Posted with my Christmas present...

Christmas was all about "new" this year. We celebrated in a new place, welcomed new people, and cooked in a new kitchen. We had decided not to do presents (just stockings for the boys). But there were a lot of gifts, just not many under the tree.

Brent and Jeremy cheated and gave me some unexpected presents: a kick spindle (for faster spinning) and a new LED flashlight. But, otherwise, we mostly had a ton of candy.

Our first Christmas being warmed with sunshine.

One big gift was the long awaited appearance of the sun. We learned that passive solar is amazingly effective and decided to regulate the temperature by opening windows. It was a windy 50 outdoors and a toasty 73 inside with some strategic open windows.

Family was our greatest gift by far. All our boys joined us Christmas morning. Then we hosted dinner for my family in the evening. My parents came bringing my aunt Evie and her husband Dick. I stood up with Evie in their wedding on the 20th. He was our "new" person. We were also very fortunate to have my brother and his family. In all, 15 people celebrated this first Christmas with us.

Me with the nieces and nephew.

All these loved ones helped us discover the gift of cozy spaces in our new home.

The boys testing out the family room.

We are definitely blessed to have all these gifts - not the least of which is the smart phone I'm using to write this post.

I sure hope I get better at typing on this tiny keyboard. This took forever!