Holidays!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year! I thought I would just cover all my bases here.

We had a wonderful holiday! Reidar took over a week off and it made it really feel like a vacation to have us all home together. There has been A LOT of snow on the ground for over 2 weeks now. That is practically unheard of here! Because we live close to the ocean we rarely get snow and if we do it never lasts this long. Freezing temps also.... I can't remember the last time it was this cold for so long. Maybe never? But the kids have had a great time sledding and such. And Atticus... loves the snow! He dives right in.

So here are a couple of pictures. My camera was MIA most of the time but I did manage to get a few.

Zoey and I at the in laws
The aftermath
Christmas Eve dinner... well the end of it
I made all those stocking!
And the tree

I really wanted to hold onto Christmas longer but yesterday, after the 4th ornament fell off the tree, it all had to go out. I was sad to pack it all away because the house is so cosy feeling but once I started, it felt good. I was worried the house was going to feel empty but it actually has a calm feeling again.

I like calm.

Advent Calendar

This might just be the favorite part of the holidays for the kids. What started out many years ago with the simple waxy chocolate calendars has evolved to velvet sacks filled with goodies.

I have 24 bags with numbered ornaments on them. Each bag contains a wrapped gift for each child. I hung them a couple days before Dec. 1st and each kid that walked in the house that afternoon screamed with anticipation. Even the 15 yr old.
My staircase banister has exactly 24 railings so it was the perfect place to hang them. Many years ago, I nailed 24 nails into my wall.... yah, not doing that again. Then when we moved into the apartment, I hung them to an existing curtain rod in the living room. That was super cute. Then we moved into this house and I was faced with a dilemma (ok this word doesn't look right at all but spell check said it was correct). No way was I putting 24 nail holes in my new walls and I had no curtains. Alas... the staircase! It worked out perfectly!

My goal is not to break the bank. Small items, candy, etc. In a perfect world, I would have bought an item once a month, then the other 12 would hold a small candy. But that takes organization. So yep, 24 pieces of candy this year. Well, they did get gloves and the ever popular Pokemon ball. 13 days left.... the days are flying by!

A day late and a dollar short

Happy Thanksgiving!

I quietly gave thanks in my head and then got on with my day. For some reason this holiday has been the hardest one to hold on to here. Really, this is the only day that is strictly American. Yes, 4th of July is our Independence Day but 17th of May is Independence Day here. Thanksgiving just got hard to do. It is just another day here, work, school, sports, etc. It just doesn't have the same feeling. Without American family here, I've just let it go.

But I'm ok with it. I celebrate in my mind. I give thanks and share blessings with my family. Just no turkey or Grandma's mashed potatoes. I have lovely memories of Thanksgiving Day in Corcoran. All us grandchildren running like maniacs, thinking that back room was HUGE, and daring each other to go in the back bedrooms where the ghost lives. Good times. The best.