Holiday Pictures

Here are some highlights from the holidays. . . 

 These are from Christmas Eve when we had our Ris Ala Mand (Rice pudding). Collin won the luck this year by finding the almond. That makes me 0 for 34. As Jon put it after, "You had a one in three chance of getting it and you still didn't!!". That pretty much sums it up. Collins

excitement over finding it made up for it though!

 

After dinner we have a white elephant exchange but with the Bybee twist of having it be food items, which in my opinion makes it even better. At the end of the night, the kids can open one present which is always jaminas (when Grace was little that's what she called pajamas and it stuck). You would think by their excitement over them that it was Christmas morning! This is my absolute favorite picture of the whole holiday. 

These next ones are from Christmas morning. This is Jons 111th or something watch. 

This one is of our traditional Christmas breakfast of aebleskivers and this year I added a Finnish sweet bread called pulla.  The very attractive picture of me with our Buche de Noel is actually suppose to highlight the pictures/plaques of the vegetables on the cupboards behind me. Jon painted them for me as a surprise. 

Right before New Years we went to our Sister-in-Laws ranch outside of San Antonio so the kids could be with their cousins and the kids could experience a lot of country life/Dangerous Book for Boys activities. They shot guns, fished, played in the treehouse and brought back about 5 pounds of mud in their clothes. We all had a great time. 

      

                               

                 On the way back to the big city, we stopped in San Antonio to go to the Alamo. It was really interesting, even though we didn't get to see the basement. We did however sing "The Stars at Night . . . " and fulfilled one of Collins Bear requirements for Cub Scouts.