Give Thanks!

Much like every year, we start our Thanksgiving day by attending the 9:30 a.m. service at Christ Community Church. The Korean Church puts together a beautiful and bountiful Cornucopia spread and behind it we can see the cross and the beautiful Colorado mountains. Three things to be very thankful for! 

 After nearly every service, Nate encourages the girls to sit and play the drums!

 We knew that we would be eating a week's worth of calories in one sitting, so we walked from church to Bruce and Maggie's house! Of course, Elizabeth took a digger on the way. Her hands were in her pockets, so her face took the full impact...after some TLC, she was back in the Thanksgiving spirit.

 Bruce and Maggie tag team the turkey!

 Abby found a pine cone on our walk and was eager to paint it when we got back to the house.

 Elizabeth is never one to pass up crafting fun, even when her lip is bleeding!

 Nate certainly got his share of football. Lions lost again this year :( Better luck next year Julie!

 That is a beautiful bird. Good work Maggie!

 Caleb is such a cute little turkey.

 Grandma spent some time reading to the Grandkids...

 ...and doing leg lifts while we waited for lunch to be served!

 Once a year we get to break out the fancy china! Bruce and Maggie acquired the Bavarian china while Bruce was in seminary. The wine glasses go a few generations back on the Finch side. 

 Such a lovely spread!

Jude and Abigail decided they didn't want to eat much. They would rather wander around and play. 

 However, when it came time for pie, Abby was all about it!

Caleb doesn't mess around! Who needs a fork to eat pumpkin pie?

 Relaxation after lunch and desert.

 Plenty of room to kick back, right Lindsay??!!?

Then, after a tiny bit of "door buster" shopping (we purchased our Christmas tree on Thanksgiving day), we took a power nap and moved on to our next Thanksgiving dinner!

Mom and Dad typically host for anybody who is able to attend. This year, Aunt Betty, Grandma and Forest, and The VanDusseldorps attended dinner. It was a quiet, but really nice dinner.

 Much like the VanDusseldorps, Mom and Dad pull out the Thanksgiving dinnerware once a year!

 Thanksgiving greetings from Chef Eastwood. (GO BRONCOS!)

 Mom prepared a wonderful spread. 

 Deviled eggs are my favorite part of the holidays! 

 Once again, Abigail decided to be done eating dinner early! 

 Grandma and Mom.

 And then there was pie! Need I say more? 

There are many, many things that we are thankful for this year. First, we are thankful that we have the opportunity to gather around the Thanksgiving table, not once, but twice. We so love and adore both sides of our family and are so grateful for the memories that we are able to share every day. 

We are also thankful for our health. We faced a lot of uncertainties with Elizabeth's epilepsy this year. We are thankful for our neurologist and all of the medical professionals who gave us piece of mind. We are also incredibly grateful for our supportive friends, family, and God, for without them we would be lost. 

We are thankful that we are all healthy, happy, and together. 

We try to express our thanks every day of the year. Thanksgiving provides us the opportunity to give special thanks, watch tons of football, stuff our faces, and enjoy the wonderful company of family!

Christmas 2012: Part 1-Decorations

When I say "Part 1" I don't know how many parts there will be this year! Christmas at the VanDusseldorp household last about six weeks! This year, I plan to stay on top of things as much as possible so that we can enjoy the crafting and baking and gifting without being rushed and stressed over it all! 

Christmas cards were ordered as soon as your photos came in! CHECK!

This year's door ornament, CHECK!

I had the girls help me pain an open back frame. They were pretty excited even though they had no idea what a "door ornament" was! 

Aunt Lindsay got these great painting smocks for the girls. Thanks Aunt Lindsay, we would have had quite the Christmas mess on our hands otherwise! 

Nate and I both prefer real Christmas trees. We went that route for a few years and each year the tree would die before Christmas. We abandoned our tree in 2006 to spend a few days in the hospital giving birth to Elizabeth. In 2007 we had to buy a new tree to display for the Christmas party after the first one died from dehydration. And from 2008-2010, we were simply bad Christmas tree owners! Last year, we were given Bruce and Maggie's old Christmas tree. While we were very grateful for the tree, there was certainly a reason why Bruce and Maggie felt they needed to replace it! So, this year, in 2012, we bought a new tree and since we are unable to kill a fake tree (as far as I know) it should be in our family for years to come. 

Each of the girls get to pick out their own  Christmas tree ornaments. One day, when they are grown and have their own trees to decorate, they will be able to take all of their ornaments, and the memories that came with them. We spent about 30 minutes looking at all of the wonderful ornaments at the Hallmark store. Elizabeth chose and angle and placed it very carefully on the tree. 

 Abigail chose Mirada, from Brave and also placed it...and replace it...and replaced it on the tree with care.

 Each year the kids change so much and we never know how they will react to holidays! Abigail has been a bundle of joy through the season so far. She has such a giving and grateful heart and I think that she will be a blessing to be with this year! 

 And Elizabeth never ceases to amaze me! She also has a kind heart and she adores Christmas and the Reason for the Season! 

 Abigail got to help Dad put the angle on the tree this year. Pretty soon both of the girls will be too big for Nate to lift to the top of the tree! 

 Next, we had Chris and Dana over to decorate the house. For as long as I can remember, Dana has always come over to help us adorn the house with lights. Nate's expensive taste in LED lights has paid off over the years. We have finally gotten to the point were we don't need to replace bulbs and strands every year. The house looks great dressed in blue and white lights this year. (I will have to add photos of the finished product on my next post!)

After lights we all warmed up with some special Christmas beverages and poker. 

Cheers to the Christmas season! We hope that 2012 brings blessed holidays!

Central City or Bust!

For months now, a trip to Las Vegas has been a dominating topic of conversation! We set a date and began making plans. Then, we all (or maybe more so the women) decided that a trip to Las Vegas so close to Christmas was a terrible idea. So, we decided to compromise and plan a night in Central City. I had never been, so my Birthday weekend was great timing. We chose to reserve rooms at Ameristar. 

 (I think that Cara and I both failed to capture the beauty of the hotel in front of the mountain with our cameras! Maybe Cara's camera captured a better image than this one. It really was pretty!)

 The rooms were very nice! 

We can't forget to mention that the bell-desk had complimentary cookies and beverage for hotel guests! That's nice, right? Well, Wes and Cara thought it was AMAZING! The cookies were decent but they liked them so much that they bagged two for later :)

 I was "that person" who asked if we could take photographs in the casinos. The dealer tole me, "no". So, we snapped a few away from the tables. 

Cara and I posed for a fire-place photo!

 Nate and Wes...that's about all I have to say about that!

After we enjoyed a quiet dinner we made our way through a few casinos. Nate (and I) did pretty well at Roulette but should have walked away sooner than we did! The guys played Craps and Black Jack. Cara and I played a slot or two, both of us winning a little money (and walking away)! 

 And then there was football! This is a common theme in my life, regardless of what zip code we are standing in. I have learned to embrace it. 

Oregon lost to Stanford, 14-17 in overtime. This meant something special to Wes and Cara and their beloved Irish! 

After the football game, we hiked back up the hill to Ameristar and enjoyed the luxurious outdoor hot tub, milk shakes, and wine! 

Wes wasn't feeling great, so he and Cara went to bed and Nate and I decided, at midnight, to try our hand at Craps. We walked away from the table with $150 more than we began with! I had so much fun learning how to play with Nate...and winning certainly helps the level of enjoyment. 

I am so glad that Wes was feeling well enough to come up! (Dana did not share the same fate and we missed her.) It was a really fun, adults only, night of great friends, gambling, and conversation. I hope we can all do it again very soon. 

Christmas Kick-Off 2012

Jeremy, Lindsay, and Jude invited a group of us to enjoy the Streets of Southglenn Christmas Parade and Christmas Tree lighting! We bundled up the group and headed out for some holiday kick-off fun! Elizabeth and Abigail were so nervous about what they would tell Santa Clause!

 We had a great place to watch the parade action. Miles, Cora, Abigail, and Elizabeth had a front row spot!

 Cora thought the marching band was too loud!

 Jude didn't! The band stopped in front of us for a short while and we were able to enjoy the percussion section! Jude was fascinated! 

 The Arapahoe High School marching band. 

 It's Santa Clause! We were very pleased with Santa this year. He appears to be healthy and his hair was brilliant and shiney! We could tell he had been taking care of himself in the off-season.

10..9...8...7...6...5...4...3...2...1

Santa declared the Christmas lights lit! The Streets of Southglenn builds and maintains a small ice rink throughout the holiday season! We will go back when there are less people and give ice skating a whirl! 

 Santa's reindeer were tired and took a rest following the festivities!

 Elizabeth and her little red Christmas nose!

 Abby's big Christmas grin!

Following the parade and lighting, we all hoofed it back over to Jer and Lindsay's and enjoyed some warm pizza and special Christmas beverages! I hope this will be a tradition for years to come.