You Don't See That Every Day

The holiday was busy this year. Even though I made a point of not stressing out, I still did. I didn't send cards out on time, but am doing a little every day this week. So, my blog posts suffered, but I'm back to share how our Christmas went. In installments, Because all at once might put you to sleep. So on the 23rd, even though one child had a cold, we went caroling. Oh My Word, that was fun! We joined a group from church and went to a local grocery store to sing. It was kind of like a flash mob, only the manager knew we were coming. It was so cool. We moved on from there to a retirement home and sang to the residents. This was my favorite part. The smiles on their faces when we sang; some sang along with us; I fought back tears as I watched man feed his wife every bite. Afterwards we talked with the residents, handing out candy canes. They seemed to enjoy the kids the most, although there were plenty of smiles at the adult singers. At the next retirement home, a lady ...

It was the second week of our 'summer experiment' to try different parks. Except we went to a park that we love and have been to a few times. It's in a neighboring town, near my in-laws. So we stopped at Grammy and Grandpa's house first for a short visit. And a turkey chase. You can just barely see the turkey feathers behind Grammy's right hand. And of course, the kids love to slide down the handrail at the steps from the house to the yard. They have a gorgeous view from their backyard. But then we were on to the park - for teeter totters, merry-go-rounds, slides, (but no swings - they were right above icky mud puddles), and rock throwing. There is a terrific bridge over a creek that the kids love to throw rocks off of. They hope to go wading there this summer ... we'll see. Even Little K had a great time this park day. Her brother and sisters love to take her on the slides. So each had to have a turn going down with her. Her facial expres...