Tuesday, December 29, 2015

December 2015

December 1st Nick woke up with a very high fever and sore throat.  He was home for the next three days with increasing symptoms which eventually landed us in the doctor's office.  He still had the fever and the sore throat, but had also developed very goopy, red eyes.  The doctor did a quick strep and it came back negative.  In the end it was decided he had a virus that looked a lot like strep and pink eye, but was not.  Nick was relieved because he had a project due in school and didn't want to miss any more days.  He was cleared to go back.  

December 4th, the Highland Creek Harmonizers performed at the tree lighting ceremony.  It was a bit cold, but well worth braving the chill to hear the kids sing and watch the lights come on in the park.  

Naomi in the middle of the pack.
December 5th was the ward Christmas party, "A Night in Bethlehem".  Nick and I started the day off early by delivering the costumes to the church along with a few of the decorations we had.  We helped for a bit in putting up the lights and then took off to get Nick some new pants.  He had grown over night and all his pants were too short.  Back at home we made cookies for the party and got ourselves ready for the night.

It was a fun party and everyone seemed to enjoy themselves.  The program was wonderful and really brought the spirit of the season.  I love our ward!!

The gymnasium was transformed into Bethlehem for the night.  There were booths offering different food to eat as well as stations with crafts for the kids.  

Naomi dressed as a little girl would be at the time Jesus was born.  

 
The Elders were the Roman soldiers who stood at the door and collected the taxes (of canned food items).  Two of my Beehives (Kaylie and Journey) made the costumes as part of their Divine Nature projects for their Personal Progress.  The costumes turned out great.  

Jeremy got into the action.  

Sara, me and Barbara.  You can't see an orange wedge and not do this.

Joseph, Mary and the baby Jesus. 
December 6th, the Panthers beat the Saints.  12-0.  Keep pounding!

December 8th, Steve was in the doctor's office getting medicine for his bronchitis.  We should feel lucky that he hasn't gotten sick earlier.  We are traditionally on our second round of bronchitis by now.  Once the meds kicked in he stared feeling better very quickly. 

That night was the Highland Creek Elementary Winter Musical, "The Grumps of Ring-A-Ding Town."   The 4th grade practiced for two months for this night and the excitement was palpable.  They put on an amazing show!  Everyone sang and smiled and knew their lines.  

Snowmageddon!

Naomi took on a few extra lines at the last minute due to the other person being sick.  She did a great job.  

"We're GRUMPY!"  This was my favorite song in the whole play. 


Maddie, Naomi and Kaleigh

Victoria and Naomi
December 9th was a busy day.  We had a quick family dinner complete with the wonderful cake Steve baked for me, before we headed out the door to the youth activities for the night.  The Young Women did a sensory Christmas. We were each blindfolded and given different items to feel, smell, taste while music in the background took us through the life of Christ.  It was an amazing activity.  The blindfold made you focus on the music and the item in your hands.  Some of the items included straw, a star, a baby to hold, bread, a fish net and a nail.  Christmas isn't just about the birth of a baby, it is a celebration of the life of Christ.  This activity really made that concept into a reality for me. I love the inspired programs of the church.  

Blowing out my candles.
December 10th I got to sub in one of Nick's classes.  I love being with the kids all day.  They make me laugh.  When we got home, the kids helped me fix pizza for dinner as well as bake up 5 dozen cookies for the LNC Staff Cookie Walk the next day.  We all went to bed exhausted.  

December 11th, Naomi was home sick.  So far, just Jeremy and I have escaped the sickness fairy.  Let's hope it stays that way.  I got all the Christmas lights up that day while Naomi slept and got better.  When Naomi saw the light later that day it inspired her to start singing.  "He sees you when you're sleeping.  He knows when you're awake.  He knows... (pause)  That is creepy.  Santa is just a jolly stalker who everybody loves!"  She cracks me up.  

Steve the shopping elf.  We managed to fit in a little Christmas shopping in between all the various activities.  
Naomi caught this sunset while we were out grocery shopping.  She immediately shared it with her Aunt Dianna who loves to take pictures of sunsets as well. 



Grandpa Weenig sent this picture he had drawn to Naomi.  They share a love of art.  
December 13th, the Young Women sang in the Christmas program and they sounded great.  This is worth noting because all of them said they could not sing.  I beg to differ!!

December 14th through the 18th was a whirl wind of activities.  The high school was only in for a half day and so I was in charge of early carpool since my carpool buddy was still at work during that time.  I also volunteered at the middle school in the afternoon in the library.  Wednesday, the 16th, the youth went caroling at a local nursing home.  They stayed and chatted with the residents before heading back to the church for refreshments.


On the 17th, our modem died while the kids were trying to get their homework done.  We ran out and got a new one that night so the kids could get their homework submitted before Winter Break.  

Friday the 18th, I got to go help with the 4th grade Winter Party.  My station was the dance floor.  I got to watch the kids have a great time dancing while making sure no one got hurt.  It was so much fun.  

Naomi and Mrs. Rowan busting a move.  I think they are doing The Waddle. 
Friday the 18th to Saturday the 19th Steve and the boys went camping with the scout troop.  It was the coldest night of the year so far.  The low had been 42 all week long, but that night it got down into the teens.  Brrrrr!  Naomi and I stayed nice and warm at home.  We cleaned out and reorganized her room.  We got her a new set of shelves to hold all her books.  When we were done she was amazed at how much more space she had in her room.  Hopefully this will inspire her to keep her room clean and organized. 

December 20, the Panthers beat the Giants (barely!)  14-0.  Keep pounding!!  That night I also introduced the kids to a childhood tradition of mine.  I found a copy of the Baryshnikov/Kirkland version of The Nutcracker.  We watched it as a family.  The kids really enjoyed it.  

December 21st I took a road trip with the kids.  Jeremy drove us to the church cannery in Greensboro to get more wheat.  They loved the adventure and helping load 500 pounds of wheat into the truck.  I have great helpers.  The reimbursement check finally arrived from the bank for the overpayment on the truck.  We are officially through with all that mess.  YEAH!!!  Chapter closed.  

December 22nd we ran errands in the morning and got the meet Khristen and her mom in the evening.   He wanted to get her a Napoleon hat as a Christmas gift.  I wasn't so sure,but he insisted it is what she wanted.  He said it was the perfect gift for her.  OK?!?  She LOVED it!!  He wore it to school on the last day before Winter Break.  Now she was coming over to bring him his gift.  I had only met her briefly in the halls at school and liked her, but getting to talk with her a little longer was even better.  Jeremy was right.  The Napoleon hat completely fits her personality.  She is very fun-loving and open and smart!   Jeremy and Khristen are so funny together.  We laughed a lot while she and her mom were over. 

Khristen and Jeremy (He is wearing his NANOWRIMO winner t-shirt)
Christmas Eve day we spent the day baking and getting ready for Christmas.  That evening, after dinner, we took a drive to see some of the lights in the neighborhood and then went to visit Mr. Kev and wish him a Merry Christmas or as Jeremy has creatively rephrased it "A festal Christmas and a convivial New Year!"  Back at home the kids helped get things cleaned up for Santa.  Jeremy offered to take the garbage out.  Since the day had been so warm, we had the screen door open to let in some fresh air.  Jeremy remembered to open it on the way out, but on the way back in...  We got a good laugh over that one.  After handing out the Christmas jammies we all went to bed with visions of sugar plums dancing in our heads.  


This is my Christmas present from Steve.  He and the boys installed it on Christmas Eve before dinner.  I love it!!!

Christmas morning we all woke up and ran downstairs to see what Santa brought.  It was a fun and relaxed morning of discovering all the treasures under the tree.  The following pictures tell about the morning better than words.  
"Nants ingonyama bagithi Baba
Sithi uhm ingonyama."
Naomi got a copy of "The Lion King" from her cousin, Nate. Her childhood is now complete. 

Jeremy tossing the tissue paper.  We had a lot of fun opening our presents.  

PERFECT.  A light up frisbee from cousin Morgan.  

Shopping money.  

Naomi got in on the spirit of unwrapping. 

Laura sent me a snowflake she crocheted for me  (hard to see against my white shirt).  I am also wearing the wreath she made so many years ago.

Cousin Katie encouraging Jeremy's desire to attend the U for college.  Love it.

The highlight of the day.  Nick thought he was only getting money towards a bike for Christmas.  We sent him on a treasure hunt.  In each envelope was a little bit of cash that led him to the next clue.  The last clue had a string attached to it and he was instructed to follow the string, which we wove all through the yard.  When it eventually got to the garage, Nick got so excited when he saw his new bike that he took off running down the street.  I was having so much fun watching him I forgot to get it on video. It was hilarious.  The picture above is of him halfway down the block and still going strong.  

One happy (and completely surprised) boy!!
How do you keep a Cannon entertained and mesmerized?  Put money in a locked maze box.  

They loved it and immediately went to work on unlocking the box.  

10 minutes later...still going.  
Steve's new toy, a pop-up work bench. 


We had a big breakfast after opening all our presents.  Everyone said it was the best Christmas ever.  They all got exactly what they wanted.  You know about Nick's bike and my front door - Jeremy got his laptop computer, finally.  Naomi got her bluetooth keyboard for her tablet and some Soul Republic head phones.  Steve got a new workbench and tools.  Yup!  Great day for everyone.

We relaxed most of the day and geared up again for a dinner with all the trimmings.  Once the turkey was in the oven we set up the slack line Santa brought the family.  Nick tried it out and found it was much harder than it looked.   I tried it out as well.  Although it was only two feet off the ground it felt a lot higher when you lost your balance and had to bail.  It was fun.  We will get the hang of it soon.  All in all we enjoyed our day and spent time together doing what ever we wanted.

Steve is caramelizing the brown sugar coating on the ham.  Yummy!
December 26th was just another day to do whatever.  Steve and Jeremy replaced the screen on the door.  That was the second time in two months that someone had tried to walk through the screen.  This time it tore a little bit.  We had two other screens that were also ripped and they fixed those as well.  

Jeremy is really good at this.  

Nick going out for his umpteenth bike ride.  Still smiling.  

We went to see the new "Star Wars" movie on the 26th.  It was amazing.  Khristen and Nick were already on a high from the movie when they saw the advertisement for Deadpool.  It is going to be a year of movies!

December 28th we spent the day cleaning up the house and shopping in preparation for the New Year's party (which will be it's own blog!!!!  Awesome!).  By the end of the night we were all a little tired and very silly.  This is what happens when silly meets leftover Jell-o.  Enjoy.  https://youtu.be/PTv_QwVlTJs

WHEW!!!  I did it.  At least one blog for each month in 2015.  Goal accomplished!  Stay tuned for more exciting adventures in the lives of the Carolina Cannons!!

Saturday, December 26, 2015

November 2015

November 1st we woke up to another flood in the kitchen.  This time it was the freezer that had stopped working and had thawed all over the floor.  We were really getting to know the appliance guys at Lowe's and Home Depot.  I think we need a frequent purchase card.  For every five appliances purchased you get 50% off.  SERIOUSLY!!!!!  At church that day, I was asked to do all the costumes for the upcoming ward Night in Bethlehem.  I would have been flattered had I not been so overwhelmed with everything else that was going on.  Thank goodness Vickie Beachum found me and offered all the costumes her ward had used a few years back when they did their Night in Bethlehem.  The Lord will not ask us to do something without providing a way that we can get it done.  On the bright side, Naomi is now in the lottery for Lake Norman Charter!!!!
Jeremy and Steve getting rid of our old fridge and moving in the new one.  Thank goodness one of our ward members had a truck we could use to get it home.  We didn't trust our truck, with the bent bed, to carry something that heavy for that distance.  Yes, we are still waiting to hear from State Farm!!!
November 2nd we finally heard back from State Farm when the last message involved the phrase "our lawyer will be in contact with you if we do not hear from you in the next 24 hours."  At this point it was 14 days since the accident.  I also told them that I needed a rental car as I felt the truck was unsafe to drive any longer.  I thought this would all be taken care of within 7-10 days.  A new adjuster, Beth, called us back within 3 hours of the lawyer message.  She apologized for the other adjuster not calling us back.  We were working on a deal within the next day and finally found out they were officially going to total the truck and give us a very generous pay out on the old truck.  They would pay off the old truck and we had enough left over to have a good size down payment towards a new vehicle.  I also had a rental car within a couple of hours but only for four days so we had to find a replacement quickly.  The payout and papers arrived at a local State Farm office within 24 hours and we felt we were finally on our way to putting this all behind us.

We spent the 3rd and the 4th looking for trucks.  After driving every make and model of truck out there we decided to go with another Nissan Titan.  The other trucks just didn't feel right or were WAY out of what we wanted to spend.  We were lucky enough to find three Titans that would work.  With the help of our amazing mechanic, Todd, we narrowed it down to the one we finally bought.

Meet Tyrone "Duke" Cannon.  Isn't he handsome?!?
I love this sign.  This was in the mechanics pit while they were checking out Tyrone!
November 6th I stayed home all day waiting for the tow truck to come and take my wonderful, old truck away.  Because I was stuck at home until the tow truck came I had a lot of time to get things done.  One of which was to call the bank and make sure the payoff had occurred.  After a long day on the phone, I found out that the check had not arrived because State Farm had sent it to the wrong address with the wrong account number. We had to stop payment on that check and reissue another one.   I was doubly frustrated because it also meant we would be making the truck payment for the month of November.  Also, the tow truck never showed.

November 7th  Steve took the truck to Nissan to make sure everything was in order.  We already knew there was a tire issue, but the dealership who sold us the truck agreed to pay for a new tire.  We also needed to fix the brakes, which wasn't terrible because we had the money set aside to put new brakes on the old truck.  Nick was in heaven because the mechanic let him watch the whole process.

Meanwhile, back at home, Naomi's soccer game got rained out AGAIN!  (This ended up being the rainiest November on record by the end of the month)  Neither one of us was too upset.  It made the day a little less hectic.  I took her to the mall to Anusha's party (which was moved inside due to the rain).  Naomi got to go to Build A Bear and have ice cream before Steve picked her up and brought her to Frye's Roller Rink for her own party.   All year she had been talking about her party at the roller rink and now it was finally here.  She was so excited to get to be with her friends in one of her favorite places.  It was worth the wait.  We all had so much fun.

In the party room having cake and ice cream.
Back row (left to right): Ava, Haylie, Ashley, Anusha, Rachel, Naomi and Mia.
Front row (left to right):  Maggie and Bella

Skating like a pro.
Monday the 9th, both Steve and I had to work so we had to leave the truck out front with the keys hidden for the tow truck driver.  When we got home it was gone.  Maybe it was a good thing I wasn't there to watch them haul it away.  I really loved that truck.

Tuesday the 10th we found out the loan was paid off.  To celebrate we had shrimp for dinner and then went to Naomi's final soccer game.  They were in the championship game and so excited.  Once again, they played with all their might, but they got outplayed and ended up losing the final game.  After being sad for a little bit and a wonderful pep talk from Coach Russ, they bounced back and realized what an amazing team they were.  Paige's parents had purchased medals for the girls and they also got their trophies from Strikers.  It was all smiles after that.
Naomi and the crew just starting to smile again.

Getting her trophy.

Naomi and Maggie with their trophies

The most amazing team.  


November 11th was Young Women in Excellence.  Our new presidency put it all together in a short amount of time and it all turned out great.

November 12th Steve and I took the truck to have the bed liner sprayed in.  Now the truck was ready for scouting and hauling and....   I ran dinner into a family whose mother had recently had surgery.  Naomi found out she was going to be Kaa #6 in "The Jungle Book" at school.  Steve had another scout come over to finish up his Eagle paperwork in time to present it to the council the following night.  We had dinner and Naomi opened her presents a day early since Steve was in charge of the Outdoor Leadership Skills (OLS) class over the weekend.

November 13th Naomi turned 10!!!  Steve left for OLS in the morning and we had stroganoff for dinner that night.  Naomi also wanted to go to Lake Norman Charter's production of "Over the River".

Saturday the 14th I ran the boys to the church first thing in the morning.  The Young Men were going on a day trip to Atlanta to attend the temple and to see Coke World.  Naomi and I spent the day doing stuff at home.  When the boys got home they were full of stories about the trip.  They really had a great time.

All the young men in front of the temple.  
November 16th I got to be the substitute for Mrs. Rogowski in the library.  WooWhooo!  On the 17th I subbed for Mrs. Rowan, Naomi's teacher.  It was a really interesting glimpse into Naomi's day.  When I told her I was going to be the substitute for the day she was not as excited as I thought she would be.  I asked her why and she said, "Mom, my class is horrible and I don't want you to see how horrible they are."  I am sorry to say she was not exaggerating a whole lot.  I am even more excited for her to be at Lake Norman Charter School next year.   

SHOCK ALERT!!   November 19th, while subbing at the high school, I found out that Jeremy had a girlfriend.  I was walking out of the tech suite after lunch on my way to my next class when I saw Jeremy heading to his next class after his lunch.  I started to follow him so I could say "Hi" when I noticed he was holding hands with a girl.  I was so shocked I stopped walking and almost got run over by all the students in the hall trying to get to class on time.  As soon as I got to my class I texted Steve and he was just as shocked as I was.  I could hardly wait until after school to get some answers from Jeremy.  He was very laid back about it when I asked him.  Her name is Khristen and they have been an item for a couple of weeks.  He didn't want to tell me because he thought I would freak out.  Thank goodness I had been calming myself down for three periods before I asked him.  He promised to introduce me next time I subbed.  I did get to meet her that Friday.  She is really cute and he smiles a lot when she is around.  I think I am going to really like her.  

Somewhere between here and Thanksgiving we found out that the loan on the truck was not really paid off.  The bank had found the first check, the one that had been cancelled, and applied it to our account.  Once they realized the error, they reversed everything back to "unpaid".  The other check was never found.  State Farm issued a third check.  Let's hope this is the one.  I don't want to make another payment on a truck that I no longer own.  The bank did assure me that any over payment due this "issue" would be reimbursed to us once it was all resolved.  That was good news.   

Our new plates came in right before we were going to leave for Knoxville.  Steve picked them up and went to the NC plates office to get our sticker so we would be official.  He found out that we might be receiving a fine from the state because state law says the insurance company has to file a "totaled vehicle" claim with the state within 10 days of the accident.  State Farm hadn't done that.  The claim was filed on the 14th day.  This may explain the generous payout.  They knew they were not in compliance with the law and compensated us for it before we knew about it.  In the end, the state waived the fine because we had documented proof from our insurance company that we had done everything required of us in the proper time frame.  Just one more hiccup in the chain of events.  Oh, the letters on the plate are DKE which is where the truck got his middle name of  Duke.  Also, this is the name Jeremy desperately wanted to give Nicholas.  It just fits with our family.  

November 25th we headed out for Knoxville to spent Thanksgiving with Bradden, Sunny, the kids and Grandma Cannon.  Steve had some things being held at our favorite store.  This place had become a tradition for us.  There is also a Coleman outlet just across the parking lot.  Our coolers, which we got for our wedding, were starting to show their age.  It was time for a new one.  Nick and I went to the Coleman store to check it out while Steve, Jeremy and Naomi picked up the knives.  Last time we stopped I wouldn't let Steve buy a new cooler because they were still really expensive.  This time, with all the pre-Christmas sales, it was a completely different story.  We got the perfect cooler for only $30.  They also disposed of the old one for us.

Nick really "got into" shopping for a new cooler. 

Once in Knoxville, I helped Sunny finish up the last bit of grocery shopping.  We also got a call from the bank saying the third check had arrived (they verified it with State Farm) and it was applied to our account.  As per bank policy (and very understandable based on the past two weeks' experiences), they had to hold the check for 10 days to make sure the funds were valid, but they would apply it to our account so we would not have to make another payment.  We were unofficially paid off.  YEA!!!!  We had pizza for dinner and went to bed early to be ready for the next day.

Thanksgiving we fixed food all day long.  It was an excellent dinner.  Grandma's banana cream pie was my absolute favorite.  After all the dishes were done and dinner put away, Steve and Bradden decided to do a little shopping that night.  They had so much fun last year they decided to start a little earlier this year. While the boys shopped, I watched the Panthers game.  It was amazing.  We played the Cowboys and the game did not disappoint.  Early in the game, Romo threw an interception that was caught by Keuchly and run in for a touchdown!!   It was a good game and we are still undefeated for the season.  11-0.  Keep pounding!!! I kept the boys updated via text.   After shopping, all the boys went to see the new James Bond movie.  It was a great day.

Cousin time.  They have all been looking forward to this. 

More goofing off. 

In all the chaos, Jeremy needed to get a book read for AP English.  He found a quiet spot in the pantry.  
November 27th, Steve, Jeremy and Bradden got up early and did the morning shopping run.  They had a great time and came back with their treasures.  Steve wanted a new Christmas tree this year and found the one he wanted.  Bradden got some things for Sunny and the kids.  They were smiling and had stories to tell about the crowds and all the chaos.  They loved it.  After lunch, Sunny, Jeremy and me went to see the last Hunger Games movie.  It was awesome.  Back at the ranch, we lit a fire in the fire pit and roasted some marshmallows.  I was a great way to wind down from the day.
Chillin' by the fire. 

Steve and his mom

Hyrum, Nick and Naomi
Grandma and Nick

Birthday cousins having some tea together.
November 28th we woke up, packed up and headed home.  We stopped in Sevierville again to visit the Lodge store this time.  Katrina's family wanted some Lodge stuff for camping and this was the perfect time to get it done.  We also stopped at Wild Wings for lunch before the long ride home.  There was a different football game on each screen and everyone was cheering on a different game.  It was fun.  Tyrone was amazing on the drive.  He got 19.4 MPG going back over the mountain, fully loaded.  We also found a quiet back road that helped us avoid the chaos on I-77 at Lake Norman.  



November 29th, while attempting to load all the photos from Thanksgiving onto my external hard drive I found out that the drive was dying.  Steve helped me get all our photos off that drive before it completely died.  Thank goodness we got it all in time.  We went out the very next day and got a replacement drive.  Our family history is safe once again.

November 30th, Jeremy finished writing his novel for the NANOWRIMO (National November Writers Month) contest.  Once he submitted it, he received an email saying he was a winner.  We ordered him a t-shirt and he got all sorts of prizes and discounts to be used at places only writers would appreciate.  He was so excited and proud of himself for completing this challange.  Way to go, Jeremy.