Baby, it’s cold outside.

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Do we sound like a family who frequently embarks on farm adventures? I think so… This year, it was no different – we decided to go to our favorite farm (again 😉 ) and cut a tree by ourselves so kids can experience what it is like bringing more of Christmas spirit into our house. I was raving about this for the past few weeks. I totally pictured the entire scene (oh yes!) Namely, snowflakes drifting down from the sky, glittering and dancing, melting on our faces, us heading to the field with kids making snow angels on our way to choose the perfect tree. Movie scene indeed. I was so looking forward to it. When I was little, I vividly remember times when my dad or my mom used to go the woods near our house in search for a tree for Christmas. Snow usually reached our knees. I could hear the snow creaking under the weight of my father’s heavy winter boots. And me, following him, struggling to catch up, simultaneously tracing his footprints. I would love my kids to store the same memories.. And here is where reality kicked in – nothing was as I had planned. It was way too cold for kids to get out of the car, the field with trees was muddy. We simply had to rush to pick the tree and go home. Once we got home, everyone, or maybe just me, was anxious to start decorating. Daniela was zelous to help me out at the beginning but her enthusiasm faded when 30 minutes elapsed. Then, I was left alone to finish the job.

Few days ago, Tiziano and I made gingerbread cookies, decorated with royal icing. Initially, they were supposed to be tree ornaments. Guess what? Today it has been three days since we decorated our tree and: most cookies at the bottom are gone, those that survived are missing the icing First Christmas miracle? Not at all. Kaia sneaked out and mercilessly stole cookies, licking off the icing. No respect for cookies passionately made by mom

In the pictures below, we are taking a stroll to downtown in order check the Christmas tree at the town square. I was trying to persuade Daniela to go ice skating since they have already opened the rink for the season. She told me that she prefers to watch others skating.

All I need to feel Christmas magic is snow. Let it snow, let is snow…