Christmas Fun

Barry and I have been searching out a local Christmas Tree farm we can go cut down our own tree since the first year we were married. It is always a fun way to get our tree each year. This year we went to a really great Christmas Tree farm in Holt, MO. It was a drive but it wasn't really about finding a good deal it was about making great memories, although the tree was less expensive here than at the tree farm just down the street from our house that we got our tree from last year.

Barry and the girls with Santa at the tree farm.

On the hayride out to the field to find our perfect Christmas tree.

The girls and I in front of our tree!

Barry and the girls... before cutting it down!

A fun picture:)

My sweet girls in their Christmas dresses in front of our Christmas tree.

Christmas Craftiness

I got these ideas from the recent Family Fun magazine! I love this magazine and there are always fun things I would love to do but never have enough time to do them. This year I decided these fun crafts were easy and the girls would really enjoy them!

This is our Christmas Card Tree. Gracie and Molly got to help paint it and then we get to look forward to putting our Christmas cards that we receive in the mail on our tree and enjoy them a lot more than in a stack on the counter!

I also found this really cute idea for an advent calendar. It was easy and I already had the supplies that makes it better too! The girls get to open a door each day and see what is behind it. The "rewards" range from: choose your favorite dinner, give Willow a bath, Family Fun movie night, doing something nice for your sister, plan a play date... to drawing a picture for a grandparent, visiting an elderly person from church or inviting a family over for Sunday dinner....

I was trying to incoorporate fun things as well as things that involve them doing something for others besides themselves!

So far they have really enjoyed it! We all get to reap the rewards too!

For Heather:)

The girls dressed up Willow in scarves. They thought she might be cold:) I hope she feels loved!

Willow is such a good sport! Barry was dressing her up in different hats, do you thing she minded or was mostly annoyed???

Willow climbed up in the chair and was looking out the window! She really liked it up there!

Willow

Yes, it is true! We have a new family member. Her name is Willow and we adopted her from Tony and Heather. We surprised the girls with Willow at Thanksgiving and it took them a while to actually believe they had a dog! They were really surprised... and so is everyone else who hears, I think:)
She is a wonderful dog and she lets the girls brush her and dress her and take her for walks around the house. We were able to get to know Willow more at Tony and Heather's this summer so making the decision for her to come live with us was rather easy.