Brrrr!

DUDE! It's soooooooooooooooo cold! You know, I thought I knew what cold was but how wrong was I?!?! I though that twenty below zero was cold but manageable...WRONG-O!! I can't begin to tell you how nasty that kind of cold is. My fingers and toes are NOT impressed at all. I struggle to keep my appendages warm at the best of times. This would be a really good time for me to get some of those "Hot Shots" from the 80's - remember those? You smash the packet and stuff them into your mitts and they radiate heat for a few hours...sounds pretty good 'bout now. Hey, I thought I'd share this photo from my walk from the house to the studio the other morning. It was only about -15 and that was way more bearable than -25 (if you've never felt cold like that, just take my word for it! LOL)

This photo was taken about 9:00 am. The sun doesn't come up till around 10:00 am or so. Short days around these parts. But you know, even though it's friggin' cold, I LOVE IT!

We put up our tree yesterday. I love Christmas!! Have any of you got your trees up yet? I am looking forward to getting out the baking gear and of course the Captain Morgans & Eggnog. I'm all for merry-making around this time of year. I'll be making chocolates with Noah for his teachers (super yummy& easy truffles that I found here) It's the BEST site for comfort foods and quick-prep eats.

We also made a gingerbread house yesterday too. Actually, the night before I had a very difficult time erecting the gingerbread house (hoping to have it pre-built to make decorating it possible on Sunday afternoon). It fell down but we fixed it. Ray's clever problem-solving (gravity fighting efforts) saved the day. He got a few pics of me & the boys decorating it so I'll post some later tonight or tomorrow...

What holiday traditions are you planning for your family? I'd love to hear what you do to make the holidays special.