Headin' South

Well, the Klaassen clan is headed south for a Kansas Christmas this year. We are looking forward to spending time with family and friends, in both Kansas and Iowa. We'll be home for a couple of days after Christmas then we'll head east to Iowa to visit Chris's family. Head East... isn't that the name of an old band or something? My dad would know. Anyway, we want to wish all of you a Merry Christmas with a reminder of the true reason we celebrate, the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ.

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"For to us a child is born, to us a son is given... And he will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace."

Isaiah 9:6

That's My Girl!

For those of you who know me, you know that I do not like camping. Bugs, heat, dirt, and the general uncomfortableness of sleeping in a tent do not suit me well. Like my dad always said, "Camping ain't no vacation. Where's the closest hotel?" Well, Kaylee has discovered a type of camping that I would actually enjoy. Toys and books at your disposal and a pillow-lined sleeping bag - right next to the refrigerator, no less. And to think, you can have all of this in the comfort of your own home. She's definitely my kid.

Memorials

I don't normally post twice in one day, but today warrants an exception. Chris and I went to Westroads Mall on Monday night to do some Christmas shopping. We took a minute to look at the makeshift memorials that have been left, showing support for the victims of the last week's shooting. These pictures don't really do justice to the magnitude of the memorials.

I know this picture is small, but it was taken on the night Chris and I were there. In fact, you can see Chris in the actual news broadcast from that night. This is the south entrance to Von Maur, where the shooter entered the building. The entire stairway is covered in pictures, statues, cards, and other items people have left. The doors are also covered in paper snowflakes, signs, and pictures.

This is what the doors to Von Maur inside the building look like right now, on both floors. They are covered in paper snowflakes with handwritten messages on them. You can make them right there in the hallway. We left one. I know it doesn't do anything, but it made me feel just a little bit better.

Life in Pictures

I have only been wanting these stockings from Pottery Barn for two years now. By the time I got the OK to buy them last year, they were all sold out. This year, Chris got a new gun and I got Christmas stockings. Sounds fair to me. Nothing else too exciting 'round these parts. Here are some snapshots from the past couple of weeks.

Kaylee is into Play-Doh right now, which means Chris and I are too.

Lauryn likes bath time. You can't tell from the face here. You'll just have to trust me.

Aunt Twink came to visit us last week! Ride 'em, Cowgirl!

Things like this don't happen here...

What can I even say about what happened yesterday?

I am shocked, angry, sad, and a little scared. We don't understand why, but God has allowed this to take place, and I know that glory will be brought to His name through it all. And yet, I cry as I type this because it's sickening to think that my kids and I could have been there just as easily as anyone else. Thankfully, all of our friends and family have been accounted for, and we're pretty sure we didn't know anyone who was involved. Please keep Omaha in your prayers. The victims and their families are not the only ones affected by this one man wanting to make a name for himself. We are all in this together.

"And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love Him..."

Who ordered this?

The first ice storm of the season has come and - for the most part - gone. Lauryn and I were up bonding around 5:00 this morning, and I saw a nice coat of ice covering the windows. Lauryn didn't seem to notice. By late this morning, I think we had about a half inch of the slick stuff. However, it is now 4:30 pm, and lot of it has melted already. Needless to say, the girls and I haven't left the house today. We're having fun just hanging out.

'Tis the Season

Christmas has officially arrived at our house. Last Saturday night we got the Christmas tree up... although it didn't get decorated until the next day. Kaylee was a big help putting it up this year. Her job was to get all the branches out of the box and sort them by color. She did great, and Chris and I didn't even have to get up - she brought the branches to us. Ahhhh, having kids is finally starting to pay off. The girls got new ornaments from PaPa and Grandma this year, Cinderella for Kaylee and Tinkerbell for Lauryn. Kaylee was going on and on about how Grandma told her not to break the wings off of Tinkerbell. She didn't. Instead, imagine this beautiful Cinderella ornament without a head. That's right, she dropped it on the floor and broke the head off. After a series of intense operations, Dr. Mommy was able to reattach Cinderella's head, and all is well.

You be the judge...

As previously mentioned, Chris and I went to one of nine Garth Brooks concerts in Kansas City last weekend. My parents met us in KC and took the girls for the weekend, so it was time to par-tay. At the Sprint Center, there was this little bar area right in the middle of where you walk around to find your seats. Country music + cowboys = large quantities of alcohol. Chris and I were standing at the bar (with only our $4 bottle of water, by the way) checking out the score of the KU basketball game when this guy comes and sits down at the table right in front of us. Now, I have been reading up on the art of covert picture taking on another blog, so I tried my hand at it. I'm pretty sure the guy had no idea he was having his picture taken by my camera phone. I'm smooth like that. Who, you might be wondering, is this photo of? Let's just say he looked suspiciously like the main act of aforementioned concert. You be the judge.

Are you ready to Go Fish?

If you have children and you haven't discovered Go Fish yet, it's high time you did. They are three Christian guys who sing great music for kids. Kaylee is easily their #1 fan. Lauryn is well on her way too. I'm pretty sure her first word will be "Og." That's what Kaylee calls them - Og (short for Ogre) - which is Chris's affectionate nickname for his friend Jason, a member of the group. He's the one on the right. Anyway, yesterday I captured a moment on video that has, up until now, been merely attempted. Just when you think you're gonna get it, Kaylee sees the camera and is more interested in looking at herself in it than creating the next Go Fish music video. But here it is, the world premier of "Doo doo-n doo dah." Well, that's what we call it anyway. If you want to know the real words, buy the CD.

Family Pics

We got the ol' family photos taken last night. Kaylee was slightly less than cooperative, but we still got some good ones. It seems to help a little when the promise of ice cream looms in front of you. I think they turned out pretty nice - what do you think?

Uniqua...or is it a rabbit...or a pink ram?

Well, my first post was supposed to be about one of two exciting events- seeing Garth Brooks in KC last weekend or the story of how one of Chris's employees shot himself in the knee with a nail gun. However, since pictures of aforementioned events are on our cell phones, you will not be hearing either of those fascinating tales. Yeah, that's right. I don't know how to get pictures off my cell phone. I will work on my lack of technological know-how and attempt to fill you in on those later.

Halloween - now that I do have pictures of. We have church on Wednesday nights, so we had to get the trick-or-treating in a little early. Kaylee had a lot of fun going to our neighbors' houses but wasn't too excited about saying "trick-or-treat." We tried telling her that she wouldn't get any candy unless she said it, but our neighbors were having none of that. Who can withhold candy from Uniqua? Nobody. If it were up to her, Halloween would be every day. She's still asking if we can go trick-or-treating. And that's just what she needs - a daily sugar high.