Christmas Concert and Cookies

Let me just tell you how excited the boys were to discover that, although they missed the main Christmas performance over hunting weekend, they were being invited on stage at church THIS Sunday morning to sing and snap before the crowd :) We were still chatting with Glory and the K's (first time we've seen them since their arrival home, because they arrived home with terrible respiratory illnesses) after the service ended and the next one was set to begin--I saw the kids lining up for a repeat performance and asked our boys if they would like to stay and sing again. "No?!" they said in the tone of, "Don't you know us at all? Are you crazy?" Ha! So funny :) They have no fear of the stage, but if they don't have to be up there . . . :) To help you spot them--B is in the beige/brown striped sweater yawning, and G is in the blue plaid behind the stand with the wooden boards on it (also yawning). They may have just been sleepy, but the pictures make it look like they were busting out those lyrics! ;)


Later, after finding a Barbie movie (we've mysteriously never seen) on TV, the kids convinced me it was time to start Christmas cookie baking . . . we started ;) There will be more today when B and G$ return from last minute shopping. Whew! There are so many gifts to select and wrap this time of year! I spent 5 hours on this project last night with my traditional It's a Wonderful Life viewing whilst wrapping. Last year I think, Buck just bought me the movie on DVD because it was getting too complicated to figure out what night it was on TV and then planning my wrapping around that schedule. Last night, for the first time in YEARS, he arrived home early enough from work to not only help a bit with the wrapping, but to see Clarence get his wings. I tell you what, we were both a mess :) He's not much of a crier, but that movie gets the tears rolling!



Once again the pictures have appeared in reverse order . . . so start with the smashing candy canes and work your way up. I've never attempted striped-shortbread before, but the girls did this start to finish on their own (with a few inputs from me when they had questions). Super cute little cookies!