Twas the Week Before Christmas...

Christmas (and New Year's!) may be over and done, but the blogging is just beginning!! The girls had almost two weeks off (they went back to school yesterday, but then had a snow day today!) and we did a lot to keep busy. Here is the photographic evidence:

We started off our vacation with baking. I bake with the girls a lot but this year they required very little help to get things done. Here they are making snickerdoodles (which were delicious, by the way):

Lizzie also decided that Cash wasn't festive enough so she stuffed this hat and put it on him. He is a very good puppy to put up with us all -- especially in light of what happened on Christmas day (MEOW!!)

Or actually BEFORE Christmas. There's a stray that's been coming around the house and since it's been cold here we've been letting her sleep in our garage. And then our laundry room. And then one morning we let her into the house and she ran right up our Christmas Tree. I am happy to report that NO ORNAMENTS were hurt (or cats) during this extraction:

Things got really fun when the Garritys came to visit the Saturday before Christmas. We were supposed to all get together the weekend before that, but Mother Nature had other ideas, so T.A. and Tina came with Tommy and Brenna and a good time was had by all. And Ann, it really was warm enough that day to be out without a coat! (Here's the coatless Brenna with Hannah)

It was also warm enough to go sledding on the driveway. The kids were dragging each other around in the sled on the driveway and around the front yard.

The ever-thoughtful Aunt Tina wore the same outfit as Cash:

Seriously I have no words for this picture...

Then we did some more baking (actually decorating). Here's Lizzie and her gingerbread people. She made Santa and Mrs. Claus and also some Christmas cats:

 Hannah, hard at work:

 Hannah and her finished people. She made a cat and some miscellaneous people. And then she ate them.


Next post: Christmas Eve and Day (not too many pictures of Christmas Day since we were all consumed by the kitten!)