slides and silly bandz December 30, 2009

Christmas morning was so fun.  The kids slept a little later than normal.  Emma woke up first and had to wait the longest.  She did great.  Lucy was up next and noticed her slide right away.

 

We had Christmas doughnuts that the girls picked out earlier and then took our group shot.  Then off to the stockings…

  New cups, bowls, toothbrushes, socks, apples, oranges, candy and SILLY BANDZ!

 Armfuls of silly bandz- Auburn, basic shapes, and farm animals!

Cord got a great set of Home Depot tools, but his favorite was his weedeater:

 

And little Lucy got a new bottle for her baby doll.  She sat herself right down and started feeding her baby.

This year Lucy was our hardest to keep up with.  She wasn’t interested in staying still very long and she wanted to go upstairs over and over.  Notice she had an outfit change during the morning.  She got herself all messy eating breakfast, so we had to change her during the opening of our presents.  It is encouraging to remember that Cord was that crazy last year and this year he was so much easier! Last year Cord fell down the stairs while we were opening presents and got a black eye. 

This year the kids really loved all their toys from everyone and they have continued to play with them all throughout the day.  I love when that happens!

the naughty list December 29, 2009

We do Santa Claus with our children, but have worked very hard not to lie to them in the process.  If they ask is he real, I ask,”What do you think?”  Olivia has mentioned that she thought it was her parents because some kids at school thought that too.  I asked her again,”What do you think?” and she always ends up thinking that Santa is real. 

Emma wanted to know lots of things too, but the one that I love the most is,”Is the naughty list real?”  After a particularly long day of getting into trouble, Emma went to bed very sad.  When I came up to have our songs and prayers, she wanted to know if the naughty list was real.  I said if so, that we would all be on it.  We believe that we are all sinners in need of a Savior, so there are not good kids and bad kids (or good people and bad people). She was still pondering whether Santa would give her presents.  I once again reminded her that we receive gifts by grace, not because we deserve them.  I told her that I had definitely been naughty when I was a child and that Santa had always been gracious to me. 

Well the thought of grace turned up again when Emma left her note for Santa:

 

Her note says,”I love you.  Can you give grace? You give a lot of grace.  Ho Ho Ho Emma”

My heart could not wait to write her back.  Santa left a note that night that thanked them for the cookies and reminded them that they are loved and that the best gift, Jesus, is a free gift of grace.  All important gifts are!

Christmas morning December 28, 2009

I love getting to take a picture right after Santa has visited! It is so peaceful and pretty!  I think I am catching a repeated phrase this holiday: peace!

Christmas Eve in Huntsville

I love getting to be in Huntsville on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day.  We had an awesome church service at 4:00 on Christmas Eve.  We were fortunate to be able to use Providence Baptist for our worship service.  I have always loved that church.  It is traditional inside with exposed wood beams. It always feels so cozy.  The weather was terrible at the time of the service. Winds were whipping everywhere and it was cold!  This night I was overwhelmed by the warmth of the service.  Outside may be filled with chaos, struggle, and stress, but inside God’s care is filled with peace, confidence, and order.  Our pastor highlighted that Christ came as the great Reconciler.  He came to make peace.  Aren’t the holidays the time that we think about relationships and all the history that is involved with each one?  Christ’s coming makes it possible to make peace in our relationships- with God and with others.  AND it makes it NECESSARY to make peace.  We cannot claim Christ’s peace for ourselves and not give it to others in our life.  We cannot take the forgiveness he offers and not offer it to those in our life.  It is humbling to realize the position that we are in- unable to save ourselves~ And if we take the FREE gift of God’s forgiveness, it also requires that we live the life he has called us to~ forgiving others.  I am so thankful for the help of the Holy Spirit that works to soften our hearts and helps us see our position so that we may cling to Christ!

On to Dot Dot’s and Grandaddy’s

We left on Dec 22nd to go see Eric’s parents in Nashville.  They have a great house for us to play outside.  The girls brought their new scooters and stayed outside for two days. 🙂 Eric’s brother’s family came on Wednesday and we had a great time opening presents and playing.  My niece, Bailee, is 10 and my nephew, Luke, is about to turn 4.  Our kids absolutely love getting to see them. 

 

Our little Lucy has started kissing people and Dot Dot ended up being the lucky recipient this time.

   

Cord did not want to be left out of the hugs:

Cord got an awesome new train set.  He plays it every day in his room (and usually with his daddy).  Eric has been having a hard time remembering what time it is when they are playing.  Bedtime has been getting later and later because they are lost in some train game.

Lucy received a baby doll that came with a stroller and paci from her Aunt Leslie and Uncle Kurt.  She was really excited!

She popped that paci in her mouth and started hugging her baby.  Then she backed herself into the stroller and Luke came right up to stroll her around.  She loves to hug her baby and put her to bed.

Luke and Cord are about the same size, even though Luke is turning 4 in January and Cord is 2 1/2.  Luke is one of the funniest kids.  He is a big fan of Teddy Roosevelt and can belt out Jesus Loves Me in an opera voice.  Leslie always has the best stories about him.  This visit, he and Cord had been wanting a lot of the same toys and sometimes had a hard time being loving to one another 🙂  After a shoving match, Dot Dot asked them if they wanted to keep doing that or did they want to be kind to one another and say,”Hi cousin!”  Cord got excited and ran up to Luke and gave him a big shove and yelled,’Hi Cousin!”  They called each other cousin the rest of the night.

They are going to have so much fun over the years!  We had a great visit and, as always, were completely overwhelmed by the generosity of our families.  We are blessed~

It begins! December 21, 2009

We began our Christmas kickoff today with my Dad and Marian coming to visit.  They came in time to meet Olivia and Emma at school to eat lunch with them.  It was a great surprise.  They spent the afternoon reading to the little ones and visiting until we could all be together to open presents.  What a hit that was!

The girls got new scooters! They loved them.  As soon as we would let them, they took off outside to ride.

Cord and Lucy got new luggage~ for all those wonderful trips to grandparents’ houses 🙂  One of the most special gifts was The Night Before Christmas book that my Dad gave the grandkids.  It has his voice reading it to them.  Tonight when we went to bed, the kids picked that story to have read to them and Olivia cried because she missed Popo already.

We played outside for awhile- including some fun time in the back of Eric’s Suburban.  It’s like a playpen really.

 

Popo and Marian took us to Red Robin for dinner.  Now normally we don’t attempt such craziness with these babies, but tonight was special and it turned out better than I thought.

 

Look at that JOY! Thank you for a wonderful day and for so many thoughtful gifts.  I loved getting to see my children read with my dad, talk to him and snuggle with him.  Isn’t that what a grandaddy is all about? 🙂  Merry Christmas Popo and Marian!

Cord’s Christmas Program December 19, 2009

Monday, Cord had his first Christmas Program at his Mother’s Morning Out.  He was so excited to go.  He picked his Christmas train shirt and was ready to sing!  We sat through the Pre K and 4 year old program, the 3 year old program, and then it was Cord’s turn.  He walked in with his class looking very unsure-

Then he got up onstage with the rest of his class.  The music began and all the kids started to sing- except Cord.

He never sang a note.  At the end, he walked down and happily ran to the Christmas party.  He sat down, had his pizza and cookies and loved his new book from his teacher.

That boy is happy to be off the stage!

Celebrating Wisdom December 18, 2009

Our youth group hosted a party for our Crown Club (older church members) this past Sunday during the Sunday School hour.  In November we studied what the Psalms say about Wisdom.  We also highlighted the verses in Hebrews 13 that say,” Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith.  Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today and forever.”  The youth brainstormed questions that they wanted to know about the Crown Club members and each selected one person that he or she would honor in some way at the Christmas party.

That Sunday morning, we had doughnuts and coffee and orange juice for all.  We highlighted our verse again and then our youth group started handing out the presents.  They spent time with their buddy and served them.  One of the questions that the kids wanted to know was what their partners’ favorite verses were.  We spent time having the Crown Club share their favorite verses and asked them to explain why it was their favorite.  What a rich time hearing them share their lives and love for our Savior!

Afterward, we sang carols and spent time in fellowship. 

It is my hope that the youth will continue their relationships that they have started- that they will visit on Sunday mornings, that they will pray for these dear church members, and that they will listen to their stories and learn!  It is also my hope that the Crown Club will pursue these young people- that they will write them notes, that they will ask about their lives, and that they will listen to their stories!

What a wonderful morning it was.

this is what today is like… December 15, 2009

We were invited to a wonderful playdate. In my mind, I thought,”I feel terrible. I haven’t done nearly the playdates with Cord and Lucy that I have done in the past with Emma and Olivia.”  It all came back to me today why I haven’t.  Our sweet hostess invited about 6 moms and their children to come over to play and decorate sugar cookies.  She is a fantastic cook and her icing was a beautiful red or green or yellow.  Cord went right to it.  He glopped on all kinds of good icing and sprinkles on his cookies.  As soon as he thought there was enough, he picked it up and took a huge bite.  Turns out she was planning on the cookies drying while the kids played. oops! He got icing on her chair and all over himself.  Baby wipes to the rescue…

Next stop, the older kids head upstairs.  So Cord is upstairs while Lucy is downstairs with me.  I spend the next hour wiping up her milk that is spilling from her sippy cup, cleaning up the crumbs that she drops as she snacks, retrieving her paci from all over the place, and refereeing while she takes toys from other kids.  While my attention is on that little busy body, there is a call from upstairs,”Mom, Cord took a toy away from Lindsey and flushed it down the toilet!”  Oh My Goodness!

I ran upstairs and there was Cord- behind the bathroom door with his head down.  After a little discipline and a lot of sorry to go around, he stayed the rest of the time downstairs with me.  WHEW.  I told the mom to send me the bill if her toilet clogs up.

Later today, Olivia and Emma had dance. Olivia finished her homework, all 4 kids had their baths, and Emma lost her fourth tooth.

I won’t even tell you about the accident that Cord had in the bathroom…I’m ready for tomorrow 🙂

FAIL December 10, 2009

the bread didn’t turn out so well.  Bummer.