My 13 year old grandson, Kaleb,  lives in the city, loves button down shirts, hunting, fishing, all sports but especially basketball.  He has never had a male role model so I think it is in his genes to be so “all guy” and love guy things…For Christmas he told me he wanted cowboy boots and a cowboy hat…

Wearing a button down shirt the day he told me all of this, he crossed his arms and said, “Grandma, when I grow up I am going to be a Texas businessman.”  I had to smile and tell him, “you can do whatever you set your dreams on” and hope his dreams come true…

This picture was taken Christmas day when he opened his cowboy hat…at 13 he is 2″ taller than Grandma and wears a man’s size 9 shoe.  But isn’t he handsome and oh that smile.

I couldn’t find boots that fit I could afford so I went online and ordered boots and then they were back ordered until April!!!!!!!!!!!  I was somewhat put out because when I ordered online it said, “in stock, ships next day.”  So last weekend I finally canceled the order and hit the local stores and found a pair of boots that fit his wish list, (with some extra funds from Mom and his Christmas money he received).

Then I forgot to take pictures of him in the boots but trust me he loved them.  He made me go for a walk on the walking trail so he could get used to walking in them ..he climbed up four flights of stairs several times….he made those heels smack when he walked…he was all smiles, all day….  Way to go cowboy Kaleb, you are my partner for sure.

Though it has been busy, the pleasure, fun, and excitement of sharing Christmas with so many family and friends makes the flurry of activity during the holiday season well worth it.

The first Christmas gathering was with my brothers and sisters, there are nine of us   Noise, laughter, antics, and lots and lots of food are always part of these gatherings.

The boys (all grown up), so grateful that we are all in good health!!!!

The story teller, can you tell….how blessed we are to have Alma as a breast cancer survivor!!!!!!!!!!

The girls from a Christmas past as not all of them could come this year!!

Family, the best gift of all. I hope you enjoyed your time together with family and would love to see some pictures.

This bag was an unusual success this year. I’m still not sure why so many people fell in love with it. It kind of escapes me really. It all started when I had left over red and white ticking fabric. I hate throwing fabric away if there is any way possible it can be used. So a Christmas gift bag was born from my desire to use up fabric scraps that would have typically ended up in the trash bin.

Every time I sold a set, I’d shake my head, telling Mom “I just don’t get it.” But oh well, I’ll keep making them as long as people keep wanting them for their gift wrap.

All in all I made 80 of these bags this holiday season, over 5 yards of fabric to create them. At this point I’d like to never see red ticking fabric again, at least for a long time

How do you intend to wrap your gifts this year? Is everyone being more “earth friendly” and using fabric gift bags, biodegradable bags, tissue paper, decorated boxes?

For the first time ever, Hallmark Cards is shutting down their entire company for the week of Christmas, partly driven by the economy, the need to cut back on expenses, and the fact that very little work is ever done during this week of the year anyway.

So along with Kevin being home for a few weeks, we also find my husband Robert here with us too and I am in a bit of family heaven.

For us it means family meals together, movies to watch, games to play and hopefully some snow to play in too!And if you know Robert, it probably also includes setting his personal goals for 2010!

Do you have plans for your Christmas break?

Oh yes, it is the one time of year I actually bake. Why only this time of year? Because if I baked all the time, I’d be as round as this jolly snowman. I have no self control when it comes to sweets; therefore I don’t bake because I would eat the whole thing all by myself.

My favorite recipe is the the Christmas Kiss Cookie, also known as the Debbie Cookie. I can eat a pan of these faster than you can snap your fingers and say Kris Kringle 3 times.

Do any of you have a wonderful Christmas recipe of yummy goodness that you would like to share?

It’s almost here and we’re getting anxious around our house for the BIG DAY.

Are you counting down too?

I find snow globes a bit mesmerizing, kind of like watching fish swim in a tank. Turn the globe upside down and shake all the snowflakes free just to watch them slowly drift back down to settle on the ground where they came from. It’s magical really. Like a piece of Christmas perfectly captured in a make believe world.

Do you have snow globes as part of your Christmas decorations? Do they have special meaning to you? Share some pictures with us! We all want to see!!!

If you’re like me, you find yourself going a little crazy right now trying to get all the things done before the holidays that you WANT to get done, not to mention the things you NEED to get done, am I right? So I thought I’d share a little tip with you for making your holidays less stressful.

First stop off at your local warehouse store (Costco or Sam’s Club will do fine) and pick up a big container of chocolate covered almonds and a big bowl of peppermint bark. Or any other bulk candy, cookie, or treat like item you see. I paid less than $9.00 for a large container of chocolate covered almonds and about the same for a big container of peppermint bark.

I purchased these cuter than ever personalized stickers from the Littlebeane Boutique a few weeks back with the intention of putting them on Christmas gifts that were from our family.

I did that but had lots left over. Not one to waste a thing, I picked up a pack of candy bags in the baking aisle at Michael’s for a few dollars. (Psst, check out all the other super cute stickers they offer in this shop!)

Start by applying your decorative sticker to each candy bag. It’s easier to do it without the candy inside. I learned that one the hard way.

Open the almonds and try not to eat them all before filling the candy bags. For me this was a hard task! Next fill each bag about 2/3 of the way full. Roll down the top of the bag twice to give it a nice closure, then staple the bag shut. Repeat with the peppermint bark, and viola! You have a homemade treat bag that you can hand out to family, friends and neighbors along with a Christmas card. Easy, inexpensive and something the kids can even help do.

I love how these turned out. They make such nice little “gift” bags or party favors for your holiday parties. No baking, no dishes to wash, no hot oven. And my guess is it will all taste better than anything I could have made myself. Well I know the answer to that because I ate some of both treats while making these little baggies

jingle bells

A cluster of golden jingle bells encircles the handle of our front door, announcing the departure or arrival of friends and family. It’s a sound you only here in December around the holidays, a sound that is only identified with Christmas.

Perhaps I should have used those bells more often when my kids were teenagers and thought of (actually did) sneaking out of the house without permission. I would have had a warning signal, huh!

I love the sounds of the Christmas season, holiday music playing on all the radio stations, the silent sound of snowfall, the cackling of a fire burning brightly in the fireplace, the tinkling of spoons being stirred in mugs of hot chocolate, helping those marshmallows melt into oblivion.

What sounds remind you of the Christmas holiday season?

I don’t have any little kids at home anymore. I wish I did. I just may have to borrow that granddaughter of mine so we can read a few Christmas stories together, all snuggled up in the warm blankets with our winter PJs on.

She loves Princess stories. Does anyone know of a Christmas story that features a Princess? Somehow I think a 4 year old isn’t quite ready to sit long enough to hear Charles Dickins “A Christmas Carol”. It just needs to be short, sweet, lots of colorful pictures and it MUST have a princess.

So do you have any reading suggestions for this Grandma?