Happy Birthday Zachary Brian!

 Today, this beautiful baby turns 19 years old.

 And this onery, mischevious little boy is now a man.

And this handsome man is making his parents very proud.  I was so blessed, as was his father, by his piano special on Sunday in church.  Zack, you have a gift.  Don't waste it- keep using it to bless others, but most importantly, to bless your Father in heaven.

Have a wonderful birthday son.  You are much loved.

Christmas Eve

 All my children around our table once again

 Baked penne, chicken and broccolli in a smoked mozzarella sauce with cheesy garlic bread.  Yes, it was delicious!

 Zachary

 3 of the 4 boys

 Emma was not happy at all.  Ben and Sam on the other hand, were beside themselves with excitement.

 We had a beautiful Christmas Eve service at our church that evening.  It was candle lit, with lots of carols and special music.  I would have loved to snap some pictures, but with it being so dark, none would have come out. 

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

It occurred to me this past week, as we were waiting for Zachary to arrive, that generations have shifted.  I remember, as a kid, driving out to Kansas to visit my Grandparents.  I have vivid memories of pulling into their driveway, and Grandpa and Grandma would excitedly open the door, their faces full of anticipation.  Their kids had arrived.

In more recent years, it was my mom and dad opening the door, welcoming my family to their home.  They had usually waited all day for us to get there, and you could almost feel the excitement in the air when we arrived.

Friday night, it was Paul and I waiting for our child to arrive.  And it is us who now know the feeling of having all the kids home and under one roof.  And it is us who are so full of excitement and contentment.

Where did the time go?  It doesn't seem so long ago that I was a young girl in the back seat of my dad's car, kind of curious about all the excitement brought about by our arrival.  And now, I am a middle aged mother who is experiencing that excitement.

The blink of an eye.  It happens in the blink of an eye.  Every moment is precious because time is so fleeting and relentless.  It never lets up.

Enjoy this day, every second of it.  I intend to.

A Christmas to Remember

We received the expected news early in the season: no Christmas bonus this year.  Things have been very tight at the church and there was no money for Paul's bonus.  We knew it was coming, so we were really not surprised.  We use this bonus to fund our Christmas, so we realized that this would be a very different Christmas.

Paul told me we had about $100 to use for Christmas.  With a family our size, that would not go far.  But it was ok.  We have everything we need.  And, in the back of my mind and in my heart, I knew things would be taken care of.  I was kind of anxious to see how God was going to take care of us, because one way or another, I knew He wouldn't let us down.

5 nights ago we had a group of people come to our home and deliver Christmas.  They loaded our tree with gifts and handed Paul and I a couple of giftcards to Walmart.  In the  past few weeks, we have received sizeable checks in the mail, some of which were from people we do not know.  Yesterday, we received an enourmous check from a church down the road who just wanted to bless us.

God came through.  Again.  He used several people to bless my family tremendously this Christmas.  This is a Christmas we will never forget.

New Pajamas

 Yes, I'm cute.

 and I know it.

Emma and the Cake

 We walked into the kitchen the other morning to quite a surprise.

 Somebody had tried to get a piece of cake without asking mom.

 Emma, was it you??

 No mommy.  I didn't touch the cake.

 Really, I didn't.  Don't you believe me?

 Honest, I didn't.

 But since it's here, I might as well have a bite.

 Mmmmm.

 I might as well have some more.

 Wow, even some on the cabinet.

Mmmmm.  What a nice breakfast.

Ladies Christmas Dinner

 On Tuesday evening, I hosted our Annual Ladies Christmas Dinner.  This has become a favorite evening for many of the ladies.  This year we had a baked potato bar, salads and desserts.

 The food was wonderful!  Emma agreed- she ate the entire baked potato.

 Lauren and Noelle

 We also had a white elephant gift exchange, which is always alot of fun.  Ellie and Joy were discussing the possibilites of each gift here.  The "hot" gift of the exchange was a box filled with several different mini perfumes.  It was snatched several times, and the lucky person who had it at the end was Ellie, much to the chagrin of her sister (and her mother!).

 Darleen and Carol solving the world's problems.

 Emma was still eating.

It was a great evening with a bunch of great ladies!

How Time Does Fly

 2011

 2010

 2009

 2008

2007

Sunday, December 18

My Night of the Giver

Tonight  was my night of the Giver.  I always do the same thing every year.  We always go out to a movie and then to dinner.  This years movie was Hugo.  What a great movie!  Everyone of us enjoyed the story, especially Anna and Ellie, who had read the book.

Afterwards, we went home where I had lasagna in the oven and choclate pie for dessert.  We all enjoyed dinner and pie.  Another great evening.

Sunday, December 11th

 Two little cherubs.  (HA HA HA HA HA).  But they do look cute!

 Awwww.  And she actually let him kiss her.

 And thought it was great!

 Sweet.

Not sure what the looks on their faces are all about, but with these two, it could mean anything.

 Sam is now a big boy, too big to get a picture with the "babies".

 Still has the "tongue in cheek" addiction.

 Silly boy.