A Joyful Christmas

We enjoyed a lovely Christmas. It was busy ... but not too busy. Just the right mix of celebration and relaxation. 

We started things off with a Christmas party with our playgroup. We made some snowman crafts and then played reindeer games. Lots of fun!

Christmas morning, we were up bright and early getting into stockings.

 After breakfast, the real fun began . . .

Michael's (and Dad's) favorite gift was a small drone, which they are still learning to fly.

Ada's and Sadie's favorite gifts were their jewelry boxes full of necklaces and bracelets.

Joseph loved everything.  --Maybe you can't tell from his face, but that is his smile, at least the one he puts on for the camera.

 After unwrapping all the presents at home, we headed to Grandma's house!  We enjoyed a lovely dinner with Matt's extended family at his Grandma's (the kid's Great-Grandma's) house.  It was so nice to see everyone!

Even more presents!

Grandma's house is always fun, but this time we discovered a brand new torture device --tickle torture, that is.

On Monday, we visited Grandpa at work in the Fourth Court of Appeals. Michael led us in a mock-trial.

Sadie was accused of snitching some cookies from the cookie jar.

Adelaide and Joseph served as witnesses.

And Aunt Sarah was lawyer-esque, helping procure testimonies.

Later, we enjoyed Brackenridge Park, touring it by train with Aunt Sarah.

 One of the train stops was the Japanese Water Gardens where we ate a picnic lunch

and fed lunch to the koi.

It was pretty amazing. They are so tame they will swim up and stick their heads out of the water to take food from your hand.

Back at home, we said good-bye to Matt's well-loved, and well-used leather sandals. He bought these things when we were first married and has repeatedly refused to get rid of them until they literally fell apart. --You can even see where his toe had nearly worn completely through the sole.  So, he tossed these babies and went sandal shopping. (Yes, my friends from the "North." You can go sandal shopping in Houston in the middle of winter.) After visiting four or five stores, he came home with a pair of leather sandals that look almost identical to the first pair. I wonder if these could possibly last as long as the old pair?

One of Michael's presents was a robot kit. He was working on this as soon as we got home from Grandma's, and within an hour, he had walking, dancing, tumbling robot that he had built all by himself. He was soooo proud.

Joseph's favorite present was this "moon sand" kit from Aunt Rachel. The girls love it too. I have to make sure they give him fair time with it before they take over.  Way better than play-dough!

We also did our annual Gingerbread House contest. It was boys vs. girls this year

And the competition was intense!

.....And everyone had a lot of fun and ate a lot of candy!

It arrived a little late, but it's such a great present, who cares!?  My parents ordered the kids a swing set. Matt and Uncle Stephan worked for hours putting it together.

The result has been kid-heaven! The kids keep telling me that our backyard is now a park, and they spend LOT of time out there.

And last, but not least .... for those of you who haven't yet heard --Compton Baby #5 is on it's way and it's A GIRL!  Due May 23rd.  Of course the girls are super-excited. Michael was really wanting another brother, but I think he's gotten over the disappointment now. Joseph still doesn't have a clue, but has noticed that my tummy is getting bigger. --He keeps pushing on it and saying "squishy, squishy!"

I was pretty sick for most of the fall, but finally started feeling better just before Christmas. What a relief to be able to really enjoy the Holidays with my family, instead of trying to fake it! ...Hard times and yucky stomachs really make you appreciate and savor the happy times that much more.

Soccer, Glasses, and a Little Doggie

Michael played soccer for the first time last Spring, and he loved it so much we signed him up again this fall.  Sadie saw how much fun he had and wanted to play too. So we spent two and half months juggling two practices and two games a week.  I'm not sure if I want to try that again any time soon, but they really did have a great time!

One problem we kept running into this fall was rain nearly every Saturday during games. The kids didn't seem to mind, though.

Adelaide was busy too . . . With all the rain we had this fall, we had lots of mud in the back yard. One day when we had friends over, Sadie and co. ran in yelling that Ada was stuck in the mud. They weren't kidding.

Ada has mostly given up naps, but if you can get her to hold still for a few minutes, she will readily fall asleep. Here she is impersonating the Princess and the Pea.

My little Sunshine!

During Thanksgiving break, we visited our good friends the Mohontys.  Jenny had set up a Jewish sukkah (or "booth") on her balcony to celebrate Sukkot (or the Feast of Tabernacles). She showed us how to make a braided Swedish bread and we had a delicious little feast together.

Since school started, Sadie had been complaining that words were a little blurry sometimes, so I took her to an eye doctor and sure enough, she needed glasses. She chose a very stylish purple pair, and a radiant red pair as back-up.  She quite likes them.

Somehow, the kids found a bunch of these things. Joseph loves them.

One day, I walked into the kitchen and found Joseph on the floor next to a bowl of cheerios and a bowl of water. I was a little confused at first, so I asked him what he was doing. "I'm doggie" he said.

Fall Birthdays and Halloween

Joseph's birthday was in September. He and Ada had lots of fun helping me make his "Monster Cake"!

He loves monsters, dinosaurs, and anything else with big teeth.

And he loved the panda pillow that Aunt Rachel sent him.

Sadie's birthday came next. She invited a few friends out for ice cream

and then for a romp at a bounce house.

We also had a small family party back at the house.

BOO!

Halloween came with the usual festivities and sugar-highs.

We made monster cupcakes, which we shared with friends.

Jo-jo just licked the frosting off of his.

We attended Nana and Popie's Trunk-or-Treat at the church, as well as our own.

  

 And, of course, we went trick-or-treating.  I wasn't feeling the best, so I made them create their own costumes this year, and I have to say they did a great job.

Michael was a hobbit, Sarah was a ballerina, Ada was princess, and Jo-jo wore his turtle costume from last year. (Good thing fleece stretches!)

This was the part of the haul that I didn't manage to give away.