Christmas Toys

A few posts ago I mentioned Ethan and I were making Christmas gifts. Last year I made felt food for Libby, but beyond that, Ethan and I have never made toys before. We had a lot of fun (even though we worried they wouldn't be finished for Christmas) and were pleased with the results. The kids seemed to be pleased as well.

Ethan made these things:

A carrying tote for Lincoln and a set of building blocks made from the trunk of last year's Christmas tree and a felled branch from a tree in our yard.

A wood rifle for Hudson.

I made:

A felt needle book with . . .

embroidery floss and needles inside. She says she loves this gift and having it makes her feel like a teenager.

Two bags for Hudson to keep his new hammer and nails in. I freezer paper stenciled a hammer on the hammer bag and nails on the nail bag. I should have picked a different paint color - it looked brighter when I bought it.

And I made this fort kit for all the kids based on this one I found online. The kit comes with two sheets, a handful of clips, clothesline and some suction cup hooks. One of the sheets has a casing on two side with clothesline through it (the light colored sheet you see in the picture). The other sheet has looped ties stitched to each corner and side.

It provides hours of fun.

We spent quite a lot of time selecting just the right toys to give the kids for Christmas but I'll have to wait for another post to tell you all about that process.

Christmas Decorations

One of my favorite things about our Christmas holiday was our Christmas decorations. A couple handmade garlands and treasures found on the beach were all we needed to make the beach house merry.

Maria made a garland by hand knitting some yarn during our long road trip to Oregon.

Here it is displayed on the mantel.

Another garland was fashioned from strips of fabric, tied together. Driftwood, small rocks, feathers and shells were gathered from the beach. We simply tied hemp string around them to make ornaments.

Several pieces of driftwood delivered a happy message.

The perfect topper for a Christmas Beach Tree.

It was so much fun to create our own Christmas decorations and it made the season all the more jolly.

Oregon: Top Ten

We went to Oregon for Christmas, where Ethan's family lives. To accommodate the growing family (all of Ethan's siblings would be there for the holiday as well) we, as a family, rented a house close to the beach. It was amazing and we have many fond memories. I've had a hard time deciding what to share with you, hence the delay in posting anything about the holidays. But I'm ready to begin, and I do so by sharing with you my top ten favorite pictures.

And here they are, in no particular order:

More coming soon.

A New Year

We hope you all had a wonderful holiday season. I will soon post pictures of our wonderful Christmas vacation. Here's a quick preview:

Merry Christmas

(Picture "For Unto Us a Child Is Born" by Simon Dewey)

Love, the Nuttalls

'Tis the Season

While the kids keep busy playing:

Ethan and I keep busy creating:

And we are discovering giving is all the more fun when you've made the gift yourself.

We are planning. We are preparing. We are all anticipating. We are loving this time of year.

We've Had a Birthday

and it was a very good birthday, too.

Hudson requested hotdogs and chips and soda for his birthday dinner (he has a bit of chocolate on his nose from sampling the frosting from his cake).

For months, whenever he was asked what he wanted for his birthday he always said, "a teddy bear." He got his wish.

He got two Berenstain Bears books - his favorite kind of book!

He wanted a chocolate cake. And I cannot tell you how thrilled he was to see me putting sprinkles on the cake.

5 candles for our new 5-year-old.

"For he's a jolly good felloooooow . . . " Libby cracks up when we sing that.

Libby's letting Hudson know which candle he still needs to blow out.

Yum, yum. Hudson picked out Neapolitan ice cream to go with his cake.

This is the best cake! Hershey's "Perfectly Chocolate" Chocolate Cake. I found this recipe a few years ago and it's become our choice of chocolate cake. Our other favorite cake: Humming Bird Cake with cream cheese frosting. Hmmm, maybe I'll make that for my birthday.

Libby thinks it's good.

Hudson's Grandma Hawkins made this cowboy outfit for him. We've had a cowboy wanderin' around these parts ever since.

Hudson said he had the "best birthday ever"!