MERRY CHRISTMAS!

SIX!!!

Celebrated Roodle's birthday a little early this year...family style! Here's the surprise volcano cake! It was D.E.L.I.C.O.U.S. Can you tell she was a little embarassed?! :)


Spent today, her actual birthday with Emmy, Gramma & Papa! Sooo fun and thankful to be able to celebrate with them! The highlights: monkey bread, family fun, wii dancing, phone calls, mail!!!, finally seeing the lastest kid movie---the Rapunzel one?!--SOO GOOD!, fast food lunch, and angelfood cake with a sweet neighbor! SOO FUN!!!

Feast #2

The Danforth Thanksgiving was DELICIOUS (as always) and fun! Leave it to Emily to keep us all in stitches...even during the prayer! Man, I almost peed my pants thanks to her!:)Anywho, Em & Er joined our people as we feasted at my parent's beautiful house! Mom has an incredible way of making holidays so special! Unfortunately, my brother and his crew were unable to join us due to unsafe driving conditions. Missed them, but understand entirely!
Here's Roodle with her fav dolly at Grammy's. This antique dolly was my mom's childhood toy. Kate LOVES her and tracks her down first thing each time we visit!

Trying Something New

Start a new family tradition during advent this year and we've loved this one. Each time we gather around the table for a meal we read a Bible story and hang a corresponding ornament on our "tree" to remember it. Basically by the end of the month we will have covered a good chunk of the Bible. My favorite part has been the cool discussions that have resulted! These girls have good questions! Like "How do you know when God is talking to you?"...blew Lon and I out of the water! Our tree...check out all our snow, too!

Lists of the way God's provided for us...most priceless Christmas gifts EVER! :)

Ode of Thanks

Auntie Erica read:

"There once was a girl named Claire
With a turkey growing out of her hair
she had cranberry feet
and pie-hands so sweet
and mashed potato underwear!

This girl was a Thanksgiving feast
though all this food made her look like a beast
the town ran in fear
when young Claire drew near
but this was a fact she didn't mind in the least.

Claire lived in a cave in the woods
it smelled like cinnamon and spice- oh so good
but each and every November
NOT June or March or September
the townspeople came a-looking for food.

Then they'd strap Claire down on a plate
and she'd yell "give my love to dear Kate"
then they'd grab fork and knife
and dig in for dear life
and feast until the hour drew late."

By the great Auntie Em...of enormous intellect! :)

All I Want for Chrithmas...

is my two front teeth! :)

A Date With Daddy!

Lon & Claire stole away to this cool park overlooking the city...BEFORE the snow hit. Lon does an incredible job spending one-on-one time with the girls and this was their
destination date. (Plus, it gives you a flavor of MT!)

Thankful for this girl and all she's teaching us.

Thankful for a husband who is intentional with his girls.

And thankful for this beautiful new place to call home.

Feast #1

A few weeks ago, we enjoyed our first Thanksgiving with friends. It was a sweet time of fellowship and a chance to try some untraditional recipes. LOVED every minute of our laughs, conversation, and DELISH food!

CRAZY kids table!

Lon was there, but he's our gracious photographer! :)
Who knows where our second feast will take place due to our 9+ inches of snow, sub zero high temps, and dangerous traveling conditions. Where ever we land, I'm certain we'll make the absolute most of it! How can Thanksgiving go bad if you're among loved ones?? :)

This has my name all over it!

TOTALLY buying this book!

Thankful...

We're feeling especially thankful for all God's done over the past year. (Can't believe it's already been a year!!!) His grace, love & good gifts of relationship are TOTALLY bubbling up in our hearts!

One small & simple way we're giving thanks for our new neighbors, teachers & school employees is this blessing mix. Thanks for the AWESOME idea, Carty!



Blessing Mix

Bugles are a symbol of the cornucopia, a horn of plenty.

Pretzels represent arms folded in prayer.

Candy corn reminds us that during the winter, the pilgrims were allowed only 5 kernels of corn per day because food was so scarce.

Fruit is a reminder that Thanksgiving is the celebration of harvest.

Peanuts represent seeds, the potential of the bounteous harvest for the next season if they are planted and well-tended.

Kisses are a symbol of the love you shower on others, and we couldn’t be more thankful for YOU!

Happy Thanksgiving!

Halloween

kit & ruthie ready for some candy...costumes inspired by their "favorite dolls." loved their out-of-the box costume ideas. so innocent.

a couple of neighborhood spooks

ruthie posing with her kitty punkin

Love notes

Look what Claire left us on Sunday morning...I think the girls LOVE our neighbors! :)

And Kate made this sweet note for me as a welcome home from a weekend away. And yes the witch will be in for a loong time again!
LOVE these girls and their new ability to express themselves!

Girls Weekend!

Can't think of a better way to spend girls weekend than with my one of favorite Bible teachers! She spoke on Ephesians 4:1-16 Which is all about unity in the body of Christ. Such powerful stuff! God showed up BIG time! About 5,000+ ladies from the NW gathered in Spokane and worshipped like no other. It's sooo great to focus on Him for an intense period of time...fills my cup in an unspeakable way!



And the cherry on this weekend sundae were these beautiful women! Oh Vancouver peeps, thanks for the fun and fellowship!! I miss hanging with you!!! Wished our time together was longer, but loved every minute! :)


Did someone say something about meeting up in Seattle this spring???
I AM GAME! :)
LOVE YOU FRIENDS...both new and old! :)

Blankie!

Kate's once pink blankie (now more gray-ish) went missing for over two months!
Her lovey above all other lovies.
Slept with it since birth.
Loves it's booger-y smell... (nice?!)

We searched everywhere imaginable. No blankie.
I thought it was gone for good. I was bummed, but Kate quickly took a liking to another bunny. I kept praying for God to show us where blankie was hiding.
We waited.
And waited...until yesterday. When I looked up in my very empty shelf-y closet and THERE. IT. WAS!
WOOHOO!!!
We all danced for joy and thanked God- for prodigal blankie! :)

PS...Not exactly sure how it made it onto said shelf...I have a feeling it may have something to do with a big sister, but all is well. :)

Switching It Up

So as life continues to change for us, we're doing our best to roll with it! :) For those of you who haven't heard, Lon is switching it up at the hospital. He started a new position this week. I still don't totally understand his new job (big shocker!), but it lets him keep his hand in pharmacy while becoming a leadership coach in the hospital. This new job requires training- 5 weeks to be exact. Training which is held in Kansas. So that's where he is. Which means we are switching it up on the home front! Eating cereal for dinner, NOT making our beds, watching bedtime movies, and doing all things girlie! Come to think of it, maybe Thunder wanted into this equation, too!? Switching up his new home and all?! :)

I'm proud Lon is pursuing this new opportunity! He's excited and ready for the adventure!

We've also decided to try a new church...switching that up--and loving what we're experiencing!

Trying girl scouts this year, too...oh the memories are rushing back!! Should be fun to do with the girls!

Guess what else, we're switching up our gym membership, too!

Maybe these changes aren't so bad after all?!! Maybe we might like switching it up after all! :)

A Nugget

I read the coolest thing in today's devotion and need to share...written from Jesus' point of view...

"RELAX AND LET ME LEAD YOU through this day. I have everything under control: My control. You tend to peer anxiously into the day that is before you, trying to figure out what to do, and when. Meanwhile, the phone or doorbell rings, and you have to reshuffle your plans. All that planning ties you up in knots and distracts you from Me. Attentiveness to Me is not only for your quiet time, but for all your time. As you look to Me, I show you what to do now and next.

Vast quantities or time and energy are wasted in obsessive planning. When you let Me direct your steps, you are set free to enjoy Me and to find what I have prepared for you this day."
Psalm 32:8; Psalm 119:35; Psalm 143:8
Jesus Calling, by Sarah Young

This speaks volumes, especially now that the girls are both in school from 8-3 and I feel the need to fill my calendar. Such great words of wisdom. :)

Unexpected Delight

Gardening has brought us the most unexpected joy this summer (when we've been home!!) In June we chose what to plant as a family: green peppers, cucumbers, tomatoes, basil, onions, watermelon, rosemary and zucchini...EVERYBODY had input. Then we planted and patiently and sometimes NOT-so-patiently watched it grow. And now we are harvesting DAILY. It's such a simple pleasure to see what's ready to pick each morning. We've tried new recipes and feasted on soo much fresh produce. LOVED IT!!! And then we get to decide what to do with the abundance!!! Such a great problem! It's even more fun to share the bounty with friends, family & neighbors... :)

I think I can really learn to get into this! Never thought I'd enjoy it, but have I ever been surprised! We're already thinking of what we'll plant next year and where we want it!

I also have a fab recipe to share if you have cucs coming out your ears, too! Thanks 4 this recipe, Em! I think cousin Katie gave it to her as a shower gift!

Quick Summer Polish Pickles
2 Quarts water
1 c white vinegar
1/2 c salt
1/2 c sugar
fresh dill (I used dried)
garlic
5-6 cucumbers sliced in spears

Place cucumbers, dill & garlic in a sealable container.
Boil water, vinegar, salt & sugar over cucs.
Add more dill & garlic.
Seal and let sit 1 day in fridge.
Voila! :)

Dinosaur Park

Crystal Cavern

The Black Hills of South Dakota are fra-mazing!! That's where we found this incredible crystal cavern. After Lon and his dad borrowed some snazzy yellow jackets, we descended 300 feet to explore this wonder!
SUPER cool!!!
It was our first family spelunking trip and definitely not the last! The crystals were phenomenal and NOT to be touched- actually a $5K fine is issued to those who cannot resist. That made me more nervous than the steep stairs!!! :)
I wished we'd gotten better pics of the actual crystals, but of course, our camera battery died!

Summer Blast From The Past

Dear summer~

SOOO glad you're (finally)here!

Thankful for warmer weather, rain and INCREDIBLE flowers. The peonies and poppies are beyond words!!!

School's officially out and the girls are LOVING being at half-day came in the park this week. I'm loving a little time to myself, too. My mornings are filled with coffee on the patio, long walks, lingering phone calls, meeting up for lunch w/ Lon, a few errands, decorating, and some basic wiggle room. :) Our afternoons are filled with library reading program, parks, bike rides, and neighborhood kids. SUCH blessings!!

We are still finding our summer groove...but thankful for the schedule change! It always takes us awhile to readjust! ;)

Looking forward to more park time, BBQ's, swimming lessons, water fights, a couple of family reunions and a trip to our old stompin grounds!!!

Love,
The Finnemans :)


PS I could do without the snakes.

Our 3 Wishes

Finally unpacked our dinnertime game and Claire picked the Magic Spoon game. We had a blast playing last night. Here's how it goes:

Using a wooden baking spoon or silver spoon say,
"Magic spoon, magic spoon, if I had 3 wishes I'd wish for..."

Here's what we came up with:

Kate---she was the quickest to respond-like she thinks about this all the time!
1. a unicorn
2. to be a queen
3. lots of money

Claire
1-3. to be a poodle, wiener dog and pug all at the same time!

Lon
1. My girls to live a long happy life
2. Mommy and I always knew what God wanted us to do
3. To have ice cream every night

Rachel
1.to eat ANYTHING guilt-free
2. to be in Hawaii
3. My Vancouver friends moved to Billings

Wanna play? I'd love to know your answers!!!

Peeps

Feeling VERY thankful for ALLLL my girlfriends.
Old friends.
New ones.
Yet to be ones...

Blessed to know and walk through life with you!!
Thanks for making life all the sweeter!

Love you all!
(And missing you far way chicks SUPER FIERCE! :(

Country Mice

Awhile back, we drove out to the country and visited some family we hadn't seen in FOREVER!!! It was so great to see them, tour their place AND meet all their animals. There's no better time to visit a farm then the spring! We all had a ball and hope to return again soon! Thanks for the delightful afternoon!


Cousin Kelle with her rooster
Kelle's daughter, sweet Courtney, with a turkey...was this Lucy?
The girls and Aunt Betty