Who gets the lump of coal this year?

Cougar Creek Frosty

(Frosty does have arms, but they don't show up in the photo.  I think he needs some gloves)

What is left of Frosty after the terrorist attack.

I caught Maggie pulling off  Frosty's buttons  on Christmas morning.   I think she has earned the lump of coal this year.  Usually it belongs to Retired Mountain Man.

Great Christmas Memories

 Yes, I wish I had taken more photos in years past, but I didn't.   It's so easy now with digital cameras.  The first digital photos on the blog are the ones taken in 1998.   

1975

 Jamie gets his "you'll shoot your eye out" BB gun for Christmas

RMN and Uncle Ron

The adults playing with the kids Christmas gift.  Remember this game?  I kept it for years and finally gave it away a few years ago.  I think you can still buy the parts and pieces online.

1978 Loman Cabin Christmas

Collin's 1st Christmas 1998

Collin's favorite Christmas present was the empty cardboard roll from the Christmas wrap.  He could really bang that thing around. 

New Year's Day 2000

 Collin wearing Retired Mountain Man's red hat.

 

2004

Rylee get's her princess dress for Christmas

Three grandkids at Ben's 1st Christmas.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ben was thrilled to find out he had cousins!  Wow!  Kids!  His face lit up every time Collin or Rylee came near him.

Dylan 2010

 Dylan is either playing the guitar or the piano.  Now he also has Maggie to play with.   We do our best to keep him entertained.  Or maybe he is doing his best to entertain us?  I wish I had been there for Dylan's Christmas's when he was a little guy, but I'll take what I can get.

Dylan opens his white elephant gift  2011.

I am looking forward to New Year's Eve and racing down our sled run.

Winter Solstice Celebration Hope Idaho Style

It's was  very special event at the Outskirts Cafe and Gallery in Hope.  We had survived the predicted end of the world and while we are all still very saddened by the the Newtown massacre and the ongoing political division in our country, it was time to celebrate the shortest day of the year and our good fortune to be able to enjoy this special time of the year with our friends and families.

There was great food, wine, a poetry reading from Joe our trombone man, and of course, music with the Cougar Creek Band.  The crowd was very enthusiastic and seemed to really enjoy our music.  Needless to say, the band members loved it.

 I am sorry but I did not take my camera as I it is difficult to play the keyboard and take photos at the same time.  I am hoping someone else has photos they will share with me and I will post them on the blog.  

We have sunshine and thawing temperatures again today and are in serious need of additional snow for the New Year's Eve sledding party. 

I wore my purple boa while we played and Joe sang "Start Wearing Purple".  It seemed appropriate.

Start wearing purple wearing purple
 

Start wearing purple for me now
 

"All your sanity and wits they will all vanish
I promise, it's just a matter of time..."

As a post-menopausal woman, I am very fond of the lines, "All your sanity and wits they will all vanish, it's just a matter of time.   hey hey Hey Hey!"
Oops.  I mean,   "Ho, Ho Ho Ho!"

My answer to the NRA's proposal to have armed guards at every school in America.

1.All semi-automatic weapons need to be banned. The government should buy them from people who already own them and then destroy them. Anyone who is caught with one of these weapons would receive a $10,000-$50,000 fine and an automatic jail sentence, a long one. 

All clips with multiple rounds should also be banned and destroyed.   This law needs to go into effect as soon a possible.  

Concealed weapons should be illegal.

 All other gun purchases must be done with a background check, this would include Gun Shows. No one immediately buys a gun. There must be a waiting period. No exceptions.  

All guns must be registered on a national registry.  This is retroactive.  Anyone who has a gun that is not on the registry will face a fine and/or automatic jail sentence.

2. We need immediate funding for health care for the mentally ill, we need care facilities for them and not a jail cells. Schools need funding to provide additional assistance for students with personality disorders or who are mental health issues. Parents and families of someone who has either of these, need a support system.

3. We need to take a serious look at the violence we are allowing on TV, in movies and video games. 

I believe that this would be a very big start to ending the problem with guns in America.  Semi-automatic weapons and clips with multiple rounds will be legal only for police and military.  

The NRA needs to be stopped.  No more guns and get rid of some of the millions we already have.   

The annual Christmas Tree event on Cougar Creek Road.

This is the one.

 Retired Mountain Man picked out this tree several weeks ago and then flagged it so that we would be able to find it again.   Good thinking.  We put on our snow shoes for the first time this year and we set out to get the Burkhart Christmas Tree 2012.  There is something special about this event.  There is nothing like hiking around in the woods trying to pick out your tree.  Cutting it down (without getting a pile of snow on top of your head or down your neck) and then dragging it back to the house.

 RMM cutting down the tree and then we're off!

 There's only one black and white dog with us this year.  Last year Mollie was still with us.  I miss her.  Maggie supervised the entire operation.

We measured, put on the tree stand and got it in the house to drip-dry on a tarp.  Then it was time to decorate.   There are still some decorating adjustments that need to be made, but it will do for today.  Retired Mountain Man did a great job picking out this tree.  It was a perfect fit for the corner in the living room.

Feliz Navidad!