Time For a Little R & R !!

Just quickly wanted to post a few of the photos I took Xmas evening....I have been slacking a little the last couple of days......hanging out with Molly and my mom, doing exchanges, a few lunches out. but also ....de-Christmasing the house, washing sheets and cleaning bathrooms ! It was a wonderful Xmas .....a full house for dinner, some great hours of game playing, of course, our "house band" was in great form and just a joy to all together with everyone.
I've got a blazing fire going right now and it's barely able to keep the house livable. The high today was about 30 and the low tonight's going to be around 9 degrees. That's Idaho Rocky MT temps......not Nor Cal !
I'm making French Onion soup in my new CrockPot.......smells wonderful and sure is an easy dinner ! This CrockPot thing could turn out to be a very good thing in my life !

Merry Christmas from the Family !

It's just about here ! The kids will all be arriving tomorrow, my mom will be driving up and there'll be "camping stew" for dinner , cream puffs for dessert, new Xmas jammies for everyone, but above all, family traditions carried on, love and laughter in abundance.

We'll miss the rest of the kids too far away to join us, but I know they continue with the "old ways" and our love for each other stretches easily over oceans and mountains.

Merry Christmas to you all........ peace, love and joy.

Santa Came a Week Early !

Oh, my goodness......Santa slipped down the stove pipe a week early this year !! I guess he knew we wouldn't peek until the Official Day ! Well....there"ll be eleven of us here Xmas morning......that's a lot of wrapping, name -tagging and arranging.......take it from me, I know !!
Up here the rain continues....on and on....combined with heavy winds. Over 2 " last night alone. Still no snow, but keeping our eyes out for tomorrow. The big news is.......no power outages !! It's stammered a few times, but managed to pull itself together. Good thing , too ! I've been baking all day and it's been nice to have my modern electric oven......I haven't attempted wood stove baking yet !
Molly and I spent yesterday down in Auburn, picking up little things here and there.........the fun times of Xmas shopping.....last minute gifts! I talked to her this morning and Ross made it safely home from his gig in Reno, but it must have been a harrowing ride home.
Still don't know when my Tess will be home.......if you read this, Tessy .......give me a call !!

Sunshine for January !

The storm-of-all-storms has arrived today and is due to continue through next week ! Hence, it's a cold and wet day up here. So far no snow, but I hear the snow level may be lowering as the days gone on. A good day for cleaning and so I put on some Xmas music and started in on kitchen cupboards. The kitchen is now shiny clean inside and out ! Now it's about time to start baking and soooooo...there goes the sparkling clean kitchen !
Someone at Jim's office gave him some grapefruit off their tree last week and since I've never had a homegrown grapefruit that I like......and even the chickens disdain grapefruit......I've decided to try something new with them. I sliced them about 1/8 of an inch thick and now they'll be in the food dehydrator for about 6 hours . When they're dry I hope to string them with twine and maybe a few pine cones and hang them as a swag in the family room window. I love decorating AFTER Xmas with paperwhite bulbs and now I'll have a bright yellow touch of sunshine to hang up also.
Molly may be up later to spend the weekend. Ross' band is playing all weekend in Reno , so I invited her up to hang out. I'm thinking of a few projects I might engage her in.....or we might just watch Xmas movies !

Alone and Forgotten !

This beautiful Xmas cactus sits outside on the front porch all during the hot summer months only needing a drink of water now and again. Then, about the first of November it begins to transform itself into a show piece. Right on schedule.......full bloom for Xmas Day ! It's hardiness and seasonal determination are a wonder to behold.
It's cold and wet up here today. No snow, but I guess it'll be here later in the week.......so......perhaps a White Xmas on the horizon ! It was a cozy day up here , Jenny curled up by the sofa...... and me........I finally got all the gifts organized , wrapped and under the tree...yippee ! Time now for baking........sugared walnuts, lace cookies, fudge and maybe chocolate dipped pretzels [for you, Ross !].
Today's is Johan's 10th birthday and I had a nice visit on the phone with him this morning.......10 years and he's been a joy each and every one .
I may venture down to Costco tomorrow for Xmas dinner fixin's , it's sure to be crazy , but such is the Season !

Ready, Set , Go....Ho Ho !

Yippee......we got the Xmas decorations up this weekend and I'm so excited !! Once again we used a manzanita branch instead of a traditional Xmas tree......once again I'm so happy not to be cutting down a tree !! The "branch" is a beaut this year.....our best one yet !
On Saturday I had my last show of the year and it was a good one......should take care of the rest of the Xmas gifts and maybe a little left over for my beloved after Xmas sales ! Molly came down and spent the day with me and helped me take everything down afterwards......it's kind of a tradition for us......Thanks, Molls....I really appreciate what a sweetheart you are.
After we cleared out of the craft fair we headed over to Mom's for her annual crab feed. Another tradition I really look forward to ! There were 9 of us and we ate almost 22 lbs. of crab !! Sweet, sweet bliss ! Thanks, Mom, it was a wonderful evening.
I just got a call from Jack and Donna this afternoon and very exciting news ! Their 2 kids and their families will be joining us for Xmas this year ! I think we'll be about 25 strong for dinner......a whole pork loin should do the job ! I haven't seen the kids for several years and I can't wait to see everyone. I don't know what I did to deserve all these awesome people in my life, but they all make life a joy .