Our 2007 Holiday Season

Here's what has transped in 2007:

January - The Duggers had a wonderful New Year. They spent it at home and just enjoyed being with on another. Keith went back to work on the 2nd and the children returned to school on the 8th, only to have another day off on the 15th and the 29th. The children had an awards assembly on the 19th, Alison made the "A" honor roll and had perfect attendance while Brian made the "A/B" honor roll and had perfect attendance. They were extremely proud of themselves (as were Keith and Katie). Katie and Cole decided to keep the house in one piece. It took a bit for both to get used to a new routine, but they did with no problem. Winter hit with a vengance this year. The children had a snow day on the 17th. That is when Cole saw his first snow.

February - Valentine's Day was fun. Kathleen was able to visit the children's school and their parties. It was a lot of fun. Unfortunately the children didn't have President's day off with Keith. They had the Monday prior. All in all, it was a good month.

March - YAY! Spring is here. This month was okay. Spring Break -- well, it was memorable. Kathleen is boycotting it next year, in hopes that nothing bad will happen again. For more information on what happened, check out Brian's tale on the kids page.

April - Easter was fun, even if it was too cold for the Easter Bunny to hide eggs in the front yard. Kathleen found a pastel sheet to use as "grass" and laid it on the floor. She set the colored eggs on it and put the stuffed ones the Easter Bunny left in a bag. Keith's idea was to have a "grab bag". The children loved it. Cole was pretty amazed by the eggs and Alison and Brian were all giddy. The Easter Bunny also did a good job with their baskets. You can see pictures from Easter here. Kathleen and Cole traveled to California from 20-22 for a surprise party for her mom and sister. Everyone had a blast loving on Cole.

May - Kathleen's birthday was wonderful, as was Mother's day. It was the first time in 6 years that Keith actually did not have the pager or have to work on Kathleen's birthday! The little family enjoyed beith with each other. For memorial day, they went to a friend's house and had a BBQ. It was fun because a friend who moved away came back into town for graduation, and the family got to spend some time with her. Then, school got out and vacation started.

June - Kathleen, Brian, Alison and Cole surprised Keith on the Friday before his birthday with a cake and a little birthday bear at his office. The little family did what they always do for the birthday/father's day combo - enjoyed being together. For the first time since Keith and Kathleen moved to Texas, Keith was on vacation for their first of two anniversaries. This has turned out to be a good year for special days.

July - The little family decided at the last minute to head to Oklahoma (near Altus) for the Fourth of July celebration. It was fun. Brian and Alison got to see fireworks (the kind you buy and do yourself) for the first time. Before this year, they'd only seen what cities put on for the holiday. It was an exciting time.

August - Keith attended QuakeCon from August 2-5. It was awesome. The family went up on one of the days and looked around at all the computers and vender displays. Cole helped Keith play games, as well as Mr. Kevin (friend). The week following, Kathleen registered Brian for Fifth Grade and Alison for Third Grade. Then, on the weekend of August 11 and 12, Cole decided to crawl up the stairs with Keith and Kathleen in tow. School started on the 27th and Briand could not have been happier, because that meant he didn't celebrate his birthday on the first day of school. Brian also got his front teeth fixed and could not stop smiling.

September - September was fun. The little family went to Oklahoma to visit family for labor day then everything was back to the grindstone.

October - October was good. Keith had Columbus day off, as did the children. They just kind of lazed around having fun with each other. The week of Halloween, Keith took vacation (use or lose) so Kathleen was more than happy, as were the children. It was a nice change to have him home and see him more often. Keith and Kathleen (with the help of Brian and Alison) made Halloween decorations. Maybe next year, Kathleen will figure out how to get them to stand in the yard. Halloween was so much fun! Alison was the Queen of Bling, Kathleen a vampire (Alison's evil side), Brian was Ghost Rider and Cole was a Little Pumpkin. Keith was himself and handed out candy to the visitors while Kathleen took the three children around the neighborhood.

November - The first of November began a contest Keith is entering, National Novel Writing Month. He has a goal, and has begun the trek to a novel. The first week of November also held sadness, as Kathleen's father passed away from cancer. She was able to attend the funeral thanks to her step-mother. Keith's progress on the book is moving along nicely. Kathleen wonders where the ideas come from, and is so amazed at the ease he seems to have at writing. Cole turned 1 this year! It is amazing how time flew. The family celebrated together at home. Two days later, they celebrated Thanksgiving at home with a dinner of turkey, ham, stuffing, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce and rolls. They have a "Thankful Tree" that Kathleen created. Pictures will be up soon. National Novel Writing Month has ended. Keith completed his goal and then some. His novel is 51,695 words total. He needed 50,000.

December - December was fun and exciting. The family spent the weekend prior to Christmas and part of Christmas day in Oklahoma with Keith's brother's family and Aunt Cleo. The children had a blast helping with the animals again, and it seems Santa was very good to them in their stockings. Santa also visited at the house and the children said it was the best Christmas ever. Alison's birthday (aka New Year's Eve) was celebrated at home and alison had a great time. Katie made the cake and decorated. Everyone fell asleep early, but it was from having so much fun!

Updated: January 12, 2008