Christmas

On Monday the 23rd we did some extra shopping and readying.  A few errands, nothing exciting.  On Christmas Eve Ken went in to work at Trillium and took Kate and Alice with him.  He got some work done and so did I.  Alice fell apart a bit so Ken didn't get to do any Christmas shopping...

Traditions.  There were two things that I really wanted to do.  I wanted to go to the park in Orangeville with all the lights and I wanted to go to Fairy Lake in Newmarket on Christmas Eve to see the Nativity.  The weather was NOT cooperative.  Instead of continuing those traditions this year we were thankful that the ice storm didn't take out our power for more than a couple of hours on Sunday.  We were thankful too that we were warm and safe in our home.  We did watch some Nativity videos on Christmas Eve so that was good.  I hope that those traditions can resume next year!

I did carry on the tradition of Christmas Jammies!!  Fiona's aren't a perfect match but they are reindeer jammies, like her sisters.  She was already bothered enough so I didn't bother with the cute hat and booties.  The girls were so excited on Christmas Eve. 

This was taken earlier in the day, when she clearly wasn't bothered!

 Kate left a note for Santa with the cookies.  I thought it was really cute so I scanned it!

I love taking a picture of the room staged and ready for Christmas morning.  I posted it on Facebook and someone referred to it as the calm before the storm.  I liked that!

Christmas morning was great.  The girls woke up around 8 and enjoyed opening their stockings and their presents.

 

At some point Kate and Alice both decided they were quite over heated and spent some time in their underthings, which then made it easier to get them dressed, which was good, because I wanted them to wear their Christmas shirts!

They had such a happy time playing with their new toys!

Mom, Dad and Andrew came up sometime after 3.  I was excited to give Dad his gifts and frustrated because Mom's gift didn't arrive in time! (Jonathan and I got Dad three funny sweatshirts.  I made Mom her calendar which will hopefully arrive before the end of January!)

Ken made a yummy Christmas dinner.  Andrew helped with the finishing touches and made a really yummy gravy.  This managing at the Keg business has delightful benefits for the rest of us! We missed Rayna who was working.  We'll have to have a Christmas in July party or something.

Today, well the past few days really, have been everything that they should be.  We have had a wonderful time being together as a family, and we've been able to reflect on the love that we feel for our Savior Jesus Christ, and marvel thinking about the love the He has for us.

Cookstown Ward

I need to start using labels... it will make searching posts so much easier.  I was trying to look back and see what exactly I'd written about attending Cookstown ward and well, I couldn't really find anything.  I wrote about impending changes, I wrote about Jane leaving... but that's it.  I can't find anything else.  (I looked back again, and again, nothing, just random mentions about the longish drive to Barrie!)

Today was supposed to be our last Sunday in Cookstown ward but we had an ice storm instead.  We've lost power a couple of times today but the power is on right now and that is wonderful.  The roads are getting cleaned up and I think the worst is over... I hope the worst is over.  It's supposed to get very cold in the next few days so we'll see what happens.  Not the point of this post though!

At the end of April in 2012 we started travelling up to Barrie every Sunday to attend the Cookstown ward.  It was and wasn't strange leaving Orangeville.  I had often felt like an outsider/outlier. We felt far from Orangeville and sometimes when other mom's would get together I would be left out just because I was far away.  In Cookstown ward we were all kind of far away and we were all outliers... sort of! 

There was also a level of excitement.  We were pioneers, we were building the kingdom, we were doing something real and purposeful building a brand new ward.  The sense of unity and purpose was tangible.  We were working towards getting a new building, we all talked about when we would have our own building.  It was exciting.  Which took the edge off driving even further to church!  There were Sundays that it felt like a sacrifice, but once we got used to the drive, it was just driving to church.

We found out in July that there would be no building.  Not getting a building took the wind out of everyone's sails.  It was sad.  Some families that had been travelling the farthest would be sent back to the ward they came from immediately.  Boundary changes would be proposed, more changes would come eventually.  Ideals were changing, and we just needed to hang tight until all was revealed. 

I understand why we're not getting a new building, but it still makes me a little sad.  Two weeks ago the Stake President pulled me into his office and told me that he didn't know when boundary changes would go through but to him it made sense for everyone to attend their closest unit.  We were then given to decide for ourselves what we would do, but with his encouragement and blessing to go back to Orangeville.  Ken and I thought and prayed and decided that we would return to Orangeville. 

Today was supposed to be our last Sunday in Cookstown.  I was going to give lots of hugs.  I was going to bring the camera.  I was going to do it up right.  I did not plan on an ice storm.  I have no pictures, I gave no hugs, but I am thankful we didn't have to drive to Barrie today - yuck!  Crazy weather.

I know that it isn't goodbye because you do see people, but it isn't the same when you don't see people every Sunday.  I am so grateful for the experience.  I am so grateful for the new friends we made.  I am so grateful for the gospel of Jesus Christ in my life. 

McCartney Family Christmas - Part Two

Family Fun!  Driving, lots of driving, lots of food preparation, shopping, wrapping gifts, and then ENJOY!  Family is such a special thing.  Being part of a large extended family is a special, wonderful, crazy thing!  I'm grateful for the family I was born into, and for the family I married into.  We had a great day, thank you to Maureen for hosting!  The ice storm is raging tonight (we are all safely home now) but thankfully it didn't interrupt the fun of today.

Jen planned a really fun white elephant gift exchange.  It was lots of fun!

After that it was the present exchange.  Each cousin buys one gift for one cousin.  This year we had Meagan and Sarah to buy for.  We bought Sarah a mini-donut maker.  I think she liked it.  I hope so anyway!!  I tried to get a good shot of Alice giving the gift to Sarah, but it didn't really work out that way.

Meagan bought for Alice.  Meagan wrote a card and it was so cute to see her give Alice her gift!

Kate was to give Meagan her gift.  Meagan suggested that she liked homemade gifts so I took her at her word.  I had fun making somethings for her.  They seemed to me, more like something we might give their Grandma... but Meagan seemed really touched!

Last in the cousin gift exchange was Rachael giving a gift to Kate. Kate was SO excited for her little people princesses!

Jen had some fun presents for Ken from China.  A tie and a deck of cool cards.

 There were the gifts from Nana and Papa.

 And lots of FAMILY FUN and eating!!!

 

This year I was determined to get lots of pictures - candids and posed shots.  I am very happy.  I love pictures!  Here are the family pics!

The Molinas

 The Jakobs

The McCartneys

The Laughlins

 Ma and Pa

Ma & Pa with Hugh & Sandy

And I wanted to add this... I made a framed "mistletoes" pic of the girls feet, snowman hand ornaments and hot chocolate reindeer for Meagan.