We're jumping for joy...

for Christmas!

Christmas Traditions pt. 2

I can't tell you how many times I have walked past the Gingerbread house kits at the grocery store and thought how much I would love to buy one to put together with the kids. For one reason or another I never do.....that is, until this year! We had such a fun time together decorating our little house that I have decided it will be a Christmas tradition from now on! We may even make our own from scratch one day when we are pro's, but for now the "kit" method worked well for us. I did have to make more icing because we kept eating it, and we did have to use legos at one point to hold up each side of the roof ( I guess we should have used a little more icing on the roof and a little less on our tongues!), but hey, that's what memories are made of! So, here are the first pictures of many more memories to come over the years:

Christmas traditions

Ever since I can remember my mom has baked a very special Christmas cake to celebrate the holiday. If I described this cake to you most of you would probably not want to partake in its yummy goodness...this is, after all, a giant fruitcake.
I've realized after being an American for 21 years that most Americans have a general dislike, and maybe even a serious hatred, for the poor fruitcake. Just remember, that this is a homemade fruitcake and should not be compared to the little briquettes that make their way to various homes during the holidays.
Mom usually makes one large cake for the whole family and we share it throughout December and January whenever we visit. This year Mom made each family their own little cake and had the kids over to decorate. I decided that this definitely needs to become a tradition for our family! Here are some pictures from our fun cake time:

Bumblebee!

The release of the movie Transformers was a dream-come-true for my dearest hubby. He owned many of these toys as a child ( as did I) and actually let out an audible *gasp* when the first previews started airing for the movie. The magic has spread to the other males in our home, and even though the little men will not be seeing the movie they are quite in love with the characters. After we rented and watched the movie we decided on sections of the movie to let the boys watch: mostly all of the interesting "transforming" scenes. Bumblebee has become a favorite and I spend way too much time in my day trying to transform mini-versions of these complex toys.

The other day the kids and I made a stop at Wal-Mart. We finished up our shopping and as we headed for the car, we were stopped dead in our tracks by an amazing scene. Parked right next to us was Bumblebee himself! The kids started screaming and jumping up-and-down. I have to admit I was kind of excited too! Since I always carry my camera for those "must-have picture moments" I whipped it out and had the chickadees pose in front of their favorite robot: (yes, I know...for all of you Transformer buffs, this is not the real car that played Bumblebee, but a Mustang painted the correct colors works for us!) And no , I did not realize that Ethan was leaning up against this very nice, does not belong to us, vehicle!

Okay, okay, I know it's been about a year since any grand stories or pictures have been posted on this blog. You have Facebook to thank for that! Well, and life...and school...And now that we have entered that really crazy, busy time of the year I can't promise getting any better on my posting habits. Just thought I would let the 5 of you who actually read my blog every now-and-then, know!
Our latest family adventure took place at Vogel park in the beautiful mountains of North GA. The weather was cold, but the scenery full of tall green pines in stark contrast to the oranges, golds, reds and pinks of the hardwoods was well worth it all. Thankfully, each Vogel campsite is equipped with an electrical outlet and a faucet. We were able to set up a space heater in the tent at night to keep the inside temp. around 50-60 degrees while the outside plummeted to a very cold 28!

Eating Daddy's homemade "marshmallow melts"

The Appalachian Trail marker

The lake at Vogel

The little store that the Appalachian Trail cuts through

Camping 101

We've been gearing up this past summer to take the children on their first overnight camping adventure. After scouting camps relatively close to home, we finally decided on one and set off last Friday with our car packed to the brim. We weren't sure how the kids would like camping and I was really hoping all would go well so that it would become one of those fun and memorable traditions in the life of our family.

Keri and Rusty were also camping for the first time with their little family so we decided to camp together the first night and spend the day on Saturday with our own families. We had a great time together despite the too-humid weather. Dinner consisted of fire-roasted wienies, fruit and chips. David started a fire as soon as he had set up our tent so that he could make our dessert for the night, a delicious homemade cobbler, made in a cast iron dutch oven and cooked in the coals of our fire. It was delicious and I was so impressed with my man! We, of course, also had smores which the kids loved!

Bedtime came and went with no great difficulty. I tried to give the chickadees a wet-wipe bath but the dirt didn't budge. The adults stayed up and chatted for a little while longer and then we retired to our "wet" pillows and sleeping bags ( from the humidity). Thankfully, we at least had an air mattress to rest our old bones on but sleep did not come easily. I felt like I was up most of the night, tossing and turning and listening to the night sounds. David was up as well but I'll refrain from sharing his issues with you!

The morning finally came and all three little cuties sat up in their sleeping bags and started jabbering about how much they love camping. It was too cute! That day we headed out into the wilderness with backpacks and GPS in hand to scout out some caches. We drove down forest service roads forever(bit of an exaggeration), found a beautiful waterfall and an old cemetery ( I have a thing for old cemeteries!) and finally made it to the place we thought we should start hiking...after 30 minutes of not getting anywhere and having to carry Jonah over all of the underbrush, we decided to give up and pursue other pleasures of the day. The drive back to the campsite put the boys to sleep and we were all ready for lunch by the time we arrived. After lunch we packed up our things and headed home. We couldn't spend another night because of obligations on Sun. morning.

Sooooo....I think our camping trip was a great success! The weather was disappointing with the warmth and humidity, but the kids did well and David and I had a great time together as well. You never know how these things are going to work out, but I think we have a fun future ahead of us in the world of the great outdoors and camping! Oh, and btw, I have my eyes set on a pop-up camper, so if anyone has one and would like to let us borrow it , we would be greatly appreciative. (I'm still trying to sell my dearest on the idea!)

A light in the valley

It seems as though my family has been walking through this valley for some time now. I am weary at times, but mostly hopeful, resting and trusting in the promises of my God. Lately, however, my valley has grown darker, dimmer and the burden has been too much to bear. Obviously I have been trying to bear it myself. Trying to reason things out, looking for clues all the time of how God may or may not be working. Using my circumstances to measure God's presence ( I know, crazy)

Having mercy and using it in my own strength is completely exhausting and futile. I take on the world's pain and cares as if they're my own but I am only a small, helpless, scared girl without my Father. When He works in me to have mercy on others it becomes second nature: a breath, a blink of the eye-I am doing what I was created for, and I am at peace and fulfilled in doing so.

A shaft of light burst through the haze today. It was as if my Father reached down and took my face in his hands and raised my weary eyes to himself. This darkness has been oppressive, and I didn't even realize to what extent until I saw Him clear and beautiful and I remembered His amazing love for me!

In Church this morning we were discussing John 3:16 "For God so loved the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him shall not perish but have eternal life."
I've been a Christian since I was 11 and have heard, studied and memorized this verse so many times. Today it became alive to me again. It was as if all of these pains and heartaches were suddenly put in their place next to a holy, righteous, loving, huge, powerful, unimaginable God.

We read in Proverbs 8 this morning , verses about wisdom and how this wisdom is really Jesus. Listen to the language of the relationship between Father and Son:

23"From everlasting I was established,
From the beginning, from the earliest times of the earth.
24"When there were no depths I was brought forth,
When there were no springs abounding with water.
25"Before the mountains were settled,
Before the hills I was brought forth;
26While He had not yet made the earth and the fields,
Nor the first dust of the world.
27"When He established the heavens, I was there,
When He inscribed a circle on the face of the deep,
28When He made firm the skies above,
When the springs of the deep became fixed,
29When He set for the sea its boundary
So that the water would not transgress His command,
When He marked out the foundations of the earth;
30Then I was beside Him, as a master workman;
And I was daily His delight,
Rejoicing always before Him,
31Rejoicing in the world, His earth,
And having my delight in the sons of men."

To even begin to understand the great love between Father and Son and know the great sacrifice that was made for me , for you. To remember that Jesus, the beloved Son was beaten, nailed to a cross and then the unimaginable...God's wrath was poured out on Him, the Beloved made the enemy. "For God SO loved"! His life in exchange for mine. The righteous for the sinner. I am ashamed of my response to this. I so easily forget this act which in one instant brought me to God himself, never to fear wrath or judgment, condemnation or death ever again. I have been so intent on seeking His hand in my life that I have forgotten how beautiful He is, just Him, not His blessings, provision, gifts....just Him because He is.