Grandma Ball's Visit

My children have had non-stop excitement for their Christmas holiday so far--Texas, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, and Grandma.  So many fun things to look forward to.  Grandma arrived Monday the 26th, bearing gifts and hoping for snow.  Hats from grandma.

We couldn't help her with more snow as we have been fairly warm for the week after Christmas, but for a few days we had a lot of snow on the ground from our storm before Christmas.  With the warm weather and some Southern Alberta-style Chinook winds, the snow melted quite quickly so that we are now brown and drab.  I prefer driving in the brown and drab.

We filled our week with Grandma.  On Tuesday evening, we had ventured out to Cinzetti's for dinner with the girls.  We had been promising them a trip with Grandma because she had liked it so much the last time we ate there.  Seriously, Cinzetti's is a just a once a year thing for me, and that was confirmed after we waited for over an 1 1/2 to get in.  Crazy with their kids eat free night, and family home for the holidays, and people tired of turkey.  We got our fill for the year.  On Wednesday we took a trip to the Fiske Planetarium in Boulder.  My kids had been there before for field trips, but it was the first time for the rest of us.  I might have dozed through a bit of the presentation.  Hey, it was dark and the chair reclined.

We took down all of the Christmas decorations on Friday.  Grandma was such a big help and we had it down in no time.  That was in between me running kids here and there to classes and play dates.  Always so sad to take the decorations down, yet my house looked bright and airy once it was done.  Though none of the adults were thrilled with the prospect, we took the girls swimming on Friday evening.  They loved it.

We had thought to go to the zoo on Saturday morning before taking Grandma back to the airport, but it was a hands-down "no" vote with the wind as nasty as it was.  We ran some errands while the girls were happy to stay home and play Wii games, watch tv, and play games on the computer.  Such stimulation! 

My girls, especially Kristen, were sad to take Grandma back to the airport on Saturday afternoon.  Kristen loves her grandma.  Since we planned to stay the night in Denver for New Year's Eve, we all packed up and headed to the airport around 2 pm.  We dropped Grandma off 'mid tears and hugs.

Date Night

Grandma kindly watched our girls for us on Monday night as Chris and I enjoyed a night away in downtown Denver.  We left in the late afternoon on Monday and checked in at the Embassy Suites.  My girls like to call it the "E" hotel.  We began with Dinner at Earls on 16th street and then hurried across the street to the theater afterward for a movie--"Sherlock Holmes".  Chris really liked it, and I didn't dislike it, it just had more fighting and less sleuthing than I would have liked.

We enjoyed a leisure morning on Tuesday before heading out for the day.  Chris surprised me with race car racing at Speed Raceway down in the Englewood area.  When we arrived, there was already a wait list so our race wasn't for an hour and a half.  Perfect since it gave us time for lunch.  Chris loved it.  I was slow.

Those helmets were snug.  Can you tell how much they are pushing up our cheeks?  At least I color coordinated with the helmet.

After our race, we had to race back to Northglenn for our couples massage.  Delightful.  Definitely a great way to end a date with my sweetheart.

Christmas Day and the Lies We Tell

Waiting to come downstairs on Christmas morning.

I LOVE Christmas.  It is the only holiday for which I decorate and it is the only holiday I really get excited about.  I loved it even more this year because it was on a Sunday, and we only had one hour of church!

I am not one for letting kids go crazy and open all their presents in a mad frenzy.  I like to see what they get and their reactions.  So we sit down together and try to open one present at a time.  I say try because invariably it is just too difficult for one child to patiently sit through this torture.  Well, in an effort to increase their torture this year, we said they could open their stocking, play with their Santa gift, and pick two presents to open and then the rest we would leave until after church.  Church was at 11:00 am for one hour which stretched in to one and a half hours.  Ahhhhhhh!  We had a quick lunch and FINALLY we sat down to open the rest of our presents.

Christopher pulled off a major surprise.  I got an iPad.  I knew that his work was supposed to be giving him one for some great achievement at work, but I didn't think he would give it to me.  His note on the package said "Take this one back.  I dare you."  I may or may not have possibly, likely returned a present or two in the past.  Amy finally found her present (see Christmas Traditions post) wrapped in a much larger box and was thrilled with her new iPod.  I suppose there's a little fudging of the truth in the weeks before Christmas.

Shortly after Amy's birthday, she decided that she wanted to upgrade her 3rd generation iPod to a 4th generation one because there was always the possibility that Misha might get my 4th generation iPod and it wouldn't do for a younger sister to have something better.  So she sold her iPod and pooled her birthday money in hopes of buying a new one.  Chris and I convinced her to let us deposit the money in our account so that if we happened to see a good deal online, we could buy it for her with her money.  She was about $25 short.  We decided to be "the Best Parents Ever" and make up the difference and buy the iPod for Christmas.  That's when we had to tell Amy that the best deals on iPods were after Christmas and that she should wait.  Oh the lack of patience my oldest child exhibits.

Funny thing, as we were driving to the temple with Audrey and Amy mentioned that she was waiting on buying her iPod until after Christmas, Audrey starts in with, "Are you crazy?  Everyone knows that the best deals are before Christmas...." and so on and so on.  Chris and I just sat laughing in the front seat.  She was right.  So Amy was thrilled when she unwrapped her big package to find the smaller package she had been searching for inside.  There's a lot of satisfaction to pulling off a surprise.

Amy found this cool hat for Misha. If you know Misha, you will not be at all surprised that she wore it for two days straight.

Kristen was thrilled with her look alike doll. And it looks amazingly a lot like her.

I had been waiting for the moment when Chris opened this present since September. He had made comments over the years about how nice it would be to have his missionary journal typed so that he could easily search it for talks and for remembering things. I decided that I was going to type it for him and not knowing how long it would take, I started typing in September. It took me three weeks of six to seven-hour days of typing. How did I spend so much time typing you ask? I hurried to complete my cleaning in the morning, I typed late in to the evenings, and after school I kind of ignored my children. I told them what I was doing and swore them to secrecy. They seemed to understand the special significance of this time.

I made a note on the wrapped present that it was to be opened last, and the girls and I sat quietly watching as Christopher opened his gift. For three weeks in September I typed.

Christmas Traditions

One of our Christmas Eve traditions has been to go out for dinner, usually at Olive Garden.  I decided this year to change it up a little and have our traditional dinner on Christmas Eve Eve and then to have a family turkey dinner on Christmas Eve.  My reasoning for this was to give me a break from cooking all day on Christmas Day so that I can enjoy the day with my family more and be in the kitchen less.  I think I like how that arrangement turned out.

We had a turkey dinner on Saturday afternoon around 2:30 pm so that we could be done in time to go see the movie, "The Adventures of Tin Tin" at The Orchard AMC.  The dinner was fabulous and began as it usually seems to with one of my daughters spilling their drink.  The red plastic goblets are now in the recycyling--too easy to tip over--so maybe we've put a stop to that tradition.  Our red tablecloth was quickly removed, but hey, it was good for soaking up the liquid.

I made these spinach artichoke puffs from phyllo dough--my first foray into the phyllo world--and beside the fact that my children didn't find them palatable, they were pretty good.  Definitely better warm from the oven.

Growing up, these Christmas Crackers (or poppers) were a family tradition.  They "pop" when you pull them apart and are filled with a little treat, a joke, and a tissue paper crown.  I also remember from Christmas Eves growing up how fast those little crowns came off our heads if any one happened to knock on the door.

I suppose, almost as exciting as Christmas morning, is the moment when I let my girls bring up all the wrapped presents from the basement.  I used to keep them in the game closet until Christmas Eve because little ones couldn't be trusted around them; now I do it because, well, it is tradition.  For the weeks up to Christmas, my girls sort through the packages as I wrap, they are sure to tell me if one child has more than another, and they try to guess what might be hidden inside.

This year, I learned that big packages are the best, even if what is inside isn't as big.  In years past, I've learned that you have to keep it equal--they keep track, and clothes aren't that exciting.

We pulled a great one over on Amy.  I had wrapped a present for her and put on it "From:  The best parents in the world".  She had an inkling of what might be inside.  While Chris was tidying up in the basement, I went down and asked him to wrap the present in a bigger box.  As she and her sisters brought the presents upstairs, she kept looking for this present.  It was nowhere to be found and she was stumped.  Pretty funny to watch.

Baptisms for the Dead

On the day that Amy turned twelve, she had an interview with the Bishop for her Limited Use Temple Recommend.  It was my mom who called one day asking if I wanted family file names for Amy to take to the temple for baptism work for the dead.  I enthusiastically said "yes" and scheduled a time with the Denver Temple schedulers for Amy to go to the temple with Chris and I to do the baptisms.

My mom picked up the names from her brother-in-law and sent 48 female family names and 33 male names.  With so many names, Amy invited her friends, Audrey and Drew, to come along.  Both Audrey and Drew had turned twelve this year and this was their first going to the temple to do baptisms as well.

Chris, Amy, and I picked up Audrey and Drew on December 23rd and drove to Littleton.  We didn't have a lot of extra time before our scheduled time at the temple.  We had planned to go to Chick-fil-A for lunch, but because it was so busy, we decided to stop after our temple visit.  There was talking non-stop in the back seat.  Kind of humorous to listen to their conversation and to chime in every so often.

Being in the temple with Amy was such a neat experience.  I was grateful to be able to share this "first" experience with her.

2011 Christmas Letter

Kline Family Christmas Letter

Good Advice

“This year, mend a quarrel. Seek out a forgotten friend. Dismiss suspicion and replace it with trust. Write a letter. Give a soft answer. Encourage youth. Manifest your loyalty in word and deed. Keep a promise. Forgo a grudge. Forgive an enemy. Apologize. Try to understand. Examine your demands on others. Think first of someone else. Be kind. Be gentle. Laugh a little more. Express your gratitude. Welcome a stranger. Gladden the heart of a child. Take pleasure in the beauty and wonder of the earth. Speak your love and then speak it again.” -Howard W. Hunter

Advent Calendar

For the past fourteen years of my married life, I have looked for an Christmas advent calendar, unsuccessfully.  Until this year.  I was sent a picture by a company that I loved but decided to try and make my own for less.  I searched on the internet until finding exactly what I wanted, then proceeded to paint and glue and create.  I loved the final result (though I'm pretty sure it didn't cost any less--probably more).

Snow Pictures

Texas - Day Four

NASA.  This was Misha's day.  She was so excited.  Chris' youngest sister, Jenni, joined us for the day at NASA with her youngest, Camille.  As we walked in the door, Kristen and Amy were immediately drawn towards the three story slide and play area.  Unfortunately for Amy, she was too tall to "ride this ride".  Kristen, however, wasted no time in removing her shoes and handing me her jacket.  Jenni and Camille joined her.  Chris helped Misha sign up for Mind Benders Mansion.  She was given a sheet with clues to solve in order to become an official member of the Mind Benders Mansion club.  The challenges were rather difficult and often took the whole family working together to figure them out.  She had a lot of fun and was focused on finishing her challenges.

We spent the morning at NASA, left for lunch at Taco Cabana (we just had to fit in a lunch again we loved it so much), and then returned to take the tram on a guided tour of the Johnson Space Center.  We saw the first Mission Control--those who have seen Apollo 13 would recognize it--and toured the training facility for astronauts preparing for life in space.

Of course, our trip wouldn't have been complete without a trip to the Gift Shop.  We said goodbye to Jenni and Camille (Camille was so great all day long.  Most little ones would have been fussing and crying after missing naps but not Camille), and the girls hurried to pick out a favorite memento.  We didn't have a lot of time as we had to be back at the airport around 6 pm.

Texas - Day Three

We had hoped to have some 70 degree days while in Houston, but no such luck.  Rain was in the weather forecast for Monday, so we counted ourselves lucky that it didn't rain until the evening.  I guess I had this image in my mind that Galveston would be some resort town, and maybe I missed that part, but it seemed rather run down and dingey--the water in the Gulf was even brown.

We began our day with a ferry ride (free) from Galveston to Port Bolivar on the Ray Stoker Jr. ferry.  We could have taken the van on, but decided to just walk on and ride there and back.  We brought some bread from the hotel to feed the birds and let's just say the birds were terribly enthusiastic about the food.  We spotted three or four dolphins as we departed from Galveston.

After arriving back on Galveston, Kevin and Candace called to announce their arrival.  They were down at the beach playing in the sand.  It wasn't a busy day, so we quickly found them and a parking spot.  The kids played for about an hour.  Though they would have liked to get wet, it really wasn't warm enough and we vetoed the idea.

I think we were all quite hungry at lunch time.  Kevin was so generous to treat us at The Rainforest Cafe.  It was our first time eating there and was pretty fun with the elephants, gorillas, fish, thunder, and the vol-can-o.  The volcano wasn't what you might be thinking.  It was a huge dessert of ice cream and brownies stacked up to look like a volcano.  As each server brought the dessert to a table, they would shout as loudly as possible, "Vol.....can.....o....."  We were lucky to have our male server because the female server was barely loud enough to hear her coming.  In the top of the dessert a sparkler was inserted and mesmerized all the kids at our table.

We headed to another part of town with touristy kind of shops after lunch--The Strand. I loved the lamp posts and olde town feel. We looked through a few shops, made a couple stops at the restrooms, and ended up at a giant chess game.

Seriously, you two.  Life IS worth living.

The kids were getting a little antsy, so we found a park for them (and perhaps the dads too as they tossed around a football).  After a fun-filled day with the Balls, they loaded up their van to return home and we headed back to the hotel.  Hugs all around.  We couldn't decide what to eat and so ended up at the hotel for their complimentary dinner.  Chris and I left the girls watching a couple of redboxes and ventured out to the mall for a little time away.  The mall was packed wall to wall with people, perhaps not the best choice for a quiet evening.  We lucked out with no rain in Galveston, but it was coming down quite steadily twenty miles inland.

Texas - Day Two

Sunday and we definitely slept in.  We enjoyed a lovely breakfast at the hotel and then drove to Kevin's around 10:30 am to meet and go to church.  Nice to be in a building where the floorplan was similar.   It was freezing in their building.  Freezing, I say.  Since Jenni and Kenny were off on a weekend trip to Utah for Jenni's work party, Chris' other sister, Becky, was in Texas to watch Jenni's children.  She joined us for church and then dinner afterward at Kevin and Candace's.

We gratefully accepted Kevin and Candace's hospitality and enjoyed Sunday dinner (eaten outside on the patio) and an afternoon of letting the kids play.  I would say the trampoline and a football were the main attractions for the older cousins and the Little Tykes car was the object of attention and some dissension for those four and under.

Before it got dark, we drove to the Houston temple to see it.  Unfortunately, when we arrived, the gates were closed.  Fortunately, the night security guard was more than happy to open up the gates for us to come in and look around. Misha took this picture for Christopher and I. Perhaps a budding photographer?

We parted ways after leaving the temple.  Becky took her charges back to Jenni and Kenny's house (as they were soon to arrive home from Utah), and Kevin and Candace returned home with the intention of meeting us in Galveston Monday morning.  We drove with the girls toward Galveston to avoid the rush of Monday morning traffic.  I'm not sure that we avoided anything however, as traffic even on a Sunday evening was quite busy.  We snacked on popcorn and other treats from Chris' travel bag for the evening.

Texas - Day One

And oh, what an early day it was.  I woke up at 4 am and decided that since I was up, I might as well go and exercise.  We planned to be out of the house by 5:45, so I had plenty of time.  I know.  4 am is crazy, but I've been having problems sleeping lately, so I just make do with what sleep I get.  Chris and I woke up the girls around 5:20 and there was no need for coaxing to get them out of bed.  They were up and going and HAPPY in no time.  Gotta love that.

We skipped breakfast at the house since it was way too early to eat and grabbed some bagels and parfaits at the airport.  Our girls are seasoned travelers now.  They each have a rolling suitcase and climb on and off of escalators with ease.  Amy checks us in at the Southwest counter and we are on our way through security.  It helps that with Chris' frequent travel we get to go through the "special" line.  No complaints from me, though there was one guy who asked, "What do you have to do to get in that line?"  I believe he had been waiting for sometime and we just zoomed in and out without too much wait.  It was nice.

We waited for a bit at our gate and had a chance to start on breakfast.  Kristen learned that she liked bagels (Einstein only though, I think, since she tried one at the hotel and was sorely disappointed).  Our flight was quicker than we thought and we were landing in Houston-Hobby after two hours.  As we deplaned, we came across Santa and his helpers taking pictures.  They were really trying to tout the Windows Live photo program.  We thought it was pretty cool as she interchanged faces with the click of her mouse--that is, until later at the hotel when we looked closer at the picture she printed for us.  Santa had three hands among other abnormalities!

After posing with Santa, we gathered our bags from baggage claim and hopped on the Hertz bus to pick up our rental car.  I am definitely more appreciative of car rental places that are on site at the airport.  We started on our way through Houston toward Tomball where Chris' brother lives.  Our first stop, however, was at Taco Cabana for lunch.  MMMMMMMM.  We all enjoyed it but our girls truly loved the sopapillas with dulce le leche dipping sauce for dessert.  In fact, every time we drove by a Taco Cabana restaurant, someone in the back of the van announced the sighting.  I loved the salsa bar and thinking about it makes my mouth water.

We finally arrived at Kevin's where his kids were outside in the front yard waiting for our arrival.  Hugs all around!  Including from Grandpa and Grandma Kline who came for a quick trip.  I believe it was the first time ever that all of the grandkids and adults had been together.  We chatted in the back yard while the kids played, jumped on the trampoline, and tossed a football.

After trying to determine a plan for the afternoon, we decided that laser tag probably wasn't going to work in to our schedule so we headed instead to Woodlands Mall for a Santa sighting, music and dinner.  Talk about busy.  The parking lot was so full and many cars circled the lot looking for a spot.  We finally found one and went into the mall.  The economy was alive and well there with wall to wall people.  We exited the mall not too long after arriving (and after I returned a sweater to the Lands End store), and headed out to a courtyard.

We took family pictures, fed fortune cookies to some fish and then took a boat ride.  The idea was that we would be dropped off close to our restaurant and then hop back on the boat after dinner.  We got dropped of, but we weren't really close to the restaurant.  Not a problem for children who have a lot of energy.  Grandpa treated us to dinner at Sweet Tomatoes--something for everyone.  Too bad we don't have one closer to where we live.

We walked back to the boat where we boarded again and cruised a short way down the canal to Santa, singing and hot cocoa.  Now this Santa knew how to smile!

You could tell that kids were beginning to tire, but they had fun.  We headed back to Kevin's where we dropped off Grandma and Grandpa and then made our way to the hotel for the night.  After such a long day, we were all quickly off to sleep.