Wonderful Christmas

 Well, Christmas Day was wonderful, and we were all germ free and feeling great!! Believe it or nor, Jesse was the first one up and even had to wake up a very tired Claire!!

 Jesse awoke to some golf goodies, and a robotic arm to assemble and program...yes, a 3D printer was on his list and even Santa couldn't deliver on that one!

 His first men's full size driver.  Very excited!!!

 Of course, Claire is the queen of playing pretend so she was thrilled to have a school set...we were all given report cards at the end of the day....I did not receive straight A's I must admit......

 A very tired Claire enjoying her new bean bag chair!

 Yes, the boy is now wearing a men's size Medium!

 Daddy checking out his stocking...complete with new Uof M hat!

The kids made Christmas cards for each other, and Jesse enjoying showing his off!

Well, the day was a good one, with both of our parents and siblings coming over for a wonderful Christmas Lunch....trivia , fun, and lots of food was had by all!!! We are truly blessed!!!

Christmas Break has arrived.....finally!!!!

 Well, this year Lance and Jesse came up with our Annual Christmas Card idea, and my idea was outvoted....but I'm ok because this one is super creative!!  As anyone who knows us is aware, we both graduated from the UofM and are big fans.  So Lance decided to go with the football theme, especially since they are on a roll and also going to a bowl game with year!!  So, there ya go.  Enjoy!!

Well, the 3rd Grade Christmas Party was a success.....unfortunately, I was running the party, and did not have a moment for a single picture!  The kids made an adorable reindeer ornament, played a fun Christmas game, had wonderful food, and ended the party with The Nativity Story....all fantastic time was had by all!  Jesse, being an 8th grader and all, has no party,only exams...(yuck) and therefore I have no pics of him....lots to come soon though!! 

I pray that everyone stays health (us too!!) during this wonderful holiday season.  It seems we've all been under the weather lately, and hope this passes so that we can enjoy these next few weeks!! Lots to post coming up, so I promise to post again soon!!

Love, Gretchen

Serious Fun in December!

 As usual for December, lots and lots have been going on! Jesse competed in his school spelling bee and did well...he was a nervous wreck!!!

 Claire was Mary in her class Nativity Story play and was adorable and remembered all her lines!!!

 Jesse and his 8th grade Beta Club member set up for the St. Jude Marathon by setting up over 11,000 medals!  They worked hard in the pouring rain, and had a blast doing it!

 

Claire getting ready for her Christmas Program at School

 Of course, the Christmas season would not be complete with out The Nutcracker! We went to our yearly viewing and this year had the pleasure of sitting super close and watching 2 of our friends perform!  It was such fun seeing Claire mesmerized by the whole thing.  She truly enjoys that ballet so much!

 We went to dinner before at Mosa with Lance and Jesse, and grandma met us at the last minute (right down the street from her house) and off to the Orpheum she and I went!

We have tons of stuff coming up, so I promise to post again soon!

Love, Gretchen

Odds and Ends.....

 Well, in addition to preparing for the Christmas Season, we are also prepping for high school! Yes, high school!  When I started this blog, i had a 5year old son and was impatiently waiting for a daughter from China!  Well,  Jesse is going to be a SBA Eagle next year, and took his high school placement exam yesterday.....Oi Vey!!  Can't believe how quickly the time passes by.  Jesse's goal is to play golf for the SBA Eagles and will practice with all his might until the summer, when the team has been finalized, but the coach has assured him there's a place on the team for him!  So we are proud of Jesse for finding something he truly loves and desires to  improve!

 Little Claire and her scarf that magically disappeared out of my closet......

Yes, this is one of the first pictures (if memory serves) when I created my first blog post while we were awaiting Claire's referral......

The kids' Aunt Cathie and and Uncle Charlie visited over Thanksgiving from Ocala, Fla. and had a little time for fun and games......Fibber to be exact!!!

November Happenings!!

Well, lots has been happening in November! SFA students performed "Blackbeard" the play and on Friday all the students dressed like pirates....well at least Claire did!  Jesse is way to cool for that stuff now!

 Jesse growing leaps and bounds!

 Lance celebrated his birthday Monday with his favorite cake and dinner!  Hard to believe how time just passes so quickly!

Claire and the 3rd grade class went to see "Schoolhouse Rock" at the Orpheum and she was lucky enough to sit in the front row....had a blast!  Even I was singing along from those songs from when I was a girl in elementary school!

 Lance and I fancied up for a big wedding this past very cold weekend.  Had a blast! This was the after pic...a little worn for wear by this point....

Fall, Halloween, and Other Stuff!

 Well, October comes with the end of soccer and golf, sadly.  Lance and I really had gotten used to all those games and matches!  Well, time for a break now!  Here is Claire with her soccer coach at the last practice of the season!

 Here is Jesse and the rest of the golf team at their end of the season banquet.  They had an awesome local golfing legend to give a little talk and present them with their trophies.

 Claire, aka 'Granny" at the SBA trunk or treat, with Nana and PawPaw, who decided to come out as well!

 Claire's class Halloween Party goodies!

 This year's craft was Mod-Podging a frame with lots of scraps of Halloween Paper and a cute spooky picture of them was inserted after the fame was dried...super fun!

 Granny at the Tiger Game.  Weirdly enough, the Tigers played a home game on Halloween night and we were torn with what to do. Turns out, the entire Tiger Lane turned into a big trick or treating fest!  The kids got just as much loot as if we had been in our own neighborhood!  We all had a blast, and the Tigers won...it's a win-win! 

 Our warm view from the box.

 Jesse's costume.....he was a glow stick man....his idea

Well, we hope everyone had a great Halloween and lots coming up soon, so promise to post again shortly!!!!

Love, Gretchen

Golf, Golf, Golf.....

 Well, the golf season came to a close Wednesday with the big PAA end of the season tourney at Mirimichi.  All the Parochial Schools participated and SFA came in first!  Jesse and his team did fantastic, and all their hard work throughout the season paid off. Jesse wishes he had scored a bit better, but he helped his team and they had a blast in the meantime!  The most important part is that Jesse has truly found something that he loves and wants to continue and improve upon..and that makes me happy!  

 Jesse's Coach giving him last minute advice.....

Final scores from Wednesday's Tourney

 

A very happy Jesse and a very happy team!  Lots coming up...so promise to post again soon!

Golf Golf Golf.....

 Well, Jesse's SFA Team Golf is in full swing (pardon the pun) and actually almost done for the season.  The boys have had a terrific season, and are undefeated!  Next week is the big all school tourney at Mirimichi, so that should be lots of fun.  Jesse's golf game has grown leaps and bounds, and he is just loving it!

 The 7th/8th Grade Team

Will post pics from the tourney next week....lots coming up soon!!!