The Twelve Days of a Birch Christmas
A little something fun feel free to sing along!
The line of the Song is on the picture
Friends... they are the ones you want with you or the first
that you call when good things happen because they will
celebrate with you and cheer the loudest. They are also
the ones that you need near either in person or by
phone or email when things are not good. They don't
have to have the answers just to know they are there
helps. They love you for your strengths and in spite of
your weakness.

This Christmas the Thompson Gang is delivering the
gift of Friendship. May this year find you sharing life  
with the best of them. You are all dear to us and am so
glad we are friends.
A special Thank you to Dave and Debbie for being
there for us this past year for both the sweetest of times
and also a couple of the darkest days too.
The stockings at our house are filled Christmas Eve with Sweets and Little
Treasures. Our 3rd gift to you is the wish that you will find many sweet
treasures this coming year that will make you feel like dancing.
This is our Sweet Treasure Tucker dancing
his ballerina dance in front of the Stockings.
We all need Heros not to just rescue us but to inspire
us and give us courage! Heros come in a variety of
packages and Tucker and Presley in their Halloween
costumes are delivering our second gift which is the
hope that .....

This coming year you will not only recognize all the
Heros in your life but look for ways to be a Hero in the
lives you touch.
On the First day of Christmas the Birches
sent to me.....One Brindle Brat underneath The
Christmas Tree.

Seriously if I could gift each of you a fraction of the joy
this boy adds to my life. He is a brat and hopelessly
spoiled but I would be lost without him.
On the Twelfth Day of Christmas The Birches Sent To Me........
Our fifth present to you is Fun!
Find something you think is fun and throw yourself
into it.

You may think I'm crazy but watching Presley make
that mess just cracked me up.
He took a simple roll of toilet paper and had a blast.
He threw it up in the air and chased it. He bounced
around and spun in circles. He was having so much
fun and hadn't a care in the world. I couldn't help but
laugh with him.

Learn to play like a Basenji and the Fun will Come!
In our instant society some of us have lost the taste
for waiting. There are things in life that force us to
practice this skill and it has a tendency to make us
appreciate the outcome so much more. Tucker and
Presley are waiting with a few of their friends who for
some of you was an exercise in this area of waiting.
<g>
So our gift to you on the Sixth day is a scoop of
Waiting Grace. May you apply it to your life this
coming year and with a little care it just might
multiply. I hope the time you spend waiting seems
short, is full of friends to keep you company and the
results are soooo worth every minute. I wish I could
send
you more than a scoop but I don't have that much on
hand myself. <g>
2007 seemed to require quite a bit of it around here
My resident clowns are delivering a collection of
some of my favorite silly faces. Our 7th gift is the
reminder of the value of knowing how to laugh at
yourself from time to time. You will be a happier
person and I know the people around you will
appreciate it.

Every once in awhile I will get a response of How
could you do that to those poor things? Well I think if
you asked them they would tell you life is pretty good
for them.  Not a high price to pay for a soft warm
bed, good food, personal maid and exercise trainer,
and all the attention and love a Basenji needs.
Besides picture taking has its perks very little effort
and the treats abound.
Our 8th Gift to you is the Hope Each of you has a
Dream and more importantly the speed, agility,
hunger, tracking and endurance to make it a
reality!

I believe that Hope and Dreams are vital in life.
Don't be afraid to Dream Big and by all means
keep the goal in sight and run with your whole
heart!

Presley was my logical choice for this theme. He
absolutely adores chasing the Bunny. He begins
screaming as soon as he sees the lure. We have
even been invited to go ahead of others in line.
Not sure why! <g>

I am sure Presley dreams of fields of Bunnies!
Our Gift on the ninth day is the Wonderful Memories of
Yesterday. The Holiday season is a time we often reflect
upon what brought us to where we are right now as we
look forward to where we want to go. This gift is a gentle
reminder that today we hold tomorrows memories. We
get to decide how happy and full of life those memories
will be. I challenge you to make yours wonderful and
something special.

I really struggled with this one...I had a hard time
choosing just 9 and then I feared hurting someone which
is the last thing I wanted to do. I tried to make sure each
of you could find someone who would inspire you to
reflect. This isn't meant to be depressing though you
may shed a tear. I know I did as I put it together. I am
sure through the tears the light that shone through these
dear ones will once again brighten your day. To each of
you whose picture I used I want to thank you for sharing
your Furry Angel with me. Some I knew and loved
personally and some through the magic of our Pix List
family,
All of them left a
paw print on my heart.
Winning, Everyone Loves To Win!
These pictures represent everything from the
First Point on Your First Dog To Best Veteran.
Your First Car to the Pinnacle of your Career.
They are the times of Our Lives.

Our Tenth gift to you is the hope your life be filled
with many Times Of Winning.

Just a word of Caution.
Make sure you realize that all your times of
winning don't necessarily involve Ribbons, points,
awards or fanfare.
They may just be time shared with someone
special.
Every Christmas gathering seems to involve
treats. For our eleventh gift we are sending you
10 plates of our favorite cookie and some of our
famous 7 layer Mexican Dip.

The Christmas Party Preparations will forever
hold a little bit of humor for me after last years
Raiding of the refrigerator by Tucker and his two
Amigos.

I'm Sorry Larry I still find it extremely funny!

I hope that you all have plenty of your favorite
Treats and are able to share them with your
favorite people!
Twelve Birches Grinning....

From our Home to Yours We want to Wish Each
and Every one of You
A Very Merry Christmas!

We are so proud of our kids and Grandkids!

Back row: L to R
Larry, Justin, Joshua, Matthew
Presley, Eva, Alissa, Ashli, Tucker
William, MacKenzie & Abbi