Twins?? Or just good friends...

Another biggie on Marley's list was an American Girl Doll. ONE HUNDRED DOLLARS FOR A DOLL! Have you seen her messy room?? Not a'happenin'. But so we found this cutie thing that appears to her to be an American Girl Doll. We didn't tell her that it was one, we just didn't discount her idea that it was. Then she came into our rooom today reminding me that there should be an American Girl Doll code so she can get on the computer to play games with her doll. She decided that it must have gotten thrown out and moved on (thankfully) without more thought on the problem.

A Surprise that Everyone Enjoyed

Pregnant Brittany and little CallieMae showed up for a visit yesterday. They were in town for a few days before heading back to Florida. It has been months since the girls have seen CallieMae. It was such a great time for all of them. Then CallieMae got cranky quick, hitting and flailing and telling everyone "no". We snapped a few photos and they were on their way. It was a good way to end our Holiday Festivities.

Who put the Easy in this thing???

So one of Marley's big ticket items on the list this year (a bit down from the million dollars and puppy that she DIDN'T receive) was an Easy Bake Oven. And I use the term Easy very lightly. Thanks to a kind friend who was moving and downsizing we aquired this lightbulb box for free and were able to turn it into a prized Christmas present with little effort.

Three days in a row, Marley and I have baked cookies (and again I use the plural 's' VERY lightly, lightly as one might step on thin ice in the middle of an ocean.) We have a choice of making one cookie (two inches in diameter) or 6 teeny little cookies. Once we made the "big" one and twice we made the six tiny ones. Each time it takes about 25 minutes to do, most of the time is spent waiting for the lightbulb to warm the plastic box. Then when it is done another 10 minutes to cool the cookie. FOR ONE COOKIE!! We could bake two dozen cookies in this time in a REAL oven. And we do bake together all the time. I love to bake, and Marley USUALLY bakes with me. So I don't understand her delight in this thing. But I am patient and I am delighted in her pride at her cookies. So one cookie at a time we go along together. And one cookie at a time, we are happy.

If I could take a moment, since it is Christmas, to relay an old childhood memory that surfaced when the Easy Bake Oven idea popped up in Marley's mind...
My sister had an Easy Bake Oven when we were little. I don't remember ever using it. But I do remember sitting in the back of the station wagon, Remember that seat that folded down in the back? The seat that when in use faced the back window/door? There was this little handle hole in the seat when folded down. A hole so that you could reach in and pull the seat back into position. In that hole, my sister saw the box for an Easy Bake Oven, and proceeded to tell my mom how she knew she was getting it for Christmas. My mom told her some story about how it wasn't for her, or it was just an empty box she was using for storage or something like that. Funny.

My sister was such a spoiler of holidays like that. I figure I was 6 or 7 when she spoiled Santa for me. We were going to visit my Grandma for Christmas and my mom said hold on in the car, she had to run into the house and get something. She was gone about 10 minutes, maybe longer. My sister insisted that Mom was in the house putting the presents under the tree so she could say Santa did it when we got home from Grandma's. Then when we got home she even pointed out how Santa's S was in my mom's writing.

We all (even Brenda and Bret) go through leaps and bounds to keep Santa in Marley's Christmas. She only has a few more years to be young. And we so want her to have that just a little bit longer.

Me and My ipod touch

So we had our unschoolers xmas party, and this is what I find when I get home. :-)

Me and My ipod touch

Even Marley finds purpose in my new high tech toy. Glad to have it, though it turns out i don't get to see it much, what with everyone else's hands on it all day. :-) Wise toy indeed, even though my hub doesn't agree.

Contemporary Arts Unmuseum

I think activities are done for a bit. I am taking a break. The last of the girls' scout activities finally over. We headed downtown last night for Macy's free Mondays at the Contemporary Art Museum Unmuseum space. We checked out their optical illusion area, the elephant of drawers, and all the unmuseum exhibits. They we set out to make art of our own with the unlimited art supplies provided. All the kids want to go back again.

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Cadette Christmas Party

Two troops collide again. Our troop of cadettes was invited to join the Northside troop for a Christmas partyish get-together. We have been involved in activities two or three other times with this great group of girls. We came to fold envelopes and attach labels for SCOOP, Inc. (a local save-the-cats outreach program). And mostly they chatted about things that 11-13 year old girls chat about, and ate a bunch of snacks. Good time. Glad to connect again.

Our Tradition Strong

Every year now I take each of my kids out for Christmas Shopping. We do lunch (or dinner) we shop the malls and Wally World, Target, Half Price Books, JoAnn Fabrics, Bass Pro Shop, JCP's, Kohls, wherever else our plans take us. We snack, indulge in things we don't usually get to do, see Santa, and just hang out together really. Is has become everyone's fav part of the holiday. And when Christmas comes everyone has something to give eachother. I am so blessed to have wonderful amazing children, all of whose time is so precious to me. Even more blessed that I realize now how precious their time with me is.

Special thanks to "Rich" from Norwood Cici's who made the breaking of my traditional end-of-year fast such an enjoyable time.

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It is full up!!

Bret is down on our KY land hunting today. He phoned me a photo. He calls it the watering hole. I call it our lake. :-) All the rain we have had in the last week, seems to have drained down to KY. Our lake is full up. Yay! Some day we will be swimming in there and fishing. Then walking the path back up to our home. Just help me hold that image for now...

Christmas Bathroom

Don't know why I am so inspired to have a Christmas bathroom this year. But our wall pictures didn't match so we made new ones. Brenda's is the snowman holding a snowflake, Bret's is the two snowmen, Marley made the wreath, and I made the snowflakes. YAY! Big fun.

Christmas Sweet Christmas

For Christmas this year, Bret and Gaige headed over to KY to feed the deer and cut down a Christmas tree for the house. So sweet. They also brought home a bunch of little cedars for me to plant so I can have a little bit of our new-to-be home here while I wait. So sweet.

Great Fun

One minute the weather is freezing, the next minute is is 55 degrees. Snow then rain. Oh well, we are making lemonaid out of our lemons. :-)

Unschoolers Co Op

We have been meeting with a group of unschoolers once a week at a local park. With the weather and holidays passing we are meeting less and less. We have a meeting place starting in January. Indoors, three school rooms and a gym. All excited to start that up. I know the kids are missing our Thursday get-togethers. Now that I have a teen meet-up for and a bunch of kids Bret's age, it is time to find some kids for Lily. That has been my struggle this year.

Girl Scouts

Still forging ahead. Brenda and Bret both favor Girl Scouts to most other activities (maybe even over dance and tennis). Activities and meetings all month long.

The Change-Up

I am working on a camoflage afghan for Bret for Christmas, for him to bring with him on his hunting trips. My old afghan that I made years ago is his favorite blanket. This inspired Brenda to switch to crocheting too. She couldn't believe how much faster crochet is compared to knitting. She is hooked. I was given a bunch of circle hoop looms for crocheting. Those are definitely going under the tree.

Lily's six

Look who has turned 6. We headed to Chuckie Cheese with a friend for her birthday. We got her ears pierced. She didn't even flinch and she didn't even stop the lady from piercing the other ear, in spite of the pain! We shopped and bought a birthday outfit. A good day had for all. Brenda and Bret each gave her a LaLa Loopsy doll. They found them at a garage sale for $.25. So her day was as fab as she is.

Coop

Yes I said COOP. AKA Co Op (as in cooperative learning). We joined up with a co op this year and the girls were given choices of some classes they could take. Brenda took Photography, kick boxing, speech, and computer web design. Almost immediately she quit web design, and kick boxing was replaced with set design (for the play Willie Wonka they are putting on). Next to go was speech. After that she was settled with only photography and set design.
Bret chose art (with a little history sneaked in), drama (the Willie Wonka play she got the part of the snotty girl schoolmate named Matilda and an ooma loompa), taokwando (which she LOVES!!!) and I picked Botany for her. She and I have so much fun together with the botany. She was so ready to chuck it out because it was too schooly. Now even Brenda is in the class because it is so much fun!
Marley, Kindergarten doesn't get many choices. She has gym, arts n crafts, and lang arts (abc's). She is in the choir for the play. She was so excited when the choir went around Christmas caroling for all the classrooms. She is such a bundle of song anyway. I hear her singing the songs she learns there (most of them religious) all over the house. Sometimes I sneak over to where she is and start singing them too. lol.

Homecoming

Turns out Brenda has been more defensive of her home education (well more so her choice to unschool). Making her own decisions. Growing up. She and I had so much fun getting her ready for this dance. There were so many kids there, and she knew a lot of them. So much for the big how can homeschool kids get proper socialization. So sweet to watch her growing up. She came home from the dance and we stayed up for hours talking and laughing together.