The Domestic Goddess: Annual Kerr Christmas Letter

Wow? Is it really that time of the year for the annual Kerr Christmas letter? It must be because there are three dozen cookies and baklava cooling on my kitchen table. That can only mean one thing. ~~I've totally given up on good nutrition.~~ It's Christmas time!

So what happened this year in Kerrville?

In January, Buttercup placed second in a spelling bee having only practiced for three weeks. I'm kind of glad she didn't get first because the girl who did spent three months practicing. The winner might have blown a gasket had she been beaten by Buttercup's three weeks of practice. Regardless, we were quite proud of her.

In February, Bo Hunkmeister and my dad took the girls to a Father Daughter dance with the local homeschooling group. In order to teach the girls the basics of gettin' yer groove on, we held a family dance party cueing up some Bee Gees, Jackson Five and, of course, C + C Music Factory. It was here that we learned Gummi was born with only one dance move, but W. Bear is double jointed in every joint in his body.

April was a big adventure for the girls as they traveled by themselves to San Francisco to see Grandma Barbara and Grandpa Richard. I've only recently recovered from letting my little babies get on a plane to fly across the country. Despite mom's neurosis, the girls had a great time. They saw all the sights, met family and had dim sum!

In the summer, Bo Hunkmeister went and did piratey things at Gaspee Days in Warwick, RI. Gaspee Days celebrates the Revolutionary War burning of the British schooner Gaspee, but more importantly, that we Rhode Islanders stuck it to The Man before Boston did. The yearly event culminates with burning the Gaspee in effigy in the harbor. I love a town that celebrates independence each year with pirates and burning effigies.

In August, the Bo and I celebrated 20 years of marital bliss by going on an overnight trip. Not content to let us have all the fun ourselves, my parents (the babysitters), made friends with the neighbor's guests from Holland (still with me?) and had dinner parties with them. There were rumors of an epic water fight and the weekend culminated in taking said neighbor's guests to Iggy's for clamcakes and doughboys. The Dutch visitors have since returned to Holland and I believe have taken up the vegetarian lifestyle in an effort to purge all that fried food from their bodies.

Like I said...rumors.

There was also the "S'more Incident" but we won't bring that up again.

Mistakes were made.

In September, we had a lovely visit from Grandpa Michael and Grandma Peggy. A wonderful, relaxing time was spent by the water near picturesque Wickford Village. The grandparents spoiled the kids, and best of all, I didn't have to cook for a week! (Come again soon, guys. Really, anytime.)

Bo went to the Newfangled retreat in October to eat fabulous food and avoid games of RISK (the boss will do ANYTHING to gain Kamchatka). Meanwhile, in an effort to gain a little more culture and refinement, the kids and I went to New York to do a little Shakespeare with my friend Lisa. This did nothing to lessen the burp and fart jokes from the boys. Better luck next time, eh Lisa?

Oh and Hurricane Irene? How could I could I forget kickin' it Laura Ingalls style? We were without lights for four days, but I'm not complaining because I got a sparkling clean refrigerator out of the deal. It was actually a wonderful experience in learning what we could live without and improvisational dinners with neighbors.

No hurricane's gonna cramp our fun!

Justin is still working for Newfangled Web Factory. It is quite possibly the coolest place on earth and that's just not because they bought me a flourless chocolate raspberry torte.

Me, I'm still cookin', writin', and cookin' some more.

Princess Buttercup is still taking pictures, but her current obsession is the Beatles. That's her picture at the top getting her brothers to re-enact Abbey Road. She's also taken up playing guitar.

In April, Princess Git Er Done auditioned for the RI Youth Philharmonic and was admitted! In between playing violin, she makes earrings and uses her camera to make stop motion Lego videos.

W. Bear is the latest member of the family to discover photography. Boy are we glad for the digital age. 435 photos on film would have been really expensive to develop. W. Bear is also a serious Lego devotee.

Tater has moved to an upper bunk, learned to let go of the side of the pool and is also a major Lego devotee. It seems to be epidemic here.

This is Baby in one of his non-hospital pictures. He's learning to read this year. Maybe we can teach him drive so he can take himself to the hospital.