Here come the boys!

Today is my birthday and my treat was having Lynn bring the boys to Mom's house this afternoon to hang out for a bit. Lynn and Manny made some special treats, Rollo Pretzels, as Gabe played his game and Angelo played with toys. Lynn also spent time preparing dinner for us, as their dad was joining this fun after work. 

Manny is ready to place the pecans onto the softened Rollo's

Here is that little sweetheart, Angelo. He played all afternoon with toys Mom keeps in her storage room. Some of them were formerly Justin's, gotten as gifts from my friends, Karen and Jan Tuesburg when he was this age. It's hard to believe that Angelo can go to preschool already next fall. He is such a doll!

Go Pack, Go!

Today was the big day for Justin and for Lynn. They were able to go to the last Packer game of the regular season at Lambeau Field. Merry Christmas, my boy! We had many details, mostly minor ones, to figure for this major event and we got them all handled. Most important was what to wear so as not to freeze to pieces while visiting the Frozen Tundra. Linda, arranged for parking at her nephew's house, only a couple of blocks from the stadium, so that was all set.

Justin and Jill at Perkin's

Originally the game was at noon but the schedule was changed which put it at a 3:00 pm start time. This did allow them more time between church and departure for Green Bay than they would have had otherwise. After church a nice group of us went to Perkin's for breakfast where Mom treated us. Loved my potato pancakes! Our group consisted of Justin, Jill, Danny, Lynn, Alayna, Mom, and me. 

After breakfast the two game-goers got ready with their hats, scarves (Justin had his custom-made Packer scarf from Stephanie), mittens, the works. He was wearing layers under his jacket and I trust Lynn was as well. And they were off! I was so glad for both of them. Lynn and Justin wanted to tour the facility, check out the Pro Shop and perhaps see the trophies before going to their seats. I was concerned about Lynn having to climb too much but they were served by elevators and had only a few steps to their most comfortable seats. Yes, not bleachers where they were, but actual seats with cup holders! And they could see just fine.

I watched the game in Mom's living room while she hid in her room, saying she could not take the stress of the game, three minutes in. She had other shows to watch while I enjoyed the game. Justin had said to me that he was surprised that I didn't go along to Green Bay and watch with the Schroeders but it never even occurred to me to ask them. Just as well---I am fine watching from home. I had expected to hear from Justin during the game only to find out later that there was no signal from the stadium. Nuts!  I had my football snacks and watched the Lions loose to the Packers, but not without some drama including Aaron going down and out of the game at one point. Yikes! No worries, though, he came back and finished the game, even after being walked on by a bad guy Lion's player. Ugh!

On the ride home after the game Justin had a signal and was able to text me. He wanted to know what happened with Aaron and Suh (the bad guy). In the stadium, they couldn't see that Suh not once, but twice, walked on Aaron's leg while he was down on the ground. It was being discussed on the postgame radio show but it was news to Justin and Lynn. I hope the powers that be throw the book at him! Not his first offense and he is just a stinker!

Justin and Lynn finally got home and brought sub sandwiches with them to have for their dinner. I would have thought they'd eat at the game or on their ride home but did not. They told Mom and me all about the game, what they saw and did, etc. Justin did have a beer there, bragging rights and all that. I wanted him to try the horse collar sandwich (it's huge!) but he is not a fan of Polish sausage. And he bought a new cheese head, thanks to his auntie, Kerry.  

The two of them were warm for the most part but each remarked that their coldest part was their laps. I guess the jacket or coat isn't long enough to cover that part of the leg and was the most exposed. They were both glad to be back in the car and then at Grandma's where it's nice and warm. Hope they both have a good sleep after that exciting game, witnessing the Packers win a place in the playoffs---just as I knew they would. You're welcome, Justin!

Blessed Christmas Day

Today was simply marvelous on so many levels, including the level of me climbing the stairs to the balcony this morning to sing the “Hallelujah Chorus” with the mass choir. I had entirely forgotten about this opportunity until Justin pointed it out to me in the service folder. I told him I was going up after taking the Lord’s Supper (love going to the Lord’s Table with my family like this!) and asked him to take charge of my purse and coat. He whispered to me that he wanted to go up, too, and would carry my items when we got to the stairs. What a sweetie pie!

As it turned out I took only my purse, knowing Jill could grab my coat for me. Putting the purse on cross body style, up the stairs we went, with me holding the handrails on both sides. In doing so I can climb up with one foot per stair rather than the customary two feet per step. I think Justin was amazed to see me do this. (Our stairways at The Palace are too wide for me to reach across to do this.) I caught my breath at the top of the steps, got the sheet music, though I didn’t really need it, and waited for the choir to return from communion before I took a seat. Justin found a seat on the side, as he wanted to watch me sing rather than join in.

I was warmly greeted by my former spouse’s cousin, LuAnn, and it was so good to see her. We were going to be joining the sopranos and took seats next to my niece, Alayna, and my sister, Lynn. They were quite short of sopranos so were glad we were coming to help them out. There had to be at least 40 people who were singing, doubling the size of the choir. This was helped by having some of the orchestra members sing with us as well. Anyone who has sung it before with a choir is invited to join and I cherish this opportunity more than I can express. Later my sister, Jill, reported that she could hear me from downstairs, which is good, I hope. As we sang to the pre-recorded accompaniment, I could see the director, Kevin, holding in his tears as we got to the last pages of the piece.

Besides singing the Chorus, as a congregation, we sang many lovely hymns and carols accompanied by the orchestra (actually it’s a band since there are no strings, but I can’t bring myself to say ‘church band’), including “Hark, the Herold Angels Sing” with the pipe organ and instruments. Nothing like it!  First German is blessed with many wonderful musicians and singers, and organists, oh my!

For our lunch, rather than having our usual leftovers from Christmas Eve, I decided to make a ham, mashed potatoes, green beans, and such for our feast. Not too much but still celebratory. Oh my, how good that ham was! Lynn and Jill joined Mom, Justin, and me around her small table and enjoyed our Christmas lunch. Lori, David, and Dustin came by for a little while as well before going to visit family members on David’s side of the family for the rest of the day. It’s so cool to have Justin and Dustin together, and with Alayna, the night before. And in Mom’s living room today.

This evening we had leftovers and then Justin set up his laptop at the table for us to watch “It’s a Wonderful Life”. Mom wasn’t crazy about this movie the first time she saw it many years ago and I really can’t say if she enjoyed it this time, but Justin and I did. We generally watch it every year for Christmas and this year actually got to watch it together on Christmas Day because he came along with me. Yay! He forgot the cord to connect his computer to the TV so that’s why we watched at the table. Not the most comfortable but it worked and made for a nice end to our Christmas Day.

“For the Lord God omnipotent reignth…”

It's time for Christmas

Our family celebrates Christmas starting on the Eve, or more specifically, in the afternoon of the Eve. Since we no longer have kids in the program, we don't attend worship until it's time for the candlelight service. Jill so kindly reserved the community room in the apartment building for our use, which comes with a decorated tree. Nice!  Lori, David, and Dustin drove over this a.m. from Holmen, and Alayna came up from Madison, once she was done working. We attendees prepare or provide foods for a buffet where we nibble much of the afternoon and evening during the gift opening and beyond. 

Before everyone arrived, some of us sat down in the community room for a bit, once we got the buffet all set up. Here is Mom, all dressed for the occasion.

 I ordered this trivia game for us to play with while I am here, all about TV and movies. We played a modified version of it while waiting for the rest of the family to arrive. 

Justin's contribution was making sandwiches including two sandwich rings as shown here, plus his good ham and Swiss rolls made on the Hawaiian rolls, spread with onion and poppyseed. Oh, my, so delicious!! 

Here is one of the sandwich rings after its been baked. It was wonderful!

 

At last everyone is here and the boys can begin opening their presents. Angelo is looking over a present from Justin and me, as Manny and Gabe wait their turns. 

Angelo is now going to open the present which is a matching game with the theme of Despicable Me. I'm so out of the game that I don't know what's what anymore!

Besides chipping in money toward Gabe's electronic piano keyboard, Justin and I got the boys this Monopoly game based on Star Wars, of which both are fans. I hope they like it. I also got them the DVD of the Lego movie to share. 

While the boys did their gift opening, the adults sat along the perimeter to watch. Lori, Dusty, David, and Justin are pictured here. It's so nice having the boys, and their cousin, Alayna, together for a visit. 

Jill and Lori are overseeing Mom as she opens her Christmas presents. She asked that she not receive anything that has to be moved, as she plans to go into assisted living at some point. I don't think she did get anything which did not fit her criteria except for a sweater with coordinating top to wear under it. I wouldn't consider clothing something which needs to be moved, so she was happy with her gift certificates, chocolates, etc. Justin and I gave her winter gloves which match her coat. We also got her a certificate for the hair salon she goes to plus a book of postage stamps so she can mail cards to her friends. I think she liked all she received. 

After the room was cleaned up, gifts loaded into cars, and ourselves tidied up, off we went to the candlelight service. This is what Justin was waiting for---Christmas at First German. With the pipe organ and church orchestra, we sang marvelous hymns and carols, filling the length of the pew with our family. Lynn and Alayna were in the balcony to sing with the choir. It was just a lovely service, culminating with singing "Stille Nacht", first in English and then lastly in German, while holding lit candles. It was a good day!

"Christ, the Savior, is born!"

A full day with the church family

 This morning for our Lessons and Carols service, we had a little choir formed to sing three pieces, in which I sang two verses as a solo. The choir got many compliments which were warmly received. 

After church our group went to Chili's where we surprised Mike S with a new TV. He was presently watching a 13" one and ruining his eyes in the process so we chipped money and gift cards together to get him this one. Gotta love the electronics sales this time of the year. He was blown away, and even wiped a tear from his eye, saying he's never gotten such a wonderful gift. Nice!

But, no time to enjoy his new TV---not when there is a tree waiting to be decorated. Nick and Mike were stringing the lights so we ladies didn't have to climb up on the ladder. And then Mike had to go to the kitchen and make some soup!

Once the tree was decorated, a group of us headed to the Veterans' Home near St. Augustine to sing carols to the residents. After we sang to each dining room of vets, we'd go around to greet them and wish them Merry Christmas, thanking them for their service. The kids were real troupers, not shy about greeting these folks. I am proud of them for being so kind and willing to serve.

We had ten total carolers, three of which were young kids, and one young man who is Judy's grandson, David, a law student at UF. We put on lots of miles on foot going dining room to dining room but it was well worth it as Laurie's youngest son remarked to her on the ride back, "That was fantastic..." or something to that affect. Love it!

This is what awaited us when we got back to church. We had several choices of soups, and breads to eat with it. We had lots of people show up to eat besides the carolers but there was plenty of soup for us all.

                               

Here are the soups, as prepared by Chefs Mike 'n Mike, and one by Brad, including graduated types of chili starting with mild and ending up with 'there go my fillings' hot. Also a turkey and wild rice, a seafood chowder, and another one which I don't know what it was. The bread was wonderful, too, with butter---yum!

When I got home from my church activities, Justin so too excited to wait for me to open my Christmas presents from him. Even though I didn't have mine ready for him, he just couldn't wait. This bag contains numerous bottles of scented hand sanitizer which I like, plus the bag is actually a cooler. Once frozen, the bag will chill a 6 pack of soda or beer for a period of time, like a giant coozy. I just love it, perfect for the pool!

Justin made these wooden pillars for me, resembling gifts. Working together with Jesse, they cut, sanded, shaped, and painted these pillars and applied the ribbon to make them look like this. Both us moms got a set and some friends as well are getting some of their hand-crafted gifts. I like them, our only decorations out this year!  He also gave a scented candle which doesn't appear in the photos, two scents as one flows into the other as it burns. He is a gem!

Loss and the holidays

In the most recent edition of "Forward in Christ", a periodical published through our Synod, there was a story about a pastor and his wife who lost their 2 1/2 year old son on Christmas Eve due to a fast moving illness which consumed him. They had no worship that night, as you might expect, but the pastor did conduct the festival service on Christmas morning, to celebrate the birth of our Savior. Without this babe, he said, he could never have peace with the loss of his babe. I get that.

As I lie here and think about it, my friend, Linda, comes to mind. A couple years ago I was able to meet her good friend, Angie, and meet again Debbie and Chris, with whom Linda works out nearly every morning. We were lunching at the Harborside just before Christmas and having a marvelous time. Angie was telling me how Linda talked about Justin and me often, and she felt like she knew us already. I felt like I knew her as well.

Linda had reported what a sweetheart Justin is (of course!), and as we gushed over him, my phone went off. I excused myself to talk to Justin, calling from FL. When I came back from the chat with him, I told them what he had to say. Justin was cautioning me to NOT listen to the first hour of our favorite radio show that day because the guest host was talking about the unopened gifts under the Christmas trees of the homes of those slaughtered in CT at the school shooting. He is familiar with that sadness, that empty feeling, and knew it would upset his mother. So he called to warn me. The ladies were moved when I told them why he called. It was so thoughtful of him to be looking out for me this far away.

I had shared this experience with my sister, Lynn, then, and a few nights later, she presented her youngest grandson, Angelo, with a stuffed lion. This lion had been on her shelf for over a decade (oh my, that sounds like a long time!), intended for Timmy's birthday the year he died. Lynn took that unopened present and gave it to Angelo, to open. I just love that. Brings tears to my eyes yet today. Thinking now about all the parents out there who have unopened gifts intended for those no longer here. I am glad to have the opened gift, the comfort of knowing that my Redeemer lives and my loved one is with Him in eternal bliss. There are no tears where he is, only bliss beyond compare, where everyday is Easter and everyday is Christmas. "How my heart yearns within me..."

Preschool Christmas program

In recent years Betty, Judy, and I have been privileged to serve as hostesses for Precious Lambs Preschool's Christmas program. This year Judy had a schedule conflict and was not able to attend but did make some wonderful cookies. Betty and Michael got the room set up, we got the cookies displayed, and I made punch for the reception. My lady friends are more creative than am I but I am no slouch when it comes to making oatmeal Scotchies! 

These are the cookies made by Judy (on the tray) and Betty's on the foam block. Oreo's dipped in white chocolate and then decorated to look like snowmen. This idea was sent to her by me!

Here are the kids starting to assemble before the program. They had the jitters in their legs for sure, and the little blonde boy cried more than once before going over to church. He is not yet 3 so this is a big adjustment for him. They are taking kids a bit younger than usual to get the census up in the classroom. Hoping for more students in the New Year!