Thursday, January 14th, gotta come down sometime

I thought this was such a pretty pic of dad and daughter taking down the tree.

Saturday, December 26th, A Tindell Christmas

We left this morning in a snow storm for Christmas in Springfield with Chuck's family.It took us a couple more hours to get there than it usually does and we stopped in Bloomington for lunch.
Most of us exchange names for gift giving, but we usually all get gifts for Vera:
When she was here in November, we went to a new thrift store and she admired this cookie jar. She obsessively collects snowmen. I bought it that day for her. She never knew and was pleasantly surprised.
We had a fun day with the family, even though when these folks get together, the noise level rivals O'Hare!
Chuck, Christine, Tommy, Robert and Vera.

Friday, December 25th, Brown paper packages tied up with strings....

My work schedule requires that I either work the Eve or the Day of Christmas. I prefer to work the Eve, because we have always done our Christmas on the day. Since I work with a few Polish gals and they usually celebrate on the Eve, it almost always works to my advantage.
I got home in a timely manner and before my nap, we opened our socks. I bought these cute "magical" socks for the girls. They are all shrinky...and then you put them in water and they expand...
into these beautiful socks....we say beautiful because that is what the package said.

and then I took a 4 hour nap. The girls have always been so patient. We have our traditions; homemade Caramel rolls for breakfast, gloriously baked by Catie, the reading of the Christmas story from Luke 2, family prayer and then the choosing of Santa (this year played by Catie)
I think maybe the crafting gene was passed to Catie as she wrapped her gifts in a most lovely manner:Yep, that "bow" is a fat quarter for me!
Chuck has collected maps for years and he gave a few to her to use:It was just a lovely gift opening and we always make it last and last. In fact, this year, we listened to The Nutcracker while opening and it finished when we opened the last gift.
Here are my thoughtful acquisitions:
A Bare Minerals makeup brush...because somehow I lost mine! From Candice...
My very own personalized return address stamp...from Catie and of course the fat quarter.
Some awesome scrap booking stuff from Chuck.
This quilt book that I really wanted from Chuck and also some delectable lip gloss/stick.
I made these reusable shopping bags for the girls.
After cleaning up the mess, we sat around and enjoyed the beauty of the day, the glow of the Christmas tree and each other. And then we watched the snow fall.
We munched on appetizers while dinner was cooking...another tradition and then had a wonderful dinner of baked ham, potato casserole, green beans, cherry jello and Hawaiian rolls (the same every year).
However, this day is more than just gifts, food and traditions; it is the celebration of the greatest gift ever given from God to man. To think that God would stoop so low to come as a baby drives me to my knees in thankfulness and joy.
My dad's cousin wrote this lovely poem for their Christmas greetings this year and it says so eloquently what I can't:

GOD'S BEAUTIFUL PROMISE

Behold God's Beautiful Promise, kept from eternity,
That plan before creation, to reach humanity.
The Promise sent to save us, for oft we sin and fall,
The hope for earth from heaven, lies in a lowly stall.

The Promise come to Bethlehem, when Jesus Christ is born,
Brings fear, then jubilation, on that blessed holy morn,
As angel hosts sing glory, to God in highest heaven,
Shepherds seek and find him, their homage humbly given.

Among the sheep a Shepherd comes to the world that day,
Who leads us on life's journey and finds us when we stray.
The Lamb of God as promised, is nailed to Calvary's tree,
Our sin and shame upon Him, He dies for you and me.

His star lights up the desert, drives darkness from the land,
Its rays shine down from heav'n as sages cross the sand.
The long awaited Promise beckons seekers far and wide,
To make the journey with Him, and let Him be their guide.

The Promise kindles hope, throughout the darkest night,
When doubts and fears assail us, awaiting morning light.
The shadows that surround us, will not ere-long prevail,
His light shines in the darkness to lead us through the vale.

Charles B. Jessen

Thursday, December 24th, A different Christmas Eve

We decided to go to the Chapel for Christmas Eve Service today because the timing of one of the services worked out with my schedule. Our church is under construction right now with painting the sanctuary and laying new carpeting. The Chapel is a non-denominational mega church and we know many people that attend there. Well, I think once a year is plenty for us to visit. The bass was so loud, I thought my heart was going to bounce right out of my chest! However, there were several elements of the service that I liked.

After my nap, we had our traditional Christmas Eve meal of Canadian cheese soup, courtesy of Candice's culinary skills.

Also, wanted to share these gorgeous cookies that the girls made:Last year was the first time I tried this recipe and they were a huge hit.

Wednesday, December 23rd, Finally decorating the tree

We had such fun tonight decorating the Christmas tree....at last. We wanted to wait until the kids were home. We had our homemade oatmeal cinnamon waffles for dinner and while Chuck and Candice were doing the dishes, Catie and I made and decorated a gingerbread house.Catie really loved piping the icing on the roof. The lovely finished product.
We set the timer and actually got the ornaments and the ribbon on in an hour!!
I really look for cute or unusual ornaments every year and I found this turtle for Catie when we were in Saugatuk in October. She informed me that it wasn't a "Loggerhead turtle", as are common in South Carolina, but she still loves turtles, no matter what kind they are.
We laughed and reminisced while accomplishing the task. Then we watched "The Muppets Christmas Carol", Candice's favorite.

Tuesday, December 22nd, I'm dreaming of a....

We had a lovely snowfall today.....is it too early to hope?

Saturday, December 19th, A whole lotta Holiday activities

Candice is in a wedding tomorrow and had the rehearsal and rehearsal dinner tonight. So, Catie and I planned a full day of local activities. Chuck still had some shopping to do, so while we were busy, so was he.
After doing some gift wrapping here at home, Celia picked us up at 2 and we went to the Genesee theater to see "Holiday Inn". It was very corny, but it was such fun for Catie to see this fabulous restored theater. We were a bit shocked by one of the very un-PC numbers.Catie had this lovely cookie and Celia and I munched on popcorn.
Chuck then picked us up and we went out for dinner.
At 7, Catie and I participated in the "Do it Yourself" Messiah at the United Methodist Church in Waukegan. We purchased the score and sang like we actually knew what we were doing. I have wanted to do this for at least 20 years and my dream would be to do it at the Lyric in Chicago. Someday, before I die.....

Friday, December 18th, The Tindells are all together now....

Catie came home tonight. She is getting used to this 18 hour drive from Charleston, but it makes for a very long day. She brought me my birthday gift and I opened it when she got home. I adore Pixar movies and she gave me "Up". Love it.......

The picture above is from Catie's flickr site. Click here for this shot and others.

Wednesday, December 16th, My holiday haven

Just wanted to show you how our house looks at night this season. Chuck did a fabulous job with the outside lights and yesterday, he finished assembling the Christmas tree. Celia tells me that icicle lights are going "out" in fashion, but I don't care.....I think it's gorgeous!!

Tuesday, December 15th, Guild Holiday party

Our annual quilt guild party was tonight. Very relaxed and fun chatting with my friends. We had Chinese food which was excellent, mainly because all I had to eat today was a protein shake as my sewing machine and I bonded for the majority of the day. Just like finding out Santa Claus isn't real, last night I discovered that you also can't base your life on the fortunes found in those delectable cookies. Two ladies at the same table had the exact same fortune!! And then we heard another lady on the other side of the room also had the same one.
Deb won the poinsettia centerpiece as she had this sticker under her chair. I would totally agree with the above statement.....except when you have a deadline hanging over your head....like I do!
I received this beautiful hand felted pin cushion from my secret pal along with a note that she is going to arrange a lunch date with Amy Walsh from Blue Underground after our reveal. That will be a treat!

Saturday, December 12th, Laughed til I was hoarse!

Last night was Bunco, hosted by me. Chuck and I worked very hard on getting all of the decorations up, but we didn't do the big tree in the front room, because there just wasn't time. And you know what? We still had a party and we still had a good time? Who would have thought?
We finished with our annual "White Elephant" exchange which always provides plenty to laugh about.
I received this hideous um...whatever... last year from Robin and I carefully maintained it so I could re-gift it this year. Poor Virginia got it and didn't quite know what to say.
There is usually one person who forgets to bring something so I bought this t-shirt at the thrift store. Tracy got it and loved it! She is the present, now that could be a gift or have a deeper meaning, such as she is not the past or the future...right?
Now, I didn't think this reindeer was horrible.....Peggy always brings the coolest things and Kim stole this bike riding Santa from Marie that Peg brought. Last year she brought a really neat old game that I wanted to get for my sister, but someone beat me to it.
Kate wasn't entirely thrilled with the candlestick that she got.Janet got a three-fer....Marie cleaned out many of the tacky Christmas homemade decorations that her mother-in-law has given her throughout the years.Now I got this brand new electric deep fryer from Angie that my next door neighbor stole from me. Yep, Robin, the Leanness Lifestyle coach got a deep fryer!!
I ended up with a hat with fuzzy yarn and a shawl. There was so much commotion that I didn't get a picture.
After the party I cleaned up and sat down to check e-mail. I woke up with my neck in a most unusual angle at 1:30!!

Tuesday, December 8th, Snow, snow, snow.....(tune from movie White Christmas)

We have had unseasonably warm temperatures for November and December, but like they say, "If you don't like the weather in Chicago, wait a few minutes, it will change". And change it has, we have a big storm in the forecast and already Iowa and all states west and north of us are getting slammed.
On that note, thought you would like to see the cute cheese ball I made for our small group get together on Sunday night. Maybe I brought on the snow.....
He was as delicious as he was adorable!!!

Saturday, December 5th, The elf is at work

Chuck has been getting into the holiday decorating and today when I got up from my little nap after working last night, he was donning lights on the back fence. Unfortunately, he is having a hard time finding more lights in the stores. We need to get to the inside of the house as I am hosting Bunco on Friday. Why is this season so stressful sometimes?