Pre-Christmas celebrations

Mamie and Papou arrived just the night before, just in time for MM's X'mas performance at the Lycee.

the three first-grade/CP (classe preparatoire) classes singing holiday songs in French.

MM's writing and drawing about his dad being a good swimmer, a good singer, and a giant.

celebration in her classroom

Ming Ming and Papou ... waiting for Antoine to buy a new phone

Greenwood Commune's Christmas dinner and recital

MM and Avi collaborating "We wish you a merry X'mas"

Kaius playing Jingle Bell

MM playing Bach's Minute 2

 Liz and Nourit playing the piano together

Oscar playing holiday songs

the party went on with a lot of Christmas songs: Liz on the piano and Max, Mike and Keven on guitars and bass, all squeezing to look at the song book here. 

Hyde Park Suzuki Winter Concert and Nutcrackers

the repertoire included suzuki songs and Christmas music. Ming Ming played the three Minutes by Bach and three Christmas songs. 

another home-made dress

my videos are pretty bad this time, so you only got images..

In the evening we headed to the Mandel Hall to watch The Nutcrackers which featured Lukas Ruby! thanks to Anne we got very good seats right at the front!

Lukas on right!

Christmas tree hunting

It has become a tradition now, each year the commune (or part of it) would set out to a nearby tree nursery to cut down a Christmas tree. This year we started early - the day after Thanksgiving! - because December is packed with recitals and ballet performances. 

kiddos on the straw ride..

starting with a snow fight

found our tree

the Lacroixs' tree

family pic before our tree

Antoine and MM cutting it down

Antoine holding up the trophy 

packing to go on the top of the car

Tree at home - decorated by Antoine and MM

Thanksgiving 2014

We had three families staying at the commune for thanksgiving holiday this year: the lacroixs, the rubyhofers, and the tingcadouxs. Girls playing in early afternoon while the grownups busied themselves in the kitchens.

Catherine Stuer - my friend who is now teaching in Denison U in Granville Ohio - was visiting Chicago and thus spent Thanksgiving with us too. 

Mike was in charging of cooking a happy turkey raised in a nearby farm... yum yum...

me entering into an obvious stage of pregnancy.. (this was barely the end of my first trimester)

kids gathering around the kid table

Antoine opening a kids' champagne for them (white grape juice)

cheers!

Adults' table

let the feast start!

all the kids were in front of the TV except Zazie who was smart enough to guard the dessert of the night

and to try to get the last sip out of the kids' bottle!

how cute!

Yeah!

Catherine's delicious Belgium Chocolate cake

Ming Ming sampling all the dessert and ice-creams

after dessert fun: Antoine the one-man-monkey bar... Zazie was so excited by it that after Antoine raised her a few times and told her "no more," she grabbed a chair and placed it behind Antoine to try to climb up to him all by herself!