Showcasing my kids

Ellie is in Theatre Arts this year.  She absolutely loves it.  When she signed up, I naively assumed she would just be doing a few plays.  Um, no.  They go to tournaments and compete in things like Soap Box, Poetry, Persuasion, etc.  It is intense. And competitive.  But last week they did something fun...a lip sync show to Broadway tunes.  There were auditions and her group made the show (but, honestly, I wonder how many groups were actually cut because that show lasted TWO hours).  Tom and I were a little apprehensive about how Ellie's group would do since it didn't seem like they practiced much and they kept changing around parts.  But, the night of the show Ellie did awesome as Elphaba while lip syncing to "What is This Feeling?".  It was a late night for the boys (Jack had his nose buried in a book the entire time), but it was entertaining.

Jack had his GT Showcase tonight.  It is held at our school district's huge event center and showcases projects of GT students from the entire district.  I really had no clue what Jack's project was.  He mentioned doing a lot of research on Egypt and how difficult using a green screen was, but that was all I knew. We were late getting there because traffic was insane and the place was incredibly crowded, but we were so proud of Jack and his project.

Icepocalypse of 2018

When I left school last Friday, I was so excited about the upcoming 3 day weekend.  Little did I know, our 3 day weekend would turn into 5 thanks to freezing weather and a crazy ice storm!  Seriously, on Monday I took the kids to the park to play.  They were wearing shorts and t-shirts.  That night, the temps dropped and it started sleeting.  School was cancelled for Tuesday and Wednesday due to the icy roads.  Houston weather this school year has been mind-boggling.

New Year's Eve and Saying Goodbye

We continued our New Year's Eve tradition of spending it with Tom's best friend Alex (and now his wife Amanda).  They came over for dinner, games, and fireworks.  Unfortunately, the night hit a somber note when Tom and Alex walked outside around 7pm to find our dog, Kali, had passed away.  I had checked on her after church a few hours earlier and had been encouraged to see that she had eaten her food (she hadn't had much of an appetite for awhile).  It looked like she passed away peacefully in her sleep.  She was almost 15 years old and I knew that the time was coming.  I am thankful that I didn't have to make the decision to put her to sleep.  However, trying to figure out what to do with her over the holidays when all businesses are closed was a little stressful.  We ended up taking her to the Emergency Vet on New Year's day and having her cremated.
Kali has always been such a stressful dog, so I am surprised how much I miss her.

Christmas Break 2017

We stayed in town for the entirety of our Christmas break. It was actually pretty relaxing.  My oldest brother and his family were in town for a bit before and after their Disney cruise, so we spent time with them and with the local family.

Christmas Eve was spent with my younger brother and sister and their families.  My parents and Mark's family were also on the Disney cruise, so Daniel took over my Dad's role of narrating "The Pack for Santa's Back."

We left the kids in charge of figuring out costumes and acting out the Nativity.  Ellie narrated it for us.

Daniel also made Jesus's birthday cake.  My dad later informed us that it was supposed to be the Star of David, but I still thought it looked legit.

And, of course, we took a picture of the cousins in their Christmas jammies.  I actually did not buy my kids pajamas this year. Instead I bought them each the big, soft blankets from Costco so they would quit stealing mine.  They were so happy about those blankets!

Christmas morning, the kids stayed in bed til just after 6 am.  We went down and opened gifts.  Their big Santa gift was a Nintendo Switch which was a hit with everyone (even Tom).

While everyone played, I made cinnamon roles and a breakfast casserole.

In the afternoon, we went over to Tom's mom's house to open even more presents.

The day after Christmas, we did Christmas with Tom's dad.  We ate fajitas and opened presents.  My kids get pretty spoiled celebrating Christmas 3 days in a row.