'Tis the Season!

I am late tonight...could say that it is because it is 'tis the season...and it partly is...but mainly I couldn't get connected to the internet when it was time to blog, and then I went next door to sit with the children till Nathan and Kathy got home (that part was 'tis the season...they were Christmas shopping!)...so those are the reasons for the lateness. Melany, Erin and Alex were here today to take care of Graham, Abigail, Joy, Esther and Elijah so Nathan and Kathy could go Christmas shopping ALONE...well without children! I went over to sit with the kids after Melany got them to bed so she could head home with her two. So we had all seven of our grandchildren within reach today. Erin and Alex spent some time over here as well as next door. Alex suggested that he help me put our big Christmas tree together...so he and I got started on it and then Graham joined us and we had a relay going...I fluffed the branches, Graham carried each branch to Alex and Alex put the branches on the tree. It went together quite quickly that way! Alex made sure that the tree "trunk" was really tight in the stand and then Graham put the tree skirt on. Graham learned that we always place the tree stand on a board to give some extra stability and that our tree stand was green and red...both those things are usually hidden under the tree skirt when they see the tree. Alex also helped me carry more decoration boxes downstairs. Melany did several art projects with the girls...which they look forward to when Aunt Melany comes. Nice to have an art teacher for an aunt! Graham worked on making a robot with his LEGO Mindstorm set. He made a really neat color sorting robot. Elijah enjoyed riding a horse...his Aunt Melany's knee. Everybody seemed to be having a good time when I checked in on them a time or two.

The leaf vacuum truck is back in our neighborhood so Woody got busy and raked quite a few leaves to the road this morning. Then this afternoon they got out the big leaf blower that I gave to Woody last Christmas (Woody still hasn't ever used it!) and Alex blew the leaves in Nathan and Kathy's front yard down to the road and Woody raked some more.

Erin and I walked around our block twice. Later Erin came over and helped me try to figure out some photography editing software that I am trying out. It seems to be second nature to kids and young adults these days...it's not totally computing for me yet! She just sat down and did all sorts of different things to some pictures...like giving her brother a moustache and changing colors on the pictures. I know that I will be asking Graham for help and also Nathan...I think that I'm going to need help! It is said that this software is very user friendly...but I haven't gotten to be friends with it yet!

Woody walked to the library this morning and then went to the community center and spun for thirty minutes. So it has been a very busy day.

Now for a Christmas memory/tradition that goes with tonight's picture which I took of the title of a little book that my sister gave me some years ago:

"'Tis the season" has always been a special saying that my mother, my sister, and I have said to each other over the years whenever we called on the phone during the month of December. It used to be that during the rest of the year, we only talked once a week...if that often...seems like Mother would call me one week and then I would call them the next...BUT during the Christmas season we would call more frequently and we would always start our conversations with "'Tis the Season!" This year having just seen them and the fact that my sister and I often talk every day due to both having Sprint cell phones...so we can call each other on a whim...we "almost" forget to say "'Tis the Season!" At the moment my sister's and my "'tis the season" calls usually start out with "No, I'm NOT finished decorating yet!" We had a couple of those calls to each other today! (I have been known to start the conversation with "Bah Humbug" when the decorating seems to take too long and especially when I'm undecorating!) So far I'm still in a "'tis the season" mood!