Christmas...

The tree was trimmed and gifts wrapped.

The little dogs hovered by the wood stove. The weather?  Very cold, windy and snow. Lots and LOTS of snow. All told, a foot of fresh fluff fell on top of the 5 or so inches that were already on the ground. I don't remember many Christmases that had a big storm, and this one was a really something.

When we looked out the window, the air was white.  Luckily we spent much of yesterday cleaning out all the animal houses and filling them with fresh bedding. It was nice to know that with the coming storm, all the critters had a warm, safe place to settle in for the blow.  This morning we filled all the water containers and topped up their food, handed out Christmas treats, then came inside to watch the storm from where it was cozy and warm.

Breakfast was waffles, sausage and mimosas. The dogs were impatient, wanting us to hurry up so they could open their stockings. 

The little fluffy dog next to Bravo is Millie. She is a grooming customer that needed a place to stay over the holiday and thought this would be more fun than a kennel. She was right. She and Bravo race and romp and play tug o' war and zoom circles through the house.  She loved the toys Santa brought.

Bravo and I got a new "pup" tent!  I can take this with me to competitions for him to hang out in, instead of a heavy metal crate.  It opens and closes as easily as an umbrella, and is light to carry.  

We also got a hand made, needle felted replica of Bravo... 

It was made by a groomer friend of mine, and I love it!  

On Christmas Eve we had Rachel and Evans, along with Evans dad, brother and his girlfriend, and our friends Scott and Marion, here for supper.  Chris cooked a prime rib, perfectly.  I made twice stuffed potatoes, squash, and delicious gingerbread with Haagen das vanilla ice cream and home made caramel sauce.  Evans dad brought Ukrainian poppy seed cake and Toll House Pie.  There was  peach tart, too.  I goofed and didn't get the planned appetizer prepared when I should have, and our pop overs were an epic failure. But no one seemed to care, and we had plenty of food to go around.  It was a pleasant gathering. 

Then today, delicious breakfast and thoughtful, caring, generous, gifts and a peaceful day as the storm raged.  The dogs were delighted with all the toys and treats.  Rachel and Evans headed home around lunch time, and Chris and I were here alone.  There was a nap, animal care, snow removal, delicious left overs for supper, and all of it was simply lovely. 

I've been lucky... I've had a lifetime of happy Christmases.  I know many people who have not, and that makes me sad. But I am grateful to have been blessed with the people in my life who have made the holiday so special.  I don't know what the future holds, but I will always have warm memories of of Christmas. And this one was especially sweet.