Christmas at the Nadermann's

We traveled to my parents' house Christmas morning to spend Christmas afternoon and evening together.  It had just snowed a few inches the day before so driving to my mom and dads' was calming as the fresh snow looked so pretty.  Although I am sick of snow, it was pretty to see it on Christmas day. Sara and Derek arrived with the boys just a few minutes before we did.  Of course, Mom had all sorts of yummy munchies waiting for us..just what we all needed!

It was Connor's first Christmas, so that was fun in itself.  Graham had a wonderful time helping everyone unwrap presents and handing them out from under the tree with Elyse.  Elyse and Alex loved playing new games with everyone as well as spending time with the family. Alex and I beat Grandma and Papa in a game of eucher, one of many that was played over the time we were there. 

I had to include a picture of Sara and I "slaving" away in the kitchen - we were exhausted afterwards!!!!!! Our mom is still a slavedriver.....just kidding....we did make the eggbakes for breakfast but that was it....and only because Mom made us!  :)   Mom did all the rest and it was super!!!

While it was our first Christmas without Ken, I think we all felt he was there with us.  Happy Holidays Ken!  We love and miss you lots!!!

More Pics of Kourtney and Brandons' Reception

Great Time at Kourtney and Brandons' Reception

Elyse, Alex, and Kirstin at winery

I was taking pictures off my camera quickly and thought I would make a quick post.  We just returned from a fun night with family as we celebrating my cousin, Kourtney, and her husband, Brandons', marriage.  They were married in Hawaii a few months ago so we celebrated last night at a winery in Cedar Rapids.Both of them are in their last few years (I think) of med school and soon to be Drs. I think Brandon should be on Grey's Anatomy as he will be known as "Dr. Comfort"....fits right in with Dr. McSteamy right??? (for those who know Grey's Anatomy).  hehehe.  That is really his last name!  Sounds like a great Dr. name, I think!!! :) Anyway, it was a lot of fun and good to have all of the extended family together! 



Wayne and Kim (after many glasses of wine)

 The "older cousins" surprised Kourtney and Brandon by taking them on a limo ride around CR, making a stop at a bar for beverages to welcome Brandon to the family.  Wayne and I really enjoyed this time as we never seen many of my cousins...or if we do, we all have our kids around, so this was nice to have just the adult cousins and reconnect with one another.  Brandon and Kourtney were very surprised when they got into the limo to see all our faces...whether they wanted to or not.



Graham leading EVERYONE on dance floor!

 We then headed out to the winery, which is fairly new and a perfect place for a quaint wedding reception.  The wine was great, the food was fabulous, and the music was fun.  My nephew, Graham, danced every song the whole night and even led everyone in one of the dances.  It is my favorite picture of the whole night!  So much fun!



Alex and Sara

 The night ended by everyone returning to the Marriott in Cedar Rapids for more family time, socializing, and cards.  My mom's family waste no time getting started playing cards...and they are serious about it as well.  Wayne and I did not play, just hung out while our kids ran around with their second cousins and reconnected as well.  They had a great time as well.



Graham dancing...he danced all night long!!!

 Who knows when we will all be together again....but I can't wait.  Thanks for a fun night Sheila, Joe, Brandon and Kourtney!  And thanks for the toast and dance to Ken!  Meant a lot to all of us!!!  I am sure he was dancing along and drinking with us....

Snowstorm Hits the Outer Banks

I couldn't resist posting this picture of the beach in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.  It is one taken at part of the Southern Shores beach, which is where we stayed every summer with Ken as well as this coming summer with mom and dad, as well as Sara, Derek, and the boys!  Rarely do they get snow in the Outer Banks, but this is a pretty picture....although the ocean is kind of intense looking. 

Merry Christmas OBX!  See you in July!


Snowstorm hits the Outer Banks of North Carolina!



Alex's AAU Scrimmage...Looking Good!



Alex scores

 Alex's AAU team is off to a great start as well.  They participated in a scrimmage against Waverly and Cedar Falls two weeks ago.  While no one was keeping score, I'd have to say that we beat Waverly and came close to beating Cedar Falls.  Alex would say that I have them backwards but I don't think so.  Either way, they did well. 



Alex rebounding against Phife.

 Waverly is a pretty good team.  They have a guy who is very big....Alex may be tall, but this kid makes Alex look tiny.  The boys father played for UNI when I was in school there.  His last name is Phife.  He doesn't move much, but he is a big boy.  Alex played well against him.  One picture shows Alex, number 34, going up for a rebound against him. 



Alex going for the shot

 Due to Kirstin's graduation, Alex missed the team's first tournament, which he was bummed about but understood his priority was to be somewhere else.  I heard they won 2 and lost 1 so good job boys!  Alex is ready for the next tournament as he is loving basketball! 

We look forward to the many years ahead watching Alex and his team playing basketball (among other things).  Go Cadets!

More Freshman Basketball! Still Undefeated!!!

Elyse's team continues to be undefeated and playing awesome!  Here are some randomn pictures I thought I would post of my tall blondy and her team!  Go Cadets!


Time out.  Elyse's team.  She is blond to the left on the bench. 



Elyse...number 33...jump ball.





Elyse...33..scoring basket.



And Another basket...Elyse!



This time...driving down the middle!



Elyse Faces Her Biggest Enemy......Pulls off the Win!



Elyse going up for outside shot.

 Elyse's freshman basketball team continues to be undefeated.  They are doing a fabulous job, playing team basketball, and look incredible!  It is awesome to watch them play, and hopefully they will continue to keep winning.  Elyse (and her cousin, Miranda) continue to dress for the JV team as well.  They get in randomnly.  The JV team is also undefeated.....looks good for Crestwood basketball!!!



The ball is almost there.......

 You have probably seen post in the past made on my blog page about Elyse's enemy from Oelwein.  She faces "her" in the high jump (Elyse beat her at conference meet), volleyball (both middle hitters), softball (both first base players), and of course basketball (both post players and both do jump ball).  Elyse gets pumped when she faces "her"; yet it also makes Elyse play even harder.  "Enemy's" number is 21.  I have posted three continuous pictures....elyse going up for outside shot, the ball going to hoop, and then it going in.  Yeah Elyse and team!!!



And it's good!!!!!

 Elyse is the blond in the white, number 32 on the outside of the team shooting the ball.  You can see her to the left of the box/hoop shooting.  She is not the one standing under the hoop...she is shooting (just to clarify for my uncle Dennis as he needs help finding her. :)  The "enemy" is the blond guarding her all the time or vice versa.  Elyse looks forward to the next 4 years meeting "the enemy" in every sport she plays.  Of course, again, Crestwood came out the winners!!!!

Kerian Christmas - A BIG Celebration!



Kirstin, Elyse, and Alex

 Well, when I say a "Big" celebration, I am not kidding.  We had the Kerian family Christmas at our house yesterday (yes it was a busy weekend with graduation), and the family has grown to over 30 people!  The house was busy and active, but it was a great family gathering with lots of laughs! Not only did we celebrate Christmas, but we also celebrated Kirstin's graduations.





The Kerian Crew (minus 2)

 We tried to take a picture of Judy(mom) with all her kids, their spouses, and grandkids.  It was successful, but it is hard to see some of the people....It's the best we could do.  Elyse is in the back peeking over - HI ELYSE!  :)  We were just missing Kasie and Dusty and it would have been complete!  We missed them and wish them happy holidays! 








Kevin, Wayne, Judy, Carol, Nancy, Randy



Kirstin Graduates from UNI!



Kirstin Graduates

 Well...she did it!!!  We are the proud parents of a college graduate....wow....makes us sound old!!!!  :)  Old but proud.  Kirstin graduated Saturday from UNI and it was a great day of celebration and the end of another chapter of her life.  I'd have to say, she had a great ending to this part of her college career being she was on the East Coast all semester and then graduated.  It hit me that she was graduating when I was looking through the program and saw the little symbol for "legacy" by her name.....that meant she had a parent, that would be me, Kim, who attending/graduated from UNI and their child was continuing the legacy.  Right after the ceremony, as I was hugging her, she said, "Did you see I am a legacy?"  We both just smiled!!!! Go Panthers!!!!



Kirstin in middle walking towards Dean of Education
(short hair blond)

 Graduation ceremony was at 10:00 AM.  I did enclose a picture of her walking across the stage.  The picture shows her in the middle of the stage just after she shook the President of UNI's hand going for her diploma.  Of course, I enclosed other pictures of the proud day.  We had a nice meal afterwards at Peppers in Cedar Falls with both sides of Kirstin's family, grandparents, and some of her cousins.  Yummy food and great way to end the day.



Elyse, Kirstin, Alex

 Her exciting news is that she also has a part time job already teaching literacy to grades 2-4 every day in the morning.  She will be doing this in the school district I teach in, but a different building.  She will be in Lime Springs, which is ironic because that was the same building I started my teaching career at!  I told my students today that Kirstin graduated and that there was now going to be a "Miss Kerian" in our school district.  They thought that was so cool....of course they probably won't see her being she is in a different building, but they haven't figured that out yet.

Congratulations Kirstin!!! We are very proud of you and love you!

Let the Basketball Games Begin!!!



Elyse posting up and calling for ball

Elyse's 9th grade basketball career is off to a great start.  She has had 3 games already with the JV and last night was their first freshman game.  While she did play some JV the first two games last week (which were only JV and Varsity), last night she played almost all of the freshman game and did great!!!  They played Waverly, who did have a very tall girl to go up against Elyse. Elyse is number 33 (that is for my uncle Dennis who says he can never tell which one is Elyse - she is the blond with her arm out calling for the ball Dennis!:) The program said this girl for Waverly was only 5 10' but that could not be true because she was as tall as Elyse standing over 6'.  No matter what the height, Elyse did an excellent job, as did the whole Cadet freshman team!  It was fun to watch them play together again and pull off a win!  Great job ladies!!! Wayne's niece Miranda also did a fabulous job as well! 


she puts the move on.......

 I had to put in these action shots of Elyse posting up and turning to make a basket.  Really good move Elyse!!!  I love my new camera so I have to post some of the action moves pictures.  These pictures are all from 1 move.  She has been practicing her post moves every Sunday night with Kyle, family friend who is a basketball coach, and her hard work is showing! 



She shoots.......and she scored!!!

So we are not set for many months of basketball.  Alex's AAU team has been practicing and is ready for their first tournament as well.  Too bad for Alex it is the same day as Kirstin's graduation from UNI and he will probably have to miss the AAU tournament.    Believe me....there are many more after that.
Tomorrow night, Elyse dresses with the JV for another night of hoops!  Go Cadets! 





New York Knicks! Close but No Win!!!

Our last full day in New York was spent in the city.  We went to the New York Knicks game, and my uncle had arranged to have the company suite.  It was so awesome!  We arrived a little passed tip-off, but had a super time at the game.  The boys brought friends along, there was food galore, and everyone was having a blast.  The only bad part was the Knicks did not pull off a win - gave it a good attempt and came back the last quarter, but couldn't pull it off!

We were all excited because Spike Lee was there as well as Kris Rock, the comedian.  We were in the suite, therefore we were up higher, but I have to say we had the best view of everything!  It was an excellent experience and we can't thank Dennis enough! 

Everyone was a little tired after that so we all returned to the Deutmeyer house. It was nice to sit and talk with Connie for a few hours about life etc.  The evening ended with the guys (Wayne, Dennis, and Nate) taking on the ladies (Kim, Connie, and Kirstin) in a couple rounds of euchre.  It was decided to play the best 2 out of 3 - ladies then declared winners as they won 2 of them.  The guys couldn't handle the loss and wanted to play a 4th round, which they came back to win so I guess it was a great way to end the night with a split.....even though we, the ladies, were declared winners in the first place!!!!  Fun night for sure!!!!



Wayne and Kim at Knicks game in suite.

 Sunday was our last day in NY.  Wayne went golfing one last time with Dennis, James had a track meet (which his team placed first in the 4 x 200 (Yeah James!), the rest of us hung out and prepared for the trip home.  I forgot to mention that we also had some time to watch my cousin William play basketball.....he's a great player and did super!  I had to enclose a picture of him.....he can jump!!!!  Way to go Will!



William scoring basket!

 Monday it was back to reality...all of us dragging tired but it was worth it!!!!  We made more wonderful memories.  Kirstin returns to Iowa in 2 weeks from today.  Wayne will fly back out and then drive home with her in time for her to go to graduation.  When we were discussing it with my extended family, my uncle Dennis said that he didn't think Kirstin's lease was up and that she was to stay longer......that put a big smile on Kirstin's face....I can tell she is loving it there!  Thanks so much Dennis, Connie, and boys!  You are the best!

Rockettes Christmas Spectacular!

After an emotional, wonderful morning, we ventured back into New York City to attend the Rockettes Christmas Spectacular.  Of course, we had to make a stop at Dylan's Candy Bar so we could all get our candy fix for the day and I could buy some goodies for my students.  (Dylan's Candy Bar is a huge candy store owned by designer Ralph Lauren's Daughter.  It is levels and levels of candy heaven!)

We then arrived a Radio City Music Hall and enjoyed the wonderful performance by the Rockettes to get us all in the mood for Christmas!  We had superb seats and loved every minute of it!

After the show, Dennis and Connie and the boys returned home while we went for a nice dinner and then went to the show of Wicked on Broadway.  This is the story taken from the Wizard of Oz, but it presents a different side of the story.....a great story to tell that really makes you wonder....

Another great day in the city with the Deutmeyers! 

West Point - Bitter Sweet - Ken's Class Ring

All of us in front of West Point Class Ring Case

We all agreed that the best part of the trip was the return to West Point, but we also all agreed it was probably the most emotional part as well. The drive up was kind of rainy but when we arrived at West Point up in the mountains, it stopped.  Everyone was on leave so it was very quiet there...which was kind of nice.  We spent a lot of time just sharing memories about Ken and what we knew about West Point.  I was glad Kirstin was there to experience this as well as this was her first trip to West Point.

Holding Ken's Ring

For those who do not know, my brother Ken attending the Army Academy in New York.  His classmates, called the F4 Fighting Frogs had recently returned to West Point for a reunion.  While there, they participating in a ceremony to pray for those in their troop who had past away, one being my brother.  During this same time, one of the classmates and very good friend of Ken's, recognized what I will call the "wall of rings".  In this large display, there is a West Point classring represented for each graduating class.  The ring that is displayed was given in memory of a cadet who graduated or simply given by a family.  Jerry, Ken's friend, realized that the class of 1990, which is my brother's class, had only a display ring.  Well, he contacted my family seeing how we felt about giving Ken's ring to the "wall of rings".  Long story short....Mom, Sara, Dad, and myself all agreed it would be something Ken would want and be honored to do.

Kim and Wayne overlooking Hudson River

So being I was going to New York, it was decided that Wayne and I would take the ring up.  While West Point was mostly closed for the holiday weekend, a wonderful lady named Elaine and her husband met us to accept the ring.  Elaine's husband graduated from West Point and her son is currently a plebe, freshmen, there as well. 

The gang overlooking Hudson River at West Point

Elaine was wonderful and gave us a tour of the new library before we reached the area where the rings are displayed.  It was very emotional seeing that "wall of rings" and hard to turn over Ken's ring.....but I am so happy to know that I can take my kids back to West Point some day and show them where Ken went to school as well as show them his ring from West Point- a place that was so much a part of the person he was.  There were lots of tears shed by all......but memorable in it's own way.

I received a note from Ken's friend Todd not long after this event and he said, "Ken would be proud!".  I know he is too!  At least I hope so.....

Ken's room.  Right side of this portion, top floor, middle
room with air condition unit sticking out.

James was a book of knowledge as well and showed us where Ken's room was when we were visiting the chapel.  James had shown Ken pictures of a trip he had taken to West Point and Ken showed him where his room/dorm was.  That was neat to see as well.  We took many pictures on the landing overlooking the Hudson, just as we had done so many times with Ken.  Memories from the past and new memories made....none forgotten!!!!

Elaine accepting ring...bad picture of me crying but Connie
said it is important as it was emotional, to keep these
memories.  I agree (even though i look horrible)

Wayne and I are already talking plans to return next year for a football game and showing the kids a part of Ken's world.....West Point.  The lady, Elaine, was also crying at the time as her husband told Wayne and I Ken's ring is now with a group of honorable men....one of which he is!

None of us look too wonderul in these pictures as they were taken after emotions were flying and lots of crying.  But I still wanted to share them....Funny part was that while I was trying to speak to Elaine and give her the ring, I could imaging Ken saying, "Stop crying!" and laughing......I read once where he wrote that I was "his emotional sister".....I guess he is right....:)