Ethan and Ehlana:
This isn’t the first time that we’ve stopped since our last update, but it feels a bit like that’s true as we’re writing this and winding down toward nap time. We have a lot to cover; so let’s get to it from where we left off yesterday afternoon.
We are so glad that we are not going to have careers in babysitting! Okay, Aiden wants to be a teacher, and I will teach through the archives and my work, but thanks to Zack and Eli; there might end up being a generation of babysitters not only dissuaded from future careers involving kids but possibly even to avoid ever becoming parents! Okay, that might be a stretch, but we had a tough night and the boys were in top form and annoyed pretty much everyone else in the house. They also stayed up most of the night; so some of us didn’t get much sleep. Instead of detailing the not-fun parts of our night, let’s mention some highlights; since we did manage to have some good kinds of fun too. First up, Mariah got extra attention for being the birthday girl, and while her party was over by the time she was dropped off with some of the other kids; we still had some birthday-themed fun and treats for her to enjoy during dinner and in the evening. The Pizzeria pizza was a hit – and not just because of a minor food fight. Olde Bakery desserts kept the fun – and bits of grossness – going; and then the tweens in the house split up into two crews for the clean-up and ongoing kid control.
The girls definitely had more fun after that with Christmas movies and games in the living room while Aiden, Aaron, and I had the tougher job of minimizing the trouble from some of the boys in the lounge; since they were not happy to just play video games – they needed to go out on ‘raids’ to bug the girls or spy on them; push the limits; and... We weren’t going to go there and stick with the happy! Even the toddlers in the house stayed up later than they should, but we eventually got all of them to sleep either in guest bedrooms or Ehlana’s and my rooms. The gaming continued in the lounge with Zack and Eli leading the way, and the boys that stayed up with them also ended up crashing and napping in there too instead of making it to a bedroom. Once all of the other kids were sleeping, the tweens in the house opted to hang out in the living room with just regular checks to the lounge. Mom and Dad were probably the last adults to get home from the pub because they volunteered to be designated drivers while stuck with a house full of kids anyway; and their last runs were out to a handful of farms. We can add that Cassie and Michael were out with them tonight too – along with Rowen, Tim, and a small gang of their friends. We only had a short chat with them before they headed for bed with a side-trip to the lounge that didn’t encourage Zack and Eli to call it a night. The guys also still kept their weird fun going with two more prank raids on us in the living room and they woke up three of the toddlers thanks to their antics, but we dealt with all of that; and eventually managed some nap time too – though some of us took turns with that while also keeping an eye on the action in the lounge.
Moving on, after our naps, Tai Chi was indoors and not crowded because Mom, Dad, and half of the kids opted for the extra sleep. That wasn’t an option for the babysitters because we needed to cook and get the gang of kids ready for church. The good news was that letting the pranksters sleep in as long as possible was an option, and then they were too-tired to bother annoying anyone beyond the feeble attempts to get left behind that they know never work anyway. Mom and Dad eventually helped out with the work in the kitchen, but that was mostly so that the cooks could take turns to eat and do other chores while the food needed to keep coming – especially once all of the boys were devouring everything as quickly as it came off of griddles or pans. We always manage to get the gangs of kids to church on time, so it isn’t surprising that we managed to do that today too – or that we were ready for naps once our ‘work’ was done. The top moments of the service for us included the sample music from the teens to advertise their concert tonight; and then we helped out with a last blast of work during Sunday school to get ready for that show.
By the time we went home with Mom and Dad, we were ready for a bit of quiet; and our friends were busy with their own families for the rest of the day; so we helped with the full-house clean-up and laundry; fit in a snack-lunch while doing that; and then Ehlana and I went to play at the lab or archives for the rest of the afternoon. We did not have plans to have dinner at the Inn, but we were good with another quiet meal with Mom and Dad; and then we got dressed up again and went to the church for the Christmas concert. This year, it was more of a music-filled play with a complete storyline. We don’t mention it in our journals, but Ryan Bassett is the unofficial teen leader when it comes to music at school or church, and that is only unofficial because he does that so quietly that most of the other teens don’t notice while deferring to his talent and expertise. Sophia’s brother is in Grade Eleven this year, and while he isn’t a rocker like their father was as a teen; he is an amazing guitarist and has some vocal skills too. He was definitely one of the stars tonight for the music; we loved all of the songs and the story; and the teen comedians in their troupe earned and deserved the laughs and praise for their parts in the show. Naomi will be eligible to join them next year; and we’ll mention that she wasn’t really joking tonight about figuring out how to get us into the group a year early too.
There was a social hour in the reception hall that kept the Christmas fun going for all of us; and then we came home with Mom and Dad after saying goodnight to Naomi, Aiden, and all of our favorite people. Bath or Jacuzzi time was next – though Dad packed for his trip and took care of a last bit of work while we did that. Ehlana and I did a quick bedtime snack and chat with Mom and Dad once ready for bed; and now we’re keeping our computing and twin chat time short because we want to be up early for Dad; since the next time we’ll see him won’t be until after we’ve started our Christmas break on Friday! That’s a cheery thought to wrap this up on – especially since we won’t be doing much actual work at school while busy with the usual Christmas entertainment; so let’s do the Christmas music video pick and call it a night!
While the teens didn’t use this song tonight, their show reminded us of another favorite Christmas show that Cassie and Michael were part of; and that’s also why this song was one of our picks for our Christmas album. We love this version too; it was one of several that we used in creating our harmonies; and finally, we loved having Cassie and Michael collaborate on it with us for the album! Enjoy the song before moving on to our next report whenever you’re reading this in our future; and we’ll rest up to get ready to live those adventures you’ll be reading about next! ;^)
Not That Far From Bethlehem – Firefly
Until next time, live with love, fellow Magi of the Light!
