Happy New Year!

Wishing everyone a wonderful New Year with lots of happiness!

Christmas Photos

The kids got up super early this year - lol - Taylor woke up at midnight and Abbie was up at 1 a.m. and found that Santa had already made it to our house! They each have a little Christmas tree in their bedroom and are allowed to open the gifts Santa leaves in the rooms, so they were up playing with those gifts until they felt it was "safe" to wake us to see if they could open the rest of their presents under the big family tree. We all were awake by 5 a.m., but that was fine with me, as it was Christmas, and I wanted to allow the kids some time to play with their things before we got ready and left for my parents, who we spent the rest of the day with, along with my brothers and sisters and their kids.

Here's Abbie Christmas morning with her new twin Bratz dolls.

Taylor, Jacob, and Abbie bright and early Christmas morning.

My kids with their cousins at my parents.

Taylor, Jacob, Abbie, and Ashton - my nephew.

Jacob and I (my brother Jay in the background with his little girl opening a gift) .

Jacob all smiles over a new toy.

Jacob with his mouth a mess from a little chocolate and his favorite new toy - a realistic little vacuum cleaner! LOL. He loves it every time I vacuum and cries when I turn it off, so now he has his own to turn on and clean with! He REALLY LOVES IT!! It even actully sucks up a bit of dirt! LOL (That's his daddy, Mike, in the background).

Jacob and his cousin Carter.

Taylor and Abbie Christmas morning opening presents from Santa.

* Oh Christmas Tree *

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas tree . . . I'm about set for Christmas! Yay! It's a relief to feel done with most everything. I still hope to make more Christmas cookies and some fudge as we ended up being too busy this past weekend to do so (shoveling snow ~ we've got a ton of it ~ and last minute Christmas shopping).

I plan to do the baking tomorrow as I have the day off work, will clean a bit more, and hopefully settle down to a nice evening at home with the family to watch a Christmas movie. We had planned on spending the evening at Mike's parents, but his Dad is not feeling very well after just having had surgery and now he may have the flu or something along with recuperating from the operation. I pray it's not serious and he's back to feeling better soon!

I feel we found some nice things for the kids for Christmas this year, even with having a tight budget, so they should be happy once Santa arrives. I love seeing their faces light up on Christmas morning.

This weekend Taylor was in a Christmas parade for her middle school band. I've never been to a freezing cold wintery parade before and never thought they'd actually toss candy at such, but they did! We froze just a tad with the temperatures being -6 below zero. Yet, it was nice anyway.

And, last night Abbie had her grade school Christmas program. It was nice too. I haven't uploaded my photos from either of these events yet. Hopefully tonight after I take some photos of my decorations, I can upload and share a few more photos here. :)

~*pRiM Christmas SNOWMEN Ornies*~

I just bought THE CUTEST snowmen ornies from "Aly's Room". I LOVE THEM! She has a free pattern for making them also available on her site. Take a peek! http://www.alysroom.com/freebie.html

Vintage Christmas Images

Tis' the season to be Jolly! So here are a few vintage Christmas photo images. Feel free to use in your altered art or craft projects.

Christmas Cookies

The kids had fun cutting out and decorating Christmas cookies Monday night.

Snow Fun

I took these photos on my drive into work last week, overlooking the frozen lake.

We had quite a bit of fluffy snow last week. Jacob loves being outside, but this was really the first time he's been out to play in the snow . . and as you can see, he didn't like it very much after just a few minutes. Awwww.

Christmas Craft Show

The Christmas craft show was yesterday and today at my work - a last minute show that was put together. But my goodness, it turned out GREAT! :) I've now got some spending money to get the kids some Christmas presents while shopping tomorrow. I wasn't prepared for it really, but here are a couple of pictures of what I quickly threw together. I made over 35 prim candy canes and they all sold out within a couple of hours both days! The cinnamon bun candles were nearly all sold, all the hand poured votives and my wreaths sold out as well. I also sold a lot of my Christmas hang tags, along with many other items. :)

Another Wonderful Blog Contest

Take a peek for your chance to win this wonderful new book: "Exhibition 36: Mixed Media Demonstrations + Explorations (Paperback) by Susan Tuttle"

http://ilkasattic.blogspot.com/2008/12/book-give-away-contest.html#links

http://tinyurl.com/64h9tm

God Lives Under the Bed . . . Little Boys

I receieved a beautiful thought provoking email yesterday that I'd like to share. Along with that I have some cute vintage photos of little boys to share as well.

GOD LIVES UNDER THE BED

I envy Kevin. My brother Kevin thinks God lives under his bed. At least that's what Iheard him say one night.He was praying out loud in his dark bedroom, and I stopped to listen,'Are you there, God?' he said. 'Where are you? Oh, I see. Under the bed...'I giggled softly and tiptoed off to my own room.

Kevin's unique perspectives are often a source of amusement. But that night something else lingered long after the humor. I realized for the first time the very different world Kevin lives in. He was born 30 years ago, mentally disabled as a result of difficulties during labor. Apart from his size (he's 6-foot-2), there are few ways in which he is an adult.

He reasons and communicates with the capabilities of a 7-year-old, and he always will. He will probably always believe that God lives under his bed, that Santa Claus is the one who fills the space under our tree every Christmas and that airplanes stay up in the sky because angels carry them.

I remember wondering if Kevin realizes he is different. Is he ever dissatisfied with his monotonous life? Up before dawn each day, off to work at a workshop for the disabled,home to walk our cocker spaniel, return to eat his favorite macaroni-and-cheese for dinner,and later to bed. The only variation in the entire scheme is laundry, when he hovers excitedly over the washing machine like a mother with her newborn child.

He does not seem dissatisfied. He lopes out to the bus every morning at 7:05, eager for a day of simple work. He wrings his hands excitedly while the water boils on the stove before dinner, and he stays up late twice a week to gather our dirty laundry for his next day's laundry chores. And Saturdays-oh, the bliss of Saturdays! That's the day my Dad takes Kevin to the airport to have a soft drink, watch the planes land, and speculate loudly on the destination of each passenger inside. ' Thatone's goin' to Chi-car-go!' Kevin shouts as he claps his hands. His anticipation is so great he can hardly sleep on Friday nights.

And so goes his world of daily rituals and weekend field trips. He doesn't know what it means to be discontent. His life is simple. He will never know the entanglements of wealth of power, and he does notcare what brand of clothing he wears or what kind of food he eats. His needs have always been met, and he never worries that one day they may not be. His hands are diligent. Kevin is never so happy as when he is working. When he unloads the dishwasher or vacuums the carpet, his heart is completely in it. He does not shrink from a job when it is begun, and he does not leave a job until it is finished. But when his tasks are done, Kevin knows howto relax. He is not obsessed with his work or the work of others. His heart is pure. He still believes everyone tells the truth, promises must be kept, and when you are wrong, you apologize instead of argue.

Free from pride and unconcerned with appearances, Kevin is not afraid to cry when he is hurt, angry or sorry. He is always transparent,always sincere. And he trusts God. Not confined by intellectual reasoning, when he comes to Christ, he comes as a child. Kevin seems to know God - to really be friends with Him in a way that is difficult for an 'educated' person to grasp. God seems like his closest companion.

In my moments of doubt and frustrations with my Christianity I envy the security Kevin has in his simple faith. It is then that I am most willing to admit that he has some divine knowledge that rises above my mortal questions. It is then I realize that perhaps he is not the one with the handicap. I am. My obligations, my fear, my pride, my circumstances - they all become disabilities when I do not trust them to God's care.

Who knows if Kevin comprehends things I can never learn? After all, he has spent his whole life in that kind of innocence, praying after dark and soaking up the goodness and love of God.

And one day, when the mysteries of heaven are opened, and we are all amazed at how close God really is to our hearts, I'll realize that God heard the simple prayers of a boy who believed that God lived under his bed. Kevin won't be surprised at all!

Busy, busy!

Everyone in my family caught a vicious virus, starting with baby Jacob and making its rounds through the rest of us over the past few days. But, we're all well now. In between caring for my sick children and recuperating myself, I was busy over the weekend preparing for a last minute craft show my work has decided to throw together. I'll be taking some pics once I have my table set up ~ I'm not taking a real lot, but as I pack my things to bring I keep deciding, oh I might as well include this and that that, some of the items I've had in storage for awhile. If only I had known about this earlier, I'd have been busy making some new ideas I have in mind, but it's too late as I don't have the time now.

I hope to take some pretty wintery photos later today, as we've had an overnight snowstorm and now have about 8" of beautiful snow covering the ground. The girls are home as school is closed and hope to make a snowman today. Regardless of the weather, I had to come to come in to work as usual (I work at a hospital, so there's no closing it!), and Jacob's at daycare. Only two of the daycare staff were able to make it in to work so far, so there's a chance they may need to close early. I better get back to working here now.

Jacob & His Blankey

I can't get over how quickly he's growing! Here's my little boy who has just turned 17 months, fresh out of a bath carrying around his favorite blankey which I made for him for Christmas last year.

Whimsical Folk Art Giveaway

Take a peek at Stephanie's wonderful blog and enter for your chance to win two prints of your choice out of several of her original paintings! http://fantasticfigments.blogspot.com/2008/12/suprise-give-away.html

Vintage Winter Snow Freebies

This past weekend we had our first snowfall that actually accumulated a bit with some remaining on the ground . . and 3-5" is predicted for tomorrow. So, I thought I'd share a few vintage winter snow scenes :)

Belated Happy Thanksgiving

Things have been a bit hectic for me lately. I hope to get back in the swing of things and post more frequently, hopefully with some interesting things for you to see.

We enjoyed Thanksgiving at my parents, filling our bellies only to then to see the men sit back to watch a bit of football and get in a few zzz's after their fill of sleep inticing turkey. LOL. Mike went out a short time after the meal to get back to hunting, the big hunter that he is. I swear he lives and breathes hunting, which does get to be a bit much at times when I'd rather he spent a bit more time with the kids and I. I'm hoping he doesn't think he's going out muzzleloader hunting this upcoming weekend. hmmm . . .

Anyways, I sure hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving.

~*Twilight*~

I'm telling ya . . . the movie was great!! I snuck out for a girls day out to the movie this past Saturday with a couple of friends, while Taylor and Abbie babysat their baby brother for me and while Michael was out deer hunting. I just couldn't wait, as I have read the entire series and was absorbed with every word as I read the books.

If you saw the movie and liked it, pick up the books and read! If you didn't see the movie yet, what are you waiting for? LOL.

I will say, the books are much more detailed than the movie. The movie just wasn't long enough nor did it have all the details, i.e.: why Edward always had his standoffish looking stare, as many of those who didn't read the book were not quite sure of why he acted as he did.

I have previously posted here about this book series, but now with the movie being out and all the hype, I can't help but blog once again about Stephenie Meyer's great books! If you haven't yet read them, go ahead and take a look. They are seriously great reading!! I'm now looking forward to the second movie that's now in the works!! Yay!!

Glass Glitter Vintage Little Girl Photo Hang Tags

These are currently available on my website. I really haven't had much time lately for my arts and crafts, but am hoping to devote some time to doing so this upcoming weekend.

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Last night we had parent teacher conferences. The conferences went very well. However, I am sad to say we had a little accident when leaving home. I was driving. The kids never noticed, but I said to Mike as we were driving away that I think I may have just hit one of the cats, as I felt the vehicle seem to bump over something. He told me to just keep going, no reason to let the kids be upset before conferences. We returned home and I was relieved for a minute as I did not see anything laying in the driveway. I was just starting to say oh good, I thought I had hit one of the cats when we left. That's when I saw him . . . poor Tiger. He had been hit, but managed to move from the driveway and died beside the front of the house. Taylor saw him before I did and was a crying mess. He couldn't have suffered much and it's amazing he made it that far with the head injury he had. I feel so terrible. :(

But, not only that. This morning I awoke around 3:45 a.m. to another of our cats (we had only 3 total), crying/howling/moaning outside my bedroom window. I warmed a dish of milk to give to the two cats and tried to call them in to drink in the warmth of our back porch. It was a very cold night, so I thought perhaps they weren't able to keep warm enough, now being just the two of them together in the insulated doghouse which I filled with straw. The "runt" of the litter, Shiloh, came up into the porch and drank. But Midnight was the one who was howling and wouldn't move. I put on my shoes and ventured out to find out what was wrong, bringing the milk dish with. I put the dish beside and she slowly drank a tiny bit, yet continued to cry. I moved the dish away to see if she would come towards me. Finally she hobbled towards the dish, ever so slowly and apparantly in pain. Something had happened to her too. Oh no! I didn't hit her with the vehicle last night when leaving too?!? I now think perhaps the cats had all hovered around the truck when I got home as it was warm and then I, not realizing they were there, hit not only Tiger but perhaps Midnight as well. Normally since Tiger was especially friendly and liked to jump into the truck as I buckled Jacob into his carseat, I would make sure I had him in my sight before leaving. However, for whatever reason, I didn't realize they were anywhere near the vehicle when we went to leave last night, nor did anyone else. I told Taylor this morning there was something wrong with Midnight, but I wasn't sure what and reminded her to feed and water the cats before school. Just as I was walking into work, I received her call. Midnight had died within the hour of my having left home. The kids will attempt to bury them after school tonight, but I'm not sure if we'll be able to dig through the ground as it's started to freeze up. Abbie isn't aware of this yet as she went to spend the night with her dad after conferences last night. She'll be a crying mess I know. She still cries often over the loss of her favorite cat "Pumpkin". We now need to either get some more cats from my parents farm or take Shiloh there for the winter so she stays warm with the other barn cats. I don't think she's able to stay warm enough on her own. I feel so bad about it, but I know it was no one's fault. I just happened to be the driver. :(

Free Vintage Thanksgiving Postcard Images