I love dresses!

I took advantage of the after Christmas sales and bought myself two early birthday gifts from urban outfitters:

Christmas booty

Our top six Christmas Gifts

Amelia: American girl style doll with two outfits and tea party supplies

Aaron: Brown canvas Converse shoes like Amelia's adorable red ones

Andrew: Herberts wormhole (he already finished it) and a magic card gift set

Jacob: Tony Hawk Ride which he has been begging for since he first saw it.

Me:  Biggest loser family for Wii, nothing cracks me up more then seeing Aaron do aerobics

Bowling with the Brauns

Adam the super bowler


Aaron's gutterball (he bowled amazing up until this priceless point)


Me

Merry Christmas

This Christmas I was completely surrounded by boys with the exception of Amelia who is tiny and soft spoken. Aaron's youngest Brother Adam flew down from Kansas to sleep on our couch, drink our beer, and thoroughly entertain our kids. I love Adam. Aside from Aaron he is by far my favorite Braun. He's the kind of person who could make a DMV worker behave like a civilized human being. He's that great. I wish I had a pocket sized Adam that I could take out ever so often to make me smile.

On Christmas day the kids woke up super early to open presents, Conrad, my father in law, drove down from Mexico (did I forget to mention that he now lives In Tijuana with his  31 year old fiance and three small children? Did I also mention that despite the fact that neither one of them can understand the other, she speaks solely spanish and him English, they are deeply and madly in love).   Conrad spent much of the morning making me feel like a shallow consumeristic shell of a person by continually telling me how his Fiance's kids get oranges for Christmas and are so very, very happy about it! 

I cooked a big Christmas feast for the crew who consited of Aaron's brothers, Aaron's good buddy Frank along with his wife and son, my boys, Amelia, Conrad, and Jesse's Girlfriend who only hung out for about an hour and instead opted to attend a yoga class (why don't I get that option?).  She mostly just drank alot and discussed the b-list celebrites her and Jesse party with in San Diego.  She later insisted on brushing and styling all three of my kids hair (I think it was an unsubtle hint).

Spending the holidays's with the Brauns is like a five hour Saturday night live skit that is both painful and hilarious at the very same time.  I have learned to love them all despite their quirks. I couldn't ask for better in-laws. 
                                                                       The girls

Because of Dad

The blog I wrote about my dad was published in last weeks San Diego Reader.  I am really happy that I won for this particular piece.  It was hard for me to write about my dad without coming across as whiney or too sentimental.  Anyway, Here's the link:In memory of Seamus Feely. 

I had three goals in terms of writing this year

1. To make my Journalism Professor's student success page on his website (silly I know!)
2. To win 1st place in the San Diego Reader's  Neighborhood blog Contest.
3. To have a Reader cover story.

I am really pleased to have accomplished all three.  I don't really know where to go from here.  I need some new goals for 2010.  I think I would like to secure an internship and a local paper or magazine and this is a really, really huge long shot but.... I want to have an article in the New Yorker by the end of the 2010.   It'a a far cry from our little local paper but I think it's good to make insane goals.

Jacob Birthday letter #9

Dear Jacob,

You are officially nine years old. This year has been full of new things for you. For your Birthday you attended your first ever Chargers game with your Big brother, Dad, and Grandpa. It's was a guys day complete with tailgating and in the intake of entirely too much fried food. You deserved a man party; after all you are the only boy in the third grade. With the exception of Mr. Ash you are surrounded by girls 7 hours a day. I am certain that by the end of this year you will know more about women then your 32 year old father does!

I was worried about how this school year would affect you what with the absences of other little guys to hang out with. You seem to be doing really well. Your teacher adores you and you adore him. You get all sorts of special privileges. You always get to be a team captain during P.E and received the most coveted 3rd grade role in the school's Christmas pageant (you get say "will your Camels spit at us." I don’t get the hype but apparently all the kids wanted to have that line). The other day while I was in your classroom, the girls were discussing Hannah Montana; I saw you and Mr. Ash exchange anguished looks. It was priceless.

Your teacher set it up so that the 2nd and 1st graders have the same recess time as you. For a half an hour twice a day you get o play with the younger boys. They follow you around the playground and obey your every command. It's kind of cool, mostly because you are such a laid back little guy. You've never been one to take on a leadership role but this year you've been thrown into one. The younger kids adore you. Your confidence has really grown. I'm glad because sometimes I worry that you don't realize just how great you are! It's nice to see you so sure you of yourself.

I am so proud of you and happy to have you in my life. Every single day you make me smile. I hope that your ninth year will be the best one yet!

Love,
Mom