winter recreation...

the girls have been keeping busy these past few months with their winter activities. To show the girls (okay, more to prove to myself) I've still "got it", I have also been engaging in a little winter recreation. Here are some of the fun winter activities the girls have been involved in... 

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SHOWSTOPPERS DANCE TEAM WORKSHOP 

 ready to dance...sophia (with the other 2nd and 3rd grade girls)

 livia ready to rock it (with the other 4th and 5th grade girls)

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SLEDDING

 the girls and I tried out our new "snow scooter" - pretty fun and fast! 

 nothing beats an old fashioned plastic sled! isn't she cute?

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BASKETBALL 

 there weren't enough girls to join the parks and rec team, so the remaining girls joined the boys team...livia is such a brave and tough chick (#4)!

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ICE SKATING 

 i haven't been ice skating in 10 years.

To say I was a bit nervous was an understatement! I was a figure skater for 10 years in high school, so it is in blood. It was a little like riding bike...I just needed a little time on the ice for it to come back to me.

 livia desperately wanted ice skates for christmas so she and sophia bought their first pair of ice skates (thanks to grandma pam and grandpa mike!) 

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PLAYDATE IN THE SNOW  

the girls playing in the snow! 

elle and sophia are exactly 2 months apart to the day! 

livia and claire have been friends since almost birth.

check out the picture below if you don't believe me!

claire and elle in 2007

oh,my.gosh.

i wish I could keep them this little some days!

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sophia is also involved in tennis this winter, so I hope to take some snapshots of her in action in the next few weeks. Stay tuned for more Withers Winter Recreation Fun :)

christmas time is here...

i LOVE christmas! Not just December 25th, but every day leading up to Jesus's birthday. Instead of counting the days UNTIL Christmas, I start thinking about how many days I have left until it is over. I love the Christmas music, beautiful decorations, delicious delectables, and all the things in between that enhance our Christmas spirit. 

Here are a few events and things we did now that Christmas time is here...

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A CUP OF CHRISTMAS TEA

our annual cup of christmas tea with my mom, livia, sophia, and leonice

aren't they cute?

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ALL SCHOOL HOLIDAY SING-ALONG

livia is in the 5th grade choir  

 livia and 3 other girls were selected to sing for the school

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SAM AND JINGLE 

Sam, our elf on the shelf, took our new addition, Jingle, back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve. See you next year Sam and Jingle!

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CHRISTMAS EVE

It has been a tradition for the girls to get matching pajamas Christmas Eve night.

time to lay out the milk, cookies, and carrots (livia insisted we lay out 9 carrots this year so none of santa's reindeer would be left out!)

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CHRISTMAS MORNING

ready to open their presents!

Christmas breakfast! 

ready for mass! 

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CHRISTMAS WITH THE SEDERHOLM AND WTHERS FAMILIES

This is Sharon's Yule Log....which is to say, Christmas, as in Yule. Yule log,

Not a log, Bobby doesn't have a log, but I mean, you know..

if he had a log. Not in the sense you think he said he did.

Good golly.

'Tis the season to be merry. 

the girls

(elana, livia, sophia, and kaytlin)

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CHRISTMAS WITH THE WOODS' 

I mustache you a question...

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FINALLY...snow! 

Merry Christmas!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow!

it's beginning to look a lot like christmas...

ahhh, november...I love November! I have fondly nicknamed this the "month of Bobby", since his birthday is the beginning of LOTS of fun for him - his birthday, deer hunting, and his favorite holiday, Thanksgiving! The kick-off before he leaves for deer hunting with my dad is our annual "Veteran's Day" program at school. Our school does such a lovely job of honoring our veterans and reminding our students why they are so fortunate for their freedom. This year Livia was in the 5th grade choir singing patrriotic songs. Here are some pictures from that special day...

 flag folding ceremony

 livia is in the back with the red flower in her hair

we also love deer hunting because we, girls, get to spend the weekend with grandma!

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daddy brought back the game "pie face"! We have had some fun with it! 

that's one serious look! 

not so lucky, livia! 

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Happy Birthday, Auntie Susan! 

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Thanksgiving was celebrated at my parents' house with the Woods and the Withers Families...what game did we bring? Of course, "Pie Face"! 

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The Day After Thanksgiving

Our tradition has always been to chop down our own Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. This year we stayed local and tried a new Christmas tree lot just 5 miles west of town. We were the first family that arrived, so everyone so very excited to see us!

catching a ride until we find our christmas tree...  

 this is the one!

  we decided to tie it on top of the truck this year, since it is still technically "new"...

it was a fun and enjoyable outing - as usual!

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Christmas with the Mordorski Family

We met up with the Mordorksi Family at the Original House of Pancakes (we may have gone to 2 different locations that morning...but who's counting?). Everybody LOVES breakfast, so we met up to fill our tummies before heading to SkyZone for some jumping fun. 

 cutie hattie with her reindeer glasses

 ready to jump! 

 can you see them? that is sophia, owen, and livia jumping! 

i even captured a picture with hattie on the right!  

 a "few" presents to open...paul has got his eye on that present!

 hattie's got her eye on bobby!

thanks for another wonderful visit, Mordorski Family! It is never enough time!

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What should we do with all this extra time? 

A 1000 piece puzzle of course!

 before

 after  

 hmmm...a little too much time on her hands!

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A Visit with Santa

Our annual tradition is for the girls to dress up in their christmas dresses and meet santa at the mall.

 livia's exact words were, "THAT was the real Santa!"

~it's beginning to look a lot like christmas~