Christmas in ABQ

Before we get to Christmas, I see that I neglected to mention Thanksgiving this year, which we spent in Grand Rapids, MI with Mark's Aunt and Uncle as usual. This was the year his married cousins spend with their in-laws, so Thanksgiving Day was a quiet one, though very nice, as always. We did see Drew and Christy and their kids for a quick visit at their place on Wednesday, and Mark's cousin Erin was with us for the big meal on Thanksgiving Day. She invited us to her place for games that night, which was also fun. And on Friday morning, Aunt Debbe and I made our traditional wreaths with greenery from her yard.

Aunt Debbe and me with our wreaths

Also on Thanksgiving weekend, Mark and I decorated our place. We are really enjoying our new tree (with dual-color lights!).

the wreath on our door at home

new tree, with white lights on

new tree with colored lights on

a few small decorations on the hope chest

Uganda nativity (plus a couple angels)

mini-ornament tree

This year, we spent Christmas in ABQ with my family. The main thing, as always, was spending time together, but we also really enjoyed the local food and the beautiful desert scenery. For breakfast, we made the rounds to our usual spots: Weck's (new location!), Blake's, and Twisters.

walking in to the new Weck's on Paseo

Weck's breakfast burrito (with extra cheese)--so good!

We had lunch at Dion's with Julie & Ben, then went bowling--some of my best games ever!

Dion's cheese bread and pepperoni pizza

first bowling game (Ben creamed us!)

second bowling game (Mark's turn to win!)

Throughout the week, Mom and I spent lots of time in the kitchen cooking and baking (and sitting around drinking tea!). On Christmas Eve, we had lasagna with Mom, Dad, Grandma, and Grandpa, then went to the Christmas Eve service at Grandma's church, and drove around for a bit after looking at lights.

before Christmas Eve dinner

On Christmas day, Julie and Ben joined us again, and we opened stockings before a big, tasty brunch, then lingered over the rest of the presents as usual. Later, we had dinner at Grandma's. The mountains got snow overnight (just rain in town), so the views were beautiful!

the family tree and some stockings

living room tree and so many presents!

with Grandma

with Mark

the table at brunch--so delicious!

Grandpa, Ben & Julie

Mark & Dad

Mom & Grandma

presents for everyone!

snowy mountains from Mom & Dad's street

Grandma's tree

finishing touches for dinner at Grandma's

dinner table at Grandma's (potatoes, ham, dried corn)

more dinner (potatoes, stuffing, smoked turkey, cranberry sauce)

we caught the mountains at sunset--can't beat the view!

mountains at sunset--panorama

one more of the mountains at sunset

The day after Christmas, Mark and I got together with Becca--it was great to catch up after a long while. Then, Mom, Grandma, and I did a bit of shopping.

Once we finally had a nice sunny day, Dad took us for a drive in Georgia, his latest classic car. Another day, Mom, Julie, Mark, and I went to see Frozen II, which was fun.

Georgia

inside the driver's side

me with the car

Mom & Mark in the roomy backseat 

the dash

looking out the front windshield

selfie in the car with Mom & Mark

I also got to look through about five photo albums and scrapbooks that Mom and Dad recently got--they are from the early days of my Dad's parents' relationship (Grandpa Mike and Grandma Lucero, who divorced when my Dad was a kid). Grandpa Mike also looked through them with me, so that was really special. We learned so much about their first few years together--dating, newlyweds, young family.

And, on our last day, Mom hosted a lovely mother-daughter tea with us and my sister's in-laws (we sure missed my in-laws, though!). We also got some snow in town, which was super fun.

I love the look of the snow on the desert plants!

the snowy backyard

As always, the time went by quickly, but it was good to be together. And it's also good to be home, though I haven't been quite ready to face the work I need to do before our next trip (WDW in January!)...I'll get there, sooner or later!

For now, Happy New Year!

End of Semester Fall 2019

As usual, I find myself at the end of the semester wondering how it could have gone by so quickly. Here are some of the things I've been up to since my last post in October.

When we had good weather, I tried to remember to go out on the back porch and enjoy it--working, reading, drinking tea. Some of the books I liked this fall were: The Japanese Lover, The Gown, Ordinary Girls, Stuck in Manistique, The Loveliest Chocolate Shop in Paris, and A Wolf Called Wander. I can't remember if I've mentioned it here, but I also joined a Mock Caldecott Award book group this year, so we meet once a month to discuss picture books that are eligible for the award. The book is led by one of the librarians on campus, and mostly attended by other librarians and children's literature professors. I totally love it.

tea, Kindle, and fresh air on the balcony

As always, another highlight of fall in BG is watching the leaves change--such a rainbow of colors, even on my daily commute:

just starting to see some yellow leaves

red leaves at sunset

I think these might be called fire bushes?

I even love the look of the fallen leaves collecting on the ground.

my favorite corner--so many different trees in one place

And I went to a few more football games (or parts of games--the football team's not great, but I'm definitely a fan of our marching band and their excellent drumline instructor!). If you want to see more pics and videos of the Falcon Marching Band (FMB), check out their Facebook page. 

Mark loves it when
I make him take selfies :-)

drumline in the stands

Mark with the drumline on the field

The drumline plays for the student section during 4th quarter

halftime show

halftime show on band day, joined by high school bands 

On International Night, I joined
International Programs & Partnerships
to hold flags when our team ran on to the field.

The marching band also played an indoor concert of this fall's music.

On November 11, we got our first snow of the season! This was earlier and bigger than our average first snow, and I was pleased to have the day off (for Veteran's Day). It's always nice when we can enjoy the snow from inside our cozy place with nowhere to go.

We got about 3-4 inches!

Notice the icicles? 

snow on campus

Later in November, while Mark was at PASIC, I went to the World Student Association's International Dinner. The English Department generously purchased a table for us again this year, so here I am with the grad students and other faculty who joined us. The students who coordinate this event do a really nice job, and it's always fun to see my current and former students all dressed up to attend or participate in the program and/or fashion show.

English Department table

One of my students in a kimono. 

As the holiday season is upon us, Mark's played a few Christmas themed concerts, including one that I was able to go to in Bluffton, and I've been looking for other ways to soak in the holiday cheer. So a couple weeks ago, I went to the Nutcraker on Ice at the campus ice arena. I wasn't sure what to expect, but it was free and sounded festive, so I figured I should check it out. It was kind of like a dance recital--amateur skaters of all ages and levels doing a program for their families and friends. Interesting to see, but once was enough. :-)

These were some of the more advanced skaters.

Some of the younger skaters.

the curtain call

This tree is in the middle of the soccer fields;
I noticed it walking home from the hockey arena.

Last week was finals week, and even with my two finals scheduled for Thursday and Friday, I was able to finish grading by the end of the day on Friday--woo! It always takes some time for it to settle in that the semester is over, and I don't get the same kind of closure I used to since my admin work is ongoing, but still--it's a change of pace, and I always appreciate that. My classes were really great this semester, so it's also a bit bittersweet to let them go.

This week, I've got some quiet days in the office to catch up and take care of some projects I hadn't made time for, make notes about this fall's classes for next time I teach them, and start thinking about my spring classes. Then I'll be ready to head back to ABQ for Christmas with family!