St. Paul - Christmas Eve Day

Christmas Eve was our big day of celebration! Because the cousins would be there all day long, and weren't able to join us the next morning, we had our big meal, sleding expedition, and gift/stocking opening time all today instead.

The day started off with a yummy breakfast, compliments of Grandma. After finishing the last of the decorations and hanging the stockings, we all bundled up and Dad and Uncle Peter took the oldest 9 grandkids sleding. All us kids, ages 19 (almost) thru 6, all had a great time, and I think that the dads did too. Enjoy wading through all the sledding photos for the next 10 minutes!

Get ready, get set. . . . and, he's off!

Andy, majestically pulling off the classic "Pom-pom hat"

Andy and Josh protect the basketball pole from wayward sledd-ers.

The three "Pete Halls" - Joshua, Noah, and Caleb
Zeke, styling one of Grandma's hats. I am proud to call you my brother.
Isaac, ready to go!



Caleb, modeling the oh-so-fashionable Fed-Ex coveralls.

Zeke. . .I don't believe that is the best way to come down.

(And yes, he did slide half-way down the hill like that.)
The sledd-er almost ran into the camera-woman.

Abby
Caleb flies!


Dad even got in the action - he held the "longest sled ride" record for a while too!
Isaac, trudging up the hill once again.

Athleticism runs in the veins of all the Hall males.

This is my cousin Noah. Somehow, he, Josh, Caleb, and Andy

all managed to "surf" down the hill on sleds! Not even snowboards

(which I imagine would be hard enough), but old, red sleds! How's

that for talent?

It was cold. I sat in the car some. . . okay, a lot.

Abby declared me "Lame." I accept the title,

but will edit it a bit: "Lame -- but warm!"
The grand finale was the "Train" - pretty much, the dads set it up so that all of the kids (with the exception of yours truly, who was in charge of videoing and taking pictures) would go down at once. They held onto each other's ankles, and I tell you - watching them fishtail when they got to the bottom was hilarious for us up top (but probably not so fun for those at the end of the train!).

St. Paul - Christmas Eve

After we returned from the sleding expedition, it was time to get dressed for church. Then we set out - and walked. To church. Nearly a mile. In the cold. It made memories. 'Nuf said.



The service was very nice, and even nicer was the jog home, but the nicest of all was the hot chocolate (and tea for those of us who think chocolate is quite bleck-y) awaiting us as we arrived home.

Zeke and Noah

And of course, snacks to go along with our drinks.Then, it was time for stockings! We started with the youngest and worked our way up, Zeke and Mariah being the official stocking handing-outers. Grandma then read us a cowboy version of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.

Listening closely

After that, everyone was sent out to play with their stocking stuffers while us "womenfolk" finished preparing the feast! And a feast it was - Grandma sure knows how to cook. Yummy!
Elizabeth was found in the basement, hiding behind the radiator, eating chocolate that was in her stocking.)

Then, time for presents! We started once again with the youngest, and worked our way up.

Libeth got a backpack, with a tent and sleeping bag inside . . .. . . as well as coordinating hat, mittens, and sunglasses.

One of Isaac's gifts was a towel, complete with reindeers antlers and everything. Lucky.

Zeke got the best gift of all - deodorant!

Abby quickly busied herself looking through one of her three new books - all about horses. Grandma sure knows her grandkids!

I was given some assistance in the placement of my gift - a beautiful red bow. I believe Libeth spent about five minutes getting it centered on my forehead.

Andy is no where to be seen. I suspect he has gone to put on his new pajamas, and take a nap with his new comforter. Mum had the camera, and you know how that is. Not one picture of her all week long.

Dad was quite pleased with his gift - a towel to match Isaac's!

Mum was more pleased with his real gift - a nice outfit for work.

And last but not least, Grandma. She got the best gift of all - old cereal box bags, wiped clean and ripped open (it makes great wax paper!).

St. Paul - Thursday and Friday

Thursday was Christmas Day, of course. Since we had done the majority of the present opening the night before, Christmas morn we headed off to a church in a neighboring town for their service. The family who did the service, the Andersons, were friends from California. He was the pastor of our church for many years, and we grew up with their younger kids. They didn't know that our family was coming, so it was very fun to surprise them and to catch up on life. Their new son-in-law preached a powerful message, and we also heard Silent Night in two languages - Japanese, and a language spoken in Madagascar (I don't recall its name). Afterwards, we talked until someone noticed the janitor, quietly standing by the door, waiting to lock-up and get home for his Christmas! We wrapped things up in prayer, and talked our way out of the building and to our cars.

The afternoon was spent with snow play and around the house relaxing. Mum, Grandma, and I sipped tea and watched White Christmas while Dad took the kids to the park to help them build a fantastic igloo. After dinner, we opened the gifts that were from Mum and Dad to us, and spent some more time just being around each other. It is a really good feeling when you honestly enjoy getting to spend time with the ones closest to you, isn't it?

Friday we ventured out of the house and visited the Mill City Museum in Minneapolis. It had formerly been the Gold Medal Flour mill, so they had a test kitchen there with sample cookies and other yummy things.

The boys, trying their hand at Playdough

(Libeth was showing them how it is done)

Grandma and I, perusing some of the many

cookbooks they had stashed in the test kitchen.

We also visited The Guthrie, a terribly unique theatre right next door.

And, we drove past the Thrivent building on our way back to St. Paul.

It was a very dreary day, but we had fun despite that!

St. Paul - Saturday and Sunday

Saturday was blown in by a visit from old friends, the Christenson's. They were a part of our church in California, and Mr. Christenson was the pastor who baptized Dad. We had a great breakfast of bacon and waffles with them, catching up on news and having some in depth theological discussions. :) Then, the late morning and afternoon were spent ice-skating! We all bundled up and headed out, even Elizabeth and Mum. Elizabeth pulled her sled around, and the rest of us skated away - the boys even played a full-on hockey game! Us ladies bowed out after about an hour. We went home, got lunch ready for the men, then headed off on the great shopping expedition. I only bought 3 things and I was very proud of myself for this frugality. I believe I only spent about. . . 15 dollars too!

Sunday, we went to Grandma and Grandpa's church (although we didn't walk this time!) and our family sang "Angels We Have Heard On High" in the four-part harmony we learned. Originally, we had just prepared it to sing for Grandma and Grandpa. . .but, after singing for them Saturday night, Grandma asked if we would please sing Sunday morning in church. So we did. I think we were okay - Dad said we didn't go flat like we tend to. :) Mum and Isaac took the soprano (along with ocassional assistance from Elizabeth), Zeke and I covered alto (okay, so I pretty much lip-sync), Abby was our strong tenor (yes, she can hit every note), and Andy and Dad handled the bass (although poor Andy came in about 3 weeks after the rest of us had already been working on it, he did a fine job). It was at the very least a joyful noise to the Lord!

After church, we packed up the van (no easy feat, what with the additional presents and shopping items!) and headed for a last lunch. We dined at the traditional "Mickey's Diner" in downtown St. Paul. An experience to be sure - if you ever go to St. Paul, you must try it out. And if you've ever seen Mighty Ducks - it's the diner in those movies.

Before I move on . . . a HUGE thank you to Grandma and Grandpa Hall, for putting up with our invasion for nearly a week! Your flexibility and hospitality are to be greatly commended. You are truly the greatest paternal grandparents a kid could have. Grandma - all your amazing meals and fun little traditions and decorations made it really special. I will always treasure our tea-times, bustling around the kitchen with you, and laughing together as we watched White Christmas. I have become quite certain that you are a" kindred spirit". Grandpa - thanks for spending time talking with Dad about all that "Lutheran stuff." I know that he appreciates the it so very much, and I love you all the more for taking the time to listen and help mentor him in this thing we call life. The influence you have had, and continue to have on him trickles down to me each and every day. I love you both!

Illinois with Mum's side

On our way home from St. Paul, we stopped by our other Grandparents' home, in a small town called Forrest. Okay, so it's not really on the way home, but we all think it's worth the extra hours of driving. We took off after lunch on Sunday afternoon, and drove 8 hours - I think that I slept about 5 of them. Then, when we woke up the next morning, Grandma had planned a second Christmas for us! Here are a few of us, opening our presents:

Okay, so this was totally random. Sometimes, when taking a photo, I hold the button down too long, and it takes a second picture. This happened twice when we were there, and here are my two pictures:

After that, Dad, Mum, Andy, Abby, and I went shopping and visited our Great Grandma Laura in a nearby town. She is almost 101-years-old, and still going strong. She is bummed out that none of the other residents at her home will play cards with her - no one else has quite the mental sharpness that she does.

Tuesday, we helped my Uncle David (Mum's brother) move. He and his family were just moving into the house that they had built (or "had built" I suppose), and as it was only about a mile away from the house they had been living in, we used one Uhaul, and about 4 minivans to move their boxes and furniture. It was fun, although somewhat exhausting! All of the family was gathered there, with the exception of my Uncle Brad (an in-law), and Mum's sister Denise and her family, who live in Dubai, U.A.E. It was neat getting to say hi to all the cousins, even for just a short while. We also got a chance to do some shopping in Bloomington, the town they live in. Abby and I had fun in the Macy's men's hat department.

Then Wednesday, the whole family (minus Andy and me) headed back home. Andy and I stayed in Forrest to help Grandma and Grandpa with some photo/memories/computer scrap-booking/archiving/family documentary making stuff. Don't ask - I can't even remember what all we did! But we worked hard, Wednesday, Thursday, and then Friday morning, before heading Friday afternoon. We also took time off, eating lots of cookies and yummy homemade meals, watching football and basketball games, and even catching two good movies - The Bucket List, and Forest Gump.

And now we are home, home at last! Time to take a vacation to rest up from our vacation! No, in all honesty, it was a wonderful holiday season, and I so enjoyed the time spent among my great family, both immediate and extended. To have such a Christian, God-honoring family is a huge blessing that I take entirely for granted. So thank you God, for this beautiful time I've had with them, and for the love they show to me.

Hope you had a great holiday as well!

Rebekah

Happy 2009!

I pray that you will all have a blessed coming year, growing in the knowledge and love of our Saviour each and every day. Have you all enjoyed these past few weeks of celebration? I know I have! Look for more posts, and pictures as soon as I get home. I have a lot to catch up on!

Love you all,

Becky

"For Christ's love compels us, because we are convinced that one died for all, and therefore all died. And he died for all, that those who live should no longer live for themselves but for him who died for them and was raised again. So from now on we regard no one from a worldly point of view. Though we once regarded Christ in this way, we do so no longer. Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone, the new has come!"

II Corinthians 5:14-17