Tuesday, January 20, 2009

Friday, January 16, 2009

Happy New Year!

The Pyle family has a tradition of getting together at New Year's and this year was our year to host. We had a great time! William was so excited Uncle Billy was coming to his house. (and the others of course) We all came together on Tuesday of that week and were able to spend some enjoyable times visiting, laughing, and playing games like UNO. The guys spent hours visiting Cabelas and Bass Pro while the girls went to the mall and did some shopping of our own. The greatest times were gathering around our dining room table and getting down and dirty playing UNO. William was the funniest of all...wanting to play his draw 2's and draw 4's. We always knew when he had those cards because he would start laughing. His primary victim was Aunt Vivian but she took it in stride. Another family tradition is the funny underwear that get passed around each year (don't ask!). Last year, Tim had received them and we decided to change things up a little this year. Instead of just the guys getting them, we decided it was the girls turn. I cautiously and carefully hid it in my gift and who got the pleasure of opening it up...none other than my mother-in-law! It was hilarious! (pictures will follow) We had a wonderful time bringing in the new year and only wish more of the 'young' people were here. We missed you terribly.

Happy New Year!

Wednesday, January 7, 2009

the Christmas Season (Part 2)

The excitment and anticipation had finally come to an all time high on Christmas eve. Mawmaw and Pawpaw were with us and we were buzzing around the house getting everything ready. We all got dressed for our first Christmas eve service and were very delighted to see all our friends and especially the decorations...it was a Charlie Brown Christmas. What a unique service for children and the young at heart. There was music (courtesy of Tim Bach) and what a great time had by all. Jingle Bells...Rocking around the Christmas Tree...Santa Claus is Coming to Town...Away in the Manager. These are all William's favorites. After the service and the very long dinner (according to William), it was finally time to open our presents. William went first and was excited and joyful about each one. My favorite moment was when he opened his chef's hat and apron and said "this is what I have always wanted." The presents included computer games for his LeapPad computer, soccer goals, pajamas, books, and a new bicycle helmet. As it was our turn to open presents, he was such a gentleman and helped each of us tear into ours and with the same anticipation of his own gifts, could not wait until we opened them and found out what they were. He specifically picked out a great spatula for his mommy with a snowflake on it! I love it! As we prepared for bed, the questions kept coming "Are we going to hear the reindeer? Do we have the milk for the cookies? (which he wanted to put out at 9:00 that morning!) Will he know which stocking is mine?" It was great to experience his excitment and even more sweet to watch him write a note to Santa and then to see that Santa wrote him back. (aka pawpaw) Christmas morning we awoke to hear his voice saying " it's morning, it's morning...let's look in our stockings." He found a big tool box with all the tools inside, a huge box of legos that make a truck, trailer, and boat. We had such a special time and it is forever in my memory.

Tuesday, January 6, 2009

the Christmas Season (Part 1)

Luke 2:11 says " Today a Savior is born to you, Christ the Lord." This was our focus verse for the month of December. On one particular day while doing errands and Christmas shopping, William said to me "Mommy, I know what Christmas really means. It's not about the presents...it about Jesus' birthday! How old is Jesus?" What a great opportunity to talk about Jesus, His birth, His life and what He means to me and what He can mean to William.

We celebrated many different ways throughout the month. William helped me as we decorated the house with the great colors of red, green, and white. He took such joy in helping me adorn the chandelier in the dining room with ornaments or set out the nativity scene. He specifically and gently placed each ornament on the tree in just the right spot all the while advising his daddy and I where ours should go. As a family we had several movie nights, lighting the fire, and enjoying fresh popcorn to the sounds of the Polar Express or Charlie Brown Christmas. We took our decorating skills to a new level as we put together our first gingerbread house. It was a very labor intensive project with the icing (keeping it damp, setting it up, and then drying for hours), the trimmings, and deciding which side was his and which side was mine. William did a great job with his side of the roof but kept telling me "your side is prettier mommy." He is my 'little chef' as I like to call him and we couldn't get to the baking and assembly of all the goodies quick enough. He helped me bake 3 batches of pumpkin bread (each time breaking all the eggs) and putting together his Christmas trail mix of peanuts, m&m's, honeycombs, marshmallows, and raisins for his teachers. His excitement about giving was truly contagious! We also had the opportunity to see Santa and Mrs. Claus as they dropped by the Gaylord Texan. What a great experience! William decided to write Santa a letter and it read:
"Merry Christmas Santa! I want: webkins, airplanes, legos and a gold flute. from: William Pyle" His list wasn't that long but I still don't know where the gold flute came from! (surprisingly, he received one from mawmaw from costa rica but that's another post!) We made some great memories and we had a very special, relaxed holiday season.