First snow, an early Christmas gift, and remembering my mother-in-law (7 Quick Takes)

~1~

We had our first snow this week, and we were all excited about it. The boys don’t have to worry as much about virtual school on Wednesdays, so they went out for a chunk of the afternoon—right before the snow started turning to freezing rain or snain or sleet or whatever it turned out to be. They made two monster snowballs (this one was 41 inches in diameter) and had a fantastic time before coming in tired, cold, and happy.

Snow is so wonderful, especially when you have nowhere to go.

~2~

Overnight the snow all turned to crusty icy snow and got stuck to the sidewalks.

The next day the boys went out to shovel and chisel away at it.

They worked for a long time before I went out to help and realized how miserable it was and mostly impossible to manage. I released them then for some icy sledding on our little back hill.

I hope we get more fun, fluffy snow this winter.

~3~

We wanted to give our pet finches their first experience with snow, and I remembered how when our children were younger I discovered that one way to make snow fun was to bring it into the house on a baking pan with a lip and let them experience it in a heated home.

We filled two tiny bowls with snow for our birds and put them inside their cages.

Finches like to be warm, so I wasn’t sure they would even go near the snow, but Hermione got brave and went over and pecked at it for a bit. She made clear that she prefers her water warm. Still, we had fun watching them to see what they would do.

~4~

We decorated our tree last weekend, and it makes me so happy to sit in the living room at night with the tree lit.

In my mind, the tree only goes on in the evenings, but I’ve been plugging the lights in even during the day some days since we’re home.

It’s amazing how much the tree changes the feel of our whole first floor.

Of course, so do the two cages full of finches that are also in the living room.

~5~

We are planning to do some finch-moving this weekend, putting the boy finches together and the girl finches together. I am nervous to move birds between cages, but I think it will be for the best for everyone, especially since my goal is not to have a thousand finches by Epiphany.

I’m tempted to set up a camera and do a time-lapse video of the whole operation. That might be the best or worst idea I’ve had this Advent.

~6~

John gave me a Christmas gift early this week—a floor lamp for our living room to replace the one that broke in April. I am thrilled. It adds so much light to the room.

This year for Christmas I ordered John some Dakin Bacon. His sister Karin had recommended it, and I trust her to know. I couldn’t think of a better gift than bacon. It arrived this week, and we were so excited about it that we cooked some the first night, baking it in the oven. I did half on a broiling pan and half on parchment paper. The parchment paper version was crispier, but the broiling pan version had better flavor. It was all incredible and very decadent.

I went back to order more for another gift, and I couldn’t get it before January. Next year maybe I’ll plan better and send bacon to more people on my list. After all, bacon is a sign that God loves us.

~7~

Last Sunday my mother-in-law passed away. Peggy lived a wonderful life, and I am thankful for the time we had with her. She was the kind of person who found joy in so many things—especially in her grandchildren—and I find it really meaningful that she died on Gaudete Sunday. We will always think of her as we light the pink candle.

Her death was not a surprise, and yet somehow, I felt unprepared. At moments like this, I think I shift into practical mode—trying to get things done. I realized our older son had nothing to wear to a funeral, so I drove more than two hours to pick up the nearest suit I could find in what I thought was his size. Thankfully, it fit.

I spent an evening digging through old photos of Peggy for the collages my brother-in-law created for the viewings. So many memories came flooding back. I thought of how when we were waiting to adopt our children, we never worried about whether our little ones would be welcomed with open arms by our families, and they were. Even when dementia took away her ability to recall their names and Grammy would ask them to answer the same questions over and over and over, her love for them was evident—and they always enjoyed being with her.

Navigating the loss of someone you love during COVID is its own challenge, and I am immensely grateful for the ways our friends and family have surrounded us with love, support, and prayers. We are so very blessed.

You can find more quick takes on Kelly’s blog, This Ain’t the Lyceum.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend as we begin the last week of Advent!

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