Did Santy come?

Yes he did! And then some! Not only did Santa come to MN this year, but so did many lovely and generous gifts from our families- all whom we REALLY miss this time of year.

Our Christmas Eve was spent at Annunciation with lots of friends. Addie even had a chance to sing one of the songs from her Xmas program- Kermit's Christmas Wish. Our friends the Horgans came to Mass with us and then we went to their home to share dinner, Christmas stories, and even light the Hanukkah Ice Cream Menorah!

Getting the kids to bed was relatively smooth once we settled the debate that the reigndeer like BOTH carrots and celery- Addie was a little freaked out by the idea that Santa was going to be IN our house!

Clint and I made it to bed before midnight (thanks for the Playmobil Nini!) and woke before the kids! Mac wasn't too sure why we were making him walk down the stairs (see pictures), but he came around when he saw all the presents under the tree.

Mary's dreams came true with her bathrobe and a swimming puppy. Addie hadn't asked for much and was very excited about her soccer ball and a few new games!

We missed being with our families this year, but its times like these that we stop and realize how blessed we are with our home, our health, and our friends.

I would add that our pictures don't reflect all the fun we had just playing ALL day, or the hives that got me into the hospital at 1:00am that night. Merry Merry.

http://picasaweb.google.com/polly.perez/2008December?authkey=YV81wAjPWp4&feat=directlink

Merry Christmas!

We wish you a Merry Christmas!

New Year's Resolution

I think Addie is resolute to stop biting her nails after a week of oozing and now 10 days of chalky antibiotics.

Cover your eyes of you are squeemish!

Sledding 101

We have had snow almost everyday for the last couple of weeks. The only days that it hasn't snowed, its been too cold to snow!! The girls and I worked hard today to build a sweet sled run in the backyard! Check it out!

Horton hears another Who

Last night we celebrated Christmas with our friends the Davidsons before the drove to Winnipeg for the holidays. We had yummy chili and lots of drinks while the kids watched Barbie in The Nutcracker (no comment- it was my purchase).

Spoiled once again, the Perez's cleaned up with a new truck, a lift ticket, a beautiful book, a couple of scotch glasses.... and the Horton Hears a Who board game. Of course the kids couldn't even wait 24 hours to play! I really liked it- it was entertaining- and QUICK! I don't know who had more fun being Horton, Mary or Clint!

How lucky we are to have friends to share and friends who care! Thanks Davidsons!

Yes he's laughing.

He's looking for a Marketing Director position in the Twin Cities!

A Minnesota Christmas (it's a miracle)

This week was a culmination of a lot of work at Addie's school, Annunciation. They are widely known for their Christmas program which is created and directed by Mrs. Mary Strickland, the creative arts director. She is an amazingly creative woman who command a lot of respect from not only the students, but also all the staff (and the parents too!). When we were looking at schools for Addie to attend, Mrs Strickland and the CA program was a big seller for me. And now I know why.

This year is the MN sesquicentennial and the theme of the show this year was... what if Mary and Joseph lived in MN. As the stars of the show, the 1st graders play the roles in the Nativity, offering a little sketch comedy (its not the Star of Bethlehem, its the North Star!) mixed with some oldies (Mary in pigtails and Joseph serenading each other with I Got You Babe), and some originals as well (the native animals offering gives to the Babe -the loons singing him to sleep). Interwoven to the story each class represents an area of the state, and participates with song and "actions" routine, all to the beat of the live rock and roll band, led by Mrs. S, yelling LOUDER every few minutes :-)

This year, the kindergarten class was Minneapolis and cheered on Mary in her journey with all of the rousers of our great state teams- Let's Win the Game Twins, Skoal Vikings, and the MN Fight Song. Its was tremendous! Each class took a turn (The 3rd grade dressed as prairie folk from Walnut Grove sang Oh What a Beautiful Morning!) and then gathered again under quiet light to join together and share the dreams of Kermit the Frog and our local hero Bob Dylan.

I was so proud to be there and be a part of such and amazing show and an amazing community. Addie was so proud to be a part of it too. She kept it all under wraps as its a VERY big secret, and well worth the wait.

And through it all, all the practice and dress rehearsals, Addie learned the story of the birth of Jesus. What more could I ask for?

The DVD will be out just after Christmas. We'll be sure to post it somewhere- and if you find a recording of Love God (And Everybody Else), please let me know!

Lucky me.

Have you every had one of those days when you just have to say, "I am so blessed." ??
Today is that day.

Delphene made the kids these awesome Christmas hats! The girls' are red on the outside. Michael REALLY loves his and wears it everyehere we go! I'll try to get a picture of all 3 of them- they are so cute!

Breakfast time is crazy time around here. This moring we were making Xmas cards on top of it all! Christmas is coming....

Cindy-Lou Who

Mary's fixation with all things Seuss is able to continue on thanks to the Grinch and all things Who. We watched the live action version of the Grinch (Jima Carey) and I thought it was kinda creepy. Not Mary. She has decided to be Cindy Lou Who for Halloween next year (Clint is to the be the Grinch and Michael will be Max the dog). Here is her new favorite hair-do. She would like 2 long braids but we'll have to wait until next year when her hair is a little longer.

Oh yeah- and today at pre-school, they had a roast beast feast :-)

Overjoyed

I know how important it is to introduce new things to kids to see what sticks. I am so fortunate to be able to this with all my kids! We played soccer, gone to dance and gymnastics, we take swim lessons. Its all....fine. They go, they do it, they have fun, I think (except for when the water at the pool is COLD). All of these activities are things that most little kids have a chance to do.

Sunday, I took Addie skiing, and it was more than fine- she truly loved it. It was cold and snowing and she was out there for almost 2 hours and could have stayed longer. I try everyday to let my kids be who they'll be and love what they love, this, however, makes me happy!

Rub-a-dub-dub 3 P's in a tub

Yes, knaves all three.

I would drive 100,000 miles just to be with you

With apologies to the Proclaimers.

This morning at 7:59 am CST, at the corner of 76th Street and Penn Avenue South, in Richfield, MN, on my way to work, our blue 1997 Volkswagen Jetta GLS 4-door sedan hit 100,000 miles. It is a milestone that has been a long time coming. When we moved to Minneapolis in 2002, the car had 81,000 miles on it. It took six more years to get it to 100,000, mainly because it is now a commuter car, but partly because we do much less driving now than we did in our younger days. This car has been a huge part of our lives together. It was the first thing Polly and I bought together, even before we were married. I remember the buying experience (and we still got married). Here are some memorable trips that we took in the Jetta.

• Many trips from DC to Buffalo, up I-70 to the 219
• The countless trips to New Jersey, up I-95 and along the Turnpike
• The occasional trip into New York City
• The 10 hour drive from DC to Hilton Head, South Carolina with Lindsay Monsees
• The drive from DC to Ann Arbor, MI for b-school
• The drives from Ann Arbor to Buffalo, New Jersey and/or DC for Thanksgiving or Christmas
• The drive from Ann Arbor to Higgins Lake, MI for weekends away with the Morley's
• The short trip to the dry cleaner in Ann Arbor when I got rear-ended by a 16-year old in an Expedition and the car was almost totaled
• The drive from Buffalo to Minneapolis
• The car ride home from work when Polly told me that she knew our first child was a girl

Here's to many more memorable years.

O' Christmas Tree

The tree is up and the lights are on!
The girls decided thay "they could lie here all night long and just look at the beautiful lights."
Michael just wanted to jump on us.

Sleep tight

I thought today would be a good day to introduce Michael to a pillow. I think he liked it.

Trchuck!

Before they left for the airport, Nini and Papa wanted to take Mac on a ride. Who do you think had more fun?

Mac

What is there to say? Its true love.

Memories... like the corners of my mind.

I TOTALLY remember doing this with him!

Mary and Papa really bonded this trip. On the day that they arrived, she was in her nap and was almost scared to come down to say hello. It didn't take long. They are kindred spirits I think. They had such fun getting to know each other again- Mary was very sad to say good-bye to her Papa.

Sadie

This is Sadie, one of the new Grizzly bears at the MN Zoo. It was so cool- she was wandering around her beautiful new habitat and we started waving at her. Next thing you know she is right up at the glass playing with us! Michael couldn't get enough- he was squealing with delight! This is Mary's impression of a bear.... I think.

I love this picture.