Closing Out the Year with Starbucks

 

Kit, Winnie, Sarah, and I enjoyed drinks at Starbucks before our final shopping run of the year at Walmart. We braved the aisles together, laughing our way through this final 2025 errand.

Strong on the Ice

 

We all went to watch Simon play hockey, and it was an exciting game to see. The Bears easily defeated St. Francis Xavier School, but the win wasn’t the only memorable part of the night. At one point, Simon took a hard hit against the wall, and we were all holding our breath—so relieved to see that he was okay and able to continue.

He impressed us not just with his toughness, but with his maturity and thoughtfulness. Simon stepped away from his team to take a photo with Kit and say hello before heading back to the locker room.

A Day a COSI

 

Emerson and I took the day to go to COSI, and it was such a treat to have that time together. We explored how Pixar films are made and revisited our usual fun spots. Emerson’s favorite was the car area—especially the setup where he could draw and design race cars. 

A Car for Kit & Christmas Fun in Ketterin

We headed to Kettering the day after Christmas, starting with a test drive of Kara’s Honda Accord—which we ended up buying for Kit! We’re excited to fix the damaged headliner and add a backup camera and Apple Play system to make it just right for her.

We enjoyed brunch together and later shared pizza, keeping the day relaxed and fun. Aunt Meg introduced another round of Christmas Olympics minute games, which were a big hit. The younger kids especially loved playing darts and Star Wars games.

Aunt Kara and Uncle Cody brought over their CD collection for Winnie to choose from—she loves old-school CDs, and it was sweet to see her browsing and discovering music. 

Christmas Morning 2025

The kids surprised us by sleeping in on Christmas morning! It helped that they had their traditional sleepover in the dark basement. We were happy to see them wander upstairs around 8:00, excited to discover that Santa had enjoyed the cookies and milk, left a gift behind, and filled the stockings.

We opened our gifts slowly, one by one. It’s especially neat to see how Kit, now with her own money, shows such thoughtfulness toward others—particularly toward Winnie this year. The two of them chipped in to buy such nice gifts for others. (Thank you for the gray cardigan I have been looking for!)

Emerson made a lovely family magnet and wrote the sweetest paper airplane notes—one for the girls and one for Dad and me. In his note, he explained that he didn’t have money to buy gifts, so instead he asked for  hug. How precious is that? Truly the kind of gift that stays with your heart long after Christmas morning ends.

Christmas Eve 2025

 

Merry Christmas Eve! We said goodbye to Snowball, our Elf on the Shelf, and Emerson left him a special note and a stick of gum. Emerson also made a gingerbread house, which added to the festive fun. We took a turkey lunch to Marion and helped Grandma and Grandpa before heading home to get ready for the evening.

The Christmas Eve service was a highlight, especially singing Silent Night by candlelight at the end. After dinner at home, we took Tego to see the Christmas lights at Glenross. We finished the night by leaving out cookies and milk, playing Imposter yet again, and the kids putting on their jammies for a basement sleepover together.

Candy Making

 

We had a fun time making peanut-free buckeyes and Oreo balls together. Sarah came over and joined in the fun, and later we played Imposter with her too.

Merry Fajita Time

 

We hosted uncles Zech and Matt for a Christmas gathering, along with cousin Maggie. Molly stayed back this time. We enjoyed catching up, opening the generous gifts from Zech, and sharing a fajita meal together.

The kids were great with Maggie, and she seemed to have a lot of fun. We also played a new game the girls taught us called Imposter, which everyone enjoyed.

A Bright New Front Door

I’m delighted we replaced the front door with a glass one I had been thinking about for a long time. I love the extra light pouring into the entryway—and saying goodbye to that storm door that always seemed to get stuck open feels pretty great, too.

Royal Rumble

 

The Lady Nukes team spent two days in Columbus competing at Royal Rumble Nationals. Winnie and I really enjoyed our time together during the trip. The coaches switched a few things up, and while the team struggled a bit, they pushed through.

Winnie and I got our wires crossed and sat in the wrong room during awards—missing the entire thing! We later found out the team earned third place, and all we could do was laugh at ourselves.

Closing the Basketball Season

 

Dad took Emerson to his final basketball game of the season while Winnie was away at her competition and Kit was busy preparing for choir. Emerson came home with a basketball ornament to remember the season by, along with a few notable game passes.

Cheering Simon On

Kit is such a big supporter of Simon and his hockey. She makes it to as many home games as she can, and when she can’t be there in person, she watches the rest in real time on her phone.

Ready to Sing

 

I was disappointed to be under the weather and miss the girls’ choir concert—there was just too much coughing to make it work. Still, seeing them ready & happily hanging out together made my heart smile. 

Ladies' Christmas 2025

 

Another ladies’ Christmas is in the books! We missed having Mom, Heather, and Molly with us and were thinking of them. The evening was full of cozy fun with an ornament exchange for the ladies, a gift exchange for the kids, and a build-your-own chicken and bean tortilla bar. Plus, Seth and Andy had time to catch up (would have been even better had the Bengals won!).

Sledding Fun

 

While we still had snow, Emerson and I got over to Glenross for some sledding — bumpy, fast, and frigid!