Our Blog Has Moved!

Fri, 19 Dec 2008 19:27:14 -0600

We have moved our blog over to a new host home. You can now visit us at

The Unsell Family Blog

See you over their friends!

Fiar Ornament Exchange

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 09:28:22 -0600

We participated in the fiar ornament exchange again this year. We love getting ornaments from other homeschool families in the mail. This year we mailed and received from Canada, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Arizona, New York, Virginia, Florida, Colorado, and North Ireland.

The kids made some candy cane ornaments to mail out.

They were scratch off ornaments so each one was made differently.

Here are the ornaments we received.

Armor to represent the story The Duchess Bakes a Cake.

A snowflake to represent Snowflake Bentley.

A horse in honor of Wild Horses of Sweetbriar.

Another snowflake

A really cute snowman

Check out this one! So pretty!

A Snowflake

A boot and hat to represent The Gullywasher

And check out this really fun pizza to represent the book Little Ninos Pizzeria! You can remove the toppings and rearrange them. The kids have had loads of fun with this one!

We had fun pulling out our fiar books that we got ornaments for and reading through them again.

Thank you Linda for once again organizing the exchange!!

“And indeed, what is better than to sit by one’s fireside in the evening with a book, while the wind beats against the window and the lamp is burning?” ~Gustave Flaubert

Pray for Us

Thu, 18 Dec 2008 02:14:51 -0600

We have been hit with a very yucky stomach bug. Bryan and the older kids were out of town over the weekend and seem to have brought it home with them. It started with Houston and Bryan and has now hit Natalie, Camden, and Ally in that order. Annie is saying she doesn’t feel well but hasn’t thrown up yet and I am feeling queasy. Bryan is much sicker than the rest of us- he has all the symptoms of the flu. His body is really aching! Everyone else just seems to have a stomach bug.

It’s not exactly how we had hoped to spend the week before Christmas but what can you do. Please pray that this passes through us quickly and that by some miracle we might all be well by Christmas! The kids are already disappointed that we are needing to postpone some fun Christmas activities this week that they were really looking forward too- and they really really don’t want to be sick on Christmas. We would appreciate your prayers right now.

"Through the Lord's mercies we are not consumed, because His compassions fail not. They are new every morning; great is Your faithfulness." Lamentations 3:22-23

Santa Claus & Charlie Brown

Tue, 16 Dec 2008 21:32:17 -0600

We have never really “done” Santa Claus per say in our home in the sense that we set out the gifts on Christmas morning and tell the kids that Santa brought them. Instead we have always wrapped and sat the gifts out before Christmas and the kids know that the gifts are ones that Bryan and I bought them. Our focus has always been that we buy them gifts in remembrance of the gifts that the wise men brought to baby Jesus. We read books to the kids about the real St. Nicholas and how the tradition of Santa Claus today came about. We have explained to the kids that the Santas you see today in the mall and elsewhere represent the real man that once walked this earth years ago and that people like to play a game this time of year where they pretend that Santa brings them gifts. We really don’t make a huge deal out of not “doing” Santa in our home, nor do we make a huge deal out of how other people “do” Santa in their homes. We don’t sit the kids down and pound it into them every year that Santa Claus is not real, (because technically, he was a real man)-- We don’t take them down to the mall and point to Santa and say “he’s not real”--but when they initiate the questions about him, this is how we have handled/answered them.

I personally think that Christmas is full of soooo much fun and joy and I don’t want to miss out on that fun, nor do I want my kids to miss out. As long as what we do doesn’t take away from Christ being the center of our focus of the season, then we have no problem celebrating various things during this season. We enjoy the many movies about Santa this time of year, our favorite to watch together as a family being Santa Claus with Tim Allen. We even tracked his travels around the world on Christmas Eve a couple of years ago on the net which the kids thought was really fun and hilarious. Their have been some years that the kids have asked to walk up and talk to Santa in the mall or wherever we might be and we certainly don’t have a problem with that. When we were living in TN we attended a Dickens Christmas Festival every year and their was always a sleigh ride with Santa Claus around the town square. Someone would come up and secretly ask one of us parents what each of the kids wanted for Christmas and then share it with Santa before we got onto the sleigh. The first year the kids were pretty young and thought it was soooo cool that “Santa” knew their names and what they wanted. In North Carolina we did a similar sleigh ride with Santa every year and as the kids got older they started having fun trying to guess afterwards how the man in the sleigh knew. Their guesses were pretty funny sometimes like maybe the man dressed up as Santa was actually a friend of ours, or a neighbor, but my all time favorite came from Emmy one year who announced to everyone that it must be Jesus who told the man what they wanted for Christmas because Jesus knows everything! We have had some years where a particular child has asked to bake cookies for Santa and we have had a ball doing so. Do you remember Natalies Rudolph cookies last year?

I personally, think the real story of St. Nicks life is pretty incredible. What a great example to us all that his life can be in helping out those that are less fortunate than us! We have two books, one on his life story, that we read to the kids every year.

We always have a day in our home when we celebrate St. Nick. We try to do this on December 6th which actually is St. Nicks Day but we don’t always get around to doing it on the actual day every year. Non-the-less, one day in our home in December is set aside to enjoy and read about St.Nicholas each year. We know many families that give their children their stockings to open on St. Nicks Day but Bryan and I have always enjoyed saving the kids stockings for Christmas morning- so we have never joined in that St. Nicks day tradition.

This year we surprised the kids with a special St. Nick breakfast.

Santa Pancakes! They loved these!

We also made some Santa handprint ornaments which I thought turned out really cute!

Emmy has reached that point where she has more fun helping Camden make his crafts than doing one herself. She always asks if she can help him do his. It’s so sweet!

On a different note, are their any other Hallmark Channel lovers out their?? I love love love the Christmas movies on the Hallmark Channel during the Christmas season. We have enjoyed some favorites from last year and as always have really enjoyed some of the newer ones that premiered this year. We are big Full House fans here in our home and the girls love Candace Cameron Bure who played DJ in Full House. She is a Christian, in case you didn’t know, and has a blog that the girls like to read and follow! We therefore loved her movie this year with Tom Arnold, Moonlight and Mistletoe!

Another one that I really enjoyed watching this past week was “The Most Wonderful Time of the Year” with Henry Winkler. To me it was just what I have come to love and expect in a Hallmark Christmas movie. We love alot of movies in December, not just Hallmark ones. I was pleasantly surprised at how good A Dennis the Menace Christmas was. I thought it was far better than the other movies about him. I also love Christmas with the Kranks every year (were big Tim Allen fans around here). and it would be wrong to not mention The Grinch- because we always enjoy watching him. I actually hate Jim Carey movies but I thought he was great in the Grinch. I also love Snowglobe and this year it sparked a conversation with the girls about how fun it would be if we could jump into a snowglobe and actually experience it. We can’t seem to look at snowglobes now without commenting on that and the girls have asked for a snowglobe for our home. If you see any really pretty ones (like with a Christmas Village in them) let me know!! We enjoy the classics, Frosty, Rudolph, and Santa Claus is coming to town, but two all time family favorites in our home are Polar Express and A Charlie Brown Christmas. In fact we love Charlie Brown so much that I surprised the kids with the book this year.

Our neighbors across the street put up one of those huge Christmas balloons in their yard this year and it’s Charlie Brown and Snoopy. Camden got soooo excited the first time he saw it. It’s huge and really fun! He has really enjoyed watching the Charlie Brown cartoons this Christmas. It’s the first year he has really gotten into them.

After watching A Charlie Brown Christmas on tv we made some wooden Christmas Tree ornaments. They reminded us of Charlie Browns Tree at the end of the show when everyone decorates it and makes it pretty.

I also enjoy Deck the Halls and Chevy Chases’ Christmas Vacation, though the kids are not allowed to watch those.

This past Saturday we enjoyed a special treat. If you use Fiar then you are familiar with the book Cranberry Thanksgiving. We watched for the very first time Cranberry Christmas on tv. It was FANTASTIC!!!! The kids loved watching the characters come to life on our tv, especially Mr. Whiskers.

This coming Saturday has been declared a Christmas movie day in our home. Have you seen the list of Christmas movies that are playing Saturday? Many based on some of our favorite Christmas children’s books. We look forward to watching Babushka’s Christmas, A Very Brady Christmas (because we are all Brady bunch fans- I have even converted Bryan through the years LOL), Little House- Bless All the Dear Children, Christopher the Christmas Tree, The Waltons Christmas special (LOVE the Waltons) Davey and Goliath Christmas Lost and Found, Miss Patty Cake’s Christmas, Mickey’s Christmas Carol, Alabaster’s Song, Hermie & Friends Fruitcake Christmas, Sliver Bells, The Legend of the Candy Cane (we love this story and can’t wait to see the movie!!), Christmas on Chestnut Street (we love this story/book!) The Candy Maker’s Christmas, Mary and Joseph, a story of Faith, Once Upon a Stable, and we are highly anticipating the premiere of Christmas in Wonderland with Patrick Swayze.

And last but not least, I can’t close without saying how much I am looking forward to watching White Christmas and A Christmas in Connecticut next week.

What are some of your favorite Christmas movies? Do you enjoy the Hallmark Channel movies to?

Celebrating The Christmas Tree

Sun, 14 Dec 2008 17:09:55 -0600

I always like to do some special craft and foods when we put up our Christmas tree. One of our favorite books to read on the Christmas Tree is this one.....

It’s a great story that tells a little about the history of Christmas trees, how they used to be decorated throughout history, and relates their three corners to the trinity.

This year we made some Christmas Tree Rice Krispie Treats. We shaped Rice Krispie Treats into Christmas Trees and then sprinkled them with green sugar and we added some powdered sugar to a few to make a “snow Christmas tree”.

We also made some Christmas tree sugar cookies.

And we couldn’t resist making a few stocking ones too.

I love this picture!

We made some 3D Christmas trees.

These were really fun! I couldn’t resist making one myself. Each tree had a huge sheet of stickers to chose from to decorate your Christmas tree with and their were several themes on each sheet of stickers. It was fun because you could do each side of your tree different. The kids really had fun with these.

Can you guess from this picture what Camdens favorite sticker to put on his tree was? ;-)

The younger kids also enjoyed creating a Christmas tree on paper using stickers.

"And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper." Psalms 1:3

An Early Gift

Sat, 13 Dec 2008 11:07:26 -0600

It’s really hard when you are two years old to keep your hands off of the beautiful nativity set, especially with all of those cool animals in it. I must say Camden has done really well but you can see in his face how badly he wants to play with the sheep and cows as he admires them. We surprised him with an early Christmas present this past week.

I love this picture.

This is a really cool nativity set for kids to play with. Bryan and I found it, of all places, at Walmart on the clearance isle in November. I love it because it has some things in it that most nativities do not have- like a camel.

Camden is really taking in the Christmas story this year. It’s exciting to watch him as we read our books and talk about it. I just love the wonder of the Christmas story through a young child’s eyes!

Ally loves the angels

"Then Mary said, 'Behold the maidservant of the Lord! Let it be to me according to your word.'" Luke 1:38

Dunder & Blixem ??

Fri, 12 Dec 2008 12:17:43 -0600

So the saying goes that you learn something new everyday and today, I learned something new. I learned that all these years I have been wrong. What am I speaking of? What is Dunder and Blixem? No, it’s not a new name for Dunder Mifflin. (Only you Office fans will understand that). Why..........it’s 2 of Santa’s beloved reindeer.......didn’t you know that?!! I can’t say that I did. My friend Michele set me straight though.

Go ahead....name Santa’s Reindeer.

You know Dasher and Dancer,
and Prancer and Vixen;
Comet and Cupid,
and Donner and Blitzen........

But did you know......... that Donner and Blitzen were NOT the original names of those reindeer? It’s true! Their original or perhaps we should say “real” names are Dunder & Blixem. If you would like to read more you can do so HERE. It’s a pretty interesting read.

As I think about this I am not really sure that I will ever be able to call Santa’s Reindeer by their correct names, nor do I really want too. I have been saying them wrong for toooooo many years now. Donner and Blitzen are so engraved into my brain.....I just don’t think theirs any turning back. For one, it wouldn’t sound right to me! I also think Donner just sounds better when you are singing it. What about you? It reminds me of an email I got a few years back from my dad’s cousin. She shared with me that I had been mis-spelling her name all these years. Well, after so many years of spelling it a certain way....I just can’t seem to remember to spell it the right way. Habits are hard to break.

So..... in our home......Donner and Blitzen will live on. Hopefully Santa won’t hold it against us now that we know the truth. I guess we will find out come Christmas morning. Truth be told......Rudolph has always been my favorite anyways.

PS- if your looking for Christmas movies to watch this year check out the schedule on THIS SITE!

Christmas Parade

Thu, 11 Dec 2008 13:56:13 -0600

We attended our local Christmas parade on Monday night with friends. It was cold yet fun and it was the longest Christmas parade that I think we have ever been too. My favorite part was listening to Camdens commentary as the floats and people went by. He really seemed to enjoy the whole thing.

Christmas Parade 2008

Christmas Came Early

Tue, 9 Dec 2008 22:14:01 -0600

Christmas Came Early this past week for Houston. One of Bryans friends, Tony Zaragoza, who lives in San Diego, used to be in the Light Infantry in the army. When he found out how much Houston loves the army and how interested he is in it, he mailed him a few surprises from his time in the army.

In the first package was two army hats.

In the second package was a couple of army shirts

In the third package was an army belt that holds a flashlight and canteen/cup.

And in the last package was some army pants. Houston was very excited and kept saying “how cool” as he looked over everything!

Our Army man.

Thank you Tony!! You really made Houstons day!

Mondays Simple Woman's Daybook

Mon, 8 Dec 2008 11:52:48 -0600

For today . . . .
Some school, some reading, some Christmas books and crafts, some cleaning and laundry, and a Christmas parade tonight!

Outside My Window...
While sitting on my couch looking out of my living room window I can see a beautiful white horse in the pasture outside the barn, on the farm behind our home.

I am thinking...
that December is going by too fast!

I am thankful for...
Advent. It’s my favorite part of December!

From the kitchen...
Emmy made breakfast this morning. She made muffins. For lunch we are having some Taco Melts which I made on Saturday for our gathering with friends for the Alabama/Florida football game. They were a hit!

Taco Melts

1 package (1 oz) Old El Paso® taco seasoning mix
2/3 cup water
1 lb lean (at least 80%) ground beef, cooked, drained
1 can (16.3 oz) Pillsbury® Grands!® refrigerated biscuits (any variety- but the kind with the cheese in the biscuits are really good!)
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend

DIRECTIONS
Heat oven to 375°F. In medium saucepan cook ground beef, drain, and add seasoning and water. Mix well. Press each biscuit into 6-inch round. Fill each with taco mixture and 1 tablespoon cheese. Fold dough over filling and press to seal with a fork. Place on greased cookie sheet. Bake 9 to 14 minutes or until golden brown.

For dinner it will be beef and bean burritos tonight....quick and easy before we head out to the parade.

I am wearing...
Right now I am wearing my red pajama pants with pink polk-a-dots on them and my pink tee shirt and white house shoes. I will take a shower later this afternoon when we get ready to leave for the parade.

I am creating...
a cozy home. Or at least I am trying. I’m also working on putting together our December photo album- so check out the link above.

I am going...
to maybe bake some cookies to take to the parade tonight? We will see if I have time this afternoon.

I am reading...
A Currier & Ives Christmas. It contains 4 Christmas stories that relate to the famous Currier & Ives Art. If your looking for a beautiful Christmas read this year.....this book is just that.

I am hoping...
That we can find easy parking tonight for the parade.

I am hearing...
Not much right now. The kids are pretty quiet.

Around the house...
everything is all decorated for Christmas. Presents are wrapped and under the tree. Christmas cards are laying out and half addressed. I need to finish printing pictures to put in them.

One of my favorite things...
Christmas. It’s my favorite holiday.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week:
Finish up our Christmas cards and get them mailed out. Our church Christmas party on Wednesday night. A live nativity on Thursday night. 3 days of school work. Christmas readings and crafts. And a possible weekend trip out of town for Bryan at the end of the week? We are looking forward to watching Frosty The Snowman on Friday night.

Picture(s) of the Day:

This was Houstons Christmas outfit when he was 2. I managed to save it all these years and it’s so fun (and special) to see Camden in it now.

"Let your speech always be gracious, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how you ought to answer each person." ~Colossians 4:6

Chugga Chugga Choo Choo!

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 22:41:33 -0600

For years now, Bryan and I have wanted to get the kids a train to go around the Christmas tree but every year Christmas rolled around and we either didn’t have the money to spend on one or didn’t want to spend the money on one. It dawned on us this year that if we were ever going to get one that we really needed to this year. The older kids are getting pretty old and Camden is at the perfect age to really enjoy one. So we broke down and finally got our train to go around our tree. We were blessed to find one marked half off! Gotta love those before Christmas sales!

Bryan setting up the tracks

Camden checking out the train for the first time

Naming each character

Can you tell he was very excited!

Anticipation.......

Waving to Mickey

One Thousand Gifts- 5

Sun, 7 Dec 2008 21:47:58 -0600

Family Traditions
Baking with my children
Anticipation of Christmas Day
A Savior that came to earth
Christmas movies
Memories
Pictures of my children
Cold weather
Anticipation of Christmas events
Christmas through the eyes of my 2 year old!
Time with friends
A warm home
Our Christmas tree all lit up at night when the lights in the house are off.
Christmas stories
New books to read
New food magazines to enjoy
My new book- A Currier & Ives Christmas
Our Advent wreath
Advent devotionals every night
A new Advent book to read with the kids
Hope in Jesus
Giving gifts
Unexpected blessings
Hot cocoa and tea to drink on cold nights
Watching my children enjoy time with their friends
The smell of our Christmas tree
Poetry
Christmas Carols
Old Hymns
Watching our young children learn about the nativity story

"Blessed be the Lord, who daily loads us with benefits, the God of our salvation!" Psalm 68:19

Our Christmas Tree ~ All Decked Out!

Sat, 6 Dec 2008 21:09:46 -0600

In our home you won’t find a fancy designer tree. I don’t like them very much. Don’t get me wrong- I think they are very pretty but they just don’t seem to have much meaning to them. They seem like just another nick knack sitting around the house to me. In our home, our tree couldn’t be farther from a designer tree if it tried. In our home, our tree is full of simple white lights and in our home our tree is full of memories. Each ornament hung has a story to be told about it. Their are the ornaments the kids made a few years back. Or the ornaments they made in Sunday School when they were two. Their are gingerbread ornaments that my family has mailed me over the years, knowing my love for them. Their are the ornaments that MeMe and Larry have mailed to the kids each year since their births with their names and that years date hand painted on each one. Their are the ornaments from our Fiar Ornament exchange each year.....the ones that represent those stories and families that are so dear to us. Theirs those couple of ornaments that represent the start of our marriage when our first Christmas tree was pretty bare looking. Their are those ornaments that represent the kids first Christmas’. Their are the ornaments that my mom passed onto me when we first got married.....the ones from my own childhood- ones that remind me of her, my dad, and my brother and our times growing up. Their are even ornaments that have passed over the ocean to reach us throughout the years- the ones from friends in China, Scotland, and Japan. Their are the ornaments that the kids were given as gifts in our ornament swap with homeschool friends in Tennessee. Their are ornaments that represent the various places that our family has lived. Their are the homemade ornaments we have made each year. Their are ornaments that the kids have made in secret and wrapped up to surprise Bryan and I with on Christmas morning and their are ornaments that represent different periods in the kids lives and the things they loved during those years.

Our tree is very full of ornaments and I love every single ornament hanging on our tree. Each one is special and so when we pull out that box of ornaments each year and begin to hang them on our tree....we are not just decorating a Christmas tree. We are walking down memory lane. We are remembering God’s grace and love in our lives....we are remembering friends and family members........we are remembering all of those special people and moments that our ornaments represent. I love our Christmas tree and what it represents. I love it because it is our story....it represents our life as a family together!

As each year passes more and more ornaments are added that represent us and tell our story. Our tree is pretty loaded down....the branches hang and droop from the weight....but our tree never complains for it seems to understand it’s purpose. It seems to understand it’s importance in our home. It seems to understand that it is holding a lifetime of love!

If you would like to view some pictures from our tree decorating time then
CLICK HERE!

Christmas Cookie Exchange ~ Blog Style!

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 18:16:48 -0600

I thought I would try something new this year and if it goes over well, then maybe just maybe, we can make it a yearly blog tradition. After all, blogs need traditions too, right!

Since we cannot all get together in real life and have a Christmas Cookie exchange party I thought it might be fun to host one via my blog. Starting today I am welcoming anyone that wants to share their favorite Christmas cookies......one recipe or multiple......it doesn't matter. And this doesn’t have to be limited to just cookies. Fudge, candy, or other recipes that you enjoy making at Christmas are very welcome too! Just share your favorites on your blog and then come back here and leave a comment on this post sharing your blog address in the comment so that others can visit and see your favorite recipes post. If you would direct link to your cookie post when you leave your blog address in the comments below that would help people from having to find the post when they reach your blog.

And remember- their is no limit to how many times you can share. We want all the cookie recipes we can get our hands on! If their is something extra special about your recipe (passed down from a family member, won an award, who gave you the recipe, etc.) be sure and share about that too.

Be sure and direct link back here to this post in your blog post so that others reading your blog can easily reach this post and share in all of the recipe fun too.

Oh- and if you are reading this and do not have a blog....... leave your favorite Christmas cookie recipes in the comment section below. ;-)

I’ll kick us off with a few of our favorite Christmas cookie recipes that we make every single Christmas. We love to make Christmas cookie trays for our neighbors, friends, and the kids teachers at church. Here are a few recipes you are guaranteed to find on our cookie trays every year.

Peanut Butter Crackles

1 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1/8 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup margarine or butter
1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
1/2 cup sugar
1/2 cup brown sugar
1 egg
1 tsp vanilla
granulated sugar

1 bag of Chocolate hershey kisses

In a bowl, combine flour, baking soda, and salt. In a large bowl beat
margarine and peanut butter well. Beat in sugars until blended. Beat in eggs
and vanilla. Add flour mixture and mix well. Shape dough into 1 inch balls
and roll in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on greased cookie sheets. Bake in 375
oven 10 minutes or until lightly browned. Remove from oven and quickly
press 1 hershey kiss into each cookie. Cookie will crack a little when you do
this. (We like to use the dark chocolate hershey kisses). Cool completely.

Gingersnap Cookies

1 cup white sugar
3/4 cup butter, shortening or margarine, softened
1/4 cup molasses
1 egg
2 cups flour
2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cinnamon
1/2 tsp ginger
1/4 tsp cloves

In large bowl combine first 4 sugar, margarine, molasses and egg. Blend well.
Stir in remaining ingredients and blend well. Chill dough for easier handling. Lightly grease (not oil) cookie sheets. Heat oven to 375 degrees F. Shape dough into 1 inch balls, roll balls in sugar. Place 2 inches apart on prepared cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 8 - 10 minutes or until edges are set. Cool 1 - 2 minutes before removing from cookie sheet.

Melt-in-your-Mouth Sugar Cookies

1 1/2 cups powdered sugar
1 cup butter or margarine, softened
1 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
2 1/2 cups all purpose flour
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon cream of tartar

Beat together sugar, butter, vanilla, extract, and egg in large bowl. Stir in flour, baking soda, and cream of tartar. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours. Heat oven to 375. Grease cookie sheet. Divide dough in half. Roll out each half to 1/4 inch thickness on lightly floured surface. Cut into desired shapes with cookie cutters. Place 2 inches apart on baking sheet and bake 7-8 minutes or until edges are a light brown. Cool and decorate with your favorite frosting.

I have tried quit a few sugar cookie recipes and this is my all time favorite!

Minty Middle Treasures

1/2 cup sugar
1/4 cup brown sugar
1/2 cup butter or margarine, softened
1/2 teaspoon vanilla
1 egg
1 2/3 cup flour
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/4 teaspoon salt
about 2 dozen foil wrapped rectangular chocolate andes mints, unwrapped
Powdered sugar frosting and colored sugar or sprinkles for decorating

Heat oven to 400. Beat sugars, butter, vanilla, and egg together. Stir in flour, baking soda, and salt. Shape about 1 Tablespoon of dough around each mint. Place 2 inches apart on ungreased cookie sheet. Bake 9-11 minutes or until light brown. Cool, frost, and decorate.

And just to add to the fun I thought we would have a drawing at the end of the month (December 31st) to give away a free cookbook. Everyone that participates in the cookie exchange will be entered into the drawing and I will let you know via your blog (or email if I have it) if you win! I will post the winner here on our blog too.

And just because I love you ALL so much I just have to share this promotion with you where you can get a free cookie cutter right now. Choices are a bow, gingerbread house, or snowman!

Just Click Here!

Happy Christmas Baking Everyone!

All Lit Up!

Thu, 4 Dec 2008 15:48:49 -0600

The first stage of our decking of our Christmas Tree “Holly” was of course, the lights. Bryan is the light streamer in our home.

Camden was fascinated with the lights.

All Lit Up.......

A Heavenly Tree

There Will Be Less Someday

There will be less someday--
much less,
and there will be More;
less to distract and amuse;
More to adore
less to burden and confuse
More, to undo
the cluttering of centuries,
that we might view again,
That which star and angels pointed to;
we shall be poorer--
and richer;
stripped--and free:
for always there will be a Gift
always a Tree.

~Ruth Bell Graham

"Walk as children of light (for the fruit of the Spirit is in all goodness, righteousness, and truth), finding out what is acceptable to the Lord." Ephesians 5:8b-10

O' Christmas Tree!

Wed, 3 Dec 2008 17:37:47 -0600

It is a tradition in our family to put up our Christmas tree the week after Thanksgiving. When we used to use an artificial tree we always put it up the weekend after Thanksgiving. Now that we are buying a real tree each year, we have been putting the tree up sometime during the week after Thanksgiving. This greatly anticipated event took place yesterday for us. Bryan took off early and we headed out bundled up in jackets and excitement ready to find the perfect tree for us. We had hoped to make it out to a farm this year to cut down our own tree but circumstances didn’t allow it and so we headed down to the lot that we bought our tree at last year. It was cold which of course is all part of the fun!

I’m not sure what was more fun for the kids.......picking out our tree or running around the lot playing hide and seek among all of the trees.

On the drive home Bryan suggested we name our Christmas Tree. Of course this sent off a list of suggestions of which everyone agreed that Holly would be a great name and the girls insisted that our tree must therefore be a girl! ;-)

The rest of the drive back home held Christmas Carols from the back seats, some a bit off cue, but the most beautiful singing that we have ever heard.

And alas we pulled into our driveway after a quick spin through the neighborhood to see the new light displays that our neighbors put up this week.

We quickly moved the table and photo frames that sit on it out of the hallway by the front door and Bryan began the transfer of our tree from car to home.

“Here Holly Comes!”

And here sits Holly- 9 feet tall- smelling beautiful- and happy to finally have a home after her long journey from North Carolina to Alabama (yes- that is what the tag said). We assured her that she would be happy in our home since we knew all about her home state where she grew up. ;-) She was even more happy later in the evening when we decked her with beauty, love, and sweet memories.

What is this thing we call a Christmas Tree? How can this symbol of Christmas be glorifying to our Savior and how can it remind us of all He has done for us?

THE FOUNDATION
Just as the foundation of our Christmas tree must be strong, & solid. Likewise, our faith must have a strong foundation in Christ.

2 Timothy 2:19
Nevertheless the foundation of God standeth sure,
having this seal. The Lord knoweth them that are
his. And, let everyone that nameth the name of Christ
depart from iniquity.

LIGHTS
They remind us that Jesus is the Light of The World.

John 8:12
Then spake Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world;
he that followeth me shall not walk in darkness,
but shall have the light of life.

ORNAMENTS
We put the ornaments on our tree to make it pretty, to glorify it. The ornaments remind us that our lives should be ones that glorify Christ.

1 Corinthians 6:20
For ye are bought with a price; therefore glorify God
in your body, and in your spirit, which are Gods.

As the ornaments on our tree reflect the light, so our lives should reflect the light of the world, Jesus Christ.

Matthew 5:16
Let your light so shine before men,
that they may see your good works,
and glorify your Father which is in heaven.

GARLAND
As we wrap the garland around my tree, we are reminded that Christ wrapped Himself in humanity for us.

John 1:14
An the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us,
and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten
of the Father, full of grace and truth.

ANGEL
While some put a star on top of their tree, we have an angel on ours. It reminds us of the angel that announced the greatest event of all time, the birth of our Savior.

Luke 2:10,11
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold,
I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day, in the city of David,
a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

As we stand and look at our tree, we are reminded ...
Galatians 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree:
Thank you dear Jesus!

Scenes From Our Unsell Family Thanksgiving

Tue, 2 Dec 2008 23:31:51 -0600

We had a quiet and restful Thanksgiving 2008. Here is a picture album that I put together from our celebration this year. Enjoy!

Unsell Family Thanksgiving 2008

"Behold, the eye of the Lord is on those who fear Him, on those who hope in His mercy." Psalm 33:18

Mondays Simple Woman's Daybook

Mon, 1 Dec 2008 21:55:53 -0600

For today . . . .
The kids and I are cleaning house, doing math and reading lessons, several loads of laundry, and then decking our halls!

Outside My Window...
It’s cooooold! Overcast, windy, rainy day. A stay inside, curl up under blankets, hot chocolate kind of a day.

I am thinking...
that it’s funny that 3 people that were in my highschool graduating class in Bakersfield, CA have turned up here in Birmingham, Alabama. It’s a small world. I found out thanks to Facebook.

I am thankful for...
Christmas movies. Have I ever mentioned how much I love Hallmark Christmas movies? ;-)

From the kitchen...
For Breakfast I am giving these a try. I think the kids will like them.

Bacon Quiche Biscuit Cups

5 slices bacon
1 (8-oz.) pkg. cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons milk
2 eggs
2 oz. (1/2 cup) shredded Mexican blend cheese
1 (12-oz.) can Pillsbury® Golden Layers® Refrigerated Biscuits

Heat oven to 375°F. Spray 10 muffin cups with nonstick cooking spray. In medium skillet, cook bacon until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Crumble bacon; set aside. Meanwhile, beat cream cheese in small bowl until smooth. Gradually add milk and eggs, beating at low speed until smooth. Stir in cheese. Set aside. Separate dough into 10 biscuits. Press or roll each to form 5-inch round. Place 1 biscuit round in each sprayed muffin cup; firmly press in bottom and up sides, forming 1/4-inch rim. Place half of bacon in bottom of dough-lined muffin cups. Spoon cheese mixture evenly into cups. Bake at 375°F. for 21 to 26 minutes or until filling is set and edges of biscuit cups are golden brown. Sprinkle each with remaining bacon; lightly press into filling. Remove biscuit cups from pan.

For lunch it will be chicken nuggets with ranch dressing and chopped apples.
For dinner Taco Salad.

I am wearing...
Cotton pants and shirt and my fuzzy house shoes.

I am creating...
my blog post/photo page from our Thanksgiving celebration.

I am going...
to watch The Grinch Stole Christmas tonight with Bryan and the kids.

I am reading...
Still reading When you Rise Up.

I am hoping...
That it snows this winter. I have seen snow showers on the weather report twice so far and it’s only December 1st. ;-)

I am hearing...
Christmas music and 6 happy children!

Around the house...
lay bins of Christmas stuff that need unpacking and a huge pile of laundry that needs to be done. I got really behind in laundry over the Thanksgiving Holiday.

One of my favorite things...
My Camera. It’s a really nice one. Bryan bought it for me this time 3 years ago.

A Few Plans For The Rest Of The Week:
Christmas movies, Christmas music, tree farm to chop down our Christmas tree, baking Christmas cookies with the kids for their Pioneer Club teachers, our last small group meeting until January, Christmas crafts, and readings.

Picture(s) of the Day:

Natalie, Camden, and Annie all got haircuts this past week. For the first time EVER I gave Natalie bangs, per her request. We cut some length off of her hair as well. I think she looks older with the bangs. What do you think?

Camden looks so old to me in this picture. I found these Mickey Christmas PJ’s for him when I was Christmas shopping and knew he would love them. I was right. He no longer wants to wear his other pajamas but asks for his Mickeys every night.

I cut an inch and a half off of the back of Annies hair and look how long it still is! She has always had very long hair. Thick hair too which she gets from me. At the age of 2 her hair was already down to her rear end. ;-)

To view other daybooks, visit Peggy’s blog!