the beauty after the storm

Let me just preface this by saying -
(1) No, this is not our backyard. I only wish. We had to trudge up the hill behind our house to get these pictures.
(2) My little 3.2 megapixel camera does not do justice for what we actually saw in person.
(3) Okay, I'd like to blame this on my camera, but really, it's just the lack of picture-taking skills.

This morning was a bit hectic and stressful as I tried to do too many things before getting Lola to school. You know, those things that I thought about the night before, but then said 'Naah, no need to do them tonight, I'll have plenty of time to do them in the morning'! (As if.) Needless to say, it wasn't the most peaceful of times in my household.

We have been having quite a bit of rain over the past few days, but as we walked out of the house this morning, it was a crisp and beautiful clear day. As I turned from the end of our street, we had the most breathtaking view of snow on our mountains. (This is where the lack of picture-taking skills comes in - you can hardly see the snow, but trust me, it was just gorgeous!)

I really felt like it was God's little gift to me, telling me to s-l-o-w down and look at the beauty of the world a little more. Of course, as I drove a little further and got stuck behind a very slow moving bus, then I thought 'Ha, ha, God. Now you're just having a little fun with me.' So after we dropped Lola off at school, Bella and I hiked up the hill behind our home and shot some pictures. And we weren't the only ones - there were about ten other people up there, too. I think this was God's little gift to all of us here.

Do you find this true for you - what is really supposed to be the most beautiful time of the year, can sometimes be the most stressful? Truly we should be celebrating God's greatest gift to us, instead of stressing out about all the material things. Much easier said than done, right?

So, in keeping with the less-stressful theme, I thought this idea for an advent calendar from Chris at Just a Girl was just perfect. But wait, you say, another activity? Isn't that going to add more stress? No really, I think it's a great idea - one that puts the focus on spending time together.

Each day the kids get to open a box, which contains an activity that the whole family does together. Some of the ideas Chris had were - eating breakfast for dinner, coloring a picture for someone, decorate a gingerbread house, make a fort and eat dinner under it. Really simple and easy things - I love it! And while the beautifully decorated boxes and jar really catch my attention, I know my kids won't care that it looks pretty. I could just write a list of 25 things to do together and they would be happy! Anyone else going to steal this idea for next year, too?

my little ballerinas

Lola and I went this past weekend to the Nutcracker Ballet with my mother-in-law. It was put on by our local symphony orchestra and ballet company, and specifically for kids. We had so much fun, the ballet was spectacular! While the orchestra was adults, the ballet was put on all by kids (elementary - high school age) - I was so impressed. These kids have so much talent - just watching them stand on their toes and twirl around was so much fun. Lola put on her ballerina shoes while watching the show, and told me what they were doing - pirouette, arabesque, pointe - I was amazed at how much she knew (we have the good ol' public library to thank for that!).

My mil also gave Lola a Nutcracker book (with a cd included) to take home with her. We have been cooped up indoors with all the rain we have gotten this week, so the cd has been a godsend! Lola and Bella both put on their ballerina shoes and dance the afternoon away.

These pictures were taken by Lola, she thought it important to show off her ballerina shoes!

finally seeing Santa

Well, I am finally posting again. What a crazy few weeks it has been since Thanksgiving!

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, we took the girls to our city's 'Santa's Workshop and Celebration'. There were crafts and games, the girls made angels and christmas trees and got to decorate their own cookie to eat. We had such a blast, but the girls really fizzled out at about 4:45, so we decided to take them home. There were two little half-hearted protests that we weren't going to stay for Santa's arrival at 6pm. We were home and both girls were asleep by 6:30. It was no surprise to me that they both woke up the next morning sick.

Luckily, it was just a head cold and by Thursday we (of course I caught it, too!) were feeling better. Which was great timing, because my husband's work Christmas party was that Friday.

The girls were very excited because (1) they got to see Daddy at work, and (2) Santa was going to be there. However, you'll notice I don't have any pictures of them with Santa. Once we got there, neither one of them wanted to go even remotely close to him. Not only that, but they wouldn't even let me or Kaz get near him. 'No momma! You must STAY A-W-A-Y!' We still had fun looking at Santa from across the room and eating goodies and doing crafts. Sparky the Firedog was also there and he was a big hit. No hugs, but the girls gave 'high fives' and got fireman badges and hats, which was a blast for them.