Mama's 12 Days of Christmas, Day 7

On the Seventh Day of Christmas...
Seven (thousand) errands running
Six squabbles settling 
Five pizzas gluten free!
Four singing siblings
Three cup cakes
Two root beer mugs
And one just-turned-12-year-old Birthday Boy!

Yes I've entirely given up rhyme and rhythm. I'm writing this while a ear-infected little love snores on my chest so my literary standards are a bit lax right now. Fish will get his real celebration when we're all healthy. He has requested bowling with friends. Um. Fun. 

A Mama's Sixth Day of Christmas

On the sixth day of Christmas my household gave to me...
Six (ty) dollars fleeing (to the med center)
Five gallons of mucus!
Three dead mice (thank you, Oreo)
Two lost dice (again, thanks Oreo)
And a game of Catan with some yummy hot tea!

I have given up any attempt to read, write or count because my sinuses are full of concrete. As are Awesome Sauce's ears. Or one anyway. "Two prescriptions for antibiotics" didn't have the same ring as two lost dice, but it certainly applies. As would "six chickens clucking" since chicken #7 mysteriously disappeared. Merry Christmas Mr. Fox. I hope you enjoyed her. Poor girl.

A Mother's Fifth Day of Christmas

On the Fifth Day of Christmas my children gave to me...
Five hours of sleep!
Four DVDs
Three states to see
Two (dozen) stops to pee
And not one place to eat gluten free. 

Mom's Fourth Day of Christmas

In the Fourth Day of Christmas the hotel gave to me...
Four little fish
Three hot waffles
Two dirty looks
And maid service all for a fee!

A Mom's 12 Days of Christmas: on the road

On the third day of Christmas my children gave to me...
Three great hugs,
Two cuddle bugs,
And a visit with Gram and Auntie. 

A Mom's 12 Days of Christmas: Second Day

On the Second Day of Christmas my children gave to me...
Two nasty colds,
And a tin of magnetic poetry!

For those [one] individuals who actually read this, yes I'm doing the 12 Days of Christmas AFTER Christmas. Why? Because that's when they happen! Contrary to cultural belief, they are the twelve days between Christmas and Twelfth Night, which is the eve of Epiphany.

Also, I am slightly delirious from lack of sleep.

A Mom's 12 Days of Christmas...

On the First Day of Christmas, my family gave to me...
A huge bag of trash by the tree!

Ps. Merry Christmas to all my beloveds. I am blessed beyond words and overflowing with ... crinkled wrappings. Right this moment we're in the post-gift hangover phase, with a nice stack of items on the counter to return. Like three Nerf guns. Me: ever the idealist, and the fool. 

Victoria's Farmhouse Dollhouse Construction: A Year of Progress

Okay, so maybe assembling a dollhouse is a little more complicated than I thought. Here it is, almost a year later and we are STILL not done. We now have: a foundation, exterior walls, roof. Plus a few extras so complicated they require their own post. Like electricity!

Meh, it's not that complicated. Who wants to build a dollhouse in the summer when there are chickens to chase and bikes to ride? Downside of taking a six-month break, one may not read the directions thoroughly when starting back up. Imagine my horror when - just yesterday - I spotted a bottle of Tacky Glue under the worktable. I've been using Elmer's Glue-All for everything! Sure enough, the instructions recommended Tacky Glue. One frantic Google search later and I discovered Elmer's is a perfectly suitable construction glue. Panic averted. Mostly.

Following are some in-progress shots. It doesn't look quite as dramatic as it feels (paint! walls! floors!). Enjoy!
The happy (creepy) family. 
Look, honey, walls!

Mud Pie can't wait to play.

Gloria! Celebrate Advent with the Jesse Tree

The season of Advent is upon us! Actually, the season began a few days ago, but in our house celebration begins today, December 1st. I have our Jesse Tree ornaments in the Advent calendar, treats in the candy jar (with five children all old enough for treats they don't fit in the calendar anymore! The treats, not the children), and our daily readings all planned out.

Jesse Tree, what's that? Ornaments? What daily readings, you say? Oh, I'm so glad you asked!

You see, there's this wee little Advent ebook called Gloria! A Family Guide to Advent and Epiphany. It takes you through all of December with daily readings, songs, activities, Jesse Tree ornaments, and then, THEN it takes you through the Twelve Days of Christmas. You knew the 12 Days of Xmas came after Christmas, right? Even better, it's free! Look, here it is:
Download Now!
And wouldn't you know, I put the whole thing together. A labor of insanity that began in 2012 or something. A long time ago. The first year I made these cute, lumpy, hideous ornaments from salt dough without knowing that salt dough was, well, lacking in longevity. Here's the deal: Salt dough doesn't always dry all the way, or it will re-moisturize (that's a word, right?) if left in a damp place. Like, say, a basement. And what happens when metal hooks combine with moisture? Uh, yeah.

So I had to make all new ornaments (not all I suppose, since some weren't made with salt dough, though since I was making most of them over, I ended up making all of them over because I'm like that). These are a few of the ornaments:

Find the rest in the book which you can download here!

And just in case you were wondering what special fun activities are included in the book, and what stories are studied on each day, find the full list below:
And click here to preview one of the fabulous songs for the first day.

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