day in my life

This Sunday was a very full day with Christmas crafting, Nels' birthday, and tree decorating. We usually spread these activities out over a few days, but with the ice storm we got a bit behind. Our poor birch trees--this is STILL the view of our yard. Nothing has melted.


I got up around 5:00 a.m., made coffee, fed the dog, and began a load of laundry. Then I settled down to knit a gift. Nels arrived around 5:30 and headed to the basement to work on his project. I knit until 8:00 a.m. when I finished the gift. WOO HOO. The girls got up. Spoke with my brother on the phone. He still doesn't have power. Had a special birthday breakfast for Nels--sticky buns and sausage.

Lou and I then made a birthday cake. New recipe. It was TERRIBLE. Hels then made a flourless cake....which really didn't cook through--pure goo. Big cake disasters. We're not doing well with baking in our house these days.


Nels went out to chop ice. I tidied the living room and made room for the Christmas tree. We headed out to the tree farm around noon wondering how icy the trees would be. Turned out they weren't too bad, but it was very slippery.

This was a new tree farm to us. Word had it that the owner had stopped trimming his trees a few years ago and they were a bit bushier and more natural than other trees. They were all pretty big, but we found one and kept our fingers crossed that when it melted it would have a good shape.

We got the tree home and set it up with towels under it to catch the ice. It was so hard to wait! I decorated the mantel.


Nels gave me this smoker for Christmas last year. He puffed away while we waited for the tree to melt.

Hels settled into weaving a mysterious Christmas gift.

Lou found her gnome hat and elf clogs in the Christmas box and happily settled into a chair with "The Cobweb Christmas."


FINALLY, the tree was ready. We put on our favorite Christmas music. First on the tree was the wise owl who sits way at the top.

Lou really loaded up the bottom.


It's hard to photograph Christmas trees, isn't it? Of course we think it's the most beautiful ever--especially after we got rid of all the wet beach towels.


We sat with the tree for a bit and then moved into Nels's birthday celebration. I hadn't noticed this terrible table setting job until I looked at this photo. We combined our 3rd Advent candle lighting with birthday this year.

After dinner we moved back to the tree for presents. The highlight of his presents was this tractor clock from my father. It plays the engine sound/roar of a different tractor at each hour. It will be perfect down in his workshop :) Thankfully it mutes when it's dark.

We had cake of course. Here is Nels making a wish.


Right after cake we headed upstairs to put away all the laundry, read stories, and head to bed. I'm reading The Gilded Chamber which is a novel about Queen Esther of the Persian empire.

It was certainly a full day! 2 knitted gifts done. 1 to go....