In all the organizing and putting away and re-focusing, I realized there were several important things that happened last year that I didn’t want to forget about. Not the least of which is the redneck Christmas party that our Sunday School class hosted. It was a blast…very funny to see these people all dressed up? dressed down? dressed funny? You decide.
This doozy of a picture is Josh from behind. He looked so ridiculously funny! We joked that he went into “redneck mode” quite easily. And his outfit came together seamlessly. He is a natural.
Happy New Year! Oh how I love a New Year. A fresh start. A blank journal. And a new Bible…for me…it was one of the gifts from Josh this year, and I love it. It has a red cover. I have my Bible from when I was in middle school (awkward years). It is burgundy with my name in gold and had a long strap so I could wear it like a purse. Then, I have a rainbow study Bible that I used in high school and college (growing years). I loved that Bible. Then, the Dorminy’s gave me a black Bible that buttoned closed on Christmas 2002 (marriage years and then having baby years). It was my first NAS version, which Josh says is the best. I’m excited about where all this Bible will go with me and where all I’ll go in this Bible this year!
I also like to set some goals for the year. Here are some of mine for the coming months:
1) SABBATH: I want to be more intentional about observing the Sabbath. Rest more. Try to not do anything relating to home school or house work (laundry, cleaning bathrooms, etc). Also, I want to implement a NO SCREEN ZONE that lasts all day Sunday….no phone, no computer, no facebook, no iPads, no wii. There is something to be said about reminding yourself that I need the Lord, He wants me to be set apart, and He is first in my life (my week, my day, my finances, etc).
2) SCRIPTURE: I plan to memorize two scriptures per month with Beth Moore’s scripture memory team on her blog. I get to post on the 1st and the 15th the verse I am memorizing for those two weeks. I’ll be keeping them in an index card spiral I made myself.
3) READ THE BIBLE: I signed up for the chronological reading plan of the Bible with youversion.com and hope to stay on track and read the Bible through this year.
4) BLOG: I want to blog more often. We got our computer cleaned up and amped up so it actually works really well now. I enjoy writing and it is always so fun to go back and read old blogs—some are so funny of the kids and their silly sayings and some are just thoughts that I am glad I recorded.
5) SMILE!!! I know, sounds silly, but it is on my list. I want to enjoy where we are in life and show it! I need this to come to fruition especially with my children. My interaction with them in recent months has consisted of barking off orders and ranting about all that they do not do that I already asked them to do. It can get to the point that I don’t even like myself, so I am sure my kids sometime wonder what I am so mad about. I found a verse and a quote that I think will be helpful for me in my daily interaction with the kiddos.
“Do not let kindness and truth leave you; bind them around your neck, write them on the tablet of your heart.” Proverbs 3:3
“Truth is always authoritative and gracious. Authoritative words should never be harsh, and gracious words should never be without power.” – Jennifer Rothschild
This year we did something new and rented a cabin in Blue Ridge for the week of Christmas, and we had such a great time. My parents came the first few nights. Irv stayed with us the whole week. We enjoyed relaxing and eating good food. We put a puzzle together, went on walks in the woods, enjoyed the jacuzzi and drank lots of coffee while sitting by the fire.
I learned some things about myself while we were away as it relates to Christmas and traditions. This year I didn’t buy them Christmas pajamas because it just seemed wasteful since they have enough pajamas; however, once I uploaded the Christmas morning pictures, I see that the kids look a little cuter on Christmas morning with new pajamas as opposed to ones they have been wearing for the last two years. And I also missed our “Happy Birthday Jesus” cupcakes. Those are really very small things, I know. Overall, I would say that this Christmas we were, as a family, more focused on Christ throughout the whole season than ever before and less distracted with gifts and other things that tempt to consume us. We actually did some things and gave in ways that were hands on and more biblical than years before. We are learning and growing, and for that I am thankful.
There isn’t a clear order to the pictures, but here are some of the ones I took:
This year we went to Lake Lanier to see the lights and play at their mini fair. Looking back, I do believe it was one of my most favorite memories from the season of Christmas. We had so much fun as a family.
Mack was a little short for some of the rides. He cried when he couldn’t get in a bumper car…until Josh brought over some yummy fair fries! The tears miraculously went away as he devoured the bucket-o-fries (with a little help from mom and dad).
I do believe we will put Lake Lanier on our list of fun things to do next Christmas!
Molly and Mack take piano each week and were able to play at Towne Center Mall in December. Molly played SILENT NIGHT and did such a great job! Mack played JOLLY OLD ST.NICHOLAS with a few other kids and also did a great job.
This semester the kids said they wanted to be in choir. We would go every Wednesday night to practice for 45 minutes. They seemed to like it, and they were able to be a part of the Christmas performance at church. Ruby even got to wear a robe, which she thought was neat-o.
This is Ruby and Caroline. They are so sweet and seemed to enjoy practicing.
This is Molly and GG, Caroline’s sister, and I see Kayla there, too. They were not quite as interested in the practicing part! Their age didn’t get to move around as much as the older kids. It was a long practice time!
We took a quick trip over to Augusta to visit my family. We stopped at the Blue Willow Inn for lunch since it is conveniently located about halfway to Augusta.
Unfortunately, Uncle Brian had the flu, so the Berry family had to stay home. We were all very sad to not have them around the whole time! Thankfully Aunt Cacy is bringing Jud and Kaybeth for a visit in January! Here are some pictures from my phone:
Mack tried out PawPaw’s race car. We ate, opened some gifts and just enjoyed hanging out a bit. We missed the Berry’s!
Molly was riding in the back seat yesterday when, as serious as she could be, she asked, “Mom, what does it take to be famous?”
“Hmmm,” was my reply while I wondered why she might be asking such a question.
She continued, “Like, are you famous only because you can sing?”
I started by telling her that it didn’t take singing to make you famous—there are famous authors, pianists, artists, and more. THEN, I also added that it depends on what you think famous means. And I assured her that she probably wouldn’t really like being famous….and she quickly replied, “Oh yes I would. I want to be famous.”
Ruby, being the opposite of Molly, said, “I do NOT want to be famous, where all those people know you and want to come to your house. I would not like that at all.”
We had a little discussion about how the people that are often NOT well-known in the world are the ones that serve without recognition and are known by God, which is most important.
This conversation prompted me to look up the word famous. It’s an adjective that means “known about by many people.” Synonyms for famous are “renowned, celebrated, noted, well-know, famed.”
Then, that made me think about that praise song about Jesus being the famous one. And He is in my heart….known, celebrated, famed.
But then that reminded me that while Jesus is known by many people, He is isn’t known to nearly all that He wants to be known to, which should spur me on to make Him famous to those I come in contact with daily. This season of Christmas is such a wonderful opportunity to share Christ.
The stage is set for us to talk about the true star of everything, Jesus Christ, the celebrated One!
Yesterday the kids and I hosted a lunch for the Elementary Staff of our church. All three of my kids are in their department–K, 2nd and 3rd grade. They each enjoy their time in Sunday School and Kidzplace and Choir…not to mention VBS each summer!! We are blessed to belong to such a wonderful church that offers so much to our kids. Ruby and Molly have been saved during their elementary years, and we are praying the same for Mack.
When we started preparing for the lunch the girls decided that they could entertain the ladies at the beginning. Molly played ANGELS WE HAVE HEARD ON HIGH and then Ruby read the Christmas story from Luke 2, and then Molly played SILENT NIGHT. Mack was the videographer.
This kids ended up sitting in the foyer and eating their pizza while the ladies had Caesar Salad, Baked Potato Soup, corn muffins, and fudge and cookies for dessert. The girls and Mack helped me serve the ladies all of their meal—from drinks to soup. They even cleared their salad dishes at the right time. I am so glad that they got to serve these sweet ladies! Ruby asked me early that morning if they had to “do school.” My first response was no, but then I explained to her that this is learning at its best! We may not have “done school,” whatever that means, but we definitely learned about food, serving others, public speaking and performing, videoing, team work and friendship…just to name a few.
Hi! I cannot believe the pace of life around here. I, obviously, have a low capacity for fast paced living. 🙂 I have so much in my head and heart to write about, but I cannot find substantial time to sit down and do it!
We aren’t doing much school today because Mack had a dentist appointment, and we had a few other errands to run. I’ve caught up on all laundry and packed my bags for a little trip. But before I get out of town, let me say how thankful I am for our friends. Josh and I have lived in this area for about 11 1/2 years now, and we love all we have learned here, how we have grown, and the people that have become so dear to us. I feel like our roots go deep here, and I like it that way (though I try to remind myself regularly that the Lord may choose to change our direction at any point and time).
Last Saturday we had a little class get together with our friends from church.
What a fun night we had—very laid back, which is the best kind of night to me! We are enjoying fall around here; it is definitely my favorite season.
This doozy of a picture is Josh from behind. He looked so ridiculously funny! We joked that he went into “redneck mode” quite easily. And his outfit came together seamlessly. He is a natural.
