Outside my window….it is chilly with a light dusting of snow on the ground.  We had a green Christmas and then the joke was on all of us, the snow, such as it was, came down after midnight.

I am thinking…about holidays, past present and future.  About trying to make this one as memorable as holidays past and at the same time, unique for its own special happenings.

I am thankful for…family near and far.  The gifts are great but the thoughfulness and creativity with which they were chosen always warms and amazes me.

From the kitchen…more party fare is on the menu.

I am wearing…a pink tee and jeans.

I am creating…Chrismas memories and family togetherness.

I am going…to get some time in at the pool this afternoon and then, who knows.

I am reading…Outlines of Romantic Theology by Charles Williams

I am hoping…things that cannot be expressed but that I pray for constantly. 

I am hearing….Melissa murmuring to Savannah as she feeds her and rocks her to sleep, MK mumbling to herself as she writes her DB post for school, and the sound of the bubbler on the fish tank.

Around the house….everything is festive and warm. 

One of my favorite things…watching each of the kids, young and old, enjoy the thoughtfulness of others.

A few plans for the rest of the week…make the most of the celebration of the Octave of Christmas.

Here is a picture thought that I am sharing with you….

Grandpa and Savannah sharing some Chrismas love with each other.

That’s Matthew carrying our Christmas tree out of the woods this morning.  As his brothers have done so did Matthew this morning.  Those are some mighty big shoes to fill. (He’s man enough!)

meet Savannah!

She’s impressed!

with a 5-gallon pail! 

My oldest son, Ian is a mechanic (among all his other talents) who has inherited his mother’s obsessive-compulsive tendancies when it comes to his tools.  That’s my round-about way of saying he likes to keep them all in order even when he is using them.  A lot of jobs here on the farm require that the shop be brought to the patient rather than the patient being brought into the shop.  It was with those jobs in mind that I made this handy pail for Ian’s Christmas present.

It has lots of large pockets inside and out so that he can keep his tools organized and the pail is sturdy enough to handle just about anything that it encounters. 

Matthew and Brett had a friend over yesterday to spend some time on the range shooting.  After they came in Layn decided that he needed to spread around some of that charm for which he is so famous. 

She didn’t have a chance.

Outside my window…the sun is shining and I suspect that it is cold out there since the snow hasn’t melted. The forecast is for warmer temps today but clear skys and sun.

I am thinking…about snotty noses and chapped faces.  It has been many years since we have had either of those in this house.  I need to reach back into my memory and remember what was in my arsenal of palliatives for both.

I am thankful for…quiet times and family gathered all around.  Mornings such as this one spent with two of my children simply sitting and enjoying each other’s company.

From the kitchen….there are lots of leftovers from the weekend.  I cooked both on Saturday and Sunday so there is plenty of food to get us to tomorrow.

I am wearing…long johns and a sleep shirt.

I am creating…the last of the Christmas gifts.

I am going…to be staying home.  My car is in the shop getting some much needed work on the transmission and the brakes so I will be here in my nice warm cozy and welcoming home.

I am reading…Charles Dickens’ “A Christmas Carol” This is a yearly thing for me.  It is my favorite story, movie, and well of personal and moral insperation.

I am hoping…that the Big Dude has good weather and safe travels for his trip home tonight.

I am hearing…Melissa and Layn upstairs doing something in her room.  I love the way that Layn chatters.  MK is in the kitchen making herself some toast and Matthew is muttering over something on the computer.

Around the house…all is status quo.  There are toys scattered around the livingroom floor and Layn’s blankie sits abandoned.  The remnants of Ian and Doug’s breakfast sit on the kitchen table waiting for me to rouse myself to clean up.  The sewing room is neat and clean! (only because I didn’t use it this weekend).

One of my favorite things…the utter normalcy of the scene in this house and yet there are some normals that may seem a bit odd to others.  Yesterday afternoon is a good example.  Picture me baking a cake in the kitche while Matthew cleans his rifle on the table and Brett and their friend Emily watch an episode of “Good Eats” on the laptop.  While all this is going on Layn is running back and forth entertaining everyone.  Normal for us but not so normal for others.

A few plans for the rest of the week…greet the arrival of the Big Dude with all the love and boisterousness that this family can muster tonight.  I don’t have a fatter calf to kill but there are a couple of chickens that I have my eyes on.  Have to finish up a couple of final gifts and get them wrapped and we have to procure a tree.  Then we will let the celebrating commence.

Here is a picture thought that I am sharing with you…

Take the camera out and the little ham is ready for a photo shoot.  Poor guy is sensitive to tomatoes and he ate a couple with dinner last night.  The rash doesn’t seem to bother him though.

I don’t have any words yet, no pithy comments or stories to tell of the preparations that are going on for the celebration of the season.  My heart is on hiatus.  But I can share the scenes and hopefully looking on them will further the healing process for me.

Outside my window…”Baby it’s cold outside!” Temps in the 20′s with clear skys and lots of sun.  I know where I am going to stay all day today, in my nice warm sewing room.  Turn on the Christmas tunes and finish the work that is piled on the machine.

I am thinking….about thinking. I don’t do enough of that so I think it is time for me to take some time and do a lot more thinking.

I am thankful for…the very good friends whose company we enjoyed last evening. 

From the kitchen…how about Chicken Parmigiana!

I am wearing…a blue tee shirt with Eeyore on it and blue sweats.

I am creating…a menu fit for a king (in my mind) and a home that is clean and comfy for said king to come home to.

I am going…to stay home today.  Scrap the Y today I think that the treadmill will suit.

I am reading….still making my way through Plato.

I am hoping….to finish sewing projects today so that I can begin decking them halls.

I am hearing….Matthew tapping on the keys of his computer, the clock ticking, and the bubbler in the fish tank doing its work.

Around the house….this place is a disaster! Never fear the maid is on duty today and will whip this place into shape in not time at all.

One of my favorite things…the Christmas Carol sing-along that we attended last night.  It is totall refreshing to sing with abandon and happiness with a group of other people intent on celebrating the true season, Christ’s birth!

A few plans for the rest of the week….get all errand running out of the way before Thursday.  Big White goes into the shop for some major work so she will be out of commission for a couple of days.  Did I mention that Matthew went off the road with my baby, planted her between a telephone pole and the guywire, wrapped a barbed wire fence around her and just generally made her feel miserable?  That is not the reason for the major repairs though.  The trannie is giving us some issues (yes I know, common Dodge problem) and so she needs to have that serviced.

Here is a picture thought that I am sharing with you…

Mary-Kate and her organ teacher, Stephen Best after the Christmas Carol singing last night.  She made him proud by playing without her former nervousness.