Today :: Gingerbread Cookies

On this cloudy and cool December day we decided that gingerbread cookies were in order since we're only two days away from the "big night" and our visitor just might like a little snack. We started with simple gingerbread dough and made a quick batch of royal icing for decorating.














I had tons of help...my main job was to stand around with the camera and try to capture what I could with what little light was available. (I'd love a house with great big windows and flooding natural light....sigh) The kids took turns rolling and cutting and pressing in the chocolate chip buttons. They also took turns spreading as much flour, dough, and icing around my kitchen as possible....oh my.











They helped me remove them from the oven and put them on cooling racks....







And, of course, the decorating...LOTS of icing and chocolate chips
and even more finger-licking, face-dirtying goodness!











I let them decorate all by themselves....they did a really good job.
Most of the little gingerbread men were happy as can be...







...while a couple of others weren't quite so happy and one was slightly over-dressed. :)











They looked really pretty all lined up on the wax paper
in front of my kitchen Christmas tree.
So pretty in fact, that I had to have just one with my afternoon coffee. YUM!







After having my coffee with my back to the scene below.....
I knew we {I} had a big job in front of us!







Gladly, after lots of help with sweeping, wiping and putting away,
the kitchen looked great again.

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Small Town Christmas Parade....In Pictures

Merry Christmas!

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Gingerbread House!

The kids worked so hard on this gingerbread house the other night.
They really have fun putting these together.
I think they just love licking the icing off their fingers, though.







After a few rounds of holding onto the sliding roof and
praying that the sides hold up
(and about a 30 minute stay in the freezer to hopefully set the icing)
it finally seems to be holding together. I have to say
that next time we'll wait much, much longer than the recommended
time for letting the house set up. I think it needs a few hours to set rather
than the 15 minutes recommended in the directions.






So it's finished and it turned out really cute!


Thanks for the house, Maw Maw!
We had fun!

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My Favorite Sounds of The Season

My favorite version of Jingle Bells....he makes this song so much fun! Who can sit still to this? heehee!







What would the Christmas season be without this one?








Perhaps my favorite.....or very close, at least ;)








Come to think of it, this one may be my favorite....hmmm.









Now, to snap back into the present moment...this one is my most favorite right now....wow. His enchanting voice seems so brand new to me every single time I hear it. I don't think I could ever get tired of it. And, to pair him with Mary J. Blige... so unexpected, but so very, very beautiful. It takes my breath and sinks into my soul every time I hear it. Such a sacred song...done so beautifully. I think I could listen to it over and over all day. Yes, I'm certain I could.









And, let us not forget what Christmas is all about. Linus is eager to remind us...(I do love this.)







Okay, on that note I'll leave you with my REAL favorite Christmas song of all time, Mary Did You Know. To me, the very best version is this one sung by Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene, the writers of the song. So much emotion and truth comes from their version of the song. Yes. This one is my favorite ;)











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So, what are you listening to on these glorious days before Christmas?

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Simply Today...

• the fourth straight day of no sunshine, rain (ankle-deep flowing through the yard), fog, the worst humidity ever, warm temps, and total yucky-ness.
• so nasty in fact, that my air conditioner has been on all day just to keep the humidity out
• right now, as I type this post, the air is drying and the rain has stopped....I surely hope tomorrow is beautiful with lots of sunshine - it's time to start looking and feeling like Christmas already!
  

• today was very low-key around here...laundry was first on the list
• next was packing up a few things to mail out early in the morning
• reading just a little, writing just a little
  
• having coffee with my mom
  
• finishing a couple of sewing projects and wrapping them up for giving

• I made myself a recipe that I found here the other day. This is the fourth time I've made it since she posted it and I have to say that it may be my new favorite thing. I've been making mine with a handful of fresh kale or turnips since I didn't plant Swiss Chard this time around in the garden. The first time I made it my kids were curious about it and it turns out that they really like it, too. I made it for dinner that same night with chicken along side and everybody was happy. It's simple, quick, fresh, and tasty...you should try it!

• tonight was spent having a quick dinner of leftovers with the girls since the guys are out hunting
• after dinner we popped a bowl of popcorn and piled up together on the couch to watch Charlie Brown's Christmas...I do love Charlie Brown ;)
• Finally, we made our way to the computer to try a little something that they've been wanting to do - I have to admit it is pretty cute! ;)

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a little decorating....

Our tree is decorated...











the kids spent some time decorating these little ornaments...











the nativity is up...










our snowgirl is granting wishes...





"I wish we could put up some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open a jar of it every month." ~Harlan Miller




and I'm trying really hard to "jar up" the beautiful feeling of Christmas.



Happy Monday to you all!

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Project 365 Advice.....

...from my good friend, Kylie, can be found on her very inspiring post over at Shutter Sisters today. Today she's offering some really great advice for those who are considering project-365 and for those in the midst of it. She inspired me to get back on track and complete my project along with encouraging me to look forward to next year's daily photos.

I started my 365 project on January 1st this year and for the most part, I have really loved it. I used it to focus on Gratitude throughout the year. I have kept up fairly well with it, but have been lagging behind over the past couple of months due to kids taking turns being sick, and ultimately me....being sick and not quite recovering. However, Kylie offers lots of encouragement for even those like me, who have fallen behind and feel bad about it.

Friends who offer their encouragement during this project are an incredible support. I met Kylie over at Flickr a little more than a year ago and we've been friends since. She and I even did our Week in the Life projects together this year. I found it so fun and interesting to do one together since she lives in New Zealand and I live in the southern United States.....some things may be different, but so many things are the same.

So, if you're thinking about doing a photo-a-day project, or like me, you need a little encouragement to complete the one you started, click over and read the words of advice she has to offer. You'll be glad you did!

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