We finally got around to opening up all of the Christmas cards that accumulated while we were vacationing in Florida. It’s fun to see how families change year-to-year – especially for those that we may not pay as much attention to on Facebook. The kids act like each card is a present and celebrate after seeing the pictures. It’s pretty fun!
Karissa celebrated her 32nd birthday this week! We celebrated by going to the Chinese buffet. Karissa let the kids pick where to eat and that’s what they chose…because they like the jello.
Her birthday was also the the start of a new diet – another round of Whole30. We’ve done Whole30 a few times before with great results. Summer usually derails us, and Karissa especially, because it’s so hectic and involves lots of shared meals at the lake house. So I made a Whole30 soup – a vegetable soup with turkey – that we’ll eat for lunches. For dinners, we’ll eat a hunk of meat, sweet potatoes, and some sort of veggies. It’s really not much different from how we normally eat – the restriction on refined sugar is what makes it so hard for Karissa. She loves her Coke!
My brother bought a house while we were gone. It’s a great little home for him and has been recently renovated. But his toilet had a small leak and he felt replacing the whole thing would make him feel better. So he asked me to help replace it. As with all plumbing jobs, it took a few trips to the hardware store, but we got it done and now he has a fresh, clean toilet to enjoy.
It’s been odd readjusting to the darkness/overcast days in Northern Illinois. It’s one thing to be cold, but why does it have to be dark too? It only makes winter even more miserable! We’ve had sunny days maybe twice in the two weeks we’ve been home.
We’ve had snow a few times already. Snow definitely makes the cold seem worth it. It makes the otherwise dead landscape prettier…and reflects what little light there is to make it seem brighter.
