Christmas is coming to The Farmhouse!
We are listening to the joyful music of the season. We are burning Balsam Fir candles. We are s-l-o-w-l-y festooning The Farmhouse with Christmas decor. We I thought that we could do it all on Saturday as we had the whole day free, maybe finishing up on Sunday afternoon.
Wrong.
But it's okay. Ron returned to work on Monday, Bekah and I to homeschool, and Kati started a new job this week. We're decorating in bits and pieces and slow is our modus operandi. What's the hurry?
If you have felt hurried or frazzled about Christmas preparations, then allow me to direct you to some encouraging words. My blog friend Lorrie of Fabric Paper Thread wrote a beautiful and thoughtful post with the gentle suggestion to savor these days. (Click ~here~ to read.)
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The link for Gathering the Moments of November will be up through Saturday. There is still time to collect a few photos that represent the month that is past. There will be one more month to participate in this meme. I'll be providing the link-up again at the end of December.
I'll continue to "gather" my thoughts and photos each month, and I encourage you to do so! I find it to be a meaningful way to reflect and to see what God has done in my life. It causes me to be mindful of my blessings. The only difference is that there won't be a link-up after December.
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So. The Photo-a-Day Challenge.
I have decided that November is not the month for me to attempt such a thing. At least this November wasn't. My attentions were elsewhere.
The last two weeks of the challenge were hit-and-miss, but in the interest of tying up loose ends, I have gathered the photos that I did take and plopped them here at the beginning of December. I'll do better next time, Kati! :)
day 16: red
Pinky and Bekah, both dressed in black, provide contrast to the red chair in which they are sitting. They are best buds, those two.
day 18: hands/feet
On the coldest of days, Bekah's feet look like this. The girl is very anti-sock.
There was one day last winter that it was 56 degrees in my living room (we were hanging out in the kitchen where the wood stove is...but still!) and I insisted that Bekah put on socks. She heaved an audible sigh as she complied. Good grief.
day 19: family
We have a large-ish family. But on this day, these two were the only family around!
day 20: wood
This photo, too, is from the week that Ron was away, but look how he had provided for us! He had filled the wood hoop on the porch and had stacked a couple of rows inside the porch as well. These two loads were the overflow! (We did not run out of wood! In fact, we didn't use the last of it until 8 days after Ron returned!)
day 23: path
Trivial Pursuit Family Edition
day 24: apple
Granny Smith
As a non-apple aside, have you ever seen anyone get anyone get so much mileage out of a package of preserved leaves and a box of faux acorns? They showed up in many (most?) of my autumn photos.
As a non-apple aside, have you ever seen anyone get anyone get so much mileage out of a package of preserved leaves and a box of faux acorns? They showed up in many (most?) of my autumn photos.
day 26: food
Kati was drying bread for the Thanksgiving dressing, which is my favorite part of the feast. I could eat the entire pan of it by myself. I didn't, but I could.
day 27: thankful
To greet our guests on Thanksgiving Day...
day 29: home
Putting away autumn for another year.
Which takes me full circle back to the beginning of my post. Meandering from fall into Christmas...
Click the button below to see how others met the photo-a-day challenge!
Well, through this post, I am now following Lorrie and Kati. Thank you for sharing that wonderful post of hers...wow it hit home for me too. I enjoyed your photos of the day that you shared and had to laugh...Bekah has the right idea! I don't start wearing socks until late in the fall and sometimes even then I kick them off! And I agree with you about the dressing...it's the best part of the meal :)
ReplyDeleteI love it all!
ReplyDeleteI am taking my time to decorate too. No tree yet. We are all in shock over this. The delay is that instead of getting a tree on Saturday, we went to a movie. Then with Tim's work shift, if we want to cut our own we will have to wait until Saturday. We will be only two weeks until Christmas then! Yikes. Deep breath! We may just go get an already cut one tonight. I just worry that they've all been cut for weeks already, and will lose all their needles before Christmas.
What a dilema.
Love you Friend!
Deanna
November started out with a lot happening and although I'd intended to do the photo a day challenge, it never happened. Nor did Gathering the Moments this month.
ReplyDeleteI'm with you on the stuffing - the best part of the whole meal!
It seems there are many of us who are easing into Christmas this year. Thank you for the mention and link. Debby Ray came over and left a very nice comment.
Have a wonderful day, Cheryl.
I loved Lorri's post too. Wasn't it great. I haven't started decorating around here, except for the little white lights which are actually up most of the year anyway. I was hoping to get our Christmas tree by now but poor Mr. C. threw his back out and I know that I'm not up to lifting a 9' tree into the back of the pickup. It can wait. Lovely collection of photos and thoughts, Cheryl.
ReplyDeleteI would say your leaf/acorn investment paid off well!
ReplyDeleteEnjoyed seeing your slice of life pictures.
Bekah and Amelia have kindred feet! She was forever barefoot in the house when the rest of us were doubling up on socks and beslippered! (I know that's not a word but it should be!)
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way about stuffing. It is the best part with cranberry salad running a close second.
Happy Christmas decorating!!!
Lovely choices for the last days of November. Love the family shot of the girls! Also the shot of Pinky and Bekah in the red chair is great!
ReplyDeleteI talk too much; my iPad froze. Let's see...I know I said something about how tall Bekah is getting and perhaps how lovely your photos are and how good that Kati is starting a new job and how fine Lorrie's post was. That covers it. =D
ReplyDeleteI admire your commitment to the November photo challenge! You do such a great job with your photography. They tell your "story" with little need for lots of words :)
ReplyDeleteI need to go read the post you suggested. As for our household, what MUST be done takes most of the time and energy I have. Not much left over. Decorations will be minimal this year. Acceptance of this fact brings contentment and peace - for which I am grateful.