the third week of Advent

The first week of December our whole family had the flu. We each got it a different night, which I suppose was the best way for five of us to get the flu, but it made for a really long week of laying low and laundry. And I got it last, which meant all the apple sauce, bananas and saltines had been consumed the days prior. But I made up for it in cinnamon toast and sprite.

The second week of December we took our very first family road trip to Kentucky! Three weeks ago Rory handed me a piece of paper with a map and day-by-day itinerary and told me we were going to take the kids on a trip. I was thrilled as road trips are basically my love language. We visited my Aunt Connie and Uncle Paul and cousins Jessica and Isaac and it was so awesome. I will blog about the whole trip at length...the whole thing was so good. And the kids did incredible and super fun memories were made.

And now we're onto the third week of Advent and we're back home but recovering from week one and two and it hardly feels like Christmastime to me. Has this happened to you? Some Decembers I jump in with both feet and others it takes me a while to find my Christmas spirit. Today Rory put the star up in the barn along with a candle in each upstairs window. It's really lovely and feels like a step in the right direction.

Other than that, I have been prepping the kids for Santa Lucia Day on Tuesday morning. They are excited, except that I just heard Elsie threaten Ivar, "If you keep being mean to me, I will not bring you cookies in bed because I'm Lucia!"

So we've got a ways to go to find our Christmas Spirit! But we'll get a tree this week and play in the foot of new snow we got overnight. And tomorrow I hope to make cookies and try to explain the generous and giving heart of Lucia which should keep us moving towards the true meaning of holy time of preparing for Jesus' birth.