A South Dakota Christmas

On December 19 my daily flip calendar read, "An exhausted mother, unexpected guests-God often interupts our routine with His plan." I didn't realize how accurate this pearl of wisdom would become over the next week. Due to some circumstances at church/school out of our control we decided on December 23 that we wouldn't be making the trip to MN/WI over Christmas vacation. Instead we are spending the week here taking care of some church/school things. (If you have a spare prayer our congregation could use some extras.) It was disappointing to all of us not to be seeing our familes after weeks of planning just that but it was the right decision. The kids got over it quickly once they found out that even though Christmas Day was passing by we could make "family Christmas" happen anytime. We also have made plans to do a few fun things here as a family.

These pictures are from our family Christmas . The kids all got different "Go Fish" CDs since they have wore out two in the last six months. (If you haven't heard of Go Fish check out www.gofishguys.com for some cool kid music.) That is what the boys are gleefully opening. Lydia has suddenly decided to be a girly-girl and is in love with babies. Member's of our congregation gave her "tiny baby" complete with bottles and accessories. Lydia is also sporting chocolate on the face because all holidays seem to include "tandy" as Lyd calls it. The top picture is my favorite because our kids always gravitate to reading and together they got a book that was the immediately read and is quickly becoming a favorite.

Hopefully you all had a blessed Christmas and are enjoying a few days at a slower pace. Hugs to all.

Simple Serenity

Nathan took this picture of the moonrise at his parents house over Thanksgiving. It's not his parents' farm but a neighboring one you see beyond their front yard. I just think it's beautiful and wanted to share.

Bring on the Cheer

Picture 1: The tree at it's current home, the living room.

Picture 2: This is what I ususally get when trying to take pictures of the three kids together. :)

Picture 3: Attempt #9 or so of trying to take a nice picture of the three kids. It's not perfect but not bad either.

Picture 4: Those I love most.

O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

Last Saturday we took our annual treck to the Hills in search of the "perfect" Christmas tree. We were near Silver City which isn't really a city anymore but an old logging town that probably qualifies as "in the middle of nowhere." After taking several forest service roads we found ourselves in a peaceful canyon where the gently falling snow was accumulating. The kids eagerly started the search with laughter and snowflake tasting. We found a tree to take home and one to decorate for the animals. Last year we began this family tradition. (It's inspired by Night Tree written by Eve Bunting and illustrated by Ted Rand.) We had cranberry strings, popcorn strings, pinecones covered with peanut butter and birdseed, and old bread to create nature's feast. The top picture is of us gathered around the decorated tree.

The next three pictures are of the kids enjoying the snow in their own way. Hans was running all over trying to catch snowflakes on his tongue "like on Charlie Brown Christmas." Lydia had a hard time trudging along in her winter gear but she certainly tried to keep up with the boys. Evan is our biggest outdoor/nature lover and he found a stick for writing in the snow "like in Snowy Day" and wrote his name.

Advent by Candlelight

I know I wrote about this last year but it's both a wonderful event and odd for me to get to write about something I did without the kids.

This is the second year our Ladies Aid has hosted Advent by Candlelight for the ladies of the congregation. It consists of a simple service with Bible readings, explainations of the Advent wreath, a small choir, singing Christmas carols, beautiful decorations in the fellowship hall and on tables, and delicious desserts. I co-hosted a table with my good friend Denise and we were surrounded by so many sisters-in-Christ. In the hustle and bustle that the world forces onto the Christmas season this was a night that focused on bringing our best to Jesus and reminded us of the reason for the season.

1: Our table of lovely ladies.

2: Some ladies enjoying each other's company before the service began.

3: My friend Cindy with her good friend Kris. :)

Surf's Up

A little background on this picture, my brother-in-law Michael is engaged to a darling girl named Tammy. From the first time we met her Hans has taken special interest in her. When we look at pictures of family, when we talk about upcoming visits, when Smith family memories come up, Hans is quick to remember Aunt Tammy.

We had seen the movie Surf's Up in the theater a few weeks before going home for Thanksgiving and that same day talked about seeing family soon. Hans was quick to suggest that we could watch Surf's Up with Aunt Tammy. So (ever the indulgent godfather:) Michael and Tammy rented it and we had a movie night. Lydia cuddled with Jo while the boys shared their blankets along with the couch with Michael and Tammy.

You can't beat cudding up with the one(s) you love and sharing a good time. Thanks for being so great to my kids. :)

The Smith Swingset

While we visited the Smith side of the family the kids spent some quality time outside there as well. They visited pigs in the barns, 'helped' cut down a tree, explored the field, and took full advantage of the recently refurbished swingset/playground. I'm not sure how long this has been at the Smith house but with grandkids around Kevin and Mary chose to move it and repair some of the well-used parts. This trip was the first time it has had a slide. Evan says it's a "really, really fast slide" which is "totally awesome." That's how we'd describe the entire visit. :) See you soon Smiths!