The first real snow . . . and other tid bits:)

So . . . we got our first "real" snow of the season . . . which means the first snow day for the kids of the season!  We met up with some friends for some sledding . . . and although I would be the first mama to admit that sledding/bundling up isn't my "favorite" bonding activity to do with the kids -- it really was fun to be together!  

Joshua heading down -- of course, head first:)

Kayla and her friend

Tyler -- he was the youngest, but had no trouble at all keeping up!

The uphill walk -- such a bummer!  This hill was great because there were NO trees/obstacles at the bottom!

Joshua on the double sled -- fun!  Hindsight, I am SOOO glad we expended some energy:)  

It was a very, very good idea!

Yesterday, Joshua's "Treble Makers" group from school had their first concert!  It was actually held in the evening, but since both Bryan and I had really big rehearsals that night, we were able to watch them perform for their school assembly.  They all played various Orff instruments, and considering this is the first year the school has ever had a group like this . . .they did really well:)  We were pretty shocked Joshua even wanted to audition for this group as music doesn't seem to be his "cup of tea" but he has really enjoyed it -- even with the before school practices!

It was eye-opening to see how long it took to file everyone in for the assembly . . . here was Kayla waiting with her class.

Tyler had "Elf Day" and didn't see us from the back of the gym:)

And they finally started!

The last piece, Joshua played the "drums" -- 

 . . . and then took delight in showing his buddy his "battle wounds' when it was completed!

A "deck the halls" photo . . . I wanted to go with a more "rustic" look.  So, it's amazing what a 40% off coupon from JoAnns and a $22 bolt of burlap can get you:)  I made new stockings from the burlap-- and it was fun doing some "personalization" with stenciled letters!  Can anyone decipher who's stocking is who's?

Last week we went to a performance of "Many Moods of Christmas" to support one of my piano student families.  It was like a trip down memory lane as I remember several of those pieces from my college days!

Tyler's "present" for Joshua that he wrote all by himself this week . . . 

Translation:  "Joshua, You are nice to me because you are nice to me.  Yes. " 

Love this stage!

One day this week, some friends hung at our place for a bit before school to help out their parents with scheduling stuff.  This is Joshua and his friend -- and no, the matching hoodies weren't planned:)

As I have been writing this post, I realize how very thankful we are for this past year and all of the connections we have made -- at school, at church, with neighbors, etc.  So very blessed!

Just a wee bit overdue . . . Happy Birthday Joshua!

So . . . BEFORE Thanksgiving, we celebrated Joshua AND Kayla's birthday -- so this is a wee bit overdue!  It's so fun to see the "little" cousins -- we really miss getting to see them every week like when we were in Topeka!

Miss Kenni 

Grandma giving Joshua a little fine-tuning on some piano piece:)  

Carly and Westin

Joshua opening some gifts . . .

And then Kayla got to open some gifts . . 

 . . . and Jordy wanted a front row seat for all the action!

Happy 8th birthday Kayla!

Happy 10th Birthday Joshua!

Joshua got to pick where we ate out as a family for his birthday -- and he just wanted to eat somewhere that had all the chips and salsa you can eat . .  mission accomplished!

So, Joshua celebrated his B-day with the Varner family before Thanksgiving, celebrated with the Nelson family in WI over Thanksgiving, and then with US on his actual birthday -- we love you Joshua!

Thanksgiving in WI

We spent last week celebrating Thanksgiving with Bryan's family in WI -- it was great to get away!  Always fun to catch up with siblings, cousins, inlaws, parents, etc!

Since J's birthday is on December 2nd, it has became somewhat of a tradition to celebrate it in WI when we are there for Thanksgiving!

A much-loved gift!

Serious Photo Booth fun with the cousins!

Another WI "tradition" -- a meal at Culvers.  It's quite humorous -- when we lived in PA, it was a treat to eat at Culvers in WI because there were NONE of them around us on the east coast.  When we moved to KS, we thought we were fortunate to have one at the Legends -- about an hour away.  Now that we're in KC, there is one 5 minutes away . .. and yet we still always make it a priority to go to Culvers when we visit WI -- so funny!

For the record, Grandpa won the first game, Daddy won the second game.  I am HIGHLY competitive . . . Monopoly is not good for our marriage:)

One day, we ventured out for a change of pace and Bryan took us to this mall that used to be THE HAPPENING MALL back in the day . . . well, times have definitely changed as this was taken on Black Friday -- pretty deserted:)

Yep, we were in WI!

Tyler showing Grandpa the latest games . .. 

So there was snow while we were there -- in fact, the last 2 hours of our trip north was pretty touch and go because of the snowy conditions:(  When you start counting cars in the ditch and get up to 20 with no problem . . . well, it makes you a wee bit nervous!  We were very thankful for the safety God gave us on the way there.

Grandma leading the way --

Let's try a few "new" ways to sled . . .

Grandma and Grandpa

Should we take bets on how well this will work????

 . . . not very well at all:)

Lots of fun down time!

A little ping pong action!

And some screen time -- we were on vacation right????

Joshua and Ben -- the cousin next in age to him -- I think there are 5 years between them though.

On our way home, we stopped for a "quick" meal at Taco Bell in Dubuque, Iowa . . . well, let's just say the food delivery time wasn't exactly stellar:)

One of the most tragic events in WI -- we realized the first night that Tyler had forgotten his Superman pillow -- it was horrible!  So, he was pretty excited to get back home with this guy!  We had a great time hanging with family in WI during the week -- so very blessed!