The Morris Christmas Carols of 2016

We three kings of Orient are bearing gifts we traverse afar... Our family hit the road for over 20 weekends this year. We traveled to Albuquerque, Kansas City, Dewey, Amarillo, San Antonio, Lake Coleman, and more. We enjoyed lots of family visits, roller coasters, Braum’s milkshakes, aquariums, campfires, the Alamo, and hot air balloons. 

The first Noel the angels did say…. Clare Noelle has had quite a few firsts this year. Clare created and presented a project about blue whales for her gifted and talented program. She has joined a Girl Scout Brownie troop that keeps her busy earning badges. In the summer, Clare mastered doing handstands in the pool, swinging for hours in our backyard, and went on her first riverboat ride. We were also able to go with her to see the incredible musical, The Lion King. 

Lo, how a rose e'er blooming from tender stem hath sprung… Olivia Rose is blooming and growing right before our eyes. Her curly blonde ringlets are getting longer each day. Olivia continually surprises us with new feats; like climbing tall ladders, joining stranger’s booths at Chick-fil-a to be friendly, walking our cat by holding her tail like a leash, and already opening some presents under the Christmas tree. She is a handful, but you can’t beat her cheery smile and sweet personality. 

Mele Kalikimaka is the thing to say on a bright Hawaiian Christmas Day… To celebrate our 10 year anniversary, we were lucky enough to get away to Oahu, Hawaii. We spent our days snorkeling among colorful tropical fish, swimming with peaceful sea turtles, touring Pearl Harbor, dancing at a luau, and tasting all of the local cuisine we could discover. Kevin loved driving us to a new sight-seeing adventure each day, and Mary loved getting an uninterrupted nap each day. A special ‘thank you’ goes to both of our supportive parents who watched the girls for us back at home. 

Silent night, holy night! All is calm, all is bright… While most nights are silent and peaceful, we have had a few this year that were anything but. Sleepless nights with Clare when she caught a very painful pneumonia virus. Lukewarm baths with Olivia at 2 am in attempt to bring down a high fever. Worried nights thinking about the future when Mary’s Mom was diagnosed with Parkinson’s disease. Nights crying when Mary’s Grandpa passed away in October. And of course, there was a night or two of searching for a 9V battery to quiet the annoying, beeping smoke alarm in middle of the night. Luckily all the bad nights were swept away by the dawning of a new day and the hope for a better tomorrow. 

Glory to God in the Highest, and on Earth, Peace Good Will Toward Man… As we close this letter to you, our family hopes you are filled with peace this Christmas season. Peace does not mean to be in a place with no trouble, sadness, noise, or conflict. It means to be in the midst of all those things and to still find the calmness within. We wish you have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! 

Kevin, Mary, Clare & Olivia

Clare Quotes (7 Year Old Edition)

My Clare is growing up so fast, so each year I try to chronicle the awesome "kid things" she says.  Here is her 7 year old edition!

Momma, I have a question mark in my head.

Talking about our dog: Daisy is such a ding dong.

Talking about playing limbo with her two classmates: They don't do it right, because, you know, they're just kids.

While playing a hula-hoop game: My hips got the groove!

Clare: Do you know what those thick DVDs are called? 
Me: VHS?
Clare: Yeah

While seeing Kevin kissing me: Daddy's kissing his girlfriend.  Daddy's kissing his girlfriend.

I think William and his guardian angel play baseball in heaven. Maybe all the kids that died and their angels play together.

Asking a magic eight ball:  Can momma rob a bank and has she? (shake, shake, flip) It says "Definitely so!!!!"

Good Eats: Crock Pot Gyros!

I adore Gyros!  I flipped when I found this recipe for gyros cooked with a crock pot, because nothing is as easy as crock pot cooking. These gyros have become a staple in our house, and I hope your family will love them too.

1 lb. Ground Lamb
1 lb. (or more) Ground Pork
1 tsp. Paprika
2 tsp. Oregano
1 tsp. Salt
Black Pepper
Lemon Juice

1/2 Chopped Onion
4 Cloves of Garlic

1. In a medium bowl, blend together spices.  Add ground meats and mush up with your hands till well blended.  (The original recipe calls to it into a food processor to combine, but cleaning fatty meat pieces out of my blades caused my gag reflex to go crazy). Form into a even sized loaf.










2. Place chopped onions and garlic in the bottom of the crock pot.  Place loaf on top. Squeeze lemon juice on top of loaf.






3.  Cook on Low for 4 hours

4.  Serve with Pita Bread (or Naan), chopped lettuce, tomatoes, feta cheese, olives, and tzatziki sauce

The Case of the Missing Remotes

   It was a normal Monday in the quite suburb house. The weekend had just flown by with fun outings and movie rentals. The only cloud that shadowed the weekend was a continual hunt for a missing stereo remote. Little Olivia had a fondness for remotes, so the family thought it would eventually show up discarded in a toy bin. They never suspected this cloud would turn into a storm.

   That Monday morning, Mary did her normal morning chores as she listened to TV news quietly in the background. Little Olivia was on the hunt for entertainment, and her attention was captured by a remote laying on the coffee table. As she held it with glee, she accidentally pushed a button that made the TV switch channels. This caught the attention of her mother. Mary smiled and chuckled as she pried the remote from Olivia's chubby little hands, switched the channel back, and placed the remote on the back of the couch. That was the last time she could remember seeing the remote.

   Nap time came, and Mary couldn't find the remote. Dinner past, no remote. Kid's bedtimes came and went, and still no remote. This became too much for Mary. Couches were overturned, toy bins spilled out, kitchen cabinets checked, yet still no remotes. By now the sun had set and darkness had settled over both the sky and Mary's mode. The hassle of getting up to change the volume and channel every few minutes had burned a determination into her to solve this mystery.

    Then something sparked a memory. Mary vaguely remembered taking a piece of paper from Olivia's hands earlier in the day that she had thought she had already thrown in the trash. On a hunch, Kevin and Mary trudged out into the dark alley with flashlights to the dumpster. A stinky trash bag covered with a mysterious rotten slush was fished out of the abyss. Mary carefully unloaded the refuse to find her hunch was correct. In the bottom of the trash laid the missing TV remote. While Mary and Kevin rejoiced at the find, they were saddened to think that the stereo remote missing over the weekend was most likely discarded days ago. Never to be seen again.

    It seems little Olivia has a new habit that will be impossible to constantly monitor. Now worries overshadow the house as to what object Olivia will heartlessly discard next and who is going to have to sort through the trash to save it!