So much to tell. Christmas fun 2012.

There is just too much to tell.  Here are some bullet-point highlights.

• My mom came into town 10 days before Christmas and we've been having a blast!  There's nothing better to me than having her around to be involved in our family traditions.  We baked, we crafted, we watched Christmas classics, we went out and saw lights and sang carols as we went, and there were stories read over and over and over again.  We were even able to squeeze in a trip to the Farmpark (potentially the last one before our pass runs out!) on a relatively nice day.
• My dad flew in a week ago and it's been extra special to have him around for over a week.  He's enjoyed the down time, too.  He's read to the boys, read to himself, roughed the boys up, and just enjoyed being here with us. He's even gotten out and had good "guy time" with Scot!
• There has been great snow, too!  We had a white Christmas, and part of that is shoveling and playing in it.  The boys have had such a time helping with our little emergency usually-kept-in-the-trunk shovels.  We built a snow man, went sledding, and just romped around on many occasions.
• Christmas Eve candle-light service was extremely special.  It was so sweet to see the boys with real candles, the lights low, singing each and every word to Silent Night. My heart was so full of love and joy.  We are blessed.
• Christmas this year was probably the last (until the boys are teenagers!) we'll be able to enjoy sleeping in until a normal time.  We enjoyed stockings, and breakfast, and gifts with smiles and laughter.  I put on a huge dinner and we all ate our fill.  It was such a lovely day.
• Lots of games have been played until late at night.  Tears have streamed down cheeks due to the laughter, and the boys have gotten so many hugs and kisses they're going to feel under-loved once my folks leave Monday morning!
• Mom and I were able to get one night with some girl friends and saw Les Mis in the theaters.  Amazing.  I won't say anything, but if you like musicals and the play, you should see it. It was raw and fabulous.  We were all able to go and see the A Christmas Story house which is only 10 miles from our place.  It was so fun to see the real rifle Ralphie got, and have the boys try on replicas of the funny hats they wore in the movie.  The house itself has been restored to what it looked like in the movie, so it was intriguing to walk through and see it for real.

We feel very blessed to have my parents here with us for this special time.  It really made this Christmas.

Here are some pictures, but the rest can be found here.  

The first afternoon here, she was reading to them

Baking sugar cookie with us

Ready for our Christmas Eve service

My folks got the boys cowboy outfits and real hats!  The boys loved them

Stories from Grandude come with ALL the voices

Our snow-removing crew

Hats at the A Christmas Story house

The boys in the bathroom where Ralphie got his mouth washed out with soap (seen on the sink)

Our first real snowman

One of the few family photos we actually got the entire time

There are pictures of Drew going by himself, but I just loved this one

He LOVED going down on his tummy.  Can you tell?

Eskestrand Christmas Letter: 7th Edition

Eskestrand Escapades: 7^th Edition

To all our family and friends, both near and far, Merry Christmas!  This past year was a full one for us, and as I think of all the trials we’ve persevered under and all the blessings He has bestowed upon us, I keep reflecting on the thankfulness I feel.  As I look back on our year I feel a huge swell of joy and thanksgiving.  For all of it, the highs and the lows.  The painful, yet, beautiful growth.  We hope this missive finds you well; reflecting on all the Lord has blessed you with you, as well.

Scot is a mere 6 months away from graduation and it is with total praise to the Lord that I tell you he will be a hospitalist in Denver!  He interviewed at his dream job in July (we were able to join him and spent 5 wonderful days with my folks!) and signed a contract in August.  It was very evident how the Lord paved our way to that point and we are both elated at the prospect of being close to family again.  This past year he has enjoyed a lighter call schedule, and therefore has enjoyed more of Ohio and fun excursions with us.  Favorites were picnics on the green listening to free music, hearing the Cleveland Orchestra at Blossom, and going to Cedar Point to ride the rollercoasters as a late birthday/6^th anniversary gift.

The boys are doing exceptionally well.  They get along, most days, and are often heard referring to eachother as “best friend”.  Hugs at bed time would likely turn into well-loved wrestling matches if left unattended, and when one is hurt, the other is [almost] always right there to offer help.  As all-boy as they are, they would be hard-pressed to pass up reading with me on the couch or quietly coloring while I cook.  A favorite activity of theirs is horsing around with Scot when he’s home, playing hide and seek, building train tracks and towers, playing in the yard, creating with Legos, and zooming cars.

Evan (4.5) is, in a word, tenderhearted.  He is a deep-thinker and very literal -- which makes for hilarious conversations.  He loves cars, vintage micro-machines, and legos.  He loves making silly faces, playing with friends, and can be dramatic at times.  His favorite place to play is outside, running and climbing.   This past year he showed an interest in reading, so this fall we started to teach him and he’s taken off with it.  We are trying to instill in him his position as brother and not parent.

Drew (2.75) is, in a word, fearless.  He loves to explore and will land us in the ER, I’m sure.  His favorite phrase is “I do it, mom”, and he means what he says.  He will climb/scale anything with a natural ease.  He loves food, singing, cars, balls and all things farm related.   His vocab exploded over the summer and we’re enjoying his sentences and conversations, as well as all the different voices he uses.  We are currently encouraging him to have a gentle tone when he’s upset.

As for me, my daily life has not changed much. I’m loving life as wife, mother, and homemaker.   With each passing year I love being a mom even more; especially watching the boys discover life and make memories.  I love talking with them, and figuring out how they think.  It’s a joy.  We’re looking forward to the move this summer, but we also plan to fully enjoy our last months here, making sure we fit everything in.  We are really going to miss friends and places here in Ohio that have become close to our hearts.  God has been so good to us and I will fondly look back at our time in Ohio as I think of the growth that occurred.  I continue to lead a small ladies’ Bible study, and am involved in a few mom’s groups.  Cooking is still a passion, as is writing, so I enjoy keeping up with the blogs in my down time, you can follow along if you’d like!

We were very fortunate to take so many trips this year.  We enjoyed a winter trip to Colorado, and a quick weekend out to Indiana for a spring-time wedding.  A week of the summer was spent in VA visiting Jared & Madeline and friends, and fall found us all on a road trip to upstate NY for a week, and then down into the big city for 3 days – all visiting family and friends and seeing the sights.  We were able to drive down to VA for a very sweet Thanksgiving with my folks, aunt, and grandmother.  Christmas will find our house full as my parents will be here to help us celebrate the Lord’s birth.

We hope this letter finds everyone really and truly enjoying this Christmas season and looking forward to all the blessings the upcoming year holds.   Please visit us if you’re ever in the area, we’d love to see you!

Merry Christmas and a very happy New Year,

Scot, Sarah, Evan and Drew Eskestrand

Our little Christmas cow and horse

Last year, we were able to watch Evan as a little cow in our church's Christmas program.

This year, we had both boys up there helping tell the story of our Lord's birth.

It was so sweet to watch them sing, even if they were a little distracted with all the faces in front of them.  Evan had lines this year and he did very well with them, and they both sang their favorite songs with much enthusiasm. :D

In other news, my mom gets in tomorrow and we are beyond excited.  Actually, let me rephrase.  I'm excited as the boys have no idea and won't until we're pulling up the airport tomorrow afternoon.

I'm sneaky like that.

We had a fun time this past weekend with Scot around making "Christmas Trees" out of ice cream cones.  It was great to watch the boys decorate.  My only suggestion if you try this: eat them fresh.  If you wait a day or two, the cones get soggy.  The boys don't care, but it's kept me from eating them!

Our "Patriotic Tree" in honor of Jared who is serving our country in AFG

Friend time

We love our friends here in Ohio.

Earlier this week, we got a double dose in one day!  We are so blessed.

These sweet girls light up my boys faces.  They play house and princess with them and teach them how to be gentleman.  They are the "missing sister" factor in their life and we love them.  They also just play together really well as 4 kids.  In just a couple days we're going to have a 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5 year old in the group!  It's going to be lots of fun!

For this outing, we went to the aquarium as it had its "Winter Wonderland" up.  The kids had a blast and E and I got to chat with relative peace and quiet.

This was new and they all had so much fun switching places and playing.  I think Drew makes a pretty good dragon, don't you think?

Sweet Miss Abby

Umm...I think "strike a pose" about sums this one up!

Arg, Matey! 

We met "Lady Ethel" the Queen of the Aquarium this trip and she gifted the kids with polished stones which made them princes and princesses.....they were very excited!

This same evening, we had the pleasure of eating over at the other E's house.  Our friends who used to live just 4 doors down moved this summer just 10ish minutes away. With our hectic schedules and us seeming to always be on the opposite schedule as far as company and vacation go, it's been a long while since we've had the chance to just sit and play and talk.  It was wonderful to see the boys all together, and even sweeter was the fact that Jamie and I got to have dinner and chat at the island in the kitchen while the boys all ate at the table.  It was splendid and we both realized we just need to do it more often.

Jamie read them all the Tickle Monster book, and there were shrieks and gales of laughter.  So. Much. Fun.


We feel so blessed to have such wonderful friends.

Ahhh....my boys

I love them and their creativity.

 Their newest fascination is taking all the chairs and making them into a train, a bus, or a boat.  Sometimes their stuffed buddies join them.  It's always cute. (these pictures are from a couple weeks ago, didn't think you'd mind)

New flashlights are all the rage in our house right now.  They help us read, look behind all doors, and, here, help us play doctor.  "Say awww, Drew!"

And as the weather is getting colder, we're taking FULL advantage of the nicer days and getting out to run energy off!!  Here are some pictures from a trip to the favorite farmpark last week.  Boy are we going to miss that place!

 The place was dead, so we got to spend lots of time everywhere and even help with grooming!

 Oh, do they love their tractor rides!

Advent Activities

I love the Advent season.  It's such a wonderful time for us to really show the boys how Christmas is about Christ and His time here on earth and what He did for us.

This year, I wanted to make sure that we also did a lot of fun things to enjoy the season.  Sometime I tend to get so busy that it takes effort to slow down and do simple, but meaningful, activities with the boys.  Like crafts.  In order to get in all the fun activities, I made an Activities Advent calendar.  It's nothing fancy at all.  Little pieces of paper with our "activity" for the day in numbered and decorated envelopes.  But the boys love it and look forward to it each morning.

Some of our activities to keep the month fun (some of these we're doing more than once):

• Get out tree
• Reading Christmas stories in front of the tree with a treat
• Popcorn and cocoa and Christmas movie
• Christmas craft
• Random Acts of Kindness
• Cookies and cocoa with friends
• Cheerios with snowballs for breakfast! (added a dozen mini-marshmallows)
• Shop for someone in need
• Bake treats and give them to someone else 
• Annual cookie decorating party
• Scripture reading for each Advent Sunday
• Caroling 
• Picnic in front of the tree (the boys picked to have a breakfast picnic, which is the picture above)
• Drive around to look at lights with popcorn and hot cocoa
• Special pancake dinner

And here are some pictures from the Annual Cookie Decoration party we've gone to the past 2 years.

A splendid surprise

I am a hard person to surprise.  I'm quite planned and so it's a little tricky, I guess.  Also, I don't particularly care for surprises.  It's not that I don't like them, I just enjoy the anticipation of an event almost as much as the event it self.  So to me, a surprise dinner out isn't nearly as fun as knowing I get to go out on a date.  A little weird, but it's how I am.

But a surprise party?  I never dreamed....and the kicker?  I had two surprise parties for my birthday this year!

The first was with my Bible study gals.  They came marching into my house with shouts of "happy birthday" and their arms full of scrumptious treats to eat to help me celebrate.  I felt incredibly loved and cared for.  Little did I know it was just the beginning!

Last night was the surprise of them all for me.  Scot was incredible and planned this party a month ago with the help of some of my friends.

I was shocked.  To the point where Scot told me later he was confused by my reaction -- he was expecting a little more joyous excitement  I guess, as opposed to the stunned silence and gaping mouth I gave everyone. And when I say everyone, I mean everyone.  Some weren't able to make it, but Scot did a wonderful job at inviting all my close friends from all the different circles I float in.  It was so fun to walk into my house full of people big and small (14 adults and 12 children!).  Scot made two types of tacos, had all the toppings available, he made my favorite cake (boxed carrot cake with real shredded carrot added in) and 2 pans of brownies!

Friends came over a little early to help tidy the house and decorate -- and most everyone brought sides to fill in the gaps!  Salads and dips and chips and pop corn....it was a feast.  There were streamers and balloons, birthday hats and party blowers.  (The kids sure had a blast with all that!)

And how, you may be wondering, did all this happen?  I was quite curious myself, but apparently my husband knows me very well and planned every last detail.   The hardest part for them, though, was getting me out of the house.  And staying out.

Enter my friend Amanda who told me on Sunday she wanted to hang out this week.  Very normal.  And she wanted to take the boys and me out to ice cream at Mitchell's for a late birthday celebrations.  Also normal and an offer everyone knows I can not turn down.  (Have you tried their peppermint stick ice cream?!)  Add in a trip to the mall to help her Christmas shop for her sister and we were out of the house from 3:45 until 6.  And I was clueless.  I was so clueless, I made our dinner during nap time so we could be out until 6 or so.  Little did I know this was, in their minds, the biggest hurdle in pulling this off!  (And to their credit, they're right.  Had I not made dinner ahead of time, I can't think of a thing they could have said to not have me back home earlier in order to make dinner!)

I was so shocked when I walked into my own house to flashing cameras, people laughing, and yells of "SURPRISE!".    I was confused at first, but then quickly caught on.  And smiled.  And tried not to think about whether or not the house was clean when we left.  And then smiled hugely and laughed as I realized no one cared.

Throughout the night I was just amazed over and over at the thought and effort Scot put into this.  At my friends helping out and showing up.  And once everyone left, I was struck with the bittersweet though that this is my last birthday spent in OH, and the last time I'll get to celebrate with these sweet friends I've had the chance to form bonds with.  Without them, this time in Ohio would have been pretty miserable.  I'm so thankful for them, their support, their love, their care, and the effort they each put into making last night happen.  And I'm beyond-words-thankful to Scot who was the conductor for it all.

And now, the few pictures I have of the evening.

 This is me, thinking what on earth are people doing in my house?!

Click!

 

 Happy birthday to me!!

 Esther and E (who was the right-hand woman to my amazing husband and really helped pull everything together!)

The conductor in grand central station with Sam, his trusty cohort!

Christmas Pinning

Happy December!!!

I've been pinning stuff for the Christmas season for months now on Pinterest.  Finally, I'm able to do some.

Here are a couple of things I've done due to pinterest inspiration, and some flops, too.

These cute trees.  They look great, but they took forever to put together.  To draw all those circles, and cut them all out, and then pin them....it was a little too tedious for me.

I've always had a hard time figuring out where to put Christmas pictures.  No more (I hope).  Cloth covered foam boards.  Super easy!

Got some inspiration from this picture (I still may put some snowflakes in our mirror on the living room, I have to figure that out), but with our very few Christmas decorations, I am so happy with how this turned out!  Just some small balls in the candle things, painted letters, and the lace covered jars.

Oh...the lace covered jars.  They scared me a little, but they were SO easy!  I saved jars for a year, ones with no "neck", and I bought lace at the thrift store for 2 bucks, and then within 20 minutes, I cut the lace, sewed a seam down -- wrong sides together, and then slipped the "sleeve" over the jars.  EASY!!

Easy idea?  Fill glass vases with Christmas balls!  Throw some ribbon in there, too, and you have something that's supper cheap and cute to fill voids and look cheery!

And not Christmas related, but still a cute pinterest idea that worked SO well.  Felt crowns.  I cheated and used the already sticky felt!

Ideas I've used (but no pictures):

Easy Advent.

Next year, this is what I want to do.

Things I want to (WILL) try:

Christmas Tree Brownies

Frosted Christmas Trees (with ice cream cones) in lieu of gingerbread houses

Cinnamon Ornaments

Firefly Christmas Lights

Advent reading for the boys using the Jesus Storybook Bible

Thing to NOT try:

Puzzle piece snowflakes. (And I, unfortunately didn't figure out this didn't actually work until AFTER I painted 60 puzzle pieces.