The Couples' Party

Last night was the annual Couples Christmas Party. I had been looking forward to this party all fall, as sort of a carrot I was holding out, urging myself to get better in time to attend. We all had a wonderful time and it was just as fun as I had been hoping it would be.

We started with a gingerbread house-making contest with each couple paired together. The creations were adorable and unique. We were given 30 minutes to see what we could do.

Tom and Rebecca made a cabin, complete with a porch overhang and a great big chimney. The blue candy canes almost look like Christmas lights.

Luke and Liz created this amazing modern house. This picture does not really do justice to the house. You could definately tell the house was created by an artist. It almost looked as if I'd actually seen this house somewhere.......

Josh and Catherine created the incredible Gingerbread Cathedral. I was very impressed with the heights they achieved and the architectural design.

Kevin and Amy made this sweetheart ranch-style house. I could totally see this house in California (except for the lovely snow covering the yard).

Alaina and Rachelle teamed together while Alaina's husband took pictures. They were the first to come up with the brilliant idea of using the round candies for roof tiles.

And here is the little chalet that Michael and I created. It was so much fun doing it together (thanks Michael!). If you blow up the picture you will see two little people sitting on the bench with a little heart in the middle that says "you and me". I think this will be our retirement home. We actually ended up winning the contest, which was very surprising!

I have to include a picture of these beautiful treats. Alaina dips cherries in chocolate and they are one of the prettiest goodies I've seen.

The evening ended with plenty of good food and a gift exchange. This is conducted in a very amusing fashion. Each person is given a word from the "Night Before Christmas" poem. As the poem is read, and your word is spoken, you get to choose a gift from the pile. If your word comes up again you can decide to switch with someone or keep your own gift. It's really fun, and can get quite heated if there is a gift that is particularly popular.

Many thanks to Andrew and Alaina for hosting us!!!

Fun With Family

Michael took all four children to Cleveland over the weekend to visit their cousins. They all had a blast, and came back with all kinds of stories of what they did, what they ate (very yummy food) and who they saw. Here they are in the rental van on the way:



Auntie "Cole" (Nicole) and David

David and Baby Stella -- they are about 7 months apart

Uncle Joe read Grimm's fairytales to the kids each night

Stella kept everyone entertained. James agrees that he loves Baby Stella and told me he gave her one kiss.
All the cousins, except for Kyleigh in Oklahoma, were together on Sunday.

Auntie Cole was allowed to spoil the kids, and it sounds like she did so prudently. :) Rachel got to go on her own outing with Auntie Cole and they had Starbucks coffee together. Andrew and James got to go to McDonalds with Uncle Joe. It looks like David enjoyed having candy.

The visit ended with the construction of a gingerbread house. And then at 5am the next morning Daddy packed the kids in the car and made it home by 11 am. Many thanks to the aunts, uncles, and cousins for a wonderful visit!

How Does Your Garden Grow?

....with weeds, and shrubs, and heather bushes!

The day we closed on our house and got the keys we came straight up to walk through the house again. Imagine my shock and amazement to discover three large bushes of heather growing by the front door!

First of all, I have NEVER seen heather growing in the United States before. Second, the fact that it should "randomly" be planted at a house we would end up buying after moving home from "the land of heather", is quite amazing. And, finally, I'm still finding it hard to believe that it is surviving and growing in our horrible soil and hot/cold climate. Maybe it really isn't heather, but as far as I know, it is.

It seems to be "late-blooming" as it only just started to open its little flowers at the beginning of the month. It survived the snow, and I got this picture after the snow melted.

I think this is what I would call a little touch of "providence."

Turning 21

Yesterday, my youngest sister, Emily, turned 21!!!! Christina and I were remembering the day she was born, and how absolutely thrilled we were to have a baby sister! In our eyes, Em was the perfect little sister, and over the years she has only become more dear.

I can remember the year I was couch-ridden in Scotland and the time stretched on endlessly. One day Em called and the idea came up for her to come help for the summer. That hope of her coming, and then the wonderful 7 weeks she was with us, was a special gift from God in the midst of hard times.

And then when Em moved in with us this summer we had no idea how much we would come to rely on all of her help during my illness -- her cooking, taking care of the children, food shopping, running errands, etc. This was another of God's providences.

Aside from helping in desperate situations, Em is such a joy to have around. We've often talked about starting laughing classes, since this is one thing we enjoy doing together.

Em has been a model of diligence in her schoolwork, and we are so proud of her for the way she has worked hard and won scholarships to put herself through school, not to mention making the Top 100 student list.

Last night all the family got together for a special dinner out in honor of Em.

We love you Em! You were the answer to the prayers of two little girls hoping for a baby, and we had no idea how much we would be blessed through you!

O Christmas Tree

Michael took the children to the Christmas Tree Farm on Saturday to pick out a REAL tree!
Our snow was still on the ground and it certainly added to the Christmasey-feel

They picked out a beautiful tree!

We spent the afternoon with the family, enjoying a birthday tea-party and putting decorations on the tree.

Another Goodbye

Grandpa G.

March 31, 1910 -- December 10, 2007

Michael's Grandpa G passed away yesterday after a long and full life of 97 years. Since our marriage, Michael and I were able to get to Florida twice to visit Grandpa. The second time we went we stayed for two weeks in the condo Grandpa and Grandma kept specifically for visiting relatives. They made us feel so welcome, and even sent us off in Grandma's yellow convertible to their favorite beach.

We always asked Grandpa about the early years of his life. He would tell stories about raising horseradish on his father's farm and delivering it to customers.

Grandpa devoted his later years to caring for his youngest son who struggled with many health issues. Up until about a year ago, Grandpa was still driving Mark to his doctor's appointments and taking him to and from work.

Grandpa was an example of a diligent and hard worker who was not afraid to start small and work his way up.

Turning 30

The day has finally come, and now I am 30 years old! I must say I've been a little sentimental in the past few months, thinking about it. Now the day is here, and the dawn of a new decade. I suppose it's a little scary thinking of what the future may hold, but also exciting.

Something I always wished for as a child was snow on my birthday. When we lived in Vermont, this was a very real possibility. After we moved, it became an extremely rare occurrence. So, this year, just for my 30th birthday, take a look at what is out the window -- my birthday gift from heaven!

"I will proclaim the name of the LORD.

Oh, praise the greatness of our God!

He is the Rock, his works are perfect,

and all His ways are just.

A faithful God who does no wrong,

upright and just is He."

Deuteronomy 32:3,4