Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve we went to dinner at Lynnea and Ken's for our Brown Family gathering. Lynnea made a wonderful meal. My favorite is her twice baked potatoes.



After dinner we gathered near the tree to exchange gifts.



Diane gave Ken a toilet paper roll holder. Never seen a guy so happy to get one.



Grandma Brown got a Bart original bowl. Looks like she likes it.



Christmas morning we opened gifts from Santa. I think its a Lego.



Diane looks happy with what Santa brought for her!



My Mom and Dad came by for Christmas dinner. I made the traditional bouillabaisse which was yummy. Grandma looks like she like her new photo printer.



The day after Christmas our friend Greg came by. Its always great to see him.



Bart and Alex finally got to meet Santa after Christmas. Turns out he was also vacationing at Disneyland.

Happy Holidays!

The 2011 version of our Xmas picture of the boys.

A Perfect Weekend (NOT!)

The Hope family was psyched about a wonderful weekend. As happened in 2008, we had an Illini game and a Bears game on the same weekend (see December 2008 blog). Plus we had the annual family Christmas party (on my side) and it was my Dad's birthday. The weekend started perfectly, with a dusting of snow on December 18. Lovely as you can see below and only the second snow of the year.



The Illini were ranked #19 in the country, with a 9-0 record. The opponent at the annual game at the United Center was UNLV. The team the Illini had beaten in the NCAA tourney last year. Well the Illini were flat and the game was torture (as you can infer from the picture). They lost 48 - 64. Game started and ended late. Time to go to the Christmas party.



At least its not possible to lose at the family Xmas party. It was my Dad's 81st birthday. The picture of him blowing out the candles was a fail. This was right after.



The party was great! Forgot about the Illinois game. Always wonderful to get together with family during the holidays. It was hosted by Beth and Steve this year. They had a nice tall tree in the high ceiling room. We didn't get back home until midnight. Had to get going early Sunday for the Bears game.



Along the road to the south suburbs there was this great house decorated for the Christmas season. So cool we stopped to take a picture. Couldn't get it all into a single frame, but this gives you an idea of the display.



The final bit of fun was to be the Bears game. Chicago vs. Seattle, Bears vs. Seahawks. The first half was great football and the Bears were ahead 14-7 at halftime. The sun was shining. It was December 18 and we were sitting in the sun with our jackets open. A rare and glorious treat for Bears fans at home in December. Maybe they were back on track, maybe not. After multiple interceptions and Seahawks scores the season was pretty much over. The Bears lost 14-38. Just 4 weeks ago the Bears were 7 - 3 and heading for a series of weaker opponents. Then Cutler broke his thumb and Forte sprained his knee. 4 losses later and the Bears are 7 - 7. A Detroit win later in the afternoon put the Bears out of their misery. I think they are mathematically eliminated. Bummer. Wait til next year.

Update: turns out they are not mathematically eliminated yet. I don't care.

Bears Lose, ARRRRrrrgggggggggg!

It started off well enough with a field goal. Bears up 3-0 on the Chiefs. Next thing you know or star running back (Forte) goes down with a knee injury. That combined with our broken thumbed quarterback left the Bears in sad shape. Along the way the defense was tough and the offense struggled. Most pathetic Bears game I can remember. The horror! A botched attempt to knock down a hail mary pass as time ran out in the first half meant a bears loss 3 - 10. 2 weeks ago after 5 wins in a row the year was looking good. Bummer.