Christmas Eve

We were busy little bakers! We made pecan pie, magic bars, buckeyes, and peanut blossoms:



The girls got chocolate board games from friends! So fun to play with chocolate pieces!



The girls were in the choir AND in the gospel nativity this year!






For Christmas Eve dinner, we had salmon, scalloped potatoes, crescent rolls, and roasted asparagus:



After dinner, we watched How the Grinch Stole Christmas. Two versions, the Jim Carrey one and the old animated one. I love the old one, the girls love the new one.

The girls left out treats for Santa and his reindeer. And they said goodbye to Noelle til next year!



We made Oreo balls after the girls went to bed:


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Snow, ice, and the DIA

We got an ice storm last night, but thankfully we were barely touched. We never lost power, and the roads were ok this morning. It was just pretty out!






Meg's snowman survived the rain and ice:



And the girls' snow fort did, too:



Today, I took them to the DIA for a little outing. We made luminaries:



We sketched in the African art galleries. Here's my attempt:



Jessica's first project:



Jessica's second project:



Katie and Megan collaborated on this one:



And we had lunch in the DIA cafe, of course! It's our favorite place!



Meg took these artsy pics:






Girls in the Rivera Court, my favorite place in the whole museum:


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Last day of school!

Today was the last day of school for the year. The girls were just a little bit excited! Kindergarteners had pajama day. Here's Jessica's class:



I came to her class party. I helped at the snowflake table:



They also made a cotton ball snowman, made and ate a snowman made of powdered sugar donuts, and decorated cookies for home:



Megan's class had crazy hat day. Their party had snacks, crafts, games, and a movie!






There was a short assembly at the end of the day. Meg and the whole third grade sang to the school:



Katie didn't have a party, but 6th grade got to watch a movie, and had no homework or tests today. The best gift ever!

Tonight we went to see the Nutcracker! Here are my purple girls before the show:



They sweet talked daddy into buying them each a nutcracker!



It was a great show!


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Getting ready for Christmas!

Decorating our tree: (they can reach higher every year!)



Sarah's new decorations:



Katie and Meg singing in the children's choir:



My little helpers with no bake cookies:



Spritz cookie helpers:


We made lots of cookies and candies this week for all of our teachers!

Here is our horse and our two shepherds practicing for the Christmas Eve gospel:



"The reason for the season!"



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Philadelphia part 1

We've been having a wonderful time in Philadelphia! We got in on Thursday, a little delayed due to fog here. We had a nice dinner at the hotel with three Postorino sisters, and the bride and her maid of honor joined us afterwards for drinks.

On Friday, Chris and I set out on our own for a whirlwind day of sightseeing. First, we went to Independence Hall, where the Declaration of Independence was signed:






Then we saw the Liberty Bell:






We went to several small museums before lunch: American Philisophical Society, Carpenters' Hall (where the first continental congress met), a print shop run by Ben Franklin's son, and the Ben Franklin museum. We loved the cobblestone streets in the historical district:












We went out for the BEST anniversary lunch ever! We bumped into an Asian restaurant that Chris' cousin recommended. It had no openings for dinner, but it did for lunch, so we jumped at the chance! Oh, it was so good!!




Print shop demonstration:



We went to the US Mint, but no pictures allowed.

Elfreth's Alley, the oldest residential street in the US:



We also walked to Christ Church and to Penn's Landing at the Delaware River. Then it started raining hard. :(

Sitting in George Washingtons pew at church:



Beautiful Christmas tree at the mall connected to our hotel:



We went out to dinner on Friday with Mom K, Aunt Susie, Uncle Jim, and Mary.



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