Christmas morning!!

Merry Christmas!! Wow, it actually snowed on Christmas---how fantastic! The kids were super excited b/c Santa left a lot of presents. They must have been very good this year b/c they got a lot of stuff that was on their list. Andrew got his bow and arrow, a new sled, and lego battleship. Adam got armor to battle in, a Wii game, and a DS game. Mrs. Claus also brought each boy a new robe to wear to keep them warm. Mommy got Daddy some special tools that he has been wanting and Dad got mom a new bike! Later in the day I went outside with the boys to try out their new sled and snowboard and we also built a snowman up by the lane. We didn't have anything to put on him, so we just improvised and used sticks for the face, button and arms and used a branch with leaves for the hair. That night we watched Elf, a movie that we love that was a special gift from Herbie our special Elf on the Shelf.

Early 40th Birthday

My mother decided to have me in January so it's always hard to plan anything due to the weather! I'm sure my parents didn't do that on purpose, after all we had Adam 4 days before Christmas!! Well, this year I will be 40 and I don't live near my family to celebrate so they did a little something special for me. When I got to my parents' house, my sisters and mother had some very "special" gifts for me and a beautiful bird cake (it had a buzzard on it!!) Some of the gifts included some fake eyelashes b/c when I was younger I pulled all the eyelashes off my sisters doll and I got in trouble. They also gave me Ramen noodles b/c I licked the lid of a soup can and mom told me I was going to get botulism and I could die. She was trying to scare me but I cried and cried--so this way, with ramen noodles there is no lid to lick. They had several other "remembrance" gifts---how do they remember all this stuff? Do you see how they treat the middle child? Which leads me to a gift that Lisa gave me--a bottle of wine titled "Middle Sister, Mischief Maker" and Kim gave me a little girl statue that I can put on my desk at work that says "I don't need your attitude, I already have one". That really surprised me and made me feel really good. Thanks to my mom and sisters for always remembering---I love you bunches, you're the best!!

Glastetter Christmas

Christmas eve found us at my mom and dad's house for our family Christmas. Mom made a delicious meal like usual and then we opened presents. The boys received more zsu zsu pets with the arena and armor, Andrew got some Mizzou jammies, and Adam got a punching/kicking bag---just what he needs!! Mom and dad always give us three girls the same thing, so this year it was mini utensils which are perfect. I also made a calendar for them with the grandkids' pictures from all year long and put them on the corresponding months in the calendar. It turned out really great. Andrea got some good toys--cinderella shoes, a shopping cart with food, a bubble lawn mower and a train which has been handed down from big sister to my kids, then to Andrea. It has 4 discs it plays and is really loud, but kids love it. We left in the afternoon to come home to Paducah and it was really snowing pretty good. By the time we reached Charleston the snow was mesmerizing really hard to see. We made the decision to take the interstate up into Illinois and then hit I-24. Let's just say that our hour and 45 minute trip turned into 3-1/2 hours. The kids slept almost the entire way since they weren't feeling well. But we had to get home b/c Santa was coming the next morning!

Petitt Christmas

We made it back to Missouri to celebrate Christmas with Paul's family. Unfortunately everyone in our family has been extremely sick so we stayed here for an extra day to rest up. In fact, Jerry called us Typhoid Mary family--I think they were happy to get rid of us!! But, we had a good meal and the kids couldn't wait to rip open their presents. They got several zsu zsu pets and the "town" they play in, magic beans, and both boys got games to play from Uncle Wayne. I got a steam mop for my kitchen which I can't wait to use. I know it was a quick visit but thanks for everything!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADAM!!!

Holy cow, our big ole boy is 9 years old!!! We can't believe that we've been parents for 9 years but most importantly , we're happy that the kids have survived! We had big plans for Adam's birthday, however, Adam started coughing Monday night, and by Tuesday morning, he was so congested in his head and chest and running a fever, that he literally laid on the couch alllllll day. He didnt even feel good enough to go to the movies. But Andrew piped up and said,"how about me mom, I feel good now!" (b/c he's had strep throat and on antibiotics since this weekend). So how could I turn that down. We headed to the movies that afternoon and left Adam and Paul both sick at home. We gave Adam a snowboard and PS3 wireless remote, and Andrew gave him a Donkey Kong Wii game. Luckily we had Adam's favorite supper a night early---steak and baked potatoes! (that is not a beer bottle in front of him,it's Country Bob's steak sauce!) Happy Birthday baby, we love you so much and hope you get to feeling better. It's just not the same when you're calm, quiet, and laying around!

Paul's Christmas party

Paul's company Cymetech had their Christmas party this past Saturday at Patti's! As always it was great. Paul's boss Don was in from Colorado with his wife Mary and two of the Japanese bosses were there also with their wives. They now have moved from Japan to Houston, TX. We had our own beautiful Patti's Annex to have the party in which is what I have a picture of. We got to Patti's early so that we could wait in line for Santa. The boys weren't for sure what to expect, but later on that night, Adam said, "mom, I wasn't for sure if it was the real one or not until he said our names--then I knew!" Mr. and Mrs. Claus are always there and somehow Santa always knows about Faye and Fran, he knows their teachers' names, that they are in Cub Scouts and played baseball, and what they had on their lists this year---it is so awesome to see the smiles on their faces when Santa talked to them and "knew" so much about them. I look forward to that every year! But back to the party... the kids played Beyblade with Emma and Ella, ate a wonderful meal, we each got gift cards to use at Walmart, then Nakimuri San handed out gifts from Sojitz (the owners of the company). Ours was an automobile electric blanket that you plug into the port in the car, which you can use when traveling. I think the boys will get a kick out of that! Can't wait for next year already.

Grandparents' Visits

Lucky for us, we live close enough to Missouri so that it's nice that grandparents can come down and visit. On Friday, Grandma Shirley and Papa Jerry came to see the programs and that evening when Paul got home Adam opened his birthday present which was Playstation 3. Of course, he has to share it with his brother! On Saturday, Grandma Mary and Grandpa Ronnie came to visit for the day and also brought Adam his birthday present. They got him Beyblade which is like little metal tops that spin and "battle" each other. The boys played this for hours that day and even took it to Paul's Christmas party to play with the other kids. Hard to believe but they even forgot about their DSI games for a while, which is really something! Thanks for visiting us. We'll see you at Christmas!

School Play

The boys had their Christmas programs at school last Friday. They separated the classes this year. K-2 had their program in the morning. Each of the classes dressed in either white for snowmen, brown for reindeer or red for Santas. The school supplied them with hats and antlers. They sang traditional Christmas songs and some of the kids had speaking parts introducing each of the songs. Andrew was one of the lucky ones picked--he did a great job saying his part if I say so myself!!! Daddy couldn't make it b/c his bosses were in town but Grandma Shirley and Papa Jerry made it down. In the afternoon, 3-5 grades had their play. It was wonderful. The play was about going "green" and all the songs were about going "green". The kids had speaking parts, they had actions to the songs. All the kids wore green shirts that day too. the kids looked like they really enjoyed it--particularly one song which was "Power to the People"---it was a pretty jazzy song and they really got into it. Here is Andrew posing for picture, Andrew on stage, and Adam with his buddy Preston.

Cubs' Christmas Party

Thursday night, Pack #59 had their pack Christmas party/meeting. Everyone brought a potluck item and the spring calendar was discussed. The kids received patches for participating in the Christmas parade, selling popcorn, and bringing canned goods for a local shelter. Here are pictures of Andrew receiving his patches from Ms. Kim and him cheesing it up for the camera. Tracy is their Tiger Cub leader and here she is discussing with them what song they were going to sing---Frosty the Snowman of course! At the end of the night the boys received a stocking with lots of little gifts but most importantly Andrew received his kit for his Pinewood Derby Car! He was soooo excited. We got home and wanted Paul to start building it immediately. We can't wait for January--watch out other racers!!!

Work Christmas Party

Last Monday we celebrated our work Christmas party at my house. All the instructors except one made it, our dean, lab assistant and 2 division assistants (secretaries) also came. Everyone brought a dish or dessert and we had a wonderful lunch. Then we had our chinese christmas gift exchange. We all ooh and ahh over all the presents, steal them back and forth until they are "dead" and can't be exchanged any more, and we all end up with a wonderful gift no matter what. It's nice to have everyone together in a non-school environment. It snowed the day before so the kids were off of school that day. Miranda brought Caleb and Cody over and Mary brought Claire. All the kids played upstairs all day. They hollared down "can we come and eat yet?"---hilarious. We told them that the teachers got to eat first then they could eat b/c they are usually so busy playing anyway. We all had a great day!

Birthday Party

Snow did not cause a cancellation of the birthday party!! The day of our Christmas program, Adam was to have his birthday swim party. We thought we were gonna have to cancel, but the roads were better by lunch, and several little buddies were able to make it. Adam loves to swim, and back in October one of our church friends had his swim birthday party here and we loved it!. So what could be better than swimming in December during a snow storm? They played football and the dad's sat along the edge watching them, b/c there was no lifeguard, but this was the perfect age for all these boys! The boys found several water squishy balls up on the rafters, so Paul took a long pole and knocked them down---he's the best dad ever! They must have gotten worn out swimming b/c Adam fell asleep on the way home. He pulled his stocking hat down over his eyes, laid back on the seatbelt , got warm, and fell asleep. He's such an angel when he's sleeping.

Church Christmas Program

Sorry, it's been a long time since we've posted anything, but our computer crashed and it took several days for Paul to restore everything and get things going again. So, we had a great Thanksgiving with our families back in Missouri. We visited with immediate and extended families and ate A LOT, shopped some, and then headed on back so Paul could hunt.
Now that it's December, it is Christmas program time! Our first one was at church this past weekend. I've been helping with the program this year. We woke up to snow blowing straight sideways Sunday morning,but the show must go on! All the kids made it. The streets were a bit slick in the morning, but by lunch the salt trucks had done a good job. This year in the Christmas program, Adam was a wiseman and Andrew was a shepherd. They both had speaking parts and did a fabulous job if I say so myself! Aren't they cute? I wonder if we could use these for Halloween next year???