Thursday, December 30, 2010

Merry Christmas

Ahhh... the hustle and bustle of the busy Christmas season is over and here I am reflecting on another year that has come and gone. We had a quiet holiday with the kids. Analise was home for a couple of days and after Christmas dinner we played a few rousing games of Yahtzee and Scrabble - we are bit competitive when it comes to family games! Tim and Taylor tied on Scrabble, which might be a first at our house. Tim usually wins by a landslide!

Lise was playing Yahtzee, playing with her Nook and eating popcorn with M&Ms!
Taylor contemplating strategy?

A lot of thought went into game plays. 
As for a new year - I'm excited for new challenges and a lot of changes. Taylor is in his senior year of high school - so next year at this time he'll be a freshman in college. That'll totally change the dynamic in the house - we won't have any kids at home. Goodness, I get a little teary thinking about it.

Beginning January 3, I'll be taking on new responsibilities at work. I've been asked and agreed to be an interim manager at one of our CU branches. It means my commute will be triple for a few months until they hire a permanent manager. But the change will be good and I like a challenge.  :)

Lise and I will also be participating in The Brave Girls Club online Soul Restoration class. We are both super-excited to do this. I'll keep you updated during it. Soul restoration - here we come! 

New 360 photo blog is being created too! It'll be a year of changes, growing, goodbyes, hellos and creating. xo - Em

Boy, on edge of being a man. His eyes light up like a child's. Tolkien book.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Welcome

Today was a special day at our house - we adopted a 2-year-old golden retriever, Zoe, from a nice family who is moving. She is loved by them and by us too. The young girls and their parents brought her over this morning, before the winter storm hit.
The girls made an instruction sheet which I'll share because it's so sweet:

To Emma and family
ALL YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT ZOE REESE
* I got Zoe for my 5th Birthday. Please treat her like family. Her birthday is June 9th, mine is August 9th and Olivia's is July 9th. Her middle name is Reese, just like mine.
* When you open the freezer Zoe will come running and sit and wait for you to give her her favorite treat. ICE CUBES.
* Sometimes when she is in deep sleep she snores!
* Zoe has sensitive ears. She is afraid of loud trucks, horses clomping, and vacuums. (Even though it's funny to watch her run from the vacuums)
* Zoe LOVES family walks.
* When Zoe gets fed she waits for Gracie the cat to eat one of her morsels before she gobbles it down.
* Zoe burps and farts a lot. Please try to ignore the smell.
* Zoe loves her bone. When she is naughty we tell her to get her bone. It is her therapy.
* Zoe has a small bladder just like me. Please don't let her drink water after 7 pm.
* Zoe knows how to shake, sit, jump, and dance on your shoulders with you.
* Zoe's nicknames are Zo, Zo Zo, Zee Zo, or Z. She'll respond to all of them.
* We will miss her a lot. Please send pictures.


You Will Love Her. She Is The Best Dog In The World!

I read this aloud when the girls were here, they are 7 and 10, and I got teary-eyed knowing how much they love her and how hard this is for them. We are so happy and thankful they are sharing her with us.




Happy December night. xo - Em

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Christmas spider

I've been on vacation from my day job this week but stopped in today for a few minutes to find a fun surprise in my mailbox. Handcrafted by Barb - who is Ms Craftylicious!


How fun! How sweet of Barbara to think of me! What's in the sparkly bag?


A lovely little spider and a sweet story about spiders wanting to be present for a visit from the Christ child. Miss Spider now hangs on my Christmas tree. Thank you Barb - you brightened my day.  xo - Em