let it snow, let it snow, let it STOP!!

I can't believe how much snow we got these last couple of weeks! I now know why kids are always so much more excited about the snow...for little people with no responsibilities, obligations or businesses it means no school, building snowmen, sledding with friends and drinking hot chocolate like it's water! It even brings out the little kid in me but after a couple of days I'm back to being that boring mom who just wants to be able to drive herself to Starbucks for a coffee without the fear of sliding into a ditch! Anyway, it was good times...sledding down the hills at Grandma's,sucking on icicles like they were cigars and even sliding across the frozen pond! It is for sure a December we won't forget...

A Season of Giving

All day yesterday and today I kept telling Jamie it just doesn't feel like Christmas. I think mostly because of the weather...and things just came too fast this year! With the girls missing their last week of school before break they didn't have their Christmas parties at school, we still have their friends gifts sitting under the tree and because they were home I didn't get all the fun festive stuff done that I would have liked. Not to mention that we only have one car that works in the snow which meant whenever Jamie left to work or drive all his employees to work I was stuck at home (and yes I mean "stuck"!). The snow is fun...but only for a couple of days. The girls are old enough that they can easily bundle up and go out to play but that means that little brother has to follow and it literally takes more time to get him dressed than it does for him to play...just too cold for little hands that the mittens won't stay on! We also missed out on a few of the traditions...the church Christmas pageant was canceled, we didn't do our annual driving the streets to look at lights because of the snow and ice and there was no Children's Mass on Christmas Eve and we moved Christmas Eve to our house because no one could make it up the hill to my parents. I think it was a mix of all those little things that we missed that just made Christmas seem a little "off" this year. On the bright side...we adopted a family this year instead of drawing names within our family. All of Jamie's family as well as all of my family chipped in and we gave a family a wonderful Christmas. We got to go deliver the gifts to them out in Troutdale yesterday and meet the parents and cute 4 year old little girl named Sierra. It was important to me that the girls got to meet who we had helped, and especially since they used some of their piggy bank money to buy a toy for Sierra. It's a tough concept for kids as young as ours but we are doing our best to instill that "it's better to give than receive"...someday they will see but for now we will cherish watching their little faces light up just as much as Sierra's when they open presents from Santa and grandparents and aunts and uncles! Although we took it easy this year the girls got some cute clothes, High School musical barbies, their own girlie MP3 players and the big gift was a karaoke singing machine (thanks to Grandma and Papa Jamie and I will have a headache for the next few years!). All of you that know our girls can only imagine their excitement! Ellie especially has all the moves of a 14 year old pop star and not a shy bone in her body! Lily is still a little unsure but when they do a duet she lets loose! Jalen started his own tool collection as well as some fun cars and of course balls of all kind! So although it wasn't typical it was still a very merry Christmas that started with all the kids climbing in our bed where we sang Happy Birthday to Jesus and making some more great memories with family...and it was a white Christmas to top it off!