New Year's Eve

The Playroom Group

The Game Boys!

Wild Wii cousins! (Owen, Lauren, Jonathan, and Alex)

A little puzzle and some discussion after a feast of food. (Not a puzzling discussion!)

Joe chose our party outfits (note: mine is not maternity)

Watching fireworks from the warm indoors.

Susie is sick (fever!)

A "new" little one for a new year. Welcome baby Cora!

Handsome couples first New Year married!

It's time! It's time!

Special sparkling Grape juice to toast in 2010!

Happy New Years!

Sad Sonya is too tired to celebrate!

Happy New Year (with Peter Pan for Sonya)

This year celebrated New Years Eve with family! It was fun to have cousins come and play with us and eat, drink, and be merry together to ring in the New Year 2010! We had a feast of foods to choose from: Apples, caramel, artichoke and seven layer dips, various potato chips, sodas, Pineapple Colada drink with Ginger ale. Our dinner theme was Asian foods and we ate: shrimp, Vegetable and Pork Egg Rolls, Pot stickers, three types of lettuce wraps and sauces (thanks Amy!), fried Raman noodles, sticky rice, Edamame (soy beans in the pod)... For desserts we had (homemade) pecan pies, Raspberry Silk Pie, Pumpkin pie and whipped cream, chocolate covered pretzels and cookies, etc. Upstairs, the "big" cousins watched Harry Potter & the Half-blood Prince and the families downstairs watched Night at the Museum: Battle at the Smithsonian. Uncle Dave helped Grandpa Campbell with his computer. LavonAlise talked to us in the living room before heading home early. We celebrated "midnight" early, around 10:00 p.m. for those with small children. We lit fireworks and poured Creamy Pina Colada and Ginger Ale drinks. Some Fun Recipes:

Christmas 2009

Naughty Animals

Joe and I came across this nativity arranged this way upstairs. The naughty animals were not being quiet for baby Jesus to sleep and so they were banished! Better luck next year animals!

Christmas Day at Home (Part 1)

This morning, Jonathan was up first and he and Joe played computer games (Age of Mythology) to let the rest of us sleep in a little bit. We enjoyed a big breakfast of whole wheat pancakes, bacon, turkey sausages, Guava or mango nectar. We opened Christmas crackers. Jonathan was disappointed with his mini fold-up mirror and threw it on the floor. Rebekah prmoptly got up and told Jonathan, "you can trade with me because I like that little mirror--we can glue it back!" What a peacemaker! Inside the crakers were a paper crown, a riddle and a joke, and a small toy: a mini tape measure (Dad got), silver yoyos, a mirror, and some magnifying glasses. After breakfast, we moved onto opening stockings and tried to open and show presents under the tree--which was not so orderly as excited this year. We then dressed and got in the car for a ride up Hobble Creek to visit Grandma and Grandpa Clayton.

Christmas Day at the Cabin (Part 2)

Joe get a "Rolex" from Egypt.

Julie gets to hold sleeping Cora!

Then, it was Hannah's turn to hold sleepy Cora.

Joe sleeps on Has Anyone Seen Christmas?--he has, apparently.

Hannah is excited about what to do with cold, hard, cash!

Joe and Jonathan work on a robot which transforms into a car.

Cora can sleep on her back as well as her front.

Cora is awake!

Hannah and Rebekah get money!

Susie was posing with cousins (ELi and Sam took off for the photo).

Joe transforms the robot!

After our festivities at home were over--we dressed and loaded up in the car for a ride up Hobble Creek to visit Grandma and Grandpa Clayton at the cabin. Matt and Melissa and David and Hyea Won were also visiting. Here they had turkey and ham and Elfi's infamous "slash" (pineapple citrus) drink in soda. We hurried through fun presents (many from their recent trip to Egypt and the Holy Land) to go to our next party with the Campbells at Annes' house.