If Samson was a modern guy? This is what he'd say to Delilah

Modest and Warm Nightgowns for the Wood Heated Home

What is it like living in a wood heated home?  Relying only on your wood stove for all your heat?  Or a better question, what happens if your lights and heat go off, or get cut off?  That is happening all over the country right now.  People are either loosing power due to storms for weeks on end, or loosing their power because they cant pay for it anymore.

You start to look at everything differently when you heat with wood.  Drafts and air leaks are ruthlessly sought out and plugged.  Blankets are only bought if they are warm and cozy, not thin or flimsy.  And clothing is viewed through the prism of the cold morning before the fire is started. No ankle socks for us, we want thick knee highs.  Long sleeved shirts are a must.  Down filled comforters and flannel sheets are the only thing we want on our beds.  And as for nightwear there is nothing like a long flannel nightgown that reaches all the way down to your ankles.

But the problem with that is that flannel nightgowns are not exactly fashion forward. It's hard to find affordable 100 % cotton flannel nightwear for children and adults.  For the kids I usually can find really nice flannels at the thrift store in size extra small womens.  They fit my 6 year old daughter just fine and go all the way to the floor because the style now of course is to only come to the knees or mid calf.  Not many people buy them because of course there are few small sized women and even fewer that want flannel nightgowns.

But as for me I wanted something modest, warm, and pretty to wear at night.  So I started searching the net for flannel gowns.  Most I found were "granny gowns" or somewhat ugly.  But I finally did find two places that not only carried 100% cotton flannel gowns (think little house on the prairie) but they were also very attractive yet modest. 

The first was at the Vermont Country Store, which I loved but its very pricey.  I love their stuff though so I will be back when we have more money.

http://www.vermontcountrystore.com/store/?

The next was Sears, they have several very nice long cotton flannel nightgowns that are so soft and warm 100% cotton.  And best of all they are on sale for only $16.00 down from $40.00!

http://www.sears.com/clothing-intimates-sleepwear-robes&Sears_Robes_Gowns/s-1023578?filter=storeOrigin_Style_Style&viewItems=50&sortOption=UNITS_HIGH_TO_LOW

These are what I got and love them.  They are roomy, soft, warm, long, and modest yet pretty.

Ave Maria

I'm Dreaming of a Foggy Christmas?

Since the beginning of December we have been swamped by fog.  No snow but the fog is so heavy that it's been freezing to and frosting the trees, bushes, and pretty much everything else so thick that you would think it had snowed.  The ice formations are really amazing!

Lilac branches with spiky ice

Apple leaves ringed by frozen fog

A thick layer of frost that has dropped from the tree above so thick it looks like snow.

A frosted tree

Viking Boy can't be convinced this isn't snow

Military Bumper Stickers I've Read

BUMPER STICKERS .......

" U.S. Marines - Certified Counselors to the 72 Virgins Dating Club."

" U.S. Air Force - Travel Agents To Allah"

"Stop Global Whining"

"When In Doubt, Empty The Magazine"

Naval Corollary: Dead Men Don't Testify

"The Marine Corps - When It Absolutely, Positively Has To Be Destroyed
Overnight"

"Death Smiles At Everyone - Marines Smile Back"

"Marine Sniper - You can run, but you'll just die tired!"

"What Do I Feel When I Kill A Terrorist? A Little Recoil"

"Marines - Providing Enemies of America an Opportunity To Die For
their Country Since 1775"

"Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Anyone Who Threatens It"

"Happiness Is A Belt-Fed Weapon"

"It's God's Job to Forgive Bin Laden - It's Our Job To Arrange The
Meeting"

"Artillery Brings Dignity to What Would Otherwise Be Just A Vulgar
Brawl"

"One Shot,Twelve Kills - U.S. Naval Gun Fire Support"

"My Kid Fought In Iraq So Your Kid Can Party In College"

"Machine Gunners - Accuracy By Volume"

"A Dead Enemy Is A Peaceful Enemy - Blessed Be The Peacemakers"


"Some people spend an entire lifetime wondering if they made a
difference in the world.

But the U.S. ARMED FORCES don't have that problem."...Ronald Reagan

Teaching Kids Archery

One of the things we try to do as parents is enrich our kids lives with useful skills. Instead of video games how bout some real hand eye coordination?  Instead of "virtual" computer pets our kids have chickens and rabbits in 4-H where they learn about real animals and how to care for them. They learn the correlation between how we care for our animals and then see the rewards in eggs and ribbons for animals in peak condition.  So one of our goals was to buy all our kids bows and arrow setups and teach them how to use them.  My dad taught me and Husband used to compete as a kid.  The kids love to practice and beg to go out much more often then we can actually do it.

Captain Submarine proud of his good shots

Our Target

Princess in Waiting loves to shoot and is amazingly good!

When Santa Comes to a Small Town

Every year in our small town the local movie theater (yes we have one, it has one screen but we feel lucky for even that) puts on a free kids movie before Christmas.  And at the end Santa arrives riding a big red fire truck and distributes goodie bags to all the boys and girls with the help of his "elves" from the volunteer fire department.  It was so fun for the kids and even Viking Boy had a great time.  He was so excited to see Santa!