Christmas 2019 Part 1

We are building our holiday bucket list as we go this year and making some good memories along the way:

1. Thanksgiving

After waking up early on Thanksgiving day last year to bake pies THEN breakfast, I declared that process one of the dumber events of my life and we ate the pies for breakfast.  I have since deemed that event a stroke of GENIUS (why am making two major meals and SAVING room for pie?!) and we celebrated our Second Annual Pie for Breakfast Thanksgiving Extravaganza this year. Everyone got involved with: lemon sour cream, cherry cream cheese, apple cider custard, pumpkin praline ice cream pie and Mila's mini chocolate pudding pies.  DELISH.    I was particularly excited to add two more embroidered hands to our table runner this year---I love seeing how much the kids have grown from year to year. <3 

 Chef Isaac getting to work!

2. Christmas Tree Farm

I attempted to cut down a tree and schlep it home with a ninja toddler on my shoulders several years ago---again, I declared that experience was NOT to be repeated. (There is a difference between adventurous and stupid). So now, we go to our favorite tree farm, ride the train, drink the cocoa, walk through the trees, then go home and put up our artificial tree. Everybody wins!

3. Decking the Halls

Isaac petered out pretty quick in the decoration department (stacking all the donkeys from the various nativities took up most of his time), but Mila held out for the long haul--pulling out each ornament, asking about it and lovingly placing it on the tree (on the same three branches *wink*). She was excited to put a little tree in her room...but then asked where Santa was going to go with two trees in the house.  #solidquestion  We are now writing him a note so he doesn't get confused...

 A sweet adoption family was making and selling handmade ornaments this year to fund their adoption. They very kindly designed an Albanian girl and China boy to add to our family tree <3 

4. Pneumonia
No pictures for this one, but Isaac's annual pneumonia hit early and took me down with him. While I'm sad that this is still a battle we fight with his little body, I'm thankful we caught it early and got it out of the way. We ended up having to cancel a couple of outdoor events we were scheduled to attend but made up for it in the Christmas movie department.

5. Jolly Old Elf
Elsa & bluesteel <3

6. Homemade gifts

We are continuing our tradition of at least one homemade gift going to each person. Although, it is a bit of extra work for me, I am enjoying the process of teaching the kids to think deeply about what each person would really value and how they can use their skills to give to them.  No spoilers, but Mila has done particularly well in this department this year. Plus she can now write everyone's names on their gifts, which is a new skill since 2018!

To be continued...