Christmas Day Picnic, 2011

This is how we celebrate Christmas on the ranch:

Mia, dog of the desert, loves a good hike.
We found a warm, sunny spot on the rocks for our picnic.

The boys were sent out to gather firewood.

I am supervising the operation, right before I take over!

Some of the wood is a bit long...

H-Bomb is a good wood stomper!

Cheers!

Playing on the rocks. Notice the coats are gone; it was a beautiful day!

Picnic time! Cas, Number One, Mia and I.

David, Cas, Number One, enjoying the sun and the champagne!

Time to head out.

Happy Christmas, Everyone!

Christmas Tree Picnic, 2011

This year, our schedules didn't allow us to get up on the mountain when the roads were relatively clear, so we had to go up the back way. We drove as far as we could, sliding around, until we saw a decent place to look for Christmas trees. Luckily we didn't slide off the road OR get stuck!

Snowshoes really helped us navigate the snow, even though it wasn't too deep, it was light and fluffy and would have been hard going without the snowshoes.

The sun was shining; it was a warm and beautiful day. Perfect for Christmas tree hunting!

Snowshoes take a bit of getting used to.

And of course the boys ate plenty of snow along the way.
Sawed Off's cheeks got cold and red.
H-Bomb said it tasted like sugar if you ate enough of it.

This tree will do for this year.
It's shorter than we've had in the past, but that's okay. It's a pretty one.

Number One cut it down. We need to remember to get a new saw blade before next year.

H-Bomb and Sawed Off found their tree too. I made them pose for some pictures. It was a beautiful sunny day!

Sawed Off's crazy eyes.

And here's their tree!

The Best Brothers Ever!

It was fairly heavy, but they drug it a little way.

Look, it's a picture of Mommy!

Hot Chocolate time! We also had cheese, crackers, sausage, cookies, the works.

A toast to a quick and successful Christmas tree hunt!

Happy Christmas, Everyone!

Gingerbread House: 2010

Every year, we make a gingerbread house. Last year, we made a house AND a santa sleigh with reindeer that we bought on clearance the spring before. This year, I got a gingerbread house from Bountiful Baskets. The only drawback (I think) was that it didn't come with any candy for decorating, which negated the inexpensive cost of the house because we still had to buy a ton of candy. Anyway, it was fun. It went together fairly well, although a wall by the front door was broken when we opened the box. Once it was assembled, we had to wait 24 hours before decorating.



I was worried the house would collapse in the night (the walls are quite thick), so I put an extra layer of icing all the way around the bottom. I'll let you know after Christmas how my bamboo cutting board survives this ordeal...


So, day two, we decorated. We had m&m's, hershey's kisses, sourpatch kids, sweet tarts, mini candy canes, sprinkles and more! It was a blast. H-Bomb discovered that if you twist the sourpatch kids, they make GREAT icicles!


When we decorate a gingerbread house, there are absolutely no rules, we all just have at it. There is no stifling of creativity in this house! Candy is eaten, and some is even put on the house! Everyone sort of decorates the space in front of him/her. Even Sawed Off had a turn with the icing bag! (below)


I decorated the chimney myself! Brown, red and orange "brick" m&m's, with H-Bomb's twisted sour patch kids for smoke!

(notice H-Bomb's icicles under the eave!)

Sawed Off and I decorated the roof on this side.

Sawed Off with the sparkly green gel.

The back of the house, complete with marshmallow snowmen and m&m's wreath!

The front of the house. We had some issues with the sparkly red and green gel icings, but H-Bomb declared that they were "blood and guts" and explained "they forgot to take down their Halloween decorations!" Perfect.

the aftermath.
(and Number One's side of the house!)

Happy Christmas!!!