Balls of Concrete

As our first flight landed in Chicago in the dark, I was delighted to see snow on the ground and excitedly pointed it out to the kids. Brookie squealed as she looked out the window, "Mommy, look at the snow!" but Joe had other ideas. He hasn't seen snow since he was barely 2, so he definitely does not remember it.

 "Mommy, that is concrete," he said adamantly. "It is not snow. It's concrete. Little balls of concrete." 

 We arrived at Nonnie and Poppy's house very late, but the next day he was convinced--the white stuff really was snow and he was completely delighted. They sledded with their Aunts and Cousins for hours until we dragged them inside to warm up and take much needed naps.

 Even though Nathan's face was somber, he loved the snow and sledding and I got quite the workout pulling him around on the sled!

Christmas is in 2 days and the house is full of cookies, the tree is overflowing with presents and the excitement for Christmas day is growing. I love this time of year to reflect on all that God has done for us, starting with his humble birth. I hope each one of you has a very merry Christmas, wether it be warm and balmy or snowy and white! 

December Happenings

As months go, the month of December is without a doubt my favorite. As a kid we counted down the days until Christmas and I will never forget as I got older that it dawned on me that the whole month was for celebrating Christmas--the lights, the parties, the cookies, the music--all of it was to be enjoyed every single day of the month until it all culminated into the great big birthday celebration of Jesus.

 I enjoy it even more now that I have kids, because everything is new and oh-so-exciting for them. Nathan screams "LI-LIIIIIIGHT!!!" every time we drive by a house that has them up and the kids know words to more Christmas carols than I can count.

 Some December happenings at our house:

 Lots of cookie baking

Christmas trees made out of their handprints, followed by Hot Chocolate

Special Surprise Breakfast

Photo Booth at our annual couple's party (and kids who had to test it out before hand)

I hope that each of you are enjoying the season. It certainly is a crazy time for all of us, but I'm trying to take the little moments I do find here and there and make the most of them. I love making memories!

 I'm currently on an airplane headed to see family for the next few weeks! How I blogged this on an airplane with 3 crazy kids is beyond me, but I can tell you it did take close to 2 hours! ;) Merry Christmas!

Thanksgiving

I accidentally deleted all of my Thanksgiving pictures off of my camera. As I sat there banging my forehead with my palm and scrunching my eyes shut and covering my face after realizing what I had done, my husband came to the rescue and recovered all of them! He's my hero!

 A few came back recovered in a tiny size; you can't even see them. They are the ones that prove that my best friend Ashley, her husband and baby came to visit us for Thanksgiving. So, no pictures of them but that doesn't mean I will ever forget the amazing memories we made. Cooking all day on Wednesday, treating them to our best barbecue place (RUDY's!) and eating, talking and eating some more on Thursday.

 I love Thanksgiving almost as much as Christmas. I love all of the food, and I love the fact that we can take time to truly think about what we are thankful for and all of God's blessings! Of course, shopping on Friday is our yearly family tradition and the day I usually get my Christmas shopping done.

 I realize the Christmas season is in full swing and this is a little late, but our Thanksgiving in a few less pictures than I would like, but more than I had:

Breaking bread for stuffing:

This is what goes on the bread to make stuffing. Please, please, PLEASE do not ever buy boxed stuffing on Thanksgiving. Please. Your family will thank you! Make it and your life will be forever changed. This recipe has been in our family for as long as I can remember and it's addicting!

The feast!

Each year I realize just how blessed I really am. A wonderful husband who loves me, works so hard for us, follows God and treats me like a Queen. 3 beautiful children who love me unconditionally and are the light of my life (even though they do drive me nuts a few times a day ;), an amazing church and church family, extended family...I don't deserve any of it! God is so good!

Thankful for Water

The other day my water was shut off for a few hours, unannounced. With a sink full of dirty dishes, a table caked with children’s breakfast foods, heaps of laundry to do and a shower to take. I cried, more because I had held it in while my family left, and the water being shut off was the trigger that allowed the tears to flow. I knew that it was ridiculous to be emotional about this, and proceeded to make do by loading un-rinsed dishes so I didn’t have to look at them in the sink and wipe my table with baby wipes. Which, by the way, were not designed to clean caked on oats and milk off of a table.

 All the while I couldn’t stop thinking of the missionary wives who deal with this on a daily or weekly basis, month after month, year after year. They never get warning and I can only imagine that it happens at the worst of times, when they have so much to do. I’m sure it’s frustrating to them, maybe even maddening to not know when you’ll lose water or when it will come back on, but it’s their way of life and they have come to deal with it. It’s just one of the many sacrifices they make to live on a foreign mission field so that lost souls will hear the gospel.

 My hats off to these women. You are my heroes.

 I’m feeling grateful tonight. Grateful for our country, despite it’s problems, and grateful for our freedoms. Grateful for family, friends, church and God’s Word to guide us. Grateful for a faucet that turns on whenever I need it to.

 Right now I’m also thankful for the weather. It’s currently 34 degrees and I’m wearing a hoodie while my husband works to start a fire.  Tomorrow the shopping for our big Thanksgiving dinner is happening and it’s only appropriate that it should be freezing while filling our cart with abundance. Even though we’re listening to Christmas music and have even decorated the house, Thanksgiving is not a forgotten holiday in this home.

Going through pictures of when my family was here...

My baby sister cooked us a full meal and served it. It was delicious, and I felt really, really old.

And then...the big Christmas decorating party. I'm usually a firm after-Thanksgiving is Christmas person, so this year is very different for me. However, my after Thanksgiving schedule is crazy and it seemed like it would be so much easier to do it now while I had the help. We baked cookies and listened to Christmas music and tried to save as many bulbs as we could from being broken by curious little babies.

I hope you all have a wonderful weekend and rest of your week preparing for your Thanksgiving. I know that many of you have trials you are going through, but please try to focus on the good, even if for just one day. There is always something to be thankful for--even if it is something as simple as water!

We May Be Listening to Christmas Music

Where I grew up, we were eased into seasons and then it stayed that way for a while. At the end of summer you would start to notice the evenings getting cooler and start smelling the glorious Fall smell. Then the days were cooler too, and then it would start to snow and winter was here to stay. 

 In Texas, we are not eased into anything. We have a 70 degree day and suddenly it's 50 for a few days, then back up to 70's. I'm just happy we GET those cooler days, and we cherish them because they won't last long. The minute we sense the temperature dropping, we break out hats and hoodies and boots, even though we don't need them. We've been breaking out a lot of needless hoodies and hats this week, and it has put us all in the best Holiday moods. We may have even started to play Christmas music, against my strict no Christmas music before Thanksgiving policy.

The last few weeks in pictures, enjoying our Texas cold while possibly listening to Christmas music....

Quiet moments at home:

Italian mobster for Missions Dress up night

Family outing for frozen yogurt

Making paper snowflakes. Paper and glitter everywhere--it was so fun!

First sugar cookies of the year!

Halfway through the week! Have a great one, friends!