Wrapping up

It's been a year to remember. Over the past couple weeks we've spent time with family, gone skiing, sledding, seen a movie, eaten too much, and been spoiled (but hopefully not rotten!) by the generosity of others. 2008 is on tap to be even better! Happy New Year!
The Tree





















These kids made the "NICE" list!























Gator caught on quick!





















Uncle D & Bunch



















There was a "Snowbow" (it was snowing, not raining!)
We'd never seen one of them before!

I've got a golden ticket!

Okay, I'm definitely late comin' to this party, but thus far in my life, I haven't ever gone to a chocolate shop and hand-picked a box of my favorites just for myself. So last week when my darling friend "R" gave me a gift certificate to See's Candies, I went on down to the candy store, and with the help of the kind worker, picked out all my favorites from their wide selection of chocolates. And then, I proceeded to do what I have never been able to do to all the communal boxes of chocolates that have passed through my life...thus fulfilling one of my deprived-childhood fantasies:














YUMMY! ☺

For Sir Kelly Lee

Sometimes I create situations for myself. Like this story. We have a cousin who got a new email address and sent it to me. I realized I didn't have a postal address for their family, but rather than just ask for that too, I wrote him the following reply:

okay, now i have a real email address, so if you'd tack on your postal address, you'll become of the lucky jeuls christmas card recipients. people all over the world will envy you. you'll display it proudly on your fridge, or perhaps inside your bathroom medicine cabinet. when nosy people peak inside to see what drugs you're snarfing, they'll see my christmas card, and promptly forget about your drugs, so distracted and amazed, nay, green with envy that you got one. you'll hire security detail to stand outside the bathroom to check them when they come out. they'll know this, so they'll regretfully leave said card there, and go away plotting how they, too, could get their hands on this much coveted card. they'll start scheming on how to get into the family, believing this to be the best course of action. boys far too old will start trying to arrange to marry your girls. as for you, it'll become next to impossible for you to walk unescorted in public because people will try to get close to you in an effort to get on my christmas card list. it'll make our trek to Olive Garden look like a sprint in comparisson. all because you sent me your address.

Why I do these things is beyond me...but there it was. Now I had to come up with some magnificent Christmas card or lose face. So One night, I started this project. I took lots of old christmas cards, and cut them into 2x2" squares.











Then I hole punched 8 holes into each square.













Once completed, I laid them out in a grid on the floor, and then with a needle & yarn, I stitched these paper squares into what ended up being a pretty massive quilt-esque-thingy. This process took me all night. I do mean all night. I finished just as the sun cracked the inky black sky of night. I have no idea what demon possessed me. perhaps an attractive nocturnal vampire snuck in and bit me with crazy-insomniac-craft-venom fangs or something.

My original idea was to create an outrageous looking card to send to our cousins...you know, to make good on my ridiculous claim and all. But I spent SO MANY HOURS working on this, without any clear direction about where I was going with it, that it didn't really look anything like a card when it was done.

I hadn't decided exactly what I was going to do with it till my kids woke up in the morning and saw it. For some bizarre reason that is probably attributable to their unfortunate maternal genetic inheritance, they wanted to hang it on the wall...like a big, 2'x2' paper quilt.

So I ended up not sending it to our cousins after all. Sorry sorry sorry Sir Kelly & Stacy! I know that you're gnashing your teeth because you want it bad now, and it makes you even more insane to know it was intended for you, yet all you got was the same, vanilla card that everyone else got this year. And in a twist of irony, this year was probably the least interesting card I've sent in history. My deepest apologies for not coming through. I had all the best of intentions. And I'm up to my ears now with book deadlines. But someday I'll make good on my promise. And that's a promise!

Santa came to our house a few hours ago. The tree is buried in gifts. Auntie B will arrive in 8 hours and then we will enjoy opening our gifts. It is late, but I am unable to go to sleep tonight without jotting down a few of the countless blessings that have touched me this busy season.

• Music. Every year the thing that most reaches down into my soul and draws my spirit closer to my God is the wonderful music of the holidays. I'm not talking about the cheesy, amusing, somewhat silly Christmas songs, I'm thinking particularly of Handel's Messiah, or the Candlelight Carol, or All Is Well, or some of the standard favorites that I will never stop loving: Angels we have heard on high, The First Noel, I heard the bells on Christmas day. These are just a few of the songs that I can hardly sing or hear without feeling joy.
• Thoughtful people. My goodness they're out in abundance in my life lately. I have so many gracious, generous, lovely people in my life who express their love and friendship in the most amazing ways. I feel cocooned with kindness this year in ways I never have before.
• Brad. He keeps surprising me even after 20 years with the insights he shares, the gentleness of his manner. The tenacity with which he lives his life. I love the wisdom he possesses in so many realms.
• My little angels. Bunch & Gator are two great-hearted kids who are tackling their challenges and struggles with a willingness to grow and improve. I love these two munchkins fiercely, and they are priceless to me.
• My Heavenly Father. Most of all Him. I am continually amazed at his patience with me when I forget him, his endless assistance when I need help, his steadfastness as I struggle to stay close to him, and the loving presence he is in my life. When I survey my life, there is no way to miss how he has influenced me. I am happy, and I am filled with love and gratitude for him.
• And finally, this Christmas morning, I am grateful for my Savior, whose life I am celebrating today. The trinkets under the tree serve to remind me of the only gift that actually matters...and it's one that we've all benefited from. I love him, and am so grateful to him. So endlessly grateful.
  

Wishing you, my dear readers, the happiest Christmas ever today!

Newsweek Definitely Called This One...

...at least in my case it's positively, negatively, irrefutably, absolutely, undoubtedly, gynecologically, indubitably, convolutivly, ubiquitously, unquestioningly, incomprehensibly, crazily, cardiovascularily, kimberlyily, jonniebeanily, home-made-peanutbuttercup-fudgeily, sometimes-grumpily-motherly, i-need-to-get-solid-zzzz's-tonightily-true. and that's sayin' somthin'!

Accessing The Powers That Be

I've noticed recently that there has been a spate of publications that are all variations on a similar theme: The Secret, What the Bleep-Down The Rabbit Hole, Law of Attraction: The Science of Attracting More of What You Want and Less of What You Don't, The Prayer Chest : A Novel About Receiving All Of Life's Riches , The Purpose Driven Life, The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment I could go on but I'll stop now.

I've read (or watched) most of the above titles. They've all been strongly recommended to me or heartily endorsed by people I love and respect. I've enjoyed the messages contained in them, and some of it resonates with me.

But I've arrived at the conclusion that they're all essentially angling for similar thing: how to tap into "the powers that be" to more fully get what you want out of life. There are different methods put out there about how this can be done. But at the end of the day, none of them strikes me as any more efficacious than humble, sincere, heart-felt prayer, coupled with living ones life as closely in line with that light inside each of us as possible.

Doing this, while keeping priorities in line and walking in faith, will, ultimately, be the key to a life well-lived, and well-loved too. So much of what is out there seems to be looking for a work-around, an "easy way" to get more of what you want. Hoping to find a shortcut to success, wealth, happiness and fulfillment. But in my experience, no matter the packaging, there is no substitute for genuinely communing with God...and the peace He gives and the perspective His way adds to ones life is irreplacable.

Oh it almost seems like yesterday...

...Twenty Years ago.

Today, Doc and I celebrated the 20 year anniversary of our first date. He invited me to the 28th Annual Christmas Around The World show...put on by the International Folk Dance team at our undergraduate university. So, I planned a surprise date for us and got tickets to tonight's show...the 48th annual production. Thanks to the people who made this event possible (Marie, N&S, Dave)...we really appreciated your support. It was a great night.

It snowed a lot today, so I took a picture of our little home, followed by a shot of us at the venue, and finally a self-portrait of us sitting inside before the show.

Funny, neither of us feels like we've aged at ALL. I'm sure that the teenagers in our lives would disagree heartily, but honestly, I don't feel twenty years older than I was when we met.

Magical Trees

Here are just 5 of the over 800 trees. Brandon's favorite was the Star Wars tree, I loved the "Under the Sea" tree that was all blue and sea life. Then was a most unusual fairy tree--it was turned upside-down. This was a magical display. The crowd was always 3 or 4 deep around it. I don't know how they got the tree to stand like that...very impressive. These were full-size trees, but there were also lots of miniature trees that are very cute too. Bunch is dying to do a tree for the festival next year. As I actually have created a tree from scratch in the past, perhaps this is something I could take on. At least a mini tree.

More Gingerbread Village submissions

For some reason these 4 pictures wouldn't go on the previous post...and now the images won't just open in a new window when you click them (you get a download window?!?!). I've tried to upload them over and over, I don't know what the glitch is...but apparently I'm not the only one having issues. Blogger-Help says this on it's "Known Issues" page:

Clicking on image uploaded through the post editor will show a file download box instead of showing the full-size image in the browser.

So don't bother clicking images for now.

Anyway, the first, a wizzard and dragon with it's hoard, was beyond description. Smoke came from the dragon's nostrils, and the wizzard's eyes were lit up. It's made of gingerbread, and surrounded by candy treasure.

I loved the 3 little pigs houses, and the quintessential "gingerbread house" too. And finally, someone made a replica of their own house--fun!

Ginger Bread Village submissions~2007 Festival of Trees

This week is the 37th Annual Festival of Trees, and I got recruited to volunteer at it. I'd never been to the Festival before today. People decorate and donate the most elaborate Christmas trees and other items which are then sold to the highest bidder. 100% of the proceeds from this event are donated to Primary Children's Hospital here...where any child can receive medical care regardless of whether they can pay for it or not. Over 800 amazing trees fill the Expo center, plus Gingerbread Houses, wreathes, crafts, gift items, candies, baked goods etc. The stages are a nonstop cacophony of singing, dancing, instrumental performances etc. by the children of this area. For 4 days, the public comes to see these amazing trees and support the children in most dire need, and all the staff are volunteers. Here are some of the highly creative gingerbread houses for sale. I loved the creativity!