Monday, December 3, 2007

Is it really Christmas already?

Saturday night was the Eaton Rapids Christmas Parade and Catie was in it! At first, I grumbled, as usual about having to be out in the FREEZING cold, but of course I went anyway. One stop at Family Dollar and I had gloves, hat and scarf, but I was STILL FREEZING. Then I began to laugh, as I watched all the children running down Main Street and throwing themselves on the street to slide. It was like a scene from an old movie.


I was alone, as Mikey was at work and Joe and Andy were at a wrestling match. It was kind of strange to stand in the midst of all the families, but the Christmas spirit was alive and I began to enjoy myself in spite of the cold. Finally, Catie's float came by and I NEVER EVEN SAW HER!!!!!

Saying Goodbye

It was a tough morning on Thursday, as Cat, Paul and Tate loaded up and moved on down the road towards St. Louis. If we weren't laughing so hard at Paul, it would have been much worse.

The trailer he rented was too small and as he kept smiling and packing (and repacking) we got to listen to Cat. That was enough to keep everyone laughing. It really was funny, if you weren't the one it was happening to! By the end of the morning, Paul had crammed and jammed every crack and crevice in the van and trailer. He ended it all by making his own back door for the trailer to hold it all in! I really did chuckle as he tied it together.

We Are Thankful


Every year, we all begin looking forward to the Thanksgiving trip to the Alberts. Now, we moan and groan about the traffic, change our departure times at least 3 times and finally load up the car, ready to brave Chicago traffic.

Some things never change and that is so good. We begin Wednesday night....EATING! We have decided it is our weekend theme. Actually, it is EAT, SLEEP, EAT some more (while the women scrapbook between naps) and Dave and Paul shop for bargains.





First thing Thursday morning Dave and Paul are looking for newspapers. It is so hard to find, that last year Paul was spotted removing them from neighbors driveways! He said, "Just going to waste! They are out of town for the holiday."



Thursday was great. Dave even remembered to get our Mom's special cranberry dish out and the table was complete with Mom's china and lots of memories. We allowed only good memories. Prayers said, the dishes began to fly and we really did consume 29 lbs of turkey before the weekend was over.

Lots of scrapbooking was done, in between naps and lots of shopping. Cat and Paul made a couple of trips to Ikea, Dave hit the bargain stores with Paul on Friday morning while the rest of us slept off the turkey dinner. On Saturday Joe, Andy, Catie and I went to the train station to head into Chicago. Catie really wanted to see the American Girl store.



I had no idea that it was going to be a day of Chicago living up to it's name...The Windy City. I was absolutely FREEZING! I am not much of a walker to start with and with the wind ripping through me, I was miserable as we waited for the trolley car. Then my phone rang...it was Cat and she was only blocks away! She had followed us into the city and was truly my Angel, as she scooped me off that cold, windy street.
We continued to the American Girl store, where Catie nearly lost her mind. Then on to dinner at a Spanish place that Joe had read about.

By Sunday night, we were relaxed and had enjoyed a great weekend with family as we headed home. It doesn't get any better!

Home at Last

After 6 long months, Paul is home and safe. Tate acted as if it was just yesterday that he had been hanging all over his Dad. From the moment he saw Paul, he latched on and they are best buds, as usual. Cat is both relieved to have Paul home safe and to have 2 minutes to herself for a change. It was fun to watch her enjoy eating a whole meal without interruption, as Paul and Tate bonded again.