Our Christmas Card

Hopefully you received our Christmas card with the photo of the girls. But, as a reminder, here it is. Don't they look sweet?

You would never know the pain and suffering we went through to get that shot. For some reason, Krista was not in the mood to get her picture taken. She did not want to cooperate at all. So, here are a couple of the photos we did NOT send in our cards. I'm sure you can see why!

"Go ahead, take the picture. But I WON'T smile!"

And here we are at meltdown. She was done. Good thing we got the good one before everything went to $*!!

Merry Christmas 2007

Here are a few photos from Christmas Day at the Andrews house.

Ryan is clearly very excited about the travel size shaving cream in his stocking.


Krista gave Leah a stuffed horse that looks a lot like the one she rode most often at Challenge Ranch.

Krista is WAY into Disney's High School Musical this year. She obviously LOVES her book!

The girls got a Horseopoly game that is pretty cool.

Later in the day, Ryan put a large cereal box over his head and started chasing the girls through the house, and with a synthesized, robotic voice, repeating, "Do you want a bowl of cereal?" He would hide somewhere and jump out and scare them.

The girls tried to find him. He was pretty good at hiding and jumping out at them when they least expected it.

Hope you all had a very merry Christmas!

The Night Before Christmas 2007

We had a pretty quiet Christmas Eve and Christmas day this year. Ryan came over and spent the night, which was nice. While Gene and I were fixing dinner, Ryan led the girls in some calisthenics--in his own special way.

Then we ate dinner.


The kids opened their pajamas as they do every Christmas Eve.

Leah and Krista put their pajamas on right away.

After we read, "Twas the Night Before Christmas," Ryan played his guitar and we sang a few Christmas songs.

It's kind of sad that the girls have gotten too old for some traditions, like putting cookies and milk out for Santa. Of course, this year, we wouldn't have been able to do that anyway, because Krista had eaten almost all the cookie dough throughout the day (secretly, in the bathroom!). Arghhh!

Leah's Dance Performance

Leah's dance class had a Christmas performance on Wednesday. Of course, she was the best dancer! We have a pathetic camera that doesn't really take very good pictures in a dark room, but here are a few.

Leah and her friend, Alexis, after the performance

Reflecting on 2007

As 2007 comes to a close, I find myself reflecting on some of the more memorable events of the year. Here are the top ten--some good and some not so good, but all memorable:

1. Leah became a teenager on January 3rd. This is memorable because she truly did become a teenager in every way. Suddenly she became such a smart-aleck. Don't get me wrong, she's always been a little know-it-all, but she is at a whole new level now. Thankfully, she can also be very sweet and generous at times, so it's not all bad. And, I've been through this twice already, so I know it will pass. Unfortunately, I have another one coming up right behind her!
2. Gene turned 50! It's so hard to believe that it's been over 30 years since we met. He's still the handsomest man I know.
3. Gene's mom passed away after a freak accident. The unexpected phone call came in April. She had fallen off a stage and hit her head on concrete. She never woke up. We were thankful that we got to drive out to Louisiana and be with the rest of the family as we reflected on her life. We also got a chance to stop and see my mom and brother on our way back home. I'm very thankful for that.
4. The Rock church dedicated the new children's wing in Carla's name in November. All of her kids were there to see her honored for her passion and hard work in getting Pebbles Pathway going strong. The new building is beautiful. I know Carla would be pleased.
5. Ryan came home in November after spending six months in Japan. We missed him terribly, and were so glad to have him back safe and sound. I know that someday he'll probably leave the San Diego area for good, but for now, it's nice to have him close again. I sure wish Ashley's family lived closer, though.
6. It may sound silly, but getting our new puppy, Bennett, was one of the highlights of the year. She is so adorable. She has mannerisms like "Babe," the pig. She leans forward, lifts her nose up in the air and sniffs, and it looks like she's thinking, "Baa, ram, ewe!" We love her already.
7. Although it was under sad circumstances, it was so nice to see Debbie and John Drake again. I've known Debbie and her twin sister, Angie, since high school. Over the years, we've stayed in touch and we get together every now and then. Last month, Debbie and Angie's mom had a massive heart attack that ultimately took her life. This obviously brought Debbie and her family out from Idaho. We had a wonderful visit with her and her kids and daughter-in-law. Debbie and John are the kind of people that you can just pick up where you left off even if it's been a couple of years since you got together.
8. Krista learned how to say her "R's"! She's still working on fine-tuning, but she's worked very hard for several years, and this year she has made tremendous progress. This was the last sound she had to learn to say correctly. Looks like this will be her last year having to be pulled out for speech in school. Very exciting stuff. I have to say, though, that in a way, it's a little sad to lose that last little part of her that made her a "little girl." She's growing up so fast!
9. The wildfires in October really made me think about what's important. While we were glued to the television, watching house after house burn, I realized that, if my house burned down, it really wouldn't be devastating. As long as my family was safe, that would be enough. I don't think I would have felt that way before Carla died. I look at everything differently now. I treasure family much more now.
10. And finally, having two blood transfusions and one iron transfusion (oh yeah, and a hysterectomy) is certainly something I won't forget. I will get another blood test in about a week to see if my anemia is under control, but I am feeling much better, and I'm looking forward to having more energy and strength so that I can get out and get some exercise next year. I'm so tired of feeling tired!

I hope you all have a very Merry Christmas and that 2008 brings you joy and many happy memories.

Christmas Cheer!

Here's a little Christmas cheer from the Andrews family to your family. Enjoy! (Click on the text or the elf. It may take awhile to load, but wait for it.)

Elf Yourself

4 Dogs is 1 Too Many

Unfortunately, we discovered (the hard way) that three dogs is our limit.

I know that you are all thinking, "I could have told her that." And you were right!

We had to make a very difficult decision to find a new home for one. We finally gave our sweet Scout to one of Gene's friends from work. This was so hard for us, but it had to be done. It was not easy breaking the news to Leah and Krista! But even they knew that four was too many to take care of properly. (And four dogs make a lot of poop!)

Scout was the "loner" of the bunch. She is so timid and gentle, and the other three (especially the two Jack Russell Terriers) are very rambunctious and playful. Scout was often the "odd man out" when they played. As much as we loved her (and still do), we really felt that it was best for everyone (including Scout) to give her to Billy.

We miss Scout, but I have to admit that it's a little easier with three. They don't have to fight for a spot on my lap anymore. And, Billy says that Scout is adjusting nicely to her new home. They love her already. Nice to know.

Bennett, Dakota, Bristow, and Scout on my lap

It’s Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas!

Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I LOVE Christmas! I love everything about it, from the brightly colored lights and decorations to the traditional music and shopping for the kids.

Wait, I lied—there is actually one thing that I don’t like about Christmas—wrapping presents. Ugh! I think it’s because I feel such pressure to wrap them perfectly. Mine must be the most beautifully-wrapped presents.

I’m not sure how or when it happened. When did I decide that I have to be the best present wrapper? The same thing happened to me in school. Somewhere along the line, I decided that I HAD to get straight A’s. Everyone expected it. It was the “thing” I was known for. The other kids in the family were “funny” or “talented” or “cute” or “a good cook”, but when I heard my mom talk to other people about me, it was always, “Deb gets straight A’s in school.” And so, I felt the pressure. I couldn’t let people down. I still carry that around with me when I take a college course. Pathetic, I know.

And so, people have complimented my present wrapping prowess, which puts pressure on me to wrap each one perfectly. Not just at Christmas, mind you. I do this for birthdays, too. It’s so stressful!

As you can see, Krista obviously does not suffer from this affliction. Here are three presents she bought for Leah and wrapped herself.

But other than wrapping presents, I LOVE Christmas! Much of our garage is taken up with crates and boxes full of Christmas decorations. Each year, we bring them in the house and go through them like kids, thrilled to rediscover forgotten treasures. We have spent almost 30 years collecting special ornaments, and it's so much fun to open them and put them on our tree. Ryan calls me the Christmas tree Nazi, because I have to have the tree decorated "just right" too. I say, "Pooh!" I like a nicely-decorated tree.

And, as much as Gene complains about putting up lights outside, I know he enjoys seeing our house lit up at night with our red and white lights—each light carefully positioned so that they are all facing the same direction of course. Beautiful!

And, most importantly, I love the fact that the girls love to put out the manger scene each year. They used to make me sing “Little Drummer Boy” when we put out the figurines. But we don’t do that anymore.

I remember when Carla was sick, she was working on a book about her life for Kelby. One of the writing prompts was, “Some of my favorite Christmas traditions are. . . “ Sadly, she couldn’t think of any traditions that she did with her kids, and was bummed. She asked me if I had any. Here are some of the ones I mentioned:

• We always set up our Christmas tree the day after Thanksgiving. (Usually, we only get as far as getting all the lights and the garland on, but we always start.)


• The kids hang their own ornaments on the tree. Gene’s mom used to get the kids an ornament each year, and we always tried to add one, too. That way, when they get married, they already have a headstart on ornaments. Leah and Krista have their own ornament boxes filled with special ornaments.
  
• Each kid has their own special wrapping paper that we use to wrap all of that kid's presents. That way we don’t have to put tags on them. We spend an entire evening locked in our bedroom wrapping presents. We put them out in the hall when we have a few ready. The kids wait to hear the door open and they come running down and excitedly pick up the presents, taking note of how many are wrapped in their special paper, and trying to guess what’s in them before placing them under the tree and waiting impatiently for more presents to appear in the hallway.


• We always make fudge, just like Dad did. Sometimes we make enough to give to friends, but not always.


• The kids get a new pair of winter pajamas, and this is the present they get to open on Christmas eve.


• We save our pennies throughout the year, and at Christmas time, we cash them in and spend the money on a toy for Toys for Tots.


• We read, “Twas the Night Before Christmas” on Christmas eve. We have a collection of books with the poem in it and each family member picks their book and we take turns reading a stanza and then we all read the last line together.


• We always have Pillsbury cinnamon rolls on Christmas morning.

Carla couldn’t believe how many traditions we had, and was bummed to realize that she hadn’t really established any special traditions with her kids. It really made me realize how important it was. I hope this inspires you to start or continue Christmas traditions. The memories are priceless. I'd love to hear other ideas for traditions, too!

Enjoy the holiday!

It's That Time of the Year

Thanksgiving has never been all that much fun to me. I've never been one to enjoy cooking a big meal, making a big mess, and then having to clean it all up. It's just not worth it to me.

But, oh, how Carla loved Thanksgiving! She was in her element on this special day. I could never convince her to just have turkey sandwiches and buy pies and snack on Chex mix so that we could enjoy the day without having a big, huge mess to clean up. No, she would have none of that! She insisted on the traditional spread of turkey, homemade stuffing, broccoli casserole, pecan pie, and the list goes on and on.

She LOVED having a house full of people--the more the merrier in her mind. She reveled in the chaos, I think. Again, not my cup of tea. So we always went to Carla's for Thanksgiving, and I was ALWAYS thankful that we had gone.

I miss Carla so much on Thanksgiving. But I am thankful for the years we spent together on Thanksgiving. And it's nice to think about her with such warm memories.

And then there's Dad's birthday on November 25th. Sometimes Dad's birthday would fall on Thanksgiving. He also loved Thanksgiving. Mom always cooked a big meal on Thanksgiving, too.

And then there's Carla's birthday on December 1st.

And then there's Christmas. Dad always LOVED Christmas. This was his favorite time of year. He spent so much time putting up lights and making yard ornaments like large wooden candy canes, which now decorate my own yard. Growing up, our house was always decked out for Christmas with cheezy decorations.

I have some of those cheezy decorations now, and they are treasures to me. I didn't realize how much they actually meant to me until today when Gene broke the red plastic bells that had hung in our window as far back as I can remember. I know he felt bad. I know it was an accident. And they are only things. But my heart sank when he showed me the shattered plastic pieces. I actually had to fight back the tears. Silly, I know . . . but still, it was hard to accept that they were broken.

As much as Dad loved Christmas, it is almost fitting that he died on Christmas day. But it forever altered my feelings about Christmas. I remember the Christmas songs playing in the hospital as my sisters and brother, and I were eating lunch in the cafeteria or sleeping in the lobby. I remember thinking that the music seemed out of place. Didn't the music picker realize that the greatest man in the world was dying? Why was he (or she) playing those Christmas songs at this sad time? It was several years before I could listen to Christmas music after he died.

Yesterday, Gene and I were at Target, and we were looking for stocking stuffers in the dollar section at the front of the store. There was a bin of Jiffy Pop at the bottom. A wave of emotion took me by surprise at the sight of it. I sucked in a breath and broke out crying right there in the front of the Target store! Gene didn't know what the heck was wrong. I couldn't even speak. I wanted to tell him that "Dad hated Jiffy Pop!" but the words wouldn't come.

As the years have passed, I've been able to come to terms with Dad's and Carla's deaths. I know I'll see them again in heaven one day.

In the meantime, I'll just hold their memories close--especially at this time of year. And I'll be thankful for the people I love who are still here, like my mom, my brothers and sister, and my kids and granddaughters, and son-in-law, and wonderful friends. And, my husband, who has put up with my tears and moods, and who just lets me cry as he holds me until the moment passes.


I am blessed.

TGIF - Ah, Laughter!

This morning I woke up in a not-so-good mood. Not a bad mood, really, just not good. After another night of little sleep (which my doctor assures me will improve by taking a Benadryl every night--what???), I just didn't want to get up and start work (even though my job is just downstairs, and I can wear pajamas if I want to).

So, sitting down at my computer, I still couldn't bring myself to start working. I did my daily check of family and friends' blogs before settling in for work. Somehow I ended up at the blog of someone I don't even know and found this HILARIOUS story. It caught my eye because it starts out with "I don't like Halloween." I literally laughed out loud for a long time (Gene was taking the girls to school and I was all by myself). And when I read it again, I laughed more. I hope you enjoy it as much as I did. If not, . . . WHATEVER! It's funny!

I don't like Halloween. I never really have. Even as a kid I found it very hard to decide on what to be. And I always opted for a run-of-the-mill cowboy or pirate. And even these simple costumes annoyed me by the end of the night: an eye patch became a sweaty burden; make-up dried on my skin; some garment inevitably made it difficult to walk. This list goes on. And then there were the two years, 9 years apart, where I thought I'd had it figured out.

1977 saw me cultivating a true love of KISS. And for Halloween I thought I'd go as Peter Criss, the drummer, whose character was a cat (for those of you not in the know, KISS wore full-face stage make-up and lots of leather during the 1970s). Of course, I didn't have leather, or real boots back in 1977, but I did have long hair and my mom's make-up. So, with Mom's help, I donned a dark shirt, a denim jacket, blue jeans, and her boots with the tops adorned in tin foil. And, of course, the make-up. And off I went to the Ella B. Allen elementary school Halloween party.

There was, of course, a costume contest, and all the kids got in a line and traipsed across the stage a couple of times. The judges then announced the five finalists: "The Princess, The Dragon, The Butterfly, Puss-in-Boots, and Sir Walter Raleigh. You are the five finalists. Please stay up on the stage." So, I lost. No big deal. I turned and started to walk off stage. "Where are you going?! You're one of the finalists!" "No I'm not," I said. "Yes! Puss-in-Boots!" My face turned a little bit red, I hung my head a little and muttered something like "I'm not Puss-in-Boots."

"He's in KISS!" said a mystery voice from the audience. "Oh, I'm sorry! Oh well, you still need to get back on the stage." So there I was, demoralized, embarrassed, emasculated even (there's irony in that one). I ended up losing, of course. But that right there convinced me that Halloween costumes were for chumps.

I LOVE to laugh!

Wicked Good!

For my birthday, Gene got tickets to Wicked, the musical at the Pantages theatre in Los Angeles. My friends, Jeanne-Marie and Nick, kept the girls overnight for us. We had a wicked good time!

Here is the synopsis of the play:

Long before Dorothy drops in, two other girls meet in the Land of Oz. One, born with emerald green skin, is smart, fiery and misunderstood. The other is beautiful, ambitious and very popular. Wicked follows these two unlikely friends and college roomates grow into very different women: The Wicked Witch of the West and Glinda the Good Witch.

This was one of the best musicals EVER! Creative, funny, unbelievable singing talent--it has it all. I highly recommend that if you ever get a chance to see it, GO!

My friend, Amy, gave me the soundtrack, and I love it, too!

All in all, a really good birthday this year!

My Beautiful Leah

Leah is definitely growing up. She has been asking to get her eyebrows shaped lately. Let's just say she has Brooke Shields eyebrows. So, I finally took her to a salon and let her get her eyebrows waxed. She didn't realize they were going to wax them and she was very nervous. At first, she said she didn't want to do it. She thought they were just going to pluck them. The kind Korean lady explained that plucking each hair one by one would hurt much worse. Leah finally agreed to let her do it.

She held my hand tight as the woman prepared to pull the first cloth off. Once it was off, Leah said, "I'm so stupid! I should have believed you! My friend said it hurt really bad!"

Afterwards, she felt beautiful. And she was. Of course, she was beautiful before, too.

TGIF - Halloween is Over!

This week's TGIF is that I'm glad that Halloween is over! You'd never know that I really HATE Halloween by the way we STILL help the girls dress up and we STILL take them somewhere to Trick-or-Treat. Every year I say that we're not going to celebrate Halloween--no costumes, no trick-or-treating, no candy. But, somehow, every year, the girls conveniently "forget" that I ever said that, and they start talking excitedly about what they are going to dress up as and where they want to go (we usually go to a local church for "Trunk-or-Treat" because it's so convenient and quick). And I just never have the heart to follow through on my feeble threats. In fact, this year, Krista had TWO costumes! One for school, and one for Trick-or-Treating. Arrrrrrrrgh!!! We did the same thing with Ashley and Ryan. We're so pathetic. Anyway, here are some photos of the day.

Krista's school costume

Leah as "Maid Marian"

Krista and Leah getting ready to go Trick-or-Treating

TGIF - Deja Vu

Four years ago this month, San Diego experienced its worst firestorm in history. Ash was everywhere, you couldn't breathe, the sky was an eerie orangish grey color. It was like something out of a science fiction movie. Very scary. The fire came close to our neighborhood, but not close enough to have to evacuate. But we were glued to the television (there really wasn't anything else to do anyway). Our van was packed with all of our precious "stuff," like photo albums, the cuckoo clock, Gene's dad's rocking chair, etc. We were ready to go in the middle of the night if the fires came too close. But, miraculously, a few days later, it rained! The rain washed the air and helped put out most of the fires.

This time, it was even worse for San Diego. Many, many more people were evacuated, only to return to rubble in too many cases. Once again, we were glued to the television, listening for news about Lakeside or El Cajon. But, once again, our neighborhood was spared. In fact, this time, the fires really didn't even come close. People and horses were evacuated to our area. Although we felt relatively safe throughout the week, I did get as far as making a list of things we need to pack in case the winds changed and the fires started coming our way. Krista went around the house with our digital camera documenting all of our belongings.

As a city we were more prepared, too. This week brought out the best in San Diego--neighbors helping neighbors, shelters opening up all over the place. People were actually turned away at the stadium with their donations because they already had more than enough of everything! The generosity of our citizens made us all very proud to be San Diegans. Of course, there were the rare cases of looting and people taking advantage, but the good outweighed the bad by far.

So, this week, I am thankful that we were not in harm's way and that we live in the best city in the world!

Seize the day!

Marah Sue is 3!

Our youngest granddaughter, Marah, just turned 3 last month and we weren't there to help her celebrate this milestone, but Ashley sent us some photos. Isn't she beautiful?!

According to Ashley, she is quite a handful--strong-willed and stubborn. I guess what goes around comes around after all. : )

It is such a bummer that our only grandchildren don't live close to us so they can know their Nana and Papa as they grow up. It's something I always hoped for, but it's not happening. And, with Ryan being such a traveling man these days, we wonder if he will settle down near us so that we will know his children one day. So, our hope lies in Leah and Krista, but that's many, many years away (hopefully!).


So, for now, we have to settle for photos and phone calls to watch our two beautiful granddaughters grow up. Thank goodness for e-mail, blogs, and Internet!

Here are a few photos of Jenna (7) and Marah (3) that Ashley recently sent.