Holiday Potpourri

I saw this cute idea for holiday potpourri on...
Little Birdie Secrets.

I decided to give it a try myself...and came up with a more basic version. 

I just tied together:

• one orange
• three cinnamon sticks (found at Whole Foods (sells bulk) in their "beauty" section--much less expensive than in a regular grocery store spice section)
• a little "spice packet"--included in it...
• 6 whole cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice--or you can just do small sprinkles of cloves, ginger, and nutmeg, and cinnamon.  (I actually think that ground cinnamon helps it smell stronger than the cinnamon sticks. But the sticks are more pretty. So I just make sure some cinnamon ends up in the "spice packet" to help things along.)

For the "spice packet" I just put the items in the corner of a baggie and tied shut with a piece of twine.  Then cut the top of the baggie off so it's just tiny and fits into the cellophane with the orange and cinnamon sticks nicely.

It's been a nice option for visiting teaching type gifts that are less perishable than food...when we know we just can't get all of them delivered in one night.  I just do quite a few and keep them in the fridge.

"Cookie Decorating Party"

I'm going to blog several ideas that I've come across this year that I'm hoping to use for next year.  I appologize in advance for multiple posts today to help me "journal" for the future.

We were invited this last Friday to a "Cookie Decorating Party".  Joshua's nursery teacher hosted it for the "young families" in the ward.  (We are shocked to go to these things and find we are on the "older end" of young these days!)

She asked each family to bring one dozen unfrosted cookies and she provided the frosting and sprinkles. It was a fun casual way to get everyone together...with a project to work on and time to talk!

Joshua with his nursery teacher.

Nathan decorated at least 20 cookies.  After all the other children had left the table (Joshua inhaling all three he'd decorated.)  Nathan just kept carefully working and only ate one!

My Man Gone "Handy"

When I married Greg, I'd have never called him the "handy" type.  But, lately I've been so impressed!  (This is a positive way of saying we've had a lot of broken things to fix lately and Greg has really risen to the occasion.)  =)  Yes, life is "real" here.  Even during the "most wonderful time of the year". 

In the last week we've replace a car battery, a disposal (our landlord came and replaced it...and didn't read the instruction maual when doing it...Greg has had to do some reworking when our dishwasher stopped functioning as a result), and yesterday while out Christmas shopping a nail popped the tire on the Jeep. 

If things "come in threes", we've certainly met the requirement!  Hopefully things will settle down and we can relax with the season some more.  Here are some cute pictures of boys helping their Dad.

"It's the Most Wonderful Time..."

This last Saturday morning we did one of our family's favorite Christmas traditions.  (Confession:  I was even up in the night the night before...too excited to sleep!)  We cut down our Christmas tree!

Growing up our neighbors and dear friends, the Isaacsons, would cut down their tree.  Their trees were not always the most beautiful (sorry, Anne!) but were definitely the most coveted by me.  Not so much for the tree itself, but for all the fun and stories and memories that came along with the adventure of finding it and making it their own.  I vowed then that if I could, my own little family would some day be that kind of family! 

We got to the tree farm (after me calling ahead and finding out that trees started at $19 a tree) and soon discovered that there were no $19 trees to be found!  All we could see were ones marked $69.99 and up!  We were then told that some trees...ones with red ribbons tied to them...were the ones the owner was most desperate to get rid of...and that they'd be less than $40.  Needless to say, we told our boys the only trees we were interested in had a "special" red ribbon on them, and the scavenger hunt began.

One lost scarf, one run to the nearest "porta-potty", two boys and one dad sawing, one "timber" into the cart, one mix-up where someone tried to take our tree as theirs and we had to say some strong words to stand our ground, one car door bump and an "exchange" with the people that parked next to us, one magical talk with Santa, and we were sure we'd experienced enough ups and downs to consider this a legitimate adventure!

We even got to watch them shake the tree--with an actual "shaking" device--to get all the dead stuff out of it.  And watch it be baled (wrapped twine around it for traveling) with a "baler".  (The boys thought maybe we better go cut down one more tree so we could watch that part again!)

When I looked at the tree farm as we arrived I thought it wasn't quite what I'd pictured.  Not quite as rural as we'd been to before, etc.  But, as we went along and I saw it through the eyes of a three-year-old and five-year-old boy, I realized it was a completely magical place.  That for them forest was huge, that the adventure was real, and that the memories would be larger than life in the years to come.  It really became magic for us all.

It's December!!

Last year my sister, Carol, had a cute idea.  She took each of her children's pictures with a Santa hat on and then displayed them in frames coming down her staircase.  She's done it again this year...and now with three faces of my own to photograph...I thought I'd give it a whirl.  Whenever I try to "re-create" a cute idea...things don't turn out quite how I'd "picture"...but these definitely have a "flavor" all their own. 

Either way, it's a fun way to get in the mood of the season!

(See my sister's blog--link on the sidebar--for the real deal.)

All Dressed Up!

Courtesy of Grandma Franson...

Nathan as Peter Pan
Joshua as Tick-Tock the Crocodile
Elizabeth as Tinkerbell
Miriam as Wendy
and last but not least...
Greg as Captain Hook!

Because of a fun visit from Grandma and Grandpa Franson and these great costumes...we'll remember this Halloween for a long time!

A Glimpse of Things to Come...

Our Grandma and Grandpa Franson are coming to visit for Halloween. Grandma has been hard at work making amazing costumes for all of us! Here is a preview of things to come! Thanks Grandma Franson!

...Getting Things Done...

I was recently released from teaching Gospel Doctrine in our ward (have been doing it since the beginning of the year) and am now in the Primary presidency. Sunday preparation has changed from intensive scripture study to making "cutesy" things in preparation for the primary program! This is my latest strategy for getting things done without having it take a toll on my kids.

Togetherness at its best!

(Hopefully no one will notice the little flecks on play-doh and drool on the invitations!)

Me and my Girl

Yesterday Elizabeth turned 6 months old! Just can't say how much this girl of ours means to me!

What's a mom to do?!

Joshua has been very resistant to sleep these past few weeks. When Greg and I head up for bed at night we find him sleeping at the top of the stairs with his pillow, blanket, and bear...or in his doorway. But one night recently we didn't find him in either of those places or in his bed. There was brief moment of panic for me until I looked down and saw two little legs poking out from the drawer under his bed. Yes...he was asleep! And even said many grumpy words about being disturbed as we (again) tucked him under the covers. This boy definitely has a mind of his own!