Santa's Arrival at The Fry's 2011

Santa came, again, this year...I believe he was persuaded to visit because of the great snowflake and picture/letter provided by the ladies.  I like how Santa always writes back.  He's such a good dude.

Jorey's working on her snowflake

Macy made the Christmas fish?

All done!

There's a Christmas letter, cookies (with lots of doo dads) and milk for Santa

Happy fellas

Christmas with Orange Papa & Gramma

my snuggle buns!

Poor Gramma...Macy was plugging her nose to eat the awesome gourmet potatoes!

Per my mom's request that we not have Christmas with our family right after big Kath Christmas, we go down the night before.  This is due to one year that we all drank too many Norbs (Tom & Jerry's) and were drunk and crying...Her vote was legit and we all agreed it would be best.  We host Christmas Day for the Fry's, too.  This way, we get home and get settled before having our small family Christmas on Christmas Morning and then have the whole clan over later in the day.  It's a lot of days of eating for Christmas (blugh...)  But, it's fun to get together with everyone and have no place else to be!

And...more sparkle.

The Fam

Cookie day and Santa's phone call

Every year, for the fourth year, now...my sisters and I make Christmas cookies with the ladies of the Fry house.  This year, we did it right before Christmas, due to Mackenzie's current residence.  We did get a couple extra visitors this year.  Mark and Kara also joined the event.  For the past couple years, we have talked our Dad into joining us...we like to have him roll out the cookies because it doesn't make him sad like it does,us... Later in the night, yellow gramma swung by.  She thought she may know of a way to get Santa to call.  Seriously...look at their faces.  It was priceless!  I wish I could remember the site we went on to set-up the calls.  So Awesome.

Leaps & Bounds Christmas Program

Well, Macy's out, but Jorey and Grady still reside at Leaps & Bounds.  Due to inclement weather, this jem was cancelled last year, but here are some shots of our little singer and our little reindeer rockin' it out.

Santa even came to say to wish us all a Merry Christmas!

Every year, we venture to Hampton Hills to find that (attempted) perfect tree.  This year, the girls had so much fun.  We went with Yellow Papa and Gramma AND Auntie Amy and Uncle Nick.  This was the first year they got their real tree.  It's a whole other adventure carrying tank-biggins through the tree farm with slippery winter coats on...we needed to get a tree and get back in the car. :)  Success!

The ladies love decorating the tree.  I like watching their excitement and try to remember that it's way more awesome for them than it is for me, putting up the darn thing. 

Merry Christmas!

What a great Christmas season for 2010.  There was more snow than anyone needed, beautiful dresses made by Orange Gramma, Great family to spend time with, great food (way too much - thanks for 2 more months of dieting to get back in shape after Boom Babba's born).

The girls fully embrace the Christmas season with Elfie and mousie - that keep an eye on them when Santa can't...every day, they looked to see if he moved and sometimes he was in the craziest places that they just couldn't believe they could get there!  Every day, I realize that life's way more exciting when you're a kid and I love watching them light up at the slightest thing.  Christmas is the most magical thing in the world to a 3 and 5-year-old. 

Macy wrote her own letter to Santa, with a little help from Mom with some spelling, and Jorey traced what I wrote as she told me what she needed to tell him.  I thought I took pics of the letters, but I didn't and we tossed them.  They were pretty funny, but I can't remember all that was on them.  Oh, well...I'll get my act together for next year.  I'll blame it on baby brain this year. 
Santa must have really thought the girls were well behaved this year because they each got a new bike!  Macy got a blue one and Jorey got a purple one!  perfect!  They also got some ice skates, games, toys, just a ton of great stuff.  I can't wait to have this baby so it's easier to play with some of this stuff, with them.  I know I'll have less time, but I'll be able to move around...starting to feel pretty handicapped.  Boom Babba - come on out!

If you procrastinate on getting a Christmas tree...you must suffer!

So, we procrastinated this year.  Not without good reason.  One weekend, I was out of town.  The next weekend, my parents wanted the girls...I took advantage of a full day to steam clean the carpets - shout out to the Rug Doctor - 4x over the floors, the carpet looked and felt like it was brand new!  I got stains out from 4 years ago.  It was awful to do it, but awesome to have it done.  Anyways, so that's why it waited until this weekend.  Wow...this was the worst weekend in my "real tree" life to go get one.  We planned to do it first thing on Saturday, but due to winds, snow, and Hampton Hills being closed...we clearly had to put it off until today.  It was fairly entertaining.  First, I had gotten the girls these little hoodie things that will keep their necks and faces warm...I think they are awesome...Macy agreed.  Jorey --not so much...

she told me she's NOT smiling because she doesn't want to wear that hat/scarf thing! 

Once we got to the tree farm, she was all smiles for the ride through the trees and the pending excitement of the joyous adventure waiting for us. 

Don't go Tree Hunting after a Blizzard, nerds! 

Dad got out when we stopped so he could go find the perfect tree.  We got our jackets on and were going to come find him after he located our "beauty".  Well, when the girls and I got out of the truck, we sunk into snow up to my shins.  Then, we took another step, and the snow was up to my knees.  The next step was up to my thighs and Jorey said "No Way".  So, I threw her on my back and Macy and I kept going...the snow got deeper and deeper until I could barely get my feet up high enough.  We aborted our mission and headed back to the truck.  Dad had to be brave and get the tree, and then haul it back through the snow that was up to his waist.  It was funny and awful all at the same time because Ken refused to get a pre-cut tree and then hauled the scraggliest tree we've ever bought back to the truck.  Oh, well.  The memories are going to be great!  When he finally got back to the car, he had some frozen facial hair that the girls thought was soooo funny.

When we got home, we decorated the Charlie Brown tree all up.  In the dark, with the lights on, it's quite pretty. My little tree decorators did such a great job and they finally grasped the concept of decorating the whole tree this year - not just the bottom branches.  Though, we did have to have a few reminders that there is only one decoration per twiggy branch, they really did a fine job and it's fun to see how excited they get about a task I could really take or leave.  I have to try to remember to look at Christmas through my daughters' eyes because they seem to enjoy it much more than me. 

Fry Christmas Fun

We enjoy hosting the Fry Family Christmas gathering at our house.  It started 4 years ago when we had the biggest house and now, just because we will and have the kiddos and it's centrally located, we really enjoy having everyone over to our place.  The girls and I worked together to make the soup (Chicken Wild Rice) for Lunch, as well as the overnight buns.  They just couldn't wait to get their hands on the bread dough to try to make buns.  One of theirs turned out to look like a baby turtle, but it tasted just fine. :)   We do the soup, buns, and snacks for lunch so everyone can some when it's convenient for them - we relax the whole day - then, we make dinner together and have a big meal later on.
The girls always have a blast, get totally spoiled, and can relax with all their toys and "stuff" around.  This year was great - everyone was able to make it over, the food turned out well, and we had a nice time.  Even Grandpa Lynn was able to make it. 
Macy had the quote of the year, I think.  Yellow Gramma, Mary Ann, brought a cake.  It was a beautiful Christmas cake.  Macy waited about an hour and then asked, "Mom, whose birthday is it?" 
"Well, It's Jesus' birthday.  Did you remember that?"
"Well, ya - but, why do we have cake?"
It was so funny because she had been thinking it for a while - wondering why there would ever be a cake if there's not a birthday, etc.  I love when they do stuff like that. So funny. 

Christmas with the Kaths

The Kath family Christmas gathering is one to marvel at.  We gather about 50 people (majority Type-A personalities) into one home.  We have soups and snacks, Tom & Jerrys, and a lot of talkin' smart.  Santa always comes for the kids.  This was the year that some of us 2nd generation parents said, "Let's just skip Santa" - it's a hassle and the kids don't really embrace it in the garage, there's always a lot of trauma, etc.  Oh, lordy...the old farts in the Kath Fam weren't having any of it.  So, he came.  It was the best year we've ever had.  Almost every kid was happy to see him and thought he was super cool.  Jorey even sat on his lap and smiled and seemed content to be on his lap - it was awesome.  We had a new member this year - Alix - Brody's girlfriend.  Amazingly, she survived and seemed unscathed...she may even come back for Kath Family Fun Weekend.  Lord help her.  :)

Twelve Bars of Christmas: Owatonna Style

It's so wrong.  But, it feels so right.  200 people get together to joyfully gather in some of our smallest bars.  What in the world makes us do it every year?  Good times, funny stories, and Plaza Morena at the end of the night...delicious.  Nina is a champ and now runs the show.  We hardly ever get together any more.  Since having a family, I've rarely had a desire to get out on the town, but for this event, I've gotta be in!  Funniest moments:  We discovered that Webers has a VIP section - more like a VIP corner - you have to pay to have it.  I thought it was hilarious.  Does anyone really pay to sit in the corner?  ...nobody puts baby in the corner...especially if you have to pay.

A High, and then a Low...

This morning, I was getting ready for work and I had this sweater dress-type thingy on.  It tends to protrude in all the wrong places...
Macy says, "Mommy, you look beautiful!".
Then, she follows it with, "You look like you have a baby in your belly."....grumble...smile...grumble...ha. 

Good stuff.

btw - Both girls prematurely opened a gift after realizing some were finally wrapped under the tree.  I was folding clothes on Saturday and heard paper tearing and all sorts of shocked gasps --you would have sworn there were 5 kids in our living room. 
I ran to the room to find both girls hovered over their princess horse with princess barbie.  I threatened that elfie is watching and that he'll tell santa if they open any more until mom and dad say they can on Christmas morning.  Later that day, little miss sassy-pants (jorey) ripped open one and blamed Macy with a totally straight face.  We're in trouble.............

Cookie Day: Pain is Temporary, Pride is Forever! - Oh, and let's try to pack in the hunt for a perfect Christmas Tree!

Well, it was the 2nd annual Kath/Fry girl Cookie Day.  We joined at our place to make way too many delicious treats.  The elders, Natalie, Kenz, and I, planned to join forces on Friday to get all the baking done so we could spend Friday night, Saturday, and Sunday cooking.  Well, we ended up packing a few too many activities our venture...to the point where we had to make a cookie that said, PIT PIF.  Pain Is Temporary, Pride is Forever.  It was so funny.  We were all just totally exhausted both nights.  The girls were starting to "mass produce" just putting a glob of frosting on 10 cookies at a time...now, there were still many entertaining points.  Macy still piled hers really high!  She can put more sprinkles and doo-dads on a cookie than anyone I've ever seen.  I can still remember when I was little, we had these silver balls that were so hard and didn't taste like anything - I'd line the cookies with them from top to bottom because "they were pretty".  I remember my mom telling me that we might want to just put a few on each cookie.  :)  Jorey got into the flour - Dad, then made an even bigger mess by helping her realize that clapping her hands would produce a great cloud of flour.  But, this was a great time to hang out with my sisters and daughters in the same day.  I know we're making memories that we'll be able to cherish for a long time and that sweeping and mopping the floor 3 times to get all the sprinkles up is all worth it!

Ken tried to get in a fight by insisting that we go try to get the Christmas tree this weekend.  I realize there were only certain days that worked and that's why we were able to agree upon this day when there were already not enough hours in the day.  :)  We go to Hampton Tree Farm every year with Mary Ann and Ken Sr.  It's a good time - we always get a chuckle out of Mary Ann because she can take as much time as we'll all allow - she brings her yard stick and ribbons and just really makes a science out of it.  I believe it could be related to the year that we went there late - they were really low on trees and they needed a small one.  We mocked her tree because it was like Charlie Brown's.  ha ha.  Since then, we go earlier in the season, we go to the "secret spot" and then we end up with the pick of the crop! 

Christmas is almost here!

Well, it is almost here. Christmas. My favorite time of the year just gets more and more stressful as the years go by. As the list of people to buy for grows and the time to do it dwindles, I generally lose my mind. But, as luck would have it Auntie Nad came over and played for 4 hours today. I got my wrapping done. I only procrastinated on a few - waiting for more clever ideas to somehow jump into my head...but, some will definitely be disappointed again this year. Sorry in advance!

First things first...let's back up - way up! to the 8th of Nov when we took Heidi Fry out for her Bachelorette Party. Please enjoy the following: Heidi taking her first of many "I'm not taking shots" shots...She was purchasing them later in the night! She drank from a special "Ho Fo Sho" goblet all night and she was the Sho, that's Fo Sho! She and the gals sang a very special rendition of Amarillo by Morning...can you tell who was most excited to sing this?

She married Kyle, FINALLY, on Nov 14th. It was a beautiful ceremony. We were ALL in it, so it was a bit crazy, but fun. The girls were all dressed up with sassy hair and all. They had a blast at the dance and were very disappointed at the end of the night when they were too tired to know they were insane and had to go home. Here's one example of the meltdown.

Let's back up a little farther - Halloween. Macy was a ladybug princess and Jorey was the purple dragon. Macy was so jazzed about her costume, it made up for how un-jazzed Jorey was about hers. When I told her to smile for her first pic, she started flapping her arms like wings...dork! But, it was cute and hilarious.

Now, let's fast forward to current day. The day where I'm finally caught up with a couple of things and can update (since Halloween) on the blog. Recently, we've seen Jorey turn into a talking little lady. Some of her most entertaining things are:

Ce Ce - Macy

Cock-A-Loo - Cock a doodle doo

Bleep - Grape

Icky - Nuk

Blee - Blankie

I'm sure there are more, but why rack my brain on them!

Here's a fun video of her wearing her squeaky shoes that Orange Papa and Gramma got her. The first pair she wore made her cry. These just made her curious and prompted some stomping. And, here's a video of her trying her best to keep a piece of gum away from Natalie after raiding her purse. Quite the little sassafrass!

Macy is in love with Pink's song, "So What". She dances around the kitchen singing, "So What, I'm a Rock Star, Rock Star....Rock Star...So What". She's missing a few key words in the middle, but that's OK. I appreciate her passion for Pink's rockin' music.

As you saw on our Christmas card, we made a gingerbread house, here. Macy was and IS so proud of it, she can barely contain herself. A few weekends ago, my sisters and I made some X-mas cookies. It's the beginning of a wonderful tradition. And, it produced some extremely entertaining times. Macy used the rule of mom's younger days...Go big or go home. If you're not going to put 350 silver balls on each cookie, why bother?! You don't want anyone just eating those and not chipping a tooth...oh, no... pile it high! So, we caught this shot of some of her best.

I would like you to note the arms surrounding her work. "Hey world, these are mine and I want to make sure that you're aware of all of my splendor as I frame my masterpiece." She did also do that in the gingerbread house photo from the X-mas card. I. love. that.

About a week after cookie decorating, Ken had eaten all of the "plain and boring" cookies, so he ventured into Macy's collection. He commented on how beautiful it was and as she was discussing how she made it and why it was so awesome, all the while looking very pleased with herself, Ken ate the cookie and she was instantly devastated. She couldn't believe anyone could eat anything so beautiful...and those are for Santa. Luckily, Santa got his brace face off so he can eat those cookies this year. Dr. Rohrer would not be happy if I lopped off a bracket on an over-red-hotted cookie.

We did enjoy the 12-bars of X-mas on Friday night. I do have plenty of great shots from the eve. I'll have to try to get those up soon!