December 2017

December was busy until the last week, when things suddenly slowed down for the holidays.  This was a good year for Christmas-related activities.  We attended several parties and shows, Kylen went caroling and started a little ministry handing out candy canes and tracts.  He also volunteered in concessions at a local theater and went to a Christmas dance and a couple of teen writer's events.  Greg had basketball Tuesdays, and Kylen had voice lessons Fridays.  Between the three of us, we saw four movies (two free from a rewards program), which is unheard of.  Usually, we see one movie every several months.  Our favorites were Justice League and Star Wars.

Christmas party #1 at a friend's house.  Kylen and his partner won the Christmas trivia game!  Their prize was festive antlers.  :)

Christmas party #2.  Technically, a game night.  I played Telestrations for the first time and was impressed with one of the drawings by a talented teenager.

Let this be known: my son seriously does not need to wear socks with holes.  He just doesn't tell me when he needs new ones!  Greg said when he was a kid this was called new crop potatoes.  Lol.

Christmas party #3.  An annual event at our co-op.  I helped make the yarn ball decorations.  :)

We ordered Christmas cards from simplytoimpress and were quite impressed!  A little more expensive than most but better quality.

I saw this picture in a magazine by Ken Orvidas and absolutely loved it, but I wasn't able to find a title or a way to order a print.  My picture of it is a little washed out, but you get the idea.  I love the happy colors!

We saw a couple friends' basketball games.

One of the shows we saw, Elf Jr., with several friends in the cast.  They did fantastic!

Kylen was inspired to write his own tract.  We added stickers, put them in plastic sleeves with a candy cane, punched a hole in each bag, and attached a rubber band.  A couple of families helped place them on doorknobs one afternoon.  Kylen got the idea shortly before Christmas, so we had to scramble to get them printed and prepped, but we were happy with how it went.  He'd like to do it again next year.

We enjoyed a Christmasy meal at the CDA resort.  I love, love, love their salad bar.  They have the best Caesar dressing.

I received an awesome belated birthday package from my cousin (belated is tradition!).  :)

A friend of Kylen's published his first book!  We went to his book launch party at a library and heard him speak about self-publishing.  We haven't had a chance to read it yet but will soon!

In recent years, we've made fudge for our holiday indulgence.  This time we made haystacks.  I grew up having them at Grandma's and my parents' house.  Definitely nostalgic, definitely yummy.

We had friends over for fellowship and a Christmas gift exchange.  They also gave us a great anniversary gift!

My first set of tiles in a Scrabble game.  Too bad proper nouns aren't allowed!

I posted about Christmas here.

After Christmas, we went to see Star Wars.  Greg and Kylen waited in line while I browsed shops.

The last week of December we mostly hung out at home and played Zelda.  We were going to have friends over New Year's Eve and meet family New Year's Day, but Kylen got sick.  So the year went out without a bang.  2018 should be eventful with Kylen graduating.  Our lives will change drastically, but we look forward to seeing what God has next.  :)

Willy Wonka!

Once we got past the initial excitement of Kylen being cast as Willy Wonka (I was over the moon excited!!  Wonka is ONLY my ALL TIME favorite fictional movie character!), the reality of the challenge hit home.  Kylen didn't sing much in his childhood, especially after illness robbed me of my singing voice and we switched to home church.  He resumed singing when he started voice lessons last year.  Although he's improved tremendously, it stretched him . . . A LOT!  We didn't realize just how much singing there would be.  You'd think the "musical" part of Willy Wonka Jr. the Musical would have tipped us off, but I was imagining Wilder with his short, random ditties.  Then Kylen got sick, and we experienced the stress of being a lead singer with a sore throat.  Through lots of prayer and tea, he made it and fared better than expected!  :)  Overall, it was an incredible experience.  He even got his first taste of fans when little children wanted to meet him and gave him drawings.

Construction was being done in part of the building, so they decided to paint the floor for fun!

Interesting door handles.

Presenting . . . Willy Wonka!

The oompa loomas were cute, a bunch of little girls with green wigs.

A simple hat change and jacket-to-vest transformed Wonka into the Candy Man.

The Bucket family.

Mrs. Gloop stole the show during her scenes.  She's an extremely talented actress.

Greg pulled two all-nighters to finish these boxes and a few other props.  Each time a ticket was found, a box would light up.  Then they would go out as each child was sent away.

Waiting to meet Wonka.

There will be no gum-chewing inside the factory.

Time to sign the contract.

So many extraordinary rooms!

I loved this scene with the pink candy boat.  It was brilliant the way they executed it.

Mr. Wonka at the helm.

Violet the blueberry!

This was hilarious!  They used a Ken doll for the shrunk version of Mike Teevee.

Of course, in the end, Charlie does the right thing and earns the ultimate prize: to become Willy Wonka's heir.

I loved, loved, loved this production, and it wasn't just because Kylen played a lead.  It was truly well cast, well done, and creative.  I take my hat off to the director, Jenna Solberg.  I could have watched every show and still enjoyed it.  We had good turnout from family and friends, which made it extra special for Kylen greeting them after the shows.

My brother celebrated opening night with us!

I started a tradition of presenting Kylen with a keepsake whenever he is cast in a lead role.  This time, I found a neat replica of a golden ticket and candy bar on Etsy.  I gave them to him at the restaurant after opening show.

We're so proud of this boy and excited to see how God uses theater in his future!