"Our own Christmas party. . . Finally!"

We made the trek on Saturday to Tiger's (my youngest sister) for an unconventional "Christmas Party". The girls, Rease specifically, wanted their own party because Mommy and Daddy were going to Christmas parties for their work places. The girls helped scoop out M&M cookies, they made "jingle bells" with plastic cups, tin foil, tiny bells and ribbon, and they colored Christmas pictures.
They came to do what they intended - play and have fun. We had pizza and chicken nuggets for dinner - how simple is that?
I can see this becoming a tradition ! ! ! Yeah! ! !


The highlight of the "event" was Nichole. She was using my mixer to make a batch of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies. She couldn't get it to start so she gave it a quick tug and the flour in the bowl was like a volcano shooting out snow! ! ! It went sky high and landed everywhere - on her, the floor and the counter (and everything on that!). It was the funniest thing I've seen in a while! Grab the camera - this was a "Kodak moment"! ! !

This is also what makes the most memorable Christmas memories and stories. If you know me well enough, you know I'm more of a "Better Homes & Gardens" style person. But, the reality is - life is NOT, nor is the majority of my family - lol! I am glad to have the years behind me to see that I don't (or can't) remember the "perfect" moments in life, but the ones that cause joyful chaos and laughter and it has helped me to try let go of the desire to be so perfect. It is a struggle, but I'm coming along. Now, don't get me wrong - I can't stand clutter and I can't stand filth. So my particular remedy is to declutter the things in my life, not the people and enjoy the simple pleasures life has to offer!