Getting Sweet for Christmas

Okay, Christmas is long over and we have all settled into the long, yet weird, winter blues. Looking back brings me some sweet memories and some profound thoughts.
We took a lot of time, two days almost, to sweeten up for Christmas. You know, sweet goes down much easier than sour.

"You can catch more flies with honey than vinegar," so the saying goes. What would Christmas be without sweets?
It would be long lines, and high prices and extended family gatherings (think Chevy Chase) and whining children.

There is one thing left though, even if we took away all the sweets, and all the sour...

there is the Savior.

He left the unimaginably scrumptious heaven, to bring some sweetness to a sour world, to save us from our bitter selves, to bring us into a savory and delectable relationship (think eternal chocolate without the calories) with him...forever.

So life is a little tart right now. Spend time sweetening yourself, and your life up, with the bread of life, no fat and never sour.

The Long Winter

The winter this year has seemed especially cold and long. The cabin fever has caused a bit of craziness to happen around our house.

Luke's hair has gone completely out of control.









We have a 'pet' squirrel eating our suet.
And the bitter cold has even caused the hardiest superhero to faint.

Keep Warm!

Super Kids

One of the best presents HJ and LA got for Christmas were their Super costumes. They wear them often and have made up an entire superhero land with characters and wonderful happenings. Of course, I think that my children are always super and they are learning about the power they have. You see, as children of God we all have super natural power. It is the power of Christ living inside us. We can overcome any obstacles within ourselves and in the world if we call on Jesus. The Bible says, "Greater is HE (Jesus) that is in me, than he (Satan) that is in the world." 1 John 4:4 Now, we have to live that way!

The Fighter

Luke has been taking Karate lessons this year. There is nothing more fierce than eight 4 year old boys learning how to karate chop someone. Anyway, he is having a great time and learning discipline and useful life skills. The fierceness of Karate has not taken away his ability to ham it up as you can see in these pictures. Be afraid, be very afraid.

Christmas Smiles

We had a delightful Christmas this year made even more fun by having all of the grandparents around. God is certainly good to us.

Vacation

Our family vacation came in September this year and we all had a wonderful time. The cooler temperatures and less crowded attractions really made the trip more enjoyable. We spent a lot of time hiking, observing nature, playing and relaxing.

John made sure the week wasn't wasted and taught the kids everything he could about plants, animals, trees, stars and rocks. We even captured 2 catapillars in hopes the would turn to butterflies, but they did not. I truly count it a blessing to have the ability to get away for a while and enjoy the beauty God created without interuptions. We are so busy and so 'plugged in' all of the time that the simple things of life slip by. My children have grown so fast and so quickly that I find myself forgetting what they were like when they were little.
Life is a gift, one to be treasured and celebrated.

Learning To Fish

On vacation this fall Hannah and Luke learned to fish. With their Papa at their side, they learn all the FUNdamentals and had a good time.



Too bad they didn't catch anything. Luke was pretty sad about that.

Hannah and Luke

Hannah Joy 7 1/2

LukeAaron James 4 1/2

Cousins

David, Daniel, Hannah, Kerith and Luke enjoying a refreshing water balloon fight on a hot day.

Balloon Festival

Having Andrea's family with us this summer for the July 4th Balloon Festival was exciting for everyone. Above you can see Hannah and Kerith enjoying snow cones, it was a bit warm and they wanted to cool down. Below, Luke is wrestling with his snow cone also. It is green of course like everything in his life, from clothes to food. I don't know that he truly likes green flavored things, but he eats them anyway, just because they are green. He's a funny kid.

More than 40 balloon's lifted off in perfect weather. It was a beautiful site as always. Below, David is asking us all some hard question I am sure. David thinks things through and has a very bright and inquisitive mind. He's a great kid and growing so fast. I don't know if my niece and nephews had seen hot air balloons before, but they were very fascinated by them and watched them intently.