Quading : The before. . . . . . & after

After spending our first week of Christmas break in the house for Gabe's fever, the second week was also indoors due to a nasty cough he also caught. We were not able to play outside and really became quite stir crazy with all of the fun snow outside.

So, we called up the Hustons (wonderful friends of ours) and asked if we could go quading with them for a little adventure in the snow. We put on our helmets, goofed around for awhile, and Mike came back with Gabe a little injured. He ran over a bunch of rocks, which jolted Gabe around, and thought that he had bumped his helmet on the brake fluid reseviour. Somehow, that massive helmet didn't cover enough of his little face.

And, after we saw that it was split, Gabe didn't care and wanted to go back out and go faster so Mike took him for one more short trip. And, if you notice in the picture of Daddy and his boy, Mike looks awfully proud of his boy's first injury. Welcome to the "Little Man Club" Gabe!

Gabe had split his eyebrow open about a 1/2 inch. So, we wiped it clean, called Doc and he said that it wouldn't be worth going to the ER. So, we just went to Safeway and bought some butterfly bandages and slept on it.

The next morning Doc had told us to come in and maybe we would have to glue it or get a few stitches put in. Doctor Dad had done such a great job, that no stitches or glue was needed. And I must say that Gabe is pretty proud of his first major wound.........what a boy! Needless to say, as soon as we are able to sell our home, we will be moving as close to the hospital as possible because this will most likely be the least of future injuries! :0)

Christmas

We started off our Christmas Break this year with a bit of a scare. Monday, the 15th, I received a phone call from Mike saying that Gabe was really sick and they had to meet me at the hospital.

Mike had a snow day that day, so he and Gabriel had stayed home, and what a blessing that turned out to be for us. Gabe had been throwing up all day, with a high fever. About mid afternoon, Mike had cleaned up one of the last of the throw ups, when he looked over at Gabe seizing on the couch. His temperature sent his body into a full blown seizure. The paramedics came and hauled him off to the hospital. It took a little over a week to get rid of that 104 temp.

Fortunately, for us, we had school canceled for the remainder of the week due to snow. What a blessing that turned out to be. Needless to say, we ended up having a wonderful Christmas, a lot of snow and just amazing time with our little family which was the best gift of all.

Christmas Tree and SNOW!

It snowed for us on Saturday, so we ventured out to our favorite tree farm and picked out our tree. Two of Mike's basketball players work there so they carried our tree for us, what service. While we waited for our tree to be shaken and placed in our truck, we cozied up inside of the old barn that they have decorated and drank some spiced apple cider and cookies. Unfortunately, I left the camera battery on the charger, so we managed to snag pictures on our phones. I'm striking out with this camera lately! :0)

We were able to take pictures when we got back home. It was so fun to watch Gabe join us in hanging the decorations. The wonderment in his eyes is just awesome! He has to point out all of the lights as we drive in the car, show us everything Santa, and loves the Polar Express. It has truly made us feel that childhood excitement all over again. I absolutely LOVE Christmas and I LOVE my boys!

Christmas Program

Gabe had his little Christmas Program on the 12th. His grandparents were all able to come, but unfortunately Daddy had a game. So, I was in charge to take the snapshots....to preserve the memories.....and shortly after it started, the card in my camera was full. Arrrgg! So, I grabbed a few shots, fortunately before one of Gabriel's classmates stood right in front of him for the remainder of the program. Haha! So, in the words of Gabe, "It happens." We still enjoyed ourselves and memories were made.

Sinter Claus Parade

My parents have wanted to take Gabe to the Sinter Claus Parade, since before we had any kids. So this year, we made it up there. At 1pm, a Town Crier rings a bell through the streets of the little town of Lynden, which is a dutch community near the Canadian border. Behind her was Sinter Claus, a.k.a. Santa Claus. Children follow in-behind Sinter and parade down the street to a local community center with Clompin Dancers to perform for us. Clompin Dancers are kids dressed in Dutch traditional dress, dancing in wooden shoes.
Then that evening, we drove back up to Lynden for a light parade. They light up everything.....including the tractors since this dutch community is also a farming community.