Merry Little Christmas

On Christmas Eve we go to my parents' home to open presents after a dinner of goulash. It has been this way for as long as I can remember. I don't know where it started, but for some reason trains seem to go along with the holiday decorations. My mom's train is a Lego train. Does anyone else remember these?

Last year Santa accidentally left his hat on our fireplace screen. The girls thought that was so funny and we mailed it back to him at the North Pole. This year he left a little note:

Dear Mollie and Allison,

Thank you very much for the delicious cookies and milk. They were a wonderful treat.

I’m so glad you were both such good girls this year. I know there were times when it was difficult for you to get along, but there were also many times when you played well together and treated each other with love and kindness. Those times make your parents and I very happy.

I hope you enjoy the gifts I left for you both.

Be good girls next year, too. I do enjoy visiting your home.

With love and cheer,

Santa Claus

P.S. Thank you very much for returning my hat. My head was very cold and I had to wear Mrs. Claus’ bonnet for a few days. How embarrassing.

Unfortunately he dropped his hat again! I think we'll hang onto it a little longer this time so Santa will learn to be more careful next year.

Dance Class

Before taking a break for Christmas parents got to observe the dance class. And of course I took a bunch of pictures!

After stretching the teacher has the girls line up and practice going across the room with different steps.

Allie spent most of the time watching the class. Towards the end she found a way to entertain herself.

O (Little) Christmas Tree

Girls enjoying the little tree set up on the front lawn. We enjoy taking a little time during Christmas to drive along the Willow Glen streets to admire the lights.

Santa Lucia

The church I grew up at has a Swedish background and one thing my church would do is a Santa Lucia celebration. This year Santa Lucia Day came on a Saturday (Dec. 13) so I thought it would be fun to do a little breakfast at home. Tradition is for the oldest girl to dress in a white dress with a red sash and a crown with seven candles. She wakes early in the dark morning and serves a breakfast with buns, coffee and ginger cookies. Mollie dressed up and she served the breakfast to us and her grandparents.Allie wanted to get dressed up and into the act too. How could we say "no" to such excitement? Some of you might recognize the crown. The closest thing we had to what I was reading about was the crown Mollie made at her fairy birthday. I found some small candles and used twisty ties. I wouldn't light them - not at all traditional, but that was as close as I dared with her hair!

Merry Christmas!!

Christmas Preparations

During the Thanksgiving weekend my sister and her husband were in town visiting. Here is Kathy getting back in touch with her inner child.

My parents have a little tree they set up in the play house in the back yard for the girls to decorate.

Well, they can't all be smiling pictures. I'm showing you this one because my dad mentioned to me a difference between the girls is that Mollie likes to serve food through the windows and Allie likes to climb through them.

Cheesing it up after a job well done.

Thanksgiving in Coarsegold

Where is Coarsegold you may ask? Why, in gold country, of course! Our sister-in-law's dad invited us to his home to celebrate Thanksgiving - mountain style. Such beautiful country to spend a special holiday in. The girls got to explore the outdoors in a way we don't at home. We spent a lot of good family time together. Thank you so much, Dieter, for everything; including a warm and comfortable place to stay.

Dave took us around the area. Some of the ground was a bit uneven so he helped Allie along at some points. We found deer tracks, animal holes, and rocks with flecks of gold.

Dinner table setting. Each of us took a turn with the Native American Talking Stick sharing one thing we are thankful for.

Mollie helped me make the Pilgrim hat cookies.

Mollie and Allie really had a good time spending so much time with family. It is such a blessing that everyone in the family gets along well and actually looks forward to spending time together. Grandpa, Eddi and Mollie had some game going on the couch where it was "Men vs. Ladies." Lots of laughter and good memories.

Over the mountains and through the woods

to Yosemite we go!

Scott and I decided it would be fun to drive through Yosemite on the way to Thanksgiving this year. The weather was cold and wet and the clouds were low. Still pretty.

Walked up to Bridalveil Fall.

Date Night

Our good friends, Chad and Kendal, recently visited CA for a month. Just before they left to return to Papua New Guinea, a few of us got together for an evening of bocce ball. As our time ended on the court we took this action shot using the timer on the camera. The game lacked any real competition, which is why I don't feel bad about the cheating I did. That's right, I cheated! As we walked past the score board I added a point or two, several times. So for those of you who played and are reading this, the game wasn't really as close as it ended.

Before leaving we asked someone to take our picture with our camera. And I learned something. If you set the timer, turning off the camera until the next use doesn't clear the timer! We all had a good laugh as we waited for the camera to finally click.

Thankful Tree

Lately I've been coming up with new family activities; testing ideas to see what will stick as a tradition for us. During November we had a tree painted in our dining room. Every night at dinner each of us would write on a leaf something we were thankful for. Thanks for the idea, Suzanne!

Ho Ho Ho

Outdoor Art

Scott is an artist at heart. Creativity comes easily to him. I think that's why he likes to figure out how to fix and build things around home. He made our shelves and computer desk in the family room. Most recently he built me a few planter boxes. We're trying (again) to grow some herbs.