Christmas time is here

Is it my turn, again?!

Christmas is my favorite time of the year! This Christmas is going to be the best, because I have plenty of kiddos to give gifts to! Not only is it Henley’s first Christmas…YAY….but it’s our first Christmas as a family in Williamstown!

Aside from the Falcsik Family Sing-Along (which Gretchen blogged about last week…scroll down), my favorite Christmas tradition has always been chopping down our own Christmas tree. No…I don’t mean going to a tree farm where the trees are all lined up in a nice row. I mean real..Chevvy Chase…National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, traipsing through the cold on someone’s farm, and chopping down our own tree with a saw! Here are my mom, Henley, and me after finding my parents’ tree!

And this is pretty much what Henley’s face looked like the entire time…haha!

My best friend, Leah, also came to visit recently. This was her first time meeting Henley, and she loved EVERY minute of it!

My dogs were also thrilled to see her. She and Sampson are BEST friends!

He’s quite the lap dog! 

I can’t wait for Christmas morning! I'm so excited to see my kids’ faces light up when they FINALLY get to unwrap their gifts!

Until next time….Merry Christmas!!

Kristen :)

Hello, everyone!  Gretchen here again in blog-land!  First of all, let me just take a moment to tell everyone who didn't yet realize....CHRISTMAS IS NEXT WEEK!!!  AAAhhhhh!!!  I knew it was December, I knew we were in the teens on the calendar, I have a bunch of my shopping done and have even wrapped 3-people's-worth of presents.  But, I didn't realize C-Day was actually next week until yesterday - even though I have a calendar in front of me 24/7.  It's crunch time!

I know why I didn't "get" it.  It's because our Falcsik Family Christmas Sing-a-Long was really, really early this year!  On December 5 we all gathered together at sister Sally's house (hubby, Gary) for our 23rd annual gathering.  Everyone brings their instrument of choice...guitars, flutes, mandolins, banjo's, recorders, or even kazoos.  The handmade song books (laminated covers and all) are passed around and random voices start calling out page numbers and song titles! 

Big voices, 4-part harmony, lots of laughing, and even cow/sheep/goat sounds during appropriate songs.  If you don't happen to live in the area (i.e. Heather & Travis) you will probably get a phone call so we can serenade you over the phone line! 

The overflowing food table, the hot glog (or, is it grog...no one knows for sure) in the percolator, and usually one too many dogs running around....yes, it's an event no one in our family wants to miss.  If anyone is dating someone new the test of longevity is living through this crazy, wonderful family event!

Yes, this get-together marks the Falcsik Family Christmas Season.  I guess having it so early this year threw me off kilter.  I'll really have to put myself in gear over the next week and finish up some shopping, get baking and just try to take in all the pretty decorations, lights, sounds of this wonderful time of year.  I love it all!

So, that's a taste of our annual family tradition.  We would LOVE to hear all about yours!  If you have a moment, please comment below and share one with us today!  Thanks for reading, everyone, and I hope you all have a very, Merry Christmas....don't forget, NEXT WEEK!   - Gretchen

December is Here...

I can't believe it's December already... but now that it's here I'm ready for some snow... hoping we get some soon! I just put my tree up this weekend and finally decorated it last night. Don't mind the crookedness - I need a second pair of hands to help me straighten it back up! Have you decorated for the holidays yet?

I'm also pretty excited about our Spring 2016 issue coming out next month! More so than usual, because I've been designing and laying out some of the pages this time. I've been learning from our very talented graphic designer, Nikki Butler. She's a great teacher and I've really been enjoying this new responsibility! You will see my work on the following designers projects; Jen Daily, Michelle Joyner, Tonya Robey, and Vicki Mills.. as well as the Ask Mom, Charitable Cause and Book Nook features!

Here's a sneak peek of the Spring issue! This is Jen Daily's quilt, "Home is Where the Heart is."

Happy Holidays!

Gratitude

Life has its ups and downs.  And I want to be mostly happy, so I do my best to focus on the ups, while striving for peace, love, and kindness during the downs.  Often that’s easier said than done.

This is where family, friends, and even strangers come into play.  There are countless kind loving people in the world, who have less than I, who suffer more than I’ll ever understand, and yet who get up every day with a smile and a determination to make this a good day for those around them.  I do my best to emulate these wonderful folk, and next thing you know, I am smiling, have a skip in my step, and am able to have a good day.

For this, for my family and friends, and for your love and support, I am grateful.  I wish you the best Thanksgiving ever!

Love,
Judy

“Let us be grateful to the people who make us happy; they are the charming gardeners who make our souls blossom.”—Marcel Proust (1871-1922), Novelist

Family is everything

Wow! What a week it’s been! Last Monday I got married..woohoo! We did a quick and simple ceremony at the courthouse with a few of the people closest to us. It was really nice. Afterward, we went to a local Hibachi restaurant for a yummy meal with my parents and my brother. Here are some pictures of our fun day!

 This one has to be my favorite, because no one was ready! It sums up our family well!

 The chef at the hibachi restaurant helped us celebrate, too!

I took on another craft project, too! Henley has been teething for about 2 months now…which means a whole lot of drool, all the time. I found an adorable drool bib pattern on Pinterest (go figure), and just HAD to try it! Here is the link, if you’d like to make one yourself! 

It’s just a little small on Henley because of her pudgy neck. Luckily I have a friend expecting a little girl soon, so it’ll make a great gift! I’ll make the next one bigger for Henley! 

I haven’t gotten any more finished on the benches from last time, it’s been too cold or too rainy to work on it, bummer! Maybe if it warms back up I can get back to work, otherwise I’ve got a project waiting for me in the spring!

If you attempt the baby drool scarf, I'd love to see pictures! 

Until next time...

Kristen :)