Not for Nothing

I sure hope Santa can run.

Or that he has some sugar cubes. 

Liz was at the sink washing bowls from making cookies and rolls, and I was waiting to get water to mix dog food, when across the heifer hill, tails blazing whiter than the snow, ran a pair of does.

I don't want to rain on any parades or harm your cornflakes in any way, but I am pretty sure that it was Cupid and Vixen.

And they were already flying low if you know what I mean. Didn't see any sled either, other than the Firecats on the trailer and lawn.

I sure hope he catches them before tonight.....

Hmmm.....Liz has two quarts of molasses here....nah.....better not.....

Mom is a Carver Too

She carved this little Santa and even won a blue ribbon with him. He was among my very favorite Christmas gifts this season.

Merry Christmas from Northview

Best wishes from all of us here at the farm. The spirit of the season has been in evidence more this year than I have ever seen before. So many folks doing wonderful things for others, even total strangers. You read of this in other places, but even right here in the neighborhood stories abound of random acts of wondrous kindness. I applaud the kind and caring people who have done so many things for others.

Audubon Christmas Bird Count Today

Raining, supposed to snow...gotta go milk my string first. brrr...

Honorable fingerpain (no T)

You can't see the grooves that occupied these fingers last night, but they still sting a bit. Yesterday was our annual either too early for 2008 or just a shade late for '07 brother, sister and kids and cousins Christmas gathering. Part of the tradition is that next younger brother and I play some guitar. He is good, I am awful, but if I play real quietly no one says too much.

We played Leo Kottke's Pamela Brown
John Prine's Paradise
John Denver's Country Roads
Danny's Song

Mike played Amazing Grace.....I watched. It was beautiful. He is so good I get cold chills.

We played Coming into Los Angeles, which we used to play with the band. You would think I would remember the chords, but I had to watch his fingers and could not quite keep up.

Then there was LA Freeway...same situation with the chords. (I should really, really, really practice more, but every time I sit down with a guitar, people feel that if I have free time I should spend it talking to them rather than tuning it and learning new songs...so I have more or less given up.... whine, whine...)

It was a very happy time. There was talk of doing it more than once a year and I hope we do. He let me play his best guitar (mine stayed home as the neck isn't quite right. He plays a lot of songs with a capo....put a capo on mine and all she does is buzz). Because I was playing his best one, he played his 12-string, so his fingers were almost as bad off as mine. I have perhaps the best pair of brothers to ever be created. Dang, I love em.

Brrr

This is a completely unadulterated picture of the ice on the windows

This is another

This is another picture of a happy person with a Christmas present

Joni's idea

Was to show off some of her favorite Christmas ornaments. Seemed like a great plan, so here are a few of mine. I'd love to see yours too, hint, hint....

Not so wild horses

Made by my mom

Naturally