Merry Christmas

I  have so enjoyed reading all your blogs in the build up to Christmas.  Now it's time to sign off for the next little while and enjoy the time with family.  I do wish you all a very Merry Christmas and hope you find joy as your celebrate. I would like to leave you with this little video which brings it all together for me - enjoy!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Sleepover

We had a Norah overnight last weekend.  We got to play and have fun.  For some reason, she thinks my folding alarm clock is a cell phone!

Exploring in Grandma's sewing room.

She got out the Andy Pandy toys and made them a little picnic.  She really loves playing with her toy kitchen and delights in making us all kinds of treats!

We took a drive out to Ikea and Wendell picked up the rocking Moose, which he quickly assembled when she went to bed so that it was all ready for her in the morning.  She was a little apprehensive at first, but once she got on she loved it!

We are loving being grandparents and feel so blessed to have them living so close. We can't wait to see her reaction on Christmas day.   

Staying grounded

In all the busy stuff at this time of year, it is nice to have gentle reminders of why we are celebrating.  This past Saturday night we had our church Christmas party.  We usually have a big turkey dinner followed by some carols and children singing.  This year however, it was very simple.  Everyone brought soup, or dessert and rolls & butter were provided.  It was a lovely meal and a lot less work for so many people.  After dinner we watched a program which took individual characters from the Nativity and they each spoke and explained the symbols of Christmas.

Rebekah was Mary

Her husband, Alex, was Joseph

At the end of the evening, our young children sang 

The simplicity of it all brought to mind how simple His birth was.  Yet that simplicity impacted the world in a way that meant it would never be the same again.  Whether you believe in the Christmas story or not, I hope you will be touched by the special spirit which is abundant at this time of year - the spirit of Christ.  May we all think on this as we scurry around to prepare for Christmas and take time to ponder the birth of the baby in Bethlehem.

Christmas throughout the house.

This year, as well as our tree in the living room, we have also put a little tree downstairs in our family room.

It's such a cute little tree.  Wendell finally convinced me to get this little beauty from Ikea. I had bought some vintage baubles at a garage sale in the summer for a steal (four or five little bags for $2,00) so we bought a few more Ikea ornaments and up she went.  We didn't plan a red & white decor scheme, but that's how it worked out. I love these little ornaments.

I had a few left over so I put them into a hurricane jar on the piano.

This is Norah's favourite ornament and she is allowed to play with it when she comes over. She loves finding the Mommy & Daddy and baby.

 Speaking of Norah, let me show you what we did with the area of our family room which used to house my sewing space.  It's a play area for Norah and future grandchildren.  She loves to come down here and play.

Here is her little table where she colours and does puzzles

One of the toyshelves

My collection of vintage ladybird books (she loves to be read to)

This little book was one of my favourites when I was a child

Can you see Andy Pandy, Bear & Looby Loo?  They were an Ebay find last year.  We sometimes called her Dad Andy Pandy when he was little, so I simply HAD to get these!

And this is her little kitchen where she makes us "sandwiches" and of course, her little baby which she rocks and sings to (it is so cute!)

Now to get back to the title of this post.  Just a snapshot of some of our Christmas decorating this year. This is the shot we framed on canvas from our photo shoot in the Summer. I love everyone's face on this one.

My Christmas quilt which I made last year

Our other blanket basket

 Of course, our nativity

A little corner in the living room.

And Poinsettias (not real this year as they are poisonous!)

The house smells wonderful today as I just made shortbread and mince pies.  

It feels cozy and warm around here and that's just how we like it!

We have a winner!

I was going to use the random number generator to chose a winner, but at the last moment, decided on the good old fashioned way and wrote everyone's names on slips of paper and put them in a bowl.

 

 And the winner is ...drum roll please....... Kathy from Our simple and meaningful life

So Kathy, if you'll get your address to me, I will ship this lovely little book all the way to Brisbane, Australia.  Congratulations!  I wish I had a little gift for everyone, but there will be other getaways I promise.

 

European markets in Toronto

We got back last night from our trip to Toronto to see Adam & Alicia.  We had a lovely weekend helping them decorate their house and tree.

Isn't it cute?

We also went to the Christmas markets in the distillery district.  They have these all over England and Europe and I have always wanted to go.  It was a lovely evening even if it was cold!  But Alicia and I bought matching mittens to keep our hands warm, as my leather gloves just weren't cutting it.  I even bought a hat!

Very European even down to the cobblestones! 

It was the first night of the markets and they lit the tree while we were there.  Over 150,000 lights!

Carollers roamed the streets in costume.

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves

Had some hot chocolate to warm us up.  We all look quite padded up in the cold don't we?!

And finished the evening off with some good English Fish, chips & mushy peas at a restaurant Adam discovered which makes the real article!! Then it was back to their place for a couple of games of Settlers of Catan (one of our family's favourite board games!)

I will be choosing a winner for my giveaway tomorrow, so check back.