It was much warmer today. It is amazing how wonderful 17 degrees can feel when one has been living with 5 and below. It snowed this afternoon. We were supposed to get only a dusting but have about 2 inches it seems.

Dick and I went grocery shopping this morning and I spent the afternoon with Mother waiting for the truck to be dropped off in front of her house. Tomorrow morning we will load Bart and Barb's stuff into it and then I will call to get it picked up. Next week they will have it all. Jim helped me load the stuff that is in OUR garage into the Santa Fe.

While I was at Mom's, Aunt Kathleen and Uncle Bob dropped by to say goodbye. They are leaving for the south (they are snowbirds) on Saturday and will not return until April. Aunt Kathleen said that she would just as soon be staying home or at least not going for so long. However, they do like it down there and Uncle Bob has a barbershop quartet group that he sings with all winter and it is really really fun for him.

December 5 was St. Nicholas Day. When we were kids, it was always somewhat of a precurser of Christmas - a reminder to be good little girls and boys. St. Nick alway brought a piece of fruit and a bit of candy to good little girls and boys. But naughty ones got a piece of coal. One year, my brother Jeff got a piece of coal. It sure impressed the little ones.

Mother remembers an incident from her childhood about St. Nick. They were living in Lomira. Probably just she and Noel were born as she thinks that she was about 4 years old. One of the neighbor men dressed up like St. Nicholas - he wore a fake beard, a big old fur hat and one of those long fur coats that men wore when they rode in open carriages and so on. He came in and talked to the children and asked them if they were good little girls and boys. They assured him that they were. At that time, Grandpa had a hired hand. "St. Nick" asked the hired hand if he was good and if he said his prayers. The hired hand said he never prayed and wasn't about to. St. Nick proceeded to "beat" the man with his wooden staff. The hired hand ran off into the night. Mother said she was scared to death. She is still saying her prayers regularly.

Have a nice Friday. I will be packing a truck.

Mary