Lazy Saturday

I'm enjoying a cup of coffee in my warm house instead of running in this below-zero wind chill this morning. Nolan and Chris are at basketball and Thomas and I are being lazy. We have to meet them at 10am at Lowe's so the boys can do a do-it-yourself clinic on making a coin bank. Other than a car appointment this afternoon and needing to cut Nolan's hair, we don't have many other plans today. Oh, there's a game night at church tonight. So I guess it isn't much of a lazy Saturday, but it feels like it right now.

So I don't have a lot to report about the kids. Nolan is doing a basketball clinic on Saturdays through the school and both boys are doing another basketball clinic on Wednesdays through St. Helen's. Thomas is loving it! There's a science fair at school next month, and Thomas is going to make a poster on how basketball makes you healthy. Thomas is continuing to do well with the swimming, especially the backstroke. We're hoping he moves up to Level 3 in the next session. It's a lighter month for Cub Scouts. But at the end of the month, we are all going to spend the night at the New York State Museum. This will be Thomas' first sleepover with scouts, although I don't think there will be a lot of sleeping. I'm still on the fence whether I might go home when it's light's out.

I wish it would warm up a little so we could play outside more. It's too cold to even go sledding. When's January thaw coming?

A New Year, a new hope

I thought this picture was funny of the cousins...together but either with an electronic device or a beer! :)








Thomas on Christmas night...a little too much fun!









Christmas morning-Nerf guns! Now they can really battle!








Thomas telling Santa and Mrs. Claus (What is her first name anyway?) what he wants for Christmas.


There is something very uplifting about starting a new year, despite what the howling winds outside say. Even just remembering to write 2010 instead of 2009 helps refresh us. It's a good time to shake the dust off of our bad habits and maybe start some healthy, new ones. My New Year's Resolution is to keep in better touch with family and friends. Even friends that live just a few miles away I sometimes don't see for weeks, getting too caught up in the routine of things. But we shall see at the start of 2011 if I actually get any better at it. I have to be hopeful. A new year makes us think about the new adventures that could happen in it...trips we might make, skills we might learn, relationships we may kindle. They are all good thoughts.

Christmas came and went in a flash. The highlights were the moments with family and friends...the Barsottis coming into town, seeing my parents and sister and her husband, and seeing our friends the Reeds. I had coffee with all of the running gang on Christmas Eve which was fun...so many different women yet all just varying degrees of being runners. The kids and I went to see the new Alvin and the Chipmunks movie. We saw a lot of movies at home too. There was A LOT of fighting this vacation, and they seem to be getting more physical with it. BUT, I guess that comes with being brothers. The VERY COLD temperatures kept us inside a lot, which didn't help. But all in all, it was a nice break from reality. And also nice to send them off on the bus tomorrow!

A Christmouse reflection

Life was good at the Rooney house. I went undetected for some time. Food was plentiful at the base of the bird feeder. I would get my dinner and settle in under a bookcase in the garage. But you know what they say...the grass is always greener. So I decided to start venturing into warmer recesses. I found a way into the house (the Rooneys are still trying to find my entry point) and the wonders there! Children playing with toys under the tree, leftover food abound, a warm stove to hunker down underneath. This is Nirvana, baby! And I can poo wherever I want and they clean it up! But alas, all good things must come to an end. The peanut butter on the trap was just too enticing, and I fell into my death. It was good while it lasted.

Rest in peace, Christmouse! And don't haunt your friends and tell them about our house!

'The Elf on the Shelf'

A few years ago I helped Nolan make a video for his first grade holiday tradition presentation. Now it's Thomas' turn.

Thomas wanted talk about Eddie, the elf who hides in our house to watch him and then report back to Santa. There is a book that tells Eddie's story titled "The Elf on the Shelf." So he read it for his video. Here's what we came up with...

Dyken Pond Photos

Chester was pooped at the end of our hike.

Advent

Today is the third Sunday of Advent, the pink candle which stands for the joy and anticipation of Christmas. It's a nice breath of fresh air, really. A lot of the readings for Advent are about making sure we are ready for Christ's coming - they can be a little heavy. Advent is supposed to be a time when we get in touch with our emptiness and longings and accept them for what they are. We are more than that. It's okay to be unfinished and not have it all figured out. See...heavy stuff! So the pink candle reminds us to rejoice in the good stuff...and not to sweat the small stuff. We did that today.

Today we went to find the Yule Log at a magical place called Dyken Pond. The tradition is that people would hide a yule log on the winter solstice and celebrate the shortest day to the year by finding it and burning it throughout the night. Dyken Pond is a great preserve in Rensselaer county with educational programs and 6 miles of trails through woods, swamps and streams. The yule log is hidden somewhere in the preserve and we're given a few hints. The hunt was on! Of course, a group of teenagers found it before we did, but at least we were on the right trail. We dragged the sled with us so Thomas could ride whenever he got tired. Chester enjoyed all the smells. We were all bundled warm and it was a beautiful, snowy day to be out in the woods. Breathing that cold fresh air instead of being in the hubbub at the stuffy mall wins in my book, any day of the week.

So, I think we are as ready as we'll ever be for Christmas to come. Chris and I went to his station's holiday party this week. The Christmas cards are out and I'm half-way through wrapping. The house smells like cookies and fir tree. The kids are counting the days, although they still haven't really said what they want for Christmas. As long as there are some kind of presents, I guess they are happy! So come on Christmas, bring it on!

Christmas prep

We got our Christmas tree on Sunday at a little farm in Milton. The trees were small but that's what we wanted anyway. It was the first time we showed up, saw a tree right away that we agreed on, cut it and left. All under an hour-wow! So we are all decorated and the shopping is done. We still have cards, wrapping and baking to do.

Thomas is about to get off the bus. Nolan is staying late at school because he's going to working at being in a spelling bee. We pick him up, have swim lessons and then we hit the books. Chris and Nolan are going to the library tonight to see a man acting as Teddy Roosevelt. All a day in the life of the Rooneys!