snow

* We brought home our Christmas tree yesterday. Thanks to some friends, we were directed to Miller's Greenhouse. They have a nice selection of trees you can wander through to find the one. (Lael happily exclaimed at every tree that was taller than her - "This is the one!") Tie a ribbon on the tree and let the owner know you're ready - they drive out into the field, cut it for you and bring it back in their tractor. They even help load it onto you vehicle. I was completely impressed and we will be returning again.

* My bread dough is already rising and I'm excited to return to the land of homemade baked goods. We haven't had a good batch of granola bars in a long time and turkey/cranberry sauce sandwiches will taste even better on fresh bread. I'm not excited about returning to cloth diapering. My little break from these two duties was lovely and relaxing. I didn't do laundry for three days! Three. Whole. Days. That is amazing. To be honest, I considered just throwing in the towel and going back to disposables. Its easier and much less time consuming. But it means adding another item to my weekly shopping list and that would mean spending more money. Not to mention what I've spent on the cloth diapers I have and then there is the whole environment thing. So back to cloth I go. Hopefully Lauren potty trains early. :-)

* Holiday plans are being made and our calendar is filling up nicely. Not too much so we feel overwhelmed but just enough so we have something to look forward to each week. Schoolwork will continue of course. Baking will have to begin soon as will menu planning but this is definitely my favorite month. Planning and baking?! It doesn't get much better than that!