Ruthie got a surprise gift when she went to Sunday School two weeks ago! Mrs. Bonnie said she saw this gift and immediately thought of Ruthie. It always amazes me how some folks really have the talent for choosing the right gifts for people. (I definitely don't have that talent!)

This is a wonderful dress up doll that comes with all kinds of fabrics that can be interchanged to make different outfits. This afternoon I was walking by Ruthie's room and I could hear her singing to herself. She was sitting on her little rug on the floor, singing about all the different fabrics. I wish I had had my video camera, it was so sweet. Thank you for blessing my little girl, Mrs. Bonnie. Mrs. Bonnie has 5 sons...and has been very happy to finally have some granddaughters the past few years!

This morning we went to violin lessons for the first time in several weeks. We gave little Clara her Christmas gift...a pillow with her name and lots of buttons. Why buttons? Because little Clara loves buttons! She likes to play with the buttons on my dress.

I made sure the buttons were secure by using two layers of fabric with heavy-duty interfacing between. Then I used all 6 strands of embroidery floss to sew the buttons on. Hopefully that will be safe.

The moment I saw this "Cute as a Button" button, I knew exactly what color my choice would be! I also knew Adina liked brown, so it was easy to narrow the fabrics down. Thank you for sending me the cute picture of Clara, Adina. We sure missed playing with Clara over Christmas vacation.
One of our many blessings this year has been getting free mulch and firewood. We met a man who runs a tree cutting business from his home nearby. He regularly brings truckloads at the end of the day around dinner time.

Here's part of the firewood. Mike and my children have been working hard with our log splitter trying to keep up with the demand. What a blessing to have it delivered here for free! Every time we have a windy day, I know we'll be getting more wood!

Now that Maggie has all her gross motor skills completely healed, she is back to baking and cooking whenever she gets the chance. Last week she made a delicious pot of soup, and a loaf of acorn bread.

She also made these delicious acorn rolls. Yes, Maggie gathered acorns from the forest, then cracked them open and ground up the nutmeats. I have to say...I would rather eat these rolls than my own sourdough rolls...yes, they are that tasty!

This past Black Friday, Sarah and my children braved the cold weather and stood in line at 2 am to buy this firepit for me! Sarah said they were selling them for a ridiculously low price, so she couldn't resist. I love it! Anna bought one for her treefort...so I know they must've been cheap. (I hate when they spend lots of money on me.) On Christmas Day, I burned little tea lites in it all day...and it was very atmospheric! Thanks, Sarah.

Sarah bought Anna this fan that is intended to hang from the ceiling of her tent! Wow...we sure could've used this on a few camping trips I remember all too well.

Today we restocked the woodpile on the porch in anticipation of a small snowstorm tomorrow. There is nothing like the thrilling anticipation of snow to put a spring in our step! It also motivated me to make sure I did all the laundry and dishwashers. I would hate to lose electricity with either dirty laundry or dirty dishes to be done. It's a small threat though since we have only lost electricity a few times the past 10 years...and then it was never longer than a half hour.

Tomorrow we will take the Christmas tree down. As usual, I will miss the lights. But Wednesday is Hubby's birthday, and I always try to aim for having the Christmas decorations put away by then.

Many blessings ~ Kathie