It's Beginning to Look a Little Like Christmas

Holiday Song channel set up on Pandora Radio? Check. Christmas presents purchased and (mostly) wrapped? Check. Blustery wind blowing snowflakes around the sky? Not so much. But, hey, you can't have it all.

Per annual tradition, Colby put up the Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. One of my favorite parts of the holiday season is watching the kids decorate the tree. Each year they get better at it; Soren gets tall enough to put ornaments just a little bit higher. We downsized our tree last year in exchange for a smaller, pre-lit model. As I pulled each ornament out of the tote and unwrapped it, memories flooded back. Oh, look! It's the Our First Christmas Together 1998 ornament. The kids all have My First Christmas ornaments, and in a family like mine those can take up a lot of room on a little tree.



We have lots of fishing ornaments for Dade:



There are lots of Star Wars ornaments for Brody and a Schoolhouse Rock "I'm Just a Bill" ornament for me:



Here's Colby's new gnome:



And our little snow people family:



And, of course, the little wooden hearts purchased in memory of the little snowflake that never made it to become a snow-Vesely (but we still think of you every Christmas):



It's magical what a Christmas tree can do to make your spirits soar and to make the tears flow. Here's to kicking off the holiday season with hearts full of joy, compassion, and gratitude for all of our blessings. May we not only be mindful of what we have but also of what we've lost and what is still to come. Happy Holidays!

Thanksgiving at the Beach

No, that's not a misprint. We spent this Thanksgiving at my aunt's house, and she just happens to live on a man-made lake near Omaha (her neighborhood is called Hawaiian Acres - really). Despite the fact that we are well into November, the weather was a fabulous 65 degrees or more. Seriously, what more can one be thankful for than beautiful weather and waterfront property?

For the occasion, I prepared about a million kolaches: apricot, cherry, cheesecake, and pecan. They went over very well, especially with Dade (aka Bottomless Pit). Colby even said, "This is how a kolache should taste. Is this my grandma's recipe?" Yes, Dear, it was. My sisters even snagged some to take home for later. I told them I'd give them baking lessons soon!

Back to the beach....

Brody and Evie put their feet in the water:



We took a family photo on the beach:



Colby and I pretended to honeymoon in Hawaii:



I took some funny photos with my brother and sisters:





And I made sure to take some photos of the kids:






If a beach Thanksgiving in Nebraska doesn't sound strange enough, how about a Thanksgiving celebration with a pinata? I know the Pilgrims would be proud.





No cars/kids/scrotums were harmed during this event. That's also something for which we were thankful.

Evacuation Day

So, who out there has heard of Evacuation Day (besides you, Sassafras Mama)? I hadn't either. I didn't even learn about it in school despite it's seeming great importance in American history.

What I know about Evacuation Day I learned from The Daily Show. Apparently, the British kept American POWs in floating prisons on ships during the Revolutionary War. Conditions were terrible, and thousands of soldiers died on these boats. Evacuation Day marks the day that George Washington finally kicked all the British out of New York. Why shouldn't we celebrate it (although technically the actual event happened in March)?

For once my viewing of satirical news shows taught me something: instead of celebrating "some Mayflower-cruising Jesus freaks" on Thanksgiving, maybe we should be honoring the thousands of lives lost in those floating prisons. As long as it means I can eat all the green bean casserole and apple pie that I want, I'm down for whatever.

So, here's to a new tradition: from now on the Vescapades family will not only celebrate Thanksgiving on the last Thursday in November. We will also celebrate Evacuation Day (as long as I can have an extra piece of pie to celebrate).

Saturday Night Out

Thanks to my helpful "little" brother (he's 17 and probably 6 feet 2), Colby and I got to go out with our friends on Friday night. We even got my bro to take a quick photo:



Soren was happy to have her uncle babysit because she said that they could, "jump on him all night." Well, I don't think that happened, but Little Miss Captain America was ready:



We went to Lincoln's newest sushi bar, Dozo. The atmosphere is totally big city, but I've had better food at one of the other local sushi places. I guess you can't have it all. The good news is that it's located right around the corner from Ivanna Cone, so I got to go get a scoop of peanut brittle and a scoop of dutch chocolate. After three glasses of Elderflower and champagne (it smelled like a bouquet!), I was sufficiently lubricated enough to go to the cigar bar despite my sore throat. The men got to smoke their lungs out, and the ladies got to gossip. It all worked out in the end.

After having our fill of cigars and spirits, we headed out for a game of bowling. I bowled a 158, thank you very much, proving that champagne does not interfere with my ability to roll. Margaritas, yes. Lots of margaritas and I roll the ball backwards. But that's another story (see blog post about my birthday party this year).

We were home before midnight like the true old people that we are. Perhaps next time we'll actually make it to midnight. Or not.

Playdate

After weeks of waiting, Soren finally had a play date with her friend, Reese. She was so very excited to finally have a friend to play with for the whole day!! My bestie Sara needed daycare for the day, and we are always happy to have Miss Reese spend the day with us. You may recall that Reese used to come to our house for daycare every day, so Soren is especially happy when Reese gets to come play for the day.

As a special treat, I took the girls to Lost in Fun, otherwise known as Lost in "Fun". I'm glad we went because the girls pretty much had the place to themselves. There was no chaos. I didn't have to worry that some kid would plow over poor little Reese. It actually was FUN for once!

Reese loved the ball pit, and she didn't even have to share it.



The usually jam-packed playground equipment was basically empty, and the girls enjoyed playing house all by themselves.



I sat outside the huge bounce house and kept an eye on the girls, and they were so thrilled to have the whole thing to themselves. They ran and climbed and jumped til they were sweaty. I just chilled.



I'd say this was the best trip to Lost in Fun ever. I'll definitely plan on taking the girls there again during the lunch hour to avoid the crowds. It's the only way to have Fun.

Visiting Palmer

Our good friends the Hoss family recently made the move to the country. Yes, they've settled on a little farm so far populated by chickens, rabbits, fruit trees, and children. Really, what could be better?

Colby, the girls, and I made a trip to the farm while the boys headed to Verdigre to deer hunt. It was a perfect November day for traveling and for being outside. The Hoss homestead is overflowing with Midwestern charm: lots of trees, some barns, a grain bin, farm dogs and cats, and a cute house with a wood-burning heating system. Our friends have been working hard to upgrade a house that was pretty beat up when they moved in, and they've done a great job.

We were welcomed with homemade food and all the freedom afforded to having the run of a small farm. The kids held chicks and pet the rabbit. They raked leaves and chased each other around. It was so refreshing to see the girls doing something that I often did as a child on my grandparents' farm.

The best part was that they have a firing range set up to practice shooting. I now know that I'm a pretty good (or pretty lucky) shot. Seriously, I was shocked at my ability to hit a target. Now, could I shoot at something alive....doubt it. I'm seriously considering taking up shooting as a hobby.

We stayed til almost bedtime. Well, Colby had already determined in was his bedtime and fell asleep on the sofa.



The girls played so well together...



We had a lovely time visiting the Hoss farm, and we'll be back very soon! My own Pioneer Woman fantasies can now be fulfilled with a few visits with a good friend. I'll never give up living 15 minutes from a Target store, but I can still have a taste of true Midwestern small-farm life.

Back to Work

Well, I'm not really going back to work, but I have been putting more time into helping with my friend's photography business. It's actually become like a real part time job. Right now I just get paid in pictures, but it's not a bad trade. Check out a portion of my latest "paycheck":






I can bring Soren to work with me, and it all works around my schedule. Amanda even lets Soren help sometimes, which Soren is letting go to her head. Check out the photo of us Soren posed during our photo shoot:



Go to this link to check out Amanda's photos. You might see a certain Vescablogger you know! Urban Photo will be a small business owned by and operated by three fabulous women. I figure I'm pretty much unemployable by everyone else, so I might as well work with one of my best friends, right?

Girl Scouts Update 2

We had our first Girl Scout firld trip this week. We headed to Dietze Music, an instruments and instrument lessons store. One of our troop parents works there, and she showed us around. The girls got to play some instruments and listen to other instruments. It was a pretty nest field trip that I bet not a lot of other troops get to take. The girls will get a music patch for going.




Ya know, I think I'm pretty good at this Girl Scout thing. Hopefully, the girls think so, too!

The Most Wonderful TIme of the Year!

We had our first Autumn snow last week. It was my favorite kind of snow, the kind that wasn't 2 feet deep on the driveway. The kind that looked so beautiful as it fell but melted when it hit the ground. The kind that required no shovel or extra caution while driving. The kind of snow that fell on still-blooming summer flowers. It was great!




And, of course, Mo Beans refused to come inside and instead huddled next to the house and shivered. That dog will sit out in the middle of a blizzard and refuse to come inside. I guess she's an outside dog.

Happy Halloween!!!

This year Halloween was different. There were still jack-o-lanterns, candy, costumes, and fun. There was beautiful weather and lots of friends to help enjoy it. One thing was missing from trick-or-treating this year....Dade.

Now that he's 13, Dade has been kicked off the trick-or-treat train. I still snagged a whole bunch of candy for him out of the other kids' pile, but he didn't get to collect any of his own. He didn't mind, though. His favorite tv show is on Monday nights, and he was content to sit at home and watch it.

Like I said, some things remain the same. We still went to the Halloween even at the Shriner's Sesostris Shrine. Soren was freaked out, and I'm pretty sure Brody didn't come along with us because he was so freaked out last year. It is a little scary, but that's why it's fun!!




Of course, Colby made the kids' jack-o-lanterns to their specifications.






Dade carved his own this year. Yes, I gave him a knife. Shocking.



Our friends joined Colby and the kids as they trick-or-treated. I stayed home to hand out treats, as usual. It's my Halloween tradition to hand out treats and watch a scary movie.

Brody and his friends (Brody's in the gray and white camouflage with the green-tipped gun):



The girls:



One of the greatest blessings in humankind in the chance to make happy memories with your family. Halloween 2011 was definitely one of those memories to cherish!