Christmas Day 2017

We spent Christmas Day quietly at home, a tradition I have cherished for many years.  I'm usually so busy earlier in the month, I have felt the day couldn't be properly enjoyed if we were rushing around, needing to be somewhere or preparing for company.  This time, it felt almost too quiet.  Perhaps it will be time for a change next year?

It was a white Christmas.  :)

A few of our favorite gifts . . .

This one was from a friend.  You wouldn't think I'd get excited about paper plates, but there are plenty of opportunities to use them, and I like fun and colorful designs.

Also from a friend.  We didn't know about this company with my name and got a kick out of it.

From Greg, which he picked out all by himself.  I love it.  We tried one out immediately, and I am definitely going to enjoy these!

For Greg:

Kylen got a couple of comment shirts matching his current passion.  I bought the first one, but I actually like the second, from friends, a lot better.  Good job, Friends!

I couldn't pass this up.

We also received two personalized family gifts from friends that were really nice, a sign and an ornament!

We spent a lot less on each other than usual and gave a gift for our whole family, a Nintendo Switch with one game:

And this is what we did the rest of Christmas Day and most of the break until after New Year's.  We decided to make it a family game, so no one is allowed to play alone until we beat it.  Great bonding time: taking turns playing, trying to figure out puzzles, and arguing about what to do next.  We're not thrilled with the town where Link is forced to dress like a girl, but otherwise we think it's one of the best games of all time.  Definitely the best Zelda game ever.

We couldn't believe how tiny the cartridge is!  So cute!

We kept a few other traditions, and - for dinner - made our belated Thanksgiving meal the day before so we didn't need to cook.  :)

November 2017

November was a fairly busy month with a large variety of activities, especially for Kylen.  His schedule included playing a lead role in a reader's theater, a game night, seeing several shows, outings related to volunteering at the local theater, rehearsing a skit for our co-op's Christmas party, teen writer's gatherings, voice lessons, and basketball.  Co-op ended for the holidays, giving us our Mondays back.

We received a bout of heavy snowfall unusually early.

Greg and Kylen were given tickets to a Gonzaga men's basketball game - in a suite!

A local gal, who taught art classes in our city for over a decade, retired.  We went to visit her, and it sure did bring back memories!  Kylen and I both took classes when he was in grade school.

We celebrated Thanksgiving with Greg's parents at a restaurant.  My favorite was the soup.  It was amazing!!

The restaurant was in a hotel.  We liked the cute chalk drawings in their computer area.

The day after Thanksgiving, we had a wonderful dinner at a friend's house.  :)

A member of our co-op hosted a crafting get-together to make decorations for our co-op's Christmas party.  I thought that was a fantastic idea!  It went really well, and I learned how to make glittery yarn balls.

Well, on to December!