*~*~NINE~*~* more sleeps!!!!!

Until Christmas Eve that is! We count down until Christmas Eve, because that is when the magic starts! From first thing in the morning until the next evening...yay!!

Today is Arts 'n' Craefts day if you are following the Keltelven Traditions, as I said earlier we are very loosely following along. I like the concept of slowing down and taking time to concentrate on the time of year and taking time to re-connect with nature and loved ones.
The one craft that I would love to get into is felting. I LOVE LOVE LOVE how adorable and simple the creations look. This is something I really want to look at getting into this new year. If you already are into it and have the supplies, here's a wonderfully adorable craft to check out and do to tie in with the season and today's tradition!

Needled Gnome Nativity by Em

This evening is grocery shopping, need to get some more supplies to finish up my baking. Actually, to BEGIN my baking...lol. I have not done a single thing regarding Christmas baking. That will change come this weekend! Here's the list. Everything will be Gluten Free and Dairy Free.
*Cinnamon Rings* (these are a staple for Christmas Morning!)
*Sugar Cookies*
*Shortbread Cookies*
*Candy Cane Fudge Brownies*
*Cinnamon Buns*
*Chocolate Chip Cookies*
*Pumpkin Pie*(for Christmas Day dinner)
*Apple Pie*( for Christmas day dinner)
*Yule Log*(for Christmas Eve dinner)
*Bits 'n' Bites* (the one time we allow cereal..lol)
I will try very hard to post recipes and ingredients for the above. My goal this year was to make snacks that EVERYONE can enjoy. Of course there is an increase in sugar, but that is certainly allowed this time of year, I am just trying to use things like Maple Syrup and honey or cane as much as possible as well as Stevia. However, there will certainly be brown sugar and icing sugar in some things..lol

Also on Sunday it's Alyssa's 13th birthday!! She has chosen Candy Cane Brownies instead of a cake for her Birthday..I won't argue with THAT!!

Well, that's a quick update for now. I plan on adding some back posting to include Alex's birthday and we also had Bill's company Christmas party last weekend so I need to post a pic for that.

Merry Christmas!

How Many More Sleeps????

I cannot believe how quickly Christmas is coming!! Wahoo!! WE have been busy with our various advent calenders and each morning is the 'how many more sleeps' announcement.
Last night we celebrated St.Nicholas day for something new. We have been reading about Keltelven Tradtions and have been having some fun with that. Starting on the 14th we will begin counting down the days to Yule/Winter Solstice, there are a lot of fun activities to do for each day, so we are looking forward to that. If you would like to read some more into that check out here: Ross County, really neat and fun stuff.

We are all well on the mend now. Some of the kids have a nagging cough left that seems to bug them the most at night (of course!). Now is the time for me to get things into full swing with baking and crafts and all that good stuff. This weekend is Bill's company Christmas party, it will be nice to get out and mingle with adults for a few hours. I am crossing my fingers for no side effects from the meal!

It's been really neat around here lately, it seems as though people have been much more into the Christmas spirit than last year. There were lights up all around beginning mid November and some people (besides us..lol) even had their Christmas Trees up that early! Local radio stations even have regular Christmas music playing and have been since the last week of November (last year it was well into the first week of December) Yay!!! I love it when people play along and get into the spirit of things, however they see fit.

Here is something I came across on You tube and IT IS AWESOME, I had to share it!

How incredible is THAT?!?! This guy is going places and how awesome is that he is CANADIAN!!!

Love, love, love it!!

Blessed be!!