Tired, but Happy

This season turned out to be busier than I thought it would. Isn't that life? I didn't get to all the places I thought I would. I love this time of year. I really do. I love the decorations, love the music, love the food, love the gatherings- hate the stress and craziness. Last night it was really nice to slip away, escape craziness and spend time with Sam. We headed first to the thrift store (it really is our favorite kind of shopping) and then we went to the Flour mill and into Chocolate Apothecary- heaven on earth! If you have seen Chocolat, this is the real deal. Their hot chocolate is amazing. I got the Mayan blend, it has cayenne pepper in it, so at the end of each sip their is a nice spiciness- oh it's good. Then we went to Auntie's bookstore. I picked up Builders of the Pacific Coast (if you follow the link you'll see pictures in the book) I can't wait to pour over it. It's filled with little 2 page spreads of handmade shelters- vans, yurts, cob houses, stone houses, log cabins, structures made of driftwood. It's a collaboration of hippie homes at their finest. Nice, cozy little unique buildings.

Alrighty, enough procrastination. Gotta go pack up and get ready. We're flying out tonight and will be in freezing Minnesota in the morning. I hope you can relax and celebrate Christ's birth with loved ones!

Christmas at the Lux House

We had Christmas with Sam's family on Sunday. It was a really fun time. Linda always has the most beautiful place at Christmas time. I should really do a house tour. We had a really yummy ham dinner. We opened the crackers- a tradition with Sam's family. (It's the thing on top of the plate- an English tradition, you pull them open and pull out a little tissue paper crown and get a silly little prize and a riddle.) It's fun!

We Made Soap!

Thank you TJ for being our photographer and extra set of hands!

In September, Andrea and I took the plunge and set out to make natural milk soap- the old fashioned way. We spent about an hour at the grocery store smelling oils, trying to pick the perfect scent (we went with clove) And then we went on a wild goose chase running all over trying to figure out where to buy lye (it's a meth product so the stores have stopped carrying it) we finally found it (at a soapmaking store- where else?) We got a few pointers from the expert soap lady and headed home to try it ourselves. We were a little nervous- but it worked! It turns out making the soap itself is pretty quick, it's just finding sources for all the ingredients that takes the most work. Now that we know where to go, it will be a piece of cake next time. I think we're addicted now, we're excited to experiment a little more next time. It was so much fun!

Stocking Stuffers

There is still time to get a few last minute gifts. I just added a few gifts, and they're all under $5! According to the post office you have until Dec. 21 to send a package first class that will arrive in time for Christmas. And with every purchase you also receive a free ornament!

Now I better stop adding things and get busy making gifts!

Seed Jewelry

I did another craft fair last weekend. This one was at an elementary school. It was really small and low key. The kids were so fun and cute- not big spenders though :) My neighboring vendor was selling this awesome jewelry made from organic seeds. She is from Colombia. She makes necklaces out of dried pumpkin seeds, orange peels, coconut, coffee beans, and other interesting seeds. She doesn't have an etsy shop (yet- of course I told her she should list it on there!) It really was fun. It's so inspiring to see all the things people create. I love it!

Just a reminder, it's not too late to shop from etsy for Christmas! Spend ten minutes browsing, I bet you'll find the perfect gift. There are so many awesome artists. I've just listed a few more things in my shop.

It was absolutely freezing when we took these pictures.

Hockey

~Katie, Sam, and I went to a hockey game Saturday night. It's a fun game to go to because everyone brings teddy bears and throws them on the ice after the first goal. They collect about 5000 to go to kids in need.

~We had about 2-3 inches of snow, we had a really hard time getting up the road to our house, and then getting into the driveway was nuts. I'm a little concerned. I think if it snows much, I may be trapped!

~I watched food inc. and am really annoyed with Monsanto- that's a whole post I will rant about later. I am concerned about the future of farming. If you want to do something and learn about it you can read about it here. - I want to do a recap of our year of buying local

~We went to the search and rescue Christmas party tonight. It was fun- only party I've been to where they have a knot tying competition as a game.

~I hope you are all enjoying the season and not stressing or freaking too much!

Signed, Sealed, Delivered

I've been having fun dressing up the boxes of my etsy orders. For a fun alternative to wrapping paper, I used ledger paper. You can buy a big notepad at a thrift store for a couple of bucks. It's a nice neutral color and the pages are extra long.

I'll Be Home For Christmas

So the whole posting every day thing isn't going to happen. It's been a fun and crazy weekend. My heart is so happy, so very happy. I'm just beaming and enjoying it. I'm excited to be home for Christmas! My little sis posted this video of WinterSong by Sara Bareilles and I thought I had to share too. I never really watch videos but this one is swell-definitely worth it. Looking forward to hearing the banjo, guitar, recorder, maybe the piano and doing some bird watching- baking- enjoying good food- and yes maybe I will join in on the game playing this year!

Dec. 2

It's blurry but I just love the little crocheted snowmen

Mr. and Mrs. Claus are made out of bowling pins.

We had a lovely time last night going over to Sam's grandma's house to decorate the tree. We listened to Andy Williams, enjoyed a bowl of chili, and toasted with a glass of wine. It was so sweet hearing about Florence's holiday traditions. She said every year her husband would put the lights on, she would then decorate, he would make them a Tom and Jerry, and then they would sit with the lights off and admire the tree. She would say, "I think this is the prettiest tree we have ever had." and he would say, "you say that every year" Another little tradition was that they always tried to be the first one to wish one other a Merry Christmas, and she said every year Vic beat her to it! One year he was singing in the choir, and she was going to beat him to it, so she sent her son Don up there to sneak in and say- "Mom says Merry Christmas" of course he told her that it didn't really count. The traditions around the holidays are so good!

Dec. 1

This pic is for you James- see totally legal!

Ok, catch up time here. First off, I have to thank my sweet husband Sam. He threw me a surprise birthday party on Friday. It was so sweet. (I don't have any pictures- sad) It's just been party, after party after party. I say bring on the celebration. I am really excited this year to celebrate advent. Christ's birth is worth all the hoopla in my book! I used to feel guilty because I like vintage santas and I like a lot of the stuff that goes along with Christmas that isn't really focusing on Jesus. But this year I'm excited because it's a good feeling to have the freedom to celebrate and enjoy all the good things tied to this holiday. No need to be a scrooge, I can celebrate in any way and be focused on Christ. I still feel torn and am trying to figure out how you do that in our culture with all the consumerism. This season will be a good one. I am really so happy, cheesy, and joyful right now because of all the love around me! It's good!

I want to document each day. So we'll see how I do.

First things first. We did our annual tradition of going to the forest and chopping down a tree. It's a Charlie Brown tree for sure. I've come to love our little Charlie Brown trees because the adventure of getting them is so so fun! We haven't had the chance to decorate it yet. Because we have a big house, because I have a million ornaments, because I love decorating, because they're only $5, we are going to try to find a big one for our second living room on Saturday if we can manage.

Dec. 1 was a nice little dinner of tacos at Jacob's Well. It was nice and small, it was kinda nice after the craziness of thanksgiving. Then there was a fun gift exchange and party for the worship team. Our church has so many talented musicians it really is crazy!

Thanksgiving

We had a good time yesterday. Lots of good food! My house is full of flowers, I love it! Sam brought home the lilies, I also have a beautiful bouquet of orange flowers, and the most gigantic poinsettia you have ever seen!

Black Friday Sale

I hope you all ate tons of turkey and had a good day. I just wanted to let you know that you can take part in Black Friday without leaving your house! I've got a big sale going on this weekend starting today on Black Friday and ending on Cyber Monday. I'm offering free shipping on everything in my shop! Now through Christmas you will also receive a free ornament with every purchase. Check out all the other great deals going on at Etsy. You can do a search by typing EtsyHolidaySale, or EtsyFreeShipping. It's a great time to buy a handmade gift!

Turkey Tunes

Here are some good tunes for cookin' up your turkey and mashing your potatoes

-Edit- We didn't realize the songs below are only 30 second previews. If you click on the title "Songs about food" it will take you to the actual playlist on imeem, and you need to sign up (it's free) to listen to it. It's worth it though, because you can stream pretty much any song out there and make and save your own playlists to listen to.

Songs about food