THANKSgiving....

Thanksgiving is just another day in our house this year as my husband will be working a 12+ hour shift.  He hopes to come home for a brief snack at some point, but who knows if that will actually happen.  So, we'll just eat our Thanksgiving dinner when he gets home near dinnertime.....


Meanwhile, here are some things we are thankful for this year!


Troops that are stationed overseas, as well as their families that are at home without them...

Helpful parents, especially when I was sick this month and my husband was working...

Adoption!  What a perfect picture of what God has done through His redemption of those who are His children... We've been able to see this up close and personal this year...

New friends...  I've had the privilege of making several new friends this year and it has been great getting to know them better...

Kids!  Mine are pretty cool, as are their friends!

Special times with family.... We are blessed with the time we are able to spend together....

Great husband of mine!  He's definitely not perfect, but he's exactly what I need!

Internet... Just as with most things, it can be a good thing or a bad thing... But to consider the resources at your fingertips in only a few seconds, it sure can help in certain situations...

Verse by verse preaching in our church!  They are NOT afraid to speak God's Truth...

It's our great country, America!  Yes, we have faults, challenges and problems, but we still live in the BEST country in the world, with freedoms that others can only dream of!

Next year... I know I probably shouldn't look ahead just yet, but we've got a LOT of fun stuff coming up in 2013 as well as several changes that will take place...

God's grace, mercy, forgiveness and redemption... What more can I say than that?

 

Christmas Celebration!

Christmas Eve Appetizers

We had a wonderful Christmas time, visiting with family for several days.  We went to church Christmas Eve afternoon and when we arrived back home, it was time to start eating!  I am a BIG fan of appetizers, so this time of year is my favorite....appetizers for Christmas Eve, for New Year's Eve and every Sunday while watching football!

Delicious Christmas Dinner!

Christmas morning, we opened gifts, cleaned up and took a brisk walk in the cold weather.  Then it was time to eat again!  Ham, Green Bean Casserole, Twice Baked Potato Casserole and Homemade Rolls was on the dinner menu.  For dessert, my sister made the traditional dessert we have on Christmas- Red Velvet Cake with Buttercream Frosting!  Oh my goodness, it's SO GOOD!  She also made a Rum Cake, which was also excellent.  I think we'll have to talk her into making BOTH each Christmas from now on!

Hiking off all that food!

Besides eating a LOT of GREAT food, we also played some games, watched some movies (Dolphin Tale is a sweet movie!), went shopping and took a hike through the woods.

I think the best part of the weekend was that my husband finally got his wedding band re-sized!  He had lost about 40 lbs 4 years ago and his ring didn't fit without a ring guard, which was highly annoying for him to wear.  The jeweler did such a great job that you can hardly tell where they made the cut in the ring!

But now we're back to real life..... The house was a mess, there was laundry to be done, work to go back to.  We picked up Zana today from the family she spent Christmas with, did a little shopping at the mall and a few other stores and took her to Kanki for lunch.  Then back home and back out again for groceries.  My husband had just enough time to shovel down some soup before heading to work.  By the time he got to bed this morning, he had been awake for almost 24 hours.  Plus, he started the shift with a dead battery in his car..... I'm hoping that was all the excitement for his night but I have a feeling it wasn't!

I'm looking forward to my next post, about my goals for the New Year!  But I have a few more days of this year to enjoy first!

Merry Christmas!

The BIG day is almost here.....Christmas!

Once again, the month has flown by way too quickly, as I'm sure it has for many of you.  Once again, we may have let the fun times with friends and family and the buying, wrapping and opening presents overshadow the TRUE reason we celebrate Christmas.

Luke 2:10-11 "Then the angel said to them, 'Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people.  For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord."

Ok, so a baby was born over 2,000 years ago.... He wasn't just any baby, he was the Savior of the world!  So as we reflect on Jesus this Christmas season, let's also include the following verses to bring the full meaning of His existence to light...

John 3:16-17 "For God SO LOVED the world that He GAVE His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.  For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved."

 The BEST gift this Christmas season can't be wrapped and placed under the tree.  It doesn't cost you any money.  You don't deserve it but it has been given to you for free.  All you have to do is admit you are a sinner who needs a Savior, believe that Jesus is God's Son who died for your sins and rose again and this free gift of salvation is yours for all eternity!

Enjoy this Christmas season with your family.  Open your presents Christmas morning.  Eat all that good food and spend lots of time with your loved ones.  But don't EVER forget the TRUE meaning of Christmas.

I'll be taking some time off from blogging to do the same.  I'll be enjoying my family and remembering why we are celebrating.  

Christmas Decorations in Pictures

Here is our decorating experience in pictures.....

The stuff for the living room tree and the outdoor wreathes....

Time to move the bookshelf to make room for the tree....

My daughter asked for some slice and bake tree cookies to eat while we decorated the tree....

The failure tree.... Only 1/3 of the lights worked and since it was a pre-lit, it needed to be thrown out and a new tree purchased.  Fun.... 

The new tree looks a lot like the old tree, except the lights DO work!  ;)

The first ornament to be placed on the tree!

Our "Places" tree- with ornaments from the places we've been.... Disney, Williamsburg, Charleston, The White House, Mt Vernon, Jamestown, Cape Cod, just to name a few!

Our stockings, along with some nativities on the mantle....

A "Police" tree for my husband!  Blue lights and police ornaments....and the only Sheriff decoration we've ever seen, given to us by a friend!

A few more nativities on the piano....

I had a small tree and a place for it, so it's in my kitchen!

All decorated and lit!

The tree in my daughter's room....

The tree in my son's room....

I have to have one Poinsettia in my house for Christmas!

There you have it... 6 lit trees, a bunch of nativities (and believe it or not, less than in years past- I only bring out the ones I really like), lots of lit garland (inside and out!) and we're done decorating for Christmas!  Now to put on some Christmas music (I've got some great Christmas playlists on Spotify- Third Day, Michael W Smith, Mandisa and Toby Mac!) and enjoy the house!

Thanksgiving in Pictures

Here is our Thanksgiving celebration in pictures.....

Apple Pie with crumble topping, hot out of the oven!

Cranberry-Pineapple Cups "gelling" in the fridge.

The table is set!

Table level view.....

 

 

 

 

I love my Grandma's China!  Good thing my favorite color is red, so it goes well in my house....

Getting ready.... I labeled all the dishes with what would go in them so I didn't have to guess or have 5,000 questions while trying to prepare the meal.

Turkey in brine overnight....YUM!

The traditional early lunch appetizers while watching the Macy's Parade....

Between the brine and the cooking method (500 degrees for 30 min, then cook at 350 for the remaining time), this turkey was beautiful and delicious!

The menu.....

The food table.

My plate- a little bit of everything!  So delicious!

The dessert table- Pumpkin, Chocolate Chess and Apple Pies, with homemade vanilla whipped cream!

My dessert plate- a little bit of everything, of course!

The low-light of the evening....I broke a salad plate while washing dishes!

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving!  Hope yours was great too!

Oh Christmas Tree!

I can't wait any longer.

I must put up my Christmas tree!  Or should I say, one of my Christmas trees.

At last count, I think we have 5 Christmas trees.  I know I should wait until after Thanksgiving to put them up, but I really, really want to put one up today!  How nice it would be to put on some Christmas music, put the guys to work bringing down and setting up the tree while I make an Apple Pie for Thanksgiving, and then my daughter and I can put the ornaments on!

I think today we'll just put up our main tree in the Living Room.  Ok, maybe also some of the decorations in the Living Room too.  And maybe also the outdoor lights.  But that's it.

The rest will wait until the day after Thanksgiving.  The kids each have a tree in their rooms and they will decorate those themselves.  We also have my husband's tree- the Police Tree.  I'm not a "good" police wife who lets her husband decorate year round with police memorabilia (we do have a print of the National Law Enforcement Officer Memorial on the wall, right next to his framed advanced certificate, but those are down a hallway).  But when Christmas comes along, we put up the Police Tree, add the blue lights (that blink at a variety of speeds- it's really pretty cool!) and the police ornaments.  The master bedroom and kitchen each have a tabletop tree to add to the festivities.

Because it's so much work to put all of the Christmas decorations up, I like to do that around Thanksgiving and leave them up until a week into January.  We like sitting in the Living Room at night, with only the lights of the Christmas tree on, either listening to Christmas music or watching a Christmas movie.


It's my favorite time of the year!

A List

I love lists.

I especially love lists this time of year.....

Right now, I have a list of what we're having to eat on Thanksgiving, the schedule for cooking on Thanksgiving, a list of Christmas presents purchased and those left to buy, a list of who to send Christmas cards to and soon I will start a list of surprises for Rich for his 40th birthday in February.

But since this week is Thanksgiving, I thought I'd add one more list....A list of what I'm thankful for.  Here are some things that I would put on that list:

• My husband's job.... It's dangerous, difficult, has a crazy schedule and sometimes annoys me.  But he has a job and he is good at it and for that I am thankful!
• My parents....The kids enjoy spending time with them and get to see them practically any time they want.  Not every grandkid can say that!
• My house....It's way more than we need, especially compared to what many in the world have.  I don't ever need to complain about it- I have a roof, heat/AC, running water and plenty of room for my family plus more!
• My sister and her family....Whenever we get together, there's always great food and lots of laughs!
• My God....Who else would know everything about me, including my thoughts, and still love and forgive me? 
• My kids....I've said it before and I'll say it again- they're weird and I love them!  I truly enjoy spending time with them.  These teen years have been lots of fun!
• My husband....I can't say enough good about him.  Even when I get frustrated with him, there's still no one else I'd rather spend my time with. 
• My friends....Whether it's friends from my childhood I've reconnected with through Facebook, friends I've had for 10 years and see weekly, or even the long time friends that I don't see often but are still there for me when I need them, or friends I've only talked with on the phone but hope to see in person soon, I appreciate the people in my life who encourage me, pray for me and support me!
• My church....I won't go into the details, but I will say that I'm so glad God brought us to RCCC.  To see my children excited about church, learning doctrine and to see my husband challenged and encouraged means so much to me.

This list is not all-inclusive, but hits the basics.  It's a shame I don't start making this list until November.  Really, I should be thankful every day because in even the hardest of days, there's always something to be thankful for!