Back to the Grindstone

Photo 3 of 365, taken January 3rd.

I was very thankful for a smooth transition back to school this morning. I was a little nervous because for some reason going back to school after Christmas vacation is always our hardest transition of the year ~ someone always ends up crying about it. I could tell Rebekah wanted to be my weeper this morning, but after a few minutes her sadness must have passed because she summoned up some strength and barely gave me a run for my money at all.

And doesn't she look so cute and tiny with her hot lunch tray? She hardly ever wants to get the hot lunch but was so excited on this day to have a brat.

Last Day of Christmas Vacation..Boo Hoo

Photo 2 of 365, taken January 2, 2013:
Silly girls baking cookies on the last day before returning to school from Christmas vacation. We tried a recipe that was new to us and they were ONO! Ono as in the Hawaiian word for delicious, or as in oh no, we better not bake these more often or all of our attempts at healthier eating will go right out the window.

There was a lot of rough housing and trying to build human pyramids going on this last afternoon of winter break. Maybe getting back to school isn't the worst idea ever.

Happy New Year from the Cool Kite Festival

We spent New Year's afternoon flying kites in frigid temperatures on Milwaukee's lakefront. We pretty much had to carry Rebekah to the car kicking and yelling that she did not want to go...she wanted to stay in her pjs all day, so we let her wear them under her snow suit. Still less than pleased, she put up a fight but had an awesome time once we got there.

I think it was about 27 degrees when we left our house and about 14 degrees by the time we left the kite festival. It was COLD! I love how the colors in the photos came out so blue ~ I didn't edit any of them, they just came out looking this chilly!


At one point, Rebekah felt the wind catch the kite and tug on the string as she flew it. She called out to Dave fearfully asking him to grab a hold of her. She thought the wind had enough pull to whip her off her feet.






All three girls took a few turns flying the kite and Emma and Rebekah made snow angels in the frozen snow.


It was fun to watch the girls run under the kite as Dave flew it. They looked like they were trying to race it and got so excited when the kite soared super high.
Here the girls are trying their hand at creating ice sculptures.

They're fast learners, huh?! {Just kidding, the penguins were made by people who knew what they were doing, not just simply chipping away huge chunk by huge chunk.}

But a really neat thing that happened ~ while they were working, Emma used the sharp end of a pick to carve her name in one of the blocks. At the end of the day Alyssa was collecting some of the scraps that the carvers didn't need anymore. She insisted we could bring them home to keep {and somehow not allow them to melt, after spending a couple hours in the freezing cold we couldn't even have the heat on in the van on our way home in order to preserve them}. Well, when we got home Emma was inspecting the blocks Alyssa chose to bring back, and sure enough one of them was the very block she had carved her name into. Alyssa didn't even know she had grabbed her sister's ice.

Alyssa liked the hot cocoa in the warming house, Emma just liked the icicles.

I decided I am going to try something new in 2013...I want to try to accumulate 365 ordinary photos this year. Photos that simply describe what we were doing on any given day. It might not be the most exciting thing I've ever tried to do {or post about}, but at the end of the year, I hope some fun memories will be there. I haven't thought it through entirely yet, I guess I thought I would let it figure itself out as I go along, as I know better than to set too many rules about what the pictures should be of, how often to take the photos etc. There may be some days where I have several photos from the same day, then possibly go an entire week without taking any. And that's okay.

Without further ado, Photo 1 of 365:

I love how happy Emma looks as she smiles up at the kite! And how Alyssa is flying the kite in the background while Rebekah watches. Taken January 1, 2013.

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Merry Christmas!

A Christmas Carol ~ Photos in Costume

Thank you very much to Aunt Laura {my mom's sister} and Unlce Ted {my dad's brother} who came up to Milwaukee a couple Sundays ago with my parents to see A Christmas Carol. It was so nice to see you, and Alyssa was very happy you could see the show!

Below are some of my favorite pictures of Alyssa in her costumes for A Christmas Carol. The first several photos show her in her "Want" costume, and in the bottom few she is wearing the costume that she wears in almost every scene of the play other than the Fezziwig scene and the Want scene. The only costume we didn't get her pictured in is her Fezziwig scene costume. It blesses me so much to have these pictures because our experience in the past is that it is extremely difficult to get photographs of the kids in costume ~ wonderful memories I am thankful to have!!

Tiny Tim and Want.

With Martha Cratchit.

With Remembrance and Forgiveness.

With Fan.

With Catherine {possibly Alyssa's favorite actress in the play}.

Collecting for La Causa after the performance.


“I will honour Christmas in my heart, and try to keep it all the year. I will live in the Past, the Present, and the Future. The Spirits of all Three shall strive within me. I will not shut out the lessons that they teach!” ― Charles Dickens, A Christmas Carol

Don't Miss The Manger

The Kingdom Kid's Choir Christmas musical this year was called, Camel Lot, Don't Miss The Manger! and it was as cute as ever! Growing too old for kid's choir at church is one of the saddest things that has ever happened to Alyssa, but Miss Gina told her she can help behind the scenes from now on ~ so that made Alyssa very happy! Kid's Choir is one our girls' most favorite things ever and it's always so wonderful to get that cd of Christmas music in September and get an early start singing Christmas songs as we shuffle back and forth from school.

There's quite a few photos from the musical here, but they are all my favorites and I couldn't decided which ones to include, so I included just about all of them. You can click the collages for a better view.

Rebekah was a lot less reserved than I thought she would be. I had to talk her into staying for the first few rehearsals, she wanted nothing to do with singing with all the big kids. But she seemed pretty comfortable on stage by the time the performance came around. It definitely helped that Emma was right near her. Some of Rebekah's expressions {yawns included} were funny. She only pulled up/adjusted her skirt about 327 times, so that's something we'll have to work on for next year.






Emma during her solo...she was her typical, consistent, laid back self. Her complete calm under pressure astounds me sometimes.

Rebekah had a small solo too, again, something she would not have even wanted to try a year ago. Their teacher asked me if it would make Rebekah a nervous wreck if she gave her a solo and went on to explain how Rebekah was very timid to volunteer during solo try outs, but as soon as the music went on, her voice filled up the room. I'm so thankful she is coming out of her shell a little. I love how the bottom pic shows that she is barely tall enough to reach the microphone, she's on her tippiest toes in the top picture.

Their similar expressions in this photo cracked me up, two peas in a pod they are.

I love how it looks like Rebekah is checking on Emma in this picture, just making sure her big sister is there, doing what she's supposed to be doing :-)


Do you think Rebekah knows where we are in the audience and that I am taking pictures of her?

Yeah, I think she knows exactly where we are!!

And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened. And the angel said to them, "Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which shall be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. "And this will be a sign for you: you will find a baby wrapped in cloths, and lying in a manger. -Luke 2:9-12

A Little Shepherd Girl

When the angels had left them and gone into heaven, the shepherds said to one another, “Let’s go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.” So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph, and the baby, who was lying in the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they had been told. -Luke 2:15-20

Last Saturday was Rebekah's German Dance Christmas party. At the practice before the party as they were handing out costumes for the nativity scene, they didn't have enough costumes for all the little girls in the dance group to be angels. The group is larger than it has ever been and the teacher makes all the costumes, so they were limited in how they could cast the little ones. Rebekah was handed a shepherd costume and she brought it to me with a tiny smile, only half happy about the situation and said, "Can you find me a staff? I'll be a shepherd if you can get me a staff."

I told her how important the shepherds were, how they were the very first to find out about Jesus' birth. I also reminded her how in the Bible Jesus is referred to as "The Good Shepherd." I wanted her to be excited about her role, and I am not sure that she understood everything I was telling her, but she definitely perked up as we talked about it. And the fact that I found her a candy cane yard ornament to use as a staff helped her not to feel sad as she watched many of the other little girls putting on their cute angel outfits.

Such a precious sight ~ all the kids re-enacting the nativity scene and singing.

Her staff doubled as a crutch nearly all night, more than one person asked Rebekah how she hurt herself. I tell you, the child does nothing half way, she was very convincing.

Our sweet shepherd girl.

Getting ready to sing Christmas Carols.

This is something that I am so, so proud of...Rebekah read a German Christmas poem to the audience during the party. Her voice was as tiny as a mouse and we could hardly hear her, but no matter!! During the song that preceeded her poem, as she realized it was almost time for her to go on, she started to tear up, and I could tell she was suddenly feeling remorseful for having volunteered her poetry services. But she mustered up the courage and did it, I was so happy for her especially beacuse I know she could not have managed a similar feat at this same time last year. She's growing up!

On to the dancing portion of the program...this picture is so blurry but I thought it showed how happy and active all the kids are once the music plays.

Having a very serious conversation with her friend Brittany in between dances. I love how kids have absolutely no filter about when it is appropriate to break from a performance and do your own thing.

Such a happy little German dancer.