House O' Sullivans

More than three and a half years ago, Casey Bert ripped out the old fireplace in our living room.  Each Christmas, as has been told previously, there is the promise: "Fire by Christmas."  Hope rises.  Christmas passes.  The hole in the wall remains.  However . . . we DO have an arch now.  Casey's first. The arch before Casey removed the supporting form. The stone carver, his apprentice, and the evolving masterpiece. Looking more and more like a fireplace, I must admit.

A few days ago, my kids decided to draw portraits of me.  They ascended the stairs from the art bar, one by one, each producing a small masterpiece.  Interpret as you will. "Mom" by Sophie {age 6} "Mom" by Hallee {age 5} "Mom" by Zeke {age 3}

We've only established one legitimate Sullivan family New Year's Eve tradition.  I make a movie of the past year's adventures and we watch it together, reminiscing on the awesomeness.  This year I borrowed my mom's projector for the occasion, so we got to watch it all on the big screen (read: a blank wall in Wayne's Bar).  Right before we descended into the bar for "Sullivans 2013: The Movie," our sweet neighbor, Shirlene Farley, showed up on our front porch with a hot peach pie.  We did what anyone in our situation would do.  We ate that whole pie for dinner.  That is, I didn't make anything for dinner.  We just ate the pie.  It was New Year's Eve and it was awesome. Since Casey is the high council adviser to the stake young women and since I had been asked to play a few songs with the trek fiddlers, we took the whole family to the stake New Year's dance. Normally this is a dance for the youth of the stake, but this year is morphed into a...

We spent yesterday afternoon outside (I couldn't resist the clean air and sunshine) chipping the thick layer of ice off the driveway and sidewalks and building the beginnings of our backyard sledding hill (last year's version drew neighbor kids from far and wide).  Last night we trekked out to South Jordan for the annual Sullivan family nativity in the barn.  Sophie was cast as Mary, Hallee as an angel, and Zeke as a sheep. We spent so much time outside earlier that we had to throw together some costumes in haste.  The "baby" that Sophie held during the nativity was actually a glow worm.  Somehow I ended up with two girls that never really got into playing with dolls, so Zeke's glow worm was our best bet.  Sophie (Mary), Hank (Joseph), and Zeke (the sheep that thought he needed to join the scene). Zeke's get-up consisted of Casey's sheep skin (the one that we affectionately call "Bucky" after the original owner of the wool coat). ...