December

Signing off of 2012 around here....

After celebrating Thanksgiving with some dear friends, we rode through the Christmas season on a high speed gust filled with fun, tradition, and many relaxing family moments.

December began with D giving me an early, wonderful, and extremely terrifying present....a one time trip through a Technolas 217z Zyoptix Wavefront laser machine (LASIKs) :o)  I'm now at 20/15 in both eyes and the boys can't get away with anything ;)

During my recovery, D kept the boys busy at the rink, shopping, and all their normal mischief....or maybe that was the other way around with the boys keeping D busy....

December's gust also brought about the conclusion of our young man's science and art classes.  What a gift these classes have been in both being a blessing to J, and a relief to his non-sciency/artsy mama :)

For 6 weeks, J diligently worked on this amphibious friend...the bone-chilling and quite disturbing Crocodile.  We think he did an awesome job (even if it does give me shivers!)!  

Lil' Bro also spent the month expanding his creative side...while adding to his clandestine jedi haunts ;o)

There has, of course, been the traditional holiday baking....

....dressing....

....and tasting. 

Plus the annual parties and visits with Aloha Santa and his beautiful Mrs. Claus.

Santa asked E what he would like for Christmas....that one required some looooonnngggg, intense thinking.  

And while E was engaged with his thoughtful introspection, D was equally busy diving headfirst into the shallow end of the naughty list....

Christmas eve day was spent with a stroll through Waikiki, a take-out picnic along the beach, and romping in the park.

Followed by a beautiful service celebrating Christ's birth....

...and my handsome elf intern helping with lil' brother's gift assembly :o)

Christmas morning arrived a tad too early this year....notice the black outside the window!
Praise the Lord for the creation of the coffee bean!

We had two happy and very blessed boys on our hands!
As well as two extremely blessed parents :o)
(...and one catnip drugged cat...)

Dawn eventually arrived as well as a new superhero.

The parental gifts this year were selected with airplanes, hotels, and moving trucks in mind as this will likely be our last Hawaiian Christmas. 

"The world cannot accept him, because it neither sees him nor knows him.  But you know him, for he lives with you and will be in you.  I will not leave you as orphans; I will come to you."  John 12:17-18