More movies

I just remembered three more movies I watched in December: Stalag 17, The Librarian (#2), and North and South.

Unfortunately, the reason these were recalled to mind is that the library thinks I haven't yet returned them (but I know I have) and says I owe $5 (and counting) on each one. :-( Hate it when that happens.

Movies I've watched recently

In the theater: Eragon
I definitely liked it better than die-hard fans of the book did.

Night at the Museum
Lighthearted fun

The DaVinci Code
Let me just say it was bad and leave it at that.

Christmas Day 2006

The challenge: keeping six kids happy and occupied for two extra days till Dad gets home for the grand gift-opening and food-snarfing festivities. He says go ahead without him. I say no way. We compromise and allow the kids to open a Disney Scene It game and Pirates of the Caribbean dvd. Couple that with hiking (shown in the photo above), baking, games, and basketball, and I think we just might be able to hold on till the 27th.

Snow Day!

Yesterday, Matthew's fondest wish came true. (That's not him in the photo above, by the way; it's Steve and Ben.) Every day when he arrives at school, he greets his principal with, "Mr. Schulze, can we have a snow day today? Please?" It doesn't matter if it's sunny and 80 degrees--Matthew still asks for a snow day. After two years of hoping, yesterday was the day. Over a foot of snow fell on us, and the radio announcer gave the glad tidings at 5 a.m. "No school today at Zion Lutheran, Faith Lutheran or District 154 in Marengo." And there was much rejoicing! Much going back to sleep, too, in those nice cozy flannel-sheeted beds. I didn't crawl out of mine until almost 9:00.

And then the fun began. At least parts of it were fun. Steve didn't think the 64 acres (well, maybe not quite that much, though it felt like it) of driveway to shovel was much fun, but he got out there and did it anyway, with a little help from some of the rest of us. My back is a bit sore today. A perfect excuse to not rub Steve's back, which is a LOT sore.

All the kids got outside for sledding, in spite of the fact that there isn't anything remotely resembling a hill for miles around. At least not anything a northeast-Nebraska-Bohemian-Alps gal like me would call a hill. But the neighbor graciously allowed the kids to slide down the gentle slope in his yard, and that was nice. Ben spent more time outside than he did inside yesterday. He loves snow.

Susannah and I pulled out the cookie recipes and started our Christmas baking. Carols blaring from the boombox, we mixed and rolled and spritzed the day away. Snitched, too, a little. The other kids helped some in bits and pieces. The kitchen is a popular place when peanut brittle and chocolate/mint cookies are involved.

Some days, it's heavenly to just stay home.