Keeping Up With The Lyon Family: As Promised

I think I'll just start with what we have been up to since Thanksgiving. So, if you need to go grab your cup of coffee or a better chair, now is your chance.

This year, Thanksgiving was spent at our house! It wasn't a first for us to be "home", I recall doing that one year in Boise with the Donaldson's. However, it was our first time to "host" family for the celebration. My parents came for a week long visit. This, in itself, was a first for them as well. Seeing as their first year of retirement has inluded a few moves, moving a few people and trying to figure out which clubs to join and what not - Thanksgiving ended up being the first chance, but yet perfect week for them to come visit.

Of course the week passed all too quickly, I am sure not for them, sleeping in their pink paradise of a room, complete with a double bed pushed up against the wall so mom doesn't fall out, ha! I do believe they thoroughly enjoyed themselves and all of the "energy" that abounds throughout our house. Grandad worked feverishly on the play house giving it what I dub an extreme makeover, all new paint, inside and out, new vinyl flooring, fixed our leaky windows, they now shut and latch, the front door is now working and with a little insulation we could pretty much just "move" the kids in there permanently. He worked so hard, and though winter came the next week and we haven't spent much time out there, another 2 months and I see it being a haven for 2 little ones. So, thanks dad - it is GORGEOUS.

My mom kept busy using her talents as well, crocheting us scarfs and working on roman shades for our bedroom (that would go with the new widows our house got in early Dec.). We picked out Bo's new decor for his big boy room, shopped a little and enjoyed Starbucks everyday, I kid you not! A couple of days I think we might have gone twice.

We managed to put together a "Lyon" Thanksgiving dinner - with Jake and mine favorite dishes, Brisket (no turkey)and dinner rolls (which are dishes from Jake's side) and then my mom's green bean casserole and apple pie. Last but not least mashed potatoes that come from both sides and a store bought pumpkin pie....which come to think of I don't think the Lyon's ever have pumpkin pie as a desert option (which I don't miss), and I am not sure my side really MAKES one...we just MAKE the Apple. So - there you have it, our perfect dinner!

Seriously, it was an amazing visit for the big kids (us) and our little ones and Anna shed a tear as we pulled away from the airport which led into our first conversation about why some people we love have to live far away. Sniff Sniff. I had gotten good at not crying when we separated, but seeing your 3yr old cry cause gma is gone is a whole new element. I was holding back.
We have so much to be thankful for, both materially, familially (nice word huh), emotionally - I have never felt more blessed. Of course thoughts were with my brother abroad, who wound up with Sweet Potatoe pie instead of Pumpkin and for him this is a BIG let down! But we spoke with him twice that week.

Okay, so November is over.....
Onto December

The first weekend we got to see a much anticipated "Hide and Seek" Christmas production at church, put on by the preschool program. We had a gorgeous angel who participated and sang her little heart out.
The next weekend we went to Ft. Smith to visit with Jake's sister and family and see if we could get some pics done of the kids and a family picture - you know for Christmas presents and cards. Well, it was a fun weekend. Anna did a great solo job. Bo, well we managed to get a few good ones. As for brother sister shots - Bo didn't think that was a good idea. I have two that I consider "DOABLE" and folks this is out of 153 pictures. The boy does not like pictures. Then family pics. Well - let's just say, if I feel really gutsy I'll post one for you to see. Shelley did a great job we just had a very non cooperative 19mo old. Can you imagine such a thing?
Still -a very fun weekend.
We arrived home Sunday night, went to bed with a mess of laundry and such, with ice starting to form around us, woke up Monday to no electricity...and thus the ice storm of 2007 began. Bo, Anna and I had already started getting sick from something. So we were not the happiest of campers. Thankfully Jake didn't just leave us, he tried calling into work, no one answered. A few phone calls to friends in all parts of town and NO ONE had power. Hmmmm, what to do.
So, we ate on our gas stove, we bundled up, we charged our portable DVD in the car while we sat in the car with the heater (but no not in the garage...no CO2 poisoning here), then we come in, watch a movie and start all over. For dinner we would drive (the roads were clear) in hopes of finding some warm food. But nothng. EVERYTHING was black - it was so eerie, no walmart, no gas stations, no nothing, miles of BLACK. We bundled up in our hats and such and slept. Tues. still no power, but three very sick people, so luckily the Dr.'s were open by now. All of us on antibiotics of sorts, sent back to our cold house. But heck all the Dr.'s and nurses had no power either. It was just the craziest thing. Ithink at one point, in Tulsa Metro alone over 200k people had NO power.
Tree branches down everywhere, they are all still in people's yard b/c the city is supposed to come pick them up "sometime". It is the closest thing to a disaster are I have ever seen. We were sick but that was it, by Late Tuesday we had power. 30 some hours felt like 3 weeks. We were dirty, sick and tired. But we made it!
Thursday we left for our trip with the Lyon sideof the family to Branson, MO. it was planned back in Oct. and a welcome relief to the chaos of Tulsa at the time. We had a great time celebrating the season and being on "vacation" with family. We came back Monday night and unfortunately had two kids that were more sick then they were the week before - back to the Dr. they had both acquired ear infections while on antibiotics for the tonsilitis. Hmmm.....so $75 later in HIGHER power antibiotics, another 2 copays, we were out the door. Was Christmas really a week away?

In the back of my head was, "Keri get Christmas cards, just pic a picture, it doesn't have to be new", "Keri don't forget to decorate the house, ha!" "Keri this is your favorite time of year and there is only a week left, enjoy it".

And so, the decor went up, a tree was purchased and I made sure it looked like Christmas was coming. The nativity took center stage at kid level and we played with Mary and Joseph and Baby Jesus. Anna really got into hanging ornaments and I LOVED that - Jake was concerned she might already be a Christmas crazy as me!

The weekend came, the kids wore their Christmas outfits to church and I managed to snag some pictures on the 23rd (see last post) that were card worthy, but time had just ran out.
24th we were off to Lindsay, OK to see Jake's ENTIRE family on his mom's side. I haven't counted lately but I think there are 35+ people in total now that most are maried and there are 6 great grand children. We spent the night, were lavished wih gifts and love all day on the 25th and drove home fairly late.
Jake and I then stayed up, wrapped all our gifts and my parents and gma's gifts thatthey had purchased for the kids. We woke up the 26 and started over again, just the four of us.

Now, let me tell you, this is the first time in 29 years I have not seen my family at Christmas. And I survived! In fact, though I didn't love it, I stll felt warm and fuzzy and watching my kids, with my husband open their gifts was amazing. It was our first time being "HOME". We stayed around all day, playing and playing and I think it is fair to say a good time was had by all.

Jake had two days of work, we had Dr. re-checks (we are all healthy) then the weekend came, all the decor came down, we watched more bowl games and even went out on New Year's eve....we were home by 10pm but then had our neighbors over and played games and stayed up until 2am - we haven't done that on New Year's in well, probably since we got married!

So - one highlight of my Christmas day was a phone call from my brother whose voice I had not heard since Thanksgiving. Another, just the comments from Anna about Jesus and his birth. And most know that even though I grew up with Santa I am not a HUGE fan, and people would ask Anna what she asked for for Christmas and she just stared at them. It just reiterated to me that she understands what we want her to think about Christmas, that it isn't about asking, or making lists. It is about the joy of receiving whatever, of givng to people. She had no clue what asking or listing as about! Though my brothe and Erin were not around and my Grandma and parents were alone and I missed them terribly, it was a wonderful experience to have a new kind of "family" Christmas.

Whew - so now you know the ins and outs.
Here are some pics.

Grandad and Grandma Come to Visit