A Christmas card for you

May JOY overflow in your hearts as you celebrate the birth of the Savior.

 

Joyeux Noel

from our family to yours.

{Abbie, Hannah, Daniel, Caleb, Mary Anne, Matthew, Eric, Carol, and Ellie}

Christmas in the Northwest

Coffee Art! 

Quite possibly the ugliest Christmas ornament EVER

Gingerbread

"And I had but one penny in the world,

thou should'st have it to buy gingerbread."

William Shakespeare

 

. . . . .

 

Some gingerbread tea

{Celestial Seasonings Holiday tea}

 

Some gingerbread with a bit of whip.

 

Some happy kids.

 

  The girls helped me make the gingerbread, and we had a lovely tea party.

It really was a most enjoyable afternoon.  I am savoring these days of childhood.

 

. . . . .

 

Things are morphing once again in our household which always leads me to ponder change.   In some ways I enjoy change, it makes things feel fresh and gives a new perspective which often results in a boost of energy or encouragement.   Other times change leaves me feeling rather melancholy. 

It helps me to know that God's perfect plan is unfolding, and I can find joy in that. 

 

"There are souls in this world which have the gift of finding joy everywhere

and leaving it behind them when they go."

 Frederick William Faber

 

I want to be one of those souls!

Tra la la la la la la la

Happy Birthday ~ Sweet 16
 

 

This girl!
 

 
who loves polka dots, and purple,
Ireland, and Audrey,
sewing, and reading, and treasured friends,
who serves her family with a gentle, joyful spirit,

who has a savvy fashion style,
 

 

and an entirely fun sense of humor,

is a blessing from God. 
We are so thankful to Him for sovereignly placing her in our family. 
 

 

 So thankful, and so proud of the young woman she has become.

. . . . .

We celebrated her birthday with a small gathering ~ complete with

family

 a bestie

gifts

 and cheesecake

 16 candles...Eric's idea.

 Happy Birthday, Dear Hannah.
We all love you "so so so so so  much!"

 . . . . .

Along about late October Hannah mentioned that she wanted a "mad-bomber hat".
Caleb was in hardy agreement because he also wanted one.

His Black Friday shopping was successful.
He waltzed in through the door wearing his hat and hiding hers.
All Hannah could say was, "Dude, that hat is epic!"

And now they are twins.

True story.

 

 

 

 

For the love of Kitty

When Mary received this kitty for her 1st birthday, it was love at first sight.

 

It was soft, and fluffy, and white,

and squishy in all the right places to hug and to hold.

Mary has loved this kitty like no other and takes it everywhere.  EVER-Y-WHERE. 

It has had to have a couple of essential washes since she first got it.  That coupled with non-stop lovin' has left this kitty with a few bald spots, no whiskers, not much fluff, and wee bit of soil.

 

Mary sadly pointed out its bald spots to me and was quite worried.

She asked me to sew it up thinking that would fix it, but when I explained that Kitty wasn't ripped, but rubbed bare,  Mary was so sad.

 

When I was a little girl I had a favorite teddy bear and no matter how bare and worn out he was there was nothing that could replace him.  It was the same for Eric.  And have you ever read the Velveteen Rabbit?  Well, then you know you can't just replace a loved stuffed animal.

Still, knowing all this, Eric checked E-Bay and found one!

{retired TY Crystal}

 

:-)

 

 

Mary is so happy!

There will be no retiring of Old Kitty {ya think?...saw that one coming!}

because Old Kitty and New Kitty are best friends, of course,

 

and play peek-a-boo with Marsy.

 

and look exactly the same.

Old Kitty and New Kitty.

 

 

Pause and refresh

A friend of Hannah's showed her this video on YouTube, and then Hannah showed it to me. 

It is beautiful and the perfect reminder in the midst of extra busy schedules and long to-do lists of what the real focus of Christmas really is. 

 

Enjoy.

Joyeux Noel

Just O so good

Leave it to my Oreo loving son to find these at the store...

 

I think the penguin is my favorite. {too bad I can't eat them.}

How about you?  Which one do you like best?

Cookies

I thought you might like to see some signs of the Christmas season here in the Northwest.

 

a happy snowman

 

delicious cookies of all kinds

friends

the gracious hostess

her amazing pumpkin roll

santa hats

gingerbread men with a Seahawk flair

melting snowmen...some people are worth melting for.

Cookie exchanges are fun.  Each year our hostess makes our afternoon enjoyable from start to finish.  Festive Christmas music plays in the background while laughter and conversation fill the room.  As each guest arrives another amazing tray of cookies graces the counter for us to choose from.
It's really fun to see how creative people get, and it's really nice to come home with an amazing assortment for my family to enjoy.  While the cookies are great, the fellowship is even better. 

Hope you are enjoying your Christmas season. 

Joyeux Noël

Seven Pillars of Absurdity

Introducing...

 

that absurd guy.

 

{ http://sevenpillarsofabsurdity.wordpress.com/ }

 

Joy

I hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving celebration with dear family and friends

filling your hearts with sweet memories {and tummies with delicious goodies}.

 

We had a lovely day reuniting with special long-time friends. 

We enjoyed the warmth of hearth and home, the comforting aroma of roasted turkey enveloping everything.  The windows were steamed along the edges from all the cooking and commotion in the kitchen. 

Rooms were filled with lots of chatter and clatter as we tried to catch up on a couple of years of goings-on since we last saw them.

The host is now 95 years old.  It is both a privilege and a pleasure to share in his twilight years.   {His wife is a spry 87!}

 

. . . . .

 

Then I turned the calendar page..... 

 

 

gift shopping, grocery shopping, present wrapping, cookie baking, package mailing, picture-taking, card-addressing.  It's enough to make your head swim.

 

It's not like I don't shop year round with gift giving in mind.  I do. 

It's not like I don't guard my calendar from a frenzied schedule.  I do.

And yet...

here I am with much more to do than my usual, daily stuff, and a time deadline too.

But, I am sure you can relate - since this is true for you too, most likely.

My plan?

 

J O Y

 

I have no reason to not be joy-filled!

 

So I can smile at a stranger, 
speak a kind word to an impatient fellow line-stander,

sing carols in the car while in traffic,
 and enjoy every moment of this beautiful season.

:-)

 

. . . . .

 

"And an angel of the Lord suddenly stood before them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them; and they were terribly frightened.

And the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid; for behold, I bring you good news of a great joy which will be for all the people; for today in the city of David there has been born for you a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.'"   ~ Luke 2:9-11