Hibernation

Well, January is almost over. 

The past two weeks have been quiet.
On January 10th we finally had the Schlipf Christmas, since the power outage had canceled it before. 

cold fields

My one picture of the evening.

  We have barely had any evening plans until recently.  We've mainly spent our time working on building shelving in the basement and the chair seats.

Nathan building the shelves. 

We tried a third time to stain them in the kitchen. Which worked better, I think because it was warmer, but the varnish still pulled the stain out. 

So, after yet another trip to Menards, we are now trying Danish Oil finish.  I like how it goes on so much better than stain and varnish and it has a really nice look to it. The problem is you have to wait 24-48 hours between coats. I think I have the final coat on two of the seats so the end is near.

On Friday evening we went to my cousin's play "The Hound of the Clackervilles" a spoof on a Sherlock Holmes mystery. It was hilarious. Mainly because I knew half of the kids in it. :)

On Saturday, Nathan had some coworkers over to pay games. They are engineers, so there should be no surprise that they enjoy playing games. :) 

Sunday evening, we hosted Wyss Cousin's night.  It was fun. We played a game or two, ate pizza, and I pulled out the cotton candy maker again. 

cousins

on their phones... tsk tsk.

Other than that, I've been curling up on the couch with a good book, waiting for my chair seats to dry, trying to hibernate until winter is over. 

In Christ
~Michelle

New Year

Happy New Year! 
Nothing like being a week late :)


Due to the power outages, our New Year's Eve plans switched up a bit and instead of being at Daniel and Wendi's, we hosted.  Troy and Ellie and Adam and Rhea came as well.  

We spent New Year's Day working on our latest project: kitchen chairs. 

We got these chairs from Tristan. 

I liked the bones of these better than our current chairs. They were pretty dinged up and I didn't like the color of the seat. 

Nathan sanded down the seats

I spray painted

What the finished product will look like.

We are having problems figuring out how to varnish the seats, I don't want them to been too shiney and we are struggling to keep the varnish from bubbling. It may take another trip to Menards. 

Saturday, I went to Wendi's for brunch with Kendra and Ellie and our moms. It was fun. :)  We used to spend so much together and with eachother's moms. It was great to sit down together again. 

Saturday evening, Nathan and I went to Tristan and Larissa's rehearsal dinner. (Nathan was an usher in their wedding.) 

The dinner was at the restaurant Two 25 

My food :) 

It was good.

I'm so glad I got snuck into the rehearsal dinner with Nathan. :)  We got to sit with Greg and Diana, Fred, Jason and Rebekah, and Kyle and Heather.  Since I've known both Larissa and Tristan, it was so much fun to be with their families and friends. 

We took a quick picture by the court house before we headed home.

Sunday, we spent the day in Peoria for the wedding. It was beautiful ans very sweet. Favorite quote of the day "Tristan, it's usually the bride that cries."

gorgeous cake and decor

the happy couple.

Congratulations Tristan and Larissa!

This week has been pretty quiet. Work has been slowing down. The budget cuts have been affecting how many clients we've been getting.  Our parolee clients have been affected the most. The Department of Juvenile Justice doesn't have enough money to keep them on parole for very long. Some of our clients have been given less than two weeks notice that they are being discharged from our program.  And, just a reminder, the reason they are in our program is that they have no where else to go. It's hard not to get too frustrated that some of these kids are going to be homeless purely because the state can't afford to help them transition. 

Anyway...I could write an entire post purely on my frustrations with the state budget issues :)

This past year has been wonderful. It's been full of ups and downs with plenty of opportunities for growing. 

In Christ

~Michelle

Christmas Every Day

We were quite busy with Christmases and family gatherings these past few weeks.    
I was pretty much Christmased out halfway through.   There is only so much sitting, eating, late nights, and time away from home that I can take.    For a few days there we were barely home at all.  We'd drop the presents by the tree, sleep, and head to another Christmas in the morning.

The Saturday before Christmas we went to the Big Martin Christmas (Nathan's second cousins).   It was a full day of the typical Christmas activities, eating singing, and more eating.  

Sunday followed with church and the evening at the Leman's. The Aunt's thought that having a Sunday evening supper and only a partial day on Monday would be easier on everyone, especially grandpa and grandma. But, of course, Grandma wasn't ok with that. :)  So, Monday was returned to a full day of festivities.  

Kacie with Boden and William...sporting green pants :)

Christmas had barely begun! 

Monday morning Breakfast

Red light, green light...

Karen arrived and her grand-kids stormed her. 

All the greats

waiting for presents.

This year I made spoons for each of the ladies. 

playing games

Emmy! 

We were besties :)

Nathan and I kept Tyler and Abby Sunday and Monday nights.  It was fun to have them and Boden. :)  Monday night, Austin and Kray delivered our new living room chairs.  

Tuesday evening, instead of relaxing as we should of, I decided we needed to find the perfect place to put the chairs.  After, drilling a few holes in the wall and repainting a small patch, we finally decided on an arrangement. 

I like them a lot :)

Christmas Eve, Nathan and I had our little Christmas. He got me some books, an adult coloring book, and a sweater. He did good. He even wrapped them in lots of packages, which I love.  

lasagna 

Nathan's favorite and our traditional Christmas dish:)

It's so pretty.

Christmas day, we went to church and after a short stop at home, went to the farm for my family's Christmas. 

packages! 

We gave Emmy an umbrella

My dad used it as a shade...

the aftermath

the boys playing a game

Christmas dinner

Saturday after Christmas, we spent the day with the smaller Martin family(Nathan's cousins). 

The "pound exchange"

Isaiah was the center of attention. 

Apples to Apples. 

Sunday evening, after a small "too much Christmas" meltdown from me, we headed off to Princeville again, for the Braker family Christmas.  

Isaiah wasn't so sure about the hat.

We gave Nathan's dad this plasma ball for his class room.

I think he liked it. :)

Monday, our power went off before we left for work.    Work is really slow around the holidays and so I didn't have much to do to begin with, but after the power started flickering, we lost the intranet (children's home stuff) and then the internet.  Once that went down we really couldn't do any work, so they let us out at 2:00.   Nathan texted me while I was on the road (I didn't look so he ended up calling) his work was going to let him leave at 3:00, so I turned around and picked him up.  The roads weren't too bad but I guess the wind and ice had knocked out power all over.  Our was still out when we got home, so I read a book by candle light. :)

ice covered trees

our tree lost a branch

hot tea, cookies, and a good book by candle light...

:)

We were planning to head out to Gridley for the Schlipf Christmas, but their power had been out all day too.  I felt only slightly guilty that I was relieved. We'll reschedule and I had a much needed break. 

My parents power came on and they willingly had us over for supper. So, I didn't eve have to cook! :)  Our power came back on around 5:00, so we came home to a warm house.

Thankfully, despite all the water, our basement stayed relatively dry.

In the end, we made it to 6 out of 8 Christmases (9 if you count the Drayer Christmas in November) and if you include the pre-Wyss we spent 6 nights away from home (7 with plans) in the past 10 days.  Throw in working every day except for Christmas day, and a few other external stressors, and you'll understand why I am done with Christmases and ready to just stay home. 


There is a Christmas story that is a family favorite called Christmas Every Day.  The little girl wishes for Christmas every day and this is what follows:
"About the beginning of October the little girl took to sitting down on dolls wherever she found them--she hated the sight of them so, and by Thanksgiving she just slammed her presents across the room. By that time people didn't carry presents around nicely anymore. They flung them over the fence or through the window, and, instead of taking great pains to write "For dear Papa," or "Mama " or "Brother," or "Sister," they used to write, "Take it, you horrid old thing!"

:) hehe

In Christ
~Michelle

December

Lena, Jenny and I got together one evening a couple weeks ago to put together college care packages for Kacie and Ned.   The end of the semester at college is always hectic so, we decided to send them some fun goodies. 

The goodies :)

We decorated for Christmas last week.  So now all the house is missing is the wonderful smell of baked goods. :) That will come though.

My manger scene. :) 

I love it. 

   

I had some fun with paint and made my shutter look a little more festive. 

    

The tree! 

I love how cozy it makes the room feel. 

I had an extra canvas from a project gone wrong a couple years back, so I decided to repaint it and turn it into something Christmas-y. 

I'm not completely satisfied with it.  But it works. 

The manger scene at the bottom....I just couldn't figure out what to do with that space. 

And of course, I can't leave out: On December 2nd, I became an aunt for the fourth time. :)   He's the cutest little guy.

Jack

Since I work about two blocks from the hospital I asked Matt and Lena if I could come by to see him They said I could so I got the honor of being the first one to see him! :) (They could have said no)

December 4th,  Nathan had his work Christmas party, so we went.  It was boring. The new CEO talked and I think all CEOs learn the same speech. Just a lot of "this is the group of people that are going to make this company great" and "everyone and every division is the best" blah, blah, blah, money, profit...  

hehe. anyway. It was a free meal. 

Last Sunday, we went Christmas caroling with the church. My favorite part is the meal afterwords. Sloppy Joes.  Something about 20 different recipes mixed together in roasters just makes them the best sloppy joes ever. When I was a kid, I'd eat 2-3 on caroling night. :) I cut down to two this year. 

(Jenny, I know you think they are gross, but you are wrong :)) 

Wednesday night, Ed and Barb got married.  The church was packed, which was odd for a Wednesday night. It was such a sweet wedding. 

Last night, Nathan had the Body Builders (5th-8th grade Sunday School boys) over for a game night. I hid upstairs most of the night but they seemed to have a good time. At least from the volume level. :)

Today is one of the last quiet days before the holiday madness begins. I'm soaking it in. 

In Christ

~Michelle

Christmas Music

December first marked the first day that I allow myself to listen to Christmas music. :)
 I am extremely opinionated when it comes to Christmas music. 
My criteria is as follows:
1. Must be in some way directly discussing the birth of Christ
2. Must be sung/played in a manner consistent with the original context of the song
3. Must show a depth more than "oh yay! it's Jesus's birthday"

Violation of #1- While I enjoy songs from the 30s, 40s, and 50s, in moderation, most are not Christmas songs in the purest sense. These include: "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "Winter Wonderland," "Sleigh Ride," "Let it Snow,"  "Chestnuts Roasting," etc.   I actually really dislike these songs, mainly because they are over played and not really Christmas-y, and I get frustrated every time I hear them. 
And, don't get me started on "I saw Santa kissing mommy" or "all I want for Christmas is you" *gag*

Violation of #2 - Jazzed up, rocked up, popped up, versions of any song written in a different style. For example "Joy to the World" should be sung as a choral piece, not as a pop song by a male with a nasally voice and background bass.  See how quick I will switch that song.

Violation of #3-  Sadly, there are a lot that violate #3. 

Given these criteria, I strongly dislike much of the music played on the radio, in stores, and other public places.   

Why am I so particular? 

I was raised to love music and  I know good music when I hear it. And, I know poor music when I hear it too.   
Music and emotion are strongly linked and the music dedicated to the season should evoke emotion consistent with  Christ's birth (Joy, Hope, Peace, Awe, and Wonder, with a dash of Triumph and Holiness.) Far too many "Christmas" songs lack emotion or display the weak version of the emotions. ( Joy- temporary happiness, Hope- party-like excitement, Awe- "Aww it's a baby")  The melody and words should match in depth and beauty.  Which is my primary frustration with newer versions of old hymns.  The very popular "O Holy Night" loses so much when sung in a modern style.  
The third verse reads:

Truly He taught us to love one another

His law is love and His gospel is peace

Chains shall He break for the slave is our brother

And in His name all oppression shall cease

Sweet hymns of joy in grateful chorus raise we,

Let all within us praise His holy name

There is so much more to this song than the fact that it is a good song for belting.  
(compare this version to this.)

The style of newer songs doesn't bother me but much of today's Christmas music feels like a quickly thrown together song in an attempt to fill a Christmas CD. 

I know most of this is musical preference, and purely my opinion, however, there is a part of all of this that I think is truly concerning. The definition of what is considered Christmas music has broadened to include anything remotely related to winter. Also, the songs seem to portray such a lighthearted, bland version of the birth of Christ  that they lose the deep spiritual significance of our God coming as man for the purpose of redeeming us all through his death.  I know there is no way we can really capture that in words or song, but I prefer to listen to what I consider "good" music. :)

Good (by my definition) Music:
Handel's Messiah (though technically not Christmas music, includes some wonderful pieces about Christ's Birth)
Traditional hymns and carols sung or played by Orchestras, choirs, boys choirs etc
Old English and Celtic Carols
Madrigal 
Instrumental  (Canadian Brass is a favorite)


So, enjoy your listening. Merry Christmas and all that. But, please, don't make me listen to "Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree" ever again.

~Michelle