Little Good byes

Last night, the kids went home. It was so hard, letting little ER get on that plane with his mom and the Marvelous Macy. I mean, Lyndsey won't change that much in two weeks. The Marelous Macy missed her Daddy, and she was glad to go home. But little ER, I am pretty sure that he wanted to stay. In spite of the fact that twice I bumped his head and made him cry. But also, I held him a LOT, and he told me that he really likes to be held. Well, he didn't really tell me, I mean with words and all, but he TOLD me, with his eyes, with his little hands. He really LIKES his MIMI!!
My house had little good byes all over--a diaper here, some reindeer horns there, a stocking cap overlooked in the bottom of a sack, but all-in-all, my house went from being a happy home full of children and laughter, to an apartment where no one lives but me. Those Christmas decorations that I put up for the Marvelous Macy, just silent and dark when she is gone. Luckily, it won't be long before I see them again.
It is just amazing how much life a 5 year old and a baby can bring with them. As a parent, you don't really appreciate the gifts because it seems pretty overwhelming. I mean, there are no breaks for parents, you have to be there whenever you are needed. As a grandparent, though, there are too many breaks, too few moments when you have those children, those special gifts from God. I am so blessed, and especially at this time of year, I am thankful for the Marvelous Macy and little ER.

Santa's helper!

Macy wants everyone to know that she was cuter when she was a baby, because she had a bow in her hair!

Yes, there really IS a Santa Claus!

So, the babies have been here visiting (along with Mommy Lyndsey and Mr. Lynn). Mimi was so excited to have them come, their first visit to her new home in Colorado. It is great, too! The house looks so much better with my family in it!!

So, one of our stops was, of course, the North Pole. We had to take a train up the mountain (or at least to the 4 mile stop!) to get to the North Pole. Santa rode the train with us, greeting all the children and their parents and grandparents. We sang Christmas carols on the way up, Macy and Mimi singing at the top of their lungs!! Luckily, they gave us songbooks that had all the words, E-cause (as Macy says) we didn't know all the lyrics by heart.

At the North Pole, all the children and their families got off the train, and the elves and toy soldiers served cookies and hot chocolate, while we waited for our chance to sit on Santa's lap and give him our list! The hot chocolate was necessary, because, even though the sun was shining, it is very cold and windy at the North Pole.

Santa's elves were putting Christmas tattoos on the children. When, suddenly, a snow ball fight erupted. It was every child for him/herself! Laughter rang out at the North Pole, for all the children are happy (and good) when Santa is watching! We are not sure where Santa lives at the North Pole, though, his house and workshop are hidden somewhere deep in the mountains, so that children can have surprises on Christmas morning.

The trip to the North Pole was exhausting (or maybe it was the altitude) for Macy and ER slept all the way down, while Lyndsey and Mimi sang Christmas carols. Mr. Lynn took pictures and enjoyed the ride. All in all, a beautiful day at the North Pole!

Is there anything sweeter???

Christmas trees

Today I had to go to the "Springs" to pick up some dishes that my dad sent with a friend, who left them at her brother's jewelry store in Woodland Park. It was a beautiful day, and as soon as I left the interstate to head into Woodland Park, I noticed that every single car had a Christmas tree--either in it, on top of it, or in the back of the truck. It seems that on this day you can cut your own Christmas Tree from the Pike National Forest. And, being a beautiful, crisp, sunny day, many people were taking advantage of this holiday tradition. Cars were parked all along the side of the road, big groups trying to select and cut their own tree. It is such a cool idea; I wanted to stop and get a free tree, too, but, duh...what would I cut it with, the plastic knife from my picnic lunch? So...I just had to enjoy other people cutting their trees. Mostly men and their sons, or families traveling together in 3 separate cars just for this event. It was really fun, though, because the fire department was handing out cookies and hot chocolate to 'Men in Trees' and their families, the forestry service was checking out the trees and helping the lucky Treebeards (Ents) strap thosetrees to their cars. I wonder if those trees scratch the tops of those cars. I mean, some people came prepared with a tarp or a sheet of plastic, but some just tied them to the top. Those were mostly the small Hondas and such, toting enormous trees--the trees hung off of the front AND the back, they were so much bigger than the car!

I took the long way home, in order to enjoy the mountains and the day. There are places where the snow covers the land, and there are places that are totally without snow. But everywhere there is the majesty of the mountains. You have to be careful on tree cutting day, though; those little bitty Hondas with 10 foot trees on top of them can lose their tree at any moment, so you have to be prepared to dodge flying christmas trees. Luckily, driving round the mountain requires you to go pretty slow.

And so, another day in the mountains came and went. I had to get home early this day, to watch the Sooners wrap up another Big 12 title and set a new record--the first team to score more than 60 points in 5 consecutive games. I just hope they can score 60 against the Gators! Boomer Sooner!

GMA in Denver!

I hope you enjoy today's pictures!!!

Today Good Morning America was in Denver. I was excited to see what the window in NYC would look like, and I really wanted to go down to Union Station and get on TV. Unfortunately, I had to work, so I could only watch on TV. It was really cold down there, I think something like 16 degrees here right now, but everyone seemed to be having fun. The window had snow skiers skiing at WinterPark, it showed the Ski Train--which I am excited to ride--and it showed the Christmas lights! it was spectacular and gave a flavor of why it is so great to live in Denver!

Next week, my two favorite kids will be here. We are going to ride the Santa Train to Pikes Peak, and make a stop at Santa's workshop--it is such fun having a 5 year old who is SO excited about Christmas!! We are also going to ride the light rail downtown to Union Station and see the lights, we are headed to Copper Mountain for a day of snowboarding and tubing, and we are going to the Children's museum and to see the Zoo lights!

In preparation for their visit, Mimi has been very busy! I had to buy a Moses' basket, so little ER would have somewhere to sleep, and I had to get diapers, wet ones, formula, etc., so that Mom doesn't have to worry about packing all these things. Also, we had to have a baby snowsuit and, of course, some presents under the tree--which I also had to purchase and decorate.

The stockings are hung by the front door with care ( a NEW one this year!) in hopes that the Grandkids soon will be here. There are icicle lights on the patio, and real icicles are hanging from the patio as well. Snow covers the land, at least temporarily, and it is indeed beginning to look a lot like Christmas. The real present already arrived, in October, and he has brought such joy!!