Holiday Highlights

We specifically planned the timing of our Home Assignment so we would still be in the States during the holidays.  We really wanted to be here with our families and it's been such a gift! 

We started Thanksgiving by creating a Thanksgiving tree - something we started as a tradition last year in Chogoria.  I was able to find this craft at the store which served our purposes well, so the boys helped me paint the tree and leaves, and then we all wrote down what we're thankful for.  We had so many things to write down that we wound up writing on both sides of the leaves!

Thanksgiving weekend was wonderful with my twin sister's family coming all the way from Oklahoma.  We are so grateful we could connect with them once more.  Lots of ping pong was played and they introduced our boys to Super Mario Kart which was a huge hit.  Cousin time is precious even though it's always far too short.

We also celebrated at my aunt and uncle's house with the whole Clark family.  As always, we enjoyed copious amounts of food and laughter, and also met the newest great-grandchild and got a kid cousin photo.  Only a couple kids were missing.  It's pretty rare to have us all together but we had a great turnout and I'm so thankful our boys have gotten reacquainted with that side of the family while being in the States.

And here's my new favorite picture of my dad!

The week after Thanksgiving we woke up to a beautiful snowfall.  We were staying at my parents' house since the furnace was broken in the other house, and I was particularly grateful because there's a lot of space to play outside there and the boys had their run of the yard and created many snowy adventures.

It was such a gorgeous morning!  The snow sparkled in the sunshine and the trees were frosted with snow and it was serenely quiet.  A perfect snow day calms the soul.

Many snow angels were made that day...

...as well as many snow goons (think Calvin and Hobbes).

Plenty of snow was eaten and plenty of "snow tattoos" were put on faces.  (Snow tattoos, a new invention of the Horn boys, occur when you shove snow on your face and it sticks there.  Who knew?)

My dad joined us for a snowball fight because every perfect snow day should include a snowball fight!

Then we went to see the horses and walk through the pasture to the back corner of the property to see the creek.  The boys made "snow bombs" to throw into the creek over and over again.  Their energy and imaginations never cease to amaze me!

Aren't horses so pretty in the snow?

My only wish is that Eli could have joined us, but he was working in Minnesota that week and missed the perfect snow day.  

One more wonder of the snow was this bush by the house.  It's a barberry bush, but I didn't know that at the time and so I christened it "the Jesus bush."  The red berries and thorns against the pure white snow just screamed "Jesus" to me.  I wrote about it in a recent newsletter, so I won't repeat it here, but it's been a memorable metaphor for me and I just love this photo I was able to capture.

We got our Christmas tree from my parents' house and the boys loved discovering ornaments we'd left behind in America and decorating the tree.  We don't have a lot of Christmas decorations, but having a real tree every year is a priority and is enough to give us the feel of Christmas.

We traveled to Minnesota to celebrate Christmas with the Horns and the boys played their hearts out.  Games, Star Wars battles, snow forts...  It was a pretty great trip all around!

We did a gingerbread village this year because the boys kept asking to.  I will admit to not wanting to do it because, well, it's a lot of work and a big mess.  But there's no easier way to do it than pre-made kits.  Batta-boom batta-bing!

My favorite things were Eli's creations: a snowman made out of tootsie rolls with a gummy scarf and Reese's hat, and a tree made out of tootsie rolls and gummies.

Christmas Eve ended with a sick kid on the couch who ended up puking on the floor, but his fever broke at midnight and the rest of the night was calm.  Everybody slept in a little bit on Christmas, which was a sort of Christmas miracle, and everybody had a wonderful morning relaxing and enjoying gifts.  It was a lovely day.

We got these water packs for the boys and I'm so excited to use them on our hikes in Chogoria.  I have a water pack that I use regularly (and which the boys always take sips from all the time), so now they have their own and they're pretty excited about it too!

It's been a busy holiday season for us, but it's been great.  We're thankful we could be here and finish the year with our families.  We'll be taking sweet memories back to Kenya with us!