New Year's Eve!

 This is a picture Clyde took of my brother Bob and and my mother's   grandfather clock.  It is double exposed in the days when you could do that (and did do that quite often by accident).  This was done intentionally.  I thought it was a cool picture for New Year's Eve and the passing of time.  

 This an Advent party at our apartment in Frankfurt Germany.  I am in the back in the middle, Marianne is in the front, Bob is in his favorite outfit - his cowboy shirt (it was either that or fatigues).  The table is surrounded by the GI's that were always at our home.  I do remember the shorter ones name was Allen.

I can't remember if I posted this one or not but it is me getting Carianne and her sisters ready for the Christmas pageant when we lived in North Carolina.  That year instead of Santa Claus coming to the Christmas party, the Three Wise Men came.  


I think, starting tomorrow, I will post pictures of the people and events that are important that month.  For example, in January there are several birthdays and anniversary's in our family.  I will post pictures leading up to each event.  I hope you enjoy this as much as you have enjoyed the Christmas and Thanksgiving blogs.

More VA Christmas Pictures

These are more pictures from the first Christmas at the VA house.  The top one is Pam and Heather and the bottom one is Heidi.  Pam is at the computer in the dining room and Heidi is standing in front of the fire place in the living room.  Heather and Heidi are wearing t-shirts G'ranne had sent them that year from the 'Reindeer Run' for the Association she was working for at the time.

We Interrupt Christmas for..

This is one of my favorite pictures of Carlye.  She is about 4 in this picture.  Today she turns 10.  She had the courtesy of having her birthday on our wedding anniversary so her grandfather would never forget it!  Happy Birthday Carlye Anne Pfiester!  We love you very much!

Today is Clyde's and my 38th anniversary.  The above picture is our engagement picture taken Christmas of 1971.

This picture was taken by the girls on our 25th annivesary.

This picture is part of the Christmas card we sent out the first year Clyde was bishop.  He will have been bishop 4 years in January.  Happy Anniversary Clyde!  I am so happy we have been taking this journey together!

My First Christmas Tree

This is a picture of me decorating my first Christmas tree in San Antonio.  I was 5.  It is in my playroom and I had great time and actually took almost a week getting it just the way I wanted it.  We had a few more trees that were just for the kids there but never again after we left San Antonio the first time. I am standing on a chair we bought when we went to the bullfights in Mexico.

Grandchildren Christmas Pictures

I have many Christmas pictures of the grandchildren but the  bottom one of these two is probably one of my favorite.  It is Bella, Marcus and Baby Anneke.  The top one is of Anneke with Santa Claus.

Just For Fun!

 Bella with her Christmas gifts when they lived in Las Vegas.

Omi and Grandpa Tuttle at Aunt Norma's reception.  This was in their front living room in the house that  Popi and Grandma Doreen live in now.

Heidi in our duplex on the VA grounds in Kerrville the second Christmas there.  The reason I know that is because the boxes were starting the fill up the dining room and the other corners of the living room, so we moved the tree that year.  It was in the opposite corner the year before.  This would be Christmas 1995.  In two months we would be moving to Utah.  We have had a wonderful Christmas here.  I will download pictures just as soon as I run out of Christmas Past pictures to post!

Merry Christmas!

These are a collection of Christmas pictures of grandchildren.  The top three are Santa pictures with Baby Luke Bahlmann, second Anneke Bahlmann and then Marcus Bahlmann from 2007.  The bottom picture is Spiderman (Nathanael) and Snow White (Carlye) Pfiester.  I am not sure what year the last picture was taken.

Pink Christmas!

I apologize for these pictures being so pink but I lost these rolls of film for  years and that does not do good things to pictures.  I am not even sure these are from the same year but I think they are.  It is hard to enact an Nativity with all girls!

The above pictures are Pam, Carianne, Heidi and Heather all in their  Christmas finery.  I think this was Christmas 1984 or 1985 - or maybe both!

This is my brother Bob blowing out the Advent Krantz in Germany one of our last Christmases there.  This would have been about 1963.

My granddaughter wanted to see a picture of her Mom when she was little.  Unfortunately my girls have taken all of their pictures and scrapbooked most of them leaving me with very few.  This is the Christmas Card picture we used for Pam's first Christmas.  The little dress Pam is wearing is the dress that all of the girls wore when they were 1 for Christmas.  The pinafore made it fit even if it was a little bit too big.

Christmas Tree at Grandma Brugger's

This is a picture that was taken the the year Carianne was born.  Eventually the presents almost filled the living room!  I don't know why the picture is so blue, though.

Our VA Christmas

I am about to be shot by 3 daughters!  We lived on the VA grounds the last two years we lived in Kerrville.  This was one of those Christmases.  I am thinking it was the first Christmas because the second Christmas the wall behind the girls was stacked with boxes for our move to Utah.  It was a tiny place but we managed quite well - mostly because we were hardly ever home.  Heidi, Heather and I spent most of our time in San Antonio, where I was attending school full time and Pam was attending middle school in Kerrville.  Clyde loved literally rolling out of bed and walking to the office in less than 5 minutes.  The girls are modeling their new t-shirts that Gr'Anne and Grandpa Bill had sent them for Christmas.


My Christmas village (behind Heidi) wasn't very big back then!  It is over 22 pieces now.  

This and That

The first picture was a Christmas we spent with the Plaut's.  That is their little boys in the picture and their rocking horse in the foreground.  This is  a continuation of the marvelous 'kitchen' Christmas that I had.  They were transferring out and Mom and Dad opened their home to them.  Turns out they were Jewish but didn't practice their faith.


The bottom picture is the Poinsettia bush in  our backyard in San Antonio.  It used to be much warmer in San Antonio and much dryer.  Things like Christmas cactus and Poinsettia's and even Amaryllis grew all over in people's gardens.  You don't see that much any more.  It is too cool in the winters.  That is Marianne and me in the picture.  The doll I am holding in my arms is 'Baby Nancy'.  I am not sure where I came up with that name but that is what her name always was

Happy Juliannuary!

Today is Jared and Julianna's first anniversary.  Happy Anniversary and may you continue to have your 'eternally ever after'!



This is picture of my brother-in-law, Frank Dittmar on Santa's knee.  I have been trying to figure out how to work this into my Christmas pictures and then today when I did Julianna's pictures it hit me - this was the perfect day.  This is Julianna's father.  So in keeping with my Christmas theme - here is Frank.  I would also like to wish a Happy Birthday to my friend Jennifer Mello.  Jennifer is an amazing woman.  She is our Relief Society President so she is basically Clyde's 3rd counselor.  She sees things that need to be done in the ward and quietly takes care of them.  She is an incredible mother and wife.  And to top it all off about the best friend you could want.  Plus she has 3 sisters and as I watch her dynamics with her sisters, it reminds so much of our daughters and the love between the 4 of them



My First Christmas

These are some pictures that I found that were labeled 'Beckie's first Christmas'.  I assume my mother had them correct since I don't remember.  Thank heaven she labeled which is better than I did for my daughters!  We would have been living in Salt Lake City, Utah then because Dad was still in medical school.  I remember laying in front of that radio that I am sitting in front of in the top picture when I was 9 years old in Germany.  I also remember when Dad finally got rid of it and bought himself a German top of the line stereo system.  He still had parts of it that - that he was still using - when we moved here to Rhode Island.  That and his cameras he bought were his pride and joy.  I have to admit that our family got a lot of pleasure from both purchases for many years.

Advent

 This is the Sister Missionary that gave our family the story of Advent the first year my family was in Germany.  We were in the home of Ezra Taft Benson when we heard it. 

 

In the second picture on the left is Sister Voigt.  She is the sister that gave my parents our permanent Advent Krantz.  She was from East Germany and added to our German Christmas traditions.  She and her family were wonderful friends while we lived in Frankfurt.  And the last picture is the picture of the Advent Krantz she gave us.  This is a very special part of our family tradition to this day.

Rudolph

This is literally the only picture I have of the our family every doing any production of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer".  Pam is to the right of the man in the middle.  She was an elf the first year.  Isn't she the cutest thing.  We have good memories from the Point Theater in Kerrville, Texas.  Maybe they have pictures but I sure don't.  Clyde was the villain in the production and the part was written just for him!  His name was Milton Miser.

Christmas 1958

This is Marianne and me without the capes.  It turns out this picture was taken the year Bob was born.  This was one of my favorite Christmas outfits Mom me.  

Sing Choirs of Angels

Mom always made Marianne and me something out of red velveteen  for Christmas when we were young girls.  These were jumpers with white blouses underneath them.  The capes are because we were part of the angel choir in the Christmas pageant at Church.  Don't you love our pose with both of our right feet rolled out!  I remember that right after this picture we had to go and find Marianne's glasses, AGAIN!  When she first got them they must not have fit her very well because she was always taking them off.  Her second pair she never removed so the fit must have been better.  This picture was taken in the living room of the house on Infantry Post in San Antonio, probably the same year as the year we received the marvelous kitchen set.

Play Kitchen Christmas

One of my most favorite Christmases ever!  This was the Christmas Marianne and I received the cardboard kitchen set with the kitchen table and chairs.  My girls were still playing with pieces of the tea set until my mom moved to Utah and she threw them way.  I still have the doll.  She is a Madame Alexander doll.  My dad named her Carolyn and I have always called her my Carolyn doll - not Carolyn.  I think that was the year just before Bob was born.  I loved that kitchen set and played with it for years!  For being cardboard it certainly held up well, but it needed to be cardboard so we could move it.  I think that is where my love of being in the kitchen came from!

Our First Christmas In Germany

These are pictures of Mom, Marianne, Me and Bob, our very first Christmas in Germany.  Mom is making a Christmas tree out of felt with various ornaments on it - for the front door.  I love Bob's pose in the first picture.  The bottom picture Marianne and I are in the background - I am reading - probably to Marianne.  She was very patient with me and let me read to her even though she could read very well herself.  Bob was obviously still helping Mom.


I think about it now and I realize that Mom must have suffered from SAD (Seasonal Affective Disorder) - especially that first year we were in Germany.  She was always trying to brighten the apartment up.  It is hard when the days are so short and the sun rarely shines.  I am sure that is why our family embraced Advent they way we did - along with the other Christmas events of Germany.  It made the dreary days go so much faster - and with joy!

Christmas 1970

This is a picture of Marianne, me and Bob in Heidelberg Germany on Christmas Eve, December 1970.  Bob is holding up a package that Marianne did.  Marianne was very creative in her Christmas wrapping.  We would both do things like make trains out of batteries and matchbox cars - all individually wrapped or wrap a box looking like a shirt with a neck tie.  Marianne's were always the most artistic - she has the most artistic eye in the family by far.  Now I am lucky if I get the package wrapped!

Angelic Christmas

This was the Christmas I was seven years old and the last one we spent in San Antonio before moving to Germany.  I am "Peace".  Underneath that stage was where I was baptized.  It was known as the Bailey Street Chapel.  It no longer exists.  I remember Mom making me my angel costume.  It was not a happy time between the two of us.  I would not stand still while she pinned up the hem.  However if you look - mine is he nicest looking one.  That is all thanks to Mom.  She was an amazing seamstress.  It pays to be a perfectionist is things like that.  I could never match her because her standards for herself were always so high.

The Doll Crib

This is me.  I think it is the Christmas just after we moved to Texas so I was not quite 3.  My daughters will notice the doll bed.  This the bed that your doll beds were all patterned after.  I am sorry it is so blurry.  We have tried to clean it up but this is as good as it gets.  I am obviously in Texas because I am on the floor and not bundled up!

Marianne and Me

This was the Christmas of 1971.  Clyde took this picture as a matter of fact.  It is taken in Heidelberg Germany.  I came home for Christmas unexpectedly because of a misunderstanding and met the man of my dreams.  Marianne and I are looking at the front door because Mom was talking to someone.  This was the beginning of Marianne and me being being best friends again.  She is still my best girl friend to this day.

Carianne's Only Christmas in El Paso

This is our tree in El Paso the year that Carianne was born.  In truth we ended up selling the house right after this picture was taken and didn't even spend Christmas there.  We were out of the house by the 20th and in our new house by the New Year in San Antonio, Texas. But this does show the type of stocking I chose for our family.  The girls loved putting them on their own feet and walking around on Christmas eve.  Since I made them out of double knit fabric, they were washable and they could play with them.  We had that tree until we moved back to San Antonio the second time.

I am going to add a recipe for Homemade Christmas Simmering Potpourri.  This makes your house smell wonderful with things you have in your house!

Peels of 2 oranges or other citrus fruit
2 cinnamon sticks
12 whole cloves
5 whole allspice
1 1/2 cups water
Simmer on the stove or in a potpourri pot.  Beware that if this boils down it will ruin your pan.  A fun variation is to  use evergreen sprigs instead of the citrus peels or even added to the citrus peels.

A Bahlmann Christmas

I love this picture of our Bahlmann grandchildren.  This is the year that Luke was born and they were living in Colorado, so it is 3 years old.  I am sure we will have an updated version this year.  

Happy Saint Nicholas Eve!

This is a picture of my brother Bob, my sister Marianne and me opening the Advent Calendar in our attic apartment in Germany.  This would be the first Christmas we spent in Germany.  Most of our family traditions are from that year and that experience in Germany.  Tonight is the night to put your shoes out if you believe in St. Nicholas.  Then tomorrow morning you will find goodies in them!  All of our children and grandchildren know that he is coming tonight!  This is also the second Sunday of Advent.

Heather and Bella

Heather and Bella at Christmas.  It looks like Bella was about 3 in this picture but I am not sure.  Heather will have to help me out on this one.

Carianne's Visit With Santa

This is a picture of Carianne as a baby.  This is her first visit with Santa.  The girl standing to the left of Santa is LeeAnn Olsen and she wanted Carianne to 'visit' Santa Claus.  As you can tell, Carianne was the darling of the ward.  Those kids are not waiting to visit Santa but to hold Carianne.  I would walk into to Church and never see her again.  She was everyones' baby in the ward.  Not too long ago our daughter, Heidi, posted a picture of her newest daughter, Mallory wearing the same dress Sunshine is wearing in this picture.