One of my favorite Christmas traditions

This past week has been CRAZY!

When I got home from Washington, DC on Saturday, I knew I was going to have to hit the ground running since I had only purchased one gift for Christmas. On Monday, the race began. Every day it was a trip to the big city to find the perfect gift for each name on my list. I was still looking for those gifts last night and am still short one (that I know of). It has been one of the longest weeks ever! Thank goodness Jamie didn’t have to work on Monday and was able to tag along with ideas and pointers for her sisters.

Wednesday night was the night set aside to head to the mall for the annual Santa picture. I didn’t get any bad vibes about doing it until we were standing in line (a very long line) with a whole bunch of little, little kids. And, of course, the camera was having issues so we had to wait. At least I didn’t have to try to keep my kids happy and deal with the crying like most of the other parents did. However, while we were standing there, I was informed by my kids they were the oldest ones in line and this would probably be the last year for this tradition. Ok, I suppose I have gotten away with it a lot longer than I ever anticipated. I decided tonight, though, that I would share the “firsts” and a few “in betweens” just in case this IS the last year. While I was looking through the book, the pictures I saw reconfirmed the reason why I have insisted on this tradition. It’s great fun to see how the girls have changed from 1986 to present.

Today was spent entirely in the kitchen. It started fairly early this morning and ended about two hours ago. I haven’t made holiday sweets in quite a long time. We always make our traditional sugar cookies for Santa but nothing more than that. I used to make goodies to give to my neighbors along with a Swedish Kringle. BUT, it got to be too much and trying to be Martha Stewart was killing the holiday fun. Today just about killed the holiday fun once again. So much work and most of it will probably get thrown away in a week or so. We started the morning making Oreo balls, Mocha balls, some sort of Frito chewy treat, bugle snacks dipped in white almond bark and an m&m candy (looked like an ice cream cone), spritz cookies, cut out sugar cookies and brownies frosted with cookie dough. Tomorrow afternoon will be spent decorating the sugar cookies and making Jim’s favorite – peanut brittle. Guess what…there’s zero calories in all of this 🙂

As I’m typing this, my personal elf, Miss Callie, is wrapping my presents. I think Christmas is actually going to happen in the Zeorian household after all!

Gosh…I look so young! The first year of being a mommy – 1986. Jamie was NOT happy about sitting next to that big man dressed in a red suit. That’s why I’m in the picture, too.

1988 – Jamie was almost 3 and Jenna was 7 months.

1994 – Taylor had just joined our family 7 weeks prior to the picture. Jamie was almost 9 and Jenna was 6.

1997 – Fourth and final addition to the family. Callie was 2 1/2 months old, Jamie nearly 12, Jenna 9 and Taylor 3.

2000 – Jamie was too cool to join the sisters for the Santa picture. She was nearly 15 years old at the time. Jenna is 12, Taylor is 6 and Callie is 3.

2003 – Jamie decided to jump back in the pictures in 2001. She is 17, Jenna is 15, Taylor is 9 and Callie is 6.

2006 – This was taken on Jamie’s 21st birthday, Jenna is 18, Taylor is 12 and Callie is 9.

2009 – Jamie is nearly 24, Jenna is 21, Taylor is 15 and Callie is 12.

P.S. Happy 26th birthday, Jamie!

Starting my day off with a tear

Dec16 by nebraskawheatie

Yesterday, I mentioned that those of us who are doing the DC thing or anything to help with our organization sacrifice a lot for the time we give. Here’s one example – the Christmas concert I didn’t get to see Taylor and Callie perform last night:

As I sit here in my room with tears in my eyes, I am thankful for today’s technology! I love you Taylor & Cal and I’m sorry I missed your night. I can’t make it up to you but I do know you understand. Doesn’t help me feel any less sad though!

A little biased

Dec12 by nebraskawheatie

Today I am going to brag on my daughter’s blog (Jenna aka Yensy Photos). Check out her gift of photography by clicking on the link below:

http://yensyphotos.wordpress.com/

The PERFECT Tree

Nov28 by nebraskawheatie

The above picture is the end result of an afternoon spent looking for the PERFECT tree!

After what seemed to be an untraditional Thanksgiving weekend due to Grandma being in the hospital, it ended on a holiday note.

Grandma is doing MUCH better! After watching her struggle for every breath for a couple of days, it appears she’s progressing well enough to be moved out of ICU tomorrow. Thank you for the prayers! Once again, I am reminded God IS in control!

I LOVE Christmas! And will try to do all I can to enjoy it as long as I can. The tradition of getting the Christmas tree up and decorated over Thanksgiving weekend began long ago in our household. After growing up with an artificial tree for most of my childhood, I decided that when I got married, I would have a real one. My tree of choice is a cedar tree from a local farmer’s pasture. Through the years, it has been Jim’s job to find the tree. He would take the older girls along with him while I stayed home with the younger ones. As the years have gone by and the kids have grown, we all go. Our tradition is being carried on through the newly established Hermesch household.

We headed for the pasture yesterday afternoon. The temperature was a little on the “nippy” side but the sun was shining. If you didn’t have a hat and mittens, you certainly would have been wishing for them. The brisk air definitely helped remind us that Christmas is just around the corner. Hey…at least we didn’t have to walk through snow!

Curt & Jamie found their tree first.

Some years, it takes us forever to find the PERFECT tree. There’s usually too many decisions and you never know if the one beyond will be better than the previous one spotted. By the time the PERFECT tree is found, we’ve walked further away from the pickup than you would have ever guessed. This means that all the hills you’ve just gone up and down will have to be retraced dragging a tree. It tends to be a good workout!

“Give me the saw, Taylor, this one’s mine”. Jenna

We ended up finding four trees – one for us, Curt & Jamie, Jenna and Taylor. It’s just fun carrying the Christmas spirit into your own little world (bedroom).

This is our PERFECT tree!

The PERFECT tree is always in the eye of the beholder. And, through the years I’ve found that even the not-so-perfect tree will look beautiful once it is decorated. Our trees tend to become a part of the family (silly, I know) and are dearly loved. The Christmas music is turned on while we put on the lights and the decorations. The girls make sure their special ornaments are put on year after year – as do I. It wouldn’t be right not to put on the same ones that we’ve always put on. Once decorated and boxes are put away, we turn off all the lights and admire our newest member of the family. Magically, the tree has become more than a tree. As far as we’re concerned, it grew in that pasture specifically for the purpose of providing us the memories of searching for it and becoming a part of our Christmas traditions. It’s so hard to take it down when Christmas is over. Probably because that means one more year of Christmas tradition and memories have come and gone. For now, though, welcome to the family dear PERFECT tree!

It’s official – I’m getting OLD!

Nov23 by nebraskawheatie

No school today…ALL day. I say this because the kids usually have to go to school at least 1/2 day the day before Thanksgiving. For whatever reason, they had a full day off today so, by gosh, we’re going to take advantage of it!

Callie’s been studying and studying to take the written Nebraska driver’s test. She’s 14, so she’s eligible to drive to school. However, she’s required to have the learner’s permit first. We went to the DMV office this morning. Poor girl, I could feel the butterflies in her belly the whole way there, while waiting in line and while talking to the nice-lady-behind-the-counter. It was finally time to take the test! About half way through, the computer decides to unexpectedly stop. I happened to still be in there talking to the nice-lady-behind-the-counter when this happened and, of course, heard them saying, “this has never happened before”. Times like this seem to be reserved only for the Zeorian’s! The issue got fixed but it meant Callie had to take her picture again after learning SHE PASSED! The last one of the four girls is now legal to be behind the wheel of a car. If that doesn’t make your hair a little more gray, I’m not sure what will.

Because Jamie had the day off work too, she was also at the DMV office to get her name officially changed from Zeorian to Hermesch. Jamie will be 26 next month. Do the math…12 years between my oldest and my youngest. When Jamie was a senior in high school, Callie was starting kindergarten. The name change on her driver’s license was the last piece of I.D. that needed to be taken care of. Jamie’s visit to the DMV wasn’t an easy one either. She started at the Douglas County DMV with her certified marriage certificate from the State of Florida. She got there early this a.m. only to encounter a not-so-nice-lady-behind-the-counter. She was told that even though she can change her Social Security number with the certificate via the US Federal Government, it was not enough for the name change on her Nebraska driver’s license. “You must call the county office in which you were married and get more information before I can take care of this for you”, she was told by the not-so-nice-lady-behind-the-counter. She calls me because she’s frustrated beyond belief. I don’t blame her! A brief thought enters my head, “tell her to go to the Sarpy County DMV”. So, I did and she did and she encountered a nice-man-behind-the-counter who had no issue with the certified marriage certificate and took care of the issue for her. Hmmm……..interesting, huh?

Back home now. The sun is shining and two girls are a little happier than they were a few hours ago. Callie got to drive home – on the highway with rock trucks and a speed limit of 60 mph. I’ve been through it three times already so I’m convinced that I’ll make it through one more time. What I’m not so sure of, though, is Jamie being officially un-Zeorianed (the BEGINNING of a new trend in this family, I’m sure).

94 years of life

Nov21 by nebraskawheatie

My Grandma turned 94 on Saturday. This means she was born in 1917.

1917…so many years ago and so many changes she’s experienced. I didn’t go visit her on her birthday because I assumed she would have a lot of other company there helping her celebrate. Taylor and I went to see her yesterday and found out no one was there on her special day. That was the beginning of several “twangs” I felt in my heart and my stomach. I should have been there! Grandma’s level of anxiety is so much less when there’s not so much activity in her room and in her life. Too many at one time overwhelms her because she can’t see very well and she can’t hear very well. She wants to be an active participant in the conversation and can’t focus when there’s more than one conversation happening.

Yesterday, while Taylor and I sat there with her, Grandma was in a very chatty mood. She smiled a lot and offered stories I had never heard before. I told her about going to Lincoln on Friday night to watch Taylor at All-State Choir. She asked what songs they sang and the only one I knew she would know was “My Country Tis of Thee”. She smiled from ear to ear, “Really? My Country Tis of Thee?” and then broke out in song. It was a moment that melted my heart! I really didn’t know Grandma liked to sing. She said she sang a lot as a kid and whistled all the time. Really? That’s Taylor! Whistling all the time. And in shrill notes that aggravate the heck out of me! Grandma told us the story of whistling really loud each time she had to go out and call the cows in. The cows got to know her whistle and when they heard it they’d know she and her dog were on their way. This brought tears to my eyes. My Grandma was once a little girl – someone who sang and whistled and enjoyed being with her 9 brothers and sisters. It was at this moment that I wished that I could have one of those days that I mentioned in a previous posting. A day that would take me back in time to allow me to see my Grandma as a little girl and view the simplicity of her life at that time. Grandma can’t whistle anymore. When she got dentures, the dentist took away her whistle. When she told us that story, it was Taylor who started to cry. Whenever Taylor whistles, I will probably still get agitated with the shrillness, but it will forever take on a whole different feeling – I will think of my Grandma.

Grandma also told of the time that she (as a 5 or 6-year-old girl) had to go up on stage for a school play. She could STILL remember her line. It goes something like this:

When I got up on stage, my heart went twitter pat, twitter pat. I heard someone in the audience ask, “Who’s sweet little girl is that?”

I can picture a little blond-headed 5 year old being scared to death up on stage and Grandma said, “My heart really was going twitter pat, twitter pat”. 🙂 Grandma was once a little girl, someone’s daughter, sister, and best friend. I have always known her as Grandma.

The memories I hold near and dear to my heart include her famous fried chicken with bread and gravy, Christmas and Easter, fishing, her cookie drawer, sitting in her lap, and “fixing” her hair. When I was little, we didn’t get to go see her very often. She lived 2 1/2 hours away. But, when we did, it was the BEST! I can still remember the overwhelming feelings of sadness as I would watch her house go out of sight in the rear view mirror. I felt that same feeling yesterday. I love you, Grandma! And I hope that one day, I’ll be a grandma just like you who unknowingly creates that sort of love in a little ones heart!

Our little songbird

Nov18 by nebraskawheatie

The same day we were getting ready to celebrate Jamie and Curt’s wedding (October 15), Taylor was making her way to Lincoln to audition for the 75th NMEA All-State Choir. She stressed over that morning long before it finally rolled around. Well…all the stressing and the hard work paid off! We found out 10 days later that she made the choir. And – not only did she make it but she was rated the #2 Alto from her site. I was told the Lincoln site was one of the harder ones to audition at because of the Class A schools. I was (and still am) pretty darn proud of our little songbird.

Tonight was the payoff for all her hard work. She’s been away from home, living in a hotel room with several of her friends (and chaperones) since Wednesday night. I’ve received text messages from her throughout her stay letting me know how things were going. My favorite text from her was the one that said the sound coming from these people’s mouths had to be what heaven would one day sound like.

“There were moments in our final rehearsal where I couldn’t even sing. It is SO amazing…I was completely overcome with emotion haha AND I had goosebumps throughout the ENTIRE rehearsal.” Taylor

I have to admit, she was right! As the sound of the very first word from the very first song was made, I was tearing up. By the time the song was over, I was wanting to really sob. The hour went way too fast! I’m sure it felt like that for Taylor, as well. What an awesome experience for her and for the other 400+ singers in that ALL State choir!

Over 3,000 kids from the state of Nebraska auditioned for this night and our little songbird was one of three from our Class C school that got to be on stage at the Lied Center in Lincoln. I’m so very proud of Taylor, Megan and Sophie! Thank you Mrs. Colbert and Mr. Hanson for all the time you’ve sacrificed and invested in these kids!

I wish I had a picture to share and/or video but we weren’t allowed to take any. You’ll just have to take my word for just how amazing it sounded!

What a difference a day makes!

Nov3 by nebraskawheatie

So exactly 24 hours ago, we had snow on the ground here in Eastern Nebraska! Yep…the day before yesterday it was BEAUTIFUL – near 70 degrees. Yesterday, however, we had a taste of what’s to come. We had pouring rain, thunder and then thunder snow. It went from 45 degrees to 30 in a matter of minutes. By the time it was all said and done, we had more than an inch of wet snow on the ground.

When Taylor got home, she informed me that it was THE BEST day ever! Not only because it was her 17th birthday but she had answered a question or a poll or something that asked her if she could have any one thing for her birthday, what would it be? She answered…to have Jordan (our dog) back in our lives. Well, Jordan LOVED snow. She loved chasing snow – either coming out of a snow blower or thrown snow balls or she could roll her own snow balls with her nose and throw them up in the air only to catch them again. So, Taylor was convinced that it snowed only for her and for her to know that Jordan was with her. 🙂 Love it, Tate!

Today, however, it’s beautiful once again. Not 70 degrees beautiful but over 50 and the sun is shining. No more white stuff to be seen anywhere.

Yesterday was also the beginning of the fall puzzle that must be put together before winter can truly arrive. The puzzle I’m referring to is the arranging of the equipment in the shed. We’ve rented a shed for 20+ years and it has gradually gotten smaller and smaller every year. Why? The equipment keeps getting bigger and bigger. The shed we rent is not one like you’d see in a farmer’s yard. It’s sides are rounded and not very big. Twenty some years ago, it was perfect! I wish I could wiggle my nose and create a much larger one with heat and a cement floor for Mr. Jim to be able to work in. We should have just bit the bullet 20 some years ago and bought our own. Hindsight is always 20/20! So, as I began telling you, we started putting the puzzle together yesterday. Jim wanted to get the two heads (MacDon flex head and the corn head) out of the weather first. Working from the back of the shed, of course, to the front. One piece of the puzzle that we won’t have to find a spot for will be a trailer house. That should help! By the time it’s all together, Jim will have organized and fit and moved and removed each piece of our Zeorian Harvesting & Trucking puzzle until it’s just perfect…with little room to spare! Once this chore is complete, harvest will truly be over for 2011 and Jim will begin his next yearly adventure – hauling propane. I heard him say he’ll start that after November 15th, giving him a little time to kick back before his REAL job begins! During the winter, he’ll work harder than he does in the summer and will put in over 70 hours per week. By the time April rolls around, he’ll be welcoming the upcoming harvest routine once again (and so will we).

We didn’t have a full blown 17th birthday party for Taylor like we sometimes do. She opted to have a smaller, more intimate one and wanted to do the cooking. Really? Who wants to cook on your birthday? Tate!! She’s an awesome cook and didn’t even realize it until this past summer. She was forced to be the harvest cook after Jenna retired and she has stepped up to the plate in all her glory! She really likes to bake. So, for supper, she created bread bowls and we had two kinds of soup – cheesy broccoli and chili. She also made her own cake – a pumpkin roll with cream cheese filling. It was DELICIOUS!

17?….I remember 17 – how can I be the mother of THREE daughters that have reached that age? Callie, you’ve got a few more years to catch up – but please don’t hurry! Happy birthday, Tate! Love you!

Taylor is reading her card out loud to find out what we got her. I ordered a Ukulele but it’s still in transit from Hawaii. That’s what she wanted!

Something must have been REAL funny!

Now THAT’S funny!

She FINALLY got to the end to see what she’s getting.

Trying to look like her card.

This is what Taylor likes to do…rub things on her face.

NICE girls!

Happy November 1st!

Nov1 by nebraskawheatie

For the last 20 some years, I’ve been involved with Halloween. It came to a sudden stop last night.

Since Jamie was born, costumes have been thought about and created – sometimes at the very last minute. School parties and parades marked the day nearly every year. I bet I could count only a couple of times that I didn’t walk around our little town. The two times I can think of was in 1994 when I was VERY pregnant with Taylor (she will celebrate her 17th birthday tomorrow) and in 1997 because Halloween was cancelled due to an ice/snow storm.

Last night was a beautiful night for the little goblins. Very rare, too. Most Halloween’s, I remember having to come back to the house midway through trick or treating for more gloves, hats and heavier coats. So many fun memories. However, that is done in the Zeorian household. Callie dressed up, but she went to another town with her friends. Taylor dressed up – only to help hand out candy at Jamie and Curt’s house. I was here most of the night by myself handing out candy – and very little of it. We only had about 25 kids, at the most, this year. Signs of the times? or just that our little village is lacking kids?

Brook and Jillian stopped by at the end of their trick or treating to let me see their costumes. I got to take a picture of them. So, the tradition continues with a new generation of spooks! Because of my moving out of the flurry of Halloween activity, I felt like it would be a good time to go through some of our past Halloween memories. I didn’t get every year represented but enough to give you an idea of the happenings in our house for the past 20+ years.

It’s beautiful here today in Nebraska! The doors are open and the clothes are on the line. It’s a day like today that I’m missing Jordan (our dog) really bad! She would have enjoyed soaking up the sun today.

The traditional carving of the pumpkins.

Callie doing a trial run the night before Halloween.

Notice the bare feet? It’s been an awesome fall in Eastern Nebraska!

The next generation of spooks! Jillian was a princess and Brook was a fairy (Tinkerbell).

The very first Halloween celebrated in our household. This is Jamie in 1986.

Me and Jamie in 1986.

Jenna in 1991.

1993

1998

(notice Taylor’s faces in a lot of these pictures)

1998

1999

2000 – the extra kid is Josh S.

2001

2001 – the tattered flag was hung outside immediately after 9-11

2002 – a new flag!

2003

I get by with a little help from my friends…

Oct18 by nebraskawheatie

Well, the party of the century is over and all the guests are home.

What a wonderful time we had! I had people here to help me pull this thing off and I’m so very appreciative of all of them! It took so many days to put this together and like so many events, it’s over before you know it! The evening was perfect! I can’t even think of one thing I would have changed – except to clone myself about 10 times. My brother, Matt, referred to me as a firefly. He’d see me in one spot and then look back and I’d be somewhere else. Just so many people and not enough time. I’m guessing there were at least 350 people throughout the night. Jamie and Curt should feel pretty good about the turn out. I believe it was after 2:00 a.m. before we left the building. The food was AWESOME, the band was amazing (and was local) and the crowd of people who came was unbelievable!

I can’t thank my helpers enough and won’t even attempt to thank them by name because I’d surely leave someone out. What would I do without the friends I have in my life? How could anyone get through life without them? We had people come as far away as Jordan and Billings, MT to spend the evening with us – over 1,000 miles they travelled. I honestly believe the number of friends we have is a measure of our blessings – we are truly blessed!

I will share with you the pictures I took but I’m hoping that someone else got more and got better pictures than I did. The stress of the past several weeks certainly paid off!

The meat began its tastey journey in this black bag. It was hand rubbed and marinated over night before it was placed on the smoker.

Mark & his helper, Brook.

Mark’s preparing his world-famous beans.

Brook took this picture of the guest book table.

Thanks, Matt, for helping Mark while I took off to do something else!

And the party begins…

My childhood next-door-neighbor and best buddy, Robin!! It was sooo good to see you!

Manley neighbors and great friends! We were missing one.

The wedding party, minus one. We missed you, Bekah!

We tried gathering our out-of-town guests the next morning for a farewell breakfast before they had to take off. Jamie & Curt also opened their gifts.