Christmas Day 2006

Another Christmas tradition has been spending Christmas day at Gail’s family’s house on Whidbey Island. Since Gail’s Dad was with us we all packed into the van and drove up Christmas morning and joined the rest of the Ostling tribe. Here is this year's tree:

Christmas 2006

Christmas Eve Concert

A Christmas tradition that started on Jack’s side of the family where on Christmas Eve all the kids played their instruments for a family concert. I don’t remember whose idea it was and whether or not the motive was just to keep those pesky kids engaged in productive behaviour leading into the holiday festivities; but it was fun and memorable for me as a child. This year Caleb (10) worked out the order of the performance and Emma (8) finger-typed it all into the computer (with Dad’s help) for the program. Mom & Dad even played a duet! The audience (Grandma Dot, Aunt Debbie, and Uncle Rich) even participated in the final number (Silent Night).

Neighborhood Caroling

A Christmas tradition that we’ve started since moving into our house is taking plates of cookies to our neighbors and signing Christmas carols. Gail whips up half a dozen different varieties of cookies (many from her favorite award winning website). This is a great way to say “hi” – fortunately we live in a small neighborhood – but it still takes a good portion of the evening. This year the kids pulled the wagon and wore either reindeer antlers or elves hats.

Christmas at the Brenchley’s 2006

This year marks a major Christmas decorating victory; only two glass Christmas tree decorations were shattered! Much better than previous years! But the outside icicle lights had whole sections burned out and we couldn’t find our bulb tester! So our house had less of a gingerbread appearance this year…picture something more like a Lite-Brite checkerboard! Anyway, here are some of the traditions we engaged in this Christmas:

Christmas cards & newsletter
Each year we try to have a Christmas newsletter just to let family and friends know that we are in fact really busy and that’s why we didn’t come over to visit and eat fruitcake. Anyway this year’s theme was the Incredibles so we had a picture and matching newsletter. See it here.
Gail’s Dad and Mrs. Thew arrive to spend the holiday with us though we don’t know if they really knew the Incredibles were so near!

The Brenchley's
Christmas 2006

Whistler Vacation

We just got back from a week-long vacation in Whistler, BC. We try to do something special for the kids’ birthdays and birthday #8 is earmarked as a destination vacation. Emma turned 8 on the 5th and things worked out for us to celebrate in Whistler. Here are some comments in the kids’ journals:

“We went to Whistler in Canada where there was lots of snow. Mom bought us a red sled and three ‘magic carpets’ (rectangle plastic sheets with cut out handles)! And boy were they fun! You could steer side ways and still keep going forwards (you could slide down the hill sideways all the way down unless you tuned back into position – you turn by leaning). Once we went to a park and there was a hill with a slide that went all the way to the bottom. So we sledded on it – it was like a ski jump!” [Caleb, age 10]

“My favorite part of the trip was ice skating, swimming, climbing, sledding and playing.” [Emma, the birthday girl]

Colin [age 6] drew pictures in his journal of sliding and sledding at Helicopter Park as well as the whirlpool at the Meadow Park Sports Centre pool.