Christmas at the Schrag's

Our family drove out to Illinois on Christmas morning. We drove out with Mike and Mandi Brouillette's family. They even had lunch with us at Tim and Sue's house.

The entire Schrag family has gathered here this weekend. Andy came in from Boston, Sara and boyfriend Josh came in from Goshen and our family of 4 from Kansas. It makes for a full house, but it's great to be together.

A one-day sickness has been bugging us, first Ben, then me, then Sue, then Andy. Nothing too severe, just aches, stomach pain, little bit of fever and a need for lots of sleep. Thankfully, Noah and Levi have so far scraped by without any sickness.

Below, the boys and I are waiting to open presents. It looks calm, but don't be deceived...Noah was quite antsy to open presents.


A few pictures of the "after" Christmas mess.




Noah making semmel with Grandpa Schrag.


Noah learned to use a drill press.

and now he's 1

It's hard for this momma to believe, but my baby is a full year old. Levi's birth was a traumatic experience and today has been a day down memory lane for me. I have shed a few tears remembering how stressful his arrival was and how amazing it is that he came out safely.

This weekend we are in Illinois visiting Ben's parents. Levi has eaten a huge amount of food and taken lots of naps. And, this evening, he devoured his birthday cupcake. He even wanted more after his was all gone.

Happy birthday baby boy!

Night in the Barn

Noah just loved Night in the Barn. The youth group from Tabor Mennonite Church puts together this special event each year. The focus is the telling of the Christmas story by Mary in the barn with the animals. This is the second time Noah has been to it, but this year he was old enough to be aware of the animals and the cold. He enjoyed being warmed by the fire and even sang along with some of the Christmas carols we sung. He was fascinated by all the animals, especially Monty, the donkey.

Hanging out at home

Saturday was a wonderful day for us. We were home! I'm usually not the type that really enjoys being at home all that much...but, Saturday was a good day. Ben was around, the boys were happy, and we had a good time playing and just being together. The boys did haircuts in the morning, but then we were home until after supper. In the evening we took Noah to Night in the Barn, I'll post pictures of that later.

Here's a peak at our time at home.


I tried and tried to get Noah to actually smile for a picture with me. I'm rarely seen on this blog, so I thought I would show myself just this once.


Lately, we've done lots of playing with blocks. Building towers and then knocking them down! Over and over, with a few arguments in between about who's turn it is to knock the tower down.


Noah just after waking up from his nap.



Noah and Levi, at times, play together very well. More and more, Levi is laughing at (or with) Noah. It's good to see them learning to interact with each other in positive ways.

Early Birthdays and more

Any Saturday that starts with breakfast at the Breadbasket in Newton, is bound to be a good day in my books. Not to mention that the gathering of our Epp family was to celebrate the December birthdays - Levi was the main attraction, but I also got some nice cards and a gift. Levi ate, just as if he hadn't already eaten a normal breakfast at home. And then, with the help of grandma and cousins Ty and Caiden, he opened several gifts. It was fun to watch his expression as he figured out what each gift was.

After the birthday part of our gathering was complete, I handed out the cookbooks I've been working on for nearly a year. Last winter, when my grandma passed away, I asked that my mom, aunt, sister and cousins look through grandma's recipes and mark the ones they wanted copies of. Then, I typed them up and just this past week I finally finished the project. I was really excited to be able to hand them out, just before Christmas!









On Sunday, we went to my parents house after naps. Noah, Levi and Grandma played piano and sang several Christmas songs. It was just precious to see all three of them busy at the piano.

The Table

The annual ladies Christmas brunch was this past Saturday at church. This year, the planning committee asked for volunteers to decorate the tables. So, against my better judgment, my mom and I signed up for a table together. I knew that I would NEED to put a lot of energy into this table and I knew that I would take it too far, or at least I would want to take it too far. Well, then my reality set in and although I did a lot of thinking and imagining what the table would look like, it wasn't until we actually set it up the day before the brunch that we found out what the finished product would look like. It was nice - not as great as I had imagined, but mom and I had fun working on it together. The other tables were gorgeous, so much creativity and energy and such unique designs and interesting china patterns. It was a wonderful morning and finally got me in the mood for Christmas.


We used my Harlequin dishes, which set a colorful, retro theme. I apologize for some of the fuzziness on these photos...





Oh how I love, love, love these little circle mirrors! They make me smile...and now they're on my fireplace mantel.