Christmas... a most wonderful time of the year!

...Yes, that is until you plan that wonderful day to pick out the perfect tree, get out all the decorations, and get the house looking all festive....and then your perfect little mood is rather dampened as you find that mice have nearly taken over your shed, your decorations stink of mouse urine, you can't find that long extension cord that you need, some of the lights won't work, and now the baby is stressed 'cause you are stressed....and well, you just need to take a moment and pray to the One who Christmas is all about, asking Him to help you to show His Spirit. How easy it is a midst all the bustle and the noise to forget Who Christmas is really all about. Dear Jesus, please help me this Christmas season to remember You, to take time to know You better, and to always show Your Spirit in my life!

I really like these little candles that remind us about some of the fruits of the Spirit.

This is Khloe's favorite place to sit and cuddle. She thinks it is even better if you will read her a book while sitting in this little nook. 

I got so tickled at her the other night while I was rocking her. She kept popping her head up every few seconds with some tearfully said word that she was sure would help postpone sleep..."da," "moo," "eee-ah," etc.

 One of her favorite things to observe when she should be drifting into slumberland is the little manger scene beside the rocking chair. Her daddy also loves this little manger scene. It is one of his very favorite Christmas decorations to set up. I think he likes to think about what it must have been like on that very first Christmas.

Christmas pictures are so difficult to take. It seems like it is so hard to catch just how pretty all the lights and decorations really are. 

We have a little Christmas tradition to go and find a real tree each year. I guess this tradition started when I was a little girl growing up in Northern British Columbia. We would head out into the bush and find what we deemed to be about the perfect tree. Of course it was always wild, ended up being nearly too big and heavy to get in the house, and had a few funny quirks that you just had to kinda decorate around. But it was such a fun memory. 

So when we started our lil' home on the campus we kinda wanted to have a similar tradition. However, since this is Pennsylvania and not the frigid North, the tradition had to be altered slightly. So we found a nice friendly tree farm that serves hot chocolate and has a grand "bargain pile." 

This year we decided to try a different type of tree. It is still a fir, but just a different "brand." It is a little bit more blue in color, its needles are quite soft, and it is nice and bushy. We rather like it:)

Popcorn Fest'

Khloe and Daddy have great imaginations! They like to sit in the living room and have great times with all the stuffed animals.

This particular session of "Imaginations with Daddy" was the popcorn festival. All the animals gathered round while Khloe very politely shared with her guests.

A Vintage Photo Shoot

Oh, Canada!

Canada, it was good to see your fair lands once again:)

We were able to make a little trip up to Ontario, Canada to visit with family. We traveled with Josh and Megan, and were joined in Ontario by Mom and Dad, who flew out from B.C. We all gathered together at our Grandparents' place. Grandpa has been really ill and we wanted to be able to get to visit with them.

 We had a big Thanksgiving meal with the family. We had a lot of fun reconnecting with all the family, eating lots of great food, and playing games.

We were able to do a variety of fun things. We always enjoy going up to the old hunting camp and "roughing" it for a few days. The old camp has no running water or electricity. They have propane powered lamps and a propane stove. The old pot-belly stove keeps us all cozy - sometimes too cozy:)

We like to take long hikes in the beautiful hardwood forest, ride the four-wheeler, and canoe or sail on the lake. It is so peaceful and relaxing. 

Helping Mommy

While Mommy was trying to perfect the art of pie making, Khloe decided that her toys had become very boring and she needed Mommy's attention. However, Mommy was busy as already mentioned, baking pies. This brought the Engle kitchen to a stalemate....The solution...Khloe has now been introduced to the "finer" parts of the kitchen.

Did it make a mess? Was it slightly inconvenient to a mother who likes cleanliness? A big "YES" to both questions. Thankfully, this mother is learning the valuable lesson that some things, such as ultimate perfection, need to be put aside in the face of allowing your children to enjoy life, and make fun memories! So last Saturday was fun for both Khloe and Mommy....and would you believe it, the kitchen was not even that hard to clean up:)
Now, you are probably wondering how the pies turned out. Well, the recipe is an old family recipe, one of those tried and true type! So the recipe did not fail, but unfortunately, I have one of those ancient ovens that seems to enjoy heating the house more than attending to its baking duties. So though they were not a flop. They were not quite as perfect as I would have liked. Oh well, we will just keep trying.