Sleeping under the Christmas Tree!

I have always LOVED Christmas.  I have vivid memories of Christmas as a child.  I loved looking at the presents under the tree, going to see Santa and getting to stay up "late" on a school night to watch the Christmas specials on tv.  I loved to lay under the tree and look at the lights.  As a teen, I had a best friend named Ann who also loved Christmas as much as I did.  We would talk about sleeping next to the Christmas tree.   And then when I had kids, I would love to set everything up and read to them next to the tree and get the blankets out and watch a movie next to the tree.  This year, on Christmas Eve, after dinner, we (my family and the kids) were sitting around after our big feast talking.  I suggested that we all sleep by the Christmas tree!  Wouldn't that be fun!?  We could all sleep on the hard wood floors?  So, that didn't go over well, but we started saying that we could pull our king size mattress downstairs, AJ's queen, Rachel's double and then my parents king size mattress from the guest room.  We could put them all around the tree and throughout the house because they wouldn't all fit in the family room.  But, then we started thinking about my dad snoring and how in the middle of the night we would all be trying to drag our mattresses back up the stairs.  LOL.  It didn't sound as fun and magical as it sounded!  I guess that's the way some things just are.  So, we ditched that idea and all went into our own cozy beds for a good nights sleep :)

ice skating!

You know what I love about seasons?  That in the summer you can do this:

and then in December, you can do this on that same pond!

Crazy huh?  Notice the trees in the background.  The ice was starting to melt but it was still good enough to skate on.



So that's all nice and everything but I guess I am glad that I never lived here while my kids were little.  Only because of all the stuff you have to dress them in to go outside!  On this day, the girls walked up to the pond and called me to see about skating.  Being the nice mom that I am, I said "sure, after I eat my lunch."  They were probably freezing waiting for me.  Anyway, I get the skates, the snow gear, snacks, drinks, my book, my reading glasses and get the truck warmed up.  I've learned from past experience not to drive my car up there because I ended up in the ditch last time with my slippers on!  But that's another story.  So, I get up there and check out the ice to make sure that it's safe.  The snow that had been on there had melted so there was water on the ice but it was still pretty thick.  The girls get dressed in their snow clothes, put on the skates, and head out onto the ice.  They are having a great time.  I'm taking pics and then get out my book.  I look at the clock and it's 1:55pm.  A little while later, Rachel says that her feet are freezing.  The water was going through their skates.  I look at the clock and its 1:58!  Yep, they lasted a whole 3 minutes out there.  So, we packed up and went back to the house.  It took me longer to pack everything up and get up there than it did for them to skate.  So, I guess, that's another reason why I'm glad we didn't live here when they were little.  If I had gotten them dressed and ready and then they wanted to come in a few minutes later, I would have made them stay outside.  Cause I can be a mean mom too sometimes :)

what up with that?!

This video is hilarious!  Watch it and then read my post below this one:



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What Up With That?!

Have any of you seen the funny skit on Saturday Night Live called "What Up With Dat" ?  We don't stay up late enough usually to catch it but we do tape it on the DVR each week.  I have posted a video of last weeks episode so that you can get the idea.  It's hilarious.  Ooooooo Eeeeee.....

On Christmas Eve, my parents came over for our annual Christmas Eve seafood feast.  Well, my parents watch this skit too and we had the best time all night with it.

I was taking pics of my family in the kitchen getting dinner ready.  Then Randy got the camera and started taking pics that I had to delete.  I did leave this one.....What Up With That?

I got the camera back and took some of the house decorated.  Here's our table:

and the stockings and tree.....

the front stairs and entryway

the living room

What Up With That Mistletoe?!

Here's some of the yummy food we had:

After dinner we opened a few gifts....

the kids played some cards....

and then papa showed them how to throw pennies and play a game...

do you see me dancing in the background????  We would get crazy when someone would say something.  we would start up with What up with That?  and start dancing around! lol

such a fun night together with family and good food!  AJ thought we were all crazy but we had a lot of laughs :)   so What Up With THat??????

first car and Christmas early...

AJ has been having some trouble with his car.  The right rear wheel keeps wanting to lock up.  It makes this horrible noise and so Randy figured out a way to "fix" it temporarily.  I mean it is his first car after all and he should have some problems right?  Remember your first car?  Anyway, last night after basketball practice, it was locking up and he couldn't get it loose with the hammer and metal chisel thingy that Randy gave him to unlock it.  So, Randy told him to hit it harder.  Still no luck.  Randy heads to the school in my car and he can't get it unlocked either!    A little bit later, they pull up and Randy is laughing telling me how he had to drive the car home in reverse!  We all got a good laugh out of that!  Never knew I had such a talented husband.  Of course, he always does remind us that he took "Police Advanced Driving".  So, I don't know what I was thinking!   Needless to say, we'll be taking the car in today to be fixed.  Good thing we live in the middle of nowhere.  Oh and we do have AAA but hey, why bother them when you can drive the car in reverse all the way home on a snowy road in the dark!

On another note, Randy keeps asking us every night if we want to open a Christmas present.  I keep being the adult and saying no not yet.  Well, how many nights can a girl say no to all those presents?  I mean, even AJ hugged and kissed me!  So, what could I say?  Well, when we were about to let the kids open one, Rachel kept saying she didn't think she should!  We were laughing.  What kid says that?  She did that when we got her a cell phone too.....  "I don't know if I should get one!"  What!  What teen says that????  Anyway, we finally talked her into opening one gift and they both received a pair of Tom shoes.  They had been wanting those.  If you don't know about Tom shoes are, for every pair you buy they give a pair to a child who doesn't have shoes.  They loved them.  And I loved what that company does for kids!

And then Randy gave me this sweet necklace!  It has both the kids names on it and their birthstones.  I just love it!

Now, we will wait to open the rest until Christmas morning!  I do remember our first year of being married.  We opened all our presents a few days before!  We closed the curtains and lit the tree and opened them all!  Good memories!

another hunting season almost over....

I noticed today on the search area of the computer...."NY state 2010 hunting season".  My poor husband is already looking to next year.  Hunting season ends tomorrow and he is already talking about next year.  For never having hunted before he certainly has a new found passion.  And you know what?  I'm happy for him.  Maybe it doesn't bother me like others because he doesn't have to travel to hunt.  Friends from Fl have to go to Ga. to hunt on weekends.  I don't know that I would like that so much.  But, if this small thing brings him happiness then who am I to not love it too!?  He helps so much around here and does so much for all of us that I'm glad he has something that he enjoys.  And girls, I think you need to lighten up about the deer heads on the wall of your homes.  What's the deal with that?  Is it that bad?  I guess I figure it's not just my house.  He lives here too and it just doesn't bother me.  Anyway, this is to my husband....love you Randy and glad that you have found a sport that you love so much!  Until next hunting season......

Replacing Lies with the Truth

This is the last day I'm going to blog about Lies we believe.  This one I think is a big one:
"I would be happy if.....(and you fill in the blank).  We believe that happiness is based on some set of circumstances working out right in our lives.  People always think that if they had more money they would be happy.  Well, we know that's not the case.  Just look at all the celebrities.  They have more money than they know what to do with and yet a lot of them  don't look happy to me.  Tiger Woods is an example of that.  He looked like he had it all but he must not have been happy.  Anyway, someone else might say, "I would only be happy if I had more stuff.  Or if I was married to somebody different.  On the radio show that I was listening to the guest said that the 2 most common e-mails that she gets are these:
1) I won't be happy unless I get married and 2) I am miserable in my marriage and I'm not going to be happy unless I can get out of it.  Interesting huh?

See, Satan's coming at us  with whatever we don't have, that's what he's going to throw at us.  Maybe it's I want a baby or more children.  Then we get them and we remember what life was like before kids! lol

But seriously, God is saying to us, you have to be happy in me and what I've called you to do or be.  So stop saying "why me?" with this whole list we're going over and start saying "What now?"

Life has a lot of unmet expectations.  Things we dreamed of that never happen.  So, we have to decide are we going to be unhappy and wish for something different or are we going to embrace our circumstances, trust God and become content.  Unmet expectations are breeding grounds for lies!

On the show they talked about how life happens. Husbands leave socks on the floor, they don't bring flowers etc.... and as women we think, "this is not what I thought it would be."  We feel unappreciated sometimes.   Then someone will give you a compliment or you talk to someone on the computer and you develop a mirage of a relationship - some kind of fantasy relationship with a guy.  But see, the guy on the computer doesn't leave his socks on the floor!  It's a lie.

So, what do you do if you've started believing these kinds of lies?  First, you have to realize that it is a lie.  D.L. Moody said, "In order to see if a stick is crooked, you don't argue about it, you don't denounce it, you simply lay a straight stick beside it.  Then you know it's crooked."  You've got to know God's word.  We have to immerse ourselves into his truth, then those lies start sticking out.

On the show they said, add "in Jesus name" to the end of that sentence and see how it feels to you.  "I can't do anything right...in Jesus name..."  or "I'd only be happy if I had a different husband...in Jesus name."  That doesn't work.  But, "I can love my husband, even though he's not meeting my needs, in Jesus name."

We have to reject the lies and replace it with the truth.  They gave this example on the show...
"my husband gets up at 5:30 everyday.  His alarm goes off, he takes a shower, shaves and brushes his teeth.  He leaves but I don't hear anything until my alarm goes off an hour later.  Why is that?  I'm so used to it.  I block it out."

That's how it is with believing those lies.  We get so used to it that we don't even realize that they are lies.  So ask God to show you the lies you are believing.  In order to replace the lies with the truth, that means you have to get in the truth!

Just a note, I don't feel unappreciated by my husband at all :)  Just summarizing the show because I think so many woman start thinking that the grass is always greener on the other side.   Be content with each other.  Remember why you fell in love?  I feel so blessed that our relationship as grown stronger through the years.  I said to a friend of mine once that we've been married for 20 years and that we just have a normal relationship.  She pointed out to me that my marriage was anything but normal.  That we are not the norm.  And I guess she's right.

More Lies Women Believe

Yesterday, I blogged about lies women believe.  And I was telling you about the talk show I was listening to last week.  So, today, I want to tell you a little about that show.  Oh, and I have to make a correction, the book is called, "I'm Not Good Enough and Other Lies Women Tell Themselves."

In the book she talks about 72 lies that we as women believe about ourselves.  Here are just a few:

1)  I'm not good enough.  How many of us have ever thought that?  But the truth is that I am good enough, because Christ lives in me and that's what makes me good enough.

2)  I'm worthless.  I have no value.  I think women all over the world believe this.  Jesus places such high esteem on women.  His longest conversation in the New Testament was with a woman.

Another lie is I'm a failure, I can't do anything right.  Maybe we've made mistakes in our past.  God doesn't want us to keep those things hidden, but he wants us to use what we've gone through to help others.

How about this one, I can't forgive myself?  We've all done things we are ashamed of.  The bible says, There is now no condemnation in Christ Jesus.  Maybe you've been unfaithful in your marriage, had an abortion, been sexually promiscuous as a young adult whatever it is,  when we say we can't forgive ourselves, that's like saying that what Jesus did on the cross is not good enough.  It's not a matter of can't it's a matter of won't.

And we have to be able to forgive others who have hurt us.  We can forgive because Christ first forgave us.  Forgiveness doesn't mean that what someone did was okay, or is right, but it means we're cutting them loose.

So have you believed any of the lies above?  I think as women, we all have at some point in our lives.

More tomorrow on the lies we believe.....

Lies Women Believe

Last week, I heard a little bit of "Family Life Today".  They had Sharon Jaymes on the show and she was talking about her book, "Lies Women Believe".  I have been wanting to read that book for awhile so this broadcast caught my interest.  I wanted to blog about some of the things I heard on the show but something else struck me and it goes along with that topic.


 Why is it that we as women get so caught up in busyness?  I'm not talking about some everyday busyness.  But, I mean the lie that we believe we have to have our kids in a hundred different organized activities for them to be happy.  Since when did that make us good moms?  Several years ago, I feel like we got caught up in that.  Rachel was in competitive gymnastics. AJ was in sports. They had school and we were very involved in our church.  We were gone everyday and almost every evening.  We had to look a certain way and drive the right car etc.....  My mom said to me, "What are you doing?"  I was kind of shocked because everyone was doing this.  But, when I stepped back and really looked at what we were doing it kind of made me sick.  That wasn't what I wanted  for our family.  I wanted us to be together and to have time after school to play in the backyard and just enjoy each other.  Anyway, I think that for several years we have been very careful to pick and choose things.  Lots of activities are good but that doesn't mean that we have to do them all.  It's okay if our kids aren't in organized activities...especially when they are younger.  Those things will come as they grow up.   Just enjoy them while they are young.  Don't run all over making your life crazy.  When someone asks you how you are doing, do you answer, "things are so crazy or busy or we are just getting through"? I don't know about you but I don't want to just get through.  So, I guess I'm saying that this is one lie we believe as women...we have to have our kids involved in a lot of activities.  And I think Satan wants us to be distracted because we won't have time to focus on what God wants us to do.  We have to have a quiet time in our daily lives to be able to hear what God is saying to us.  But when we are constantly doing something we can't hear Him.  Well, I could go on and on with this topic but I'll blog more tomorrow...... 
Until then, What Lie Are You Believing?

So, is everyone ready for Christmas?  All your shopping done, cards sent out, wrapping done  etc. etc. etc.  
The list can be long.  I have a few more gifts to get and then I think I'm done.  I have to mail out a package too.  Rachel has her Christmas program at church this Sunday night and then the school band concert next week.  My problem is that I buy things starting in October for Christmas.  Then, I forget about them or can't find them!  In fact, I just remembered that I already bought her a dress to wear for the Christmas concert at school.  And, I think I remember where that is!


Today, I'm finishing up some homemade gifts. I won't post them here though because then they won't be a surprise for those that I made them for.


It's pretty cold and windy today.  It's 27 but the wind chill is like 13.  Brrr.  Luckily I can stay in today.  Tomorrow I work at school.


Oh, last night just before dark, Randy shot a doe.  Rachel was soooo excited to go help him track her.  She got dressed in her winter garb and headed out to the woods.  I get a call a few minutes later to drive the truck down the road and honk the horn so that they can follow the sound out of the woods.  Then they would load up the deer and I would drive them back home.  Of course, I'm sitting there for about a half hour while Randy is trying to drag this big doe out of the woods in the dark.  A truck stops to see if I'm broke down.  I tell him no that I'm waiting on my husband who shot a doe blah, blah blah.  He tells me he lives up the road (like 15 miles away) and how we are neighbors and does Randy need any help getting the deer out of the woods.  Meanwhile, he's got 3 little kids in his car.  I thought that was pretty neighborly.  (I love living in a small town!).  Anyway, I would have no idea where to even tell him Randy is so I thank him and he leaves.  Finally, I see them coming out of the woods.  I roll my window down and turn up the radio with some Christmas music for their enjoyment lol.  Poor Randy, he was beat!  Well, now he can't lift this deer up into the bed of the truck by himself because he just drug that thing forever and Rachel is not much help at 85lbs.  So, he asks me if I can help.  I really don't want to but what could I do?  So, I get out of the toasty warm truck with my Christmas music and am telling myself not to think about what I'm doing and just do it.  I grab a back leg and we swing her up into the truck!  She is sooooo heavy.  I was okay until we banged her head on the truck as we were getting her in.  I felt terrible and shed a tear or two!  I know she's dead but it just didn't seem right.  I could never shoot one that's for sure.  I don't have a problem with Randy hunting or eating the meat or anything like that, I'm just saying I couldn't actually shoot one.  Oh well, it made for an exciting evening that's for sure! oh yeah, AJ was working so he couldn't help and Rachel decided that she should wear Randy's boots out to help instead of her own (so hers wouldn't get dirty).  Needless to say, she kept falling in the snow.  What a scene!

What a Weekend!

This was a busy weekend for us.  Saturday, we decided to decorate the house.  Randy was so great to help!  I usually do it myself and I just wasn't in the mood this year.  It's a lot of work.  But, we put on a Christmas movie and started setting things up.  Before we knew it, lights were up outside and the house looked beautiful.  Then, he made reservations at our favorite sushi place!  AJ was out with friends but me, Randy and Rachel went out and had a wonderful dinner.  My favorites are spicy tuna roll and the spider roll.  Yum!


On Sunday morning, we met my parents for breakfast.  We hadn't seen them all week so it was the only time that we could all meet together that week.  And of course, we had a yummy breakfast.



Then Sunday night, was our last night of regular youth.  We have a Christmas party on the 20th.  But, this was the last night that Randy spoke.  We played them a video of pictures from the last 4 years.  Wow, have some of them changed.  It was so much fun looking back at all the things we had done with them.  Then, they gave us a beautiful picture of a tree in black and white.  It had the scripture verse:  The Lord is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer.  My God, My strength, in whom  I trust...psalm 18:2.  And all the kids and leaders signed around the picture.  They gave us a cake and letters from the students and past students.  It was a really nice night.  It's bittersweet.  We are going to miss them all so much but we know it's our time to move on.

My Eyes!

Can someone please explain to me what happens to your eyes after the age of 40?!  Mine have been getting worse and worse.  I can see fine it's just the teensy tiny writing that is on most things that I can't see! lol
Yesterday, I thought I would be a good mom and bake brownies for the kids.  It says to add one and a quarter cup of water to the mix.  So I do and I'm mixing and it just seems kind of watery.  Well, when I looked again and squinted real good, I saw that there was no One in front of the quarter!  So, now what do you do?  You can't take the water out of the mix.  I baked them and this is what I got.....

Doesn't look too bad does it?  Well, it didn't taste good at all.  It wasn't chocolatey at all.  So, the chickens got a special treat.  Oh well.  


It's basketball season again.  I just love this time of year.  Basketball is one of my favorite sports to watch.  AJ had his first home game last night.  They did really good.  They won by about 20 points.  AJ got a lot of playing time in and we were so proud of him.  He really loves basketball and he's such a good player.  


Rachel had play practice.  She forgot to give me the note that she received on Wed. night reminding us that she had practice on Fri. night at 6pm so I was scrambling at about 5pm when I found out.  It all worked out though.  She has the Christmas play at church next Sunday night.  


This Sunday night we are showing a slideshow to the youth.  It's from the past 4 years.  I can't believe how much the kids have changed in that time.  It's been a lot of fun being involved with them!

What Makes A True Hero?

 Have you seen any real heros lately?  I mean do our kids know what that even means?  The word hero is defined as someone who has done something noble and good, something worthy of our admirations and respect.  There aren't a lot of heros to choose from nowadays.  Our politicians are caught in sex scandals.  Some athletes are caught using drugs.  I read about a 4th grade teacher who did an experiment with her social studies class.  The children had to think about someone they considered to be a role model, someone they aspired to be like when they grew up.  Then they had to draw a picture and present it to the class.  The teacher was horrified as the students began to talk about their hero.  Some chose figures such as Madonna, 50 Cent, and James Bond.  One wrote that he just wanted to be a "hitman" when he grew up!  If these are figures that our children want to emulate, then we are in serious trouble.  


As the primary adults in our kids lives, we have to teach them what a real hero is all about.  Single parents and grandparents raising kids today are heros.  Kids need to see that imperfect people can do things worthy of great esteem.  Parents are the most important force in their kids lives.  You can aspire them, teach them, care for them everyday, and protect them from danger and heartache.  Sometimes we won't see the results until later in life.  As a mom, I bet when you had your first child you had a whole new respect for your won mom.  Mothering is hard.  It's time consuming, tiring, and sometimes we just don't want to deal with it.  But, we have to.  Who else will fight for our kids?  Maybe your kids don't tell you all the time how much they appreciate the sacrifices that you make for them. Remember you are having a tremendous influence on them.  The world tells parents that we are irrelevant, replaceable, and even harmful.  As my kids are getting older, I am realizing more and more the opportunity I have to mold and shape the hearts and lives entrusted to my care.  It's the greatest privilege and challenge of my life.  It's a challenge worthy of a hero.  Yours is, too!

Christmas Traditions

Do you have Christmas Traditions that you do each year?  I saw this on another blog and loved the idea.  I wish I had thought of it when my kids were little.  So, those of you with young children might like this idea and implement it.  

Every Christmas season, you buy a new Christmas book to add to your growing collection. Each night, the children take turns picking a book to read together as a family bedtime story, saving the new book to read on Christmas Eve.
Wrap all the books each year (to solve fighting over who gets to pick which book as some are more popular than others) in the same wrapping paper, except for the new book. This new book is wrapped in a different paper and is saved until all the other books have been read. This book is read on a special night.

What a cute tradition to start with your family!

Snow! Beautiful Snow!

Well, it's December 1st and we woke up to white!  I love the first snow of the season.  It's exciting and it just makes me look forward to the Christmas season!  My cards are ready to go in the mail today!  I know...I'm impressed too!  AJ was not too happy about taking the pictures for the cards this year.  Here are a few of the pics from that session!  You gotta love teens!

You can see how happy he is is this one.

 

Look at these cool shoes AJ got for basketball this year....

the front...

this is the back...

and then the school mascot a Ram....

Well, hope you all have a great day!  My snow is already melting :(  This weekend we are supposed to get lots of snow so I'll post some pics then!