Christmas 2007 in pictures

Could take me all night to complete this post, but I'll give it a go! (The main trouble is I want to download a bunch of pics and my joints are very achy today...) (Give me enough stress even good stress, and the fibro flairs up) Anyway...here's my best attempt at Christmas in review. For those of you that couldn't be here, we missed you and we wish you could have been here to share with us. (Mom, Bubba, Karen, Larry, Kim, Brandon, Kimberly, Christine, Poppy, Gramma Bee, Aunt Ruth, and on and on :) -- As I sit at home tonight in the calm I must admit it is a sigh of relief for it to be over. I don't go back to work until the 7th of January and am so looking forward to the respite. Don't think that I'll be sitting around however...I still will work my internship, am starting homework for next semester, have phone jacks being installed, furniture to pick up, computers to set up, family room to paint, ortho appts, Dr. appts, and a host of other things to accomplish! Hopefully the laundry pile will make it to the top of the list! By Christmas Eve day we were about ready for the family...my MIL came to help me finish cleaning while I finished wrapping and began cooking. Tim and I went to pick up Kevin's gift, stopped at OSF to drop cookies off for Sandi, and made a last minute jaunt to Walgreen's for batteries. We stopped by my brother's house and were most pleased to find he was coming for Christmas :) We headed home to get started...My Mom had given me instructions on how to make a yummy ham-- before.... and after... It was very yummy {if I don't say so myself} and I am so glad we have leftovers! Aubrey decided to spend time with me in the kitchen. I just love that baby girl so much! She came to play yesterday while her Mommy and Daddy worked and she was just an angel all day...Today, she played with my magnets on the fridge (a new favorite of hers) -- I love this photo cuz she's playing with magnets (round 2 its) made by her late Great Grandma Bee...I was sure Gram was here in spirit when the next generation was playing with her sparkling creations! When dinner was finally ready {only 45 minutes late} Kevin was the head at one end of the table and Aubrey held down the other end. After dinner the kids couldn't wait any longer...we finally (you'd think it was like 5 years of waiting) got to open presents :) Tim/Deb, Shana/Ryan, & David were all happy with their Blue Man Group tickets...I can't wait for us all to go together...this is a show we've all wanted to see for a while and it will be such a great family time! The Fritz family made it through the evening even though Ry was sick and had to work that day (thanks for coming anyway!) and the Ruchus was super happy when they 1..opened their new computer from Grammie, Papa and Mom and Dad, and 2...opened their new Wii from Bubba Bill and A. Karen. Thanks, thanks, thanks, to all who helped my kids have a great holiday! I got some cute jammies and a new entertainment unit for the family room while Kevin relaxed in his new lazy boy. Aubrey had a great time playing with the packing tape and putting holiday bags on her head. She especially loved this one with the glittery fur! Stephanie, Kristina and Dad all took turns bowling...Kristina is quite the good Wii bowler :) While upstairs Uncle Tim, Uncle David, and Brennan carried out the WOW tournament. I'm so glad my son loves his uncles so much-- he always looks forward to their visits! Jake and I took a moment for a holiday snuggle {really he's a gift to me every day} At 10:00 Kristina and I headed off to the candlelight service at church. It is always so serene and peaceful there on Christmas Eve. I lifted up a special prayer for Sandi and her family for God to heal her and send her peace. We finally crawled into bed after 2A and were up at 7 waiting for the pitter patter of teenage feet down the stairs. The kids were up looking for their gifts from Santa and true to form...Santa delivered :) Brennan got a pokemon battle dome and the girls each got a digital camera (Yeah for Mom, no more sharing) -- they got lots of stocking stuffers and were soon ready to head to Gramma's house. The super dysfunctional side (I AM winning) decided not to show up (typical) but I was glad we were there. My MIL is one of the greatest people I know and she really doesn't deserve the continued maltreatment from her other grandkids. She made yummy bbq ribs, scalloped potatoes, fruit salad, tossed salad and deviled eggs. Yummmmm!! Oh and earlier in the day she made us Christmas Brunch! (a family tradition) -- we opened gifts (like this super cute draft blocker) , spent lots of time chatting with Kevin's sister and her husband, took our Christmas naps, and watched Hairspray. The girls were really excited to share their love of this movie with Grandma. We finally returned home and made our thank you phone calls. We are playing phone tag with Bubba but were able to reach Grammie and were all sad to find out that she's sick too :( B-U-M-M-E-R -- Hope you feel better soon! Whew! This might be the longest post in history maybe :) If you're looking for a new year's resolution and you live out of town...please consider starting a blog. They are really easy and I so look forward to staying in touch with my family and friends. It is truly the next best thing to being there! I wanted to thank everyone again for sharing our holiday with us. Hope yours was great too! Happy Birthday Jesus!