Hanukkah, New Year!

Hanukkah started on Christmas Eve this year, and the last night of Hanukkah was on New Years Eve. It was actually kind of convenient. 😁

We lit the hanukkiah for the first night during the Christmas Eve service, and then we just ended up combining the Hanukkah party with our New Years party. 

A few photos from Hanukkah, but most are from the last night, our Hanukkah party/ New Years Eve party.

Tabitha and Cheri helped me out by making the donuts and apple fritters! 

Clara loves this game! 

This was the first year she's stayed up all night. She's usually a 7:30 and she's done kind of girl, but she's been doing a little better with late nights.

We had snow on the ground, and when I walked across the community around 9:00 that night, the fog was settling in, so when it was time for the fireworks, there was fog and hoar frost on the trees and the effect was incredible. It was SO pretty! I only had my phone with me so I took this picture and then my phone died! Ugh.

I noticed Cary wasn't using his, so I grabbed his phone and took a few more pictures, but I was really wishing I had my big camera with me!

Rest, Relaxation, and a New Year!

We didn't have anything scheduled after Christmas as far as traveling anywhere, and that actually turned out to be a good thing. We got to rest, relax and get over the colds/sickness that we've been fighting for the past two months!

Just in time to start the next round of sickness after school starts again. Ha. Ugh.

 We did buy a little trampoline for indoors so that Britton and Clara have something to jump on when they get the urge (other than on my furniture!!!) It may be the best or the stupidest thing we've done...time will tell. ;) So far it's been nice. If Britton is being crazy, I tell him to jump on the trampoline for a few minutes and it wears him down (a little).

 Thanks to aunt Janille, the girls have matching Princess Sophia nightgowns and Elsa nightgowns...Clara is insistent right now that they match every night. Ella is a good sport, so far, with all of it. ☺

Photobomb by a naked Aidan. 

 Cary and I went for a drive with Clara on a gloomy day while the other kids were at Petra.

Clara needs to be potty trained, and she comes in my room in the early morning and wants a clean diaper on, so she'll bring in a dry diaper and some wipes and then takes off her full diaper. One morning she came in while I was sleeping and said, "Come on mom, change my diaper, it'll be fun!"

Right...☺

 We're predictable, but we had our New Years Eve party with some food and games. Clara had put herself to bed long before so Cary stayed home with her. I didn't get very many pictures of the kids playing games because I was helping with the food prep and then looking for a lost kitty (that wasn't ours for a change!) and then we had a stray cat show up on our doorstep. 

Happy New Year!

Another year has gone by.

Wow.

It was my turn to stay with the kids since Cary missed out on all the funtivites last year, so I only got a few pictures before going back to the house.

I did stay up for the fireworks, but at that point it was already -15 outside, so I just watched from the window and didn't take any pictures.

Around here, we're bringing in the new year with some nice cold temps and we still have a good foot of snow on the ground.  (Last night the low was -20)

I'm ready for some warmer weather already! ☺

New Years Eve Bash

Pictures of how we brought in the new year (the few brave souls that ventured out)

We partied hard with board games and good food

and then Kenneth broke out the sparkling cider

Then we went outside and waited for the countdown and fireworks

and the partying continued

but I have two little kids and what little sleep I get is precious

so I went home and went to bed