Let's start over.

At noon it felt like a day lost.
Nothing terrible had transpired... yet nothing... had transpired.
And then when I was ready to regroup and change gears, aiming for more fun...and to BE more fun...

"Mom! (someone-who-shall-remain-nameless) just now punched me in the arm with a bell pepper!"

Okay.  Everyone needs a nap today, and I need some quiet for a while.
And they did.  And I did.  I glittered the stars all by myself, and enjoyed every single moment of quiet!
I wrote a "to-do for fun" list for myself in ten colors.
I scissored and snipped, penciled and inked, punched and strung a banner.

It was therapy.

Just before dinner 3 cousins were delivered to my door while their parents took a Christmas-shopping date.
We had a date of our own, those three cousins, me, and my 7 hoodlums! 
Nachos for dinner; books read; and then we dove into our Craft Friday project on Thursday night.
Two little ones strung beads...

7 big kids created faux stained glass, by decoupaging candle holders with tissue paper.

In case you are wondering why all the headlamps(?)
It's only this bright in my photo because of my lightning-bolt camera flash.
We have 4 propane lamps that light this room which provide luminescence necessary
for getting around furniture and quickly finding the chocolate stash,
however it's not really enough light for working on projects.

There are electric lights in the pantry/washroom (as you see in the background) which we can use
when the generator is running or the batteries charged, but electric lighting in the rest of the house
is a work in progress.
For the present we continue to enjoy ambiance :-)

Our crafting went surprisingly well...

despite this one little mishap.   Which I handled with grace and calm and which really
wasn't as bad as I thought on first glance.  It is a bowl of glue, after all, and that is my wall.

I will add here,

that I think it's a sign of maturity
when the first order of dealing
(or maybe "coping")
with an event like this
means
I grab my camera.


Good to know I'm growing up.










It was a Christmasy evening, full of sweet little people and the memories they made.
I even got a second chance at trying to be fun!  I'm going to need a lot more practice
though... so I hope tomorrow's got more camera-grabbing moments in store :-)

Highlights of our most recent travels

We escaped not days before the first Idaho winter storms dropped 2 feet of snow; one week before
Thanksgiving. Onward to California.  To see and spend time with beloved family. 
And to prolong Fall colors and warm Autumn sunlight.  California did not disappoint!

All the family came through as well :-)

We are native "Northern" Californians, so none of this beaches and movie stars business if you please.
We come from Almond country. Rice Country. Olive country.  Where we grew up is home of
Lundberg Rice, Knudsen's Juice, Sierra Nevada Brewery, Chico Bag, Klean Kanteen
The farthest south we ever venture is to visit Granny and Great Grandpa in the green coastal
verdure of Watsonville.  Strawberry country.  Apple country.  Lettuce, Garlic, and Olallieberries.
And lemons... don't forget Granny's lemons.

They make the BEST Lemonade!

"Put your Footer down!"  Bryce would tell Great Grandpa over and over again.
That meant Grandpa was to close up his reclining chair... or open it.  Whichever suited
the tiny Boss's whim. Bryce sure appreciated Great Grandpa's cooperation.
I think they were mutually satisfied with the arrangement :-)

Great Grandpa has a pool table in his basement. It's always been a novelty, but these
days dad has some new up-and-coming competition !

Some serious (though smiling) gamers in this family. 

Carolina is hearing about Granny's brothers and sisters.
Granny was one of seven also.

Clay in the Persimmon tree.  Always in a tree, that boy.

We did set foot on beach once... at Capitola, and lunch with Aunt June and Uncle Robert
(We sure love you guys!  Thanks for coming over to see us!)

Our dad has to work sometimes - even when we're at the beach.

It's rough.

And during Thanksgiving weekend we got to know our latest Uncle a bit better.
Uncle Shane is now a bona fide favorite!

And another favorite, Uncle Daniel!

And Uncle Char threatening to blog me.
But he doesn't blog so... I blog YOU Charlie. Take THAT -haHA!

My "baby" sister, seventh in order Mattie Grace...
and my baby, seventh in order also... Aloria Mercy
And it tickles me to no end that our Grace and Mercy resemble each other - quite a lot!

My sisters and a few of the nieces.  Wow.  It's getting harder to deny that we're grown women.

Mother O' mine.

At Grama and Grampa's house running the same land I ran at their age;
though I don't confess to whether or not I also, terrorized the poor chickens :-)

What a privilege to spend yet a little more time with my grandmothers!
AJ's grandma Marie, and my grandmothers Bethlene and Arlene - my namesakes.

There's more where this came from.  Lil' ham-it-ups!

I caught this sight one morning at Gramsie's.  My girls.

Another big going's-on... Aloria got a trim.
Momma is sad sad sad to say good-bye to chestnut colored hair...

..alas....hello little blondie!

I find it awfully hard to narrow down our adventures to these "few" pictures, but it's already taken me hours
(late at night) to upload this many.  Just a taste of last months adventures! 
Oh how we soaked in every single bit of time with family, and I was delighted to see so much of my sisters.
It's pretty amazing that AJ can take his work with him anywhere - that's what makes it possible
for us to extend our travels indefinitely.  It's a little hard to explain why he isn't along for every family drop-in
or visit, but our travels are just that... travels.  Dad still has to work during the week!  Someone has to
"pay the big bucks" as we like to say. :-)

I guess the rest of the pictures will have to be printed on actual photo paper and put into an album.
Another late night job that will require hours, but at least I can put that one off for a while.

Tonight I take my weary bones to bed and dream of all these wonderful faces - people I love dearly!

Home Again, Home Again Jiggety-Jig.

We're nestled in our mountain home again. 

Surrounded by piles.
Unpacked duffels, baskets of laundry, school books, snow clothes,
boxes of Christmas decorations, boots by the door and wet mittens dripping ice-melt and snow
into puddles on the floor...
Wood piled up by the stove - consumed in a half-day - and restocked again.

Jackets on the window bench, next to the diaper-bag left there exactly as it was plumped down three days ago.
A few newly-bought storage containers and boxed shelves waiting assemblage...
...near the diaper bag...
...and the jackets...
...using up the last remaining seat on that same window bench.

Vacuum out.  Washing machine in progress.  Dryer too, which makes a bit of a din when added
to the hum of generator, wrestling boys, teething baby, daughter humming,
and something sizzling on the kitchen stove.
Christmas music.

But Christmas music - every genre of jolly, haunting, sweet, inspiring Christmas music - plays softly
behind the cacophony setting a joyous tone...a festive mood...preparing us for celebration!
Strands of lights unravel, bubbly juice put to chill,
evergreen scents fill the air with the entrance of our freshly-cut Idaho tree.

I stop the sorting, the unpacking, the putting away....
to get out the baubles, to hang up a lantern, to light a candle.  I add to the mess, the din, the fun...
weaving lights into tree boughs, stirring agave into 5 mugs of peppermint tea, getting out the Nativity.
Ignoring the piles.

Life gets away from me... one day at a time.  There's much catching up to do, to say, to show; but that will
have to come between the attacking of piles.
If I can slip it in between scissoring, gluing, stitching, and flying glitter,
story reading, advent creating, Birthday party decorating for Jesus!
And over sips of something Christmas-y.
I've missed you :-)