Christmas with the Broekers

Wednesday night, we celebrated Christmas with the Broekers. We went to their house and they ordered pizza and made cookies. We exchanged gifts. Conner got a pirate ship, a book, and some dinosaur pajamas from The Broekers. He got a homemade monogrammed towel with a green tractor from his God Grandparents (Jamie's parents). We got Hannah a jewelry making kit, some magnetic fashion dolls, and some fashion design plates. We got Kyle a magic kit, a card game, and an "I SPY" game. We are expecting a magic show and some bracelets the next time we visit. We had a great time celebrating with them.

Payne Christmas

Christmas Morning

Elfreich Christmas

Christmas Card 2010

Our 2010 Christmas Cards are in the mail. We had such a great experience using Shutterfly and they turned out great. We will use them again next year!!!

Our 2010 Christmas Card






Nashville 2010

I had a doctor's appointment on Friday at Vanderbilt, so we headed to Nashville, TN about 5:30 a.m..  We went to the doctor, then met up with 2 of our friends who are doctors at Vanderbilt, Andy and Anna, for a short visit. Then, we headed to the ICE exhibit. The theme this year, "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."  It was once again Impressive to say the least. Conner did well considering we each had about 10 layers of clothes on and he was buried under blankets in his stroller. They keep it at 9 degrees in there. Then, we had lunch at Caney Fork. It was a great place to eat. We will definitely go back. I never order ribs, but the waitress said they were "Awesome." So, we both got them and she was RIGHT. They were very tasty. Then, we headed to the hotel for a nap. Then, back out. We went to Bass Pro Shop to see the renovation, shop, and see Santa. We saw Santa the night before at Daycare and that didn't go well. So, we asked Conner Friday when he got a glimpse of Santa, if he wanted to go talk to him. His answer "NO." So, we stared at him for a long time from a distance. Then we would shop for awhile. He would then say "Santa...... Where Go?" So, we would go stalk Santa from a distance again. I would ask again if he wanted to talk to him. "NO" was always the answer. We stalked him about 6 times while we were there. He kept wanting to go watch him. So, that is how we see Santa now. From a distance. After Bass Pro, we went to the Opryland Hotel to browse. It was gorgeous as usual. Then, time for dinner and a late bedtime. Oh well. We came home first thing Saturday. A good time was had by all.

Steve and Conner inside ICE.

See the stairs on the left made of Ice and the large slide is made of Ice too.

Steve went down the slide. He said it was FAST.

10 Layers of Clothes and Blankets.

Nativity Scene

Lunch at Caney Fork.

Watching Santa from a Distance

Stalking Santa

Watching all the girls and Boys visit with Santa and Happily watching.

Conner and the Poinsettia tree.

What We are Up To

It's been a busy couple of weeks at the Elfreich house. We are a little out of the loop with nothing real exciting to blog about. Steve had an arthroscopic knee scope surgery the day before Thanksgiving. That was supposed to be a quick fix for his pain, instead it turned into a freak disaster. If something weird is going to happen, it is going to happen to us. Evidently, they hit a vessel during Steve's surgery while the tourniquet was up. The knee is sutured and dressings applied before the tourniquet comes down. So, they had no way of knowing that he had a slow bleeder. That was Wednesday. By Friday morning, his knee was the size of a cantaloupe, he couldn't bend it, and could barely walk. It finally stopped bleeding early in the morning Saturday. Then the knee had to take a few days and absorb all the blood. This put him painfully behind on recovery about a week. Now, he is doing much much better and is back on the move. He hopes to return to full work duty in a week. Although, it will take about 6 weeks before he can kneel on his knee.

Conner has been battling sickness for about 8 weeks. He was diagnosed with a Sinus Infection and Bronchitis on yesterdat for the THIRD time in these 8 weeks. Yes. The THIRD time. So, he is on his third round of antibiotics and hopefully, they kick it in the @#$ this time. He is ready to get back to good health, just in time for Christmas. Steve took him to the pediatrician yesterday. He ordered a chest x-ray and blood work to rule out pneumonia. Conner was a perfect patient. They drew his blood with a needle and vial just like for you or me and he never cried once. Then, he held his arms above his head and held real still while they took a chest x-ray. What a trooper.

Steve and I have also passed the crud around for the last 8 weeks. We too, are starting antibiotics today and hopefully the 3 of us will get well all about the same time and stay there.

Our Christmas decorations are up, the presents are bought and wrapped, and Christmas cards will be in the mail before Christmas and maybe a few days FASHIONABLY late. Don't think you have been left off our list, I am just running behind on those as usual.

We are headed to Nashville on Friday as we do every December. I have my annual Doctors appointment at Vanderbilt University. It always falls about this time each year. We always make a small trip out of it to see what Nashville has to offer at Christmas. This year, we won't be doing any shopping at Opry Mills because of the flood. We will visit the Opryland hotel,  Ice, The new SNOW exhibit, and of Course Bass Pro Shop which is back open. We are looking forward to the exciting weekend. Just wish it was going to be warmer.

We hope all of you are enjoying the Christmas season and not letting the Idiot drivers I saw out this afternoon get you down.  Why does everyone's driving get really crappy this time of year?  Stay warm and enjoy the season.

Happy Birthay Maddie

Happy Birthday to our Dear friend Madison Noelle Koester. I remember where I was 12 years ago today. I got a phone call about 4 a.m. from Michelle saying she had been having contractions for several hours and was headed to the hospital. I was in college at that time in my life doing my clinicals. Those weren't days you could easily miss without being dinged.  So, I couldn't be there for your birth, but I got there as soon as I got off work. I couldn't wait to meet you. Now, 12 years later, I am just as excited to see you as I was that very first meeting. You bring so much joy and laughter to everyone you come in contact with. Don't ever change. We love you and hope you have a great day!

My Thanksgiving

As I set here with my butt glued in my favorite chair and my leg elevated with bags of ice on it, I think of the things that I am thankful for this thanksgiving. I am thankful for Tammy bringing me ice bags and ice cold ski's to drink while I am recovering from knee surgery. I am thankful for Conner and how he groans really loud as he pushes up on my butt cheeks to help me up every time I get up from the chair (he knows dada is hurt and he is trying so hard to help me). I am thankful again for Conner and how he holds my hand and stands in front of me taking very small baby steps as he leads me to the potty. (Once again thinking he is helping his injured daddy). Bottom line, I am just so thankful for my wife and son. The lord has blessed me more than I ever thought I would be or more then I ever deserved. I am also so thankful for my parents. They are the best in the entire world and I don't know what I will ever do with out them. Thank you God for all my blessings.

Payne Thanksgiving

Tonight, we had our Payne Thanksgiving. It was a nice night of good food and company. The rain didn't put a damper on our celebration.

Happy Thanksgiving

As I sit here at my computer, as both the boys are napping, I wonder -- when will I find a day when "I"  have time to nap? Then, I turn my mind to all the things I am thankful for INSTEAD. I am thankful that I am not bed ridden and that all "I CAN DO" is nap. I still have my health, my energy, and my desire to be a go getter. Napping will come again when Conner goes to College or Laundry does itself and groceries magically appear in my fridge without making a Wal-mart run. The time will come.

Today, I am Thankful For:

1. My wonderful Husband Steve, who is a wonderful partner and an even better father.
2. My beautiful, smart, and lovable Conner. He makes every day worth living and fills everyone he comes in contact with full of love, joy, and happiness. He also offers endless smiles which are contagious.
3. My parents, parents in-laws, sisters, and brothers. They are the wonderful, loving, supportive ROCKS in our lives that we can always depend on.
4. My nieces and nephews. They are like your own children but you don't have to financially support them and you can send them home. I get so much joy watching them grow, change, and learn.
5. Our extended families. We have a great group of Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins on both the Elfreich and Payne sides. They are always there if you need them. Rather it be roofing a house or decorating for a wedding. All you have to do is ask. Family is very special. I wish all of our family was even closer nearby. I wish Michigan was next door to Evansville.
6. My friends. What would we do without friends? Have you ever thought of how much you depend on your friends for love, laughter, the simplest comment to make you smile, or just the knowing that they will always be there? I love you guys.
7. Our Health. We have been in the ER 3 times, Surgery once (yesterday), and the pediatricians office several  times this year. That is not bad for our track record. It was never anything we couldn't overcome and move on. Just short illnesses.  Thank you God for a pretty healthy year. We needed that.
8. Our Jobs. We are both employed bringing home paychecks. We have health insurance and benefits. In this economy, that is HUGE. Steve's business has boomed in the past several months, and he has never been out of a job. We consider ourselves very Lucky.
9. Deaconess Children's Enrichment Center a.k.a.  Conner's daycare. We are so pleased with the care and love Conner receives from daycare. We can't say enough about how much we love it there.  We are blessed to have Ms. Diana and Ms. Carolyn in his everyday life. We are blessed to have the peace of mind every day knowing he is being well taken care of and loved.
10. Digital Cameras. One of my simplest blessings, but something I am so thankful for. It helps me create memories for my family and Conner. I would be lost without it.
11. Blogs and Blog Books. Again, a way for me to create lasting memories for my family and Conner and a way for our family and friends to keep track of us.

So, as we stuff our bellies today, take a moment to thank God for everything he has given us and give those special "Someones" an extra squeeze.

One more thing- I am thankful for Spell Check. It found 9 mistakes. OOPS!!!

Christmas Card Time

As many of you now know, Shutterfly is offering 50 free Christmas cards to Bloggers. Well, for all of you who know me, I love something free. I have always been pleased with the quality you get from Shutterfly. I have ordered photo books, cards, and prints from them. The best thing I have ever ordered was a photo book for Conner's 1st Birthday Party. It was awesome to capture his special day in a bright and exciting photo book that he will have forever to treasure. That is priceless. The quality of their books is the reason I keep going back to Shutterfly.

The selection of photo cards they are offering this Christmas is amazing. You won't find this selecion anywhere else. To get in on the free cards for bloggers click here.

They are offering  Christmas Invitations, Christmas Photo Cards, and New Years Cards.  That is a great deal and will be hard to beat.

My favorites So Far:

Remember to click HERE to get on board!!

Our Family Photos

All of our Family Photos are up for viewing. Simply  click Here to see them all. Alisann is one of a kind. If you need pictures made, I highly recommend Alisann Elpers at Captured Studios Photography.  Click Here for her Info.

Photo Shoot- 18 Months and Family Pictures

New Harmonie Camping

This weekend was our last camping weekend for the year. We went to New Harmonie State Park with our friends Josh and Jamie and their kids. The weather was frigid cold in the 40's for a high Saturday and in the 20's for a low. We survived. We had a lot of fun and Conner enjoyed being outside non-stop and playing with Jakob and Sidney.



Conner, Jakob, and Sidney





The Ellards and Elfreichs



Click on this above picture to see Conner's facial expression better. Too Funny!!!