Christmas Eve

I'm so blessed to have these two.  I've arranged all the gifts for them to open in the morning.  They have just a few presents, but they were bought with love and we have remembered the Savior this Christmas.  

Snow Day

The other day we had our first snow of the season.  

Rosy cheeks and good friends.

a new way to wear a watch

Jesus on the cross that she drew on her arm

Baking and Snow

Recently we went to a place that had bubbles that looked like snow shooting out of a machine.  Great fun!

Yesterday we made chocolate graham crackers in the shape of men and women.  The kids were a big help.

Can I love them any more?  I asked them to make a funny face and I have to share all of them cause they are too cute!

This morning I was woken up to "mom, there's lot of snow!  Come on, I'll show you!"  They wanted to have breakfast by the window.  Our first snow of the season.

He filled my hand with freshly fallen snow and I'm grateful.

Christmas Tidings

So much of my Christmas time is made up of singing.  I've slacked again with blogging, but suffice it to say that I've been loading and reloading the dishwasher... reading books as fast as I can... disciplining... trying to exercise with friends... parties with too much chocolate... and back to singing.  I love it.  I never get tired of Christmas time and Christmas music and lights and such. 

A Scripture that has been on my heart lately:  Psalm 61:2 "From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I."

Lately I have felt an unrest.  Not an unrest as in I need to move or anything like that, but an unrest that says I need to do more for the kingdom.  I'm not sure if it's welcoming more people into our family or what yet, but I am asking... and looking for people to love.  There is no shortage of people before me.  I have felt this for a while... but haven't found my rest in giving monetarily which we have done more this year than any year before.  We are not preventing having another child, but no child yet.  My palms are wide open waiting for the Lord to fill them... with a purpose or a person or a fresh clean snow.

Winter Snow

I'm preparing this song for our church.  I thought the lyrics were sweet.


You could've come like a mighty storm
With all the strength of a hurricane
You could've come like a forest fire
With the power of heaven in Your flame


But You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below


You could've swept in like a tidal wave
Or in an ocean to ravish our hearts
You could've come through like a roaring flood
To wipe away the things we've scarred

Oh oh but You came like a winter snow
You were quiet You were soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Ooh no Your voice wasn't in a bush burning
No Your voice wasn't in a rushing wind
It was still it was small it was hidden

Oh You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Ben's Doings and My Doings

This is Ben's gang on CNN.  We are interested to see the long term of this project.




My choir is nominated for a grammy!

Me Singing

Gwen and Zeke Singing

Doxology- 2012

Thanksgiving

The videos take a long time to upload, but I'll include those when they finish.  I've been getting behind on blogging, but I don't want to give it up.  I mean, who is going to record the everyday miracles I'm able to see.  I think years from now I'll be glad I chronicled it all.  (chronicled?)  Well, anyway...

Gwen and Zeke 

 It was Beki's idea to have the guys dress up in tights and tutus and dance to the Nutcracker.  She actually made the tutus.

They had a "hoedown" where all the kids danced.  We have a lot of little kids.

My Zeke

Gwen was being, um, grumpy...

Zeke playing around.

Gwen got a ring from a machine.  I'm not exactly sure what it is, but it made me smile.

Look at this face... so beautiful.

Complete

A little pinterest Christmas art for the house.

My phone chair!

and next, I will update and show videos from Thanksgiving!

Layers

Remember this phone chair I got at the MOPS consignment sale for $5?  Well, I've been working on it.  I took off the pink fabric and was pretty convinced that the fabric underneath was the original because the pattern was pretty dated.  I was wrong.

Painting and second layer of fabric.... groovy!

Then I started taking that fabric off and low and behold, there is another layer underneath.  Ugh...

This is what I'd like for my phone chair to look like in the end sitting at the top of my stairs.  There's quite a journey in there between and it takes time.  You can't spray paint, recover and stencil your chair in one day.  I thought to myself, Lord what if you took away the thin fabric that I show the outside world... would there be some funky pattern underneath?  I'm going to really try to let this Advent season be one where I let the Lord show me the old fabric underneath that needs to be thrown out... ya know? 

Being confident of this, that he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. Philippians 1:6

Impromptu Lunch

Friends

Dress up time for all.  This photo makes me smile.

Gifts

Discretion

So I had an epiphany of sorts today.  I thought back on the Bible story where Mary anointed Jesus' feet with oil and dried it with her hair.  There's an aside to Judas and how he didn't really care about the poor, but he was a thief.  I thought... wait a minute... Jesus knew the whole time his thoughts and knew he'd eventually betray him and he never said anything to him the whole time.  THAT'S discretion.  Discretion isn't my strong suit.  I like to lay all my cards on the table... but sometimes you need to have discretion and stay silent.  I'm working on being wise enough to discern between the two.

John 12

Jesus Anointed at Bethany

1Six days before the Passover, Jesus arrived at Bethany, where Lazarus lived, whom Jesus had raised from the dead. 2Here a dinner was given in Jesus’ honor. Martha served, while Lazarus was among those reclining at the table with him. 3Then Mary took about a pint^a of pure nard, an expensive perfume; she poured it on Jesus’ feet and wiped his feet with her hair. And the house was filled with the fragrance of the perfume.

4But one of his disciples, Judas Iscariot, who was later to betray him, objected, 5“Why wasn’t this perfume sold and the money given to the poor? It was worth a year’s wages.^b” 6He did not say this because he cared about the poor but because he was a thief; as keeper of the money bag, he used to help himself to what was put into it.

7“Leave her alone,” Jesus replied. “[It was intended] that she should save this perfume for the day of my burial. 8You will always have the poor among you, but you will not always have me.”

I Look To You

I love this song!  I love the line... "when melodies are gone, in You I hear a song."  Touches my heart.

Abundant Living

What does that mean?  Well, I've been reading a book called "1000 Gifts" and basically she says that thankful living=abundant living.  Just acknowledging God in every day moments and thanking Him prepares you for hard times to thank Him then too.  Here's a Scripture I've been mulling over:

Psalm 50:23
"He who sacrifices thank offerings honors me, and he prepares the way so that I may show him the salvation of God."

Just think on that for a few days and let it blow your mind.  Here are some things I noted that I was thankful for today.

Majestic Red Trees... majestic even though they are losing parts of themselves
American flags waving in the wind
Wind blowing my hair
Going out in my pjs to get the mail in the cloak of darkness
laughter with family
Zeke tumbling
Gwen singing Swanee River with vibrato
birthday candles blown out
Sunset through the trees
finished races

Doors

My neighbor, Angela, made these and brought them over to the kids.  Aren't they cute?

Zeke playing

The kids

The house we just closed on.  I call it our "bungalow", but really it is an investment house.  We are letting business start ups live in there.  Please pray that it is a house of ministry and we can share the gospel freely with these young people.  Ben has been working very hard to make this dream that God has given him a reality.  Door after door has opened for us and so... here it is!

My Christmas gift early from my mom.  She bought new doorknobs and paint for the door.  :)  Yellow is my favorite color, but even I have to admit that it is pretty bright!