:: Countdown to Christmas | Days 5 & 6 ::

It was a typical busy weekend around here, but we managed to get our two Christmas activities in.
Saturday morning I ran a very SLOW 5k. The first one I've done since last March. Oye! We are going to have to step up the training before Spring.

Our activity was to create snow globes! Love how these turned out. 

 Elfie was leaving us a little hint about what our activity was going to be.

We ended the evening with Elf style ice cream sundaes. Bananas, strawberries, chocolate syrup, m&ms, & chocolate chips. (Everything but the spaghetti noodles -  hee!)

Sunday morning Elfie was holding a paint brush. He was leaving us another hint to todays activity. 

However, Aaron was lucky enough to harvest a nice buck this morning so we swapped out the painting for processing a deer. The boys helped daddy with the meat & Ella helped me make a "Christmasy" supper. 

Our favorite show Alaska the Last Frontier is on in about a 1/2 hour so it's jammie time around here!

:: Countdown to Christmas | Day 4 ::

Yesterday Elfie was found building an Olaf snowman out of toilet paper. Another awesome free printable from the Simple As That blog.

Our evening activity was to take part in the Viola Christmas Walk. The boys were part of the live nativity scene at the center of town, we had roasted chestnuts for the first time, & Ella got to see the big guy himself. 

We spent the rest of our evening eating popcorn and watching the movie "Elf". One of our favorites!

:: Countdown to Christmas | Day 3 ::

Hello Day {Three}

This morning the kids found Elfie with a tree decorated full of Christmas fruit snacks.
It was easy and I didn't have to think real hard; what can I say.

Tonight's activity was a Pinterest find and one that was completely free because I had all of the supplies in my scrapbooking room. Bonus!

Coe was home not feeling well today so he did all of the cutting and prep work while I was getting some office work done. Double bonus (minus the sick kid part).

The instructions for the fun project can be found HERE. Enjoy!

:: Countdown to Christmas | Day 2 ::

Yesterday morning poor Elfie was found enjoying an ice-cream cone in the cold cold freezer. Ella was concerned about him but I assured her it was probably just as cold in the North Pole so he would be alright. 

Our activity doubled as an after school snack before we headed off to Ella's first Grade School Christmas Program.

She was pretty excited about both of her programs and about the fact that she had TWO pretty dresses to wear in one day.

She asked to have her hair curled before school so I did the best I could with my curling iron from the  90s and the fact that I do not own hairspray. I'm an epic fail as a girly girl.

So for the evening program we straightened it. That I can handle. LOL!

All of the kids looked so cute up on the "risers". Ella thinks that's such a cool word. Ha!

One of their songs was "He's got the whole world in his hands." One of my favorite kid songs. 

Merry Countdown to Christmas everyone!

:: Countdown to Christmas 2015 | The Activities have Begun ::

Today was the first day of our Countdown to Christmas Activities.
It was a quick and easy one but one the boys thought was pretty cool.
Many, if not all of our activities are found from my Pinterest board : HERE or from the amazing Simple as That blog. She shares fantastic printables and ideas on a daily basis!

We started with the melted crayon glass ornaments. The kids chose the colors and then the boys and I did the melting with my heat gun. The glass gets way to hot for little ones to handle.

It worked fairly well; although I do think the cheaper crayons (not crayola) melted better.
Miss Ella was in charge of hanging them on the tree once we were all finished up.

Elfie has been making his way around the house. Monday morning he was found hanging candy canes on the garland and this morning he was disguised amongst a few of the deer mounts.

Where will he be next?

:: The Return of Elfie & He brought Donuts! ::

And so it begins. The Elf is back & for a whole month I get to get back out of bed because I'll forget to "make sure he moves". It's a pain in the butt most days but when Ella wakes up so excited to see what he's been up to throughout the night; it's totally worth it.
This morning he came back and brought the kids breakfast.

Elfie brought a letter this year so Coe read that & Chase read the book. It's important we read the book so Ella remember this is all about being on her best behavior. LOL! Okay not really. That's not how we use Elfie but somedays he does come in handy.

The kids got the big tree up in our basement yesterday while I was working. This one is where Santa leaves the gifts so it had to be just perfect. It's full of vintage ornaments and homemade goodness. 

The star was my Grandma's and it's my favorite.

:: A Seasons Change, Blaze Orange, & Twinkle Lights ::

My poor little blog skipped right over Fall didn't it? It's the busiest time of year for both my photography business as well as our everyday lives. It means lots of evenings & weekends away from home for me, many hours editing in my office, and of course as much time as possible for all of us in the woods.

The animals are all doing well. Pistal, my little goat is at a friends farm "getting married" (as my nieces would say) so she can have babies in the Spring. Ella misses her terribly and can't wait for her to be home. Okay, maybe me too. The calves are getting big and the donkeys are starting to tolerate everyone better. I'll try to get an animal update post with pics soon!

The end of November brings lots of little traditions. Starting with Thanksgiving Day. Before we head out to eat, eat, and eat, with both sides of the family; we take the kids hunting. This began as a tradition for Aaron & a few of my brother-in-laws back before we were married. As our kids got older and things changed it became our tradition. The boys love it! The past couple of years Ella & I have tagged along and I'm sure she will soon be getting in on the action as well.

There are many things I am Thankful for this year, but one of them is being able to step out our back door and go hunting.

It was a successful morning.

"Black Friday" isn't about shopping for us (I did that once; never again).
Aaron & the boys take the day and go pheasant hunting with some friends at Beckridge in Sabula, IA.

Ella & I stay home and put up the Christmas decorations! This year I am super excited about my new mantel I bought from Irish Acres Antiques, even if there is no actual fireplace. I've always wanted a mantel to hang the kids' stockings on & I have been wanting to do a little redo in our living room for a long time.

I've been "collecting" the Christmas trees over the last couple of months & ended up with 14 trees (6 lit) to fill our little living room. I love this time of year and how cozy it makes everything feel.
My mom made me the beautiful quilt square & those pottery vases; those are made by one of our neighbors. They are so awesome and made of concrete! You can check out all of her amazing work here : Shale City Crack Pots
These would make awesome Christmas gifts!
The main tree in our living room is my favorite. It's filled to the brim with deer antlers, pheasant feathers, and many ornaments that Aaron & I have collected over the past 18 years.

I hope everyone is finding themselves in the Holiday Spirit and doing well. Our little Christmas visitor "Elfie" should be arriving soon and our Countdown to Christmas activities start on Tuesday so stay tuned for lots of busy fun times ahead!
Enjoy your Sunday everyone!