traditions ...

Christmas is here.

the lights are on.

the tree is decorated..... thanks to my girls.

the gingerbread houses are ready to eat... thanks to a dear friend who is my girls' adopted mother during the summer and winter break (she bakes with them!).

the poinsettia is amazingly still alive.... (thanks Mandi for the beautiful flowers!).

my little "applesauce/cinnamon" gingerbread men on the tree are still intact after 3 years

and the calendar shows Joseph & Mary is on day 23.....

my girls still amaze me with their eagerness that Christmas just isn't complete without this little homemade calendar. Baby Jesus is laid in the manger before we go to bed on the 24th.