The Fourth Annual Cookie Swap

Our annual cookie swap went down Friday night. We swapped cookies with eight other Mother/Daughter teams. 

Our family makes gingerbread cookies every year for the swap. 

Our ten dozen cookies baked, frosted and packaged to go. 

The cookie sample table. I tasted not one cookie. 

The hot cocoa 

The cookies waiting to be swapped. 

Merry Christmas

Merry Christmas to you, thank you for ready my very sporadic and very eclectic blog posts.

A screenshot of our Christmas card picture

Benjamin has been waiting a whole year for the Candlelight Christmas Eve Service. 

Merry Christmas from Our Home on the Last Frontier!!!!

Happy 7th Birthday

Benjamin had a great birthday, he made his cake the day before. 

The house was decorated after he went to bed

We partied all day long. Sigh, our baby is growing up.

Nativity

Benjamin was part of the Nativity play at church, he was Joseph.

Christmas Party

The annual Christmas Party was tonight. 

Drink bar

Ski lodge was the theme, see my fur hat?

The tables

One corner

Food table

The photo booth

Dessert table

My husband and I at the "photo booth"

Wearing my hat

Christmas Caroling

One of the local homeschool Moms has scheduled a home school Christmas Caroling event for the past few years, and we managed to make it this year. Here are the girls and I waiting to go to our caroling location. 

Listening to instructions 

The organizer said there were twenty families and about ninety-five carolers. 

After singing the kids got to hand out candy canes to the residents of this care facility, I maneuvered Benjamin over to a precious lady I had spotted while we sang. 

Daily life

Our Playmobil Nativity Set has been safely stored away and not gotten out for a few years for its own safety and my sanity. 

Benjamin has a new chore, vacuuming the family room rug. Excuse his hair, this was a home day. 

These two are buddies

Black Friday

Sunrise the day after Thanksgiving, such beautiful sunrises in winter and I get to see them when they happen around 9:30am🙃

After a quick trip into town for half off socks and half off of winter gear at Big Ray's we came home and went for a ride. 

The tree went up on Saturday 

A cup of something called Winter Wonderland Sip, creamy and minty, my new favorite. 

After We Returned Home

We got back into life and school but it took me a while to settle back into my normal. 

We arrived home to snow. 

My wonderful husband and I stopping for a Sunday selfie. 

Happy Thanksgiving

Alaska and Missouri

Benjamin and I taking Emmy for a walk

Snow machine time! 

We have arrived home and back into our normal routines and things like school and dentist appointments. 

While we are back to routine, Levi went to Missouri with Poppa for a duck hunt. 

I'd say they had a great time. 

What a great Senior Trip; Boston, Tennessee, Kentucky, Virginia, North Carolina, and finally Missouri. 

...and we came home

We packed ten checked bags (thank you Alaska Airlines Club 49) and five carry on bags and headed to the airport. 

*disclaimer: it has been three years since we went outside and four of us desperately needed new clothing, thus the abundant luggage

Benjamin, Curious George and me in the Nashville airport

Daddy, Benjamin and George 

Inflight entertainment, yes, please. 

Food, we needed food!!!

I had a Qdoba taco salad. 

And, woah, we are missing a Blessing!  He stayed behind for one more adventure before coming home. 

We arrived home around two a.m. Saturday morning. 

Sunday morning headed to church. So thankful to be back with our church family.