Thinking of Christmas...

Our Patriotic Christmas Tree

(with only red, white, and blue lights)...

...because the green strand died.

We all like the idea (and the effect) so much though, that we're planning to do it again next year!

***

Another nativity set.

(I know! Another one! But because of its purpose, this might be the most important one we own.)

This one, made by Schleich, is extremely well made and durable.

It is meant to be played with.

(Because I firmly believe that Baby Jesus should not be off-limits!)

An Afternoon With the Little Yellow Airplane

This is our little yellow airplane.

She's a 1946 Piper Cub

(and I can't help calling her Stella).

That guy standing next to her is her pilot.

His name's Mike.

He has four kids that have been waiting for days for the weather to be clear enough to go flying.

They drew straws to see who'd be first, and Isaak was the lucky one.

(Mike IS sitting in the pilot's seat. Really!

You sit in the back to fly a J-3 Cub.)

Jaela got to go next,

Anya went third,

and although Macey had to wait until all of her siblings were done, she got to ride along (after her turn) while the pilot did a few extra landings and take-offs.

Who's next?!?

A New Era

It's the beginning of a new era in this family.

Airplane ownership.

According to Isaak, we now have four pets: a dog, two cats, and an airplane.

It's a 1946 Piper Cub.

And I'm thinking about calling her Stella.

Log Home Christmas: The Little Pictures

Log Home Christmas: The Big Pictures

The Living Room, dressed up for Christmas!

(The wool quilts made by my great-grandma will stay in the living room all winter long!)

The stairs decorated with stockings from Mike's childhood

and stuffed handsewn ornaments

made by his great-grandma!

The gift-wrapping station located under the stairs

features an old wooden box I just inherited from my mother-in-law!

Reading Around the Fire

After your little brother is in bed and the house is quiet,

there's just nothing like curling up with a good book next to a warm fire,

especially when you're already in your jammies.

Anya opted for some poetry tonight:

Shel Silverstein, to be exact.

***

Jaela is reading Prince Caspian

(from the Chronicles of Narnia)...

...for the second time in two days.

***

Macey is tackling The Spirit of St. Louis

by Charles Lindbergh

(because Daddy liked it).

Night Music

This is not an uncommon sound around here.

Sometimes I find it beautiful.

Sometimes it is just chilling.

This was part of tonight's concert.

Beautiful or chilling?

Turn the volume way up, and then you decide:

Happy Christmas!

As I got out the Christmas decorations this year,

I noticed that I have collected more than a few Nativity sets!

This one Mike bought for me in Israel

when we were in high-school:

The Scrabble letters spell out "Happy Birth Celebration"

(because according to Google, there is no Hebrew for "Happy Christmas").

***

This set came to us from Mexico via Mike's grandparents:

(Does Feliz Navidad really need translated?

Really? Oh. Well, it means "Happy Christmas" in Spanish!)

***

Betsey got this one for me when she lived in Germany:

Frohe Weihnachten means Happy Christmas in German

(or so the internet tells me!)

***

Mike remembers this one from his childhood:

(it's new to us this year)

***

My grandma got this in Peru

(where I spent most of my childhood)

and although it's an ornament and not really a set,

it counts because it's the only Nativity-themed thing I've got from Peru!

O Christmas Tree - Part 1

Our Christmas Tree is up!

We picked a Turkish Fir from a little Christmas Tree farm nearby.

Once the tree was up Mike put the lights on and then gave the kids

the ornaments he bought for them in Germany.

and the decorating began...

Mike's 6:30 a.m. Discovery

My husband is ever-so-thoughtful.

I came downstairs just after 7 this morning,

and as I was drinking the latte he made for me,

he told me he had taken some pictures on his phone of something

I would probably never see for myself in my lifetime.

***

The suspense built, and he pulled out his phone to show me pictures of...

***

...our early-risers doing their math.

At 6:30 in the morning.

(I don't get up that early,

which is why I'd never see it for myself.

Ha ha. Very funny, Mike.)

I am so spoiled!

Over the Weekend

This weekend, while my parents stayed with the kids, Mike and I flew to the other side of the country so he could run a half-marathon with some friends.

It was sunny and almost warm on race day, and 4/6 of our group had fun running their race.

The other 2/6 of our group had fun not running the race,

and after the 4/6 crossed the finish line, 6/6 of us spent the rest of the day having fun together!

Cat Math

First there were three.

We added a redhead to match our redhead, so then there were four.

A week ago we lost one, and were down to three again.

We lost another one on Saturday night, and then there were two.

(Now the cats sleep in the garage at night...because the coyotes don't.)

The Name Game

Once again, this is Isaak with Sammy...

...but the vet has confirmed that Sammy is a girl!

***

(Isaak wanted to change her name to Suzie, but Sammy she has been for weeks,

and it's proving hard enough to switch to using the appropriate pronouns,

so Sammy she will remain!)

Home Tour - Part 3

As requested, here is the final installment of our home tour!

(If you'd like to see the first two parts click here and here.)

The Master Bathroom:

The Office/Music Room/Guest Room:

The Laundry Room:

And that's the end of the home tour!

(Want to come visit?)

Laundry Room Make-Over

I finally couldn't take it any longer.

The clutter in the laundry room was getting to me.

So I decided to give the laundry room a make-over.

The only rule was that I had to use only what I had on hand around the house.

It almost...

...ALMOST...

...makes me want to do some laundry.

Peter Pan Returns!

Our copy of Peter Pan by J. M. Barrie is illustrated by Scott Gustafson,

and this is how he portrays Peter:

This is our version of Peter Pan:

(aka: Isaak needs a haircut!)