Year 2010, Day Two

I wonder how many times I will have to write 2010 before it becomes a habit. Hopefully I will do it enough times over the next three days that I will not regress to writing in retro. I've labeled a batch of freezer bags and tomorrow and Monday will work on lesson plans so I'll get some practice.

The tree came down and went out the door last night. The rest of the Christmas decorations are in the process of being put back into the handy cranberry colored totes that I bought last year to replace the cardboard boxes that had been storing our seasonal stuff for 25 years. Danny was a little sad about storing it all away, but we explained to him that it wouldn't be special if we kept it out. When it comes back out at the end of November he should be ready to enjoy it all again. Danny and Raymond helped Joe and I pack away the tree ornaments last night. They were not interested in the packing of the rest of the decor. So I'll be pacing myself through the day with my timer close by, puttering in the kitchen and packing things away from all parts of the house.

I'll be doing some more freezer cooking today using my newest investment from Leanne Ely's Saving Dinner website. It is a big set of e-books including freezer meals, pantry to freezer cooking and much more. I will be trying out a variety of these over the coming months to have on hand when life gets hectic. Around here that is between August and December and again from January through May. June and July are easy, breezy in comparison since we eat fresh salads or off the grill most of both months. I also, usually, have much more time on my hands to get creative and try new things. So I'm off to cut up my big batch of onions.

After my cooking session I will try out another fitness DVD. I doubt I will be able to get on the Wii to do Active or Wii Fit, so I'll settle for one of my Denise Austin workouts. It's been awhile since I've done them, but her workouts are like working out with a good friend.

The Christmas Blizzard

'Twas the night before Christmas, and Danny was a tired boy. After partying with Grammy, parents, brothers, aunts, uncles and cousins his eyes were a bit droopy. But his stocking was hung by the chimney, and he was really hoping that all the teasing he'd been given about being on Santa's naughty list was not true.

Santa was tracked on Norad throughout the day Christmas Eve. Once Rudolph's nose hit the Pennsylvania area, the boys decided they didn't want to cut it too close and headed off to bed. It's a good thing that Santa Claus had Rudolph this year to guide his sleigh, because the heavy snow and hurricane speed winds were a real deterrence for their visit. Thanks to Rudolph's shiny nose he came. Santa came just the same. The foul weather and near foot of snow may not have stopped Santa from landing on our rooftop, but our blizzard made it impossible for my family to receive visitors or to venture out on Christmas Day, or Boxing Day for that matter. We were snowed in.

This is our air conditioner unit after we dug out the back door. Yikes, we couldn't get out the back door until it was dug out. Good thing our front door is much higher off the ground.

And this is the drift that locked us inside. It's more than 3 feet high, oh my!!!

It was just the seven of us and Joe's roommate (and longtime family friend) Derek for the day.










The boy's seemed to get everything they wanted and then some. It was (almost) comical watching the younger boys open boxes with clothing, Christmas Story style, and throw the well-intentioned garments over their shoulders in anticipation of a better packed gift. Brats!!!










After gifts were opened, I put the turkey in the roaster and then we enjoyed a brunch of cinnamon rolls, egg/ham/cheese casserole and oranges. After brunch, I put the ham into the oven and we spent some time hanging out, playing new Wii and DS games and listening one of Rick's new CDs, "Spirited Away". Very different.









We had a full scale dinner in the late afternoon/early evening. The menu: turkey, baked ham, mashed potato casserole, gravy, green bean casserole, macaroni and cheese, pumpkin and pecan pies. I think I was too busy either cooking or relaxing to take pictures of the food. But rest assured, we ate very well, but missed family that would have joined us if the weather had been better.

I hope you and your family had a very Merry Christmas!!!

Christmas Eve 2009

Christmas Eve arrived with rain, lots of rain. The rain soon turned to freezing rain and then drizzle and finally a steady supply of sleet. Despite the winter storm warning, my mom, brother, sisters, brother-in law, nephews and niece arrived for a fun gathering.







Left: All Lauren wants for Christmas is her two front teeth. What a cute smile for a six year old.

Center: The Fabulous Four at our tree. Daniel is not into pictures on this day if you haven't noticed.
Right: Joe and Richard enjoying the evening.

Left: Mom opening her traditional box of candy. We also loaded her up with iTunes card to update the iPod.
Center: Santas Kevin and Robert
Right: Raymond, Kevin, Daniel (the night's drama king) and Lauren ready for their main event. Notice the pile of presents!!!!!

There was a lot of good food.






The stars of the table; on the left: Ellie's mushroom spread, my caramel popcorn and nuts, and Mom's pumpkin roll
Center: Steve, Lauren and Daniel enjoying the spread. At the end of the table is the my cherry cheesescake
Right: Ellie's mushroom spread and Joe's mexican-style 7-layer dip






We were missing Christy, Ryan, Allen and Katie. So we made phone call to Hawaii so at least Christy could join us.


Sheila, Ellie, Robert and Anne

Somewhere in all the fun, the snowstorm changed over to a blizzard. Getting home was an intense experience for all of our dear guests who set out to make it home before Santa arrived. It took my sister and mom an hour and fifteen minutes to make a usually 20 minute trip. We are talking near zero visibility. Robert ended up spending the night at Mom's.

Gann Christmas 2009

Lance, Jennifer, Jimmy and Tara

The Annual Gann Family Christmas get-together was a brunch the Saturday before Christmas at Uncle Jack and Aunt Shirley's house. We had biscuits and gravy and lots of other great treats. How did Tara get in so many pictures?

Daniel and Jack
Which way IS that train going?


The kids played several rounds of UNO.

Left: Devin, Janai and Tara. Tara only has one card. Did I hear "UNO"?

Right: Joe, Dylan, and Devin

Back at School

I knew yesterday would be tough. I have had my share of return to teaching days to know, and this time I was prepared to the point I had done all of my tasks for yesterday, except personal care, auto-routines and teaching itself. I am so glad that I did, and I will get back to the weekly routines today.

Christmas is completely packed away. A few strays from school got packed up this morning and all the tubs and tins are in the storage closet.

It's Time to Celebrate

The morning of Christmas Eve has arrived and the boys were up early again! I had to make the jello salad and the cherry cheesecake early enough to chill for the dinner this afternoon while they were eating breakfast, so I started that right after I showered and dressed this morning.

We spent the afternoon at mom's for a dinner and the little kids did a gift exchange. We had 19 there for dinner, including all 10 of Mom's grandkids. Mom topped off the day by giving herself a gash on her finger as she was getting the meat off of the turkey after dinner. Joe had just sharpened the knife when he did the carving before dinner.

We made our gift deliveries before and after going to Mom's and we didn't get home until well after dark. The boys didn't get to their cookie or countdown surprise until after nine p.m. The surprise was Jan Brett's The Night Before Christmas, of course. This version has many wonderful surprises in the pictures on the sides of each page.

Still in a Freeze

Joe and I went into Wal-Mart for eggs and fruit and ended up coming out with a full cart. I did all my shopping on the grocery side. It is amazing how little food is left around our house since we have been out of school since Thursday. I was feeling pretty good as my gift shopping and wrapping were finished, and we were just picking up enough to tide us over until the Christmas leftovers were done.

The boys and I also baked over 9 pounds of cookies for family and neighbors, and a few dozen for here. The dough was made and I just set myself to baking one batch after another. I tried a new recipe for chocolate covered pretzels, but I didn't like it at all. The recipe was much like my no bake cookie recipe, but instead of adding quick oats I dipped the pretzels into the mixture, and there was no peanut butter. The pretzels got soggy and the chocolate was dry. Raymond liked them.

For tonight's countdown surprise the boys opened the book Here Comes Santa Claus. There is only one cookie left on the boys cookie ribbons when they went to bed tonight.

Here is Daniel reading to one of his new friends.

Gingerbread and Sugar Cookies

The weather report--it is 6 degrees below zero F, but the sky is clear and the sun is shining brightly.

Despite the threat of snow and ice later today, the little boys and I ventured out to visit Grammy's house. The mission: Raymond and Daniel were making cookies with their grandma and visiting with their cousin Kevin. My sister enlisted me to another journey, out to shop for some gifts she still needed to purchase. So after the first gingerbread boys went into the oven and other gingerbread people were being cut out, we set out to find those last items on my sister's list. It was a good thing that we enjoyed the trip, because otherwise it was a bust as she didn't find either of the items she was searching for and we had to get back to the kids before mom left for an afternoon meeting. We picked up pizza for lunch and visited while the boys played for a couple of more hours.

The boys and I made it home before dark with a box full of our gingerbread family and an assortment of sugar cookies.

The countdown surprise tonight is the story Santa's Toy Shop. We are looking forward to Santa's visit.

Back to Normal !?!

A warm up to 26 degrees F is expected today. We had school today, but the rest of the week is iffy as they are predicting ice, snow and some very low temperatures during traveling times in the coming days. I had to postpone a Math test, and I hope that I can get it in by the end of the week/quarter. We have a day of fun activities planned for the students Friday and the choir program was postponed until Friday at 2:30 in the afternoon so the students may go to it also.

Tonight's surprise was the story, "Christmas in the Big Woods" an excerpt from one of Laura Ingalls Wilder's early books. Raymond commented on how they didn't have a tree, and that the children received only a pair of mittens and a peppermint stick in their stockings. Laura was the only one that received a toy, a special doll.

I am still pretty congested, and have lost my voice since about 7th period today. I am turning in early as the boys are already down for the night.

Working Inside Out

We took the little boys to see Santa last weekend. I picked up the picture today. Raymond had already talked to Santa in July
when we visited the North Pole in Colorado (as did Daniel) and told Santa to read the letter he sent earlier in the week.

The hard work is done, and the celebrations have began. I still have some wrapping to do even though my deadline has passed, I do still have time. I will not be wrapping after hours on Christmas Eve, nor during my Christmas break that starts Friday night.

Today I have
(X) Spent 45 minutes giving the Master Bathroom a thorough cleaning
(X) Spent 30 minutes cleaning the bedroom
(X) Joe and the little boys worked on the walkway next to the new railing at the back door
(X) Patio furniture and outdoor toys put away for the winter
(X) Cleaning of the dining room and great room
(X) Last of the decorating completed (I still have not pulled out my snowmen. Now where could they be?)
(X) Watched several Christmas movies with the boys; ELF, A Christmas Story and Muppet Christmas Carol
(X) Enjoyed a family dinner and a fire in the fireplace throughout the very cold afternoon/evening.


The Countdown Surprise was the book, "The Littlest Christmas Elf". And there were only 10 cookies left on the ribbon when the boys went to bed.

Tree Trimming and Shopping Time

We have been wrapping up the decorating and shopping today. Joe did not go out hunting this morning so we took advantage of having him home and did some shopping with the little boys. They did all of their shopping for their brothers today. They already had their shopping for cousins and school done just after Thanksgiving. We decorated the tree today while Joe and all the boys were home, too. It really turned out nice and I don't think I did much at all to help. Joe took charge of putting the lights on. We skipped putting garland on the tree, and Richard took charge of the boys putting on the ornaments. The boys also enjoyed peanut butter cookies baked by Rick and eggnog.




Tonight's countdown surprise was the collection called, "Christmas Stories and Poems". It has a definite Old English influence.

Deer Sightings

There was not a lot accomplished today. The tree has been up in the stand since we picked it up Wednesday evening, and Joe keeps asking when is it going to be decorated, but I told him it would have to be when everyone was around to help or at least watch. It really looks good and smells so good even without trimming. Martha Stewart says that you need to pick up your tree and decorate it during the third week of December, so I know I am ahead of her game. She does suggest that you decorate during the second week.

Trying to keep caught up with work has been a much more difficult challenge. There is always something on the list to do, and there is never a time when it is all caught up. I have two parent meetings next week and a couple of deadlines for testing that I need to prepare for as soon as possible. I think I can. I think I can. Well it is not going to all get caught up this weekend as I didn't even put a dent in any of my work tasks today.

Joe's deer hunting has finally proved successful as we now have a deer hanging in the shed waiting for processing. He still has another tag, so will continue going out until he gets it filled or the season runs out.

Today's countdown surprise was the book, "The Wild Christmas Reindeer", by Jan Brett. She has some other favorites for this time of year such as "The Mitten", "The Hat", "Gingerbread Baby", "Who's That Knocking on Christmas Eve", "The Trouble with Trolls", "Christmas Trolls", "The Twelve Days of Christmas" and "The Night Before Christmas". She also has a Christmas Treasury with many of these stories in it. My kids spend a long time looking at the details of her illustrations on each page of each story book. Her latest books are "The Three Snow Bears" and "Gingerbread Friends".

Another Bell?!!

The bell theme continued tonight as Daniel opened the next countdown package. Inside was the book, "The Polar Express", written by Chris Van Allsburg. Daniel had taken a bell to school for show-and-tell today, inspired by the Old Lady book last night. He wants to take it back to school Monday. Raymond and Daniel listened to the story and then, since it was Friday night, we watched The Polar Express movie.

Swallowing Bells?!!

Okay, Daniel has figured out we are opening books every night. Raymond got to open the package tonight and in it was the book, "There was an Old Woman Who Swallowed a Bell!" It is a new book the boys had never had read to them, so they were excited that there was something new to this countdown surprise. Reading the book is always fun, too.

Hunting Day

Today is opening day for deer hunting season so we had family members up before dawn dressing in orange and spraying dirt scent on themselves. After the hunters and people who went to school or work returned home in the early evening, our family went hunting for a Christmas tree. We were much more successful with the tree hunt than the guys were with the deer.

If you have ever heard of fishing excuses (you know, the stories about why the big one got away), then you will understand the reasons we have heard about why we do not have a deer waiting to go into the freezer. The scheduled hunting "spot" had been taken by someone that did not belong there, so they had to find alternate spots and by that time the morning was nearly gone. The bullets were duds and so the rifle didn't fire properly. There were more excuses, but I think that you can comprehend the conversations that will be continuing until the two tags are attached to deer waiting to be processed into steaks, roasts and ground into venison-burger.

It was 28 degrees F as the seven of us went out into the cold on the hunt for the perfect tree for our great room. We stopped off first for a dinner at China Buffet and then on to the tree lot. We looked through a couple hundred possibilities and settled, after Danny had made at least a dozen laps through the lot, many of our finger tips turned numb and all noses were red from the frigid air. Danny said he was going to pick the tree, but I don't think he stopped long enough to help make any decision. He liked them all. The rest of the family looked at me to be the tree expert, so I let them know the types of trees we had picked in the past and why they would or would not work for us. We selected a Balsam Fir tree that was at least a foot taller than what we needed, but it was full and we could cut off the bottom to make it fit into the corner we had cleared for it at home. The tree was tossed into the back of the truck and then we headed home to set it up. Tree trimming will be this weekend, as the tree needs some time to fully unfold after being wrapped and shipped to Kansas.

When we got home the boys opened their newest countdown package. Inside was a book. "The Biggest, Most Beautiful Christmas Tree". It is actually one of Rick's books, and Rick and the little boys listened in as I read tonight before the boys went to a late bedtime.