Nutcracker!
What can I say but wonderful! It was another great performance, topped off by a visit from Papa and Nana who came to watch. It's always great fun when they are here, even if they didn't get to see too much of their granddaughter (she was at the auditorium every night). And this year, she got to participate in the Tea Party (now that she's moved up a company level). Unfortunately, there was a very sad ending to this year's festivities. Each year, the local fifth graders attend a special presentation of Nutcracker. It's a tradition and one that everyone looks forward to...especially if you are a fifth grade dancer. When your school is in the audience, you get to introduce yourself at intermission (and hear all your classmates cheer). This was Samantha's big year. Her school was scheduled to attend the morning performance. Yes, I said "was scheduled". You see, on Sunday, a bad ice storm came through the area, leaving very slick roads on Monday morning. Enough so that two of the school districts cancelled classes. You guessed it...her school district was one of the two. Meaning none of her classmates got to see her dance this year. She was heartbroken...and I was hurting for her, too. I know how much she'd been waiting for this. I'm talking YEARS here because it's something every dancer looks forward to. Sadly, there are just some things that moms can't make better. This was one of them.
First Orchestra Concert!
Yes, we got to hear Samantha and friends play their first-ever concert. Their repertoire consisted of 10 short songs, several holiday classics in the mix. And ya know what? They sounded pretty darned good! Hey, I'll admit that I was a bit skeptical about how they'd do. I feared screeching violins but was pleasantly surprised. Great job!
The Gang Progressive!
It's an annual thing for us. The Gang from California. We all used to hang out together, back in the day. Before kids for all by one pair. Before marriage for Mat and me. Fate brought us all to Washington and we continue getting together. One big, happy family. The oldest child just graduated from high school last June. Man, how time flies! She was our flowergirl, if you can believe it. We have a few year lull in the graduations. But when the next one does happen, we'll have someone graduating every year for five years in a row (with a 2-year break until Nicholas does). Anyways, always more than enough food for everyone. And this year, we got to see a few of our group "rock on" to the sounds of Guitar Hero (I...II...III...I'm not sure). And the adults' ornament exchange was pretty awesome. So much thought and creativity went into selecting our person's ornament. We all agreed that we can't do this next year...cuz the bar has been set much too high!
Holiday with Family!
We headed to Papa and Nana's for a great holiday vacation. Auntie Jess and Uncle Clint joined us, along with cousin Michal (the kids always have fun together). We drove to the "Home of the Aliens" to visit with the extended family (Mat's aunts, uncles, and cousins). Even got a great photo of the entire group. Well, almost. One missing mom and daughter (sick little one).
Lots of presents...and when I say "lots", I mean LOTS! Nana and Papa got the kids Nintendo DS Lites (SCORE!) so you know what will be on the birthday lists. And Samantha loves her new Sony Cybershot digicam. And get this...along with Michal, the kids created little video movies (using the camera's video feature). They used their Webkins (another crowd favorite) and wrote little captions for each character using paper and black marker. They even rolled the credits at the end (on a larger sheet of paper). Produced by Samantha! Totally creative and very funny!
Oh, just one guess as to which present he just opened...
Oh, just one guess as to which present he just opened...Visited with some of Mat's college buds and their kids (Logan and Sofia, two of the cutest girls you could ever meet). We also got to see three movies - Enchanted, Alvin and the Chipmunks, and Charlie Wilson's War. And we took a jaunt to David's Bridal to try on junior bridesmaid dresses. The one we all really liked doesn't come in black, but here was number 2. The sample is a little big but doesn't she look beautiful?
So, there you have it. The final month of 2007 encapsulated here. Okay, I'll try to do better in 2008. Can't do much worse, right?
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