Happy Anniversary!

Happy Anniversary to us! Today, we've been married for 6 years. It's nice that every other year we make it back to Shenandoah, IA, for Christmas so we can actually be in the town we were married in on our actual anniversary day.

On the morning we got married, Laura and I met at the Donut Stop (before all the craziness began) to enjoy some donuts and time alone together. It broke all wedding traditions, but we really enjoyed seeing each other before the wedding. Whenever we're in Shenandoah on our anniversary, we try to make a point of going to the Donut Stop in the morning.





















For lunch, we went to the Depot, an old train station that was converted into a restaurant. I had a burger and fries and Laura had shrimp and onion rings.

At night, we watched the Giant's heartbreaking loss to the undefeated Patriots. Although I would have liked to see the Patriots lose more than anything, I was proud of the Giants. They only lost by 3 points (38-35) and they're still in the playoffs.

Overall, it was a fun day. Nice and relaxing, good food, and cold weather. Oh, and just in case you're wondering, all those donuts weren't only for us. We brought some home for Laura's family as well.

White Christmas!

As I'm writing this, it's snowing outside! Bing isn't the only one who's been dreaming of a white Christmas :) It's nice to see big fluffy clumps of snow falling from the sky and it's nice when looking out the window to see everything blanketed in white.



This morning at 8am (bright and early), we had our morning Christmas breakfast - quiche, cinnamon coffee cake, and fruit salad. Quickly after that, we transitioned into our time of opening Christmas presents. Michael read us the Christmas Story (kid's version) before we started and then we all took turns as we opened every last gift. Natalie slept through most of it, but then woke up just in time to see some of the presents she received.





Elijah got another chance to play out in the snow. After we opened presents, he went with Grandpa, Tricia, and Gavin for a short walk. It's so funny to see how much Elijah loves the snow!



After Christmas Lunch (Ham, turkey, meat balls, green beans, mashed potatoes, and stuffing)everyone took naps, well mostly everyone. Michael, Leslie, and I didn't. We just hung out, ate puppy chow, and played games the rest of the night.

I'll end this blog with a video we took of Elijah this morning. He's been working on saying, "Merry Christmas."

Merry Christmas everyone!

Are We There Yet?

Saturday night we arrived at Michael and Leslie's house. The trip took a little longer than planned. Originally we were going to head up through Des Moines but since a snow storm was supposed to blow through, we took an alternate route that ended up adding about 3 hours to our trip.



It ended up being ok because the alternate route ended up taking us through Le Mars, IA (home of the famous Blue Bunny Ice Cream and one of our favorite hang-outs when we were at Dordt). We hadn't been there for at least 4 years, so what else could we do but eat ice cream when it was 18 degrees outside!










We left Shenandoah, IA around 9am, piled up in our white 15 passenger van, and arrived in Coon Rapids, MN at 6pm. It was a long trip, just short of 9 hours. Natalie and Elijah did well until about the last 30 minutes. Elijah's famous words, "Elijah out!" He was getting tired of sitting in his seat. We tried to keep him busy reading books, watching movies, and playing with his toy cars.












When we got there, it was picture time! Here are some group shots after the cousins met (of course).

Wild Game Feed

For lunch today, we went to Brown's annual wild game feed. Brown's Shoe Fit Company is where Laura's dad works. Every year, the staff gets together and displays their "trophies" from hunting season by setting out a large portion of food for everyone to sample.












This year was we were able to attend. Usually, when we get here for Christmas, they've already had it, but this year we were here early so we finally got to see what the rave was all about. It was good! Here's what was on the menu: Deer, Fish, Elk, Duck, Turkey, Bear, Pheasant. I have to say that I think the Bear was the best! It was in a soup and was supper yummy. Maybe the next time I see a bear, I should shoot it!?



I think we all went away stuffed. It was a good lunch.




And since we had the lunch in a wood shop, Elijah couldn't resist checking out some of the tools...what a surprise!

Fun in the Snow!

Well, we made it safely to Iowa. Our trip on the airplane was overwhelmingly sucessful! Elijah loved it...especially the take off! One of his favorite books is called, Airport. We read it for the 50th million time before we got on the plane. He had a huge smile on his face and laughed as the plane picked up speed down the runway before takeoff. We brought lots of things for him to do on the plane which for the most part kept him pretty busy. Natalie slept most of the time, which was also pretty helpful.

Today we played in the snow. Elijah thought it was the coolest thing ever! We dressed him up in his awesomely colored snow suit, his boots, and gloves and headed outside into the winter wonderland...to do what else, but build "Frosty the Snowman."












Here are some pictures of us playing in the snow and of our totally awesome snowman:










On Saturday, we'll load up the 15 passenger van and make the 6-7 hour journey up to Minneapolis. I think there's supposed to be a snow storm coming in that day, so we might have to take it a little slow. We'll probably update more when we get to Michael and Leslie's house.

Christmas Celebrations

Tis the season for getting together with friends, eating lots of yummy food, and just celebrating life. That's what we have been doing for the last week or so. Here's how it's been:

Sunday, Dec. 8 - World Impact's Annual Women's Christmas Tea (put on by friend Julie)...I went to hang out with the ladies on staff and of course eat Christmas treats. Each lady was to bring either an appetizer or dessert. I chose to bring decorated sugar cookies and peppermint bark. We drank hot tea, cider or hot chocolate and ate and talked. It was nice to spend some time with friends, while Dave stayed home with the kiddos. :)

Wednesday, Dec. 12 - We had friends Ryan, Danielle, Jodi and Manolo over for food and games. Way too much food and too tired of the guys beating the girls at Cranium! Whatever...it was fun and Elijah enjoyed eating all the treats he wanted before bed. :) (It's Christmas!!!)












Thursday, Dec. 13 - Staff Christmas Party...this year we sat with our family/small groups and had a table decorating contest. We put the most work into our table, but alas did not win. It doesn't matter. We had a fun night of games, skits, eating, and a reflection time on Jesus' birth.











Sunday, Dec. 16 - We went to Tammy and Michelle's house with Ryan and Danielle for more yummy food and a white elephant gift exchange. Lots of fun gifts being exchanged! We definitely won with the best gift, which we can re-gift. :) Elijah especially loved time with Michelle and Max!










Monday, Dec. 17 - All packed up for our trip to Iowa/Minnesota, we came out to Mom and Dad G's home for pre-Christmas fun. Last night we went to look at the Christmas lights on Thoroughbred Rd., near Dave's parents'. Elijah was fascinated by all the lights, Natalie didn't care and just slept. :) We enjoyed the colder weather but were thankful it wasn't Iowa cold yet.










Tuesday, Dec. 18 - Today we'll celebrate Christmas with Dave's parents and exchange gifts. I'm sure Elijah can't wait to open presents and start playing with his toys!

Wednesday, Dec. 19 - Tomorrow we fly out early from Ontario to Omaha, where we'll meet my parents and start in on the Christmas fun in cold Iowa. Then on Saturday, we'll drive up to Minneapolis with my parents and Tricia to spend almost a week at Leslie, Michael and Gavin's (Tara will meet us there). I can't wait to be with my whole family again! It has been 2 years since we have all been together...much too long!

We'll keep taking pictures and letting you know how our continued Christmas celebrations are...Merry Christmas to you!

What We've been Up To

It's been awhile since we posted some pictures about some of the random things we've been up to. This doesn't mean that this is ALL we've been up to...only what we have pictures of. Enjoy!

Elijah trying on his "new" Spiderman clothes he got handed-down from his cousins. Thanks Micah and Jacob!

Daddy and Natalie sitting on the couch listening to Christmas music.









Snowflakes that Dave made on Sunday...just 'cuz. From left to right: Ice Flower, Star Blaze, Crystal Cross, Christmas Tree, Angel Snowflake








Surprise presents from Auntie Tara...Blue's Clues notebook and sheet set for Elijah.












AND from Uncle Sam...Glitter Cups for Elijah and Natalie and a Christmas CD.












More updates to come! We'll keep you posted.

Return of the Poop Worms

Back by popular demand, the poop worms have returned!!! We found this little guy a few days ago eating the leaves of our tangelo tree. Since we found out last time that these caterpillars aren't actually poop at all but turn into Giant Swallow-tail Butterflies, we thought that we'd keep this one and see for ourselves if this was in fact true.








We made a nice little home for it inside a 2-liter Pepsi bottle and gave it some leaves to eat. It seems pretty content...it better be since it'll be in there for a while. I wonder how long it takes for a caterpillar to transform into a butterfly? Any butterfly experts out there?

We'll keep you updated on the little guy's progress. In the meantime, it has a nice little home next to our pet Black Widow (not shown) that we've had in a jar for about 3 1/2 months now. Don't ask!

Playing Outside

Here's a really short video of Elijah going down the slide while we were playing outside in the cold. I don't think he ever figured out how to land on his feet :)

Christmas at THE OAKS

Yesterday, we spent the entire day up in the mountains. It was World Impact's Christmas at THE OAKS. CATO is an event where people from our church plants and those we minister to can get away from the city, come up to the mountains, and celebrate the birth of Jesus. Laura again, was in charge of all the volunteer groups that came to help serve meals, do crafts, and oversee games and activities.

It was C-O-L-D! Well, probably not at cold as it is in some parts of the Midwest right now, but it was definitely cold and very windy. We had a lot of fun though.

After meeting with all the volunteers in the morning, we had a chance to check out all that was going on. Elijah was especially excited about the hay ride and fascinated with the tractor that was pulling it. We also played outside on the playground, drank coffee, checked out the crafts, and hung out with friends.

Here are some pictures from the day. We actually didn't take very many...ok, we only took three. Anyway, here they are.




We had a good time and both Elijah and Natalie did great. Christmas has officially begun!