holy christmas cheer.
this weekend was just chock full of Christmasy cheer. i was so happy all weekend long, i just kept saying "i love our christmas traditions!" to Mister Man over and over. and i do so love them!
a manly man with a manly truck. that is not his.
we went to the Christmas tree farm with my mother- and father-in-law on saturday morning to chop down our very first Christmas tree together! it was unseasonably warm for december 1, and there was definitely no snow to be seen, but we were in full festive spirit the whole time. it was actually kind of nice that there was no snow because you can see the tree and those pesky holes are in plain sight. it also helped when joe had to sprawl on the ground to cut down both of our trees.
it's amazing how much time it can take to decide which tree is perfect for your family. i mean, trees aren't all that different from each other. but one might have a hole someplace that bothers you more than a hole on a different tree. or the top on one might be a little too crooked or longer than you wanted it. it's amazing that two people (or more) can ever agree on the same one to cut down and take home. (sidebar: i know that there are some arguments over real vs. fake tree and why one is better than the other. we see both sides. here is ours: we like to buy locally-grown, cut-your-own trees from small tree farms in our area. we feel that this cuts down on transport fuel use, and promotes both local businesses and sustainable growing practices. amen. alleluia.)
look at that form! ;)
and as if that wasn't just as much wholesome fun as you can have, can we just talk about this little guy? who is a miniature dwarf horse and whose name is wilson so you can fully die from cuteness.
once we brought our tree home and gave it some water to drink, saturday was a very busy day. i got to go to the walker museum's free saturday to look at weird art with my cousintwin hanna (it's all so weird, i'm sorry hanna). then i got to go eat sushi with cousintwin and other cousin (who just got into vet school!) and husband. it was all around fabulous.
on sunday morning after church, joe and i ran back to my in-laws' house so he and his dad and brother could watch football, and me and his mom and brother's girlfriend liz could make a whole ton of Christmas cookies! this was cookie day numero uno of tres, and we were not messing around. we're talking sugar cookie cutouts, russian tea cakes, and peanut butter blossoms. if you are thinking about getting a mother-in-law, make sure you get one that can just whip out a batch of russian tea cakes like it's not even a thing. it's a sight to behold, and makes for a tasty life.
the red turned out more pink than red, but it's cute, right?
cookie making really takes a toll on you (my back still hurts!). so we went and had a delicious dinner of "husband's delight" hotdish at my parents. (yes, i'm from minnesota, and yes, i actually eat hotdish. it's one of my favorite comfort meals. i can hear my friends on the east coast giggling at me right now.) we ate, watched some laurel and hardy, and then i made joe stop helping my little sister with AP chemistry so we could go home and decorate our wonderful tree! we need more lights, so it's not completely decorated yet, but i'm sure it will pop up in more posts between now and Christmas. it's only december 3 people, calm down.
floating candle with greens and cranberries in a mason jar. adapted from a pinterest pin i saw.
our moose head wanted in on the festivities. we haven't named him yet, any ideas?
i cut up our wedding invitation, made little spirals out of the strips, and put it into a clear ornament. it's our first family Christmas ornament, and i think it's pretty wonderful.
i hope everyone had a good weekend and that you're all starting to get into that holiday spirit. let's all wish really hard for some snow so the cold can start to be justified. i need some fluffy white stuff on the ground asap!
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