Mother Nature is Raining on our Holiday Parade

I am not sure Mother Nature and I are on the same page.  It seems the more we prepare for Christmas, the less "Christmassy" it looks outside.  It is +5 degrees C this evening.  All the snow is gone.  

We are not letting that stop us though; we are plowing forward with holiday hoopla.  

This morning the boys mailed their letters to Santa.

The things kids ask for are so funny.  Seamus got brainwashed this year by the one Christmas catalogue that he managed to get his hands on and is adamant that he wants a "Paw Patrol Meteor".  I have no idea why he calls it this but after some sleuthing I am pretty sure he means a 3 foot plastic model of the Paw Patrol control tower with the dogs and their corresponding vehicles (sold separately, of course).  I am pretty sure this toy is meant for a younger child and it is expensive (!) but, hey, they had Seamus at "it has sounds and lights"... 

Liam, on the other hand, is obsessed with LEGO and he is really good at it.  At age six, he is easily doing sets meant for kids 12+.  This love of LEGO is not bad except that Liam is an "instructions" kind of kid.  He follows the instructions meticulously and builds the model exactly correctly.  There is no room for creativity in Liam's process.  Unfortunately, this means that LEGO sets are kind of a one trick pony even though they are also really expensive.  As soon as the pieces get mixed up or one gets lost, Liam loses interest and the model goes into the massive LEGO tub, our very own island of misfit toys.

While the boys continue dreaming of the toys they hope Santa is making them in his workshop, my farm animals were busy dreaming of a warm, dry bed.  One thing about working on a farm is that you learn to accept that your chores are dictated by Mother Nature.  You shovel snow when she says, you repair fencing when she says and you muck the barns when she says.  Today was warm, which means that the poop that was frozen last week is mucky and yucky today.  A barn mucking was desperately needed to make sure that everyone's living quarters were clean and dry as the rain continues to fall.

The animals were happy to supervise my rainy day in the barnyard activities.  From the kids in their barn to Adstock in his, I was certainly not lonely as I scooped the poop and laid fresh bedding out for all my farm yard friends.

Duke and Luna.

Adstock was very interested in trying to smell the camera.

Mother Nature might be busy raining on everyone's holiday parade, but at least we are not the only ones trying not to let her get us down.  The icing on my cake of today was receiving my own very special Christmas gift in the mail.

Sometimes only your bff knows when you are secretly needing a pick-me-up.  Mine came through for me once again.  Today's package direct from Thunder Bay included: a spectacular handmade table runner matching my butter yellow kitchen, 

Christmas gifts for the boys, a Tupperware of holiday baking and a dozen Persian donuts with their signature tub of pink frosting.  

It was such a kind and thoughtful gesture which I appreciate with my whole heart.

With only a few weeks left, we will keep preparing for the big day while we continue to dream of a white Christmas.  I wonder if Mother Nature will cooperate?