Merry Christmas from this full house to yours!

Some snaps of our winter break cookie factory. The girls prefer Swedish Gingerbread Cookies over Sugar Cookies (that's my girls!), but Conor loves sugar cookies so... both! We (I) had lots of fun making and baking and then delivering.

Last year, Conor and the big girls learned to nordic ski while I stayed home, took care of little kids and my pregnant belly, and baked muffins (so many muffins - some sort of weird nesting). This year we all get to get out there! And it's a total circus just like we guessed it would be! My friend, Amorette, and I drove up during the work week just the two of us to initiate me into the ski crew and I'm really glad we did that before taking up the entire family. Our friend, Parker, was so generous to carry a baby or pull the sled the entire time! The weather was so wintery and it snowed the entire time we were up there. We had a great time and returned home tired. The babies were troopers and so was Maeve. We didn't end up getting Maeve on her skis because oh man, everything else was so much work! But next time, Maeve!

Things to note in the photos:

• Conor's pink boots that gave him wicked blisters
• Ira's snow encrusted hoods
• Snow in E's eyelashes
• Maeve and Ira asleep in the sled
• the sheer amount of snow on the ground and falling

This is the year the whole family has matching stockings! We haven't had cohesive, matching stockings since 2015. I've been waiting until I found a stocking pattern (I'm choosey about the shape of the stocking) and fabric I love and finally that happened! On the inside of each stocking I embroidered names. I can't wait for Santa to fill these!

We had a long and involved list of activities to do with Nana and Papa JJ. But, once the adults started getting sick one by one, we had to prioritize. Instead of going into the forest to cut down a tree, we went to a tree farm. The morning we went tree hunting, an ideal amount of snow fell at the right elevation and so looking for a tree was extra beautiful. I mean, check it out! This year, I wanted a fuller tree because those are harder to come by in the wild. And I'd say we found her! Getting the tree home and lit and decorated all went really well. Maeve was a little confused as to why she didn't have some of the same ornaments as her sisters (she had yet to be born those years). Surprisingly, the babies have been very kind to the tree. I'm impressed and relieved to not have to police the tree.