Christmas!

We did the Advent Calendar again...

1. Have a holiday treat
2. Set up the Nativity
3. Buy supplies for a foodbank/humane society
4.  Hmmm... can't remember :)
5. Schaefer party! He had a birthday party with his friends, bowling, then had a sleepover after with a few kids.



6.  Cards and flowers for our sensei... So happy he is doing well
7. Read about traditions from around the world
8. Make a present for Skye - we made her oatmeal pumpkin treats!  She loved them :-)
9. Look up old Xmas photos and movies... this was soooo fun!
10. Find an ecard and send to friend or family... we sent silly cards to Whickers and Gordons :-)
11. Take a special treat to a neighbour - took cookies to our neighbours across the street
12. Donate coats, hats and toys to a shelter... also gave a family gift to a little cousin
13. Decorate the Xmas tree!!




14. Make cookies for teachers!  We made chocolate and red velvet crinkle cookies... so good!
15. Have an Xmas cookie (or two)
16. Write or email Santa and/or decorate outside tree (this happened later)
17. Organise gifts for teachers and friends
18. Take gifts to teachers
19. Pancakes at community centre
20. MTYP!
21.  Winter Solstice and Kurt's birthday! Made him a special dinner... got a bunch of stuff at De Luca's for ravioli, and an amazing salad, and molten lava cakes with specialty Manitoba ice cream!
22. Make Xmas video or music - this is the 2nd year we had a great idea but they decided not to do it... No worries... if it seems like work then not worth it :-) Went to 10,000 Villages (I think this was the day) to pick out our own ornaments and other things... hard to go there without buying stuff :-)
23. Star Wars! The Force Awakens!  We all went and saw Star Wars in the morning...



24. Christmas Eve at First Mennonite, new pajama presents... They also made a quinzhee outside... so cool!  They had made the snow pile a few days before to let it settle... 

And then... Christmas!

Our traditional crepes:

The pups waiting for a treat that they KNOW Bop has...

Then off to Kurt's parents' house on Boxing Day... 

This guy with his new Xmas camera:

Father and son enjoying a talk...

Grandma and her grandkids snowshoeing back to the house... Such a beautiful sky...

Love my snowshoes ...

And then the sky just kept getting better:

Then another snowshoe with Kurt the next day:

Then some presesnts with family... these boxes that the boys get to work at trying to open, and there are little gifts throughout from their grandpa who works so hard setting them up:

And again with the snowshoeing!  Kurt loves lying down in the snow:

The next morning... Had some problems with how ski boots fit and skate helmets and skate problems... but the boys got to have fun tobogganing while I skied for a bit:

Must be one of the most beautiful places to go tobogganing... we are so lucky in Manitoba... beauty is everywhere...

I've got some more to add from after we got back... New Years etc!  Great holiday!