a mid-December update

Last year I got rid of all of the Christmas decorations that weren't my favorite. So this year, when I pulled out the Christmas bins, I was left with just the really special things. Like this little nativity we inherited from Mike's grandmother. It sits on our kitchen table and I walk by it a million times a day. Each time, I feel a little spark of joy.

I met my friend Beth for lunch at her husband's cafe today. If you are local, you must go to the American Way Market Cafe inside of Merchant Square Antique Marketplace in Chandler. Really good food, plus fun antiques to browse. Order the pulled pork sandwich. Or the cheddar ale soup. Or anything, really, because I'm sure it's all delicious.

I searched through the hundreds of professional photos from Mabel's concert earlier this month to see if I could find her. Can you spot her? (Look for the gleaming blonde hair in the middle of the right hand side.) She sings with the East Valley Millennial Choir and Orchestra. I know I've written about it before, but it really is a fantastic organization. I feel so lucky that we have a group in our area and that Mabel is able to participate. One of these days I'll convince Mike to join, too.

Our Christmas cards are in the mail. Hurray! And we passed out our neighbor treats last night. Instead of the usual plate full of goodies, we made a few batches of Peppermint Crunch Puppy Chow and called it good. It was quick and easy, and sometimes that is enough.

We woke up to frost on the ground this morning. Elliot tried to bounce on the trampoline like he always does when we walk to the back gate for school, but he went sliding instead. It was covered in ice! So I've been huddling in front of our little space heater all day. I'm not sure what I'm going to do when we arrive at my parents' house this weekend--my parents' house that is on the side of a mountain and completely covered in snow. Aack!