Letter from home - December 28, 2014

 

Dear ones: Hope you all had a blessed, loving, joyful Christmas! I did, I did!. Thank you all, for everything! I love my gifts, enjoyed all your food and drink and am grateful that you all like to ‘come home’. Dana, I forgot to thank you for the poinsettia. It is a bright spot in my dining room and will be there to help guide me to Spring.

We had a skiff of snow Christmas eve day. Only a skiff. But when we got up Christmas morning, it looked like a White Christmas for a bit. We are thankful that the roads were clear so that travelers could get to where they were going. Traci and Craig, we were go glad that you had clear sailing to Wisconsin and back. Also, thank goodness for the price of gas. It is $1.99 in Creston yesterday. F I N A L L Y! I think we must have been the last community in Iowa to dip below $2.00. I filled up when it was still $2.04 but I had 30 cents/gal savings with my Hy-Vee card. I usually don’t think to use the card so I was so pleasantly surprised when I looked at the receipt.

I’m calling this photo “Controlled Chaos”. Even ‘tho it wasn’t. Controlled, I mean. lol

Somebody in that picture is a blur; she’s moving too fast.  I have to admit, I lost control this year. Instead of opening presents one at a time, it spiraled out of control. Okay, Lee. I think you set the tone! No, I’m just teasing you. You will know the rules next year. Plus, we had a little time constraint this year so I wasn't so rigid in my thinking. Next year, it will be back to the ‘one at a time’ gift opening procedure. 

 

From all accounts, Santa and the reindeer got around and found all the little ones. Did anyone get any nanny cam video of Santa or catch a bit of beard in the fire place trap?  My dad always threatened to trap Santa Claus in the fire place which worried the small children and made big kids laugh. 

I have heard that there are still a few of our family under the weather. Hope you feel better soon!

 

 

 

These girls were up to something! but I never learned what.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

  

Christmas Day, Johanna and Lee brought over a pot of chili. We enjoyed that (way good!) while I pushed leftovers at them -- crab dip, pie and whipped cream and all manner of sweets.  Then Audri was off to her dad's for the weekend.   

Saturday, Dana came over and he and dad pulled out the termite-ridden door header and 2X4s in the east dining room wall -- old insulation and termite debris. Then Dana put in a new header and studs. They dry walled and taped up the seams. Now all we need is a little mud and a new paint job and we will be good as new. Erica, Maddie and Morghan came by. I had thawed turkey stock for Christmas Day and as I hadn't needed it for lunch, I knew I had to cook it today.  It all worked out as I was able to feed The Freys turkey and noodles and use up the thawed turkey stock.

Looking better!

 

Sunday, we didn't do a thing and didn't see a person.  I crocheted just a bit, walked to Hy-Vee and back for a few groceries and I watched three hours of a series on the Queen of England.  I first remember Queen Elizabeth and her children when I was a small child.  My Mama always told me I was born on Princess Anne's birthday. 

 

Here's my Princess Grace. 

Someone tell me, is this little girl drinking wine?

 

 

This will be the last letter from 2014. 

 

Happy New Year to all!  Here's to Health and Prosperity in 2015!

 

                                                       Love, Ma

Letter from home - December 22, 2014

Dear ones: it has been a good week but dreary. Lanny and I don’t remember so many days in a row where the sun won’t shine! Seriously, I remember about two hours of sunshine in the last 7 days. The snow we got for our white Christmas has melted so now you “White Christmas” people will be wishing for snow again!

I worked Tuesday and Wednesday this past week, in the kitchen. Thursday, we drove to Bondurant to care for little Miss Bella who ran a fever all week. The doctor said “viral” so no antibiotics. It had to run it’s course -- and it didn’t run very fast! She still had a low grade fever on Saturday but Sunday, so far, no fever.

Friday, we kept Audri Lu who had strep, the doctor said. She was on antibiotics and wasn’t feeling too bad but she did agree to a little rest after lunch. Saturday, I guess she was going strong again.

Today, I slipped out to Erica’s after all the hard work was done at the Christmas cookie fest. Erica and Maddie had all kinds of cookies baked and all colors of frosting. I got there just in time to decorate a few cookies. There were some creative cookies produced today.

 

This guy supports his teams!

 

Here's Maddie and Audrianna; how did I miss Casen?



Too pretty to eat! 

Dad and I, this past week, wrote our Christmas card letters. I am cutting way back on Christmas cards as I didn’t send them out to any of the nieces or nephews. I will send out to my friends, your dad’s brothers, my siblings, etc. If I get electronic cards, I will respond with a Christmas letter via email. I think it is a good plan.

We also baked 2 nice big loaves of the chocolate chip banana bread and a bunch of cinnamon rolls. There will be a pan for each of you to take home for Christmas morning. Aren’t they pretty?

I have not ordered the usual Grandchildren Christmas card. At our Christmas Eve get together, I will try to get one good photo. If I can, great, I’ll have prints made up for us all. If not, I’ll wait and have professional photos taken next spring or summer for PaPa and Nana’s 45^th wedding anniversary. It has been 20 years since our last professional photos.

Also, I have not ordered the Hofmeister Annual Calendar yet.  I don't know what I'm waiting for -- except that it makes me a little anxious that I will forget someone or something!  It will happen!   

Audri wanted to make gifts for her cousins so this is what we came up with. It is a secret! But you probably won’t see this before Christmas. If you do see it, don’t say anything! These are dough ornaments (1 cup salt, 1 cup flour and ½ cup water. Knead as tho for cookie dough, roll out and shape. You have to bake them, or let them dry out). We improvised our stencils by using refrigerator magnets. We painted, decorated and glittered! Then tied a little ribbon on. We think they turned out pretty good.
 

We love Our Morghan Grace, all teenager now : )

until next week, love Mama

 

Letter from home - December 17, 2014

Dear ones: The good news is I have had a great week! The bad news is that it wore me out and I spent all day Monday resting up! Seriously, I enjoyed every minute of the weekend.

I worked Monday and Tuesday, last week, then put my foot down and took Wednesday and Thursday off. When I went back to work on Friday, all day long I thought it was Monday! It was just so very strange.

Friday, we drove to Stuart and met Craig and Traci’s  for supper at Burger King. We gathered up the Three Hof children and brought them home for the weekend. They were all eager to jump in the car and come along with us.  Erica and Dana had plans that evening and Jack had a friend to stay, so Maddie came along with us too. Audri had been sick on Friday and didn’t go to school so she had to wait to come over until Saturday morning. Her mama said she was up and had her suitcase packed about 6 am Saturday!

Peekers!  the rascals.
 

Saturday, we had a whole lot of playing going on. Bella, Audri, Maddie and Gabby. Joey, of course, found his way to cousin Jack’s.

Saturday afternoon, I got the cookie dough out and we girls went at it. We cut and baked about six dozen cookies. After a tea party and more play, we mixed up about 6 different colors of frosting and iced those cookies. I am still wiping frosting off the floor today! But it was fun, the girls were good and creative and we had a great time.

Sunday morning, we got up, dolled up and along with Erica and Kristy, we headed to Des Moines to the Hoyt Sherman Place to see the Nutcracker. We also met up with Traci and Johanna and Lee and so it was, twelve of us sat up in the balcony, Section C, to watch the classic Christmas ballet.

The Nutcracker Suite
 

Afterwards we adjourned to the Zombie Burger restaurant where we all had various forms of the ‘in’ hamburger. The hamburgers were good but the sauces and appetizers were better yet! I'm going to try to make that garlic mayonnaise. 

Our beautiful models!

Joey was brave and joined us.  He and Lee, 2 men amongst 10 women.
 

I didn’t have to work Monday which was a very good thing. I slept late, lazed around in the morning but by afternoon, Lanny and I got in the baking mode. Lanny cooked up the hamburger and cabbage for Runzas and I stirred up the dough. Always, with Runzas there is extra sweet bread dough so we ended up baking a pan of caramel rolls and a pan and a half of cinnamon rolls. We sampled the cinnamon rolls and they were delicious!

Kristy’s birthday is Thursday. Where have the years gone? Seems like just yesterday I was anxiously (and nervously) awaiting the birth of my first baby. Those days and the following years of three more babies and all the  years of childhood, school, sports, sleepovers, holidays et al, were the best of times! (You really don’t remember me grumping, complaining, yelling, do you? I hope all that has faded over the years!)  Wish we could all go back and do it again.  With what I know now, I would do it all better! 

                                                                                       Love you all!  Ma

Letter from home, December 7, 2014

Dear ones: The Austin Family Dinner is behind us. We survived another Austin get-together. I got home about 5 pm Saturday. Sunday afternoon your dad and I met ’The Sibs’ at the Windrow. They all had eaten lunch but we got there in time for me to join them for coffee. Afterwards, we all moved the party to the Y where we watched the creston area theatre , the “Regifter”. It was just pretty hilarious and I had worked with one of the actors at Heat Tech. Aunt Mary worked with him too and she said “Bill isn’t really acting. That’s how he is.” which was ‘cheap’. haha

With the ‘party’ done and over, now we ‘girls’ will look forward to seeing the Nutcracker Suite next Sunday, December 15. At Hoyt Sherman. Did you all know Hoyt Sherman Place is haunted? Supposedly. And the house is historic. We should go back someday to tour the original house.


“Hoyt Sherman Place, built in 1877 for Hoyt Sherman who served as a Major in the civil war and started Equitable Insurance of Iowa. The house stood empty after his death until 1907 when members of The Des Moines Women's Club began using it as their clubhouse. The Women's Club added a gallery to display their art collection and thus Hoyt Sherman Place became the first public art museum in the City of Des Moines. The Des Moines Women's Club, always active in the community, invited many guest speakers to Hoyt Sherman Place to entertain and educate. Speakers included: Amelia Earhart, Helen Keller and Grant Wood. Eventually they needed more room for their speakers and activities, and the 1400 seat theater was completed in 1923.”

　

I worked today in the school kitchen, 6:30 - 2 pm. I will work again to tomorrow ‘same time; same place. I am going to decline Wednesday and Thursday but have agreed to work Friday.

And here are some photos from the Austin reunion: 

                                                                                    Until next week,  Love, Mama