Christmas Celebrations!

Colts vs. Titans

The Titans game! We won 23 to 0!

We got to see 2 records set - Dallas Clark broke the Colts record for the most yards in a season from a Tight End. That was cool to see, but the best was when Marvin Harrison made his 1,102nd completion to become the 2nd most successful WR in NFL history...second only to Jerry Rice, who is likely never to be surpassed. Way to go, Marvin!

What an AWESOME Christmas present - Thanks Brad and Crystal...we all had a great time!

Christmas Eve Mass

Christmas Eve Mass

went well. The kid's program went smoothly and the choir sounded awesome! J practiced hard and his work paid off.

Some of the kids acted out the Gospel reading. On the day before the program, the kids practiced the whole thing. R got to be a shepard, and had a staff and a costume and everything. When walking down the middle of the gym, he held the staff out and tapped the floor with it as though he was blind. Thank goodness he didn't do it again during Mass!

M did a great job getting everything ready - the sound, the stage, the chairs, the programs, the children...

I'm proud of all 3 of my boys!

Crazy Indiana weather!

We had crazy weather today. Storms tonight, lots of wind. This afternoon was a different story. We were out shopping and had no jackets, no coats, no hat, gloves, scarves, snowpants, no chattering teeth.

The temperature you see above is real. Here in Indiana, on December 27th, it got up to 71 degrees. Crazy Indiana weather!

Maggiano's

We're @ Maggiano's w/ Mare and Dan!!

Gingerbread House!

Gingerbread House! (part 2)

J made a gingerbread house in school! Our Speech Therapist came to our classroom and ran my groups for me so that I could come to class with J and help him. The kids did a great job with a gingerbread play, too! J even had a couple of lines - he was awesome!

WHAT?

R had German rotations last week. They went to different 4th grade rooms to learn about German castles, language, culture, and - apparrently - candy.

Does the brand name of the candy look ODD to you? A GERMAN candy?

WHAT?

Best Friends

Friendship, Virginia. Flannel. Sunglasses that date the picture. Long road trips. Mountain Dew and Big Red chewing gum. 1983 Mercury Capri. Cleveland ONLY! Space Monkeys. The Macarena. "What about THAT guy?" Keystone Light. Shandies. Andy Capp's Pork Rinds. Cheez-its! Grand Canyon. The Smith-stonian. Sunsets in Sedona. Sunset over the Pacific Coast. "Elk are large" road signs. Inaugural porta-potty. Trapped on the circle in DC. Doogie drives a VW? Grasshopper stuck on the windshield. Gas caps left behind. Terre Haute, Tulsa, Tucumcari, Tempe. "No smoking in the car!" I go I-port? 121 degrees as we unload our u-Haul. Dancing at 3 am in a monsoon. Fruity Pebbles, 3 meals a day. Rice Krispie treats. The Zoo (not the animal one.) Homerun Derby. Thanksgiving dinner in the basement with Swift - Eckrige Turkey Rolls. Watching deer gather at Mc Cormick's Creek state park.

Hollywood Blvd. Piercings. The Quote Board. Oh, the Quote Board... "Where is my Ding Dong? I didn't eat it, I just can't remember where I put it." Stray cats. Late night construction projects - "the beer stand". Ruter house. Stairwell silliness. Squeezing through the windows of our lounge to get on the roof. Quantum Leap. Wings. One more Wings. Friends. Everybody Loves Raymond. Better Off Dead. The Breakfast Club. Emmet Otter's Jug Band Christmas. Signing up for copies of Emmet Otter at Blockbuster all over the US. (Yeah, we did.) Midnight trips to the bus station. Buying new underwear so we don't have to do laundry. Dennis Leary. Billy Crystal. Jeff Foxworthy. Led Zepplin. The Piano Man. Bill's animal sounds CD. "Why me? Why now?"

The donut guy. What was in his tool box,anyway? Krogering at 3 am. Orange tic-tacs. Honey roasted cashews. Dimpled, pasty white a**. Jim driving 80 mph in traffic to the airport. Pictures of middle-aged asian women on the airplane. Poker at the Super 8. Murphy's Irish Pub. Drawing the process of photosynthesis on a napkin in Bennigans. Freezing in Flagstaff. Painted Desert. Chicken Livers at Freddy's. "Oh you see so much more when you're not driving!"

Best Friends.

Choir Concert

This morning was R's first choir concert. They sang 6 songs, including Dinah, Tak For Maden, Winter Fantasy, Laugh Ha Ha, Jubilate Deo, and Winter Wonderland. The kids practiced every Wednesday morning before school, and will give another concert in the spring.

They warm up with the same choral exercises that the Indianapolis Children's Choir use, and are trying very hard to learn proper technique and everything! Fourth graders, and they're doing great work! Their teacher is excellent, and extremely patient. She's great at motivating the kids, and they love her!

R really enjoyed it, and was also thrilled that Mrs. C asked Daddy to accompany them. R was so proud! J and me were, too. They did a fantastic job.