (even if you stayed up until 1:30 the night before wrapping, still worth it.) 

-Derek is sneaky.  I decided I was ok with nothing from Derek on Christmas morning this year because we just got a new chair for the house.  Well, he finally did it, it's never been done (even though he has tried and tried and someone always seems ruin it) He surprised me...a bike of my own!  Words cannot express how surprised and excited I was.  Now I just need the 7 feet of snow to melt and spring to come so I can RIDE!  ( i know, i look hot on christmas morn)

-James loves his sweet new quad and is already a daredevil on it.  None of the bruises covering his face are from the quad though...yet.  And no that's not his toque, he just loves to get naked and dress up in most things girly.  James was so funny, on Christmas morning he was having so much fun opening presents, but you now how everything is in a box and its a jigsaw to get it out.  So it would take us forever to open it and he was so impatient, or we would tell him we'd open it later.  Well, by the last present, the second he saw it was in a box he was so mad he threw it and went back to the quad.

-The one behind on the right can really scream, especially in the wee hours of the morning.  It's a good thing she's so dang cute and has the MOST patient mother in the world.

 

-These 2 can really perform some sweet Jingle Bells.

-Christmas isn't complete without a little celebrity gossip.

-And the final thing I learned, don't go and chop off your child's hair while your husband is out.  He won't be happy.  Not the best after shot, with the fake smile and all, but it's pretty dang cute I'd say!

Before

After

We had the best time over the holidays.  I love all these kids that we spent every waking moment with.  We are so blessed with such great families.  It's a little weird but we packed our bags and were in Raymond for 10 days only 35 mins from our own bed while we crammed in a room and shared 3 to a double bed, (sometimes 4 with James, or on the couch with James or the floor with James...)  but we just wanted to be with our families. 

 

(james was sad reuben was on his bike)

Derek's family is so amazing.  The way they have carried on after Peggy passed away is amazing to me, especially during this Christmas season.  They are all so strong.  I will always remember her and will miss her always.  She loved having her family gather all together at Christmas and she would just bake and cook up a storm.  I'm sure glad she taught me how to make her famous Christmas trifle last year.  We all shared some beautiful moments together and apart remembering her this year as I hope we always will.

This also made me think about my brother Ryan as I always do at Christmas, and how much I just so miss him too.  He was such a good brother to me.  I remember one year he had my name for the gifts, I was probably 9 and he gave me a barbie.  I thought he was the coolest and richest brother in the world.  

I love Christmas and the spirit it brings.  I loved singing the carols with my kids and teaching Alli this year about baby Jesus and having her kinda get this whole Christmas and the real meaning. (she was playing one day knocking on all the doors of the house saying 'any room? any room?')  I hope that my family will always keep the true meaning first in our Christmas's to come.

I took the tree down today and Alli started crying, 'No, no Christmas isn't over we still want our toys!'  She was pretty happy when I told her she can keep them...if she's a good girl (gotta throw that in, right?)  Which reminds me of one more thing I learned.  We packed up most of toys right back into the trunk of the car on Christmas day, so yesterday when we finally came home and unloaded all the toys, the kids went crazy remembering their stuff.  I got completely unpacked while they played.

Ok, done.  I'll never go so long without a post, or this is what will happen.