Christmas At Jess'

Jess always puts the red balls and poinsettias on her Christmas tree every year, and it looks so pretty with the white lights all lit up.  I noticed many ornaments on the tree that I gave her through the years that she still has.  I try to give the girls an ornament every year.  The Mickey train under the tree is a nice addition.  Jess loves Nutcrackers, and her new teddy Nutcracker, Joyeux Noel, means Merry Christmas in French.  The little wooden house is a new find this year.  It's handmade from Germany, and if you put an incense cone inside the house, its chimney will smoke!  Continuing a family tradition, she piles all the presents in the master bedroom with initials on each of them, then they will go under the tree on Christmas Eve.  She pulled out all of Francesca's holiday books and piled them on her dresser for easy access.  The angel on top of the tree is old and special, and something I gave her many years ago.  It's a reminder of the times we visited the angel shop in my hometown, that since then has closed.  Here's some Christmas at Jess' house.

Back at my house, I was out of cocoa, so made some cocoa with chocolate mints.  It turned out good.

A New York steak dinner.

I've been drinking lots of tea lately, just because I want to stay away from caffeine for awhile.

But I did want to get a Christmas coffee for the season at the drive through, and I ordered a decaf peppermint mocha coffee.  Their specialty coffees are delicious for the holiday season.

Isn't this the biggest Christmas tree you've seen?

Some decorations in town.

My grandmother's candle holders (my mom's mom).

When I saw these cute little Dutch ornaments wearing their clogs, I had to get them.  It looks like they are all girls, and it reminded me of the village of girls that we have in my own family.  I'm thankful for my son and sons-in-law who bring their own special presence to the family.

Speaking of girls, they went to see the Nutcracker this weekend.

I thought these cookies would be fun to make.

I bought this sweater for the cold Winter ahead.  It's so soft and furry.  It's going to snow soon, and I want to be ready.  Most of the clothes up here are bought at the sporting goods store.  They are kind of pricey, but there's really not many shops up here to buy clothes.

   I woke up to an early Christmas present.  My son bought me a candle in the scent of rustic pine.  I love it, it's the perfect scent for living in the mountains.

My brother-in-law is coming over this week to drop off some holiday cheer from the in-laws.  I love surprises.  ; )

I am just enjoying these quiet moments before Christmas, looking at the lights and being still for a time.

~Sheri

Christmas At Nel's

Nel just moved into a new house, and it's been fun for her to decorate it for the Christmas season.  Some of the walls are a soft green, so it will be easy to add a pop of color whenever she wants.  It was so nice to see some of the old things that Nel still has, and a few new things too.....Santa with his pipe, jolly snowman, gold reindeer, little ceramic cottage, and the most special of all is Santa with the velvet coat that grandma gave her.  Nel changes the ribbon on her tree every year, and I think that makes it festive.  She puts the golden angel on top of the tree that we've had since she was little.  Here's a few pictures of Christmas at Nel's house.

Back at my house, rice krispie treats, a family favorite.

 I couldn't resist this Charlie Brown window decal, and put it on my kitchen window.

I really like the Christmas stamps this year with the snow globes because I have collected snow globes throughout the years.

There is always oranges in my home at Christmastime.  They are a reminder of my mom who put oranges in our stockings, and how special she made our Christmases growing up.  We never got a whole lot, but there was always much food and togetherness.  (I'm the wee one in front).  

This was such a good Christmas movie.  I love home makeovers, and this lady really knows her stuff when it comes to home repairs and fixing up a run down house and turning it into a home.  It's a charming movie, and I recommend it.

My mom always taught me to say please and thank you.  Have you ever done something sweet for someone and they just didn't respond?  When I had this nasty sickness, I said a lot of prayers, and medicine and supplements are good, but it was your and my prayers that made me well.  Prayer is important to me, and going back to say thank you to the Lord is important as well.  So, I took a drive to the church and did just that.  While I walked on the grounds, I saw a flower arrangement next to the statue of Mary, and it wasn't just red roses, they were made out of crepe paper, and were beautiful.

Dear St. Francis

Winter is almost here, but the last of the Fall leaves were bunched together and looked so pretty.

Christmas jambalaya.  My son made a big pot of it on Saturday.  With Cajun sausage, shrimp, rice, seasonings, and so much more, it was his best jambalaya yet.  It wasn't too spicy, so I could eat it, and it was so delicious.

It's getting really cold here, and there's frost on the cars, but Sunday the sun shined through the pines.

The drive inn has breakfast burritos now, so I drove through and ordered one.  They were pretty good, but the ones at the Mexican restaurant are excellent.  Can you tell I love food?  ; )

This isn't the pioneer wagon on the main street of town, but it's another one as you first come into town.  They do a nice job decorating these, and it looks very festive for Christmas.  Its so old that it's falling apart.  I can imagine all the stories that were told by the people who rode this back in the day.  Just looking at it takes me to another time.

My brother-in-law from Seattle called yesterday, and we had a nice chat.  He said they may get some snow in Seattle, it's been so cold.  He just got back from a hunting trip and got a deer, and saw some bear tracks when he was in Oregon.  I appreciate when I get those family calls.

I love how this picture turned out when I downloaded it.  May the spirit of Christmas fill your heart with love.

~Sheri 

Into The City I Go

I'm slowly getting better, but still feel fatigued.  I've never had anything like this before, with allergies and my muscles tightening and just feeling awful.  I went into the city last week, and I had a driver, of course, because who wants to drive the highways and freeways at my age?  There are two drivers up here that get you to where you need to be, and this time R. drove me.  I call them "badass" because they will drive in the sleet, rain, and snow.  And I am so thankful for them.  I really like R's wife as well, who accompanied us on one of the trips to my hometown.  Here are a few pictures of the drive to the city.

I didn't realize, but R. used to be a photographer when he was younger, and he had many cameras.  Little 'ole me has one.  He has driven this road a hundred times, so he pointed out a few things along the way.  Wouldn't it be nice to have your name on a tree after you're gone?

Someone painted this rock to look like Snoopy.  I've seen it many times, but until now, I didn't know why the colors were so different on the rock and what it all meant.

This old house used to be a stagecoach stop, and then later a Brothel.

On the way back, he wanted me to see the windmills, so he drove to a higher elevation, 4,000 ft. to see them.  There was already snow on the ground.

I made some tostadas one afternoon that were really good.

Some days, we just need to order a pizza.  

My son saw the movie, Napoleon, with Joaquin Phoenix.  He said it was really good.

As for me, I've been watching the Lifetime Christmas movies.  I really enjoyed A Very Vintage Christmas.  There's a bit of a mystery in the show too.  I love old things, so this was right up my alley.  ; )

I saw this brooch on a friend's blog.  Isn't it the prettiest thing?

*Dolce & Gabbana

And I have to show you Charlotte's three month picture.  She's such a smiley baby.

Baking sugar cookies around Christmastime has been a tradition in our family for years.

A Merry Christmas season to you.

~Sheri