Note to self...

Steven Curtis Chapman is singing Christmas music in the background, the kids and I just finished putting the sprinkles on the Christmas cookies, and despite my messy house and stuffy nose I am feeling quite sentimental about the holiday.

December is a horribly busy month and I am striving and seeking to keep our little family focused and remembering our dear Jesus in the midst of it all.  When I think of him I am calm and at peace at once.  I have found our Advent wreath and will be blowing off the dust and putting it on the dining room table to help remind us all of the love of our God in sending Jesus.  We will try each night to teach the children the significance of the Scriptures that foretold of His coming, to help them realize that this Story is different than all others.  This isthe Story, the story of how our creator rescued us from our own ugliness and death and adopts us to be beloved children, blessed, loved, cherished.  I want this for them, more than anything, and I constantly need to be reminded of my place, of who I am and of whom I belong.  I forget so often and live as an orphan.

The Miracle of Christmas

A child is born tonight in Bethlehem
His mother holds him close and sings a sweet lullaby
All the world lay sleeping unaware that God himself has
come in the night.

The shepherds tremble as the angels sing
And in their song the voice of God speaks peace to the world
A miracle has happened, God has come and God
has spoken
but the miracle has only just begun.

And the God who spoke is speaking still
And the God who came still comes
And the miracle that happened still happens in the heart
that will believe
And we see(receive) the miracle of Christmas

So come to Bethelehem again and see
The one who's come to rescue us, our Savior and King
Bring your past, the joy, the sorrow, all your hope to
find tomorrow
And hear the words again, fear not and know that
God is near

Believe the miracle of Christmas 

Costumes, fires, and pumpkin guts

Sticking with the theme of “catching up” I had to post a picture of my three cuties this past Halloween.  We did the normal trick-or-treating but then had friends over for a bonfire, marshmallows and more candy.  It was a great time being together!

Oh, and here's what happened when Daddy asked the kids to help him take out the pumpkin guts!

 

Veteran's Day Blog Hijacking

The Iwo Jima War Memorial is one of the most indelible pictures of World War II.  Each and every year this is the day we remember our veterans that served in the military past and present.  Veterans like both of my grandfathers, my father, my brother, and my boss/brother-in-law. 

Last Sunday on our flight home from Chicago I was reading the book “Flags of our Fathers”.  It's a book about the lives of the men that you see in the photo above and the battle they fought on a small dirt mound in the Pacific named Iwo Jima.  As I was reading there was an older gentleman next to me that began rifling thru his wallet.  He nudges me a bit and asks”Like the book?”, I said yes.  He then hands me a photo of him as a young man sitting at the controls of a B-29 bomber.  He was a waist gunner and flew out of Saipan, they would stop on Iwo Jima to refuel on their way to and from bombing runs over Japan.  He was the oldest crewman on the plane at the ripe old age of 23.   6,800 men were killed and 20,000 were wounded in one of the fiercest battles of WWII for what some would call a gas station, but it was the major turning point of the war in the Pacific by allowing B-29's to strike deep into enemy territory and ultimately lead to the end of the war.

The gentleman next to me just turned 89 and was on his way to see his great-grandchildren.  As we talked I thanked him for his service and encouraged them that people of my generation have not and will not forget what all of our veterans have sacrificed and continue to sacrifice to keep our country free.  So thank a veteran this weekend.

–Mr. Simply Sam

Pugfest

I'll have to catch up with all of the major events in my life over the past two weeks in 3 or 4 posts -so hang in there!  I have lots of stories and pics to share…

OK(now this isn't a very major event in our lives but quite unique and blogworthy).  A couple weekends ago we dressed up our Miyagi and went to Pugfest, an annual event to raise money for the organization from which we adopted Miyagi.  Last year they had about 700 pugs(and owners) attend and this year I am sure as many showed up, including our little family. 

So…it wasn't really that much fun, but at least we have been, experienced it and never have to go again.  It really wasn't all Pugfest's fault…our children were crabby, it was very, very crowded with man and beast, plus a little smelly.  The pugs were as cute as can be but I'll have to agree to some extent with David when he said “That was a wasted $15 !”
Now please, take this as my opinion only!  I am sure there are many out there who love Pugfest and look forward to it all year ( kind of like we did in our ignorance).  But for this family, next year we'll make that drive to the mountains instead.

Here are a couple of pics of our favorite Pug and one that we liked at the 'fest.