We didn't sing as many Christmas songs as in years past or read as many of our Christmas books, yet our house was still full of music and dancing thanks in large part to Lily and Santa. 5 months of rehearsals, 8 shows, fighting through a nasty cold, and never complaining once highlights the joy and commitment Lily showed being part of her first community musical theater cast for Alice in Wonderland, English Panto style. It was a damn good show and Lily truly loved the whole experience and the new cast family she really felt a part of. It was contagious and Paul and Elise have been quite into performing at home for us to songs like Time Warp, Old Town Road, and There Are No Cats In America. Santa gifted the kids headphones to use on their tablets to explore Amazon Prime Music library. It's the first time they truly have the freedom to explore music and figure out on their own what they like.
We missed seeing Eric and family for Christmas this year but very much enjoyed having the rest of the Biegansky crew together in Portland. Right when you think Oma and Opa have reached the pinnacle of hosting mastery, they one-up themselves and spoil us yet again a bit more. I have no problem admitting there is a very wide gap in cooking and hosting skills between us and while I strive every year to close the gap just a little bit, I'll always thoroughly enjoy their spoils. Thanks Oma and Opa.
Nate turned 43 a couple days ago. He's not thrilled but like many years in the past, at least we weren't on a plane. It's safe to say he had a great day seeing Star Wars with Paul and Lily, choosing to go extra fancy for a dinner out with me, popover breakfast with the family, and a tough spin class. It's been fun to have him home the last week or so for the Holidays. In the not too distant past, I would have said helpful before fun because I really just wanted help at home with the kids but this current phase we're in having 8 and 10 year olds has put us back into fun mode.
It's the end of a decade in just a few hours. Our Christmas stuff was all packed away today. Fresh start tomorrow...whatever that means. Almost every single morning gives me a sense of hope that it will be a great day and even though it usually wanes by early afternoon, just try again the next day. As for New Years resolutions, all I'll say is that I hope to write more again and let the process take me in whatever direction it wants.
Cheers to 2020! It's going to take a little bit until the year doesn't sound so futuristic to me.
A clip from the play. This was at the very end of the show with the entire cast.
Cast - Lily is in the lower left corner in the green dress.
Family dinner out with Jeanne and Keith. Thank you for making the trek down to support Lily.
Tradition - Decorating Christmas cookies with Oma
Paul is ready for Christmas - Elton John style
We may be outgrowing Playmobil (that's a tough truth to swallow for me) but their last Advent calendar gift was Santa's bakeshop that I was pleased to see they enjoyed getting.
One of the many random performances we got in our living room
Christmas Eve Dinner - Steak and Great Oma's "pink" salad.
Quiet before Christmas morning enjoying the view
I'll enjoy looking at these pictures of them over the years on Christmas morning in years to come.
Had to do one family snapshot
No questions or doubts when Christmas arrived. Lily stayed quiet and twins seemed to still be believers.
Christmas Day Dinner - Oma outdid herself with a delicious homemade dessert
You were missed Ken. Ski (and snowboarding for Elise) day at the mountain was a success.
Meanwhile, we enjoyed exploring the town while the others played on the mountain
First Christmas with 6 month old Moxie.
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