A couple of big long posts...

Merry Christmas! I've been neglecting blogging recently. Mostly, because there has been so much going on. One example is that Laurie got a job! We found out a few days before we left for California for Christmas. She will be working at the Jewish high school in Scottsdale. The job is almost exactly the same as what she was doing in her previous job and she really likes the people she'll be working with. We think that her being let go earlier was better for her in the long run because she was able to do things like tour the school on a work day and go in for a meeting. We're very excited, she starts on January 4th, but she has some meetings on the 29th and 30th so we are going to go home earlier that we thought.

Right now, we're on the second leg of our Christmas trip. We spent the first few days with Laurie's sister and brother-in-law and their 2 little boys. It was a lot of fun. They have a guest bedroom on the first floor that is perfect for staying in. We got in after bedtime on Saturday night and Sunday morning, I got woken up to be blown a kiss from the oldest (he's 2). We celebrated Christmas dinner a little early, Laurie's sister's family are spending Christmas in Seattle, with her brother-in-law's family. It was delicious and the boys got their gifts from Laurie's parents. The oldest got a balance bike, which was a big hit and both are sharing the Thomas the train set, complete with train table and track and everything. It was really cute to see them so excited!

The next few days have been quiet. Hanging out with the boys and playing with them and lots of reading with them. We went to lunch twice and it was really convenient to get out because Laurie's sister is the proud owner of a new minivan (ok, new to us. They've had it for a little while, but we didn't know about it.) So, we didn't have to load car seats into our car before we could go anywhere.

Now, we're up at Laurie's parent's cabin for a few days before we head home. There is a little snow on the ground, hopefully enough for them to cross country ski on. We're expecting friends to come up tomorrow. We'll leave for home on Monday.

Our neighbors at home have been really nice. I went ahead with my mom's permission to order all the things that I need for the bunny! (Only 7 days left!) Our neighbor is collecting the boxes that were still arriving when we left for CA. I'm really excited to go get Bennett! It's going to be a lot of work, but it will be worth it! (Bunny kisses!)

I hope all are having a good Christmas. I am a blessed girl this year. We do Secret Santas with Laurie's family and Laurie's father drew my name. I got everything on my list, which was extremely generous. I'm planning on doing a knitting and spinning post soon, I've got lots to post about. I'm looking forward to a family tradition - the making and eating of cinnamon rolls for Christmas morning. We're heading to Mass at 11am. Off to see about doing that second fiber post...