T'was just a few busy nights before Christmas...

My, my, what a busy season! As we mailed out the last of the rush toy orders on Monday, with nothing else awaiting completion behind them (caught up for the first time since before Dec!) we all breathed a sigh of contentment after such a good season and a bit of relief as we turned our thoughts towards our own homemade gift exchange. With only a week to Christmas, it's hard to be first thinking about what kinds of handmade gifts to make for all of your siblings. I'm been known to think 'big' when it comes to Christmas and also start crafting in July to get everything done. Not so the case this year. I'm trying to limit my big dreams into small and practical. I hate to say, 'quick' but it's the truth! Just as the "Boys Stay Out" and "Girls Prohibited" signs were hung on the girls' room and workshop doors, a few more orders started trickling in. Even today, just four days from Christmas, we're still pausing and setting aside our work to complete orders. As terribly grateful as I am for the work (it's a huge dream come true and answer of prayers for our family!!), lately I have been contemplating our really quiet handmade Christmases past. Because everything was home/handmade, we weren't at all involved in the Christmas rush/shopping season and stress! And that was nice... really nice. Now, with being the proud toy shop owners that we are, that puts us right in the middle of rush orders and slow postal service. Stress. I guess you could call it, the real world? lol. It's a good experience for us, though. We were getting a little too spoiled there, I think. ;)


Shingling a Little House on the Prairie dollhouse.


Theresa has knit three of these Ingalls family sets since we've gotten home!



Anyway, as if all that isn't a good enough excuse as to my absence from this blog, we've also been baking Christmas cookies, making cards and ornaments and weaving pretty wreaths of the pokiest sort... (that's Johnny's wreath pictured at the top of this post!)

Speaking of which, take a look at our tree this year! It's beautiful, it's big, and it's POKY!!

Yanking her through the front door...


And Johnny said it was too small... (*rolling eyes*)


Isn't she a beaut??

And only two broken bulbs so far this year! I think that's a new record! We'll see if it holds out. ;)

I like these cute wooden ornaments we've been making. They don't break. (It's a snowman packing a snowball. The other side says, "watch your back" and yes...

 ..that one was Andrew's... ;-)


But definitely, my favorite ornament this year...

..is a tiny little bird's nest we discovered a few days after putting up our tree (it was hidden so well!). Amazing, beautiful, natural decoration and a reminder of the recent life in this tree!    Then of course, after the tree, it's time to hang the stockings all in a row...


The girls and I made these last year, figuring (quite sadly!) that our family may now be complete, it seemed like a good time to make one for everybody.


(Okay, so I just stuck this picture in here because it was cute! ;)


(Same with this one! ;)


But actually, that me reminds me, we had a big birthday on the 16th. Miss Donnie is now 3!!

She had a really fun birthday.  She got a little kitchen set with contribution from both boys and girls, being both wooden and crochet.

She also got a really cute, hand painted wood farm set from Lizzy and Johnny (she's opening it in the first picture.) And, as is my little tradition, Lucy also got a new outfit!

(Gosh, she looks so grown up here! A poor excuse for a baby that's for sure!!)
  Forgive me for getting these pictures in the wrong order... We decorated our tree after Donna opened her birthday presents. Then it was the next night that Momma and I made the wreaths with the tree trimmings. Follow me? ;)

We're so festive with our little hats ain't we? :)


(Ooo, forgive the mess! Birthday party, Christmas decorations, pine needles, crafting.. etc. etc!)
 
I excited the little kids with stringing lights into my big wreath over the kitchen table. It's the little things. ;)


Momma and I hung our homemade wreaths in our homemade home, beside our homemade curtains, over the boys' homemade furniture and our homemade pillows. (Love! :-D)


Lizzy did a great job decorating the Nativity set this year, with fake snow, straw, evergreen and pine cones. Mary and Joesph arrived from the far windowsill this Sunday. Now we're just waiting on the baby! :)

Donna can't wait for the birthday boy!

 Oh, and I have to show off this painting that my Grandma did of our Donna:

 Obvious where our artistic talent comes from, eh? :) BTW, for you southern folks getting hit by all the snow, maybe you should consider coming up North... we don't have any! It keeps melting down to grass. (Global warming?)

The kids are fearing a white with speckled-green-Christmas. They miss not being able to sled off the garage roof or and walk over the fences. What are you southern people doing with all our Christmas snow?? :)

I know I've been saying this a lot lately, but since I probably won't be back until after Christmas...
MERRY CHRISTMAS to all my wonderful readers!!