This is what "LOVE" looks like at my house.

Heart-shaped meatloaf on Valentine's Day

Spaz "holding" down the parchment paper on the cookie sheet.

Spaz recovering from helping in the kitchen.

Contented grandbaby

Silly games.

LOTS of laughter

All generations working together.

Holiday Adventures...

I couldn't resist sharing some pictures of my family's annual cookie and craft day. Sharing a day of love, laughter and a few mishaps is the best Christmas present I get every year. May you all be as blessed as I am. 

Ah come on. Don't leave. We'll let you play too!

Of course we're being NICE!

They assigned me the green dough.  They didn't tell me I'd be stained green  until it wore off.

I'm not stupid. I know about green food coloring.

Ok. It's loaded. Is the safety off?

Look. All you do is click it like this.

No. That's not how it works. Here. Let me do it.

I've got this. Watch!

There. I fixed it again. Now, watch this!

I don't think anything is coming out.

It's easier to use a cookie cutter, Mom.

We'll let mom fool with the cookie shooter. We'll do ours this way.

Hmm...now which one do I want to decorate?

Ok. I've got all the ribbon and glue ready. Are y'all gonna make some ornaments or not?

Mine is gonna be great.

Sometimes you have to approach these crafts at just the right angle.

The Master Dragon Goddess at work.

Her creation. Sir Christmasticus Hollymund Joyten

May you all enjoy good health, bubbling laughter and the joy of being loved!!

LET THE HOLIDAY WARS BEGIN!!

Every year hubby and I swear to each other that we won’t exchange gifts.  Every year we both lie. This year will be no different and the battles have already begun.

Round One:

Hubby grins across the living room and says, “Just so you know, on Christmas morning, I’m probably gonna be in trouble.”

“What have you done?” was my immediate response. My inner Christmas-Giving-Beast whispered, “Ye know what he’s done, m’precious.” Yeah. I know. My inner Christmas-Giving-Beast sounds like a cross between Gollum from the LORD OF THE RINGS and Connor MacLeod from the movie HIGHLANDER. 

I narrow my eyes at my gloating husband and prod again. “Answer me. What have you done and which kid helped you.”

Hubby’s smile widens. “I’m not tellin’.”

Round Two: 

After interrogating both daughters, I force…er…enlist the oldest one into my ranks. After all, I’m a woman. We’re not even until I’m ahead. I make three purchases and have the items shipped to her house.

Round Three:

Hubby overhears phone conversation with oldest daughter and returns fire. Three unexplained debits show up on our bank account. Grrr…

Round Four:

Smaller purchase for Hubby arrives at the house –while he’s home. Curses! Foiled by customer service folk who refuse to listen to explicit instructions.

Round Five:

Arrive home from work to a suspiciously gloating husband. Christmas music is floating through the house and it’s not even Thanksgiving. He points me to the top of the china cabinet with a laughing, “Look what I did” smirk. Grumble…grumble…This isn’t over. This is just November. I will. Not. Lose!

 May you all be winners in your everyday battles. 

May you all overcome your adversaries and know the priceless joys of health, happiness and love!

At our house, it's all about the memories

I believe one of my favorite things about the holidays is all the gorgeous decorations. I love the lights, the velvety ribbons, the sparkling baubles gleaming at every turn. I so admire those talented folks able to turn their trees into designer-inspired works of art. But those of you who know me, know all too well that I’m just plain old me. And our family’s tree doesn’t quite fall into the “carefully decorated” category. We don’t have a perfect, color-coordinated decoration that’s suitable to grace the cover of a magazine. Our delightfully chaotic tree is all about the memories.

Hubby and I have been together forever. This is our thirty-first Christmas shared and we’ve collected a dated ornament for every year. You’ll also see a U.S. Air Force ornament commemorating the years he served our country.

Look a little closer and you’ll see the wonderful ornaments my granddaughter made. Those ornaments are more precious to me than all the gold in the world.

There’s also ornaments both daughters made. Their creativity makes me laugh. She told me the word “earth” was too long for the ornament –so she improvised.

Every time I look at that tree, I relive the happy times, hear the laughter, feel the warmth and love of all the Christmas’s past. So, looking back on this post, maybe it’s not the actual decorations that bring me such joy –maybe it’s just the loving memories they trigger. *Sigh*