Christmas Highlights

We had such a great time on Christmas. We were able to share time with just our family for a few hours before venturing to my mom's house and my dad's house. The girls were worn out by the end of the day but very much enjoyed the spirit of the day. I've included some highlights below.....

santa has arrived!!

caroline's musical vanity set...perfect for a princess

one of ONLY 2 things Caroline asked for....set of 7 princesses (already had some but she did not seem to care when she asked for it from santa!)

anna got her own netbook computer from gammy....we missed gammy this year. she was in the frozen world of rapid city....even she admitted it was cold!!

caroline with her bitty twins from gammy

a garmin for gary's bike rides....now when everyone asks him where he rides he can show them!!

our budding star on her microphone. this was a favorite gift from my brother....concerts all day, every day!!

puppet theatre from my dad and julie. the kids have been very creative with it

my nephew henry playing catch with gary....we've got a true athlete on our hands and he is just three years old.

family fun with twister the day after christmas!

Christmas Eve

The girls have been estactic waiting for Christmas Eve to arrive. We had a pretty calm day around the house. We enjoyed dinner with our friends the Desouzas on the 23rd and all slept in which was great. We had breakfast at Dad's house prepared by the sous-chef in the family Uncle Matt, Jennifer's husband. Yummy bacon and eggs were devoured by everyone.

The girls actually took short afternoon naps and then we headed to Hope for the annual Christmas Eve service. This year was back to very traditional after a veer off that path last year. I was so pleased to have a quiet service with carols sung and the candelighting at the end. I always get emotional during Silent Night when the candles are all lit. It is an amazing sight. I am reminded of so much during this quiet time and am reminded that I am thankful for so much that happened on that silent night many years ago.

After church we made a brief stop at my aunt's house. My stepdad's family gathered mostly while we were at church but the girls like seeing their aunt Annette. We ate some there and then hurried home to get the girls in bed. Dressed in their annual matching pajamas, the girls were excited to prepare the cookies and milk for Santa and to hop in their beds. Not a single peep from them once we turned out the lights!!! We read Twas the Night before Christmas as well as the Christmas Story from Luke 2. Santa arrived around 10pm and left by midnight....not too much to put together this year which was great! Gary and I then settled in for our annual tradition of watching Christmas Vacation once Santa has left. That keeps us up late but it is good for the soul to laugh!!! In bed by 1am and up again at 7am....fun times awaited us!!

matching pj's for christmas eve

sugar cookies and milk for santa

the girls were thankful that ally was doing better with her purple cast

Christmas traditions

Here are a few of my favorite pictures from the Christmas holidays of things that we did together either as a family or just with one of the kids.

anna and i at our annual trip to the nutcracker ballet
the girls with santa....never go see santa on "pet night".....

the girls and i at the enchanted forest....not sure about caroline's crazy eyes!! this event has not changed a bit other than location since i was anna's age. the girls love it!

Ally....for better or for worse

On Friday morning at exactly 5am, Ally, our 9 1/2 year old weimaranter fell off our bed and made the worst sound I have EVER heard. We flew out of bed to check on her and found her very sad and not moving on the floor beside the bed. Throughout the morning rush she seemed to get a little better but still not walking around much (no weight on front right leg) and pretty sad. We crated her and decided to wait and see.....that afternoon as Gary drove home from work on his way to Dallas with some friends to see a Cowboys game, he found Ally's leg very swollen and her acting very pitiful. I promptly called and got an appointment at our vet clinic for Saturday morning. I took her up to the clinic with the girls. Our vet was not there as it was Saturday but we saw another partner in the practice. She immediately looked at Ally and said it was fractured. They sedated Ally and took some x-rays. The orthopedic vet was there but not working but still looked over the x-rays. Ally fractured her ulna and her radius in over 5 or 6 places. The x-rays looked terrible. Even Anna could see the huge fractures. The vet told me that either 1) it was a freak accident or 2) it was a pathological fracture, which is the result of cancer in the bone. We scheduled surgery for Monday and I then decided I was going to hock my kids to pay for the surgery bills!!! I made the difficult call to Gary to let her know what was going on. We both thought she had cancer and we sad ALL weekend. Gary threatened to come home early and miss the game many times but I encouraged him to stay. My brother and sister were gracious hosts that weekend and help to keep his thoughts off the awful situation at home. Ally perked up some once we got some strong pain meds in her system. On Monday, after speaking wtih Gary's mom, postponed surgery. I wanted Gary to be here, see the x-rays and speak with our own vet with me before me made any decisions. We had decided over the weekend to put her down. However, on Tuesday morning, our vet and the ortho vet met us before office hours to go over our choices. Our vet LOVES Ally and has helped her so much with her allergies. He knows that we would do anything for Ally but realizes she is 9 1/2, a large breed animal with underlying health issues because of her allergies. The vets gave us the option of "serial splinting" her leg rather than surgery. Her fractures were all vertical and lined up nicely. The one spot on her leg that the ortho vet has a gut feeling is cancer our vet did not see the same way. By keeping the leg in a splint for 2-3 months and x-raying periodically, we will see the cancer grow if it is indeed there. If not, then her leg should heal well, we will have avoided very costly surgery and we will have bought some time. Ally had new x-rays today and everything still looks good. We will hope for a clean health report but realize that should cancer show its face on the x-ray we will have to put her down. Tough times for our family. Our girls wanted to take pictures with Ally all weekend. Anna even added to the top of her letter to Santa that she did not want Ally to have cancer and she wanted her to live longer. Very sad. Lots of tears, but hopefully we are on the road to recovery. We are optimistic, but cautiously and realistically optimistic.

pitiful....this is ally on friday night prior to heading to the vet on saturday

just brought out of sedation....the girls laid on the floor with her to make her happy

ally was a bit more awake by sunday morning

Trophies and ribbons and more, oh my!

Anna was recognized at school on Tuesday for playing on one of the school soccer teams. Gary and I attended and as Gary was one of the coaches, he helped pass out the ribbons. I am so proud of Anna as she played hard and loved being goalie and really enjoyed the season. Not very much whining or many tears this year....she's growing up!! It was fun to play for school and have kids on the team that we knew and she was in class with. The past two years we have had Anna on a team at church and found it hard to get friends on the same team. Go Harding!!

anna with coach gary showing off her "awesome athlete" ribbon

On Wednesday Anna has her last after-school gymnastics class of the semester. The parents are invited to watch the kids show off what they have learned. While this is not a challenging class or one that will make her a competitive athlete, she enjoys it and it gives her a break one afternoon a week during after-school care. We are proud of our gymnast!!

anna with her trophy at the end of the gymnastics semester

Dear Santa....

Dear Santa....I obviously think I have been VERY good based on the length of my list. I reminded you about my sister too. Love, Anna Zyriek.

Come on vamanos!!

Caroline's good buddy Mya celebrated her 3rd birthday yesterday with a visit from Dora!! Caroline enjoyed singing and dancing with Dora and her friends and Mya really was excited. Caroline was a little suspect and asked me 1) who brought Dora there (since Caroline said Dora is too little to be able to drive and 2) is the "real" Dora inside that costume. Fun times had by all!! Happy Birthday Mya!

dancing and singing with dora
mya, the birthday girl

caroline taking a bat to the pinata

anna and caroline posing with dora

H-O-P-E....Let's Go Hope!!

Winter cheerleading is back for Anna and you can definitely tell the girls have done this before. Anna and her buddies had a great time cheering on the basketball teams this morning. The season will extend through February and I think it will be great!! The uniforms say Tigers on them and will be nice to have should the U of M Tigers proceed into the NCAA tourney this year!! Caroline is wishing she was out there and won't she be hilarious when she struts her stuff!!

such spirit!!
good job cheering!!

caroline adding her 2 cents worth!!

It's beginning to look like Christmas

Just a few snapshots to show it is looking like Christmas to the Zyrieks.....

caroline with mrs. claus (miss carol) at the davis-kidd fundraiser

the girls have been DYING for an inflatable for the yard and this year daddy came through!

one of my favorite things....the fun advent calendar filled with goodies!!

caroline and her buddy alannah at the polar express movie at church

Beautiful Ballerina

Anna wrapped up the fall semester of ballet last night with her parent observation class. Anna definitely had the largest fanbase in the room, minus her little sister who decided she did not want to cooperate or watch quietly so Gary ended up taking her home early!! Anna is learning the actual positions of ballet and using the barre this fall which she really likes. She tells me it is hard but overhears her teacher tell me that she is doing well and is graceful which brings a smile to her face. She is very tall and limber!! We are very proud of how well she did and how she stood out in the class for her talent! Can't wait until she can be in the Nutcracker in a few years....probably as a mouse or something small but she can definitely try out once she hits Ballet 3 in third grade!

gary says this is a yoga move that is very difficult....anna looked great!!
serious anna

curtsey at the end

Turkey Day with Gammy

The Zyrieks loaded up and flew out to South Dakota for Thanksgiving. I have only missed two Thanksgiving Day holidays with my family in my entire life. I am just a home body I guess!! The girls were so excited to spend a few days with Gammy and play with all the toys she has at her house. We arrived on Wednesday and spent time catching up with Mary and getting settled in. Mary invited a friend over for Thanksgiving dinner which Mary prepared and it was delicious. She even found her own mother's recipe for good old Southern dressing and I was very pleased! That is one of my favorite parts of the Thanksgiving meal. I have even learned to make it myself compliments of a recipe from Southern Living. Mary did not disappoint with all her creations.

the girls having fun in mary's basement with all the toys!

anna made the table decorations

my sweet family

mary with her son and granddaughters.

beautiful view from mary's deck

I decided to sleep in on Black Friday but fully participated in Cyber Monday upon returning to Memphis!


Gary and I took in the Auburn/Alabama game from the local Chili's since Mary does not have loca channels at her house. We were so excited for 58 minutes of the game....and then the lucky Crimson Tide disappointed us and our upset hopes.

gary and enjoyed hanging out watching the auburn game....boo bama!!

After the game we headed up to Hill City to take the old 1880 Train to the "North Pole" We rode the train for about an hour and were served cookies and hot cocoa by Santa's elves and met Santa halfway through the ride. Anna was doubtful that we were truly in the North Pole but Caroline was very much in on it. Caroline is warming up to Santa but did require Gary to be in the picture with her.

the girls are literally hanging out the window looking for santa

anna enjoyed having a snapshot with santa

Saturday Mary took the girls with her to the paint a piece pottery studio to make some surprise Christmas gifts and have lunch too. Gary and I were able to knock out some errands for Mary and a little bit of shopping for Christmas. Then we took in a late afternoon showing of The Blind Side. Highly recommend it and not just because the story took place in Memphis. It was great and well done. The theatre was packed and we wondered if the Rapid City folks even recognized half of the SEC coaches shown in the movie.

Back home on Sunday and back to reality. We enjoyed relaxing, resting, visiting and taking in the scenery. Gary took his mountain bike and rode a few times with one of Mary's doctor friends. It was well worth the effort as Gary claimed it was gorgeous scenery and the terrain his bike was made for.

gary had gorgeous scenery for his rides



We have much to be thankful for and we truly enjoyed our trip!!

Feasting with Caroline

Gary and I joined Caroline for her classroom feast. She was decked out in her pilgrim hat and very excited to have us join her. The food was very yummy and the kids liked doing something different. Caroline is so crazy she keeps us on her toes. After lunch she organized some of the kids for a game around the basketball goals in the gym....I guess she must do that a lot because when I picked her up yesterday from school she was in timeout for "climbing up the goals" per her own words!

One funny comment from Caroline during lunch was when they tried to put cranberry sauce on her plate. She said that was "turkey blood" and she was not going to eat it. She is hilarious.

Gary and I are so thankful for Caroline and all the excitement and of course occasional frustration that she brings to our lives. I can't wait to see what she grows up to be one day!! I know she will make us proud and laugh.....

caroline's "i am thankful for" turkey...love that i am first!

caroline with mya and ava

gary and i with our little pilgrim

Thanksgiving Thoughts

We are off to South Dakota for Thanksgiving tomorrow morning bright and early, ok, not so bright if we take off at 6:00 AM!!! Call me crazy but that flight was the cheapest ticket available. We've done it before and the girls did very well. It gets us to Mary's house a litle after 10am with the time change. We have been packing and thinking ahead about our trip. Last night at dinner I asked the family to tell what their favorite part of Thanksgiving was and here are the responses:

Gary: Spending time with my family and this year my mom

Anna: Eating good food and seeing my family

Caroline: Not eating pumpkin pie and hugging my family

Lisa: Eating pumpkin pie and relaxing

This year will be a little different since we are out of town but we will truly enjoy God's glory in nature when we relax at Mary's house in the Black Hills. We may be able to sneak in some Black Friday shopping....there are a few stores out there : )!!

Final thought....Gary's mom has turkey and deer on her land that the girls really enjoy watching and feeding. Caroline asked me this morning if we were going to eat the turkey from Gammy's backyard....Of course we are not but I can already sense a small protest on the part of Caroline in case her plate includes what she fed last time we were in town!!

Happy Thanksgiving....I have so much to be thankful for.

Harding 5k

This past weekend Harding Academy held their annual 5k race/fundraiser. The school did a great job encouraging the kids and their families to sign up to race. Once you were signed up the kids were allowed to wear their long-sleeved race t-shirts to school with jeans on two different days last week. This was amazing to get 2 days off from wearing uniforms and Anna was thrilled. Anna wanted to run the 5k and asked me to run it with her. I thought it would be fine and stressed to her that we were not trying to win but merely finish what we started. She was amazing!! We finished with a time of around 41 minutes and she did not complain once. She ran 7 1/2 minutes to start the race and then alternated walking with running. We finished strong and she was so thrilled as was I. She wants to do more 5k's around town to get used to it and improve her time.

mom and daughter finishing together!

anna and mckayla both finished the 5k!

Cyp won 1st in his category and i won 3rd....lots of parents running with their kids! i'll take a medal any day of the week!

Then, it was Caroline's turn. To generate interest in the event for the "Little Lions" (ages 2-kindergarten) at Harding, they created the "5L" race. This was 5 laps for Little Lions. Caroline got her very own race shirt as well and wore it proudly to school last week when Anna wore hers. She was so geared up to put on her race number and tiger paw tattoos on Saturday. Her race was hilarious and she loved every lap of it. The laps were 100 yards each. Caroline was giving it her all and even gave a few of the parents high-fives as she passed them on her laps.

caroline the speed racer loving every minute of it

Fun day overall. Wish Gary's knee was more healthy as he could of joined us too. Just excited to see the kids enjoying being outdoors on a beautiful day and getting some great exercise as well.

Here's to a healthy family!!