A Christmas Visitor

A special visitor came to our home last night. And as you will see, one of our girls was overwhelmed with joy (I'll let you be the judge of which girl it was : ).

Each girl received a new pair of pajamas to sleep in while they await Santa's return.

Merry Christmas!!

Welcome Family and Friends

Welcome to the Winter Family Blog. I have opened our blog to anyone who wishes to view it this holiday season. If you would like to continue sharing in our family adventures, please leave a comment at the end of this post telling me so as well as leaving your e-mail address to that I can add you to the list of readers. I will be securing our site again mid-January, so please, let me know soon. We'd love to share with you highlights of the Winter Family life.

Have a Holly Jolly Christmas

We'd like to wish you all a . . .

This is such a joyous season with all kinds of festivities that can be enjoyed as a family. I am going to share just a few of these festivities here. First is Storybook Land. This is similar to a Festival of Trees, the difference is that they are using the trees and lights as a backdrop for the storybook displays. There is a display for everything from the nativity, to teddy bears, to Little Miss Muffet, to The Grinch. Ella's favorite was the Peter Pan display . . . because of Tinkerbell, of course!

Here are the traditional photos with Santa. Ella has visited Santa at least a half a dozen times this year. She wants to be sure he remembers what she wants. : )

This was Addi's one and only time to visit him, however. And as you can see, once was enough for her.

Now, we move on to the annual Choosing of the Christmas Tree.

Ella was especially helpful. She participated in everything, including providing the background music.

Now on to two of the most important people in my life, Ella and Addi. I decided, this year, that I would make Christmas dresses. I wanted ones that would match, and I enjoy sewing, so I thought it was about time I start this tradition.

As I just mentioned, two of the most important people in my life are my girls, the other is my wonderful spouse, Landon. Landon and I decided that this year will be a Christmas dedicated just to our family. And so, we will be staying "Home for the Holidays."

We hope you all are having a wonderful and happy holiday season. We love you all and hope you keep Christ as your center this year. Merry Christmas!

Over the River and Through the Woods

Before I go into detail, I need to say thank you to my sister Elizabeth for sharing these photos with me. She and my youngest sister, Christine, were the photographers for the following photos.

In the five years that Landon and I have lived in our home in Albany, we have never had family with us in our home for the Winter holidays. My parents and Christine decided that this was a tradition that needed some tweaking. And despite a case of H1N1 that was compounded by pneumonia (my dad was nearly admitted to the hospital), they made it. Yes, my dad's health improved enough just days before the planned excursion. To make it even more exciting, my sister Elizabeth and her family decided to come at the last minute.

Because this was to be a family filled Thanksgiving, Landon and I decided to try some new things. I decided to make the pumpkin pie from scratch. Mmmmmmm scrumptious.

Landon decided to fry the turkey. He made all the arrangements for the fryer, set up a cooking area in the back yard, and supervised the whole cooking process. It was delicious!

Here is the highly anticipated feast. I hope it was enjoyed by all who traveled to our home to share in it with us. It was definitely a memorable week for us.

You Might Be An Oregonian . . .

We needed some work done on our oven due to a "Failure" that was occurring every time we turned it on. It was a process that extended over a week-and-a-half. First was the recommendation, then the exploratory diagnosis, and finally the repair; all of which were house calls. All the parts that were needed for the repair were delivered in boxes directly to our home. When it was all complete and the repair man was gone for the final time, a distraught Ella said, "Oh dang it! We forgot to tell him to put the box in the recycle bin!"

The Face of the Flu

For all you science lovers, like myself, here's a look at the H1N1 virus.

Now here's a look at what it can do to you.

Despite all my efforts to keep my family healthy this year, I have been defeated. My little Ella "doesn't feel very good." It breaks my heart to hear my little girl say those words. It was a sleepless night as we made trips to the bathroom as she vomited all the soup, toast, and water that I was able to get into her last night. I am in need of making a trip to the store to purchase more children's Tylenol. And it's time Ella soak in a tub in an effort to get her fever below 102. My only plea at this point is, please may Addi stay healthy.

Halloween Fun

Halloween is a dream come true for every princess, fairy, Jedi, or clown at heart. In the case of my children, Ella was Thumbelina and Addi was a kitty cat. Happy Halloween!