Christmas Program Fun

 Boy Howdy. This week has been a busy one. 

I have had something in the evening every night for the past week, starting last Friday and ending tonight, so that's really 8 days in a row. As an introvert who mostly prefers to be home, it's been too much. The good news is that tonight I am just going to a show which doesn't actually involve me interacting with anyone, yay! 

And there has been good stuff. The kid's play. Advent by Candlelight. And both the K-2 Christmas program and the 3-5 Christmas program. 

Tuesday was the K-2. 

Endlessly funny and wonderful to me that they cast Mary as Mary and Joe as Joseph. It just makes sense doesn't it?! 

I admit Christmas programs are my own personal version of Hell. It's crowded. There's a lot of coughing and people bumping into you. And the cute factor only counts for so much. And God loves them, but the K-2 families are still bringing both sets of grandparents and a few aunts and uncles to see the kindergartener sing 3 songs. 

Things chill out by the 3-5 program. The scream-singing has calmed down, they play actual instruments instead of just shaking jingle bells, and the novelty has worn off so there are a lot fewer extended families so it's just not as crowded. 

Fourth grade got to showcase their recorders. The devil's instrument. (I am kidding. Sort've.) But then C was part of a small group that played between 4th and 5th grade. So that was kind of cute. And if he did get extra squeaky, I couldn't tell from where I was sitting.

Husband had a big work event yesterday so it was just me and the kids until bedtime. So in honor of the programs and the fact that our Dairy Queen is only open until Tuesday, we decided to stop for a treat after school.

And you know what? I am glad we did. Happy Friday everyone! 

Another Year, Another Advent by Candlelight

This past Sunday evening, after the kid's show closed, I again hosted a table for the ladies' Advent by Candlelight event. It was very nice and lovely. 

This year we actually started in the church and we had a large group Adoration for about 45 minutes. It was SO lovely. Do you ever just get overwhelmed with how much you love Jesus? And how much you have to be grateful for? That was me during the Adoration. 

After Adoration we all went into the church hall for our dinner and socializing. 

Here was our table after I set it up in the afternoon. 

And at the event: 

Because we started in the church I wasn't able to take as good of pictures of the other tables as I have in years past but here are the ones I took anyway. In case you're like me and like looking at beautiful tables and dreaming about how one day you'll set tables that pretty yourself. A tablescape artist, I am not. 

At the event, our Altar and Rosary society gifted us all a copy of Adore an Advent study. And I gifted my table guests the little bags of chocolate and "Holy Spirit You Are Welcome Here" ornaments. (Used as napkin rings.)

It was a truly wonderful event as always and I am so glad we had it. Time spent with Jesus is never wasted and finding small ways to keep Advent as Advent is always fun for me as well. 

My Heart Could Burst

This weekend was the kid's performance of The Little Mermaid Jr. 

You never really know what to expect right? Especially since it was M's first time on stage. She is an avid theatre patron, she saw 14 shows this year! But how does that translate to being put on stage? Well, I needn't have worried. The director told me she was "spunky" and a "leader" who always made sure other people were where they were supposed to be. 

C was a rock star. Just an absolute rock star. He had a rather big part when it came down to it. And he did a good job. (Could he use more direction and coaching, yes. But he wasn't bad. And if I was wearing my critical hat, as someone who legit gets paid to review live theatre performances, there were some people who were not so great.) 

Saturday night he came on stage and I grabbed Husband and said, "what's wrong with him?" He assured me that C was fine but I knew he wasn't. He came back on stage a few minutes later and he had a bloody nose! But came on stage with his tissue and said all of his lines and did the show anyway. How's that for 10-years-old and learning about "the show must go on"? I was floored. And so impressed. What a guy! I am so so so proud of him. 

Honestly, my heart could BURST at how sweet they both were and even though they are the most tired, I am so proud of them.

That's a wrap on Grimsby and Tentacle #1/Sea Creature. But dang if I didn't enjoy watching them. I was just struck by how much I love and appreciate these kids of mine this weekend and I am so grateful God gave them to me. 

Hello December!

December snuck in quietly as though it were hoping no one would notice. I did, actually, notice but nevertheless. This weekend is a busy one. The kids have their show they've been working on all fall. I feel like it will go well but C has been especially emotional about it and I am not exactly sure why that is. He says he's nervous, and I guess that could be it, but I think really he's just sad it's ending and so he is preprocessing that. 

His class led Mass with the Bishop on Wednesday and he did a fantastic job with his part. Loud, clear, crisp, and excellent fluency. He truly excels at reading during Mass. Bishop's homily was long and so school was already over by the time Mass ended so his class didn't get to take their picture with him as planned, he was kinda bummed about that. 

It got cold here this week. But they fixed the boiler at work. On Tuesday, when I left my office it was 83! 

Why do I have a thermometer at my desk? Well at my old job, my desk was cold but my boss and coworker in my corner of the office were both going through menopause and therefore could not be trusted to accurately describe the temp of the office. So my boss gave me a thermometer to keep track of whether we should turn the temp up or down. They weren't to be trusted with that decision-making skill. 

Anyway, when I started at the parish I realized that I really missed glancing over at the temp. It has become part of my day without my truly realizing it. So for $7 I could buy the exact thermometer and still have something to glance at. (And it's better than a clock because then you're just wondering how much time you have left or worried that you're running out of it!) 

Anyway, it's December. And I am happy about it. 2022 was a good one. I have a few packages left to arrive. I had planned to be done with Christmas shopping pre-Advent but I had a package go rogue (unclear if it was stolen or not, though we were home and another package delivered that day wasn't...) so I had to wait the allotted time for a refund and then re-order. But I am closing in on being done. 

And that is about what I know! 

Thanksgiving Break

Our Thanksgiving week kicked off last weekend even, with the Festival of Trees parade. This is the largest helium balloon parade in the midwest and C was absolutely delighted! 

I did not attend. Because it was COLD. And I am not a big parade gal. But I did watch from my phone for a while to spot the kids. 

Anyway, it set the festive mood up just right before two days of school. 

Thanksgiving break was good to us! I am always so thankful for time to slow down and enjoy my family. And also sleep. I love sleeping. It's my favorite hobby. That's sad, isn't it? I don't even care. 

Wednesday we took it easy and just hung out. Then that evening we went to the dinner theatre to see White Christmas! 

It was honestly so much fun and I am glad we went. The perfect way to tamper down the excitement for Thanksgiving. Which is big business at our house. 

Thursday morning we had our monkey bread as per tradition. 

And we watched the parade.

Please note C is in his Macy's pajamas. As I said, the parade is his Super Bowl. After the dog show... did you know they air the parade again? Well, they do. And we watched it for a second time. (We did skip the preshow stuff to sneak in Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving. Please don't judge me for how much TV they watched on Thursday.) 

We went traditional with the food this year. Rotisserie turkey which was pretty darn good, mashed potatoes, rolls, corn casserole, cranberry sauce, stuffing from a box, and pumpkin pie for dessert. 

And you know what? It was tasty and I am glad we had it. I still like my non-traditional meals for Thanksgiving. And it will never be my favorite holiday. But it is C's so I can lean into it for him a bit. 

Thursday night we tucked the kids in and then I stressed watched the Vikings game. I am going to get gray hair just for being a Vikings fan. I swear. It's still a LONG road for them and I am not going to get my hopes up, because of the Eagles. No matter what though, I will likely look back and remember this season as a pretty good one. 

Friday we took it easy during the day and then we went to the Festival of Trees. 

And that was okay. Next year we will look at the entertainment schedule before we go. There was a dance company there and their music selections were not super Christmasy or kid-appropriate really. Also it was quite loud. The experience was less than we had hoped for but the pictures are cute so it's all good. 

Saturday we went back to the theatre for Santa Claus the Musical. It was cute. 

And yesterday I took no pictures but it was also low-key and a good one. Ending in my stress watching the Eagles-Packers game. My kids wanted to know who to root for. I know some wanted a Packers to win to help the 1st seed chances for the Vikings but I just couldn't do it. I can't stand them. Or Smarmy Aaron. (I understand he used to be a good football player. But with his attitude, ego, and the looks on his face, I cannot. Plus he is a liar.) Somehow Tom Brady, even with all his scandals and family issues, still seems like a nice person. Aaron never has to me. 

I had told my children before they went to sleep that the best outcome would be an Eagles win but that Aaron Rodgers would break his knee early and be out for a while. Honestly, I wanted to see how Love would play. Got my wish, only with obliques I guess! Personally, I hope that Rodgers is out for good and Love can just do his thing. Let's be real, even a third-string QB in the NFL is still an elite player. I will still dislike the Packers, but I will dislike them significantly less with Smarmy Aaron gone. 

Jalen Hurts is my Fantasy quarterback and Eagles are my D/ST so that was extra motivation for me to root for the Eagles last night. And they pulled it out well! I am going to win my game this week! 

Now here we are, Happy Monday and Happy Advent everyone!