comfort & joy

merry christmas! as i write this i'm sitting in my friend rachael's kitchen enjoying the chill of a low-key holiday. i've just read my email, checked all the blogs i stalk and uploaded holiday pictures from the weekend.

i'm so grateful for my friends and family. we are all broke this year, so gifts were pretty minimal. that's fine by me, i don't need much, and where would i put it all anyway? no, really...it's good that we're all broke at the same time. it's even. i made so many scarves this year! but i'm so grateful for friends and sisters and the love of those God has put in my life. i am truly blessed.

i don't work tomorrow, so i'm still only about half through my holiday. tomorrow i'm hangin' with my sisters, nieces and nephews. i love being an auntie, and four of the seven that call me 'auntie' belong to my sister jenny. i bought the kids a 'children's illustrated history of scotland' so they'll know where auntie sheeberry will be moving next year. not only that, but in my sister's recent research she's found our clan and the history of our scot ancestry, so it's good for the kids to be in touch with their roots. i'm really excited about the gifts for my sisters, brother-in-law and the kids, much of which i picked up on my travels this autumn. i'm just finishing my dad's gift today (shhhh...don't tell) and loving my chilled-out weekend.

these pictures are from the most over-the-top decorated house i've ever seen. it's by rachael's house, so we did a drive-by photo shooting. you can't hear the music they were playing, or see that some of the figures moved. i especially love the outline of carolers behind the nativity scene.