1. We are decorated for Christmas. We wait until Gaudete Sunday, and we are thinking about waiting until the 4th Sunday of Advent next year. We went to a small Christmas Tree farm nearby and cut our own tree down for $12. It was so much fun. It was my first time cutting down a tree as a family. It is pretty cold in my native Montana this time of year, so we always went out and bought a tree from a lot. Michaela even helped her daddy carry the tree to the car.
2. I got to use our brand new Kitchen Aid mixer today for the first time. It is wonderful! We have a weekly or bi-weekly game night with some friends of ours from church. Like us, they really enjoy board games. Our friends have so many board games that we keep telling them to create a binder like the ones they have at Karaoke bars. We are going over there for dinner and games tonight. My husband and I are trying to eat better before the food craze that is Christmas in Northern Kentucky (we head there on Christmas Day). So, with that in mind I made Whole Wheat Oatmeal Chocolate Chip Cookies with freshly milled flour our friends had given us. They are super yummy and the mixer made it so easy.
3. The older I get, the more I like to make handmade gifts for people. All of us own so much stuff. With that in mind, I decided to make homemade chocolate truffles for our friends. They really are not difficult. You just have to be patient because the chocolate has a few steps to set up. I stuck with plain chocolate, but next time I want to make truffles with Bailey’s Irish Cream.
4. My daughter is growing by leaps and bounds. I swear she grows in her sleep (and she probably does). I cannot believe how much she is a little girl now and not a baby. She is getting quite tall and is even taller than some of the girls who are older than her. She has been a bottomless pit and is hungry all of the time. Where does the time go?
5. There will be no white Christmas in these parts. It was 65 degrees yesterday and will be near 70 this weekend. It has been a welcome break from the cold. I went walking along the river with friends yesterday. It was the perfect kind of day to soak up sunshine.
6. We are still in Advent, even as we ramp up for Christmas. Our anticipation and joy is building. Some music to remind us to remain in Advent for a few more days.
7. Here is some beauty for your Friday. In the busyness of this time of year, we must stop and savor the wonder around us.
Swimming the Depths 
