Merry Christmas

Christmas rolled in as quick as ever this year! We hosted the Stien clan for the big day this year and the kids were excited to have their Grandparents and Aunt and Uncle visit.

The night before Christmas the stockings were waiting to be filled.

On Christmas Eve, the spring in our garage door broke and our cars were stuck in the garage. The kids thought a Christmas miracle had occurred because we would not be able to get out for church! Needless to say, we ended up making it.

 Grandpa Stien's stockings are always a favorite!

Jackson and Catie played present sherpa, carrying everyone's gifts from the tree to the family room. We can't remember the last time they volunteered for this kind of duty.

 Abby being the youngest was first to open each round. She was so excited... she's at a great age for Christmas!

We always told the girls that some day they could have a horse....

 Jackson displaying the "beardo hat" that Stiv and he gave to Uncle John. It's functional, fashionable, and funny! I think that they found it funnier than the recipient.

Jackson showing Grandma a great big thanks for one of his presents. Evidently, please, thank yous, and genuine manners are only displayed to non-parents.

The girls in their cool animal hats. Abby and Catie look at their Aunt Ann like she is a real live Barbie doll. They love to stand behind her and brush her hair, etc...

  

The 48 hours after Christmas were spent staring at screens! Outdoor activities are on the agenda for the remainder of the winter break....

Christmas Warm-up

Santa had some tough decisions to make with this crew.

We had a busy couple of weeks leading up to Christmas, with class parties, academic awards, performances and more!

Jackson posing after his school holiday band concert.

Jackson had two band performances that he and the entire band have been working hard on for months.

The 5th grade band was really impressive. Mr. Wilkerson had them performing as a finely tuned unit.

Jackson was as cool and relaxed as they come before the big performance at North DeKalb Mall.

Another successful concert in the books.

The sisters chillin' out before Catie's chorus concert at the Tucker  Christmas tree lighting ceremony.

The Northlake Chorus in all their Christmas glory belt out the songs for the people of Tucker.

 

The chorus also sang to the Briarcliff Methodist Church. They only practiced for a total of nine hours, but were really impressive. The director did a fabulous job with the group. 

 

Midvale had their midyear academic awards (no midyear awards at Jax school), and Catie proudly accepted her well-earned  Principal's honor roll certificate!

We also attended Abster's holiday party at Midvale on their last day of school before holiday break. We had fun eating lunch and working on some Christmas arts and crafts with the kids.

Happy Birthday Jackson

 Jackson had his 11th birthday party at Stars and Strikes (again) and than had the little dudes sleep over for the evening.

Who wouldn't be excited by a bunch of cool gifts from their buddies?

We had quite the crew for bowling. Besides Stiv making the reservation on the wrong day (it was the internet's fault... again), things went off without a hitch.

Catie brought her pal Lizzie along for support.

Jax friend and ladies man Matthew, helped Abby with her alignment. Between the gutter guards and the ball ramp, there were some artificially inflated scores!

The boys and Abby, were ready to do battle with a bunch of big kids. Catie and Lizzy bailed on the laser tag, but Abster had no fear and went right with the teenagers! The big kids showed her no mercy either!!!

 The pancake breakfast was a great way to end a fun (long) night of partying for the boys.

Thanksgiving Week

Midvale had their annual Thanksgiving lunch with parents and grandparents the week leading up to the big Thursday. Both Grandma Moe and Dad attended so they could split time between Catie and Abby since their lunch times overlap.

Abby and Dad were real excited to dig into the tasty cafeteria version of Thanksgiving dinner!

The pre-K class worked hard to make placemats and turkey hats for the occasion. Abster proudly displayed her work.

After spending the first several months of the year on maternity leave, Mrs. Little made her debut and Catie was sooooo excited to have her back! 

Catie had her first chorus event, singing to the veterans at the school. She proactively requested to join chorus and has really enjoyed it so far.

We stopped back at Legoland on one of our days off and enjoyed a few 4D movies and the other activities. Abby was back at one of her favorite activities... karaoke!

Jackson was engrossed in car building and racing the whole time, but did take the occasional 4D movie break.

Of course, we ran in the Atlanta half marathon early Thanksgiving Day morning with some friends. The weather started off fairly cold, but turned into another perfect day for the run. If you look closely, you can tell that only one of the group was saavy enough to not overdress....

Although not pictured, Grandma Schwartz came down for Thanksgiving and took advantage of the gorgeous weather by taking the kids hiking on the trails behind our house. 

Taekwondo Belt Testing

 After the long Summer break from Taekwondo, Jackson and Catie worked hard to get their mojo back and earn their next belt level. They are tested in three disciplines: forms, sparring and breaking. 

Catie working on her Basic II forms. She did a nice job with her forms, but needs to work on her balance as she moves on to more advanced moves.

Forms are the foundation of the sport but they are also the most tedious. We were a little worried about Jax before the testing started because he kept looking at the forms posters while he was warming up and talking to himself like he had never seen them before! Once the testing started, he was flawless and passed with flying colors.

The crew helping each other put on their pads before kicking each other!

Waiting and ready for their turn to spar!  

Jackson landing the always difficult backspin heel kick!

 Now for a jumping front kick...Pow! 

Catie has become much more aggressive while sparring! She dominated this boy and kicked him all around the mat. She has really improved.

Catie and her opponent in the Kyong Ne stance before their "fight" as a sign of respect.

Breaking is where Catie really uses her height to her advantage and smashed the board with tremendous power on her first attempt!  

Jackson used some type of jumping front kick to break his boards. It looked pretty cool in person.

Abby was our little photographer running all around taking pictures of everything but the action. Once she learns how to remain still and quiet, she might have a career waiting for her!

Washington Farms

We continued our tradition of  kicking off the Halloween season by spending an afternoon at a local "farm festival." This year we selected Washington Farms, just north of Atlanta. 

Abby checking out all the "little pumps..." It was a long and arduous decision, but she finally picked a good one. 

Catie is ready for her annual ride on the cow barrel tractor ride.

Abster is looking good in her trademark shades!

Abby loved the huge jumpy pad and didn't want her turn to end.

Jackson and his good buddy Matthew jumping sky high....

Everyone was ready for the pig races to start. This is always a favorite event and watching the little piggies race through the water trough never gets old! 

This farm even had a petting zoo with chicks, rabbits and horses. The kids loved holding the animals but dad was afraid they would poop on his hands.

The swing tube was a huge hit with all the kids and a few adults too.

Jackson displaying his souvenir from the giant maze.