Into the Holidays

While the house emptied out a bit with Provo kids back to college and our Logan kids back to school, things did not come to a quiet standstill after Thanksgiving. (Here we are 15 days from Christmas, and I still am nowhere near having Christmas presents wrapped--nor even all purchased, and all because time has been hurtling on with happenings--as the holiday weeks do at this stage of life--and I am boggled as to how we are in December at all yet--much less nearing its half way mark!)

The very Monday after our full Thanksgiving week we all met in Provo for the Peter Breinholt Christmas concert. I have never enjoyed any concerts more than the two of his we've gone to. Of course, that might not be true if his music wasn't attached to so many memories for us but seeing as it is! ...

Just prior to all of Thanksgiving shenanigans we had Anders' and Mette's piano recital:

And during the week after Thanksgiving, we plunged into more Christmassy things not only with Peter Breinholt, but with Goldie's Utah State Choir Christmas concert:

By sheer luck she happened to file in almost directly behind where we were seated. 

I'm sure she loved Mette distracting her with photo taking. :)

Hansie got a bit tired. Bless him.

We also had Summer's orchestra Christmas concert:

Multiple elementaries combined for this concert--hence the huge group of performers.

And finally, somehow a week into December, we managed to go get a tree. We bought a blue spruce with roots intact in hopes of planting it at the farm. Fingers crossed that having it in the house this long won't take it from its dormant winter state into one that won't be able to withstand the cold once we put it back outside!

I have spent much of these last Christmases sort of waiting for the craziness to calm down enough to be able take it all in and fully appreciate the traditions and joys of the season. But as my home shifts and changes, I am beginning to see that by the time it slows down to any degree ... much of the tradition and magic I love ... will be past altogether for me! I suppose it's a bit of a sad thought, but it also makes me realize that there is no magical future day, in this mortal life anyway, where the demands on my time and energy will be small and I will still be experiencing the fullness of children, and picking out trees, and recitals, and reading Christmas books, and cutting out sugar cookies, and opening the advent box to see what fun activity is in store. This is it. It always has been. The magical things that are happening all mingled in with the groceries needing purchased, and homework needing helped with, and dishes needing done, and laundry needing folded, and presents needing figured out, tantrums and squabbling needing borne, and stresses over house things gone wrong, and moves and all the accompanying packing looming, etc. There's no way to have tease the things apart or experience them consequentially. It's all just here happening together. What a mad and wonderful time it is.

(All the kids were with Mike at Lowe's or Home Depot one evening. See above picture. I'm not sure exactly where Mike was--as I think he would have put a prompt stop to this--but, at one point, Anders texted me a video of some goofy singing/dancing Christmas toy. In front of the one he filmed for me I could see Hans and Starling giggling as they turned on and set out on the store floor about 20 more of the figures. Haha. Goofy children.)

Anywho! On with the season! 

The Fullest of Full Thanksgivings

The entire week of Thanksgiving was as absolutely full as it has ever been. (In activities and goings on as well as in just ... the actual physical fullness of our home.)

Abe and Kenya bravely came to stay for five whole nights. (And it was brave. I have said this before, but if you stand by the bathroom in the hallway of this rental you can basically see the entire house. Three bedrooms [one of them not much bigger than some walk-in closets], two bathrooms, and a kitchen/living room area that isn't much bigger than the loft in our new house. That meant Abe and Kenya slept on camping pads in the living room and never had any opportunity--short of leaving the house all together--to be anywhere that wasn't within arm's reach of a sibling. Multiple siblings.)

Daisy, of course, came from Provo as well. 

And Goldie and Wyatt, while living in Logan (and thus not needing to sleep here), were gathered here throughout the week.

14 of us. And only one couch and one loveseat to be shared amongst us all.

There were movies to be watched (how we fit to watch them I can't fully recall), and pies to be made (many cooks in the kitchen). We watched the Macey's parade and the National Dog Show while various kids took turns peeling, and cutting, and draining, and mashing potatoes for the 60-plus people who would be at the Harris Thanksgiving. There was getting us all to North Ogden in multiple cars for the big Thanksgiving feast. (Sadly, I have no pictures from that main event of the week.) There were errands needing run. And Abe and Kenya taking half the kids rock climbing while Penny and Daisy took half the kids roller skating. There were large meals to be made and clean-up to be done (constantly). There was Kenya needing taken to the insta-care for bronchitis (which didn't stop her from the Turkey Trot with Abe on Thanksgiving morning.) And there was clay pigeon and pellet-gun shooting, and touring of the house, and animal feeding at the farm. And of course there were all the moments in between dotted full of games, and treat-making, and conversations, and laughter, and occasional exhaustion.

Just a little pellet gun.

Mette's first time.

Devin and Melissa came up one night to visit. The kids all adore entertaining Stella and Moses (the happy fella pictured below). It made me miss having a toddler for everyone to dote on! Penny and I were talking the other day about how, from age 1 1/2 to age 12, she had a new baby sibling come home about every other year--and for a while there, every year! It seems a shame that our younger kids haven't gotten to experience that! 

Goldie helped Mette do a Charlie Brown feast one evening.

Abe texted me pictures of the Thanksgiving climbing with the kids as well as a few from when he took Jesse and Anders with his pal Noah in October, so I just threw them in here as well.

Anyway! Next year we will have plenty of space: multiple bathrooms, many places to sit, and extra rooms for sleeping; so this crowded, little holiday week of being squished together will be a fun one to remember, and I am very glad for whatever it is in humans that makes us want to gather together and be with the people we call family!