December was a whirlwind, but such a blessed time.
Dad was staying with the Cookes and so we saw a lot of him and he seems to be doing so well! He is 83 and shooting for a hundred, which certainly seems doable!
The boys, on the other end of the spectrum, turned 11. They got a Foosball table, and I gave them a gift of paint for their room. They are doing an F1 theme in there. Part of their Christmas from me was to go up to a Kart track in Austin to race. They had a blast.
Madi had the idea and gave a Karting gift card to Paul, and I got one for Brendan and Tim. They all went up and had a great time.
Tim brought Paul and Madi and Brendan down from the north. It was so good to have all of them under this roof!! I am so glad that we have plenty of room in the house. We had wonderful meals, we played lots of games, and Madi and I shared some recipes. What a great way to bring this house into the family.
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| Masterpiece |
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Making their cookie tree "Carl"
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Hide and Seek....winning....
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| Gatherin' |
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| Patio Lights for nights outside |
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| Dusk in New Braunfels |
We also spent time up in Kyle. That is also a home that is so familiar and warm. I love being there and spending time with the kids, dogs, and all the great things that everyone is doing. Madi and I baked a ton of cookies with Laura and we were able to share many of them. Dad bought steaks for everyone. We went out to dinner with the Cookes on Christmas eve. It is a special tradition and I hope we are part of it for many years to come.
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| Nertz, of course. |
Laura finished the stockings that she had been Cross-stitching for Paul and Madi's first Christmas together. They came out so nice! She worked so hard on them.
I made bowl cozies for some people, and I am going to make some more, but I have to get back t o my machine.
Also, Tim got me a Cricut for Christmas!! Was I ever surprised!! I am thinking of all the things that I can do around here, and the gifts that I can make! I want to make hand made gifts for each person for next year. I need to make a list of what and for who, and get started now. I just feel like something hand made is a nice thing to remember someone by.
Cora had a great Christmas. I was in the kitchen preparing something, and I heard something going on over by the tree. She was pulling her stocking out from behind all the presents, and she flipped it over and over until all the stuff came out. Her nose is so amazing. She could smell the tennis balls in their package and wouldn't be satisfied until she had peeled and destroyed all three of them. She likes that even better than treats.
And we were so glad to host Christmas dinner here. The table was full, and THAT is a good feeling!
Of course, we missed the ones we love who couldn't be with us, but they are in our thoughts and prayers, and maybe next year we can add a few chairs and I'll have even more people in the pictures!!
