Festive Friday five

 

 Just popping in for a quick post today.  Time surely is flying by as we speed toward December 25!  Just sharing five quick thoughts of things I'm enjoying this month.

* Christmas fellowship with friends.  Way back on December 1 we went out for breakfast with friends at a fun, new-to-all-of-us place.  In the evening there was a lovely fellowship with our LOG (Ladies of Grace) group from church.  Crackling fire, beautifully set table, yummy food, thoughtful gifts, cookies to swap and share ... it was all good.

 On December 2 we enjoyed a nice Christmas party with my hubby's former coworkers on the logging crew.  This is an event the company's owners put together each year in appreciation for their crew, and it's always a good time.

On December 9 we met up with friends for thrift shopping and Mexican food.  These are folks we might not ordinarily see in December, so it was especially nice.  

On December 19 we were invited for supper at the home of friends.  ALL of their Christmas decorations were up (and I thought I decorated a lot.  I don't.) so it was very festive and the meal was restaurant quality.  The company -- our friends and their two adult sons -- was also most pleasant.

 * Special Christmasy times with grandchildren.  On December 8 we got together with four of our local grands for brunch, crafting, and ice cream sundaes.  Tonight, we'll be exchanging gifts and enjoying a "Christmas eve observed" supper with our two oldest granddaughters.

 

 

Ice cream sundaes

This player piano played Christmas music and was a huge favorite with the grandkids.  Alas, it no longer works.

 * Mr. T busy in the kitchen.  I can't even count all of the different cookies and candies that have emerged from the kitchen under the watchful eye of my hubby.  Our unheated front porch is the perfect repository for most of the sweets being stored.  Several cookie trays have already been given to friends and family, and others have been taken to various gatherings.  I love to bake, myself, but I don't mind one bit that he is doing most of it.

* Time to make a few handmade gifts.  I've made some Shutterfly gifts and a few other things -- though I never do as much Christmas creating as I would hope to.  I did a little crafting when the grandkids did, and made an ornament I've been wanting to try for a long time, so that was a blessing for me.

* Wallowing in nostalgia.   My Etsy shop is responsible for most of this, as it is filled with vintage goodies I remember from childhood.  I should be busy listing all kinds of vintage Christmas things, but time is at a premium and I get moved to tears often enough as it is.  The old Ideals magazines were such a part of Christmas at my grandmother's, and I have a large stash of them now myself.

 

 

Then some years ago I made a Christmas memory book for my adult kids.  I included my childhood memories and also some from their childhoods. I had a copy of this memory book at our camp and have been reading through it lately when we've been there.   Life has become so different in so many ways since then that it just hurts sometimes.  I remind myself often that the important things about Christmas -- the facts of Jesus' birth and why He came -- will never change.

And there's the Friday five! What are some special things you're enjoying this month?