The gifts that keep on giving

Now that we're a few weeks out from Christmas, it's fun to see which gifts have had the most staying power with the kids. For Kateri, it seems to be her Solar System floor puzzle from Nanny. She has to put it together at least twice a day, and then she usually sings the little planet song Miss Emily taught Lili when she was three. All of my kids have gone through an "Outer Space" phase at around this age, but Kateri's seems to be lasting the longest:



As for Audrey, the gift she seems to be getting the most use out of is the mix CD her uncle Joe made her. I sneakily set up the camera to record one of her intense lip-syncing sessions, but hesitated to post the video below. Hopefully she won't hate me later for it, but it was just too funny how Lili is humoring her by watching the show, but you can tell she just really wants to get back to her book.



I'm pretty sure Lili has her own dance sessions, she just does it behind closed doors.

An added benefit of Uncle Joe's CDs: both Lili and Audrey all three of the girls know the Flight of the Conchords song "Carol Brown" by heart in its entirety. Thanks, Uncle Joe.

My New Year's Resolution

Is to try and follow the wonderfully simple advice of this wonderfully simple man:

"Pray, Hope, and Don't Worry"

"Pray" and "Hope" are easy enough...it's the last one that gives me trouble. We're only one week into 2012, and I have already had ample opportunities to put it to practice. On such occasions I find myself repeating it desperately over and over to myself like a mantra.

Like when I catch Kateri covertly sucking on the edge of the (undoubtedly germ-infested) shopping cart.

Pray, Hope, and Don't Worry.

Or when Audrey, (my SIX year old) declares to me that the only jeans she can possibly wear are skinny jeans, because "I just look SO much better in them."

Pray, Hope, and Don't Worry.

Or when the school calls to tell me that my second born has lost her lunch in class and the thought of her waiting miserably in the office causes me to rush a bit more than is prudent and the speed trap photo radar van flashes me...

Pray, Hope, and.... spend the next 2-6 weeks in a state of painful suspense frantically checking the mailbox to see if I have in fact received a citation.

Christmas redux

I know, I know! Christmas is not over until Twelfth Night, but I thought I would post a recap with the pitifully small batch of nice photos I have.
I thought maybe this year I could possibly get it together enough to send out a Christmas card on time. I had an extra few minutes after getting the girls ready for their Christmas Program and had high hopes of snapping at least one decent shot of them all looking nice.

It was not to be.


The excitement levels were running a bit too high. Lili was the only one with a remotely normal smile. I think the look Audrey was going for was "hopped-up Cheshire Cat." Kateri...I don't even know...
....she spent most of the shoot trying to perfect her Jack Nicholson impression.

Finally, even Lili gave up...

She had been such a good sport, so I'm happy I got a nice one of her by herself. Oh, and see that beautiful, freshly-trimmed and curled hair? It caught fire later that night thanks to a carelessly-held candle during the Nativity play. The quick action of one of the teachers saved her from disfigurement, luckily.

Both of the girls did us proud at their Christmas Program. They definitely did not inherit their stage presence from me, so it is always fun to see how much they enjoy public performances.

One of the best gifts we got this year was the presence of Nanny and Papa! For weeks, the girls had been praying that Papa's back would be healed enough to afford a trip out to Phoenix, and luckily, it was! I was anxious for them to come as well. The only other Christmas we have spent with them since we moved to Phoenix was two years ago, when our family was blessed with a gift that kept right on giving: a stomach flu that took its inexorable toll on one after another of us. Seriously, Christmas 2009 lives in Lili's memory as the great tragedy of her young life: She woke up on Christmas morning to see if Santa had visited, and promptly leaned over her bed and well, you know...it wasn't pretty.

Needless to say, I was anxious to redeem Speier Family Christmases for my parents, and 2011 did not disappoint.

Nanny came early to help us get ready and have excited sleepovers in her room with the girls.

Papa was there to make his delicious shrimp on Christmas Eve, when we had a great time with Steve and Cindy.

We even had a little impromptu dance party...

...it got a little crazy, thanks to Abby.

And it was so fun to have Nanny and Papa there on Christmas morning. The above shot captures the moment of terribly intense apprehension just before the girls were cleared to come out. Did Santa come or didn't he?!?! The suspense!!!

I didn't get any pictures, but not to worry, Santa came and was very good to the girls. We had a lovely relaxing Christmas Day and had the Speier fam over for dessert that evening.

We were so lucky to have all of Luke's brothers and Brittany in town. Justin and Cole made the drive out from California, and Travis brought his girlfriend Stephanie and PROPOSED to her on Christmas Eve! So we got a new member of the family for Christmas, and we are so excited!

The only picture I snapped of that evening was the Speier family tradition of singing Happy Birthday to Baby Jesus, but it was a great evening around the fire pit in the back yard.

We sure were blessed to be able to share Christmas with our wonderful families.

It was a great way to close out 2011.

Here's to a great 2012!