New Years Eve

We decided to repeat our COVID era New Years parties but change up the theme this year from Supper Club to 50's!  The group was the same; us, Erin/Nate, Dan, and Chris and Ro - but, sadly, Chris ended up with COVID on New Years Eve morning so our group shrunk and we lost the one kid the kids had to play with - wah wah wah!  

We opted for 50's themed appetizers instead of a full on meal.  We had deviled eggs, homemade Chex mix, mini-tea sandwiches, a cheese ball (which was SO SO good and I think I might have to repeat again soon), a charcuterie board (maybe that's not so 50's)....cheese fondue, Jello jigglers and of course a delicious punch!

EVERYONE wore costumes, the kids included.  I mean...how cute are they!?  It was super fun to get all dressed up (though I wish my pants were one size bigger - lol!).  The kids loved being part of the action with their cute little poodle skirts (thanks for the idea Jamie).  I'm angling to do 50's theme for Halloween next year :)

Without other kids to play with our kids were pretty bored of the whole evening by about 8pm.  In my defense, I didn't have any activities planned for them because I assumed they'd have Ro to play with.  So, when the wheels started to come off we pulled out the paper lanterns and spent some time writing down or goals and aspirations for 2023.  

I love the kid's lanterns so so much!  There are some real gems in there if you can read the tiny print.  Of course Haze's featured a bunny.  

We sent our lanterns off into the night - for next time, remember to just use the wood torch (the lighter took forever).  We had the kids in bed by 9:30, around the time the adults decided we needed one more round of food and Erin and I whipped up the homemade fondue.  Why not!?

We're proud to say that we all made it to mid-night!  Though, I think I was in bed by 12:30 at the latest.  While I've been loving our low key parties for the past few years, I think next year I'm ready to do something different....maybe a lake New Years again with all the cousins?  Maybe plans to go out out?  I guess we have a year to figure it out - and shoot....maybe I'll decide soft clothes are better than party clothes and change my tune by then.  HA!

2022 - you were a great year overall.  Lots and lots of travel and lots of memories.  Lots of time with the people we love the most.  Lots of goals achieved and we have lots of dreams for the year ahead.  

Christmas

 

This year's Christmas was one filled with family and lots of time just hanging around at the house.  The holiday's fell on a Sunday so we ended up with the Monday after off and I've decided that that's my favorite way for them to fall!  It's so lovely having the Monday off after all the hub-bub and excitement.

The kids worked long and hard on this cardboard house - I got it at Target right before Thanksgiving and they colored on it for the entire month leading up to Christmas.  We finally assembled it a day or two before and they now use it for a restaurant/store/fort.  (A good purchase!)

Our normal Christmas Eve plans changed this year when Tim and Lynda ended up driving to New York to be with cousin Ally who was in a bad car accident a week or two before.  So, for the first time in a LONG LONG time, we attended Christmas Eve service at church.  It's hard to tell if the website was wrong, or if plans changed because of the cold that evening, but what we thought was a 4pm service at the Methodist church turned out to be an empty parking lot, so we pivoted really quick and joined Dan at the Catholic church just down the road.  No matter the religion it was nice to sit there quietly in a packed church and to remember the reason for celebrating.  I'm hoping we try to incorporate church into our lives a little more in 2023.  

The sunset and moon on our way home from church was impossible to capture in a photo, but I tried.  

No Christmas Eve party plans meant we also had time to make a beautiful Christmas Eve dinner.  Erin had the great idea of doing short ribs which I don't think I've ever made before.  Just writing about them makes me want to make them again.   I think I might put them on the menu here for a weekend night sometime soon.  Erin stayed back and manned the kitchen and the caramelized onion risotto while the rest of us went to church.  It was SO SO SO good!

The kids made up Santa's cookie plate and this sweet note for him and we tucked the kids in bed and put on a Christmas movie.  Mom and Dad spent Christmas at Joey's this year, so it was just the 6 of us (plus the two dogs).  A quite holiday but still so much fun.  

Santa came!!  And we all got everything we ever wanted.  The "hottest" gifts of the year for Hazel were "my robot dog and my joke book".  Abby says her favorite were "my Dog Man book and my journal set".  We got the kids new camping chairs and an outdoor ninja set line (which I highly doubt they will use as much as they think they will) and a new sled.  Now all we need is some snow!  

One of my favorite gifts was the new bird feeder holder Ryan made me (you can see it here propped up against the deck railing).  It's since been dug into the place where the old feeder was - but the best part about this one is that it's squirrel proof!  At least for now.  I love my feeders so much (sheesh that makes me sound old).  I love watching the birds outside the basement window as I work.  They have become a real conversation piece as we sit at the dinner table chatting with friends etc.  

In the days between Christmas and New Years we traveled to see nearly all of our local friends - another friend each night.  We managed to see Nichole and Matt, Betsy and Pat, Lauren and Brian and Jamie and Zach!  It was busy but so nice to catch up with everyone.  Ryan even snuck in a day at Mom and Dad's helping to get a roof on the new cabin they are building for the kids in the woods.  And that swung us right into New Years and another holiday meal!

1 Family x 12 (December)

 

Merry Christmas from my family to yours!

Love, 

The McGraths

Family Christmases

 

Like most families, the holidays for us are a busy time and filled with lots of get togethers, parties and hang outs.  Each year we have 2 or 3 "Christmases" leading up to the real thing on the 25th.  This year we celebrated Murphy Christmas the second weekend in December.  It was the first big family part of the season and the first presents the kids received which of course makes it extra special.  

We even got a visit from SANTA!!  The kids are pretty sure it's just Uncle Mike dressed up, but I'm not so sure...he sure looks like the real Santa to me.  Though, he is a pretty busy guy this time of year...so maybe it is Uncle Mike helping him out for the afternoon?  Hard to say!

(Not technically a family Christmas, but how could I not document this sweet note Hazel wrote!?  I need quiet too baby girl, me too.).  And also, I wish that you would not fite (fight) with your sister either.  By Hazel, age 7.  

Christmas #2 was Ritterbusch Christmas this past weekend.  Look at all those sweet faces!!  These were the cousin's gifts, what they picked out for each other.  Some of the biggest hits were, family footwear (it was the Christmas of Crocs, slippers and boots), Roblox bucks, the sweetest little bunny family and house (for Hazel), giant squishamellows, and an Old Fashioned smoking kit (for me).  Mom and Dad will be spending Christmas eve/day with Joey's family this year so we'll be missing them lots and lots on real Christmas.  

5 more sleeps til Christmas!  Today is the kids last day of school, there's a big snow storm headed our way on Thursday and it'll all be here before we know it.  I sure hope those last few things get here in time (fingers crossed!).  

Fall Crafts

 

It's that time again!  Time for a quick recap of what I've been churning out lately.  Up first, is this beautiful yarn that I turned into a replacement blanket for my god-daughter, Stella.  Way back when she was born I knit her up a blanket out of the prettiest yarn.  But...I didn't have an exact pattern AND the yarn I bought was final run.  So, when my blanket started looking a little small, there wasn't much I could do to fix it.  It wasn't perfect, but she was tiny way back then...so I gifted it anyways.  Then, a few years later when her sister Lucy came along, I made her exactly the opposite.  A blanket I had planned to be "baby" size turned out to be "big person" size.  Much LARGER than I expected.  

Anyways, long story short, I decided it was time to put something on the needles for Stella.  Time to get her something that'll last her a lot longer.  I just love this yarn so much - I've probably spent millions on her site over the years (ok, not millions).  The yarn is from a company called Spun Right Round and if you like variegated yarn, give her a try.  I love it so much.

Because I didn't use a pattern, and I know someday I'll wish I'd written it down - here's the run down.  

I knit this 40x50 blanket using 5 skeins of worsted weight.  I used size 10 needles and cast on 200 stitches.  I think next time I'd add an extra skein or two and add at least another 25, even 50 stitches to the cast on.

Onto quilts!  I started this quilt and the pretty rainbow one back in early October.  I had the fabric and pattern for months, but the summer is busy and we're not home enough to whip out quilts.  I love this pattern - it's by Suzy Quilts and it sews up SUPER fast.  You can use jelly rolls (the rainbow one was from a jelly roll) or yardage.  It comes together really quickly and it's super pretty.  I rarely choose solids but these turned out great!

This quilt went to my friend Jennifer for Christmas.  I finished binding it the night before I gifted it (close call!).  It was throw size (60x60) and I love the traditional orange peel quilting we chose for this one. 

This rainbow version is for the Murphy/Stout baby headed this way in the spring.  It's 42x42 and so pretty in real life.  I still need to bind this one so you'll probably see it in my spring crafts post as well.  My entire quilting area is covered with a Christmas train set and Lego village so it really slows my progress until that whole set up comes down.  

So - while that project sits on the sidelines, it didn't take me long to spin up these three new balls and get them on the needles.  These three pretty yarns will soon be cowls for Jamie.  I love having something on my needles and in the queue for quilting at all times.  I refuse to buy new projects until the current WIPs are done...but you can bet I always have a knitting project and a quilting project in the works.  I like having something to keep my hands busy in the evenings after the kids go to bed.  It helps keep me from scrolling on my phone and gives me a more productive way to spend the evening.  

Christmas Cookies

If there's one things you can count on, it's that we'll be making cookies for just about every holiday.  It's tapered off as we've distanced a bit from COVID living, but we still love a good sugar cookie session.  At Christmas we always make the same recipes:

• Sugar cookies (3 batches)
• Peanut Butter Blossoms (2 batches, but this year I made 4 because we ran out and these are my personal favorite)
• Molasses cookies (1 batch, but next year we should do 2)
• Russian Tea Cakes (1 batch)
• Pepperkockers (1/2 batch)
• Nut logs (1 batch?  I'm not sure on this one, Erin made these at her house this year).

We were a little short on time this year so we decided to make the sugar cookies and pepperkockers together (they are the hardest and most time consuming) and then Erin and I each made some of the other cookies at our houses.  The sugar cookies take the most time, but make the cookie trays so pretty and festive.  Plus they are fun to decorate!

We give these cookies out to friends and family over the days leading up to Christmas.  They go to teachers, co-workers, the bus driver, my girl friends, and QUITE a few go into our bellies here at home :)  I think the kids each at 3 last night alone.  It's always a lot of work, but everyone loves them so much it's hard to imagine NOT doing them year over year.  

Plus, we're making holiday memories and traditions over here!  Someday the girls will be making these at their houses with their little kids.