cici at home

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year

We've been enjoying the month of December.  But I'm not quite sure doing what. I had great plans laid out (courtesy of Jennifer at As Cozy as Spring) but about zero of them actually panned out.

We rolled the candles for the Advent wreath. We made the gumdrop wreath. We made the gingerbread house (a kit! it was a kit!). None of these, I think, were on that original list. I completely missed St. Nicholas feast day - we covered it quickly after the fact amidst mild glares at not having had the opportunity to leave out shoes. I completely missed St. Lucia this year. This is such a tragedy in my house that I haven't even mentioned it to my daughter.

But we had a good time. I have the pictures to prove it even if, in looking back, I'm not quite sure where the month of December went. And to this end, you should read Melissa's post on muck real life. It sums it up beautifully. Not just the month of December, but always.

Now? now I must pretend to be brief so that I can play Wii make a bunch of plans for our next term. I'm pretty sure that playing Wii (a very generous Christmas gift) Sports or the Playground game won't really count as P.E.

thrifted light

Over the summer, we had a pretty big thunderstorm come through. Thunderstorms aren't uncommon in my part of the country, but this one was pretty big. Big as in, "is this a tornado and should I bring everyone down to the basement?" The two older children woke up terrified.  I have plenty of candles in the house and I lit a few, put them on the dresser in front of the mirror and tried to calm the children.  Flickering candles aren't quite as calming as a nice, warm, steady light.  So when I found this light in my favorite color, I knew it was destined for my home.

Paired with a vintage embroidered table runner (which it seems I am collector of, ahem) on top of a tall dresser, it's a calming look I think I can live with even when there isn't a storm anywhere in sight.

sugar snow

I'm sure the Ingall's weren't using Mrs Butterworth's.  But I made pancakes for breakfast.  And it was snowing like crazy. And my daughter asked if she could make sugar snow. And then my son asked too.  I was outnumbered, and powerless to resist their charm.

They insist it was delicious.

eggnog

I took a page from Dawn and held a mid-morning taste test on yesterday.  Eggnog is a big hit around here - my children eagerly await the first carton that makes its way home during the holiday season.

We started out with four flavors: Cinnamon, Sugar Cookie, Vanilla Spice (my grocery store doesn't sell "Hood" vanilla spice - there isn't any alcohol in that carton.  if there was, I'd be buying it in bulk and feeding it to my children right before bed), and Gingerbread and a bowl of "palette cleansers".  Clearly, the smallest among us couldn't wait.

The results were surprising. Gingerbread was the least favorite - with a 1.3. Sugar Cookie received a 2.3, Cinnamon was a 3.3, and Vanilla Spice won at 3.6.  How Vanilla Spice didn't wind up with a perfect 4.0, I'm not sure.  And I was certain the kids would love the Sugar Cookie.

As for the Gingerbread losing - that really isn't a surprise and a bit of a relief.  A little splash of it tastes sooo good in a cup of coffee that I would really hate to have to share...

yesterday

There's no harm in waiting until the last minute, right?

Bring out the sheets of beeswax at about 3 or 4 in the afternoon...

Done just in time for dinner - well after dinner or I'd have a certain someone who may or may not be under the age of two clamoring over the table (and any food, plates, etc.) to blow the candle out.

Oh the excitement and Joy!