A couple of evenings ago, we all snuggled up on the couch and watched A Christmas Story. It was much funnier than I remembered. There are reasons why that movie has become a classic. It reminds us of how earnest we were as children and of the tragi-comedies we lived through. I vividly remember helping my father fix things–yes, even holding a hub cap or jar lid so he would have a “safe” place to deposit nuts and bolts–and the mortal dread I had of spilling those tiny pieces.

The scene that sent me into a fit uncontrollable laughter, though, was the one where a pack of hound dogs ran through the house and devoured a whole turkey. Many years ago, we had a huge Irish wolfhound who perpetrated a similar crime on a dish of lasagne.

Anyway, after the movie was over, and I was cleaning up the dinner mess, I walked outside for a brief moment. It couldn’t have been more perfect. The family and I were in a festive mood from having watched that holiday classic–and there, before me, were fluffy white flakes falling from the sky and blanketing the front lawn. I called the kids and Robert and we all stood there in the doorway admiring the scene before us.

The next day saw everyone out, bright and early, to play in the snow. It was dry stuff, so snowballs and the like didn’t hold together, but there was plenty of scooping and running and giggling to be done.

Unfortunately, the snow and ice meant the schools around here have been opening two hours late, which also meant that I had to cancel my hair cut appointment. I have to fess up that I’m disappointed about that. I was looking forward to a change. I’ll get over that disappointment soon enough. There will be another day when I can “pamper myself.” Instead, I get to spend more time with the family watching them assemble puzzles and color pictures. I’ve also had a chance to get a lot of knitting and sewing done lately, so I’ll have a few projects to share with you soon!

I’ve made an appointment to get my hair cut next week. It really needs some help…and I’m really tired of my current style. Just for fun, I played around with a virtual makeover program at Marie Claire. There weren’t a whole lot of hairstyles to choose from and the hair colors all looked weird; nevertheless, I enjoyed myself as I did when Barbie dolls were a big part of my life. Here are the results:

I like the first one a lot. Claire likes the long one, but she thinks all women should have long hair. The third one looks like I’m wearing a wig that’s slipping off my scalp. I guess that’s not so attractive, lol.

What do you think? Any other suggestions?

…and here’s my felted Christmas tree. It’s a Mason-Dixon knitting pattern, which was very easy to do. I decorated it with buttons and ric rac found at garage sales.

I took a lot of ribbing from the family about this project. They think I’ve gone over the deep end. Knitting trees…who ever heard of such a thing?

I’m very fond of it, and if I had my way and lots of spare time, would make a whole forest of them!