Instructions Not Included

I know I should have photo shopped his eyes, but now a-days, well. . . you get what you get!



Could this little adorable guy really be the reason for the craziness of this season?
That's right. . . my angle didn't have such a heavenly day on Monday, leaving us behind schedule, but we did get the tree decorated and most of the Christmas shopping done. The laundry. . . eh- who needs clean clothes anyway?







Happy



Happier



Happiest!

And when on Tuesday he started to giggle and laugh, we didn't really care what had been done and what had not.

Counting Down

We are starting to feel a little more like Christmas around here.



We finally were able to get out to get our tree. It's a natural Noble Fir. (The natural part, we were told, refers to the fact that the tree was not pruned to grow to look like a typical Christmas tree.) We had a Noble Fir last year. We really like the way that they look, and really, doesn't it seem appropriate that Yarnnation should have a Noble Christmas tree?

It is about half decorated. Little Sir is slowing up the process. I think he just loves Christmas so much he is upset that he can't help decorate the tree. Anyway, that's the story I'm going with. :) I'll post decorated pictures in the next day or two.

We were also given an adorable and perfectly appropriate advent 'calendar' for Yarnnation.



It is a braided cord of yarn with little knit hats and mittens, each with a number on them, hanging from it.





Inside of each hat or mitten is a little ornament. I hang the ornaments on the outside of the little knit item for that day.







Many thanks to the Duke's aunt who saw this and knew I would love it, and I DO!!! I have happily incorporated it into our Christmas celebration.

Remember, that Melissa at Banana Migraine is hosting a no stress Holiday Traditions Festival. Click on over to find links to more holiday traditions and to leave a link to your own post about holiday traditions.

FO and Fotos

It only took a year (and a bit) but the Duke's aran sweater is finally done. Knit in the ever wonderful Cascade 220. The pattern is my design. The center cable is from Vogue Knitting's second Stitchionary.



We took it, along with the cutest baby on the plant to be "professionally" photographed. I use the word professionally VERY loosely here.











Even the cheesiest of fake photogs can get lucky when the subject is so dark CUTE!

Gather the Gopher Wood

Well, Little Sir and I made it through the crazy downpour here. We were lucky, the only stress I experienced due to the deluge was the anxiety I felt at not being able to help my friends and neighbors who were flooding. So frustrating. I felt better after the Duke got home and immediately headed out to help people. He's such a good man (as are the many other men we go to church with who spent the day soaking wet and moving heavy water logged furniture.)

Now, moving on to a more cheery topic. . . Melissa at Banana Migraine is hosting a no stress Holiday Traditions Festival. Periodically throughout the month she will be posting about some of her favorite holiday traditions and has invited all of us to do the same. She has provided a central link location as well so we can easily share our beloved holiday pastimes.

The Duke and I (like many of you) purchase a Christmas ornament each year. We look during the season for one that captures something that will remind us of the previous year. This year was marked by the miracle arrival of our son. It seemed appropriate to us that we celebrate that event with an ornament that depicts the miracle birth.


We also add one more to our collection of Christmas books each year. This year I chose a beautifully illustrated book that tells all about Santa Claus. It is called Santa Claus, written by Rod Green and illustrated by Jon Lucas and Carol Wright.

Here is a small sample of the elaborate illustrations.




Thanks to Melissa for hosting the Holiday Traditions Festival. Click on over to her blog to visit other participants in the Festival and be sure to post about your favorite traditions and add your post for other's to enjoy.

Welcome to Winter

It's SNOWING!

And not just a little bit, these are the biggest snowflakes I have ever seen. For those of you not familiar with Seattle's weather, snow is a novelty here, especially this early in the winter.








Sorry for the fairly crummy pictures. I didn't have any shoes on and I wasn't interested in staying outside for very long.

My dogs are so excited, they love the snow. I'll try to get pictures of them playing when there is a little more on the ground.