Monday, December 26, 2005

Glimpses of Christmas 2005 - Day 5 of Vacation


Stacia is still too young to really enjoy her 1st Christmas...but we had fun opening her gifts. She received a baby Cabbage Patch from Bre and Krista (with stories akin to Turbo Man from Jingle Bell All the Way), sleep sacks, bibs and pacifiers.
Regardless the gift...the box is always the best toy - Zander
The girls brought each of us t-shirts for NYC...Zander got his today as he was sleeping when we opened stockings last night. Jamin observes that he looks like a "street punk" in this picture.
Nolan receive Hank books and games, a Narnia game, King Arthur books
In a family our size, Christmas involves a significant amount of watching and waiting....Arielle is not thrilled with this...
Arielle had a "doll" Christmas...like her older sisters she has a "collection" of dolls. This year she got a varitety...this fancy one from Collectionsetc.com from Jamin and Jared, a big stuffed doll from Grandma and Grandpa, a Cabbage Patch Doll from Bre and Krista....Mike and I gave her a portable CD/MP3 player with HEADPHONES (the key request) so that she could listen to HER stories and music when the boys are all listing to "their" stories. {grin}
Jared's requests were for GA Henty books and Redwall books. Between us all he ended up getting a couple of Henty and 6 Redwall books in the series (a respectable beginning). He also got a Camelbak water pack for running.

Jamin had requested a camelback water bottle for running and an audio GA Henty book - he got both. He also got a Redwall book, jump rope and various other items.
Josiah got a paint ball gun...he quickly explained to Mike, Jamin & Jared that until THEY also own guns they will be simple target practice for him. This was a Christams/birthday gift and the boys all have birthdays between now and the end of Februrary. Paint ball wars have become a new hobby of the men folk since moving to TX.


Mike & GPS...he was happy.

Aftermath of Christmas
* Note in addition to the things mentioned in the post "my shocking Christmas" I also received the complete Penn Dutch series....The kids each got me one or two...these are set in the Amish community with the heroine being a Mennonite and are very funny. Jamin got me a under the cabinent radio so I can listen to Rush or Sean while I cook and Josiah got me a great rustic moose for the wall. The girls got me a snowman and bear nativity.....

GIRLS' QUILT

Special thanks to the members of Support4HomeSchool email list who talked me step by step through this project. I can now share a "bit". Krista mentioned that she wanted a "blanket" for Christmas...not a problem at all...Walmart is right down the road. Then she commented that she wanted "Mom and Arielle to make it"....THIS was a problem. I don't sew.

{excerpt history of our family boycott on Walmart - SHS can SKIP }
We began the odysey with a trip to Walmart to buy supplies and ask questions. When I told the clerk, "we have a few questions" she said, and I quote, "Oh GOD, what do you WANNNT?" I told her we'd buy our supplies and ask our questions at Hancock fabrics. A few minutes later, in another part of the store another clerk yelled at Arielle and I for smelling some cologne that Arielle wanted to buy for Mike. I DID write a comment card with date, time and clerk's names and quotes. I left my phone number, name and address and said that we'd not be back until after Christmas without an apology. After a week Mike thought I should contact the manager and make sure she had seen the comments. She had. She told me it was against her policy to "contact customers and apologize for the clerks, I'll deal with it." I decided it was against my policy to give my money to businesses with rude customer support. SO....all through this season we have explored our other options in our new homeplace....and we've found that other stores in town have GREAT customer service and that online shopping is WAY cheaper because we don't have sales tax, impulse buying or shipping in most cases. Not having walmart as an option caused us all to be much more thoughtful about what gifts we wanted to purchase...instead of roaming the aisle looking for things that cost $10. {grin}

{Quilt story resumes}
We headed to Hancock and found friendly clerks, better fabric selections and answers to our "how to" questions. Through this project I learned to thread a machine, sew a somewhat straight seam, wind a bobbin, replace a machine needle (3), adjust tension and how to stretch a 45" piece of fabric to a 90" blanket. It was good.

The quilts were from Mom and Dad and Arielle. They were both in the same box and it was funny that they each reached for their quilt immediately....Krista purple and Bre pink. These blankets, and the ones we made my parents, are "prayer blankets". Each time we tied either fleece or yarn we offered a prayer for the receiver of the gift. We told them that we wanted them to be reminded that they were covered with their family's prayers whenever they used them. As Arielle said...after we had finished tying one said of Grandpa's no sew quilt...."that's a LOT of prayers for Grandpa, I think I've run out of prayers". {big grin}


The daughter who started the project...
Bre thinks the blanket will make a nice travel companion....