Quiet day

Ken started a new job this week! He was actually hired on Christmas Eve, but he didn't start until yesterday - he's now the CFO for a public oil and gas services company. He spent 3 1/2 months home with me and it is strange to have him back to work.

Carmen and Chloe went back to school yesterday, and Steven is back in classes today, so it is just Jaclyn and I. And she got her wisdom teeth out yesterday and is spending today sleeping. She feels just fine, no pain, but this is how she looks:

And her cheeks have swollen a little more since this picture I think!
(We are all enjoying it - so funny!)

At Jaclyn's age stem cells can be harvested from the pulp of teeth, which is super fascinating. We shipped her teeth off to StemSave in Massachusetts where they will extract and save her stem cells, and according to my FedEx tracking number they were delivered this morning despite the fact that I'm pretty sure I dated my signature on the customs form as 2012 by accident. I read somewhere (probably the StemSave website) that there are 80 diseases currently treatable with adult stem cells, but none yet treated with embryonic stem cells.

Okay, I just checked that and I did see it on the StemSave site here, but the number of diseases currently approved for human application is actually 73, including:

• Parkinson's Disease
• Brain Injuries
• Heart Disease
• Diabetes
• Arthritis
• Muscular dystrophy
• Leukemia
• Crohn's disease
• Multiple Sclerosis
• Neimann-Pick Type C
• Periodontal Disease
• Sports Injuries

So it's a form of biological health insurance, and like all insurance, the best insurance is the insurance you never use.

Sadly, there is still no cure for the common cold, and as a result I'm taking it just as easy this morning as Jaclyn is.

Sweeping out 2012

I learned on Facebook last night that it is bad luck to clean house on the December 31st - you're supposed to wait until the New Year to sweep out the old. So here it is, the rest of December 2012:

Chloe and Carmen both participated in Service Saturday at the school. Carmen worked the concession,

Chloe performed Christmas music (right after a basketball game).

Carmen and Chloe performed in their last Westside Children's Choir concerts. We aren't returning to this in 2013; it's the end of an era.

We made and delivered Christmas chocolates - our friends are favoured with a truncated version of Jingle Bells.

Christmas Band Concert: Carmen M.C.'d the evening and performed on the flute in senior band, 

Chloe performed on the french horn in grade 6 band.

Chloe got 12-Days-of-Christmas'd by a friend which was so fun for her. We haven't done the 12 Days in a few years, I think we need to go back to that.

Christmas Eve we had some family over for Sleepy Soup and Minute-to-Win-It Christmas games:

I'm not sure I can remember them all! This was a conveyor belt to decorate a mini Christmas tree.

Here Grandma is guessing how many jingle bells in each box.

Steven and Blake went head-to-head tossing marshmallows through small wreaths.

Grandpa vs. Kevin to stick a red pom-pom on their noses.

Carmen vs. Blake for "Junk-in-the-trunk".

In the end Team-G'ma won the event. Nothing better than a little competition to liven up Christmas spirit!

And of course, we finished the night off with a pinata. 

Christmas morning was pleasing to everyone. Considering the procrastinating that went on with Christmas shopping, gifts under the tree seemed like a Christmas miracle this year.

In the afternoon we went over to G'ma's and G'pa's for dinner. Socks on the feet, naturally.

I swear Chloe got every last thing on her list this year, including a typewriter. That's right. Grandma and Grandpa did a little shopping in their own garage this year, and Chloe was thrilled.

Family Group shot on Christmas Day.

The picture everyone prefers.

On Boxing Day we packed up and went down to Montana for a little skiing.

Ken, Carmen, and Chloe at the top of Chair 2.

Some shots on Toni Matt:

Carmen

Steven

Jaclyn

From Montana we drove straight to Lethbridge, where between some dining out and some dining in we managed to see all our family there.

Grandma and Grandpa prepared mystery meat for us (it was wrapped at a butcher and they couldn't remember exactly what it was when they pulled it out of the freezer - so funny - we think it was bison and it was delicious).

Kids table

Grown-ups, more or less.

Mark went around snapping a few photos on his phone, thank goodness, because no-one pulled out a real camera.

Carmen and I

Jaclyn tried on Grandma's wedding dress, and she's going to wear it as a temple dress coming up soon.

To all our friends: Happy New Year! I look forward to the exciting events (known and unknown) of 2013.

(P.S. Our Advent Calendar contained corny jokes this year: Why is it always cold at Christmas? Because it's Decembrrrrrrr!)