the magic of christmas

The magic of Christmas-it's my favorite time of year. I start listening to Christmas carols the day after Thanksgiving and continue listening to only carols the whole season. I don't get tired of them-the fun ones, the silly ones, the ones that give you chills. My favorite carol? I can't say that I have just one because I love so many, but I can say that I love any Christmas song by John Denver. Hokey, maybe, but I don't care. I still love a good John Denver tune.

 I grew up surrounded with folk music from my parents. Either listening to folk artists or listening to my parents playing the guitar, the piano or singing. Growing up, they were the head of the choir at church. They were the ones that were hired for weddings and funerals, they even sang at my wedding. Erik calls my mom the "church lady" ala Saturday Night Live. I have to admit, I get a good laugh from that, but I promise she's a lot better and I am thankful every day that my parents instilled in me a love for music. My only regret is that I don't play an instrument!  If you haven't heard any Christmas songs by John Denver, go listen.  Afterall, December 25 may have come and gone, but it is still the Christmas season! 

Our Christmas season is most complete for me when we travel to visit Erik's family and see the lights at CALM. This picture doesn't do it justice, it's only a small fraction of what you see and it's absolutely gorgeous!

"The light that shines for all to see...

the peace of Christmas day." -The Peace Carol

Anna, of course, was the first one up Christmas morning! She is usually one of, if not the last to sleep in on a regular morning, but Christmas? Where's the party?

"Find your heart...

open up both your eyes." -It's in Every One of us

Sometimes the sisters bicker, and other times be still my heart.

"See how much there is to give, see how strongly you believe...

see how much you may receive." -Aspenglow

Christmas would not be complete without tears (of joy, of course) from my mom.

"The season is upon us now, a time for gifts and giving...

and as the year draws to its close, I think about my living." -A Baby Just Like You

I decided this year we'd use the remote shutter to document that we were here without anyone having to have a camera in their hand. I need a lot more practice, but it's a start! It's the only one that has the six of us and we never did take a whole family photo other than our card-that's life.

"I don't know if you believe in Christmas, or if you have presents underneath the Christmas tree...

but if you believe in love, that will be more than enough, for you to come and celebrate with me."

We actually had a Christmas Eve Eve with my parents before they headed to my sister and brother-in-law's house this year. We have "big Christmas" every other year.

"Christmas is a time to come together, a time to put all differences aside...

and I reach out my hand to the family of man, to share the joy I feel at Christmas time." 

I just happened to steal this moment from my dad and Tatum. According to my mom, she knows Tatum loves her, but she'll drop her in seconds flat as soon as she sees her Nonno.  They have a really special bond.

"For I have held the precious gift that love brings, even though I've never saw a Christmas star...

 But I know there is a light, I have felt it burn inside and I can see it shining from afar."

We had a fairly quiet and calm Christmas morning and celebrated with Erik's parents. Liam loved seeing Papa in his space age ski goggles.

"For the truth that binds us all together, I would like to say a simple prayer...

that at this special time, you will have true peace of mind and love to last throughout the coming year." -A Christmas Wish

And of course, what would Christmas (or any day for that matter) be, without Liam getting into something he wasn't supposed to. I think he ate everyone's chocolate from Santa. #liamstrikesagain

"Perhaps love is like a window, perhaps an open door...

 it invites you to come closer, it wants to show you more". -Perhaps Love

Liam's big gift from Santa was his John Deere tractor, which everyone but Kieran and Erik have ridden so far. I may or may not have ridden it in the garage yesterday.

"It's tall in the saddle we spend Christmas Day, driving the cattle over snow covered plains...

So many gifts have been opened today...

ours is the sky,

 and the wide open range."

Okay, so no wide open range or snow, especially not inside the house, but riding an electric tractor was as close as I could come to riding a horse. ;)

When I was just a wee little boy, full of health and joy, 

One Christmas morning I received The Marvelous Little Toy.

A wonder to behold it was with many colors bright...

And the moment I laid eyes on it, it became my heart's delight." The Marvelous Little Toy 

(lyrics by Tom Paxton)

"That Peace on Earth fills up your time, that brotherhood surrounds you...

That you may know the warmth of love and wrap it all around you." -A Baby Just Like You

Our priest at our church spoke to all of us at family mass on Christmas Eve, he even wore a Christmas bow on his head for part of the mass. His message simple, but so powerful. While presents we give to others at Christmas can signify the gifts that were brought to Jesus by the Wise men, the true presents, the gift, the magic of Christmas is us. It is YOU! Jesus lives in us, in our hearts. We share this love and we give this gift to others. Father gave each child a Christmas bow to take home and instructed them to put the ribbons on their heads Christmas Day.

It's my absolute favorite picture...

"Music makes pictures and often tells stories, all of it magic and all of it true...

and all of the pictures and all of the stories, all of the magic, the music is you." -The Music is You

...it's the magic of Christmas.

"Live, Jesus, in our hearts! Forever"-Lasallian Prayer

bottled joy

I know that Christmas is not about the presents. 

I think that I do a fairly good job at teaching my children the same...

that Christmas is about Christ, 

that true gifts are those of love,

both on the giving and receiving end.

When I asked Kieran to draw a card for his teacher for Christmas, I fully expected to see a tree with ornaments, presents abound and Santa on his sleigh.

Rushing out the door for school as usual, I was stopped in my tracks and was filled with pride that Kieran had not chosen to draw any of the sort.

There, on the white computer paper he had written: "Dear Mrs. B, I hope you have a happy break".

On the inside in his very best attempt (art is not his favorite activity, but this was the best of his best),

a manger scene.

I'm not sure why it is, but there are times when I've felt guilty in a way, by extending Christmas in giving it a dual meaning...meaning Jesus and Santa Claus.

Am I confusing them?

Am I diluting the true reason by taking away from Jesus and giving in to Santa?

To some, maybe.

And then I think, "Yes, Virginia, there is a Santa Claus"!

I find delight in his reaction 

to receiving ski poles.

Those are the poles that will be with him as he flies down the mountain alongside his daddy and his papa.

I find excitement in hers

as this is the bike

that she will learn to ride alongside her brother and daddy (I don't have one ;)).

I find myself filled with great anticipation

that she will continue to develop her love and appreciation for music for it has been a large part of my life thanks to my mom and dad.

It's the time that we spend with family

whether it's your husband cooking with his father (who never cooks and joined in alongside his son to learn something new),

or your mother-in-law

having a "conversation" with her grandbaby,

that matters.

It's the photo with your phone that didn't come out so great

but is a cherished memory because it's the only picture you have of yourself with your mom and dad and (almost) all of your kids since the baby went to bed to say, "I was here".

It's the funny times that you want to remember, 

like when your two year old is obsessed with her new puffer jacket and her big sister's bike and helmet

that she just can't

get enough.

It's the tradition of eating apple pancakes,

because it's that fattening that you only eat it once a year.

It's the thrill of the light strip that Daddy mounted under the bed,

that prompted her to model some of her favorite colors and makes you smile.

My guilt melts away as I believe in my heart that it's not about the material items themselves so much as it is the time that was spent and will be spent laughing, dancing, cooking, eating, skiing, biking, talking, just being...together.

And if it means a visit to him...

along with a manger scene for Him,

so be it. 

I will have bottled the joy that is Christmas to live it all year long.

joy of love 5, 6, 7

I skipped joy of love 5, but may go back to it. In the mean time, prompt #6 is

who they love:

ISO 400 f 1.8 1/180 (should have increased my f stop, since they move around like crazy, then I wouldn't have had the blur in Anna's hand :) )

It's not a technically sound picture, but it's the expressions of my kids. It is SO their personalities. This prompt, who THEY love? This picture foots the bill, 'cause they LOVE each other!

And for joy of love 7?
Generations:
My parents and Tatum

ISO 800 f 2 1/500
Tatum makes grandchild #6 for my parents and they are thrilled! I am lucky to have parents like mine! They make our family days special and unique. My dad plays the guitar and my mom sings and plays the piano. They played and sang at my wedding, my sister's wedding, and all of our kids baptisms.
Thank you Mom and Dad, I love you!

you say it's your birthday...

Monday was Mom's real birthday, but we had her over for a birthday celebration on Sunday that began with Dad painting (yes, my room has been in perpetual painting hell for months now and still is), and us taking a trip to our beloved zoo. 

This was the end of the night, but we forgot to take a picture at the zoo, so I started with this one :)

In addition to taking Mom to the zoo, we also got to meet up with the Bell's (our good friends and Anna's godparents). Kieran has a few idols (our next door neighbor and Cousin Catherine-who will appear shortly), but his main squeeze is Elyse. 

They had a blast together...looking at the otters,

the turtles and reptiles,

climbing the big frog,

hanging out inside the turtle shell,

and riding the tiger coaster.


These two are so sweet together. You know it's "love" when they live 300 miles apart and are two peas in a pod immediately.


Anna fully enjoyed her day as well. It's a lot of fun to take her to the zoo now, because she is taking everything in at warp speed. She wants to do everything that the "big kids" do...

like climbing the big frog...

or walking right up to the glass to get a piece of the action,

or using her zoo key.
She is keenly aware of her surroundings and it is very important to her to say hi to everyone that she sees...

even if it's through a pane of glass. And what you don't see is the people on the other side whom Anna managed to catch their attention :)

She even watched the turtle as he ever so slowly hunted for the cricket that I'm sure had to have filled him up. If it didn't, I can only imagine that it takes forever to eat lunch!

A couple of thousand steps later, dreamland had finally arrived.

Perfect timing to fall asleep, because the sky ride is 20 minutes! Sorry for the blurry picture,  I zoomed in too far with my small point and shoot. I REALLY need to get my SLR fixed!

Still, are they not the cutest?

It was finally time to hit the road so that the B's could embark on their 4 hour excursion, and we could get back to the house in time for the family to come over for Mom's birthday dinner.

Typical boy, doesn't say goodbye to Elyse. Typical girl, Elyse stomps off.

Smart girl, learns that if she pouts (and this is one good pout, I might add)...

she'll get exactly what she wants. 
Way to go Elyse!

I tell ya', it was one happy day for Kieran. The zoo, Elyse, playing Top Gun on Nonno's iphone, and relishing every minute with Cousin Catherine.
And the other items that Kieran relishes?

Opening presents even when they're not his, 

blowing out birthday candles, even when they're not his,

not once, but twice!
And of course, eating the pumpkin bundt cake with rum glaze  (which looks different than the linked one because I used rum which made the glaze turn clear), twice :).

I was even demoted! He was so excited that Catherine read his bedtime story!
A good time was had by all,

all including Mom and Auntie Mary, and for some reason the big fat ZERO pictures I took of Dad, Erik, Johnny and Gina. Not sure what happened with that?

Yes, you already saw this picture, but this picture deserves to be posted a second time. My mom is the most selfless, giving, kind, caring, cool, FUNNY person I know. This woman lives life to the fullest, more than anyone I've ever known. She gets it. She knows that life is too short to carry guilt, hold grudges, sweat the small stuff. She knows that life is so precious, wonderful, that if you can't laugh at yourself, you aren't really living. She knows that life is all about family and friends. She knows that life is helping others, even if they are perfect strangers. She knows that God listens and she listens in return. My mom, my idol, my friend.


You say it's your birthday
It's my birthday too--yeah
They say it's your birthday
We're gonna have a good time
I'm glad it's your birthday
Happy birthday to you.

Yes we're going to a party party
Yes we're going to a party party
Yes we're going to a party party.

I would like you to dance--Birthday
Take a cha-cha-cha-chance-Birthday
I would like you to dance--Birthday
Dance
I love you mommy!