A Puppy for Christmas!

Shortly after we put Josie down, Scott and I decided we wanted another dog and I began the search.  I thought about and looked at a few other breeds, but we ultimately decided that labs just couldn't be beat and that getting another one was the way to go.  After quite a bit of searching,  I came across a litter of lab puppies east of Dallas that would be ready to go to homes right before Christmas.  So I jumped on the opportunity, and Scott and I went on a secret mission at the beginning of December to check out the puppies and possibly pick one out.  We liked what we saw and ended up picking out a soft, calm golden colored male. It was hard to keep the secret until Christmas, but also really exciting and a lot of fun.  On Christmas Eve day, we piled the kids in the car under the pretense that we were going to pick up a surprise Christmas present for me from Scott.  Once we got near the house where the puppies were, we pulled over and gave the kids a present to open, which contained a dog bed, a squeaky toy, and a framed picture of the puppy.  They were in disbelief, but were so excited!  They took turns holding him on the way to Mimi and Poppi's house to introduce him to them.  After playing and taking some pictures at their house, we headed home with our new little guy.  The first order of business once at home was deciding on a name.  Some of the options thrown out there were Rowdy, Caramel, Noah, and Champion (Champ).  After a democratic vote, we decided on Noah Rowdy Bedichek.  So far he is settling in nicely and we are having so much fun with him!  He of course has a lot of energy and has accidents in the house, but overall he seems a little calmer than Josie was as a puppy and defintely does better than she did in the crate at night!  We love our Noah!!!

School Christmas Parties

As room mom for both Kendall and Avery's classes, I had to run back and forth between their Christmas parties since they were held at the same time.  But at least their classrooms are right down the hall from each other and, unlike some moms, I got to be there for both of them.  I also got to be there for Judson's party later in the day, but that one was a little more relaxing since I only helped rather than being in charge.  At both of the girls' parties, the kids had donuts and sausage rolls and played some fun games like decorating a kid like a Christmas tree at Kendall's party, and a ring toss game at Avery's where the target was inflatable reindeer antlers that the teachers wore on their heads.  I also went back into Kendall's class later in the day while they were watching a movie and helped them finish up snowman ornaments made from battery operated candles that we had started making during the party.  Jud's party consisted of snacks and fun games.  The kids also had fun watching Mrs. Sauce try to unwrap her gift from a yarn ball wrapped around it.  

December Fun!

 In the fall we bought season passes to Six Flags that are good for the rest of this year and all of 2017.  So we decided to go to Holiday in the Park one Saturday to enjoy the Christmas decorations, sledding hill, and of course, all the usual rides.  We got there just after lunch time and it was fairly warm, maybe in the 60's, but then a cold front blew in while we were there and around 4 or 5 we had to leave because we just couldn't stand the freezing wind any longer. But it was still a fun time to spend together as a family.

One Sunday after church we had a Christmas party for our small group, including a gift exchange for the kids.  It was a good time of fellowship and the kids really enjoyed shopping for gifts for the party and of course, ending up with one to take home.

Kendall's Bible class teacher always does a fun thing in the 2nd and 3rd grade classroom at Christmastime where she tells the story of the candy cane and gives them one to take home.  They love piling up on the couch in their classroom, and here they are doing just that and showing how a candy cane is really supposed to be held (as a J for Jesus).

Kendall's 3rd grade program

This year the third graders' music program was a Christmas program called "Twinkle and Shine".  Kendall was selected for a special speaking and dancing part which was a meadowlark.  With the help of Pinterest, I made her a pair of bird wings out of felt and she wore a bright yellow shirt to resemble the bird's yellow breast.  She loved her wings that I made, and she did a great job singing and dancing in the program.  We were proud of our little performer!

Spelling Bee and Battle of the Books

This year the girls both won or were runners-up in their class spelling bees, so they had to compete against one another in the school spelling bee.  Avery made it one more round than Kendall did, but they both were so brave and did a great job spelling!

Another school competition they both had in December was Battle of the Books.  Kendall was super excited for it since it was her first year and since she loves to read so much.  Both of the girls read all or almost all of the 10 books.  We were proud of their effort and dedication and thought it was such great practice for them.   Kendall's team was so thrilled that they tied for 3rd place!  Quite an accomplished for 3rd graders who compete against 25-30 different teams including 5th graders.  We were so happy for her and her team!  

Office progress!

After months of delays and work to get the foundation just right, the new office is finally beginning to come along and really take shape.  It's so exciting to see it coming together and to know that we will get to move to the new location in just a few months.  We are truly bursting at the seams at our current location and it will be so nice to have so much more space and for Scott to enjoy the place that he designed to perfectly fit his needs.