This is a photo repeat from our August Colorado vacation. We are certain the great majority of you checking us out after receiving a Christmas card don't want to blog backwards post after post after post to see how well (?) (HA!) Gregg and I are aging. So I offer this up as a help.
In the meantime we wish you well
as we celebrate the birth of Jesus and close out 2007.
Merry Christmas Y'All...
Gregg, Elizabeth, Brynne, Lacey and Jacob

Jacob is a huge Patriots fan...which baffles us since we are in Cowboy country and he has Bronco blood. At any rate he knew that Sam's Club did NFL cakes. However, what we didn't realize was that the Patriot cake was a monster 13 lbs. of cake that will be consumed post birthday from the ziplock baggies in the freezer!

Oops...9 boys...one boy was sick.
They had a good time weaving their way through the park from roller coaster to roller coaster. To their delight the lines were not terribly long and to my delight nobody got sick!
The biggest mishap of the night occurred when 4 boys who opted out of a ride were climbing on a wood fence around the perimeter of the ride. One of the boys accidentally hit a button that was the emergency shut-down button. (Which needs better placement if you ask me.) Thankfully the ride was not in progress when it shut down, but it did cause a bit of a headache for the ride operator...and the folks already loaded
on the ride...and the folks in line...all of whom had to leave.

Chaperons extraordinaire!
Lacey and her friend Jamie gave up their Friday night to help corral 10 5th grade boys.
To celebrate Jacob's 11th birthday we went to Six Flags, Holiday in the Park.

The high school let out at noon on Thursday. We had about 50 Students Standing Strong kids here for lunch and a preview of their next big event.
A student officer introduced us to a ministry that originates in CO.
It is an amazing program of illusion that speaks to the deceit (illusion) of the world and culminates with the truth found in Jesus. Our guest did a few things as a preview of sorts and to say the kids were amazed and excited about the February event would be an understatement.
And how he got the red diamond card across the yard and into the water bottle with the lid on it is beyond me...and how did he know it was a 9 of diamonds to begin with?

Brynne has found herself to be extra helpful in her 2nd grade class lately. The teacher recently had a baby and will be on leave through early spring. Brynne has helped make the transition easier for the permanent sub in addition to whispering a bit of Spanish in her ear when the word just doesn't come to her. I stopped by for a short visit last week and was warmly received. They seemed to be fascinated by my blue eyes and
really excited that I was bearing Christmas treat bags.

Christmas card photo shoot...is there a greater challenge in the weeks leading up to Christmas?
We halted our flash after a mere 90some shots. Over two "sessions"...one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Some inside, some outside. Some with Lacey on the right, some with Lacey on the left. Inside, outside, sitting, standing, this tree, that tree, upstairs, downstairs, touching, squawking, poking, bumping....aaargh!!! Deep breath...
Merry Christmas!!

I have enjoyed participating in a Recipe Club for about 8-9 years. Our theme for December was Homemade Christmas. I took Gregg's mom's Oven Caramel Corn.

15 cups popped corn (3bags)
1 cup packed brown sugar
1/2 cup butter
1/4 cup light corn syrup
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp baking soda

Heat oven to 200. Heat brown sugar, butter, corn syrup and salt to simmering over med-high heat, stirring frequently for 5 minutes. Remove from heat; stir in baking soda. Pour over popped corn; stir until well coated. Bake 1 hour stirring every 15 minutes. Doubling the caramel coats the popcorn even better.

Helpful Hint: Gregg taught me to dump the popped corn in a big brown grocery bag. It makes it much easier to shake, toss the popcorn before baking.

Last night Brynne and I returned to Beautiful Feet to participate in their annual Christmas giveaway. This is a long standing tradition of going deep into the surrounding neighborhoods with trailers loaded with volunteers, bikes and gifts. We had about 35-40 SSS kids and parents, some of whom have taken part in this previously. There were 9 trailers towed by large pick-ups. Over 200 bikes were divided between the trucks and the gifts for boys, girls and adults went down the center of the trailer.

Each trailer had a highlighted route and the participants would literally hop off, knock on a door, sing some carols, gift the occupants with age and gender appropriate gifts before offering prayer if desired. At times we found it to be touching, shocking, generous, disorganized, slightly scary, funny, encouraging and loving. I think it is vital however, to not get stuck on the assessment from our perspective, but to look at it from the other side...what did those who received think? I saw some delight, curiosity, apprehension, confusion, boldness and gratitude.

Upon our return the Beautiful Feet organizers had cornbread, hot chocolate, Christmas cookies and venison chili. Part of my amazement for the evening was to see our generally meat hesitant daughter enjoy her bowl of chili, while I took a pass.

Aaaaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!
Jacob is 11!
And he had fun planning out December 6th.
Lots of thought went into the meal planning.
There were special requests for breakfast (donuts),
and lunch ("lucky soup" homemade by mom), which by the way
he forgot about and so he bought his lunch...oh well...and finally dinner.

Egg Nog
Caesar Salad with Croutons
Marinated Steak with Mushrooms
Broccoli
Aunt Suzanne's Cheesy Potatoes
Texas Toast
Pecan Pie

How old is he??

He is now looking forward to a delayed birthday party with friends on 12/21.

Today the kids and I (Gregg had to work) went to a homeless church in Fort Worth.
It is called Beautiful Feet and it is a long standing mission.
It has been important to me that our children worst case see,
best case enjoy the opportunity to serve others in a greater community.
This is something that I recall as a very young girl in Pennsylvania.
My grandmother loved to serve the elderly with homemade goodies.
I would accompany her at times and not only enjoyed the occasion to be with her,
but for me it established a significant comfort around the much older generation
while at the same time developing a genuine interest in new, albeit short, relationships.

Celebrating 48 anos (that's years for those of you
who don't live in Texas)
with coconut cream pie!

Literally minutes before we were heading back to the airport Debbie snagged her neighbor to take a group shot. Gregg commented the photo looked like two smooshed together with a perfect seam going down the middle. Debbie thought it looked like a promo shot for Wife Swap or some reality TV show. Nope, it is just a couple of sisters and their families sharing a couple of days and for that we were very thankful.

Most of the time these days our AA passes amount to frustration best case or worst case loads prevent us from getting a seat. Be thankful for the high load factors...be thankful for the high load factors... But this week they worked like a charm! The five of us were able to take the flight of choice up to North Carolina to spend 24 hours with Debbie and the rest of the McCaffrey family. We had the most picture perfect Thanksgiving weather...enjoyed their company...ate like nobody's business and then zipped back to Texas again on the flight of our choice on Friday.

We have been enjoying the Thanksgiving break and cannot believe tomorrow is Sunday...which means the next day is Monday...which means that the ol' routine kicks back in!
We have some wonderful friends who have left the great state of Texas.
They were back in town this week for a visit and we enjoyed their company at our home for dinner. Their daughter and Gregg share a birthday (11/30) so naturally we wanted to acknowledge that. Gregg knows a more manly dessert is forthcoming!

Now you see it...now you don't!
More then 10 years ago Gregg lovingly built this for his kids.
He was assisted for a few days by his brother-in-law Gil.
It has been the backdrop for many a Christmas photos,
Kindergarten get to know you events, and birthday parties.
Friends have climbed on it, cousins have hopped on for a swing
and the Mattson kids have logged many a hours on it.
It has had the roof replaced to match the house,
it has been adorned with Christmas lights
and necessary repairs were made along the way.
It is showing it's age and although it needs a
fresh coat of redwood stain it is in relatively good shape.
It is hard to part with, but instead of a Craig's List posting
we offered it to a roofer with seven children. It makes us happy to know that this labor of love stands to have a few more years of outdoor playtime!

This is certainly not the team with the most yards gained...and maybe not more then one TD to date, if that, but Jacob enjoys his opportunity to be the occasional QB.

After 2 falls of hot Texas football Jacob decided that he still loved the game, but wanted a change. Flag football meant one practice a week plus a game - unlike the 3 practice a week plus a game. A casual jersey instead of mini-pro like gear from head to toe. And no hitting. Or being hit. Or watching your friends get hit. Gregg found himself roped into coaching in the 11th hour and that has proven to be a challenging experience that likely won't be repeated.

Ho-Hum Halloween...
I guess this is what happens when you get to high school.
Oprah on TIVO is more exciting then the door to door routine.
Unless you are Jacob...and then you join
your neighborhood pal in the pursuit of candy.
But what ever happened to the Disney characters? Or Superheroes?
And before the night is out Brynne is lured out the door
by some familiar high school students.
And Lacey gives up on door answering because we are down to less then 10 pieces of candy, and giving away Halloween popcorn singles is lame,
and whatever Dad is watching on Bravo is a better deal.

Monday night the students had their first
Students Standing Strong meeting.
I would guess there were 400 kids in attendance.
I really enjoy these kids and this organization.
The kids in red are the officers.
Brynne designed the shirts just for them!
It makes me proud to see
some of the representatives of that generation.
Our speaker (next to me) spoke on a text from James.
He challenged them to "Suffer Well".
This followed a campus suicide and attempted suicide.
Tough stuff!
His wife is a grad from our district.
The mom on the other end is the
founder of SSS and a real inspiration to parents.

Lacey and her swim friends traded Halloween night for the Saturday before.
Lacey had, count 'em, two parties to attend. Last year it was Crayons...this year it was reminiscent of an old Olivia Newton John 80's video. Without exaggerating it was probably 5 separate gatherings or shopping sprees not to mention countless phone calls, texts and e-mails
to get the look just right!

Over the course of the last couple of months Gregg has enjoyed a long distance book study with a brother-in-law. They were going through Wild at Heart. In this book the author presents the idea that men have 3 quests in their life, one of which is adventure. You might imagine how Jacob's ears perked up when Gregg shared first thing this morning he had gone up on the roof to see how it was coming along. Of course Jacob wanted to be a part of a repeat adventure. His mother was far less sure. However, before Jacob could change out of his pj's and into jeans Gregg had convinced Elizabeth that the ladders were nailed to the roof and it was not only checking the adventure box for the day, but also a great photo opportunity.

Although the friends were not able to sit together they were able to hang out right behind the Patriots bench thus having lots of opportunity to see #12.

Jacob and Gregg's permanent seats were 6 rows behind the bench on the 40.
A dream come true!

A couple of weekends ago Jacob had the afternoon of a lifetime. A bit of history is required...or should I say math. You see at the end of the school year at St. Vincent's School the students were given a math book to be completed over the summer. Jacob had the notion that a new school meant no summer workbook - wrong-o! However, his dad did dangle a reward, one that would be slowly revealed as each quarter of the book was completed via clues. Jacob was all the better in math and one happy Patriots fan to learn that he was going to the Cowboys/Patriots game in Oct.

Gregg was equally surprised that both teams came to the game with winning records thus sending ticket prices through the roof! And then some!! Thankfully a friend came through with a connection that resulted in not one, but two pair of tickets. Jacob and Gregg were joined by a long time AA pilot friend and his son. Are the boys Patriots fans in their matching jerseys? YEP! Are the dad's neutral football fans in matching Nike shirts with cargo shorts? YEP!! That was good for a big laugh on the front porch!!

The second weekend in October we had some special visitors.
It was a treat to have Josh and Miranda drop their boys off with us while they went on a long weekend with friends. Joshua is 3 and Jonathan is 1. They were so good for us and seemed to adjust extremely well to the mommy/daddyless weekend. We did our best to have lots and lots of little boy friendly activity and at the end of one day Miranda asked, "You did that all today?" We are not sure when we will get to see them again, there is a good chance it will be after the new baby arrives. Yep! Lobs Grandbaby #11 will arrive in May! GIRL??!!??!!??!!

Can you believe Brynne and I made our first college visit?
We checked out Austin College in Sherman, Texas.
A.C. is a small, private liberal arts college that caught Brynne's eye due to a 5 year masters of education program in addition to a Spanish immersion house.
Sherman is about 90 minutes from us, not exactly the most happening place when you have lived your entire life smack dab between Dallas and Fort Worth. There are 1,000 less students then there are at CHHS. It is the first of what we anticipate will be 5 college visits over the course of the next year as she thinks this all through,
rolls it around and gets to the bottom $$ line.

Last night we gathered with some other kids
and parents for a bit of tailgating
before the Homecoming game.
We played the Carroll Dragons,
perhaps they sound vaguely familiar.
They have had lots of national exposure in USA Today, Sports Illustrated and various other high profile publications. They have a remarkable record and our stadiums are literally across the street from each other. Without much elaboration I can tell you that all of the local teams desperately desire to be the team that stops their ridiculously long winning streak. The Dragons motto is "Protect the Tradition" as you can see in the background banner.
Consider it protected. Enough said.

It is homecoming time and the swim/dive team entered their
water themed float in the parade. They take their entry seriously
and truly enjoy their togetherness in and out of the water.

Care to brush up on your multiple choice test taking skills?
How is this explained?
A) There was a sale at the red-white-and blue store
B) We have decided to add another bathroom to our home
C) We are having our roof replaced and don't want roofers to...
you know where I am going with this.
D) TP'ing isn't much fun for our local teens...how about tipping??

So you are a new kid to a school.
What would you do?
If you are Jacob you run for President of Student Council!

Jacob gets the award for most outgoing in the Mattson family.
Without bias I can say he likes kids and they like him.
When he opted to throw his hat in the ring we were proud of him and happy that he was as comfortable as he was at his new school. He was on the ballet with 6-7 other kids.
And get this...he won!

The washer and dryer are full of towels and the smell of chlorine permeates
the car! Panther swimming is back in season! I think they had a couple of days on deck before they were in the water and they won't hop back out until the spring. Lacey has amazing dedication to drag her body out of bed in the dark every morning. And if a couple of hours before school isn't enough she is back to the pool in the afternoon for club swimming.
Pass the ice cream!

It has been awhile since we have given you a Snapshot of recent Mattson goings on. I guess the best and worst reason is we are just going, going, going! However, we do want share our highs and lows with you...thankfully more highs then lows...and we need to move the bat down the page!!

Suffice to say Brynne's favorite class is...2nd grade... She is student teaching in an ESL class at a local elementary school. Because this is not top of the list for most high school students the teacher has welcomed Brynne to her class with great responsibility. While many high school students find themselves in the workroom making die cuts or grading endless stacks of papers in a corner Brynne is truly hands on. Undoubtedly this semester will do wonders for her Spanish and I believe she can help her students make strides in their English.

Hi everyone!

This is a picture of the class I have been working with this year—it is through a program at my school called Service Learning, where you get to go off-campus for a period either in the morning/afternoon and do volunteer work in the location of your choice (other schools, churches, nursing homes, animal shelters, etc.) The teacher I am working with, Mrs. Malin, is very nice; I met her last year when I was ‘mentoring’ my little friend Gaby. She teaches 2^nd grade bilingual, which is what I am hoping to do also sometime down the road. (Maybe not 2^nd grade, but we’ll see!) Basically, these are all students that have recently moved to the US from Mexico/Central America and are not proficient enough in English to learn their math, science, etc. in anything but their native language. So in order to make sure they don’t fall behind on curriculum-type stuff, the teacher gives them their lessons entirely in Spanish, and then gradually adds in more English. The goal is to have them simultaneously learning English, while not falling behind in their regular studies either. They are very sweet, polite kids, and the thing I was most surprised at is how eager they are to learn English. Many of them even prefer that you talk to them in English rather than Spanish, because they like to “show-off” their words! I am there for 1 – 2.5 hours every other day, assisting Mrs. Malin. But the biggest surprise so far has been my level of responsibility in the classroom. She has ME teaching them their morning lesson, while she works with students who need extra help. Can you say PRESSURE?! Ha! It is so fun to “try out” what I might be doing in the future, and also work on my Spanish skills. I’m so thankful for all the experience she’s providing me with, and also that I’m not in some of my friends’ shoes, whose teachers have them making copies and cutting die-cuts for an hour!

Please keep each one of these students in your prayers – some of them come from homes with one or no parents, and many of them come to school sick or extremely tired, and have a difficult time doing their work. Also, it is very easy to judge these children and the homes they come from. Even though I realize that most, maybe all of these students are living here illegally, they are children who cannot help the situations they’re in. There is a saying in Spanish that I LOVE and has really been my motto for all the Spanish-volunteer work I do, and that is “Haz bien y no mires a quien”, which means “Do good and don’t look at who” in English. God calls us to help all people in need, and even if we don’t agree/like the backgrounds they come from, we need to try and not let that get in the way of what Christ calls us to do anyway. There is a lot of discrimination against the children I work with, and the jokes and the comments that I get from other people about them can become frustrating and hurtful, because I think people don’t keep in mind that they are not responsible for the actions of their parents. These are God’s children who need are help and our love… why are so many people hesitant to do just that?

I am not sure what this is all about...creepy creatures in the general vicinity of our grill, but I am thinking it is mighty good timing on my part...the George Foreman Grill, that is. Jacob and Brynne mustered the courage to look at him up close and personal,
but I prefer the online viewing.
Gregg seems to think he is...dead. I guess the "scraper-offer" will know that for sure at some point in the future. And I am oh so thankful that
Brynne picked shrimp stir fry for her birthday dinner!

Ta-Daaaaaa! Our birthday girl!
She was feeling more positive about afternoon photo approval
then morning photo approval.

"You Are Special Today."
Not you. Well yes, you and Lacey too, but your sister!
Happy 17th Birthday, Brynneeeeee!
Brynne kicked off her day with her favorite
lemon filled donut, a "have a Starbucks on me"
text from her dad and
Hallmark greetings from out of state family.
She has picked shrimp stir fry for dinner and then on Saturday night we will hit The Cheesecake Factory with Brynne, Lacey and a couple of friends. Lacey was at camp on her birthday so it has been a low key birthday year. But next year...18 and 16 - wooweeee!

The first day of school has come and gone. Brynne is now a Jr., and Lacey a soph. Jacob came to his new school as a 5th grader. Certainly the greatest changes are for Jacob. No uniforms. The opportunity to walk to school. Which he did all by himself. Sort of. I drove him to the end of the neighborhood where I had to watch him get to his class solo. He claimed it was "social suicide" to have his mom walk him to the teacher. Sob. The report at the end of the day was overall positive, but not anything over the top in the enthusiasm dept. Gregg summed it up well by saying that school is school.

Both girls are happy with their schedules. They have some tough classes. Brynne has her first AP class. She also has stepped off the Oral Interp team in exchange for a leadership class. She is rolling around the idea of auditioning for either the school play or musical, depending on the selection and the homework situation. Lacey has a heavy math/science load and is officially back in the water. She is looking forward to both her morning practice
with the high school team and the
afternoon practice with the club team.

An Eagle no more...Jacob is totally, officially 100% Tiger!
We have registered and attended Meet the Teacher - four to be exact.
We said hello to the principal, made a quick swing by the spirit table and shopped for school supplies. (The girls have been instrumental in that task, Lacey in particular. The list is ridiculously long and detailed, but we are determined to hunt it all down!) Add a little bit of non-uniform clothes shopping, a couple more days of early to bed, early to rise and we should be be good to go by Monday!!

We had some game time and it included a version of Frisbee golf I was not familiar with...gone are the Frisbees and instead you hurl a brisket! Yucko! Brynne was a good sport and for a girl who isn't wild about beef she mixed it up pretty well!

This past weekend has been all about teenagers! I went to OK with some other adult chaperons for a Students Standing Strong retreat. The kids were fabulous and the objectives were met! We are excited about this new year and anticipate great things.

Mountain Pine Beetle.
The photo does not even begin to truly represent the destruction. These pesky little critters have eaten their way through 1000's and 1000's of trees. After they have dined their way through the forests the trees turn yellow and then bright red. They present a huge fire hazard, a tremendous expense...about $800 per tree for mandatory removal...and drastically alter the look of the mountains. Everyone has an opinion about these little guys...natural cycle of the forests or unacceptable plight that must be tended to no matter the cost. Regardless of your position on the matter you must concede it sure looks different up there. The town of Breckenridge estimates that 80-90% of the mature trees that the beetles have a taste for will be destroyed by their wild eating binge.