So it's been a busy few weeks. Here's a recap with visual aides alongside. Natasja's soccer team wrapped up its season with an emphatic 5-0 win, to which Natasja contributed her second goal of the campaign. A good time was had by all, both there and at Mellow Mushroom afterward. Trophies and high fives all around.
The Christmas tree went up the Sunday before Thanksgiving – we're still waiting on the icicle lights, Geert - in an amazingly efficient piece of family teamwork. The tree came down from the attic a little after 11 and was good to go by noon. Everyone chipped in with the ornaments, even Brittany in her first-minutes-of-being-awake funk. (No, we're not posting those pictures. Even three weeks later, they're a little scary.)
Then to Northern
Kentucky for Turkey Day. A very quiet drive once we got out of Nashville and great weather while we were there. Like last year, Geert played golf with Doug on Thursday morning, but didn't have to contend with snow this time. Britt did a terrific job helping out grandma Eileen with the grub for the day and we got down to the serious business of early Christmas presents after dinner.
Cindy and Geert hooked up with Doug, Kelly, Becky, Mandy and other women whose names ended in -y to hit the town a little Friday night. Next time you're in downtown Covington, Ky., check out the third-floor deck at Chez Nora. Killer view of Cincy, outside bar and the inside jazz gets halfway muted. Good times.
Back home, brother bear
had his stick horse parade and Natasja is growing some preshistoric things in a small tank in the kitchen. Just downright creepy-looking, but get this: They were seeds three weeks ago and apparently they only 'hatch' when they come into contact with enough fresh water.
Another of those instances Robin Williams talked about 20 years ago: "If God drinks, then he might get stoned. Look at a platypus. I think you think he might."
How much egg nog and/or booze of your choice have you had in the past two weeks? If you have to double-take here to see which one is the real baby, you've had too much, my friend...
So we were going to head to Northern Kentucky on the 26th to surprise the family gathered there. Then, on the morning of the 22nd, our doorbell rings and in walk Lori, Dan and Ted. After hanging out for a while, they head back out on the road to Illinois and we're standing in the hallway... "Why don't we just go up today?" Why not, indeed. Hey, if it's a good surprise one day, it's four times better four days earlier, right?
We arrived late Friday to kick off a blur of parties, gift exchanges and chow-downs separated by bouts of sleeping in big time and the obligatory visit to Skyline.
Santa, of course, made his appearance at grandma's. The kids, of course, loved their new toys. And Geert, of course, spent way too much time assembling one of them – in this case, the slurpee machine that takes 20 minutes to turn a can of Coke into half a cup of icy Coke.
that is, to sit in an obnoxious amount of 2 p.m. traffic on the way back from your eighth wedding anniversary lunch. (Big thumbs up for Stoney River, 
by the way.)
• Britt only had to take semester exams for two of her classes. Girlfriend is acing the others and sprinting toward graduation in May.
So it's been a busy few weeks. Here's a recap with visual aides alongside. Natasja's soccer team wrapped up its season with an emphatic 5-0 win, to which Natasja contributed her second goal of the campaign. A good time was had by all, both there and at Mellow Mushroom afterward. Trophies and high fives all around.
Kentucky for Turkey Day. A very quiet drive once we got out of Nashville and great weather while we were there. Like last year, Geert played golf with Doug on Thursday morning, but didn't have to contend with snow this time. Britt did a terrific job helping out grandma Eileen with the grub for the day and we got down to the serious business of early Christmas presents after dinner.
had his stick horse parade and Natasja is growing some preshistoric things in a small tank in the kitchen. Just downright creepy-looking, but get this: They were seeds three weeks ago and apparently they only 'hatch' when they come into contact with enough fresh water.
Opa was here last week for a quick stop between Sao Paolo and El Paso. (He makes it sound so cavalier, doesn't he?) The gang went to the Nashville Zoo, where the elephants were on parade and the little giraffes were learning to walk. Beside that, Opa got to hang out with everyone and go to Bleachers to watch football.
