Thursday, December 25, 2014

Christmas Day

I like the fact that Christmas Day leads right in to Friday Fave Fives this year.  Yes, I realize that I was awol last week.  Everything was just too much.  We were exhausted from moving back in to our house.  The Professor was finishing up his semester grades.  We had no internet.  This week we still have no internet but Son #2 and The Professor showed me how to tether my phone to my computer. Wah lah!  Internet!

So here are my Friday Fave Fives for the two weeks.

1.  Obviously, we are happy to be settling back in to our home after all the changes and renovations.  The best part is unpacking and having everything available again.  All our clothes are in their proper drawers.  My yarn is collected in the same spot as my needles.

2.  Son #1, his wife and our PAL came for a whirlwind three day visit.  They shared our first night of sleeping here again.  Would you believe I took NO photos??  I wasn't even sure where my camera was at the time.  I know. I know.  Epic grandmother fail.  Our little one is growing and is two months old.  She coos.  She smiles.  She's adorable.

3.  In our family, we don't load up on Christmas gifts.  Our tradition among the adults is to draw names and buy one special gift for one person.  My daughter in law received my name this year.  I have to say she is the BEST gift giver.  Knowing I love children's books and collect Newbery Award Books, she bought me several of the volumes I didn't own yet.  Now my collection is nearly complete.  I am missing only 1989's winner and the two most recent award books.  The best part?  I have books on the shelves waiting for winter reading!

4.  Our nephew and family were in the area for a family gathering and we caught up with them on Sunday for lunch after church.  They too have a new little girl, only a month old.  They stopped by the house to pick up a little knitted gift for her; her big four year old brother played Legos, and we chatted for a bit before they left for their across Los Angeles County drive home.  A pleasant time was had by all.

5.  Our streets are mostly clear of mud now from the mudslides in our neighborhood.  One morning a three man crew from our church arrived with shovels in hand to help us scoop mud from the front street gutters which were still filled and blocking any rain/water run off from flowing to the drains.  They cleared the areas in front of two of our neighbors too who could not get out to do the work themselves.  We were certainly thankful and grateful for the help of those strong young men.  And we continue to be thankful for how small our damage was compared to the people who live just 1/2 mile from us.

I hope you have all had a wonderful Christmas week.  May your last week of 2014 be filled with joy, peace, simple pleasures and many finished knitting projects.

8 comments:

Faith said...

Oh it sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas season!! I'm so thankful you are ok with that horrible mudslide that happened. Your time with family sounds wonderful and yay for getting some more more Newbury Award winners!! I don't collect them but the girls have several from their childhood collection of books. I"m so glad each daughter has several bins of books to pass on to any future grandbabies that might come along :) Merry Christmas!!

Mereknits said...

Wonderful things to be thankful for. So glad you are in your home, the mud has cleared and your family has been near.
Hugs,
Meredith

Teresa Kasner said...

Hi Willow.. so sorry to hear of your mudslide and how much work it must have taken to get it all clear again. I'm happy that you're back in your home.

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Barbara H. said...

What a generous gift of time and effort from those men who came to help clean the mud out of the gutters.

How nice it must be to be back in your home! Sounds like you had a wonderful Christmas.

Elizabeth said...

Wishing you a wonderful Christmas season and a joyful and healthy 2015.
So glad you were with family at Christmas.
We expect grandchild #3 in January.

nikkipolani said...

Wonderful that you are back in your home and having loved ones near, too. Hopefully the hectic days will draw to a close with all the details of resettling yourselves. Enjoy your days off!

ellen b said...

Yippee! So glad you are tucked back into your home. Sounds like you had some real nice visits! Blessings.

Marg said...

I liked reading about your Christmas. We too don't load up on gifts...we to choose names and I got a beautiful Shutterfly album of their wedding. It was just perfect.
It looks like you've had your challenges...and yet we continue to strive through these things. Happy knitting to you. I just finished my first raglan sleeve cardigan...