And, we're off!

Off to where the sand meets the sea, lovely Laie.

Here's Casey's rendition of Santa in Hawaii... Complete with shorts, a sun hat, and gloves that are somehow made into puppets. Sweet!

Wishing you a safe and happy Christmas.

Mele Kalikimaka to friends near and far.

Love,

The Gooches

Abby's Birthday Report

A super-quick rundown of the events on Abby's 4th...

Went to reading time at the library, got to sit on Santa's lap. Santa was played by a gentleman in our area...He spent the last year in a workshop, hand making hundreds of intricate wooden toys to give to each and every child who came to talk to him. It was amazing. Click here to read an article about this generous member of our cozy community.

For her Birthday dinner, Abby chose steak and potatoes, corn on the cob, cucumber, and broccoli. She ate an entire steak all on her own, which is really no surprise. And having her own cucumber, peeled and sliced, really made her day.

And then, after Grandma and Grandpa dropped by to open gifts with us, Abby got to blow out her own 4 candles. She had helped me make the pink cake that day. Such a sweet girl. We sure love having her in our family.

Merry Christmas!

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

My Baby

Abigail turns 4 on Thursday, December 11th.

I kissed her goodnight this evening and told myself that it's the last night I'll ever get to kiss a 3-year-old of my very own.

Bittersweet, this business of growing up.

I've just spent the last 30 minutes scouring our computer for any photos of Abby when she was born, trying to find something appropriate for this post, but came up empty-handed.

Those 2 weeks that she and I spent at the hospital are still a blur, and I think there are maybe 4 photos of that time.

She was so tiny, but I don't remember ever being afraid for her. Worried, busy trying to track her growth, but always comforted that she would be just fine.

And now, look at her. What a big girl.

My baby, still.

Artistry

And, speaking of Casey's drawings, here are a few of her most recent offerings:

Our Family as Snowpeople
Casey and Abby on a Sunny Day
Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree... Brian, Chris and I. Where are Casey and Abby? Hiding behind the tree, as you can see by the little "slashy" things poking out of the sides of the tree. Is there a name for that? It's an idea that she got from reading cartoons, I think. Indicates activity, movement, or sound. Anyway, it works for me.
Casey under a rainbow. Notice the use of profile perspective.
Casey on the beach. Notice the pom-pom (palm) tree in the background.

Our family on the beach in Oahu... Where we will actually be in less than 2 weeks! I love how we are all smiling and the girls have flowers in their hair. Counting the days...

The answer is blowing in the wind.

So, it was super windy this week. Kind of no big surprise, considering where we live and the topography that lends itself to such events. Still, when it's windy out, we are all a little distracted by it.

While driving the kids (to school, lessons, activities, errands) I ask them to help me keep an eye out for things flying in the wind. Just for fun, a little observation practice that we like to do ... This Monday (Garbage Day) our neighborhood was littered with upended trash cans and blowing refuse. Nice. Also, made for some adventurous driving.

Anyway, as I was narrating our trip from the driver's seat ("Look, the street signs are getting buffeted! I see another plastic bag in that tree!") Casey pipes up from the back seat:

"Keep on the lookout for cats flying in the wind!"

That cracked us all up. She got the same hilarious reaction each time she said it throughout the trip. And, when we got home, she illustrated the idea. I'll share it here for your viewing enjoyment:

Scout

Brian joined the Boy Scouts of America when he turned 8 last month. I've actually been one of the leaders of our troop for about 2 years now, so he had been tagging along for some of the activities off and on, but being a full-fledged, uniformed member of the troop is all-together something different.

He loves it.

It's fun for me to watch him beaming when he gets to help with the flag ceremony, or when he is able to do some service "in the name of Scouting."

I'd like to spend some time with him, talking about the history of Scouting and giving him a "big picture" perspective of how advancement works. For now, though, he is happy with our weekly meetings...

These photos were taken at his first Pack Meeting, where he received his Bobcat and was able to wear a real bobcat pelt during the award ceremony.

Our pack has been struggling with leadership issues for some time, but I think we are finally on solid footing now. I am happy with his leaders, and am confident that they are giving him an excellent start on the path of Scouting.

Casey Piano Video

Casey is getting ready for her first recital. She has been taking piano lessons weekly for a few months now and is really starting to like it. Especially Good King Wenceslas, for some reason. She can play it with her eyes closed. :) Seriously.

I am, as always, very proud of her.

Gingerbread Houses

One Christmas tradition that I loved when I was growing up was decorating Gingerbread Houses. Mom has this great recipe for them, including a diagram for cutting the pieces, handwritten into her blue-and-white-checked recipe book.

Part of the tradition is that, after we are done creating and enjoying them, we pass them along to someone else. Most of the time it was our teachers.

This Sunday evening, we spent time at Grandma and Grandpa's house, building this year's houses.

This,
plus this,plus these,

And a little "cement frosting"
And a bunch of experience with building gingerbread houses...Notice that Brian has gotten a little bored with the whole process and is now reading a "The Far Side" collection.

Casey and Grandpa's house included a small sleigh with 8 tiny reindeer and a red-nosed leader, as well as a miniature outhouse in the backyard.

Abby begging (demanding) some more candy.

Abby's Haircut - Tah Dah!

Since I promised updated photos of Abby's new (newer) haircut, I asked Abby to hold still for only a moment so I could snap some pix of her... You will find below a few of the many I took in an attempt to get a good one or two.

I was talking to my brother, David, about it this morning, and he asked if it was anything like those blurry and furry pictures that "they" are always trying to pass off as Bigfoot sightings.

"Yeah, look at this dark spot here... You can clearly tell that it's a Sasquatch." Or whatever.

In this case, "Look at these action shots. Adrienne did such a great job on Abby's hair!"

She really did. Abby loves her new 'do. Especially the part where she does not have to sit still and let me fix it up each morning.

Just a once-through with a brush is all it takes to have her back to her usual sprightly self.

Yay!

Ice and Snow

We have had a stunningly beautiful winter so far.

Lots of freezing hoar frost on trees for a few days. Clear blue skies, which make for bitter cold.

A foot of fluffy snow last week.

And some of the darkest nights of the year.

Makes for a beautiful sunrise.

This is the view from my back door.

We Gather Together - Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving Day arrived with a fresh layer of lovely snow, and a family grateful for the time off from work and school. We went to Mom and Dad's home for a lovely afternoon and evening of sharing traditions.

On the way there, the entire Gooch family belted out all the verses to "Over the River and Through the Woods" as it is an especially appropriate song for us... We truly do go over the (Matanuska) River and through the woods to Grandfather's house. The big kids have been learning the song at music class, and we sing it each morning on the way to school, so Abby is getting in on the act.

Anyway, once at Grandma's house, we got started right away helping with Grandma Rolls. The most anticipated part of every special meal, Grandma Rolls are always a hit, and each of the kids got to take a turn with Grandma, rolling them up.

Sometime during the meal preparation, Abby was able to convince Grandpa that he really needed to go outside with her. Grandpa shoveled off the back deck while Abigail scrabbled about on the new "tailings pile" he created just for her. The snow is deep... Abby's on top of it, and Dad is standing on the deck, which is a couple of feet off the ground.

Brian and Chris had to "hunt" for some fowl for our dinner feast. They made a turkey target for Bri's BB gun and declared that they couldn't come in until they were successful. Phew... We were all relieved when the target rang out.

Dad got to talk to David that evening, and we missed all the family we were not able to share the day with. Thank goodness for technology such as the internet and telephones that allows us to keep in touch with each other on a regular basis!

Casey and Grandma are both taking music lessons these days... I snuck into their first duet practice session, where they were playing "Good King Wenceslas" on the piano and cello. Abby was leading the music.

And another photo of Grandpa shoveling for Abby...

At our Thanksgiving meal, we used place settings inculding "The Anniversary Napkins" (ask David if you want more info on those), lovely painted plates, and handmade place markers with each of our names and pictures, thanks to Casey.

Also, we used this handsome book to record some Thanksgiving thoughts... It's a twist on a tradition that we've had for years now... My dear Sister-in-Law, Stephanie, made this lovely book for us and we each wrote in it about something we are thankful for. I've tucked it away for safekeeping, and hope to repeat the tradition yearly.

If you'd like your own book, click here for Stephanie's shop.

So, now the Grandma rolls are done, and we each appreciated them... I love Brian's face here... How much can he fit in his mouth at one time? :)

Abby dancing before dinner... I keep trying to get her to hold still long enough for me to capture a photo of her with her new haircut. Not much luck so far...

Casey after our Martinelli's Cider "Cheer" for Thanksgiving.

Brian discussing the deliciousness of Grandma Rolls with Grandma.

Abby, starting in on her dinner salad. She is such a sweet girl, I love getting to know her better these past couple of months. Especially on days when it is just her and I and the others are at school and we can just do whatever we want.

She is not letting go of her "fancy" glass.

We had a wonderful day. I hope each of you did too.

And all too quickly, we are on to the rush of Christmas.

Here's hoping we are all able to slow it down a bit this year.