Christmas 2012

I'm not always sure which is more fun: when Jace and I put the "master plan" for the kids' Christmas presents together, when we actually go out shopping for everything, when we wrap and put them all under the Christmas tree or when the kids open up the gifts.  It all definitely makes Christmas wonderful and makes us realize how wonderful family is to each of us.

A few highlights from our family Christmas.

Now that Bailey is out on her own, she needed her own kitchen supplies.  In addition to the cookie sheet and cake pan, she got a lot of kitchen utensils and lovely Goodwill coffee mugs from all of us.

Cody got a book on Chuck Norris quips and "facts."  He spent quite a bit of the morning (and I'm guessing quite a bit of the rest of the day) sharing this oh-so important information with anyone else who was around him.

Drew's next present started with a blank CD case telling him to go to his room.  Last year, his Santa present sent him on a bit of a scavenger hunt so I think he was prepared this year!

Trent was really worried that Santa wouldn't get him any hockey gear.  He was very happy that Santa brought him a new goalie hockey stick, a hockey vest and hockey gloves.  He's ready to go! 

Drew is a huge Colts fan and this year he really cashed in.  Between our family and his mom's family, he got slippers, sweatshirt, key chain, NFL coat, posters and I'm not sure what else.  I didn't have the video running when he "opened" his Colts Fathead from Santa, so here's  a quick video montage of the pictures that were taken Christmas morning.

As I often say, I'm very blessed to have such a great family.  The Kussatz side of the family is an awesome bunch of people and I'm so very lucky to have grown up in such a close knit family.  The Ahlberg side of the family is equally awesome and such a wonderful group of people.  We were lucky this year to have Jenn and her kids at Rod and Susie's so that our kids had more cousins to play and hang out with on Christmas Eve.  It's always great to having loving family together over the holidays.

8 Years Until He's Driving

Trent turned 8 on Sunday--only eight more years until he's driving!  And speaking of driving, Cody is.  He even drove the entire family home from church on Sunday.  I figured God was on our side since we just left His house of worship.  :)  He's actually doing a really nice job.

Trent invited 7 of his buddies to go bowling followed by mouthfuls of chocolate cupcakes, chocolate frosting and chocolate chips (white).  "Trent, what kind of cake do you want for your birthday?"  "CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE!"  The kid likes his chocolate. 

He and all the boys had a great time!  Thanks to all the friends and family who provided treats and presents!

The boys getting ready to bowl.

Trent--he's got his eyes on the chocolate.  CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE CHOCOLATE!

MMMMM...chocolate (with Grant Rimpley)

And PRESENTS!  Great friends bring great presents!

After bowling, several of the boys wanted to come over and hang out.  They decided on hockey on the tennis courts.  (He got a 2nd hockey goal so they were able to play end-to-end hockey!)  This is big brother Drew explaining the rules.

Dropping the "puck."  On the count of 1...2...3!

Trent is defending the goal...kind of.  He put on Bailey's old roller blades that morning.  They're at least three sizes too big and don't tighten up all the way, but he was a trooper and has been doing great on them!

Junkin'

Ever heard of the Nebraska JUNK JAUNT®?  Well, here are a few answers to the question "What is the Nebraska Junk Jaunt?"

10. Small town Nebraska
  9. Hospitality
  8. 350+ miles
  7. Laughs
  6. Junk-tiques
  5. Country roads
  4. Rust
  3. Beautiful scenery
  2. Food
  1. Family

My mom, sister and I saw a flyer for the 9th Annual Junk Jaunt while in Kansas (antiquing/junking) and knew we couldn't pass it up.  We started in Grand Island late Friday afternoon and headed to Cairo just to see what it's all about.  Found some cool stuff but just couldn't quite yet commit to making purchases the first hour.  Stayed in Grand Island Friday night and then started about 8:00 Saturday morning.  We "junked" for about eight hours on Saturday and stayed the night in Sargent/Comstock, NE.  It was a really cool hunting lodge that really catered to male hunters.  The motif of the entire was camouflage and dead animals.  :)

Sunday was more of the same.  A breakfast at the Comstock Lodge and then out the door.  We were pretty tired from Saturday so made a handful of stops and headed back to Grand Island, to Lincoln and then back to Kansas City for Kim.

Here are a few pics:

Comstock, NE at sunrise on Sunday morning.

The Comstock Lodge at sunrise on Sunday.  A beautiful building with about eight rooms on the main floor and the entire living room and kitchen on top with a great deck and view.

On the way home...back of the truck.  Lots of rust and wood!

If you're curious about the Junk Jaunt...click HERE.

If you're curious about the Comstock Lodge...click HERE.

It was a great time and we were already planning for 2013 before we were done with 2012! 

It was a great time!!  If anyone wants to know more, ask!




 

Summer Summary 2012

Monday, August 6
Jace went back to school today.  Guess that's the official notice summer is on its way out.  It's been a great summer.  The kids have had some fantastic vacations and have hit some major milestones.  Here are a few random pictures I found on cameras and phones.

This was at the Calvert Fun Day...wrapping up his tenure as a first grader.

This was another picture from Rome that I found.  Self-portraits are so fun!

Cody and about 12 other high school kids went to CHIC this summer.  CHIC is a group of about 5,000 high school kids that converge onto the Knoxville, TN campus.   "A triennial event with a humble, yet rich, history beginning in 1956 when hundreds of high school age Covenanters gathered together as the Covenant High Congress. This event has morphed through the years moving from regional camps centered on small group Bible study and devotion, large group gatherings with speakers and music, and outdoor recreation to outgrowing such venues. This growth prompted a change and in 1972, the East and West Coast Congresses combined, necessitating a location that was more conducive to the nearly 1,500 students who attended. This much larger group gathered together, as their predecessors had, to engage in small group Bible study and devotion, large group gatherings with speakers and music, and outdoor recreation – on a larger scale."  From all the live feeds I watched, tweets I followed and feedback from the kids, it was a truly amazing experience.

Kind of fuzzy pictures, but this is Trent's baseball team this summer.  A group of VERY high-energy 2nd grade boys. 

And you all know me, I couldn't resist.  Had to help coach.  :)  Jace did a great job helping as well.  It was a lot of fun and I do think there was good progress throughout the year.

And Bailey turned 19.  In the state of Nebraska, makes Bailey an official adult. 

Bailey is really looking forward to moving out and being on her own, so we really wanted to help her out with that mission.

So her birthday theme was camping: a new tent, sleeping bag, cooler, lamp (batteries), dining set, pocket tool, etc.  We figured if push comes to shove, at least she can camp out. 

Love you, Bailey!

Wrapping up the summer, we took Trent to Kansas City last past weekend.  It was going to be an anniversary weekend for me and Jace, but since Trent didn't get to go to Rome or Tennessee, he at least deserved a fun weekend.  Got down to KC Friday night and went to Crown Plaza shops for a bit.  (OK...we did visit the Crayola store which may not have been Trent's first choice) and then went to Oceans of Fun Saturday morning.  He was able to hang out with cousins Max, Olivia and Claire Saturday night where he had a lot of fun. 

We tested two of these three slides.  He was a bit apprehensive at first, but couldn't wait to go up a second time!

While Trent was hanging with the cousins, Jace and I went to Fogo de Chao.  Which many people then say, "What?"  And we usually reply with something along the lines of, "It's meat on a stick."

You start with a wonderful salad bar full of yummy food.  At your table is one of these "coasters."  One side is red--no more meat, thank you.  The other side is green--more meat please!  Flip it to green and...

...then all these waiters with very large skewers stop by your table with many different cuts of meat: beef (many different cuts), lamp, pork, chicken and sausage.  If you're not getting the cut you want to try, you can ask your waiter to have that specific meat to your table.  It's really yummy and very filling!  You have cute little tongs to grab the meat as the server cuts the meat off the skewer.  (This is a random picture off the internet.  I did not dye my hair!)

Next weekend, the last weekend before school starts, me and Jace and the boys will be heading to Covenant Cedars for family camp with our church.  Unfortunately, we're only able to be there Friday night and not for the entire weekend.  It's tough when your husband is a pool manager and two of the four kids work at the pool! 

As I often remind myself, I am so blessed to be part of the Ahlberg family.  Love them all so very much!

All About Rome

Drew belongs to the Lincoln Boys Choir and this year they were invited to perform in Italy for 10 days (June 20-29, 2012) including Rome, Florence, Venice and Milan.  Jace and I had the opportunity to join Drew for part of his trip while he was in Rome.  It was amazing!  The organization that put the trip together works with musical groups that go on these tours and you could tell they were used to working with kids.  The schedule was pretty brutal.   There wasn't a lot of downtime for the kids.  They were up early for rehearsal and usually went until late evening.  Kept them busy and, for the most part, out of trouble!

Jace and I weren't part of the official group since we traveled on our own but we were able to be part of several of the tours of Rome.  While we weren't with the group, he and I walked ALL over Rome.  I wore my pedometer while we were there.  On Thursday, I had over 16,000 steps; Friday, over 20,000; Saturday, over 23,000 steps.  They say that 2,000 steps equals about 1 mile.  A lot of walking!

Dad and Drew in front of Trevi Fountain

Ah....love in front of Trevi Fountain.

Alley in Rome.  Lots and lots of little alleys with great shops and restaurants.

 

Piazza Navona

Drew at Piazza Navona

Another one at Piazza Navona

Rome is built on seven hills which translates into lots of steps!

The first night we were there, Jace and I found a great little restaurant in one of those alleys and this couple serenaded us for a bit.  Of course, they wanted a few euros for their efforts but we were stingy.

This is the poster with the Boys Choir listed with the other groups.  This was for their performance at Basilica de Minerva which was Sunday.

Dad and Drew inside Basilica di Minerva.

The Colosseum.

Drew:  "Ah, si, very interesting..."

Old ruins.

Colosseum.

Colosseum.

The tour we went on this day had the little headphones so the tour guide could speak into the microphone and then we'd all hear what she was saying.  The group looked just so cute with our little red boxes hanging from our necks.

Unfortunately, we didn't get to go inside the Colosseum because the workers decided to strike that day.  I guess many of the attractions had issues as well as the city buses because the city workers decided to give themselves a three-day weekend by striking on Friday.  Bummer.  This is all that we were able to see of the inside!

More old ruins.

More old ruins.

More old ruins.

The second night we were there, Jace and I walked to the Tiber.  Down by the river, they have all these tents set up with restaurants, bars and vendors.  Definitely the nightlife in Rome.

On Saturday morning, Drew sang at St. Peter's Basilica at Vatican City.  We got there pretty early so the lines weren't bad.  After the Boys Choir sang and we left the church, the line was already getting very long to just get into St. Peter's.  It's probably about a mile walk to the other side of the Vatican City where the museum is to take the tour. 

St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica.

St. Peter's Basilica.

Drew in front of one of the altars at St. Peter's Basilica.

With another tour group, we toured the Vatican Museum and the Sistine Chapel. 

Vatican Museum.  As you can imagine, the artwork throughout the museum is amazing.  It's hard to imagine the process of these paintings on the ceilings and walls.  Absolutely beautiful.

Lots of statues in the Vatican Museum as well.

Amazing long hallway with artwork.

I'm not sure I knew exactly what the Sistine Chapel was.  It's a relatively small chapel--probably about the size of large auditorium with a basketball court.  Over several years, they went through and cleaned the paintings created by Michelangelo.  I guess the company that did the cleaning, has the copyright to the ceiling paintings now so cameras aren't allowed.  However, everyone was snapping away so I took a quick one, too.  Of course, without a flash it doesn't turn out very well.  :)  Anyway, it was definitely worth having the tour guide.  He told us very interesting facts about how the ceiling paintings came to be, the story behind it all and everything.  I'm really glad we had a guide because, while it would have been cool to see it without the tour guide, having him tell the story behind the creation of the ceiling was definitely worth the money.

This is simply Drew being Drew.  Gotta love the kid. 

Between Jace, Drew and me, I don't know how many pictures we have but we all have a lot.  I haven't even gone through Jace's camera or his phone.  It was a fantastic time.  I would have loved to stay with Drew for the rest of the trip, but duties called and we weren't able to.  However, we've created some great memories that will stay with us a lifetime.

All I can say is that if you ever go to Rome, don't be afraid to be a tourist.  Go on the tours with the guides.  Traipse into the alleys even if you're not sure where they go.  It was a great time!