It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

Four more days.

Wow!

Here in North Central Texas the weather is predicted to be a balmy 80 degrees today - close to a record! We have already been outside riding bikes and playing. It will turn cool again for Christmas, which will be nice. Christmas always feels weird when it is 70 degrees. But for the moment, we are enjoying shorts and sun!

We decorated our tree this past Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Advent.

Every year, ArtGuy and I try to find an answer to the question, "How do we keep from getting too caught up in the commercialism of Christmas?". Personally, Advent is my absolute, hand-down favorite church season. I love the music, the liturgy, the rites, the beauty, the quiet hopefulness, everything. But how to translate it into the home? Well, we have done something a little different every year.

This year was our favorite way of keeping Advent alive, and one we agree is now a family tradition. Way back in Lent, I believe, a fellow homeschooler, Kathi Boor, shared one Advent idea - put the Christmas tree out at the beginning of Advent, but decorate it all in purple (the liturgical Advent color), as long as you can basically stand it.

Advent tree all dressed up in purple!

So, we did! The first Sunday of Advent, right after Thanksgiving, we brought out our pre-lit tree (nothing live and breathing this year!), and plugged it in. Over the next week, the boys made purple decorations and hung them up. We have been able to enjoy the beautiful lit tree every day of Advent, but the absolutely beautiful purple decorations reminded us that we were still preparing for Christmas - not there yet!

Let me tell you - there is little hardship in a gorgeous tree decorated in purple! Not that Advent is about hardship, anyway. All the purple has been a good way to remember.

But this past Sunday, the fourth Sunday of Advent, ALL the decorations came out. There is something moving about pulling off the purple and replacing it with colors and shapes and memories. Very symbolic!

Cookie Boy untangles beads

Romeo assembles the Charlie Brown tree - one of ArtGuy's favs

The Mad Toddler mugs

I love my stinker!

The Young Adult deigned to take part in a family celebration

The Young Adult more enjoys the role of "supervisor"

"Let's take a family photo. How hard can it be?" Snicker....snicker...guffaw!

O Christmas tree, O Christmas tree!

The baking has begun, the house is in the process of being cleaned, the gifts are being wrapped, and our hearts are lightened as we look forward to the end of the week.

chocolate  and pretzel bark

It does hit me, as I watch tv commercials, that the world has it all backwards! Advent is NOT Christmas, but everyone has been celebrating it for weeks now. So, as soon as Christmas day is over, everyone is kind of sick of the music, the food, the red-and-green. But the Church? Hah! The Church is just getting started! Having waited over four weeks, the Church pulls out all the stops until January 9, when the Baptism of the Lord ends the liturgical season of Christmas and begins Ordinary Time.

Awesome!

There are 4 main food groups - candy, candy cane, candy corn, and maple syrup!

Time for our annual "Elf" viewing party!

Classic Christmas Characters Go to Hogwarts

Happy belated Thanksgiving! I hope yours was wonderful and warm and cozy!

We were lucky enough to drive down to Austin to spend the holiday with my Little Bro and his family. My super-star sister-in-law Sarah is one of the best cooks I know, so the meal was incredible. Four words - bacon and sausage stuffing. Need I say more? Well, I will. Two more words - granola pie. One of the best pies I have had (it also doubles as a holiday breakfast food!).
Of course, the food was only part of it. We enjoyed the company even more. It was a relaxing, stress-free holiday. New family tradition? Oh, I think so!

Sarah carving her perfect turkey. 

Cousins waiting to eat

ArtGuy and I had to spend 4 hours together on the way to Austin and 4 hours on the way back, stuck in a car. The kids were playing video games or watching movies for the most part, so there was nothing to do for us but...talk!  Gasp! After several years of fast-paced, breakneck living, carting kids (or ourselves) from one event to another, hours of extended talking is something we are quite out of practice with. It was nice to to get a good work out in the "conversations" department!

On the way home, taveling on I35, somewhere around Waco, we came up with the brilliant idea of trying to figure out which Hogwarts house classic Christmas characters would belong to. I will share. You may have a different opinion or insight. Sadly, we are not as wise as the Sorting Hat, so take our classifications with a grain of salt!

Frosty the Snowman

• Frosty the Snowman - definetly Hufflepuff, if that. In the classic Frosty the Snowman episode, he is friendly, but not super smart ("Happy birthday?"). In the end he is willing to give up his life for his friend, a redeeming quality. So, Hufflepuff. However, in all later Frosty stories, he is just pretty stupid. If you go by those, he may be more Squib than House-worthy!. 
• Professor Hinkle - Slytherin - he is all about 'what's in it for me"
• Karen - Gryffindor - she is brave and noble, willing to sacrifice for the good of her friend.

Rudolph

• Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer - I think he is pretty clearly Gryffindor. Heart of gold, bravery, fallible but redeemable, heroic, and facing almost impossible odds and prejudice. Yup. Gryfindor.
• Hermey - probably Ravenclaw. He has the brains, you know. Although an arguement for Gryffindor will do.
• Yukon Cornelius - I am going with Hufflepuff here. He is true and loyal and trustworthy. Dependable. Hufflepuff, in the very best way.
• Clarice - Gryffindor. She loves her man with all her heart, and not even the sexist world of the North Pole reindeers can keep her down. 
• Santa - he is pretty tough in this story. He may be the representative of all that is innocent and pure, but he acte more Slytherin than anything. He hates the elves' singing, he encourages the isolation and identification of "misfits". Tsk, tsk.
• Donner - Slytherin. Does not want to accept anything less than what appears "perfect" in the eyes of society. All about how HE looks and not worried about his own child until things get really bad. Totally understandable why he and Santa are such chums. 

 That is all for now. Maybe more later. Time to take the Mad Toddler outside and try to run that energy level down for a good nap!