Happy Kids

A little face paint, a little photo session on the computer, and all is right with the world.

Yes, we are feeling more moved in than when I last showed you The Tiny House.  Shoes on the floor, clothes on the couch.  We try to keep it under control, but we are enjoying living in a house that's not on the market. Enjoying it very much.

Handmade Christmas

I mentioned earlier that the kids made their gifts to each other & to cousins, this year.  They also made some for friends, too.  Clint took charge of helping them craft wooden shields and swords that they gifted to boy cousins.

They had fun sanding the wood.

The next step was to add bubble wrap, secured by colored duct tape.  Finally, patterns were taped off and paint was joyfully thrown onto shields in coordinating patterns & colors.  Each recipient ended up with a set of 2 swords and shields.  Because, what fun is it to have only 1 sword and shield in a duel??  By this point, we were racing against the clock, so I didn't take even one picture of the end result.  But they looked similar to these:

More Christmas Pictures

Sweet girl holding baby brother's chubby little hand

Just a quick shot before they changed out of their church clothes

Gingerbread Houses

Awholelotta decorating & sampling going on.  We enjoy this tradition every year.

J & M at work

Decorating the roof with M&M's

Two of the best parts of making Gingerbread houses this year weren't recorded by the camera.  Just minutes after I took these pictures of the kids, some good friends came and shoveled out our driveway.  There was a lot of snow, and our circular driveway is huge.  We were very happy for the help.  Clint and the kids went outside to help, while I made hot cocoa to thank everybody afterwards.

The other memory was made when Clint took the big kids to visit his grandma.  We had earlier been given a gingerbread house kit, but ran out of steam in the candy house-decorating department.  So they brought it along, decorated it together and then left it for Great Grandma Firth to enjoy.  She loved it.  She told them she will keep it as long as she lives, bringing it out as a Christmas decoration every year.  The kids talked about it for awhile, having enjoyed the experience at least as much as their great grandma.

I love Christmas, and all the memories with family and friends.

Rewind

Since I can't seem to find the cord that connects my phone to the computer (or the battery recharger, either), I thought I'd post a few pictures that never made it to the blog.

Going through her stocking, Autumn never did find those two front teeth (not on Christmas morning, anyway).

Jonah with his BYU hoodie and loom-knit hat.  The kids made their gifts for each other and for their cousins, this year. Hats knit on the round loom were a popular choice.  I'm not a knitter and got in on this action, as well.  It was pretty addicting.

Yearly Firth Nativity, with Clint sporting a sweet robe and Uncle Tyler in his traditional donkey role.  

Jonah leading the wise men

Autumn enjoying her role as Mary; cousin Eleanor notsomuch.  She really loved that little baby Jesus.

All Gabe wanted for Christmas was a Spiderman suit (which is NOT a costume...those are for play; this is serious business!) AND sticky Spiderman gloves to climb walls with.  Unfortunately, we couldn't deliver the gloves but the "suit" has been very well-used.  And that might be an understatement.

Not sure what Micah was opening, but he was obviously excited about it.  Sweet boy.

And Merry Christmas (a few months late) from little baby Asher.

Even More Compact

My sister just pointed out to me that "the tiny house" is actually only about 800 sq. ft.  That sounds about right.  We're going to feel like we're living in a castle when the time comes to buy a new house. 

More Compact Digs

Raising a family of 5 children is busy work.  It's a near constant flurry of motion.  Add to that the fact that all 5 children are home most of the day and you can see how it can get a bit crazy at our house.

Now, I appreciate just how spoiled we have been in our big 4 bedroom, 3 bathroom, 3-level house (in Gabe terms, "the huge house").  There are wonderful gathering rooms for schooling, movie watching, and game playing.  And the floor plan easily allows each of us the space and privacy to quietly retreat as well*.  Plus, did I mention the dishwasher?? 

We are temporarily taking up residence in my parents' 1,000 square foot 2 bedroom, 1 bathroom, single-level house (in Gabe terms, "the tiny house").  This is a whole new ballgame.  From my perch right now, I can watch my children eating, hand washing their dishes, watching television, doing schoolwork, playing toys, running around maniacally,  or chasing each other with zeal.  I won't mention who I'm hearing on the pot right now.  These are tight quarters. Here's a photo taken by our computer of the main living area:

I love this room and all the light that comes in from the lime groves surrounding us.

All this to say I have a new appreciation for large families living in small homes.  Most of the world fits this description.  And, if we don't kill each other or drive each other away, I think our big family might just be a little closer after our own run in a small house.



*Our beloved home is still for sale (at a very competitive price); ask me about it if I've tempted you.  ;)