Christmas 2009

We had a great Christmas. Before heading to Utah we dropped some Christmas surprises off to a family in our congregation. The girls had given their personal money to buy some gifts, and were really excited to be "elves". We did a doorbell ditch, the first in their memory. It wasn't the easiest apartment to escape so there was considerable strategical planning of who would go where. Ceci and I stayed a little ways off where we could see if the gifts were picked up. We saw Geoff, Tennie and Adele zoom around the corner when all of a sudden a dog started barking and Tennie started screaming. As they continued to run I heard Geoff holler to Adele, who was halfway down the block, to come back to where they would duck down some stairs out of sight. Geoff said that as they were running down the sidewalk he could hear Adele repeating her instructions to herself, "Big truck...big truck...turn at the big truck." Turns out the big truck had pulled out and away and Adele, who is so ever exact, was going to run until she saw it! Somehow with all the commotion we got away without detection.

Our drive to Salt Lake was long, as usual. Anticipation was at a high with Christmas just days away. There was a little more quarreling and restlessness than is usual for our great little travelers. At one point Ceci was complaining about how uncomfortable she was. She said in frustration, "I'm not comfortable! There is a crack in my bum!"

We also overheard the girls talking about the upcoming wedding of their old babysitter (Natalie Mayer) who they lovingly called, "The Smiling Princess" because of her consistent, radiant smile. Adele said, "The Smiley Princess is about to get married...and then she'll have kids...and then she won't be smiley anymore." (How is that for a little dagger to the motherly image?) When I asked Adele what she meant she explained that moms aren't as smiley as college girls. True. True.

While Geoff's family gathered here in Auburn we went to Salt Lake to gather with my family, which we haven't done in years. We spent our days at my Dad and his wife, Babs, home eating a feast every meal, playing cards with the girls, reading, talking, making gingerbread houses, playing in the snow, going to the library, making stockings out of grandpas old softball socks, going to a white elephant gift exchange with my extended family, celebrating my 39th (!) birthday by eating a French Christmas cake called a Buche de Noel, hanging out with my cute mom who joined us, and meeting and loving our new nephew/cousin Tag. (Click here to read about his unique adventures.) Our girls weren't expecting much for Christmas and were so grateful for every gift, and we all felt that our greatest gifts this Christmas were the relative energy and health of my dad, and the miracle of little Tag.



Geoff and I went to lunch with three of his mission companions and their wives which was fun, and then went to an annual holiday party with friends from our Cambridge, Mass. days. One is running for governor in Idaho this year, and it was fun to hear his unique (and effective!) approach to politics. We feel so overwhelmingly grateful for great friends during each season of our lives. The girls had an afternoon and sleepover with their grandpa and Babs. They watched a movie and went sledding, and took two trips to Walmart to spend their allowance/Christmas money.

Yesterday we said our goodbyes, wishing my dad good luck with his upcoming chemo treatment, bidding Tag and his parents good luck, and made the long drive back to spend a few days with Geoff's family. There are twenty-four of us staying here and it is as lively and fun as always with this group. Good times.

So long bumpy, adventurous, magnificent 2009!

Our very own Christmas elf

Ceci is teaching all of us the true spirit of Christmas this year. With every request she says, "I will." If someone says they really don't want to do their job Ceci says, "I'll do it." If someone is throwing a fit about not getting what they want Ceci will hand over whatever she got in hopes to make them feel better. If someone says they wish they had more of a yummy treat Ceci will say, "Here, you can have the rest of mine." When a sibling has been really mean to her she'll go to her little crate of possessions, pick something special out, and leave it in that sister's "secret Santa" box. If someone is really tired or feeling sad she'll rub their feet or cuddle with them. It goes on and on, some little "gift" for each of us every day.

Christmas #1

Because we're off to Utah Geoff's parents wanted to exchange gifts before we left. The girls were so excited to have an early Christmas. Here is a little sampling...

Aprons from Mormor

Cousin's gifts whose gifts were from their own toy collection (and very much loved)

Thank you assaults...er, I mean hugs, from Ceci

Tennie's handmade dolls with clothes

Oh Tannenbaum

A few weeks ago we went to get the Christmas tree(s) with Geoff's parents. I have a few pictures of the outing, but no picture of the tree...oh well.

The halls around here are totally decked out. There has been a lot of bustling, wrapping, squealing, preparing, singing and giving going on. We're off to Utah early next week...jingling all the way...

The Nutcracker

Last Saturday we went into Old Town Sacramento to see a display of dozens of very creative gingerbread houses! It was so fun, and I was glad we left without bumping any off the table! Next door was a candy shop where we got some candy for our gingerbread house making next week. We were definitely inspired!

The Three Pigs

Tennie and Adele then got to accompany Geoff's mom to a real deal Nutcracker performance. They've been dancing "gracefully" around the family room ever since.

Snow!

It doesn't snow in Auburn very often, and if it does it is a "dusting", but last Monday we got a generous 4-5 inches! It could have been Christmas morning by the look of the girl's faces! Despite our lack of snow gear we went outdoors to play...for hours.

Kipper loved chasing the sled and trying to bite the grocery bags tied onto the girl's feet to keep them dry.

Kipper was in heaven....

Geoff's cute parents joined the fun, too.

Geoff pulled out the snowboard (and stayed outside trying different hills long after the rest of us went inside)

Strike 2

Remember last year when I went on strike as a teacher? Well, this week I went on strike #2. I was fed up with the girls acting as if my suggestion of learning something was like asking if they would like to be tortured.

A simple science experiment

Seconds later...

The drama, the resistance, the unpleasant whining, the lack of focus...it wears me down until I say some unpleasant things and declare I'm on strike. I told the girls I would draw up a list of outdoor chores for them to do since they wouldn't be in school. Tennie argued it wasn't fair since it wasn't their choice that they weren't doing school. True. I was defeated all around.

A few weeks ago Geoff got off the phone with a customer service person and said, "Either she shouldn't be working today or she needs more training." I laughed because someone could visit our school day some days and say the same thing about me! It was definately a week when I shouldn't be working, and heaven knows I need more training. I feel like I'm on a slippery-steep learning curve every day. I'm reading during every spare moment, and redefining what I think it means to educate a child. I'm exploring how to revamp the way we do things in Z School so that learning is equated with fun, not a "let's finish school so we can have fun" mentality. I have big plans, but the carrying it out day to day with three little, unique, brilliant beings is a different story. I'm far from having things figured out.

Geoff, my knight in shining armor, appeared to slay this week's dragon. He took over school, meals, and every other demand while I sought a sense of control by going through piles paper/mail, crossed things off my Christmas to-do list (which is actually pretty short, gratefully), cleaned out the school supplies and storage area, and worked on little projects I don't have time to get to. It felt so good. But the "good" is temporary, not a solution. The sustaining solution for me is now, and always, maintaining a clear perspective. But why is it so dang hard to keep perspective?

Our culture is full of nice, irrevelant standards. Our schools, church culture, political parties, medical systems, food industry, even families...all set a standard of what is "normal" or "good". Because we live in a culture that places a high emphasis in what the "experts" say we follow along believing that they are right. I'm realizing the power of being my own agent for myself and my children. I know our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual strengths and weaknesses. So who is really the "expert"? Well, certainly not me alone, but teamed up with a wise, all-knowing God I become pretty strong. I become more knowledgeable. I have more confidence in my actions and choices. So I continue to ask myself hard questions in prayer: How do I define being a good mother? How do I define educating a child? What is the best route of learning for Tennie? Adele? Ceci? What can I weed out of my life to fit in enough time and energy for the things that are most important today? This week? This year? Is having this thing or that thing really going to determine success or comfort in our lives? What are the naysayers saying about what I choose to do, or think, or believe? Is what they think about my choices or my life important?

But those cultural standards pull at me, and create doubt, doubt about the convictions I felt in quieter moments. Those standards distract my thoughts (and actions) into pursuing things that really don't support what is really effective or important. Maintaining frequent, quiet moments of prayer and meditation seem critical to keeping from being "tossed to and fro".

Well, my piles and corners are cleared out, my to-do list is shorter, and more importantly I slowed down a little bit to gain perspective on what is most important tomorrow...I'll start there.