handmade angel ornament crafted by my mom & sisterMerry Christmas, everyone. Thank you for being part of my life, thank you for hanging out in my little bitty space with me – and thank you for letting me share my art (and stuff) with you. Hugs and blessings to each of you this Christmas, may your heart be lifted up by the Reason for the Season.

On the Sixth Day of Christmas, my true love gave to me
(wrapped up in a PB&J)
7 Swans a-swimming,
6 Geese a-laying,
5 Golden Rings,
4 Calling Birds,
3 French Hens,
2 Turtle Doves,
and
A Partridge in a Pear TreeI’m so very glad you’re enjoying my Sandwich Bag Doodle art! The girls really get a tickle out of their bags during the day – they even show them off to their friends! The only problem – Catybug said my handwriting is getting sloppy. “Clirubnas? What’s Clirubnas?”

If this keeps up, I’ll start putting pressure on myself to make them little masterpieces instead of quick whimsical doodles. You can see it happening already, now that I’ve broken out the colored sharpies. Full color sandwich bag art? Ugh – whatever happened to spending 10 minutes braiding hair in the morning? Now I spend it coloring on ziplocs, and whip up a ten-second ponytail.

As long as the song is stuck in your head, I’m good.

On the Sixth Day of Christmas, my true love gave to me
(wrapped up in a PB&J)
6 Geese a-laying –
5 Golden Rings,
4 Calling Birds,
3 French Hens,
2 Turtle Doves,
and
A Partridge in a Pear TreeOkay, so I don’t have a yellow sharpie and had to improvise, and the calling bird – what the heck did you expect him to be doing?

I’m not sure what’s going to happen after tomorrow, unless I make sandwiches for the kids over Christmas break and bag ’em up. I just might – unless I feel the challenge of getting everything on one little ziploc is overwhelming. We’ll see how that goes!

Two Turtle Doves and
a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

Again, with the nudging, please go vote for your favorite pretty Christmas tree.

a Partridge in a Pear Tree.

Also, please go pick a pretty Christmas tree to vote for. I’m not sayin’ you gotta vote for mine, but mine’s in there. Just pick the one you like.

Exhibit A: The fake smile pose. The talk about the natural smile, the begging for them to put away the fake smile (and the blue gum). Just be loving, and natural, I say.

Exhibit B: The loving, natural pose. Older sister gives younger sister a nice big squeeze, resulting in tears because “she squeezed me too hard and it hurrrrts”. Tears welling, hair mussed up, no one is happy. Now is the time (because I have the patience of a squirrel) for the please, please pleeeease cooperate RIGHT NOW talk.

Exhibit C: I can make her smile, mom! See? Ugh. She hated that, don’t ever do that to her again. Hands to yourself, please.

Exhibit D: I’m happy now! Peace out! Peace on Earth and stuff! Haha! I can count to two! Or I’m a hippie child! You decide!

Exhibit E: I’m falling off the stool, mom. Woaaahhh MOM! She pushed me!

Exhibit F: Giggling ensues, because now sissy is on the floor being dramatic about how everything in her body just broke. Thanks a LOT. Now is the time for the scoot your butt over a little bit so your sister can squeeze in right next to you talk. The coersion of being sisterly talk. The begging for it all to be over talk, because I can’t take one more second of all the drama, and all mommy REALLY wants for Christmas is a DECENT PICTURE OF HER BEAUTIFUL WELL BEHAVED CHILDREN. Really. That’s ALL. I. WANT.

And then, they did it. And they proved to me once again that even though for a half an hour they can drive me absolutely out of my gourd, in the end, they’re perfect little angels that you can’t help but love and want to squish and kiss and huggle and snuggle.

That concludes our portrait photography session. If you send your children to my house for Christmas portraits, please remember – no blue gum allowed.

This is (part of) our Christmas tree, in all it’s multi-colored glory. I’ll probably take more ornament photographs this year, as well. I really had fun with that last year, and (I think) everyone else enjoyed it, too.

Friday was a snow day here, school canceled – lots of snow to shovel. We decided to make a mini snowhill in the backyard for our mini-sledders, and yesterday was a good day for sledding. The snow packed and crunched beneath their boots, they squealed and giggled as Catybug dragged the Chickeymonkey around in circles – up the hill, down and around again. Such good sisters, they are so loving toward one another and such great playmates. I know it won’t last forever, so I’ll enjoy it while it’s here.

Lastnight, while I waited for our Cement Sissy™ Tuckerhead to diddle in the snow, the outside light caught the sled just so, and it was so neat that I had to grab my camera. Here’s another snow shot from inside my nice warm studio: