A New Holiday Tradition to go with an Old One

Each year we read Little Wini's Special Christmas Gift at our house. (Ummmm, yep, I borrowed it from you, Mom). In this story, there is a tiny elf that hides in all the houses, and even around town, to find out what the children want for Christmas and also to find out if they've been good or bad, and then he reports back to Santa. I love that idea, so when I saw this blog talking about something so similar, I was very excited.
I must have the Elf on the Shelf for next year. It looks like it is sold at a Hallmark in Bountiful, and Thanksgiving Point in Lehi, and a few other places. Here's the web site.

Weather?!?

I hardly watch the news anymore, so this weather forecast is a little shocking.

Friday Morning

After looking at sunbeams for awhile...

Emily decided to exercise...

And then sing some songs.

A Recipe

Here's a link to another easy and good recipe--Baked Ziti--it's one of my family's favorites right now. (I usually make it in the morning and then put it in the fridge until I'm ready to bake it.)

Stop Waiting...

A craven hung along the battle's edge,
And thought, "Had I a sword of keener steel---
That blue blade that the king's son bears---but
this blunt thing---!"
And lowering crept away and left the field.
Then came the king's son, wounded, sore bestead
And weaponless, and saw the broken sword,
And ran and snatched it, and with battle-shout
Lifted afresh he hewed his enemy down,
And saved a great cause that heroic day.
---Edward Rowland Sill

Maddie and her Rice Baby

Maddie walked home from school yesterday carrying her 10 pound rice baby all the way--she was exhausted when she got home!
Last week in Maddie's first grade class they each took in a baby picture and their birth weight, and then made rice babies out of socks to match. They have been taking care of them in school for almost a week. Maddie had a lot of fun with this project. Isn't her baby the cutest rice baby you've ever seen?

Santa and a Snowman

Mack, Cambri, Maddie, Nicholas, Emily and Devyn with the leaning snowman of Syracuse.

Emily and Devyn
Right idea, wrong place

Darren tried to make his own, straighter snowman.

We could hear the siren of the fire engine all morning--sometimes it sounded close and the kids would get so excited--and then it would fade away. But finally he came down our street (and he had candy too)!

Temple Square

Saturday afternoon we met my family at the Gateway and saw "Enchanted". It was so good it left me wanting to sing and dance down down the street, "I've been dreaming of my true love's kiss..." Maddie didn't like this and said that I'd already had my true love's kiss when I got married, remember?
After, we ate at Rumbi and had a few Ben's Cookies (could use a few dozen more of those, by the way) and then rode the train to Temple Square.

Snow on Saturday

It snowed last Saturday, and Maddie and Nicholas spent the afternoon sledding down the hill in our backyard. After I took these pictures, Maddie's friend Lily came over with her older sister Cassidy, who is Nicholas' age. They claim to be sworn enemies, but I can't believe that's true since they went down the hill together at least 40 times (Maddie says she counted). Maddie claims she heard Nicholas ask Cassidy to be his girlfriend, but Maddie is also a good storyteller. Only time will tell...

Leonardo da Vinci's Home

No, I didn't take a quick trip to France--yet--but one thing I like about blogs is that you can actually learn interesting stuff. Like that Leonarda Da Vinci lived for three years in a house built in 1471, and it's still there. When I go to to France I'm definitely going to visit. Until then, these pictures will have to do. If you want to see what the department store windows look like in Paris right now, click here and here and here.