Happy New Year!!!

Happy New Year Everyone as it is just about to be time to ring in the new year our time! Happy New Year to all of you who have already rang in the new year!!!

Our Christmas Holiday

Our Christmas holiday started out with Rob's work party at Fargo's pizza.

Apparently the guys are all excited about the power cords they got as a gag gift!

The Stierstorfer family

The Christmas tree at Fargo's

Chris, James and his wife/girlfriend-- I can't remember as I have only met her once and Mikey's head!Gavin and Mom-- doesn't he look thrilled to have his picture taken!

Vanessa, Jason and Mikey again-- just don't look too close to the picture~but boys will be boys~!

Christmas Day 2008

I worked Christmas Eve and rushed home to beat the boys up and apparently they were still waking up slowly by the time I got home, so it was time to unwind and open presents. Santa apparently is one smart man as Gavin got his hearts desire a:

D-REX

This dinosaur follows commands, attacks, guards, burps and farts on command. He even answers simple questions and takes naps. Pretty cool!

Grandma Betty getting ready to open presents on Christmas Day.

Gavin's loot (ok except for the red pots behind him-- they are mine!)

Gavin playing with his D-Rex and bakugan's in his particularly full room!

Christmas Day night was spent with friends. Uncle Nate, Grandma Betty, Gavin and Rob probably playing Gavin's video game. Rob made Christmas dinner so I could take a nap before the nightly activities and we enjoyed one of our non-traditional meals of steak and crab legs. Finall figured out how to use a steamer that has been in the house for years and wow it was very easy to make the crab that way!

Guitar Hero Band

Daryl, Nate, Joanna and Rob

Sing Nate!

Mikey and his girlfriend Bev trying out Guitar Hero!

Nate and Joanna enjoying a breather and Apple Cider!

Christmas night was a lot of fun with a chili feed late in the evening and our friends hanging out enjoying video games. May we have many more this coming new year!

Merry Christmas!

Hope everyone had a great day and Santa was especially good to everyone!
I know we were all good here!
Christmas Eve -- I was at work and the boys at home and the Christmas Day I hurried home to open presents with a very excited 5 year old! Afterwards, I slept a bit and Rob made dinner.
We enjoyed steak and crab legs. One of our friends, Nate, spent the day with us and after dinner the boys played some new video games and later some more of our friends arrived and we rocked out to Guitar Hero/Rock Band and had some chili. Boy was I tired when Gavin and I laid down around midnight! What a fun day!
There were some great presents!
I am presently (ok well very soon) am going to play with one of my favorites! I recieved a negative converter! It is awesome!! I am converting all of my trillions of old negatives to computer! I am having a great time remembering things!!!
I will post Christmas pictures soon!!! After I am done playing!!!

A child's imagination

Here is Gavin's Christmas tree that he decorated himself with the Star Wars M&M characters and his Raiders ornaments and Mom's Coke bears.
The lighted tree-- early in the morning

Now on to the imagination! The above and below pictures and idea got started after watching a dinosaur video about spiders and building nests (like the trapdoor spider). So with some left over boxes he created his "burrow" and used he white packing paper as sensitive weblines to feel prey movin near the burrow.

Here is a picture of the spider coming after his prey-- surprisingly he does fit through the opening with much wiggling as Mom had to cut it to fit.

So he only has a week of school left before he is home for Christmas break, so I am sure we will have many many more imaginative days of play!

Christmas Tree and outdoor decorations

So we spent the last two days rearranging the downstairs family room and in the meantime-- decorated the upstairs Christmas tree and I believe we are done with outdoor decorations. So here are the pictures:

Front yard with the candycane border and new blow-up snowman family!

So our Viking themed tree is no longer. With the fake tree and the automatic white lights, we don't have to string it with the alternating purple and gold bulbs. So we have our Hallmark ornaments and purple and gold decorations with a train to run around the bottom.

Luckily, I got Gavin's tree up downstairs and he decorated it with M&M Star Wars ornaments and surrounded by Mom's Coke bears.

I did get my Christmas cards labeled and need to mail them, and I have 2 batches of cookies completed for holiday baking!!!

But I think all the shopping is done except for the adult's stockings.

Happy Holidays Everyone!!!!!

Enjoy !

Zoo Holiday lights

Gavin and a ferret and Mrs Claus at the top of the Gondola ride.


I just loved the bowtie on th Giraffe's neck!

Ok just ewwwww!

The Grinch coming out of hiding.

Flamingo and pond of lights.

The men and bear!

Gavin would pose with every lighted object except Santa!

Squirrel

Squirrel

Warming by the fire.

Skunk spraying a bear.

Mountain lions

Porcupine

Lights

Star path

More lights!


We had a great time! No snow but chilly and cold with the wind. I encourage everyone that gets the chance to go! We made bags for the mountains lions that we colored and sprayed with mint. We colored cards for animals, made pinecone bird feeders out of honey and birdseed. Happy Holidays!!!

Our Start of Christmas lights

Here's to a very happy December!
This is our tree and front window lights.

When we went to check out the lights to see how they looked, we saw the moon and 2 planets looking absolutely beautiful! So we traversed down the street to check out the other houses decorations and just a ways down a house had lights to music so we stopped to admire it! How beautiful! Crisp chill in the air! What a wonderful night!