Christmas 2011

We had a great Christmas celebration! I knew it was going to be good when G'ma showed up with a container of Granny's infamous 'Star' cookies.

One of my favorite holiday memories is that of Granny's Stars. She had an amazing recipe for homemade sugar cookies that she would make, roll, cookie-cut, bake, and frost each Christmas. Somewhere along the way one of us grandkids told her that the 'stars' tasted the best and that she shouldn't bother with any of the other shapes. So that's what she did from that year forward. Only stars. Oh, and only green, red, and colored balls for decoration. No exceptions.

'Santa' made another visit this year, and the kids loved seeing him in the living room! Please note his special beard. We laughed until we cried with this one. Thanks, Mark.

Aunt Susie and the cousins get their turn on Santa's lap. Naughty or nice?

Cousins. After all, Christmas really boils down to the memories that they make together every year. That's what this whirlwind 24 hours is all about.

One of Grandma's gifts was a bunch of scratch-it lottery tickets. Everyone was a winner! The fun part is that grandma was just like an ATM and you could redeem them and cash them in on the spot. Catie was the big winner with $9.00 in winnings.

Pajama time!
The kids were questioning Grandma's fashion sense with her infamous Forever Lazy.

Wrong, just so wrong. I'm feeling thankful that there wasn't one for me under the tree.

Slumber party in the basement! The cousins got to sleep together in anticipation of Santa's arrival. Not the best night of sleep, but it sure was fun!

The tree and gifts after Santa stopped by.

Morning chaos....we wouldn't have it any other way!

Merry Christmas.

Randomness from the i-phone

I forget that I've got pictures on my i-phone, and when I took the time to scroll back through all 332 of them, I found a pictoral representation of life over the past 6 months. I guess that I did take a photo or two at Thanksgiving!

Cousins in Seattle.

Nate getting Willy Wonka's signature after the performance on Saturday night at the NW Children's Theatre. Magical.

6:00 a.m. reading together by headlamp on the top bunk.

Wagon rides around the bases at Alberta Park.

G'ma with the boys before their piano recital.

Back-to-School shopping and blending in at Old Navy.I found these after Chris discovered my photo booth app.

Happy Holidays

Cyber-card.

Wishing you and yours a wonderful holiday season, and good things in 2012!

Christmas Decor

One of these mantel decorations does not belong.
Oh Harry. He always has to be right in the action. He sits as still as a figurine.

It's a tad smaller than in years past, but is loaded with the same memories of years gone by.
Merry Christmas!

Chandler Tree Farm Party!

What a great day! It is the first weekend in December, and that means that it was time for the annual Chandler Family Christmas Tree Party! Not only did we get to see Christmas Tree harvesting more than close-up, (yes, we were FREAKING out about the helicopter that we zipping right above our heads), there was also a calf who was abandoned by it's mama that we got to feed some milk to from a big bottle. Friends, family, tradition, and sunny crisp weather made for one of my favorite tree party events ever.

Baby calf wanted his milk.

Mmm....milk!

Susie gets some lovin' from the sweetest boy, Athan.

The front half of Big John's trailer heading out into the woods.

Some of the troops unloading from the ride.

Magic mushrooms in the tree forest. Beautiful.

Mike and his boys. Wouldn't be a tree party without them!

The Moores.

Ready to chop this bad boy down!!!

My family. Even grandma joined in the fun this year!

Dan loads the tree while grandma supervises.

Oh, Pete!

Helicopter action!

Old friends. I mean, they've been friends since high school....Kelly, Cindi, and Susan.

Here is some video of the helicopter tree harvesting operation. It really doesn't do justice to how cool it was to watch. I was certain that a tree or two was going to fly off the hook and kill us all...but it didn't. We survived and have great memories from a great day! Thanks, Chandler Family.

The Spooky Night....by Nate Moore

Nate's story that he 100% wrote, edited, and typed all by himself.
He's quite the author and publisher.
Watch out, Steven King....there's a new horror writer in town.
(double click on each page to make the image a little bit larger)

Second Grade Photos

2nd Grade. Hopefully you can tell who is who.

colorful goodness

I can't get enough of the colorful leaves right now in Portland. Absolutely stunning.
These snapshots don't do justice to the beauty that is out there.
I love Fall.

The Entertainer

Wow. I think that the piano lessons are working.

Trick-or-Treat

Happy Halloween! This year we had a leopard and a Woopie Cushion that was complete with sound effects (pfftttt). We walked the neighborhood with friends, and enjoyed a fun evening.

3rd Annual Wiley Krautfest

Last night the Wiley family had their annual sauerkraut making party. Good food, good people, and lots of fun.
It was an extra exciting year, as the Moore boys all came home with trophies. Dan's trophy was for being the M.V.P. of the night...he helped peel the outer layer off of 800 lbs. of cabbage, and cut the heads into 1/4 's . Chris and Nate were acknowledged for their hard work with both taking home the 'Mini Kraut Masters' award. These boys happily worked and helped throughout the entire party. While all the other kids were down tearing up the Wiley's basement, Chris and Nate were glad to be lifting, hauling, and pounding cabbage.

Finally, the bottom of the box that the 800 lbs. of cabbage came in. Time to take a break!

And the best part....we just roll the wagon home for the night with our new batch of Kraut.

We've got sauerkraut coming out our ears, but how could we not partake in this fun tradition? We're happy to share our bounty. Just ask.

2nd Grade...like father like son

Oops! I meant to post this one, too. Dan found his 2nd grade photo and pulled it up on the computer, with Christopher standing next to it in comparison. Crazy how much they look alike...especially with those fantastic second grade teeth!

lame

Yep...that's me. lame. I have not posted anything on here for a month! Here are a few photos taken off of my i-phone that somewhat capture the past few weeks in our world.

I didn't land a full time teaching job this fall, but I did get hired as a substitute in my old district. I have been doing a long-term sub job back at the school where I taught last year, so that has been great! This position has been extended an extra week, so I will finish up at the end of October.
Since I am a full time worker-bee, G'ma came up and spent the day with the boys while I had a teacher work day last week. She even spent the night and we hit Kruger's Farm bright and early on Saturday morning.
Well, would you look at that? A GATOR sticker (the same one Dan has on his car) on a FORD FLEX at Fred Meyer. This car should be ours...or at least the owner should be our friend.

It's soccer season! The boys have been playing soccer this fall. They're good!

Raking leaves out front. I love fall.

Grandma buying goodies at Kruger's. The caramel apples were divine.

I will try to be better.