Week 49 Around Here {2019}

South

Wyatt & our boy

Grateful... for Josh and Jack who worked tirelessly to put up Christmas lights on our (now two story!) house this weekend.  It looks so wonderful.  Josh is the best and always does whatever I want, I'm so lucky!!

Finishing... my Christmas diamond art and framing it for the holidays.  It is so sparkly and gorgeous. I can't get over it!

Hosting... our Elf on the Shelf, Dashy, in our home again as we count down the days to Christmas.  The boys are thrilled that he is here again to play silly shenanigans and make our days cheery & bright.  Carly, however, after we find him in the mornings, says firmly, with her hand out, "But he's not even real." Like, "How is he doing all this crap? He's just a toy!" Haha! I love her sassy self.

Decorating... for Christmas, which included moving furniture in the living room (so the Christmas tree could be centered in the front window! So dreamy!!!) and taking out all the Christmas books, which is the kids' favorite part.  I love watching them pull out each ornament as well, and talk about it as they put it on the tree.  All of them seem to have been drawn to the same ones to play with when they were little.  The foam sparkly balls; the snowman with the dangly chain legs; and a few others.  I'm going to be sad when someday all the ornaments go on the tree and stay on the tree.

Letting... the kids have a family sleepover downstairs after we decorated for Christmas.  The twins slept on the pull out sleeper sofa in the living room under the Christmas tree, and Carly & Wyatt slept together on the couch in the family room with the twinkle lights strung along the branches of evergreen garland.  They were all thrilled to sleep somewhere other than their rooms and enjoyed reading books before bed in their special cozy spots.  Josh and I were grinches and slept in our real bed. Hah!

Waking... up to breakfast in bed on one of the boys' snow days because the twins were trying to butter me up to let their friends come over for the day.  Clever!
Well, they know the way to my heart because between my delicious breakfast sandwich and them rubbing my feet, they got their way.  We had a fun day with them and their friends home- I even made pancakes for lunch, which was a huge hit!

Driving... to the Humane Society the next day when Josh had the day off from school, but the boys didn't (he works in/they attend different districts).  So we took advantage of the time to ourselves and took just Carly to see what dogs were available.
After spending time with my mom's dog at our house last week, we decided it was time for us to get a dog, and this was the next step.
There were several good options- mostly German Shepherd and Black Lab mixes, and we came home with a few ideas of who might be a good fit for our family.  But I will admit that it was very (very) sad to see all the dogs (and cats) needing homes there.  I told Josh I was pretty sure we needed at least three dogs & five cats.  Ha!!

Going... back to the Humane Society with the whole family in tow after school on Thursday and finding a dog there who wasn't there on Tuesday.  His name is South (we will give him a new name when we can all agree on one that fits) and he's a two year old blonde German Shepherd.  He was thrilled to meet us, jumping up to "hug" us when we let him out of his kennel and giving us all kisses (licks) like crazy.  He just felt right, so we agreed that he would be "the one".  We will pick him up after he gets neutered next Wednesday!

Rejoicing... at no migraines all week! Hallelujah!

Reading... Being Mortal (still), as well as To The Bright Edge of the World (which I am loving- so much history about Alaska and Fort Vancouver, both places where I have lived!) and starting Rhythms of Renewal, which I think is great as I head into 2020. 
I am also listening to Winter Solstice by Rosamunde Pilcher on audio, and enjoying it so much.  It has such a cozy winter feel and was even the #1 recommended winter read on Modern Mrs. Darcy's Winter Read list.
Up next will be Elin Hilderbrand's new Paradise books (1 & 2) which I've had since last Christmas (the first one) and can't wait to dig in to!

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{love this one}