...the month before Christmas

On this 'Christmas Eve'...

let me just give you a wee glimpse into December...

'as it happened' in my corner of the world.

We enjoyed some crisp and clear days...

with views I wouldn't trade.

The sun set far too early for my liking...

and the days seemed too short to fit it all in.

But to have sunshine and clear skies in our valley in December is always a joy!

Every December for the past dozen or so years 

we have taken the pre-school grands on a Christmas outing to 'Dickens Village'.

This year we took our one and only pre-schooler on a solo outing.

Lucy had a fine time watching the train at Little Mountain Garden Centre...

and riding the horse at Dicken's. 

We had lunch out...

and savoured the moments of our last 'pre-school Christmas outing'!

I have so enjoyed watching the doves from the kitchen window all month. 

It seems the majority of the photos that I took this past month were of doves...

so I thought I would share a few with you.

Apparently they are not mourning doves (as I thought)...

but rather a collared turtledove that is new to the area.

The trumpeter swans are not new!

I took this photo while I was out walking one day...

and texted it to my hubby.

I knew he would not be thrilled to see they had taken up residence in one of our fields...

since they do a lot of damage.

December was also the month of concerts and school programs.

Lucy played Mary in her pre-school play...

and a sweet Mary she was!

She took her part very seriously and even sang a solo.

We took in two school concerts in one day...

Ranen played violin...

Micah played bells...

Ryder sang with his class.

They all did a great job!

One cold and rainy night...we took Maggie and Lucy to see the CP Christmas Train in Agassiz.

Though it is quite a sight to see the decked-out train pulling into the station...

by the time it arrived we were a little too wet to muster up much enthusiasm.

The kiddos enjoyed it!

December was filled with parties and dinners and family get-together's.

Our dining room table has been set and re-set several times this month.

The kids and grands will be joining us here soon.

It is always a fun and special time of year!

Wishing you and yours a wonderful Christmas...

full of comfort and joy!