The week has been full of Christmas celebrations and snow! I put all those cookie cutters I mentioned last week to good use and made sugar and gingerbread cookies. It was fun to decorate them all with different frosting colors, icing tips, and sprinkles! I loved the variety!
On Christmas Eve, the boys opened their presents from Jeremy and I. They both dove into their new books and we played their new board games as a family. It makes my heart happy to see gifts being appreciated. We attended a candlelight Christmas Eve gathering at church. Even though Jeremy is on sabbatical this month, we went to support Nana and Aunt Patty in the bell choir which performed before and during the gathering. Christmas Eve also featured a matinee of The Polar Express and breakfast burritos for dinner (a holiday classic, right?).
Christmas morning came early for us… and not because of kids eager to open presents. It started to snow overnight and this led to a power outage at 2:40am. Since we sleep with fans for white noise, we all wake up when the power goes out. The house becomes too quiet and suddenly we can hear all the house noises. Who knew that silence could be so loud? We struggled to sleep and got up at 7:00am to a very dark and chilly house. The boys opened their stockings from Santa by flashlight. Jeremy got the generator running so he could make coffee and we could use the microwave for cinnamon rolls. The power turned on about 8:40am which gave us enough time to take hot showers before heading out for the day. Our drive down the hill was a bit snowy, but once we hit the main roads, it was fine. We spent Christmas day at my grandma’s house with family. We left a bit earlier than we originally planned, but we wanted to make it home in the daylight before ice and snow made the drive a challenge.
On Sunday, we celebrated Christmas with the Scott family. The drive to Nana & Papa’s house was slow thanks to more snow and ice overnight. We had breakfast together before diving into a very LEGO Christmas (for the kids). Nana is super talented and made pajamas for the whole family. We took a special family picture in our new comfy clothes. We played some games, nibbled on leftovers, and tried to find a place to sled. It was very picturesque to have a White Christmas celebration with family. If only the snow didn’t make traveling so tricky. We stayed for an early dinner and said farewell before dark for better travel conditions.
Our plans for shopping after Christmas have been postponed. It’s our tradition to head down to Portland after Christmas to spend our Christmas cash. With the roads being compact snow and ice and the freeway being tricky in parts, we’ve decided that shopping isn’t a necessity. We can wait for better conditions. After a couple of days traveling in snowy weather, it’s been nice to enjoy a few snow days at home. The boys have happily built their new LEGO sets and played with them for hours. Between the snow and LEGOs, we’ve been well entertained.
I didn’t really believe we were going to have a white Christmas, but it did indeed happen. It was pretty and magical, but also a bit of a hassle. It certainly made for a memory! Especially the Christmas day power outage! We actually lost power again for an hour and half yesterday morning as well. Now I’m praying throughout the day – partially thanking the Lord for heat and asking that the power please stay on! We have plans for the rest of the 2021. We’ll see if the snow continues to change them or if we’ll end the year with bit more activity!
Amy Scott's Thoughts 