Here she is having mark made where the earring will go. I hope they're even!
They look great Sarah! You are becoming such a beautiful young woman. It is a privilege to be your mom. I love you!
She was so good. She sat still the entire time and actually enjoyed the attention and primping. My mother-in-law tells me I finally have my girly girl. I am not sure about that, but she is our littlest princess.
Rebekah and the whole family look great. Thanks Selena for the hair cuts. It's great to have an awesome friend how just happens to be an awesome hairdresser as well.
The kids are getting old enough to do most of this project on their own, with just adult supervision. Above Sarah and Shannon mix the first batch on the stove. Below once it has finished cooking and they have added the flovoring and color it is poured into pan to start to cool.
Then comes the fun for everyone. Someone with tuff skin cuts the candy into long strips from the pans. The strips are tossed into the piles of powdered sugar on the table. All the other little hands cut the strips into bit size pieces. You need to work fast before the candy cools. If it does you can't cut it. You can break it, but you get sharp edges. Once the candy is all cut and tossed in the powder sugar, shake off the excess sugar. We tossed all the flavors/colors in a large turkey roaster. You can see it in the picture below.
Here is a jar of our hard candy! It is so yummy!
The girls and I had a wonderful time making gift tags for all the Christmas packages. The kitchen table was covered with paper, stamps, ink pads, paper punches, ribbon and more. Everyones favorite technique was the gold embossing. Check out the snowflake on the tag in the middle. I think the tags came out great! It was a great way to spend a snowy afternoon.
The girls and I had a wonderful time Christmas Caroling with our friends, the Ness family, and their church. It was the first time the girls had ever been caroling, and it had been years since I had been. Hannah wasn't sure she wanted to go. She even asked her dad if she could go to work with him. Turns out she had the best time of all of us and probably sang the loudest too. Sarah thought we should have stayed out longer. She really enjoyed herself and the time with her good friend Hannah. Rebekah didn't sing at any of the houses, but sang the entire way back to the church for service. Unfortunately, I didn't get any pictures of the group singing. I had to carry Rebekah as we had just gotten some snow and her little legs just can't keep up yet. Everyone was warm and gracious even if we were a little off key some of the time. Caroling was such a wonderful way to share the joy we as Christians find in the Christmas season and all year long in the loving arms of our Savior. Hopefully we were able to touch the hearts of some of those who heard us sing.
Here Sarah and Rebekah mix the ground beef and turkey along with all the spices and bread crumbs. Rebekah wasn't prepared for how cold it would be. She really wasn't sure about the feel of it either.
Sarah took over when it was time to cook everything. She really enjoys being in the kitchen and it developing into a wonderful cook. Just take a look at her yummy dinner below.
1. Combine the ground meats, bread crumbs, 1/3 cup of the milk, the onion powder, and seasoning salt in a large bowl and mix thoroughly with your hands.
2. heat the oil over medium heat in a large ( we need to use two) skillet that has a lid. Mean while, shape the meat into six 3 1/2" patties about 1/2" thick, adding them to the skillet as you make them. Sprinkle the mushrooms around the patties, then cover and cook for 5 minutes.
3. Meanwhile combine the remaining 2 cups milk and the flour in a container that has a lid. Shake well until any lumps disappear. Set aside.
4. Uncover the skillet after the 5 minutes; the juices should have risen to the surface of the patties. Push the mushrooms our of the way, if necessary, and carefully turn the patties over. Continue to cook, stirring the mushrooms often, until the meat is cooked through to personal preference, 4 to 7 minutes. Reduce the heat if the meat begins to brown too quickly. Place each patty on a serving plate and keep warm in the oven.
5. Shake the flour-milk mixture again and pour it into the skillet with the mushrooms to make a gravy. reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring constantly and scraping any brown bits from the bottom of the skillet, until the gravy is heated through and reaches the desired thickness, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and black pepper, spoon the gravy over the patties and serve.
Jump forward to today. I email Mrs. Ringger to find out what she suggested for Sarah when it came to a skirt. Once again I sent Sarah's measurements and what Sarah would like. In no time I had a response from her outlining exactly how to order complete with fabric suggestions and more. In one of the emails I sent today I included the above picture. Well, with our permission it is now on the Ringger Clothing site! The girls thought it was really cool to be the models for a clothing website.
Stop by and take a look at us as well as all the beautiful clothes that Mrs. Ringger sews. http://www.ringgerclothing.com/
Thank you Mrs. Ringger for the beautiful jumpers. We hope to order again soon! Dresses this time!
Everyone had a wonderful time eating, playing games, and just being merry.
Next was the Yankee swap. This year we tried something new and didn't open until everyone had picked and switched. It went great and everyone was excited to open their first Christmas gift. The girls got a snowman fondue pot and a bag of yummy chocolates.
Thank you Kelley family. This will be a great winter treat!
We ended the night with a couple of games of musical chairs. The children went first and had a great time. The game came down to two sisters. You guessed it - Hannah and Sarah!
Here Dad and the girls head out to find the perfect tree. Of course this is not a quick or easy process. Everyone seems to have a different idea of what the perfect tree should look like.
Hannah's tree received the thumbs up from everyone. Now it was time to cut it down. Sarah was the holder as Dad sawed. Hannah and Rebekah stood back to yell "Timber!"
As Dad was trying the tree to the top of the van the girls and I enjoyed a cup of steaming hot cocoa! A perfect way to end our tree cutting trip!
Above Rebekah carefully applies glue to the head of her snowman so she can attach the googly eyes. She also had fun stringing the beads on the candy cane ornaments. Unfortunately she had lots of fun cutting the Legend of the Candy Cane card that she was supposed to bring home.
Mrs. Kelley and Hannah are putting the finishing touches on Hannah's 3D star ornament. Hannah said the best craft was the gift boxes made out of old Christmas cards. They are the perfect size for the jewelry she makes.
Sarah and her friend are busy sewing their felt gingerbread men. Sarah thought the snowflake window clings were best. You can find the directions for them in this month's Family Fun magazine.
Next we tried two of the Indian breads. Roti, a thick wheat bread baked in the oven and brushed with oil, is shown above. We also tried Nan, an unleavened bread similar to pita bread. I personally liked the Roti, but the girls liked the Nan better.
We ordered a lunch special because it came with Dal (lentil) soup and rice. The rice was well rice. Everyone liked it. The lunch special the girls picked was Sagg Vegetable Tikka. This is spinach, mixed vegetables, chunk of white chicken mixed together with a little cream and curry. Well, I think the girls couldn't even get past the site of this. Spinach is one of their favorite vegetables, but not creamed like this. I actually thought it was quite good, although the texture was not what I prefer. 
Hannah's face says it all. The deal was that they had to try it. And they did. I don't know if we will be getting Indian food again in the near future, but we did have a lot of fun.
The girls have been studying ancient India this past week. Sarah always is very interested in the clothing of the cultures we study. This time instead of making a costume for herself, she decided to make a Sari for her doll Kit. This was a good choice as a Sari for a woman takes about 12 yards of fabric. Wrapping that much fabric around ones body is not easy, even doll size, so we went in search of some help. We came across a site that had simple directions explaining how to wear the Sari. You can find the directions here http://www.exoticindiaart.com/howtowear/2/ 
I was so excited to find this wooden nativity scene. I had looked last year and couldn't find any that I like within our price range. This year I started the search again. I love the wooden pieces that are the perfect size for little hands. I wanted Rebekah to have a nativity set she could play with for years to come. Children learn so much through play. What a great way to learn about the blessed birth of our Savior, Jesus Christ, than through play acting the story. All the girls have had a wonderful time playing with this set. Sarah and Hannah are teaching Rebekah all about Jesus and his birth. Rebekah loves to make the sheep kiss baby Jesus. She also sings while the angle flies above. And every night she lies all the figures down to go to sleep. Oh, it warms a mother's heart to see the joy her children receive as they develop a relationship with our wonderful Savior! 
Below is the finished wreath. I think they did a beautiful job. It truly is lovely. I am looking forward to the start of advent on Sunday.
This year we plan to use the advent wreath as a way to enjoy the season as we prepare not only for the birth of the baby Jesus but also in preparation for Jesus' return. It is so important for us to instill the true meaning of the Christmas season in our children's hearts. Especially when the world is doing its best to fill their heads and hearts with fleeting, worldly desires. 
Thanksgiving has always been a favorite holiday here. With a family that loves to cook, loves to eat, and has so much to be thankful for what else would you expect. Here Rebekah shows off her place card that Sarah made. Sarah did a beautiful job on the place cards and napkin rings. They were a surprise she had been working on in secret for the past couple of days.
Of course everyone had to have a hand in the feast preparations. Here Rebekah helps her dad with the onions. Yum! They are a favorite with everyone, yet one of those dishes we seem to have only on Holidays. Go figure!
I'm not sure what these two are planning, but it looks like something serious. I some how missed pictures of Hannah making the green bean casserole. She did it all by herself and it was delicious! Below dad carves the 23 pound turkey. It was one of the best turkeys we have had! Perfectly cooked and oh so juicy.
The table is set, the food is hot, and all that is missing is mom. Oh she is behind the camera as always. She really did help cook as well, but you'd never know it if you were looking for photo evidence. The picture doesn't do justice the amount of delicious food we had. Not to make anyone envious but here's the menu: Roast Turkey, Sausage Stuffing, Red Skin Mashed Potatoes, Giblet Gravy, Green Bean Casserole, Butternut Squash, Turnips, White Onions, Sweet Potatoes with Maple Sugar, Orange Spice Cranberry Sauce, and Apricot Cream Pie. I don't think I need to eat again until Christmas.
