An Early Celebration.

Terrell decided to leave us this Christmas.  I am pretty sure we will never forgive her!  Just kidding.  She is traveling to Montana this Christmas.  We are super sad to see her go, but I do know that she will have a great time.  We had an early Christmas dinner before she left.  No Lutefisk (YES!), but we did get to enjoy potato sausage and all the trimmings.

Terrell got my mom a rolling pin.  Can you believe she did not have one?  She had this crazy dowel that did not seem to do the job.

Kendall received this amazing sweatshirt that she had been keeping her eye on.  "Heaven needed a Hero.  God Picked My Dad."  Love it!

Holiday Spirit!

BAKING and more baking.  It has been our theme this holiday season.  It started with me sending a text to Terrell saying that I would like my favorite cookie added to her baking list.  Within seconds, she texted me back a picture, "You mean these ones?"  Yes, I am spoiled.

We have had a baking day at our house (or two) and a couple of baking days at Terrell's

My mom thought no one would notice her sneaking a bite...sure!

This is how my Dad helps on baking day...rather than baking, he is the dedicated sampler!

The dogs even reaped the rewards of our baking spirit!

Bailey could hardly wait!  I half expected him to put his paws on the counter.  Thank goodness he did not!

The girls made their annual gingerbread (graham cracker) houses.  They went pretty elaborate this year!

Baking day at Terrell's was filled with a ton of sampling.  I am pretty sure no one ate dinner this night!

Sneaky Grandma and A Lasting Love.

November/December brings not only the holidays, but a lot of other celebrations as well.  We celebrated Terrell's birthday with her.  

She was caught switching the candles around in her favor.

I find nothing wrong with that!

We celebrated my parent's anniversary, 48 years!  I love that they are still 'in love'. 

One of the things I have been learning these past few months is not too sweat the small stuff.  It is a hard thing for me!  It is something I have watched my Dad grown into.  He was not always this way, but I find it peaceful and mindful.  I am trying to learn it from him.

Festival of Trees 2019

One of my favorite holiday traditions is the Festival of Trees.

For those that are not seeing it, this is a 'sloth' tree, Kendall's favorite!

This was quite a strange year, as Kendall was not interested in visiting Santa, but Sidney was pumped to see the old man.  Crazy!

My sister saw this picture and thought it should be on a card.  I agree, it is priceless!

A selfie with Dad.  I would have posted the outtake, but I am sure it would have freaked all of you out, as my Dad resembled a zombie.  It is hard to get this man to take a serious picture!

Remembering Kevin.

Thanksgiving was much harder than I imagined this year.  We all miss Kevin so fiercely!  Sidney wrote him a beautiful letter and we took flowers to his grave site.

Our new tradition is to decorate the 'Kevin' tree on his birthday.  The girls read a poem by candlelight, and we remembered the joy that he brought to our lives.  We also tried to remember that he would have wanted us to continue to live life to the full!

Our niece, AshLee, called me that weekend to tell me that she had shot her first buck with Kevin's rifle.  It was both exciting and emotional for us.  To hear the experience was amazing.  It was as if Kevin was right there encouraging her along.

My brother. Jason, had used this picture for the last slide at Kevin's service.  It is one of my favorites, not because it is the best picture taken of Kevin, but rather the symbolism it gives me.  I see him smiling his big huge smile and waving goodbye, "See you again sometime!"

House Progress.

It is insane to see how quickly my parents house is going up.  It was a dirt lot at the beginning of September.  They will be in it by the end of January.  Here are a few picture updates.

My dad checking in with the painters.

The counter tops are in.  Also, since this picture has been taken, all of the flooring is done and sinks and toilets are in.  There are just a few small touches to go.

It has been fun to see my mom's choices coming together.  All of the colors are chosen from small samples.  She did great.  The house is both warm and inviting.  Her colors will allow her to pull out both grays and browns.  Nicely done!

Haircuts and Cherished Times.

The girls have both decided to chop off their long locks.  Sidney went first last month.  Kendall decided to follow suit.  Their new haircuts look adorable!

I picked Kendall up from school for a lunch date a few weeks back.  It was a great time, though I had to laugh when I took this picture.  I am pretty sure she is a teenager already, even though the calendar will tell me she has a few more weeks to go.

My mom took me out for a 'mom and daughter date'.  It was absolutely what the doctor ordered.  We ate delicious mexican food, strolled through the shops in The Village, explored the insane Albertsons Marketplace and enjoyed a late evening coffee (oh!) and dessert.  It was lovely to have this special, uninterrupted time together.

My mom picked up these adorable Christmas cookies for the girls while we were out.  I am pretty sure I could make these...but really, if I can buy them, why?

Sidney and I went and got a mani-pedi (sorry, no pictures).  However, I did get pictures of her 'online school' recess during our last snow storm.  I asked her what one of her favorite things about online school was, she said, "Being with my family."  It has been so incredibly good for her soul.

Her end product, sculptures of Grandma Terrell and Snoopy.  Totes adorbs (as the girls would say).