Merry Christmas!

Wishing you a very Merry Christmas, as we remember and celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

He did not use a silver box
Or paper green and red;
God laid his Christmas gift to me
Within a manger bed.
~Prentice~

Christmas Snow!

Well, we made it to the Mall last night. There were actually a few people there but there were a lot of stores closed and many shutting down by 6:00. While shopping the snow started coming down again. I'm so glad I got a little shopping done as the snow continued to fall throughout the night. And it is still falling!

I hope you're not to bored with snow pictures but I'm hearing this is the most snow we've had in Portland in 40 years.
My #1 had to get up early and go to work so I ask him to take a few pictures. I am so glad I work for a school. I have this week off and do not have to worry about getting into work.

And of course the latest pictures of the deck, where ever it is!

And last I'll leave you with a fun card. I saw this on Shabby Scraps blog, and thought it was so cute.

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

P.S. The card will show "error" if it sits to long, just refresh your page and it will show up again.

Snow 2008

Ok,so I thought I would share some pictures of the snow we got yesterday. They're telling us freezing rain should come on top of this. For now, I'll enjoy the snow, it sure is pretty!

Here is a picture I took yesterday afternoon. At this point you can see my watering can.

Now you can only see a little bit of it.

The accumulation of snow as seen on the deck and front porch is from blowing off the house, but we did get about 8" of snow. Pretty amazing, I think! Well, we're off to do some shopping #1 is feeling adventuresome! Yikes!

The Snow Continues To Fall!

I just wanted to give a BIG "Thank You!" to everyone that stopped by to take a look at our Christmas decorations! It was a lot of fun to participate in this fun event.

This week has been a strange one. Portland has been experiencing a lot of snow! Schools are open one day then closed the next. I headed out on Thursday to go to school since the roads were clear. I got a mile down the road and it started to snow. It was pretty amazing! And since I carry around a handy dandy camera now, I rolled down the window and took a picture. School was soon cancelled and I headed back for home. I know that doesn't sound strange for a lot of you as snow is something that is part of life for you in the winter. But, we just don't get a whole lot of it here.

Yesterday I decided to tackle a picture that I had bought at Goodwill quite a few months ago. I bought it for the frame and loved the fact that the glass inside was curved. Displayed in front was needlepoint, something I didn't want. While opening the back up I discovered behind the needlepoint the original picture that was in the frame. I love finds like that!

I don't know if you remember but quite a few posts back I told you how I had promised my son that when his theater group had their next play he could audition for the show. Well, last week 94 kids showed up to audition for Narnia. Each child had to come with a one minute song to sing for the director and her staff. Jonathan sang, "If I Were A Rich Man" from Fiddler on the Roof. Because of the snow "call backs" were posted right away. Well, he got a "call back" and he was pretty excited! To make a long story short, he will be playing Peter, the eldest sibling in Narnia. We were pretty shocked and excited for him. He will have a lot of practicing to do. This is actually a musical version. It should be a lot of fun!

So if you're in the Portland area and love to see theater stage shows we'd love for you to purchase a ticket for the show. CYT does a fantastic job with all their shows and this should be another great one!

Welcome To Our Home!

Thank you for stopping by and seeing what I've done for Christmas this year. A special "Thank You" to Heather at Pretty Petals for hosting this fun party!

This is a look at a corner of my living room. I have to admit to you that my Christmas decorating stays mainly in the living room. I did extend it a little to the kitchen area this year but for the most part the living room is where it stays.

This is a favorite Santa that I bought. He had a fun bottle brush tree in his hands but he was red. So...I took out my handy paint brush with some pink paint and he turned out just like I imagined he would.

In the background you can see a sweet vintage Santa dressed all in white.

These tiny angels are some of my favorites.

Here is a collection of angels in one of my cabinets. I actually leave these out all the time.

Next I decorated the top of my piano. While out estate shopping one year I found a nativity scene that I just loved. The pieces were a bit bigger then most, and it was only $5.00. I had every intension of selling it but it just never got out of the house.

Next to that I have a little village where my Pinecone Men live.

This year I decided to make a garland with Bingo Cards. I have an addiction for these little things so I might as well put them to use.

One of my favorite things to put up every year is from my sister-in-law. A beautiful wreath made from vintage ornaments.

This year our tree was decorated in vintage Christmas balls. We usually have other ornaments on the tree but this year was different. One tradition we have is every year I take my son out and he picks an ornament for the tree. It is usually a Hallmark ornament. When he was little they started out being from the Peanuts line and last year they went to the Nintendo ornaments. I guess I can see him aging every year, when I look at his choices.

A few years back one of my son's teachers had some items from her grandfather's estate. She set up a little gift area where the children could pick an item that they could give to their parents for Christmas. These sweet elves are what my son chose.

And lastly, a few little items in my kitchen, nothing too fancy.

Thank you so much for stopping by my home. Wishing you a very Merry Christmas!

Let It Snow! Let It Snow!

Well, we woke up to a little dusting of snow this morning. Church was canceled and the snow keeps falling. It is just beautiful and so much of it too. This doesn't happen a lot here in Portland so it is quite a treat.

Poor hubby had to go out and put chains on the truck as he goes back to work tomorrow. I feel so fortunate I get to feel like a school kid who sits by the radio waiting to see if their school will be canceled due to snow. And you know what, it's looking like no school!

We did go out yesterday and found a tree. It was rainy and muddy, just like going up on the mountain! We found a noble and have actually gotten all of our decorating done. It feels so good.

Be sure to stop by tomorrow as Pretty Petals is hosting a Christmas Blog Party and it should be a lot of fun!

Letter To Santa!

This morning while picking up my email. I had an email from my sister. In it was a cute letter to Santa. I hope you will enjoy it!

Dear Santa,

I've been a good mom all year. I've fed, cleaned and cuddled my children on demand, visited the doctor's office more than my doctor,and sold sixty-two cases of candy bars to raise money to plant a shade tree on the school playground. I was hoping you could spread my list out over several Christmases, since I had to write this letter with my son's red crayon, on the back of a receipt in the laundry room between cycles, and who knows when I'll find anymore free time in the next 18 years.

Here are my Christmas wishes:

I'd like a pair of legs that don't ache (in any color, except purple,which I already have), and arms that don't hurt or flap in the breeze, but are strong enough to pull my screaming child out of the candy aisle in the grocery store.

I'd also like a waist, since I lost mine somewhere in the seventh month of my last pregnancy.

If you're hauling big ticket items this year, I'd like fingerprint-resistant windows, and a radio that only plays adult music; a television that doesn't broadcast any programs containing talking animals, and a refrigerator with a secret compartment behind the crisper where I can hide to talk on the phone.

On the practical side, I could use a talking doll that says, 'Yes, Mommy!' to boost my parental confidence, along with two kids who don't fight, and three pairs of jeans that will zip all the way up without the use of power tools.

I could also use a recording of Tibetan monks chanting, 'Don't eat in the living room,' and 'Take your hands off your brother,' because my voice seems to be just out of my children's hearing range and can only be heard by the dog.

If it's too late to find any of these products, I'd settle for enough time to brush my teeth and comb my hair in the same morning, or the luxury of eating food warmer than room temperature without it being served in a Styrofoam container.

If you don't mind, I could also use a few Christmas miracles to brighten the holiday season. Would it be too much trouble to declare ketchup a vegetable? It will clear my conscience immensely. It would be helpful if you could coerce my children to help around the house without demanding payment as if they were the bosses of an organized
crime family.

Well, Santa, the buzzer on the dryer is calling and my son saw my feet under the laundry room door. I think he wants his crayon back. Have a safe trip and remember to leave your wet boots by the door and come in and dry off so you don't catch cold.

Help yourself to cookies on the table, but don't eat too many or leave crumbs on the carpet.

Yours Always,

MOM...

While looking through a box of old paper I came across some sweet books that I had forgotten about. Each one very worn, showing a lot of use, but still as pretty as could be. I just love the old children's books. The covers were wonderfully illustrated. I have a few that I have kept and display in my home. Now, that I've unearthed these sweet things I will be finding places for them too.

Yes, I'm afraid another one of those many collections!