A few of my favorite things

Santa must have thought we were exceptionally good this year. We received lots of nice gifts from family and friends.

Joe's Aunt Debbie is a very talented quilter. There are a few guaranteed ways to earn one of Aunt Debbie's quilts.

1) get married

2) celebrate 50 years of marriage

3) have a baby

We already got one 12 years ago for #1, we have a few years to go before we get one for #2, so that would leave #3, but she added a #4 "at the quilters discretion." We exercised #4. When we got married in 1997 we received the first quilt she made, although we love that quilt and still use it on our bed she always thought it was not her best work. So, we got a new quilt this year without having to have a baby!!! Yahooo!!!! She produces lots of quilts and it is an honor to receive one. Thank you Aunt Debbie!

Lucky for me I happen to know someone else who is crafty. That would be my long time friend, Stephanie. She made me a lovely wall hanging. I have received lots of compliments since hanging it on my wall in early December. I just love it.

Our new Wii is bringing out the competitor in all of our family members and I hope to share some video I have taken with my new flip video. I will save that for another post.

Hope everyone is enjoying 2010. Tomorrow it will be back to reality after a 2 week break from school.

Enjoy a few more photos and moments from our Christmas.

Christmas Eve we left some cookies for Santa. Anna asked me about 5 days before Christmas if I had Santa's phone number. She thought we should call him to find out what kind of cookies he likes. I know you can't see it but the paper on the chair says, "Santa sit here." Garrett thought Santa might need a rest so he left the sign.

This is Sam in his brand new cowboy boots. All of our kids got new cowboy boots from Great Aunt Mary Kay.

This picture was taken in front of the alter following Christmas Eve Mass at St. Joseph's Church in Dorrance. The church always looks so beautiful in anticipation of the birth of Christ.

Thielen Family Christmas Letter 2009

Garrett, Sam and Anna

Garrett and Anna were never afraid of Santa so I never considered that Sam might be afraid. I was quite surprised but thought the pictures were priceless.

Christmas Letter

Well here it is folks, my first digital rendition of the Thielen Family Christmas letter. I am doing it this way for several reasons. I am doing the in thing and “going green.” I am what some would consider cheap, although, I like to refer to myself as “thrifty,” call it what you want I just know it is saving me a whole bunch of money. The last reason I did it this way is because I set up this blog in May and never posted anything so I though this might motivate me, so if you are reading this that means it worked!

Here is the lowdown on what the Thielens have been up to for the last 12 months. The farm continues to be the center of our lives. Joe and his brother, Matt, seem to be busy as ever. He keeps telling me it will slow down in a few weeks. I think I have heard that for the last 52 weeks. His biggest challenge of the year came during harvest this year when he developed a staff infection in his leg. He had 2-3 hours of IV antibiotics twice a day all through harvest. His nights at home were short but I think he got a little sleep while at the hospital. Other than that it was a good harvest.

I am still working part-time at Wilson elementary school teaching computers. My youngest class is Anna’s 3-year old preschool class. I stay home with Anna and Sam on the days when I am not at school. I like to tell people on my days off I drop the kids off at daycare and go to school. I’m not sure if teaching or staying home is more work. I consider myself lucky that I have a great job and I get to spend some time at home with my kids.

Garrett is 6 and having a great year in the 1^st grade. I am always amazed at how much they learn. He seems to enjoy reading and is good at math. There are 13 kids in his class and he has a wonderful teacher again this year. When he is not in school he likes to spend time at the farm.

Anna just turned 4 and goes to pre-school one afternoon a week. She too has a really good teacher and is enjoying the social aspect of school. As the only girl she deals with a lot of tractors and boy stuff around the house but the boys can occasionally be spotted helping her take care of her babies. She prefers to spend her time with Mom but can occasionally be convinced to go with Dad if he is stopping at the co-op for a treat.

Sam turned 2 in October and he lets me know on a daily basis that he is indeed 2 and WILL act like it. He throws fits, tells me NO and hangs right in there when he thinks he has been shortchanged by Anna and Garrett. He has a huge vocabulary and keeps us laughing.

We did take the kids to Omaha to the zoo for a few days in March. I worried about the weather but it turned out to be 80 degrees, which we found rather HOT while walking on asphalt at the Henry Doorly Zoo. I think the kids enjoyed the zoo but after about an hour Garrett told us to hurry up so we could get back to the hotel and swim. I think he would have been just as happy if we drove 15 miles down the road to the nearest hotel with a swimming pool and stayed there.

Our other getaway was to Springfield, MO where my sister and her family live. We took my parents along and spent a day at Silver Dollar City and a day on Table Rock Lake. It was loads of fun and the kids want to do it again next year.

I hope my new blog is more than just a “Christmas thing” and I find the time to make a few more posts throughout the year.

Wishing you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!