Monday, December 31, 2012

Holly

We've had a new baby!  Her name is Holly (thanks Ann!) and she's about a week old in these pictures.



She came about 3 weeks early and was a surprise to both my dad and I.

She's strong, and fast and proved these facts to be true the day after she was born.  Crazy 8 (her Momma) gave birth out in the cold, snowy pasture, so my dad set out to move 8 and Holly up to the warmer and dryer barn.  I'd never seen a day old calf move so fast!  She was doing laps around my dad as he spun in circles trying to corral her into the barn.  Update: She's still fast as ever.  This explains my lack of close ups.


We usually try to pin Momma's with their little calves in the barn for the first 3 or 4 days of the their life.  But we learned a few years ago Crazy 8 doesn't take to kindly to being pinned up.  The longer she's pinned, the crazier she gets (thus the name).  And since little Holly was doing so well, we left Momma and calf unpinned.

Today, I found Miss Holly hanging with Bruce.  He's now a month and a half old and also camera shy.

Wednesday, December 26, 2012

Merry Christmas To All

I hope you all had a nice Christmas.  I know I sure did!

Lots of time was spent with family, relaxing, reminiscing, and just having a grand ole Christmas time.

Christmas Eve came and Arren and I helped my dad and the Lyon's Club distribute Christmas baskets to fellow Arcolians.  These are good, hard working families who have fallen on hard times or found themselves sick.

Then Christmas Eve night we ventured over to Uncle Bill and Aunt Janet's for some Christmas cheer.  The Nacke's have always has a Christmas Eve get together since before I was born, and each year the family party has grown bigger.  In fact, at this gathering, 14 of my 17 second cousins were corralled and brought by their moms and dads (my first cousins).  That meant 14 little kiddos were bouncing off the walls for Santa, for presents, and for the few extra sugar cookies they had eaten that day.  It's always great catching up with family members and as an added bonus, chowing down on some very tasty food.

In years past, the Nacke family has always drawn names for Christmas presents, but this year we did a white elphant-ish gift trade.  It was a success.  As for what Arren and I got... we now have two 1,000 piece puzzles to pass the time while our scentsy keeps the place smelling wonderful!

The next morning Santa did not disappoint.  Arren and I kicked off the early morning by opening gifts at our place.  Arren (I mean Santa) did an awesome job.  He hand picked a necklace and earrings for me to wear on our wedding day and managed to replace Dorothy in a Wizard of Oz book with my own name.

Then we headed over to my parent's for some more gift opening and ate until we were stuffed and then ate a little more.  Being an only child, my parents have always gotten me way too much on Christmas.  And even though my mom insisted she had cut back, it was no different this Christmas.  My favorite gift would have to be the bright red Kitchen Aide Mixer my parent's bought for me.  I mean it's so red and shiny and really just reminds me of Christmas cookies.  Note to self: I must start baking more.

That afternoon we headed over to Arren's family Christmas party.  A good time was had by all!  We of course had to play a family game and this time it was a tricky little ditty called headbandz.  We all had to wear head bands with note cards attached and then use clues to figure out what our note card said.  At one point I was a mustache and soon after that, Abe Lincoln. 

In all, Christmas 2012 was a success!  I'm sad it's over.  I don't want to take down my decorations or our drooping tree.  2013 is right around the corner and I can't believe how fast this year flew by.  Did you all have a great Christmas filled with family and good food?  Did you get something that just made your jaw drop?  Or did you give something that made the receiver beam with joy?




Tuesday, December 18, 2012

All Things Christmasy

I live for candy canes, Christmas music and have to watch at least 10 Christmas classic movies this time of the year.  I even have Frosty the Snowman (my all time favorite) on DVD.

I think I owe my love of all things Chritmasy to my mom.  For as long as I can remember, every December, my mom transformed the house into a winter wonderland.  A lot of the decor has been around since I was little and it holds a fond place in my heart.

So with out further ado, I give you the official Christmas tour of my parents humble abode!



This little tree made of Christmas bulbs was on "Oprah's Favorite Things" list several years back.  My dad loathes this thing.  I swear every time he passes by, he give it the stink eye.  Sadly, this year the lights finally died on "Oprah's tree"...  My dad's volunteered to throw it out!


This has been my advent calender since I was a wee little one.  Every day, a little stuffed figure is taken out and hung on the tree.  I use to be very meticulous in making sure every figure had it's own space on the tree.  That meant saving the little one's for the top as the spaces got closer and closer together.  Now when ever I go home, I have catch the tree up to the current date.  After all these years, it's still one of my favorite things to do!


I've always loved Christmas villages and my mom's is awesome!  For a while every year we would add to the collection until one day we had an abundance of decor, so that the village was soon a bustling city.  Now, here sits my mom's peaceful little Christmas city, happily gleaming with warm holiday light.


Last year my Mom helped me start my own little village by buying my first two buildings.  In case you're wondering the village is from "The North Pole Series" made by Department 56. Right now it's not much, but in a few years, I'm hoping to have the beginnings of my own Christmas town!



Saying my parents have tall ceilings is a vast understatement.  So finding a tree can be tricky.  There are certain qualifications a tree must have.  It must be a giant, an eleven footer, and a most massive evergreen.  It also has to be a long needled white pine per my mom's yearly request.  This year my dad quickly found this little thing.


It's the smallest tree (by feet and width) we've ever had.  But due to the ever shrinking long needled supply of evergreens this is the best my dad could do.  My mom went to town decorating this little smidgen of a tree.  Grandma Nacke handmade the fabric ornaments pictured below.  They were my favorite as a little girl and still are.  I also seriously wish I had the skills to make ornaments half as great as these!







My mom's decked the rooms, the halls, and the new front porch.  As the sun starts to set, my mom heads out and plugs in the decorations which light up the windows with some festive holiday cheer.




The Pinterest bug has bitten my mom in the form of this awesome homemade decoration.  She bought the evergreen branches, pine cones and had the mason jars and basket sitting around.  She filled each jar with Epsom salt and then added electric candles.  So Martha Stewart-esq! 


I hope you enjoyed this little Christmas tour!  I'm off to watch some Frosty on DVD.  What are some of your favorite things about Christmas... the tree, the decorations, the food, the chance to give to others?  Or are you just a Grinchy-Grinch when it comes to the Holidays?

Sunday, December 16, 2012

I'm Baaack!

Um hi, remember me?  That girl who use to post on this blog. 

Well after about a month break, I'm back!  And I fully intend on making this stint of blogging worth your while.  As in 2-3 posts a week.  Maybe more if you're lucky!

This post really has no purpose other than to annouce my return from a long blogging hiatus.  I can just hear a collective cheer as you read this post.  Right?... OK maybe gleeful cheering might have been pushing it, but I'm sure doing a happy jig at the chance to start blogging again.

A lot has happened, so stay to tuned to see what you all have missed at Green Nacke Acres.