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We love the Christmas season at our house. However, it also tends to be very busy, even to the point of being hectic at times. I sometimes harken back to the days before we had 3 kids and I had time to decorate, host a party, and breathe. However, I also *love* this season with children and know that in a few years I will miss all the craziness, late nights, and exhaustion of it all.

This year, like most others, we had a host of events and activities that filled our Advent season. As we’ve done every year since Musette was born, we began our celebrations with the Family Advent Festival at church. This family-oriented celebration is a time where we get together with our church family to do some crafts, listen to the kids sing, and enjoy a yummy potluck dinner.

G.E.A.R.S. sings!

As a Wolf Cub, Danger Boy has a couple of holiday-oriented activities with his scout den. One that we’ve participated in a couple times now is Scouting for Food where the scouts walk house-to-house in an assigned local neighborhood and collect food for the Oregon Food Bank. It is fun for the boys, but also helps them to understand how important it is to help others.

G.E.A.R.S. goes to the greatest preschool *ever* and this year they had a cute Christmas program where they sang songs wearing cute costumes. Always fun to hear 4 & 5 years olds singing Christmas songs!

Of course, one of the biggest events during this season is Musette’s multiple performances in her dance studio’s version of the Nutcracker. After several years in the role of soldier, Musette danced the role of a gingerbread chef or “chefette” this year. This coveted role is unique because the girls are not only the only guest dancers to be onstage during the 2nd act, they also go out and serve cookies to the attendees after the performance – still in costume! [Musette is considered a "guest" dancer because she is not yet in "company" - the pre-professional group of dancers who dance the featured roles.] As always, all 6 shows got rave reviews from the sold-out crowds.

Backstage in full costume, ready to go onstage!

In addition to these activities, we also find time each December to go get a fresh-cut tree. We try to put up a few decorations, and of course there is our tradition of Christmas Eve services at the church. We go as a family to the 5 p.m. service and then to grandma and grandad’s house for dinner, dessert, and one gift – Christmas PJs. Grandma also has a stuffed stocking for each child.

Finally, on Christmas morning, we get up (not TOO early) and go downstairs to see what Santa has left. No one is allowed to go alone – we ALL go together.

Sometimes, you have to REALLY want something…

Next up, coffee for mom and dad while everyone opens stockings.

Waiting to be opened…

Finally, after eating breakfast, we open gifts.

We love our Christmas traditions and the craziness of it all. We also love the quieter days AFTER Christmas when we can sleep in (well, if 7:30 is sleeping in), watch movies, play with new things, and just enjoy being together.

Merry Christmas to all!

October is a busy month for the Availables and extended family. Lots of birthdays to celebrate!

Swiss Army Mom continues to get older each October, but more importantly her 2 best birthday presents *ever* celebrate their birthdays.

Musette turned 12(!) on October 10, and this year she decided to have a Red Carpet celebration. She invited a few girls over for moving-making and a sleep over. They all arrived on Friday night and we made pizzas and enjoyed lemony cupcakes. The girls also filmed the ending of the movie – first!

The next morning, everyone got up, ate some breakfast, and headed out on a scavenger hunt movie filming adventure. With 5 girls to be featured, we made 5 stops, each related to that girl’s character in the movie.

Clue #1

Clue #2

clue #3

clue #4

the *final* clue

At the final stop, a bit of movie was filmed and the clue led the girls to the local pet shop where Musette’s gift of a pet beta fish was waiting for her.

We sent the girls all home about 3:00 p.m. on Saturday, exhausted but exhilarated. Happy 12th Musette!

Next up, Danger Boy. He chose to have an Avengers party – this boy *loves* the Avengers. So, we took the theme and ran with it!

On a rainy Saturday in late October, we welcomed several boys and a couple girls to celebrate Avengers-style.  Assemble!

First, we invited everyone to make a Captain America shield using heavy-duty paper plates.

Next, we headed outside for a hammer throw (Thor) and some faux bow-and-arrow shooting to honor Hawkeye. Prizes were pixie-sticks made to look like hammers and arrows!

In the garage, Artman set up a green screen so the attendees could get photographed in costume. He then added cool backgrounds with photoshop.

Each child’s “quiver” (aka goodie bag) contained an Ironman mask, some superhero and villian rubber duckies, and Avengers stickers.

Finally, there was cake.

Not just any cake will do. Artman built a heli-carrier frame, complete with spinning fans. Swiss Army Mom added the cake and decorations.

Happy 8th birthday Danger Boy!

This year, school started with a bang. And then some sirens, and an ambulance ride for Danger Boy…

Let me rewind for a moment. Waaaay back in September, (almost) everyone went back to school. Musette started 7th grade, adding Jazz Band to her already busy schedule of orchestra, band, and regular classes at her beloved middle school. She loves school and has continued her ballet courses as well. She is now training 3.5 hours per week and working towards going en pointe sometime in the next year.

Danger Boy started second grade at a *brand new* elementary school. And he is having a great year! He loves his teacher and his classmates and his school, especially the library where you can slide down from the upper floor to the main level. He continues to show his amazing talent for art and his favorite subject is math. He also likes to throw out fun, new vocabulary words that he learns from his teacher’s read-aloud books. **More on Danger Boy soon…

G.E.A.R.S. (formerly known as Bio-Hazard Baby) started his second and *final* year of pre-school with a new teacher, but lots of familiar classmates. He, too, loves school and continues to be his silly and sweet self. He loves riding his bike, listening to stories and drawing/coloring. He, too, loves Danger Boy’s new school and *can’t wait* until he can go there…Swiss Army Mom is not quite as ready.

G.E.A.R.S. with his BFF hanging out at the park.

Swiss Army Mom returned to the middle school and is really enjoying teaching science to 7th graders. She enjoys working with this age group and has lots of fun colleagues! Swiss Army Mom is also the secretary of the newly-formed PTA at Danger Boy’s school, another fun adventure. She is also continuing to do some running and has a couple more half-marathons and a 15K on schedule for next spring.

Artman’s school year is a little different than everyone else’s AND he continues to teach through the summer. However, he did add a new class in October and put in a lot of miles on his bike in the late summer and early fall. He capped off his bike-riding year by completing his first Century Ride – 100 miles of riding around the southern Willamette Valley in the Farm to Farm Century. One of his older brothers rode with him and they enjoyed riding the roads around where they grew up.

A family hike around Trillium Lake in early fall – gorgeous!

**Now, back to Danger Boy. On the 4th day of school (Monday, September 10), I was sitting at my desk during my prep period (about 11:30 a.m.). My cell phone started vibrating and I looked at the number – it was “unknown” but I recognized it as being from the school district where the children go to school. (All their numbers have the same first three digits.) So, I answered it thinking maybe someone had forgotten lunch or I had forgotten some piece of paperwork. To my surprise, the secretary of Danger Boy’s school says, “Danger Boy* has fallen and we think he broke his collar bone! You have to come get him NOW!” This normally very calm-voiced person had a real sense of urgency in her voice so I knew Danger Boy was really hurt. I hung up, called Artman and asked him to head over there since he was closer. By the time Artman arrived, the firetruck was already there and the ambulance soon followed. The paramedics thought he needed the E.R., so they loaded him up and off he went. Artman and G.E.A.R.S. followed and I met them there as soon as I could. After a couple of x-rays, the doc came by and confirmed the initial diagnosis: broken collar bone. He didn’t say it that way, of course. More like “closed fracture of the left clavicle” or something…nonetheless, the confirmed injury meant an end to Danger Boy’s soccer season, his left arm in a sling for a few weeks, and no bike riding for a loooong time. Big bummer. But the good news was that it healed completely on its own with no need for surgery. Whew.

Next fall, we’d be fine with *less* excitement…

*names changed to protect the innocent

Well, sort of…depends on what you consider famous. Here is Portland, we have the Voodoo Donut guys, a Baldwin brother, a few assorted professional basketball players, an occasional spotting of some Grimm actor, and Chelsea Cain!

Who, you may be asking yourself, is Chelsea Cain?

Well, here she is! And if you look closely at the podium, you’ll see copies of her latest novel, Kill You Twice. Cain writes about a female serial killer – The Beauty Killer – and the web of people she has entangled as they try to capture and contain her. She is a masterful writer – she has good character development, exciting plots, and somehow makes it possible to read some pretty gory stuff without really getting icked out.

Now, for a little history…Cain used to write a weekly column in the Oregonian (our local paper). She wrote about her daughter who just so happens to be about the same age as Danger Boy. Artman and I would read the column and laugh out loud – not only because Cain has a knack for humor, but also because we could relate to so much of what she was saying!

Fast Forward a few years, and her first novel, Heartsick, was released in 2007. Artman got it for me and as soon as I opened it, I couldn’t put it down. I loved the book for many reasons – the characters, the uniqueness of the storyline, and a setting I could easily picture as I’d visited many of the Portland-area places she described.

Since then, Cain has written several other books in the series, so when I found out she would be having her “book release” party for her latest novel at our local iconic bookstore, Powell’s, I knew I wanted to go! I think I have only ever been to a couple of book signings/author talks, but it is a fun experience – especially when the author writes about serial killers AND has a great sense of humor!

She was SO nice up close and in person! And that’s the book – for Artman – that she signed!!

And she *even* included severed body parts as a bonus. LOVE!

So…I’ve taken a bit of a break. Life gets busy sometimes. I’m going to try to do better, though.

These last few months have been good. And busy. Here are a few things we’ve done.

Danger Boy, our Tiger Cub, made a cake with Artman (aka Dad) for the “Sons and Dads” cake decorating contest at the Blue & Gold Banquet in February. They won one of the categories!

BioHazard Baby turned 4 in March. Wow. Time, perhaps, for a super-moniker update. He tells me often, “Don’t cry about my birthday mommy.” I guess he senses my unease with his growing up. Wasn’t he *just* born??

This was spring. Really! Every once in a while the *sun* comes out in Oregon before July. This was one such day. Glorious!

Easter. Yeah, they’re cute but they don’t cooperate so well. I tried.

A certain first-born child (heretofore known as Musette) decided to try a second instrument – the clarinet – so we’ve added more concerts to our agenda. But they say music is good for the brain.

Musette and I got to see a *sneak preview* of Brave! Very fun.

BioHazard Baby finished his first year of pre-school at First Friends in June. He loved everything about it! Except the hat. Silly mortar boards.

We took a big road trip in June, first circling through Eastern Oregon and Washington to visit college buddies. Then we headed up into Canada where we did some camping before heading back Westward to Vancouver, BC to catch up with another old friend. It was a great trip!

Feeding the ducks in downtown Spokane.

Danger Boy helps Artman set up camp.

Everyone loves S’mores!

Riding the SkyTrain with our friend in Vancouver, BC.

Once we returned home from our trip, it was really time for summer to start. We did a few more fun things.

Danger Boy and his faithful friends, Bun-Bun and Hop, tried overnight camp for the first time. And LOVED it! Guess we’ll be heading back to Suttle Lake again this summer…

We caught a movie with a few hundred friends at Pioneer Courthouse Square. ET. Phone home.

Danger Boy also went to Cub World and proved himself a pretty good shot with the BB Gun.

The boys participated in our local Fun Run followed by a crazy trolley ride home.

And even though BioHazard Baby and Danger Boy are not putting on their best “game face” here, we really did have fun crossing 8 bridges while biking 24 miles through the beautiful city of Portland.

And on the *very* last day before I had to go back to school, we headed out to the beach for the whole day. We splashed in the waves, dug holes, and even climbed the GIANT dune at Pacific City. It was a glorious day!

School, of course, has since started back. And so far, this year has been a great one. Of course, we still like to eek out some fun before the rains begin.

Here we are with a fun group of friends having just completed the Tour de Lab – only the Puppy, though. Didn’t have 26 hilly miles in us on this day! But we’re training for a 40-miler for next year…

Well, I think I’ll stop here for now. There is still, of course, more catching up to do, but I’ll save that for another day…

Not long before Christmas, Sk8-r-ina wrote me a note and left it on my pillow. She wanted to know if she could get her ears pierced. She claimed that “everyone” she knew had their ears pierced. Perfect logic to an 11-year-old, right?

She had *never* mentioned anything about this before. Never been particularly interested in jewelry. Or even brushing her hair. So, this seemed a curious request.

Artman and I talked it over, and we sent her a return note asking her to count how many girls in her social studies class *actually* had their ears pierced. This girl loves a challenge, so within 48 hours, she had surveyed *all 4* core classes (math, science, language arts, social studies) and made us a chart outlining how many in each class had pierced ears. Turns out, “everyone” was close to 80%. Not bad.

Next, we asked her to wait a couple of weeks and if she was *still* interested, we would find a time to have it done. Again, she insisted she still wanted to do it. As someone who didn’t get her ears pierced until college, and only then because it was something to do on a Friday night, I wasn’t completely convinced.

However, a promise is a promise, so Sk8-r-ina and I headed out for the mall on a Saturday morning. She selected the earrings she wanted, sat in the chair, and the technician made purple dots where the holes would go.

Before...

Then, a couple of quick “snaps”, and it was done! No tears, all smiles.

After!

This face says, “Mom, stop taking my picture. You’re embarrassing me!”

Afterwards, we stopped by the Cheesecake Factory and picked up a slice of red velvet cheesecake to share. Yummmmm….

One of the perks of being a teacher is that I get to enjoy a little extra time off during the holidays when the kids are at home. It allows us to do things as a family that we don’t have a chance to do while I’m working.

BioHazard Baby has the best pre-school. Ever. His class made Christmas ornaments and his teacher worked with a local bank to allow the kids to take their hand-made ornaments and decorate the bank’s tree! We stopped by one afternoon to check it out.

Because Christmas in Oregon tends to be rainy, we spend a lot of time indoors. So, we play a lot of board games. This year, we pulled out the Star Wars Monopoly. Artman and I used to play it a bit, but it has been in storage for several years. Now that our boys have been exposed to Star Wars and Danger Boy knows more than I do, we thought it would be fun to play!

We forgot that Monopoly last forever. And ever. We played it for a few hours over several days. There was a lot of drama, and at times the jail was packed.

BioHazard Baby was on mom or dad’s “team” sometimes. But mostly he found other ways to occupy his time.

In the end, we finally had a victor.

Danger Boy, AKA Mr. Money Bags, was the eventual winner.

The Oregon Zoo is one of the best around. And we go pretty regularly throughout the summer. One of the cool things that the zoo does in the wintertime is called ZooLights. With over a million lights in the shapes of animals and various scenes, it is pretty spectacular.

This year, we decided to take the kids to see it a few days after Christmas. We have been several times in the past, but it has always been either (a) unbearably cold, (b) overcrowded, or (c) snowing.

This time, we decided that instead of waiting until dark, we would head to the zoo BEFORE dark so we could see a few animals and enjoy the lights. Even though it was spitting rain, we bundled everyone up in hats and raincoats and headed over.

 There are a few parts of the zoo that have indoor areas. One of those is the “farm.” Normally not my favorite spot as I am not a huge fan of petting farm animals, on this day it was a warm spot where we could hide from the rain for a few minutes.

As we continued walking through the zoo, the darkness continued to fall and the lights became brighter. One of the newer additions to the zoo is a few animatronic dinosaurs.

I guess the winter rains are not good for the animatronics, so they got replaced by a few light-up outlines.

After taking in most of the animals and lights, and then enjoying a ride on the train, we were tired and ready to head home.

Someone was tired of having his picture made…

As teachers, Artman and I are lucky to get extra time off around Christmas. Without those few days, I don’t know how we would get everything ready in time!

So, in the week leading up to Christmas, there was a lot of activity around our house. We were able to finish most of our shopping early, so we only had a few last-minute things to look for. Our activities included putting together and decorating our gingerbread village:

Getting the Christmas cards folded, stuffed, and mailed:

And some Christmas baking:

Chocolate Peppermint Brulee

Finally, it was Christmas Eve and time for Santa to pay us a visit.

After the children got up, we all wandered downstairs to see what Santa left and to open stockings.

Hidden inside Sk8-r-ina's new dance bag was a new coat. In the pocket of her coat, a pink iPod nano!

Danger boy *finally* got Buzz Lightyear!

And BioHazard Baby got Bullseye. Ride 'em cowboy!

After a breakfast of cinnamon rolls and scrambled eggs, we opened the wrapped gifts.

They thought they were done, but Artman led them to a door where they found a clue:

The Chamber of Secrets!

Once they figured out the clue, they opened the “Chamber” where they saw…

They had to turn on the black-light to read it!

It says, "Inside this box are tales of magic! From: Dumbledore"

Now that all 8 Harry Potter movies are out, we decided to get the children the complete 8-volume set. They were SO excited!

After a couple of hours to play with some of their new things, we hosted my extended family for lunch and a few more gifts. It was a fun day and everyone enjoyed being together.

Sk8-r-ina has been taking ballet since first grade. Her studio is about 6 miles from our house and, though she was initially hot-and-cold about dancing, it is now one of her favorite things. She loves going to her twice-weekly classes and has made some great friends at her studio.

Each winter, her studio works together with the pre-professional troop that shares studio space and teachers, to perform a kid-friendly version of the Nutcracker. The more difficult parts (Clara, the Sugar-Plum Fairy, the candy dances) are done by the older students. However, the show also includes lots of children from the studio. The childrens’ parts are assigned by age and ballet grade, though students do go through a tryout process in mid-October. Performers are also required to commit to all rehearsals (every Saturday starting in November, then 2 full-dress rehearsals on Thursday and Friday before performances begin) and the older children also participate in *all 6* performances.

This year, Sk8-r-ina was a soldier again. Though she really enjoyed doing the part for a *third* time, I am looking forward to seeing her perform a new role next winter! She does make a very cute soldier, though!

After back-to-back performances for 3 straight days, and several late nights, we were glad when our winter break really became a break!