10 Feet of Trouble

Seasons Greetings Biltmore passes: $80.00 Santa hats & tape: $10.00 Silent Night: priceless Happy Holidays Love, Larry Denzil, Marsha, Savannah, Ethan, Ruby, little Larry, & Xander

Sunday December 20th was mine & Larry's 13th wedding anniversary. Being snowed in, we had a nice, lazy sunday at home. Can't say quiet because we did have 5 kids snowed in with us, but they were good. That is till we decided to watch a family movie around 2PM. I got up to make some treats when Ruby told me she had something in her ear. I peek in & sure enough she had something pink jammed into her small ear canal. I assumed it was a fruit loop because that is what she had been eating. I know this is a no no, but Larry & I both tried to get this out our selves. No such luck. Off to the ER they went. Luckily, Larry had shoveled his car and part of our street earlier in the afternoon. Nearly 7 hours in the ER, the docs tried an alligator clamp with no such luck. Then they got a small syringe with a curved tip and were able to flush the tiny object out. Isn't it pretty? Ruby had found a small pink rock. We are assuming it came from Savannah's Hermit Crab...

Last friday, Dec the 18th, we got dumped with nearly 8 inches of snow. The kids were so upset. Yeah, you read correctly. The impending snow storm shut down school for the day. This was their last day before winter break. You know what that means, Christmas parties all around. My favorite picture. Ethan shows so much emotion in everything he does. The kids could barely walk in so much snow. The nice thing was, once they came in, they all fell fast asleep. Brrr! It was snowing so fiercely friday evening that all the kids came in with some tucked snug in their hoods. Knee deep. I do not think the kids have ever experienced this much snow. About 16 inches. That is what we got dumped with here in the mountains. I am blessed with 4 little snow angels. Xander couldn't take the time to lie in the snow for me. He was too busy throwing snow balls and rolling out snow boulders. Makes me wish this was a sand dune on the beach rather than our snow covered yard. I hope everyone is staying ...

Last Saturday, we ventured to the Biltmore Estate to take our Christmas pictures. The kids had such a great time posing for our Christmas card photos. Afterwards, we journeyed to Riverbend Farms on the estate so the kids could visit Santa Claus. I was amazed at how well Ruby handled him. Honestly, I think this is my favorite snapshot. The kids just look so mesmerized by his appearance.

This picture was too cute to pass up. After work, Larry usually comes home and checks any emails that have come in on his blackberry. Ruby had commented that she had her big phone and daddy had his little phone. I love leapfrog. They make the greatest products. Sisters. There is nothing better than watching your little girls enjoy one another's company. And to top off the quality time fest, we had family night by watching Star Trek. Larry Denzil loves Star Trek and now I think a few of our kids have become big fans. We caught a couple of the boys practicing Spok's "Live Long & Prosper" hand signal.

Last saturday, we decided to have a family activity. We wanted to do something special because it was our first weekend all-together after 2 very long weeks. So we decided to go to one of the local tree farms in WNC and cut down our own Christmas tree. Here is Xander striking a pose. My little Ethan Andrew. He was so excited to chop down our very own tree. Best friends. Our two escapees. Larry said go find a tree and I suppose they thought we had to go to the top of the hill. I don't think so. Look at how beautiful the trees are. So what goes up, must come down. Check out my Belle as she makes her way quickly down the hill. Her feet are literally off the ground in this shot. She is starting to loose her balance. Catastrophe is happening. Crash Boom Wah! Luckily the ground was very soft from all the rain. Honestly, she whimpered for a moment. Look at the snow covered mountains. It actually snowed on our drive to the tree farm but quit when we got there. I just love this scene...