This is the Hill...

After driving around with caffeine-drunk navigators for an hour or two Sunday afternoon, our caravan (5 cars long) finally made it to the big sledding hill in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
Here's one happy sledder:

Theresa in her Christmas present jester hat that made William (2) laugh hysterically the minute she put it on her head.

And another happy sledder:

Cathy, "I'm just resting for a minute" in her new jester hat.

And some more of them:

L-R ~ Kevvy, Dominic, Jon's hand, Grandpa, Michelle and Paul discussing strategy.

And the tandem sled run:

Front to back ~ Kevvy, Michelle, Joh, Dominic, my brother Dave and Paul.

And, it was a cooooooold, windy day, folks, let me tell you!

Which leads me to add a word of advice to any potential sledding partiers... In fact, I'll add it to my list of "100 Things We learned the Hard Way" And here it is:

51. Never!

52. Never!

53. Never!

54. Never!

55. Never!

56. Never!

57. Never!

58. Never!

59. Never!

60. I repeat: NEVER take children under 5 years of age up on the side of a windy, cold mountain and expect them or anyone else around them to enjoy an afternoon sledding!

And here's why...

By the time we:

1. got the children out of their carseats
2. into their hats, gloves, scarves and snowpants
3. up the hill
4. and tried to get them to like the idea of sitting with us on the sleds
5. and flying down the hillside...

Well, let us just say, um, our two little boys (ages 2 and 3) were not happy...

But, as soon as Mama

1. took them home to their nice, cozy, warm, familiar house,
2. turned on Goofy,
3. got them snacks
4. put on a vat of campfire stew and a pot of hot apple cider for the returning crowd...

everyone, everywhere was happier.

Did you feel a lessening in the static of the atmosphere of the earth yesterday afternoon about 4:30 pm mountain time?? Now you would know why that was.

Hosting a Singalong

We finally found a day that could accomodate everyone's schedule to have a singalong. It was just family this time, but next time the boys are home, we'd like to invite some more of our friends, as they are a very tuneful lot. Frankly, though, with all the comings and goings at this time of year, it was hard enough just to get all the children here at the same time.

It worked out very nicely, though, to have the singalong on Saturday, which was our Theresa Philomena's 9th birthday (See tribute and pics below). We had her hotdog and enchilada lunch, then presents, cake and ice cream, followed by the singalong, with all the brothers and sisters, all the grandparents and almost all the aunts and uncles in voice.

It was a wonderful time, though cut a little short so we could take a contingent to a hockey game at our alma mater, the University of Denver (We won!).



Things we will keep in mind when we host our next singalong:

1) Provide for the different levels of ability that you expect to attend. We had sheet music in four parts to accomodate our many choir members, but wish we had printed out some sheets with just the words on it for the little ones who were confused by the many lines of notes.

2) Print out enough music to go around and staple it, or put it in folders in the order you expect to sing it. We wasted a lot of time shuffling through sheet music!

3) Provide plenty of pitchers of just plain, cool water to drink, with plenty of cups available. We ended up thirsty and had to keep sending the little ones after water.

4) Try to avoid singing right after a heavy meal, and especially right after sweets! We all felt a bit sluggish and very thirsty after Theresa's birthday lunch and goodies. It might have been better, if the circumstances had been different to provide some plates of crudites and light munchies, along with plenty to drink.

5) It's good to have plenty of seating, in close proximity, as your voices blend better when you can arrange yourselves properly. We were a little disjointed in our seating, as this house is hard to fit everyone in together properly, but we all still thought it sounded nice, so it's not absolutely necessary. You can especially tell the difference when you record it, though, when everyone's not seated together.

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The Singers

Here are a couple videos of the day. We were too busy singing to get the best songs; everyone preferred to sing than to be the one to record... But, this is "Hark How the Bells," followed by the boys' arrangement of Loreena McKennitt's The King. Kevin rewrote the words to have a Catholic spin, and Jon changed the arrangement for their voices. We are all in love with it, though the boys are disappointed with how the recording came out (You just can't please some people!).
Click below to hear some of our day:

Theresa Philomena

I am from measuring cups and spoons, from pencils and rulers.
I am from a little white and red house on the prairie.
I am from cornstalks, the symetrical shining rows of sweetness.
I am from Christmas Creches and loving great stories, from my Mommy and Daddy, from Paul, and Kevin, and Matthew in Heaven; from Jon, and Dominic, and Michelle and my little brothers and sisters, Cathy and Anna, Gabe and William.
I am from the teasing, the laughing, and the singing.

I am from books and good movies, popcorn and cheese.
I am from the beauty and tradition of the ages in my beloved Roman Catholic Faith.
I am named for St. Therese the Little Flower, and St. Philomena, Powerful with God.
I am from the width and height of the Rocky Mountiains and the rolling beauty of the Great Plains of Colorado,

From Wales and England and Ireland and Germany.
From my mother's father and his life on the sea, and my father's father, also a man of the water, I am oceans and mountains and prairie and sky.
I am from Aunt Nina's treasure chest of albums and Grandmom's photo covered walls. I am Grandma's twin, and beloved of all my family, my Daddy's sweetheart and my Mommy's dear one.
I am Theresa Philomena.
And I am nine years old.

We found this really neat poem outline here:http://www.fragmentsfromfloyd.com/archives/2005_02.html#003144

And the Winner Is...

Even though he tried to cheat by adding an "anonymous" comment for which he should be disqualified.... The winner, by popular vote, of the Gabey Mug Contest is...

Drumroll, please...

TaDa! Kevin! We all thought this was the most similarly hammy grin.
Kevvy wins the Mug Mug. No, moping, now, children who didn't win. Be good losers and pat your brother kindly on the back and congratulate him . (I'm not kidding now!)

William just looking for trouble...

He's apparently exhausted all the possiblities for mischief-making down on the floor.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This picture came from...

Kevvy taking advantage of our cottage-height ceilings to take William for a walk on the wild side, and Dominic adding his creative touch with some picture editing... I never know what I'm going to find on the computer these days. So much fun having our big boys home!

Once the boys are finished with it, I'll put on the slideshow of our other shenanigans today, the feast of St. John the Apostle, the nameday of our son, Jon. We had a busy day!

This is Gabriel Joseph

He is our tenth child, second to the end.

He's got four big brothers (here on Earth), four big sisters and one little brother.

He's a very happy little guy.

Doesn't ask for much, but provides a great deal of joy to the rest of us.

He's the one who will snuggle up to you and tell you he loves you and "wouldn't trade you."

He's also a delightfully organized little guy and loves his routine.

He understands there must be order in the universe and is very happy to fulfill his responsibility to that end.

He considers mugging for the camera a duty of his station.

And he's very good at it.

See? There it is. Same smile every time. Get out the camera, or say, "smile..."
He tilts his head, twinkles his eyes, and grins.
What a mug!
So, here he is, Christmas day. The challenge to the siblings was to see who could fulfill the mugging duty as well as Gabey. Difficult challenge.

Christmas Day, 2007 Gabey-Mug Look-alike Contest

Who's got the "Gabey-mug" down?

Son #1: Paul
Daughter # 3: Catherine
Son # 5: Dominic

Daughter #1: Michelle
Daughter #4: Anna
Daughter # 2: Theresa


Son # 4: Jonathan

Son # 7: William

Son # 2: Kevin

The winner gets a Gabey-mug mug. (We're going to make one from one of those cup kits you get from Hobby Lobby) Every Vote Counts and we need objective observers!

(Voting ends Friday at 3 ~ We'll post the winning pictures Friday evening.)

Christmas at our house...

Here it is in a nutshell ~ or well, maybe it's more like a whole pecan tree...

Midnight in Bethlehem, right before leaving for Mass.

Christmas Morning: Happy Birthday, Dear Jesus!
Looked out the window to find a White Christmas!

Everyone opened up their Christmas stockings while waiting for the waffles.

(Everyone looks a bit groggy, don't they?)

A competitive game of Scrabble followed a game of rousing game of Scattergories.
The whole family together (even Aunt Linda!) for the rosary meant every bead in each decade was accounted for (since the two little boys don't pray a Hail Mary yet), and every Guardian Angel was saluted by its child. This is a symphony to the ears of parents!

"Brunch" which we didn't eat until after around 1 or 2 in the afternoon because we made a trip to the airport to get Grandma and Grandpa, and then swung around to bring our dear Aunt Nina home with us to spend the day.

Then, everyone opened presents, tried on clothes and costumes, played with toys, watched a new Brian Regan DVD and visited with our friend, Alena, as well as our Uncle Dave and Aunt Donna and Grandmom, who all braved the storm to spend the afternoon with us...

It was a lovely day! And, boy are we pooped! We were up until after midnight Christmas Eve, waiting for our Omaha contingent to get in. Then we didn't get home from Midnight Mass until after 2 am last night.

Do you suppose we'll get some teenager to get up with the Littles so their Dad and I can sleep in tomorrow morning? That is the beauty of having big kids around, right? Um, well, sorta.

This is what will happen. I'm making a prediction:

They'll get up with them, yes... But, then, of course, they'll fall back asleep on the couch, while our two-year-old climbs into the Christmas candy, and the little girls pull out everything I put away to play with "later" (You know, like the playdough...) And, they will not be quiet. And they will have sweets and eggnog for breakfast. And somebody will make coffee and spill grounds and sugar all over the kitchen.

And I might fuss, but you know what? I love it. My children are all home.

Book Meme

I love reading this meme on other people's blogs, but, to tell the truth, have almost hoped not to get it myself, because ~ Sheesh~ This is a hard one! How to choose? How to choose? But Muddy Mama has tagged me, and I'll try to run with it...

1. One book that changed your life: One? Just one? Agh! Every book changes my life somehow... But, if I have to pick one, I'd have to say Story of A Soul.

2. One book that you have read more than once: Again, just one?? I have a whole parade of books that I march around with in my life... Um, so, what one have I read the most times? Probably because it's so short, My Life and Hard Times by James Thurber, which I fell off my chair laughing at in about 9th grade, and pick up now any time I need my spirits lifted.

3. One book that you'd want on a desert island: I would probably bring the Bible, like many people would, but maybe not for the same reason. I'd bring it because I have never read the whole thing, in novel form, so to speak. I don't know that I'll ever get through the Old Testament, but I really, truly want to read the New Testament, whole and entire and in order. And, being stranded on a desert island, I might actually get around to it. (But, hey, it doesn't mention if the kids are with me on this desert island, in which case all bets are off!)

4. One book that made you laugh: Well, I already mentioned Thurber, one of my best pals... I also love to laugh at the Erma Bombeck books, pick any one, and Bill Cosby's Fatherhood was hilarious. Oh, and I get the biggest kick out of Dave Barry. I just picked up some of the Jean Shepherd books (the author of The Christmas Story), and am dying to read them... Oh, woops, getting out of countrol here... Just one, just one...

5. One book that made you cry: I have way fewer books that I've cried over, as I avoid that kind. Life is sad without making it sadder. Come to think of it... I must have blanked out any that I cried over, as I can't come up with one! Good grief, that's pathetic! Am I shallow or what?

6. One book that you wish had been written: How to Find More Time to Read When You're A Homeschooling Mother of Ten Children With A House Falling Down Around Your Ears and A Pile of Laundry Up to Your Neck and a Stack of Math Papers to Correct Drifting to the Floor All Around the Dining Room Table, etc, etc, and so forth...

7. One book that you wish had never been written: Oh, I am so with Muddy Mama on her answer:
"Go Dog Go! by P. D. Eastman is a book that begins to lose it's charm after your young'uns request it for the smillion and first time." ( I finally hid this one...)

8. One book you are currently reading: Oh, my goodness, just one? I'm in the middle of about three, but the one I'm most excited about finishing is the Christmas Box Miracle.

9. One book you've been meaning to read: Good grief, this limiting it to just one is the pits! I've got a list as long as my arm and woefully little time to get through it, I'm afraid. I'd love to get through more Fulton J. Sheens, for instance. I've been seeing Coffee With Nonna in catalogues for some time now and am dying to read it, as well as the Danielle Bean book, My Cup of Tea.

OK, now, who to tag? I always love getting to know more about GrandmaK, over at A Bit of Blarney (I hope she doesn't get sick of me tagging her!), and, also Colleen at Footprints on the Fridge, Joanne at Ten kids and a dog, and Maryan at A Lee in the Wouds. Bia (at La Dolce Vita), is this one you'd be interested in? And, I don't know if Simcha at I Have to Sit Down ever does memes, but I would LOVE to see her list! I sure know how busy it is, but maybe after the Christmas rush is over, these lovely ladies might want to settle in with some bookish thoughts?

Five Days To Go!

Time is getting short, and still so much to do!

Our boys are trickling in, our oldest first, who is bringing his sweet girlfriend to visit us for a couple of days. Then the other three arrive sometime Saturday, traveling back with the Sisters and a carload of Colorado kids. That will be a "singing" trip, as the nun who is driving them is a most highly loved choir director. Wish I could be a fly on the windshield to hear all the music and joking!

We're spending our time right now finishing up the decorating and wrapping presents. We're also doing the remote preparations for a big family sledding trip next week, and a sing-along party. Today we'll get some baking in, which we won't continue until Sunday and Monday, seeing as Friday and Saturday are Ember Days and it's just too painful not to be able to eat the dough! We'll offer up the inconvenience for vocations and for our wonderful, hard-working priests.

But today we'll be making these, Peppermint Cookies n' Cream Brownies (YUM!), and some of these, home made marshmallows and chocolate pizzas next week. And of course, the traditional chocolate chips (some variety there-of) and sugar cookies. Jon will make divinity when he gets here; it's his specialty. Dominic will probably want to make some cookie pops. And I'm sure some fudge will be made before it's all over.

Here's the finished Winter Village, complete with Christmas trees and sky (had to use two panels for the sky, because of the way the pattern runs, but it'll make for some cute curtains later):

Michelle found the picture of the altar and the rug for the foyer of the Church. We ended up finding these really neat little stick-on "jewels" for the stained glass windows. We still have to decide what to call our church, though. Something having to do with the Nativity maybe? Any suggestions?

Another Prairie Sunrise

I can't resist posting these..

Sunrise

O rising Sun, so fair and gay,

What are you bringing me, I pray,

Of sorrow or of joy today?

~

You look as if you meant to please,

Reclining in your gorgeous ease

Behind the bare-branched apple-trees.

~

The world is rich and bright, as though

The pillows where your head is low

Had lit the fields of driven snow.

~

The hoar-frost on the window turns

Into a wood of giant ferns

Where some great conflagration burns.

~

And all my children come again

As lightsome and as free from stain

As those frost-pictures on the pane.

~

I would that I could mount on high

And meet you, Sun--that you and I

Had to ourselves the whole wide sky.

~

But here my poor soul has to stay,

So tell me, rising Sun, I pray,

What are you bringing me to-day

~

What shall this busy brain have thought,

What shall these hands and feet have wrought,

What sorrows shall the hours have brought,

~

Before thy brilliant course is run,

Before this new-born day is done,

Before you set, O rising Sun?

Frederick George Scott

Our Nativity Scene Progress

Not quite finished, but getting there. We've got all the rocks in and are satisfied with the stream that runs in front of, and actually under the stable. The water, a combination of crinkled tin foil with clear lights poked through, topped with a mixture of millions of pieces of shattered safety glass and blue and white glitter, doesn't photograph well, but we think it turned out pretty realistic this year.

We've got all the trees up with their lights strung and working. The children chose where to place the small animals. Mommy (and her group of advisors) set up the rest of the figures, minus, of course, the Baby Jesus, the Wise Men and their entourage. The shepherds are just sorta hanging out right now, not noticing that the old barn in the cave is occupied. Two are warming themselves by the fire, one is playing his flute for a little dog. The sheep are all peacefully grazing while the sheepdogs look on.

It's a bit of a family controversy right now, whether or not the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph should already be in Bethlehem, but I can't set Our Lady on that donkey to simulate her journey and I miss not seeing her there in the stable. So, for the time being, at least, they are there, praying and waiting, like we all are!

A wide view across the rocks
Tried to get a shot of the water here...


A close up of the Blessed Mother and St. Joseph. We like the way the

shadows look like smoke coming off of a little fire in this photo...

Two shepherds by the campfire.
This little skunk is always a combination of scandal and fun to place...
A view of the bridge with its icicles... Needs a shot of glitter spray to make it sparkle...
The young shepherd serenading his puppy...

Three raccoons crossing the bridge...

Our little hiding mice haven't shown up yet, so we ordered some more on E-bay and are anxiously awaiting their arrival. Half the fun is looking for the little mice every day! Also, we're all watching for snow clouds in Bethlehem. Could get some snow there any time now...