Happy New Year!!

We were so blessed this Christmas, we spent lots of time together enjoying great company and fabulous food! We celebrated 3 separate Christmas gatherings: our first was with our good friend Viki and her family out at the farm. It was COLD!! I think it was -48 that day with the wind but inside it was toasty and warm. Viki's sister Mary cooked up lots of great food and had tonnes of snacks around. We visited and laughed the whole evening. The kids (and some of the big ones too) went out sledding after supper... yes it was cold but they bundled up and the hill was right outside the front door! REALLY! My mind must have been frozen because I didn't take too many pictures. But here are a few:

Fedding the Reindeer, Santa & hanging the Magic Santa key so he can get in.

Tucked in and ready for Santa's visit.


Then Christmas Day Viki came for breakfast & watched as the girls tore open their gifts.


CJ loves Hannah Montana and Santa brought her the dance mat with Hannah wig ... we like CJ much better with her beautiful dark hair!

CD was equally as thrilled with her gift from Santa .

Since CJ was a baby we started taking a picture of her with her gifts ~ it is a great way to remember who to thank when we write out our thank you notes and it'll be fun for them to look back at and remember what was "in" when they were little. (Of course we have other photos with the rest of their gifts, what lucky girls! Thank you to everyone!!)

Later that evening we enjoyed Christmas supper with "my family". I was a nanny for 5 years for a wonderful family and was 'adopted in' when I started to care for their then young children of 3, 5 & 7 years. They have all now grown to young adults and have now babysat for me! (Again a frozen brain and no pictures!)

Then at the end of the week we celebrated Christmas with my family in Glenside, if you've been down to Gardiner Dam you've driven past it but if you blinked, you missed it. CJ & CD had lots of fun playing with their cousins.

My sister and her family A rare photo of Uncle ~ we usually only get the top of his ball cap.


The rest of our week of holidays we've spent bowling on the Wii, walking inside at the U of S ~ you can walk really far thanks to all the sky walks and the tunnel and there were no classes so CJ could run around. Shh, don't tell. We went back out to Mary's farm for more sledding and some delicious banana bread and the girls fed the horses and cuddled the cats. Thanks again Mary, K, A & Viki.

We are very blessed to have such fabulous friends and family. Thank you for making our Christmas special and memorable.

Holidays are over . . . how many sleeps until Family Day?