Hinze family Christmas tree expedition

This afternoon we piled in the family minivan and drove to to local lowes to search for the perfect tree. I know it sounds cheesy but the best smelling and shaped trees are Fraser firs and sadly they don't grow in Florida. So given the choice between cutting a tree at a local farm that was not quite right or getting a Fraser we decided to go with tradition and get the same as always.

I must say that the choices were slim- lots of trees must have been put up over the weekend.

In my mind I was looking for a smaller tree- about 5.5 feet but in the end I think we ended up with a 6.5 foot one. Mike called it a Charlie Brown tree but I think it's perfect!

We had lots of choices for sure and in the end we almost went with the tiny one but the other one grabbed our interest.

Of course we watched Christmas Vacation twice before we went to get it. It would be breaking tradition to not watch it before hand. In fact we watched it before thanksgiving this year!

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Thankful Day 6

Today I am thankful for babywearing. I accomplish so many things while wearing Maris. Today I voted while wearing her on my back. I've done lactation consultations with her on my back as well! I can guarantee she will nap if I put her on my back in the kinderpack almost every time.

Thankful, Day 5

Today I am thankful for impromptu dinner parties with five friends and five babies in highchairs and two brave husbands. In all there were 7 kids - 5 being a year and under. They were all so well behaved it was amazing!

Thankful day 3 and 4

It's been a crazy weekend so I'm combining the two days together...

I'll start by writing what Maddie and Wyatt were thankful for this weekend.. I asked them and they both agreed that they were most thankful for their baby sister Maris. I'll have to remind them of their thankfulness in another year when she's 2 and terrorizing them!

This weekend I am thankful for the ladies in my knitting group. We got up insanely early Saturday morning (4:35 a.m. for me) and went to the pajama sale at Unwind. It was actually a yarn sale - but you could wear your PJs (and I did). We meet every Tuesday and knit, chat and share our lives with one another. I have enjoyed the new friendships and new knowledge about yarn, knitting and crochet.

Today I am thankful for my husband who is an amazing boat captain and fisherman. We dined on super fresh yellowfin tuna that I made into sushi tonight. It was divine. I am thankful for a man who provides not just financially for his family, but also provides food - whether it's fish or wild game.

Pow wow

Yesterday I got to be a chaperone on a field trip with maddies class. We went to the annual intertribal pow wow. I always love going to it. Last year Maris was about a week old when we went. It was amazing to consider how much she's grown in a year! I was assigned 3 students in maddies class. We watched the dances, looked at the educational booths and did a little shopping.

Maris even joined in the dancing a bit :)

Thankful, Day 2

Tonight I am thankful for satellite phones.

Mike is about 150-160 miles offshore tonight - chasing tunas. Anytime he's on a long trip with the Mixed Nuts guys he calls and checks in on their satellite phone. It's mostly for emergencies - but they know how important it is for the kids to talk to daddy and for Mike to know that everything is safe on the homefront.

Fishing is slow he said - they're fishing on the back side of the full moon -the fish are full already. I pray for their safe return - and some tuna would be nice :)