Nathan's Room~ There's No Place Like Home

The new shelves...

The "Beast"...

His bed...I made the sign above his bed a couple of years ago.

SOME of his trophies, books, bouncey ball collection, baseball collection, Gameboys...you know all the important stuff!

This basket is FILLED with doggy beanie babies. When Nathan got his tonsils out, our dear friend BARBIE sent these to him. He loves them. I should have him count...I bet there is at least 60 of them, and he knows most of the breeds. Love you Barbie!

The weeks following Christmas is my "deep cleaning" time of year. I go through EVERY drawer, cabinet, closet, nook and cranny. I throw away stuff, give away stuff, organize stuff, and take everything to the sink to be cleaned or outside to be hosed off. I know it's a lot or work, but I love having a clean and organized house. Those of you who know me, will not at all be surprised by all of this...right?

Because Nathan got drums this year, his room needed a major overhaul in order to accomodate the giant loud beast! I took out several small pieces of furniture and made shelves that fit perfectly out of wood planks and cinder blocks that I painted. This was an idea that I saw on one of my favorite blogs...The Homesteading Housewife. Total cost...under $40. It turned out great, so much stuff fits on the shelves, and plenty of room for the drums. Here are a couple of photos for you to see.

We're having our family over for New Year's Eve tonight...gotta chill the champagne!

Christmas Day...Oh What Fun It Was!

Santa honored Nathan's request and dropped off some REALLY loud drums. Should have given earplugs for Mommy!!

Molly and Nathan playing Wii. Molly is always near one of us.

Darrell got me a new laptop. I think I'm being forced into the computer age.

Mom and Larry went to Candlelight service at The Gate. Then, we all went to Midnight Mass to watch Mom sing. Larry went to church 2 times within a few hours...WOW!

Cute picture of the Boys with Mom and Larry.

YIKES! Do you see what I see? Kyle driving Grampy's Caddy!

Kyle's new guitar. Isn't he cute...such a great kid!

Darrell's parents (we went there on Christmas day...after Santa) and his brother and family.

We went from the In-Law's house to Mom and Larry's house. The "Kids Table" at Mom and Larry's house on Christmas Night.

The "Adult Table". My Aunt Bev and Uncle Tom flew in from New York to celebrate Christmas with us. My cousin Matthew is with us also.

We had a WONDERFUL CHRISTMAS!! We didn't go overboard on gifts and needless stuff, but instead just enjoyed being together. Today I undecorated the house and almost have all of the Christmas decorations back in boxes and up in the attic...until next year.

Christmas Is Coming!

Tanya bought this Nativity for us for our first Christmas. Joseph has been glued a couple of times, but I love it. When Kyle was younger, he used to call the pieces the "Jesus Action Figures!"

A few more signs I made for Christmas. Like before, each one cost me 71 cents. I already had the paint and I bought the little mittens in the $1 area at Target.

See anything wrong here?? We bought this tree our first year in this house, so it is 5 years old. It is falling apart, but we wanted to use it for one more year. Yesterday the bottom half of the lights stopped working...bummer!! I actually would prefer a real tree, but Kyle is severly allergic to evergreen trees.

Happy Christmas Eve Day! We're wrapped, baked, and ready for Christmas. We'll go to Church this afternoon and then open the gifts under the tree. Then, to Mom's for soup and to Midnight Mass.

Snow Play...in So Cal???

Nathan and Eldon "got air" and went flying down the hill. So Fun!

Eldon and Holly. Eldon is ALWAYS chosen to be the driver...what a brave boy!

Walking back up is the hard part!

Here we go again. The thousandth time down the hill.

And again...

Schuey the Meacham Boxer getting in on the action.

Holly tried to be brave, but usually bailed off the side just as they started to go down.

Taking it sideways...

Hey, Kyle...watch out for that tree...

I tried to warn you...you should listen to your mother.

Eldon could not get enough of the snow.

Such a California girl. Skorts, tank top, and boots. It was a nice sunny day, but I had my sweater on.

Kyle...at the end of the day.

Nathan went to play in the snow with Eldon and Holly on Saturday, then he spent the night. We picked him up yesterday afternoon and all the kids played in the snow, including Kyle. They had a blast. It's so weird that they live only 30 miles from our house, but the weather is EXTREMELY different. Who knew that we'd be able to play in the snow in Southern California?? On our way to their house, there were cars, people, kids, dogs, and the like lining the Ortega Highway...that's the road we take to their house. Everyone was having a blast playing in the snow! Here are a few pictures that my sister took. Are you ready for Christmas??

Christmas Crafts

It's been so busy at my house, but it's a fun time of year. Each year I try to make a few things for my house and gifts. This year I made this cute sign. I saw an idea somewhere that was similiar...they turned out so CUTE!!! I bought the wood at Lowe's in the "scrap" bin, the pieces were 71 cents each. I had all the paint and only had to buy the stars. I made 3, one of me, one for my Mom, and one for my dear friend Barbie. I hope they like them, please don't tell them that their gifts cost less than $1...I worked hard on those gifts...I used my talent and resources. Tomorrow I'll show you a couple more things that I made this year. Peace to you this crazy time of year. I'm done shopping, just need to wrap.

White Christmas is Southern California??

I took this photo from my backyard, since we have lived here we have never seen snow like this on these mountains. They are the Saddleback Mountains, just a few miles from our home. My sister, who lives up in the mountains about 30 miles away, had 7 inches of snow. We have just had tons of rain and cold...I love it. I know it's not Minnesota (hi Anita!), but we are enjoying the beautiful views and the cold weather.

Kyle's Birthday...Take 2

We celebrate birthdays for many days at our house. On Kyle's actual birthday Grammy and Grampy took him out to dinner, then they came over here to open gifts and eat Baskin-Robbins Ice Cream cake. Last night, Darrell and I took Kyle and Ryan (our neighbor/adopted son) to Joe's Crab Shack and to play LaserTag. The waitress at Joe's dressed Kyle up in an apron and a plastic bag hat, gave him a bucket and he had to collect trash from the other tables while the whole restaurant sang Happy Birthday to him. It was hysterical. We then met the Meacham family and they joined us in LaserTag. Holly, our neice, had her birthday yesterday. Holly loves Kyle!! Happy Birthday Again Kyle. Happy Birthday Peach (aka Holly)!

KYLE'S 16 YEARS OLD!!!

16 years ago today, Kyle was born. We were rookie parents, and didn't know what the heck we were doing, but we were so excited and we were going to give it our best shot.

Kyle has been the joy of our lives (along with Nathan)!! He has grown into a respectful, compassionate, smart, athletic, and oh-so-handsome person. He has never, I mean NEVER been in any trouble (knock on wood!). He does his homework...usually, and he's a great friend to everyone. We are very proud of him and honored to be his parents.

Happy Birthday PUNK!! We love you so much!!

The Spirit of Christmas ~ Work Party

Yesterday we had our Even Start Holiday party for the families at my school. Most of you know that I love my job, I get to work with the most amazing families. Two organizations volunteered to help with our event this year (The Gate Church and So Cal Connected Parents Group) as we basically have NO BUDGET! They brought gifts...tons of gifts, cookies and milk, games and crafts, a storyteller, a musician, and SANTA!! A HUGE THANK YOU to all the people who gave so freely their time, talents, and money. It was fantastic and we absolutely could not have done it without you. Here are a few pictures I'd like to share. My husband took about 70 pictures before my camera ran out of memory. This is what Chrismas is all about... This guy was an awesome storyteller...I mean it...terrific!!

Pastor David Habib Bardowell sang a Christmas concert...he is awesome!!

This lady and her daughter donated many gifts to the children. She sat and read the book to one of "my kids."

These ladies (and MANY more ladies and gentlemen) helped us run our activity stations. The kids had a blast.

Here's me with some of "my kids." Did I mention that I love this job??

This is my reward...does it get any better??

Santa was so great...we hope he'll come again next year!!

Hugs for Ms. Dana...seriously, does it get any better??

Part of the crowd. There were a lot of people there. Singing...playing...eating cookies...talking to Santa...making crafts...

A few of my helpers...aren't they cute??

God Bless you all this Christmas season, remember to slow down, kiss your family, and enjoy this beautiful time of year.