~ {pretty, happy, funny, real} ~
Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life ~
Every Thursday, here at Like Mother, Like Daughter!
{pretty}
{happy}
Five years old! Can you believe it? (And wearing a tie to his own birthday party because he's a snappy dresser.)
We had a big ice storm right after Christmas that took out our power for about 24 hours. It was cold, and it was a bit of a hassle, but thankfully we didn't have much to do anyways besides sit bundled up in front of our fireplace (which, ps, is definitely more for ambiance than heat production, so thank goodness we don't usually rely on it for that!) and play with our Christmas gifts.
{funny}
While the power was out, Pippo was convinced that he could do his Legos by candlelight (aka, the light of one candle), and then conceded that perhaps his little camping lantern would be helpful as well.
In case you were wondering, it was still much too dark to do Legos. But you can't say they didn't try.
And this little munchkin got herself stuck behind the Christmas tree while her big siblings were playing outside. But they were right outside that window, so she happily stood there wedged between the tree and the windowsill, watching them play and wishing she were big, too. (Poor baby!)
{real}
Cupcakes in the laundry room? This is the sort of thing that happens when you regularly run out of horizontal surfaces in your house. (Especially when your sideboard has been pressed into Nativity-display duty.) My washer and dryer have been pulling double duty lately as Baking Project and Lego staging areas, which leads to quite the shuffling game when it comes time to, you know, actually wash clothes.
PSA: these were Joy the Baker's dulce de leche cupcakes, chosen for their ability to pass as “Gold” cake for our Epiphany dinner, and they were dee-licious.
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Laura says
You did such a great job capturing the perfect “Christmas lighting” in these photos – just the right amount of light to give them that cozy glow.
I totally relate to the cupcakes on the dryer. Elevated, horizontal space is very coveted around here too!
Happy 2016 to you and your family!
Anel says
All Pretty! 🙂
Molly is so BIG, suddenly!
Adrienne says
Your family is beautiful!
Your post has me thinking: Can we please discuss what to do with the Lego creations? Does anyone have an actual Lego table?
I have three Master Builders and one baby Lego Eater. We play Legos them at the dining room table (I don’t have an eat in kitchen, so we always eat at the dining room table too!). The problems this causes – I can’t serve meals until they clean up, and of course they want to keep the in-progress projects. I’m thinking about getting a few shelves for their room so that they can have a lego museum! In the meantime, I have the in progress Lego creations on cookie sheets for easier transport around the house (we also have limited space, and this way they don’t break when I move them). I’m running out of cookie sheets though! Ahhh!
Anel says
Adrienne, I do what I also do with most art they bring back from school [especially 3D or bulky ones which I can’t file away – of which I choose only my or their favourites!].
I take photographs. That way they could possibly allow you to pack away the finished ones a tad quicker.. especially if they help with the photo taking.
Good luck, though.. 🙂
Rosie says
Oh gosh. The Legos! We have the same issues. I’m totally in the market for a great Lego storage situation – preferably a sweet setup with drawers and shelves. Except I have nowhere in my house to keep such a thing, so the whole thing has to just apparate when it’s time to play Legos, and then disappear when everything’s put away again. Is that too much to ask??
Jessica says
I absolutely love the hanging candles in one of the first pics – beautiful! That is too funny about using the washer and dryer as extra tables…we’ve had to do that many times too! 🙂 Happy New Year! -Jessica, Sweet Little Ones
Jessica says
Your hanging wreath is gorgeous! Loved seeing all your pictures. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!
Kerry says
For a while I hosted both sides of our family at Christmas, and I also ran out of space on my counters (they all brought goodies to share). I laid a piece of board (some pressboard with laminate I had from some project) across my washer and dryer! The board spanned a space between the machines of about 5 inches, so I gained that as well. But, yes, it made using the washer tricky. 🙂 Glad to see I’m not the only one doing this!
kristina b says
I love the hanging Advent wreath – so lovely 🙂 Our lights are too low to hang anything from, unfortunately.
corina says
Beautiful photos, they show a festive and cozy Christmas! And the cakes are impressive! Is the first one a Buche de Noel? It looks so good!
Habou says
OMG my great-grandchildren are sooooo cute.
Kristi says
Rosie, what is the lovely log/musrooms combination? Is this a traditional cake of some sort? I’m intrigued.
Kristi says
Never mind, got it! Never knew about a yule log as a cake! So cute.
Carly says
Thank you for sharing such beautiful photos of you life! The Yule Log is a beaut! Now I’m going to go clean my washer….
Lauren says
Oh goodness! How lovely! Could you share your Buche de Noel recipe? I love the mushrooms. We are cleaning up our house and Christmas decorations today. I wanted to say how thankful I am for your posts on celebrating all twelve days of Christmas. I grew up in a home with no traditions and so I have been trying to create traditions for our family. I loved how this really slowed Christmas down and just made this time more special. Thank you so incredibly much. I am so grateful!!!!!
Rosie says
Lauren, I used Martha Stewart’s chocolate genoise for the cake, plain sweet whipped cream for the filling, and the frosting was from King Arthur Flour “super-simple chocolate frosting.” The mushrooms are meringue cookies held together by frosting (I sort of messed them up, really, and they weren’t very good. But they looked great!) It was rich, but delicious.
Rosie says
Sorry, I got caught up with the Bouche and forgot to thank you for your kind words! Merry Christmas!
Lisa G. says
Your tree looks very pretty and your photos capture it well. PIppo’s shirt is so cool – geese? Perhaps ducks. A very cool shirt – he looks very natty.
Ashley says
Your buche de noel is beautiful! I made one last year (minus the meringue mushrooms) and decided that for all the effort it wasn’t worth it. It was good, but not as good as you’d expect given the level of time. 🙂
Maurisa says
Such sweet photos. I love the candlelit ones especially. Merry Christmas!
Heather H-M says
Hello,
I really enjoy this blog it is informative simply. and the posts are not overbearing. This one was quite sweet thanks for sharing.
Fr. Joseph Bittle says
I have long had your blog in my feedly, but due to time constraints, only pause and view about every 10th post. Today it was a great blessing to read that wonderful header phrase: “Capturing the context of contentment in everyday life.” Striking thought on many levels! Excellent photos too.
Jennifer says
Great Christmas. I love the photo of the three kids laughing. The girls are getting so big!
My washer doubled as counter space as well. I ran out of space while entertaining for the crockpots to simmer. The washer was the perfect spot!
Merry Christmas!
Woman of the House says
Oh, so sorry about the power going out, but I’m glad it didn’t last longer. The baby behind the tree is adorable. I can’t believe Pippo is five either! When did that happen??