The Baxa’s

Ok folks. I want to start posting again, and I’m intimidated because of how far behind I am! So, we are going to catch up. We’ve had a lot going on around here.

Unfortunately, I don’t have a lot of pictures from Christmas!! No one was manning the camera. Well, Christmas was awesome as usual. I get caught up in the excitement just like the kids. On Christmas Eve, the boys had a lot of fun with the beverages…

And the kids just had a lot of fun.

Jeff built a kitty condo over the break. The Kitties LOVE it. It is like a playground for them, and it is so fun to watch them.

We had a birthday in January. My baby girl turned 8. I can hardly believe it. We celebrated with family, and her “friend” party is this weekend. She’s just getting too big, too fast!

We said goodbye to another beloved four legged family member. Sam was Jeff and I’s other baby. We had gotten her about a month after Emma and she was fifteen years old. It was a hard day, but she was sick.

And later on that afternoon, we went out to get our mind off of things.

And last, but certainly not least, we have the blizzard. It did indeed turn out to be a crazy amount of snow! It was pretty cool. Now it is literally pretty cold!

And I think that about brings us up to date! I can feel free to post at random now. I do have some new pictures of the kitties to post. They are getting so big. I can’t believe how little they were when we first got them!

I have lots of pictures to share, and may never get to my missed posts from the fall! There are just too many things going on around here. But first, a few random thoughts.

I am thankful for my husband and family. My man supports my fanatical gym obsession. He even got the kids on the bus yesterday so I wouldn’t miss my workout. I love you honey, and I don’t tell you nearly enough. I am thankful for my sisters and their never-ending support.

I am happy that we got our first snow! Makes it seem so much more like Christmas time. I am loving our new little kitties. Even though they are a handful, they are soft, cuddly, and so much fun to watch them play. Their antics are comical.

Now, some pictures. Like I said, we got our first snow!

The kids could not have been happier. Josh even volunteered to shovel!

We went to cut down our Christmas tree, and had lots of company. It was cold, but we all had a good time!

Kristin and Mark, ready to cut down their first Christmas tree.

The kids, having a grand ole time.

The mountain man and his mistress – oh, I mean wife!

And the truck that they use for their tree delivery service. Thank you guys!

And what post would be complete with out at least one kitten picture? They are doing great! We are done with bottles and on to canned food. Soon, we will hopefully move on to dry food! Here’s Athena cuddled up among the pillows on the couch catching a little cat nap.

Hope everyone is healthy and happy. Enjoy this season, it only comes once a year!

The day after Christmas, we went to Uncle Frank’s house to celebrate with the Demski’s. It was snowing when we left, no big deal. As we headed northwest, the snow started to pick up a bit. Still, no biggie on the well beaten path. Then, we turn onto the country roads. Wow. That is all I can say. The road disappeared, and we wondered if we should turn around and go home. We decided to go forth, and take it slow. Every now and then, there would be an oncoming car, and in their wake, a complete white out. A little nerve racking to say the least, when you can’t see where the road stops, and the farm field begins. We made it safe and sound, and enjoyed some great company. Here are a few pictures, although, I don’t think they really do justice to the situation.

Happy winter to you all! They are forecasting 7-9 inches of snow tonight/tomorrow morning.

We seem to make it through every year. The pre-holiday stress, the last minute shopping, searching high and low for that perfect something. I love Christmas. I love neighbors that drop everything and come over at a moments notice to watch the kids for a few minutes, send over Christmas cookies, and shovel my driveway for me. I love seeing the family that we don’t see all year, and some family that we don’t see for years on end. I wish everyone lived close, so we could see them more often. I love little boys that LOVE Christmas lights, and pull up a chair just to look at them out the window. I love baking cookies, and giving them away. I love the excitement of the kids on Christmas eve and Christmas morning. Who am I kidding? I have that same excitement. I never sleep good on Christmas eve, anticipating Christmas morning! So, in short, I love everything about the season!!

So, with Christmas all wrapped up and put away, I’d like to wish you a Happy New Year! May you enjoy good health, be prosperous, make many good memories, and laugh out loud as often as possible!