Canadian Christmas [ Part II ]

Feels great to be home, 
[ and by home I mean at Mum and Dad's house in Canada ]
doing nothing in particular, 
getting to sit and write and read.
And simply BE.

I find during regular life, it's all starts and stops.

And I get weary of that.

Get up. Drive to the gym. 
Drive home. 
Get the kids ready for school. 
Drive them to school.

Drive to get groceries and that involves driving to two or more stores, 

depending on the errands at hand.

And then come home and work.

Before I know it, it's time to get back in the car 

and head back to school to pick them up, where I get out of the car,

stand in line to wait for Jackson to come out, 
and then back in the car and back home we go.

And some nights it's driving them to church for youth group 
or Awana or Bible study after supper.

Oh, and then picking them up at the end and bringing them home.

Thankfully Jack often does the evening runs. 

He's a keeper.

I get tired of getting in and out of the car umpteen times a day.

That's all fine and good because that is what our life is right now.

And I'm really not complaining. 
We chose that life. 
And I love our life.

BUT.... 

Come Christmas break, 
this 'lil Canadian gal just wants to BE.

One of the things I love the most is just 

being snuggled up at Mum and Dad's house, 

with not much of an agenda.

Maddie's been using her sewing machine she got from Mum and Dad.

Man, that girl is crafty.

Wearing the pj bottoms she made. She loves all things horses.

 Let's see.
Maybe if we feel like it, go out for a walk.

Or, more importantly, if we feel like it, 

we're in our pj's all day and we feel EXTRA delighted about that.

Maybe we all find a spot in the living room, 

by Mum's beautiful tree and read until the next meal rolls around.

[ This year it's been extra fun because Jackson is a reading machine

these days and he's cozied up, enjoying a good book too. 
VERY rewarding

as a mom, I tell ya.]

They got their bake on.

 
 I'm not willing to call it laziness. 
Because I don't think we are.

We're hard workers, us Corrells and Clarks.

I like to refer to it as this:

We're RELAXED.

Yep. 

Relaxed.
Even Coco chills.

 Today was one of the days where we spontaneously decided

to head out for a walk.

I know, 
we're CRAZY like that.

St. Marys, where Mum and Dad live

[and just as an amazing FYI, 
there is no apostrophe in Marys. 
Is that not the craziest thing you ever did see? 
If the town wasn't so incredibly beautiful and quaint, 
I'd hold it against them. 
That's just some bad grammar goin' on.]

Love my mama!

Coco was getting cranky being cooped up indoors so she came along,

sporting her lovely Christmas-red sweater.

She looks good in red, eh?

The snowflakes were as big as her nose.

I do love big fat fluffy Canadian snowflakes.

If a Canadian finds a patch of frozen water, 

it's time to build a rink.

And play a game of hockey.

I love that about my home country.

  OH, and today is Dad's birthday,

so it's out for steak we go,
to celebrate the birthday boy.

Happy Birthday, Dad!

Love you!