O Christmas Tree

Today we took a trek after church to find our Christmas tree. GGirl was on a mission to find the perfect tree.  MMan just wanted to try out the saw.  GGirl found the perfect tree and we trundled it home. (Thanks, Baxter's Tree Farm!)

While MMan napped we set it up and started decorating.  I sat on the couch handing ornament after ornament to GGirl, telling her stories that accompanied the memories we were hanging on the tree.  Later as I stepped to the other side of the room, I realized that this is the year of the "front and center" tree.  The year when the kids are big enough to help, and all the ornaments end up front and center on the tree.  :)

We also brought out the Christmas stories and Little People Nativity set.  Both are favorites and GGirl and MMan enjoyed the reunion.

A wonderful way to begin Advent.

Unexpected Reactions

Quite often one of my children will surprise me with a reaction that is unexpected.  Such was the case on Thursday morning.  Snow everywhere! We had watched it snow for most of Wednesday and I was expecting glee and excitement out of GGirl.  Nope.  She looked out the window and responded to the piles of snow with:

"Oh, the poor trees!"

Coffee in Close Quarters

The kids like to play in our stand-up shower stall.  Full of toys, fully dressed and no water, for some reason the love this cubby sized space.  This morning what I really wanted was to drink my coffee in peace and quiet as I slowly woke up.  However I was summoned to the shower by MMan and there was no distracting him. 

So in order to drink my coffee without being serenaded by Angry Toddler, I took my coffee to the shower. 

A mom's got to do, what a mom's got to do.

Thanksgiving "Feast"

Today was the Thanksgiving Feast day for the kindergarten class, complete with little pilgrims, native Americans and songs, and of course food.  The class announced that the pilgrims had left England looking for religious freedom.   (yay for accurate curriculum!)  They had butter with their feast that the class had made the day before.
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I walk past the berry bush on my morning walk.  The bright berries against the browned weeds and grass made me think of hope.  Hope of a meal in the winter for birds. Hope of new plants in the spring.  Hope.

Morning Contrasts

Winter trees, spring temperatures, dark clouds and blue skies.  All the contrasts of the morning walk.

A Day With My Princess

The request of a Mommy/GGirl Day got put on our calendar weeks ago.  This Saturday the day finally came.  GGirl had been anxiously awaiting her adventure time with Mommy "and NO boys"!  We ran errands most of the day but fit in a few  special treats.  Goody bags and pictures from a  Frozen promotion at Target, play time at WKids and frozen yogurt as out last stop.

As my GGirl sat on the bright pink bench seat up against a lime green wall, I stopped and just watched.  Taking in her colorful outfit, paper princess crown all askew, the excitement over a pink spoon, enjoyment of her treat I had a 'mommy moment'.  One of those moments that we moms wish we could bottle up and keep forever. The moment we wish we could stop time and keep our little ones little. 

At the end of our treats, GGirl decided that we had been gone long enough and we should go home to see Daddy and MMan, but only if we could put a Mommy/GGirl day on the calendar again soon.  Absolutely!