While I Was Gone...

What a difference a day makes...  This was Wednesday...

Thursday brought us this...

a light dusting of snow, with flurries continuing through the morning.

I love the austere beauty of a light snow in the wintertime.

Heavier snows, though beautiful at first, present us with a fair amount of extra work.  So, if we have a winter without a heavy snow, you won't hear me complain!

Snow was definitely a curiosity for our boy, Forrest.

I think he would have a blast in a heavy snow - so, ok... maybe one would be ok.

Life is a game...

 no matter the weather....

The garden... asleep beneath the snowy blanket...

The guineas made a bee-line for the shelter of the gazebo.

These guys are no fans of precipitation.

As long as there's food, these two couldn't care less about the weather!

 Christmas party preparations are in full swing here in the farmhouse.  Our family party is two weeks away. With 28 on the guest list, I've been working on some preliminary baking in an effort to free up some time later on.  I am going to stick all of this in the freezer until the party.

I made pecan snowball cookies, and these pecan nut tassies...

iced shortbread snowflakes...

bourbon cake (using a caramel/sea salt whiskey)...

gingerbread boys...

and tiny 2" gingerbread houses...

Also, on the knitting needles right now is this sweet little vest.  I had hoped to finish it to wear on Christmas, but that might be biting off more than I can chew.  

Still remaining on the baking list are a New York cheesecake, a Yule log, and two more varieties of cookies.  By the time we next chat, Hubbs and I will have the Christmas train platform set up and running.  I'll share those photos on Monday.