The Absence of Wisdom

They weren't always wise before, 

but now they are even less wise. 

John and Emily had wisdom teeth removed the Friday after Thanksgiving. Both did great with no complications. 

And though we threatened to record them for blackmail purposes after surgery, we ultimately chose to be kind instead. 

Lots going on. Hopefully life will let me catch up this week and I can get back to posting. 

School is out. Grant's class held a Christmas party Friday afternoon. One party activity was a contest to see who could build the best snowman. 

Grant was the snowman volunteer for his team. I think they did a great job!

His team won!

Friday was the last day of school until January 3. That's a nice little break and time to relax and spend with family. We are looking forward o a slower pace for a couple weeks after a whirlwind of concerts and parties all month!

Christmas Season Is Here

 Christmas tree quest was a success

In spite of incredibly cold temperatures, 

 

we had a wonderful trip to the tree farm.

Grant volunteered to cut the tree this year.

With a little advice and supervision he did a great job!

In addition to getting our trees decorated for the holiday season, we have a calendar packed with all of the usual gatherings and celebrations.  John and Emily are performing in yet another Christmas concert tonight at their high school.  This brings the count to four performances for them in the past two weeks.  John also performed with a small ensemble in a local church's Christmas musical.  This earned him his first performance fee.  I think the kid made $50...not too bad for an afternoon's work.

Grace's band performed their winter concert last week.  She did very well.  The band sounded great. 

Grant's fourth grade class has another concert tomorrow evening.  But Grant has bigger things planned tomorrow night....celebrating his birthday.  Not sure how a concert works into his plans. 

John and Emily both have a busy week this week preparing for and taking semester exams.  They will receive their first report card of the year after they finish exams this week.  No pressure there, huh?
Their school now uses a block schedule meaning they each have eight classes divided between alternating daily schedules.  It's been a tough transition for them to learn to manage their time effectively, but they will be well prepared for a college schedule next year as a result of this year's block schedule. 

Friday night I took Emily and Grace for a girls' night out.  We enjoyed a local performance of A Christmas Carol.  The evening was a lot of fun.  I will miss these days when they have both grown and moved on to other places.

Saturday both girls helped me make a small mountain of cookies, candies and other treats for the season.  We always enjoy sharing the time together in the kitchen.  That is one of my favorite memories with my mom.  We will now spend the next several days sharing our bounty of treats with those we value in our lives...you know...bus drivers, teachers, mail men, the McDonald's drive-thru guy...

And finally, John attended his final military ball at school Saturday evening.  His buddy, Katie, agreed to attend with John this year.  They had a wonderful time.  Pictures later.

David and I have gotten into the spirit of the season as well.  Last Saturday was our company Christmas party with about twenty employees and guests gathering to eat and enjoy the holiday festivities. A pool tournament and drawings for prizes helped make everyone's evening merry and bright.

Sunday night we attended a Christmas musical performed by a local church.  Our neighbors invited us to accompany them.  We had a wonderful time visiting, enjoying refreshments and listening to a terrific performance telling the story of Jesus coming to earth.  What could be better?

Sorry for the lack of pictures to go with so many of our activities.  I will attempt to rectify the problem in another post.  

Hope you are enjoying this wonderful holiday season.