Christmas 2011

We had a white Christmas!



Friday evening we had our Christmas Eve, including snipping and freezing most of a big box of fresh green beans we got for just 67 cents a pound! They were the nicest beans we'd ever gotten and made a nice contribution to the Lucas clan's Christmas meal on Saturday. The boys and even their dad snipped while I helped freeze and bag. 



Danny is a big helper, too!

Danny is very happy with his "new" bike, since his old one, rescued from the dump, got run over accidentally a few days earlier. Sam found this one on Craigs List. 

Hannah with the new nightgown I sewed for her and finished just in time!

Carrie, Rose and cousin Vanessa and others tobogganing down the garden area at Grandma's and pa's in town on Christmas Eve, Saturday.



One Christmas tradition of the Lucas clan is taking family photos in front of the Christmas tree. Grandpa likes us to hold some of our gifts. They gave our older children several Bible games. As you can also see, Crystal, Carrie and Rose made their own dresses out of angel fabric we'd gotten at a yard sale many moons ago. One of my Christmas gifts to them was taking time in the weeks before Christmas to help them with sewing. I really don't enjoy it all that much, but it is an important skill. We can alter many clothes and make them wearable or sew new clothes if we know how to sew.

Jon and Esther McVey, with Stacy, Vanessa, Rebecca, and Ryan. Esther always contributes a delicious cranberry jello to the meal. 

Rob, Julie, Danielle and Cassidy

Julie usually brings a salad plate of fresh vegetables. I told her I appreciate something healthy at Christmas! There are always so many sweets (including the pumpkin rolls, and chocolate mint whoopie pies our family took). 

Jonathan's youngest sister Barb with her new husband, Chad, from Idaho, and her friendly, quiet little dog, one of the few I could actually almost like. Chad and Barb contributed some smoked goose he had shot! Chad makes a wonderful addition to the family. He and our boys heard that the church sidewalks needed to be shoveled better for Sunday, so they took off with Jonathan to get them shoveled properly. I appreciated seeing a man doing something besides sitting on a couch playing on a phone like so many do nowadays every chance they get. Barb had said she wasn't marrying a couch potato, and she didn't. Way to go, Barb!

Grandma is not a couch potato, either. Instead, she cooks the potatoes, sweet potatoes, Christmas turkey and ham, and various and sundry other dishes. No wonder she looks a bit tired in this photo. 

Grandma and pa with the grandchildren except one who wouldn't cooperate. Hey, Crystal, what is so interesting over there?