Advent Calendars

Did you ever have an Advent calendar when you were young? Sometimes we did, in the household in which I grew up. Since I have so many brothers and sisters, we had to take turns (and wait a long time between) opening up the little windows that covered colorful drawings. The excitement of Christmas was evident as we gathered round to see what was under that little bit of paper. Counting down with the calendar made getting through the month and the interminable wait just a little easier.

We celebrate Advent in this house, too. Sometimes we have a calendar, and this year is no exception. Some friends sent us a lovely, hand-drawn calendar. The cover is in black and white, and as expected, behind the windows are pretty little colorful pictures. Since we have no kids here this fall--a first for us--it is usually me who gets to open the doors. It's a fine little treat each day, but I must admit that I am in no hurry for the month to go by. Well, maybe just a little, as it means that the kids will once again be home from school for their break.

What got me thinking about all of this today is that I am trying to post a photo each day this month, of the things that I encounter and observe. It's a little like an Advent calendar, but instead of opening a door, you check the blog to see what has been posted. It is a bit of a challenge for me when I first get back to writing the blog, especially after an extended hiatus as the one I just took. It's a good thing that I do not make my living as a writer! There would be months with very little food in the cupboard, I'm certain. At any rate, here is the latest in my installment of my little adventure:


Once again, the sky was just too good to pass up. The camera tried to catch the colors the way my eyes saw them, but it missed on the aqua color in the lake's reflection. We did see the sun for quite a stretch today, and so we had a sunset. And this morning, we even had a few snowflakes falling, so that fulfills my wish for three days straight now. I talked to some fellows who were out hiking in the woods today, and they said that the snow was a good eighteen inches deep in some spots. They also said that they encountered people who were out packing the ski trails. All good news for the upcoming ski season.