It's Official. We're Addicted.

I would write more, but I'm too busy thinking about how I'm going to take all my family's ore this evening.

ruthlessly

take

all

their

ore

What Happens on the Farm Stays on the Farm

little boy + farm + three girl cousins = the cutest picture ever

Hope your holidays were spectacular.

We've refused to let ours end.

Enjoying some time away with our sweet family.

When Aaron goes back to work next Monday, someone will need to come over and hold me while I cry.

Could someone schedule my breakdown in to their calendar?

Please come over with chocolate in your pocket.

Merry Christmas

picture taken my by fabulous sister-in-law, Lynsey

My favorite aspect of Christmas this year...

A line from O Come All Ye Faithful

"Sing choirs of angels, sing in exultation, sing all ye citizens of heaven above."

citizens of heaven

that's who we are.

Although my earthly body is trapped here for now, because of Jesus coming to this earth as a baby and dying on the cross, my soul belongs to a new Kingdom. A beautiful Kingdom. A place so lovely, it's hard for me to imagine.

Like anyone displaced in a foreign land, this earthly Kingdom should feel foreign and odd to me. Strange and unsettling.

I want to be comfortable with being terribly uncomfortable here.

I've been asking God this season to help the truth of my citizenship to sink in.

I want to long for home.

Yearn for Christ's return.

Earnestly wait for God to come to earth again and right every wrong

restore all that has been broken

Philippians 3:20
But our citizenship is in heaven. And we eagerly await a Savior from there, the Lord Jesus Christ

Wishing you a sweet time over the next few days as you spend time with family, and worship Jesus who no longer slumbers in a manger, but sits on the throne of the Kingdom believers call home.

Weary pilgrims rejoice!

May we be found eagerly waiting for our Savior from heaven.

Come thou long expected, Jesus.

please

come

Our Christmas Eve Baby

Who said you could turn six my love?

It wasn't me.

It wasn't daddy.

So maybe you should have stayed five.

We've threatened to only use five candles on your cake

Send you to your room until you agree to stay five

Spank you if you get a year older.

I know you think there's not many forces stronger than daddy

but six must be awfully powerful

or else, you'd still be five.

It doesn't seem like it was six years ago

When we met you for the very first time.

It seems like it was yesterday

like you've played leap frog over the years

and landed too quickly on "big boy."

We love you punkin'.

How you're becoming your own person

with a pinch of daddy

a pinch of mommy

and tablespoons of your brothers.

You are as sweet as Fairfield peaches

and super silly

When I get onto you, you make a silly face and open your eyes wide.

I wonder if anything will ever be serious to you.

You make it hard for me not to stop and laugh at you...and at myself for how ridiculous we both can be sometimes.

Six years ago you brought home from the hospital a bag filled with "lighten up" and "It's not that big of a deal, mom."

We're all eternally grateful.

You have always been a comfort, child.

A snuggle bug

squeezably soft

And your love language is still cupcakes.

Pretty fitting since you're oh-so-sweet.

Happy Birthday Ashton

May you know how greatly you are loved!

We think you're pretty stinkin' spectacular,

and the God who knit you together loves you even more.

Dear Jamie, Skye, Aedan, and Jesse

We know he's your husband

and you need him

to make you laugh

take out the trash

help with the hard parts of parenting

and witness those moments when it seems as though God has funneled every kernel of goodness in heaven straight into your home.

you need him

we know

we know

We know he's your daddy

and you need him

to make you laugh (until some real-live pee-pee falls into your undies)

take you on adventures

hug you till it hurts a little

and grin at a burp (when you can tell mommy doesn't think it's all that funny).

you need him

we know

we know

But you see, we just finished reading North or Be Eaten

and in the words of the man standing behind a lady price matching at Wal-Mart...

"We really are in a terrible spot."

We know you need your husband and your father.

We're trying to think of you.

We're trying.

But we're weak. We're sinful. And so there are days, we're not going to lie, we wish your husband...your daddy would lock himself in a strander's tunnel for a few months and write us another book.

It's wrong.

But it's true.

You can pray for us (but while you're praying, maybe you could let your husband...your daddy go crank out another book so he can tell us what the flippin' fruit loops is going on with Tink.)

just sayin'

__________________________

Advent Reflections....

You might be disturbed if you find yourself asking God to help you long for His return like you long for Lost to come back on television and for Andrew Peterson to write the next book in The Wingfeather Saga.

Those are the times when I get up and say, "God...it's really fine, and I totally understand if you don't want to listen to me every time I pray."

The Best Christmas Story Ever

This book has become a Christmas tradition in our home.

Aaron's sweet mom bought us our very own copy the last time she was here. Usually I check it out from the library and keep it longer than I should.

It's a short book with only seven chapters.

When I get to lines like this one...

"Wanda Pierce weighed about a ton - she even had fat eyes," I have to stop reading and laugh.

And then I'll read lines like these...

"So the Herdsmans pretty much looked after themselves. Ralph looked after Imogene, and Imogene looked after Leroy, and Leroy looked after Claude and so on down the line. The Herdsmans were like most big families - the big ones taught the little ones everything they knew...and the proof of that was that the meanest Herdman of all was Gladys, the youngest.

We figured they were headed straight for hell, by way of the state penitentiary...until they got themselves mixed up with the church, and my mother and our Christmas pageant."

Those parts make my heart feel like it's filling up with hot chocolate.

Don't forget to buy a Goat this Christmas

Yep.

A goat.

Or a chicken

or better yet...

A water buffalo.

I know that Larry says everyone has a water buffalo, but the truth is...not everyone does.

Have you heard of Gospel for Asia?

They are one of our very favorite mission organizations.

GFA does a lot of neat things, but one of our favorite is raising up missionaries in the countries where they live. Instead of bringing in missionaries from other countries, they work with people who already live inside the country they are trying to reach with the gospel. This strategy is incredibly effective since the missionary automatically knows the language and is familiar with the culture.

I think GFA sends missionaries too (there's nothing wrong with that)...but I love the idea of raising up missionaries in their own countries..."native missionaries" is what they are called.

Revolution in World Missions changed our life. It's a free book from GFA. If you haven't read this book, scoot on over to their website and order yours. It's free...and it will change your life too. What could be better?

Every year GFA does the neatest thing around Christmas time.

They put out a catalog filled with items that you can purchase for missionaries in other countries (most are living in absolute poverty). Some of the gifts go to GFA missionaries (our brothers and sisters suffering for the gospel around the globe) and some of the gifts go to people living in conditions you and I can't even imagine.

This catalog is fun to look through.

It brings me back to reality really quickly. The truth is...most of us will get a bunch of crap this Christmas. Stuff we don't need. Even though we can't for the life of us think of something we actually need, or something a relative needs...we'll buy some silly gift anyway. We're Americans...that's just what we do. I'm not trying to lay on the guilt. I'm just saying, I think most of us can admit that there's not much we need.

When I look through this magazine at Christmastime, my heart is reminded that there is REAL NEED around the world. People are barely surviving. Some of those people are my brothers and sisters in Christ. They don't need a 12th scarf from Gap. They need some goats so they can give their children milk every day.

A chicken would change their life. A water buffalo can bring hope to an entire village.

Go take a look and be inspired.

And then get your friends together...send out an email...take up a quick collection and give gifts that matter this year. What a joy!

Gifts that help send forth the gospel...the story we're all celebrating this month.

Over the weekend, I'm going to post several amazing stories from GFA. They have blessed me, and I pray they do the same for you.

Now skee-daddle! Go take a look at the catalog. Send those kids of yours on a "change" scavenger hunt...and make plans to purchase something this season out of the GFA catalog. I highly recommend letting your children look through the catalog with you. What a wonderful lesson you can teach them today about missions, poverty and giving.

Small groups can unite...pool their money. There are so many great ways to send hope across the ocean.

You could even ask your family when you get together if they mind contributing just a few dollars to GFA, and the let all the cousins decide what to buy from GFA with the money.

What an honor and joy to be able to give in this way!

_________________________

Can you help spread the word?

Those of you who love GFA, or have been inspired by the catalog...

Will you cut and paste this link into your facebook pages and let others know about this amazing opportunity to give?

http://www.gfa.org/gift?motiv=WA9B-WBGC&cm_mmc_o=ezybBAl%20PkBTl%20C%20WB%202Blf%20-plCjC8w_C-pMwyfblbETCjCPkBTlCjC7buf%202zfzkBT

Recycled Bows

I saw these on Money Saving Mom's blog.

Gift bows made out of magazine pages.

Last night (in between games of Banana Grams) Sara, Crystal, Grace Anne, Megan and I tried our hand at these paper bows.

They turned out incredible!

We all agreed...we should have had a big bow making party.

Next year...next year.

What a neat way to make your Christmas even greener.

Sweet Gifts

Need desserts for the holidays or want to give a yummy gift to someone you love? Check out my friend Julie’s blog at sweetdealsbyjulie.blogspot.com. She is just starting her business and LOVES baking these treats for people!

Tacky Tacky!

Have you heard of them...

The Tacky Christmas Sweater Parties?

We got wind that one was happening near us and invited ourselves to the party.

Yep. We're officially those people.

The Terrys hosted a Tacky Christmas Party at their house, and we practically begged to come.

We tackily invited ourselves to a tacky sweater party.

So thick with tacky irony.

So the gist of the party...

Find a tacky Christmas sweater and wear it.

This was one of those moments when I wished with all my heart that I never threw my clothes away. I had some of the best tacky sweaters in the 90's. Some required batteries.

Selah...calmly stop and think of how awesome the 90's were.

Okay...stop thinking about Marky Mark and the Funky Bunch.

So where did we find a tacky Christmas sweater present-day?

Goodwill was pretty picked over. Apparently this tacky Christmas sweater deal is extremely hot right now.

Because of this Tacky Christmas Sweater trend, during the month of December (perhaps for many years to come) there will be two sorts of people.

People who proudly wear tacky Christmas sweaters in real life.

And

People who need to grab one of these hilarious beauties to wear to a tacky Christmas sweater party.

When one starts the process of finding a tacky sweater, inevitably the question comes to mind...

"Who could we borrow one of these sweaters from? Who wears these things and would loan us one?"

Yes! Yes! Who can we borrow one from? Pictures of people you know in their tacky sweaters start popping into your mind. This is going to be great! If I can get my hands on one of those sweaters, I'm going to be the tackiest of them all.

Then quickly the next question arises....

"How do we ask someone who owns a tacky Christmas sweater and wears them proudly if we can borrow their clothing to go to a tacky Christmas sweater party?"

fizzle

Sort of like how I wonder what casting calls looked like for the Burbs. "Needed...the ugliest people on the planet. If that's you...come audition!" Or how about the casting call for Hurley? "Wanted...a really fat, sweaty man." Who jumps at that opportunity?

The answer to our sweater issue...

Maybe a little lying and deceit.

Perfect for the Christmas holidays, no?

You approach the secretary at your job and sweetly say, "I'm going to a Christmas party, but have nothing to wear. You know that sweater you wear every Thursday in December...that one with Rudolph..and his nose lights up with batteries...that sweater would be perfect for the party. Rudolph only has one eye, but that's okay. It's amazing how his red nose distracts from his deformity. Do you think I could borrow it? It looks so lovely on you, I'm hoping I can wear it and look half as beautiful as you do."

If you see Charlie around, ask him how he got his hands on the sweater Kirby wore to the party.

Aaron thought to ask his boss if we could borrow a tacky Christmas sweater.

When he mentioned her, I was confused...not only did I not want Aaron to get fired, I have always thought of his boss as trendy. Try as I may, I could not put a tacky Christmas sweater on her and it look right in my mind.

"But she taught for like 25 years or something."

Ah! Yes. Teachers! I think colleges hand out tacky seasonal clothing items when teachers graduate. "Here's your diploma and a turtleneck with ghosts on it"

I've always imagined teachers having this secret society...this secret place...like where Hagrid takes Harry Potter...Diagon Alley...minus all the cool wizard stuff and instead filled with seasonal sweaters and wooden jewelry.

So...we were going to ask his boss for the sweater.

But how do you ask for the sweater without saying, "I think you're tacky?"

We read and re-read the text. Will she know we don't think she'd ever wear one of these now? Will she know that when I grow up I want to be as cool and trendy as her?
Will this offend her? Will Aaron lose his job?

His boss was incredible. She wasn't offended at all...and mentioned that if someone has taught for 25 years they are FAIR GAME for asking them to borrow a tacky Christmas sweater.

So we got the sweater. I actually got two. A vest and a light coat.

I was able to layer my tackiness.

Aaron drove all over town looking for a Christmas sweater and never found one. He kept calling me...so annoyed. "I can't find anything...and yet there are old ladies all over Goodwill wearing the exact sweaters I'm trying to find. There's something so wrong with this!"

"Would it be wrong if I asked an old lady if I can buy her sweater off of her?"

Yes honey...it would. Keep looking. You might have to lie to find one, but we're not mugging an old lady. We do have some scrupples. In that moment I heard that old saying..."Sin takes you further than you'd ever want to go." I had to laugh imagining Aaron on the news...a mugshot of him in a tacky Christmas sweater...and then shots of an elderly lady...very angry...shaking her finger while wrapped up in a towel. "Local Worship Leader takes the Tacky Christmas Sweater Phenomenon too far."

Aaron did find something better than a sweater...a puff paint poinsettia t-shirt.

When he was checking out with his fabulous find, the check out lady looked at the shirt...then at Aaron...then back at the shirt...then at Aaron and in her very thick African American way of speaking said..."You buying this for you?

Aaron hesitated...probably really wanting to get through this whole ordeal without harming the elderly or telling a lie.

Then the check out girl jumped back in with..."Wait...You buying this for one of those parties?"

Yes.

Only Aaron would wear something like this.


When he put it on, Anson came around the corner and saw his dad's clothes.

You should have seen Anson's face. We had purposefully not told him where we were going, or why we were wearing the clothes we had on. We wanted to see his reaction.

He looked at Aaron and very sweetly said...

"Dad...do I have permission to tell you honestly what I think about your clothes?"

I could not breathe I was laughing so hard.

Anson was not sure about going anywhere with his dad looking the way he did.

Aaron never smiled...he played it off as only he could. "What...you don't like my new shirt? Feel it...it's puffy."

The puffiness did not change Anson's mind.

Poor Anson. It was sad to watch our child look at his dad and wonder if his father had lost it.

"But dad...you look pretty dorky."

"No..." Aaron said. "I look cool. You've got to feel this shirt. It's puffy. Do you know what these are? They are poinsettias. Puffy Poinsettias!"

Every time Aaron said puffy, I found it hard to breathe.

____________________

On the way to the party I thought about how much potential there was to offend someone at one of these parties.

You see...some people don't wear tacky sweaters from Goodwill. Some people wear their very own tacky Christmas sweaters.

It happened more than once at the party where something like this went down...

(walk up to someone wearing a tacky Christmas sweater) "This is horrible! Where did you get it?"

(nervous awkwardness) "From my closet. It's mine."

Or

(very sarcastically) "Love that sweater!"

(unsure of themselves) "Oh...well..I didn't have anything else to wear...so I wore this...but I wear it in real life...as in, I wore it last Tuesday"

Lots of fun times at a tacky Christmas Party...but also a lot of the ol' foot in your mouth as well.

Happy Holidays!

Great Giveaway!

Look what Money Saving Mom is giving away on her blog!

I entered, of course.

Just wanted to pass this one along to you in case you want to try and win it as well. I figure if someone wins who lives close to me, you can let me borrow these!

Pretty please?

Tales from Advent

One night during our Advent study this week Aaron was teaching the kids about the role of the Holy Spirit in the Christmas Story.

Before getting started "the middles" always get down around the touchable nativity ready to use the pieces to act out the part of the Christmas Story Aaron is going to tell.

So Aaron warned the boys that there wasn't a "person" in the nativity scene to represent the character we were studying that night.

I'm kind of glad the toy makers haven't tried to create the Holy Spirit in the nativity set. It seems most of the toy companies think everyone was white in the Christmas story. I can't imagine what the Holy Spirit would look like as an action figure.

For some reason the boys started talking about what the Holy Spirit looks like.

"What do you think the Holy Spirit looks like?"

Hayden...very dramatically...describes the Holy Spirit as that smoke stuff that comes out of a genie bottle when you rub it.

He was emphatic that the Holy Spirit is NOT a genie...He's just the smoke that comes out before the genie. He summed up his theory by saying...

"The Holy Spirit is the green smoke that comes out of the genie bottle before the genie comes out...but the Holy Spirit can never go back in the bottle."

Okay...

(at this point I gave Aaron the look...the one that says, "I should get paid a lot more money than I do to teach this kid every day.)

Then Ashton says...

I think the Holy Spirit looks like a planet.

What?

Yes.

He insists...growing more and more serious.

"The Holy Spirit looks like a planet (arms forming a big circle). He's big...like a planet...He's like that planet with all the rings around it."

Aaron says...

"You think the Holy Spirit looks like Saturn?"

"Yes" Ashton responds...so confidently...like there's no arguing it.

So there you have it.

In case anyone was wondering...

There's a chance the Holy Spirit might look like the green smoke that comes out of a genie bottle, or Saturn.

I guess we'll see one day.

Yogurt Fundraiser

For the locals...

The Run for Compassion group is having a fundraiser at Spoons on Friday.

You can go eat some frozen yogurt tomorrow from 12-1, tell the Spoons people you're there for Run for Compassion and the group gets part of the proceeds.

We have a child who is allergic to milk, so I can't personally vouch for the place but I've heard Spoons is yum from several other people!

Have fun eating frozen yogurt while giving to a great cause!

Gingerbread Men

The other night we were supposed to go to downtown Bryan for First Friday.

But alas...

It was cold.

Way too cold for this winter hater. Good thing winter doesn't have an email address. I wouldn't get anything done during the day. I'd be at my computer sending hate mail to a season.

So we opted to stay home, make gingerbread cookies with friends and watch Jumaji.

I had never made a gingerbread recipe before.

It was the kind you have to roll out.

I am seriously inept when it comes to anything that has to do with a rolling pin.

Good thing one of the friends we invited over used to work at a pizza place.

Charlie is a pro at the dough rolling.

About halfway into the gingerbread making I started looking for my "man" cookie cutters.

Not in the drawer.

Probably in the playdough bucket.

Nope.

So...good thing the friend we invited over is also a graphic designer. He makes logos for people, surely he can make some gingerbread men.

Nothing like inviting friends over for gingerbread man cookies and then making them do all the work.

freehand gingerbread men

Come to find out...

Gingerbread is pretty gross (or at least the recipe I used was).

It was fun making the cookies and decorating them, but the kids could not eat them (and neither could we).

Ashton was the first to sample. He blurted out..."Mom, can I have a different dessert. This one is DISGUSTING."

He was just about to get a good talkin' to from his daddy for being so rude when I tasted one.

Barf.

They tasted like a black jelly bean gone worse.

We were tasting the cookies and gagging when we looked over at Hayden. His cookie was almost gone. I said, "Do you like them?" You could tell with all the commotion going on about how gross they were he was afraid to tell us he liked them. So funny. Very sheepishly he said, "Yes."

So...everyone but Hayden thought they were nasty.

Next year...

We'll make snickerdoodle men and decorate them (unless someone has a kick butt gingerbread cookie recipe that does not taste like black strap molasses and actually has some sweetness to it).

I think I need a new "man" cookie cutter in my stocking this year.

Good thing I had also made caramel popcorn.

It was my first time to make that as well...but it turned out great!

See that "servings" section on the recipe?

I didn't know you could change that. So I made enough popcorn for 28 people.

There were only 10 of us.

We're still eating caramel popcorn a week later.

Made any new yummy desserts or Christmas candies yet? I'd love to try your recipe!

Made any new Christmas traditions? I'd love to hear them!

Hope your advent season has been one of joy and sweet time with your family and friends!

Hayden and His Hip Hop-y-ness

Hayden's first hip hop video debut below!

Several sweet friends came to the park in the freezing cold weather to see Hayden perform his hip hop moves. I love Ashton's eyes in this picture. He was not happy about the crazy coldness. He gets that from one of his parents.

Every time I look at this kid I smile.

Our friend Reese was dancing tonight as well. Such a cutie!

I have to be honest...I had no idea my child could dance this well.

I dance like this in my imagination, but Hayden does in real life.

I was in awe!

In awe of our son, in awe of his dance teacher, Miss Connie, in awe of Suzanne's Dance Studio, but mostly in awe of the Lord who is the giver of all things good.

What a gift Hayden is to this home.

The Lord has definitely given this child an extra helping of music and rhythm.

We pray we are faithful stewards of these gifts as parents.

Watch, enjoy, worship and rejoice!



Did you see him totally break it down in the middle?

Where did we get this kid?

Thank you Father for the gift of children..

for the gift of gifts and talents.

Thank you for the magic of music and dance.

Thank you for slapping some extra ghetto rhythmic funk on this precious child of ours.

We know that came straight from you...cause it did not come from us!

Psalm 149:3

Let them praise his name with dancing

Snow!

It's snowing!

Kids are bundling up.

Snow in this part of Texas means a time to set spelling tests aside and CELEBRATE!

Visions of Sugarplums

Presented by: Lizzie at A Dusty Frame
Price: $7
Available at: A Dusty Frame

I was recently sent this e-cookbook to review.

Visions of Sugarplums contains 50 holiday recipes.

Some of the ones I can't wait to try are...

Gingerbread Waffles
Peanut Butter Dip
Mediterranean Meatballs
Apple Cinnamon Dough (to make ornaments with)
and several of the Christmas Punches

My favorite thing about this cookbook is that it contains traditional recipes as well as recipes from around the world.

As a homeschooling mom this cookbook is a treasure to use with my kids to learn about Christmas traditions from other countries.

It's such a great mixture of things we associate with Christmas here in America and new recipes to try from other countries.

For only $7 I think this is a great buy for anyone, but especially if you homeschool or are looking for fun holiday related activities to do with children.

I plan on trying just about everything in this cookbook.

An added bonus...most of the yummy recipes we receive as gifts from others (candy, etc.) are in this book. I'm thinking I can use many of these recipes to make and give away to friends for Christmas.

You can find Visions of Sugarplums over at A Dusty Attic for $7. You buy it and then immediately download it straight to your computer.

This was a Mama Buzz review
and was provided by A Dusty Attic.

Tales of a Touchable Nativity

Wise women I love learning from have suggested having a "touchable nativity" for kids to experience during the holidays.

Immanuel.

God WITH us.

Jesus

The touchable, approachable Savior

Holy, yes

Most definitely

And yet

Near us

Among us

Simply put, I want our children at Christmas time to see the nativity...the manger as something to draw near, pick up, examine and touch.

That's hardly true with my Willow Tree Nativity Set.

They aren't even allowed to breath heavy around that thing.

But I love having a nativity set that can be handled, played with and marveled over.

Last year we found the entire nativity set stacked in an 18 wheeler (picture above).

The culprit...Bryce Garratt.

When Hayden was a tiny infant, I caught Anson with the baby Jesus under his shirt.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Feeding baby Jesus," Anson said.

In our home Baby Jesus has been breastfed by a two year old, been found riding in an 18 wheeler, and driving a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle motorcycle.

He makes his way all over the house. I find him in the bathroom, in the pantry...in the refrigerator on the shelf next to the yogurt.

The baby Jesus has been the victor in every super hero stand off.

The shepherds have guarded block towers.

Ashton tried to set the manger on fire by using the advent flame while we were praying.

We drew the line.

He got in trouble.

Immanuel.

God with us!

I know that many of you bought touchable nativity sets last year. Any favorites?

These can be pricey, so one year we bought ours right after Christmas was over so we'd have it the following year. Our touchable nativity set borders on "creepy." The shepherds and wisemen look a lot like carnies and the baby Jesus looks like a four year old wrapped in a tortilla. Weird, I tell ya.

Last year the boys got the Playmobil Nativity. It's incredible and a big hit this year, but not one to leave out with small children around. I think we'd find the baby Jesus in Hudson's diaper, perhaps taking the "God with us" a little too far even for the Hendricks.

If you see good deals on touchable nativities, please email me and I'll let others know.

Get Your Grooveshark On!

I know this is like beating a dead donkey, but seriously...Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb CD is our first, second, third, fourth, fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth favorite Christmas CD.

If you don't have this treasure you are missing out. I don't say that about too many "tangible" things you buy with money...but this is one of those items that is worth every penny.

I have heard this album a billion times and still get choked up while listening to it. I find myself with my hands in the air praising God in the middle of my kitchen. This CD tells the Christmas story from the beginning (Genesis). I am overcome with worship and wonder when I allow myself to get swept away in the magic of this CD.

All other Christmas CD's are competing for ninth place in our book.

Coming in at a strong number nine is...

I know...maybe I'm bipolar or something.

Mariah's CD is NOTHING like Andrew Peterson's Behold the Lamb, but it's still my favorite non Behold the Lamb Christmas CD.

I have loved this CD since I was in high school.

This jewel does NOT inspire me to raise my hands in worship as often as Andrew Peterson's masterpiece.

Instead, my girl Mariah inspires me to sing into a wooden spoon, belt out songs like I'm not white and shake what my mamma made me all over the downstairs of our home.

Hudson and I can get down to this CD.

My little buddy baby can get his cute little behind shakin.

Want to listen to this CD for free?

Remember Grooveshark?

Aaron made an entire Christmas playlist for our family on Grooveshark for FREE.

Run on over there to Grooveshark.

When the site loads, type in:

Jesus What a Wonderful Child

It's by Mariah.

If you're at work or in a public place...be warned. You may stand up and start dancing.

If you'd like to know how to make a playlist, I'll tell you in the comment section. I don't mind writing the how to's up...but only if someone actually wants a free Christmas play list.

Some of our favorites on the play list are:

Mariah's Christmas Album
Destiny's Child's Christmas Album
Harry Connick Jr.
Bing Crosby
Jackson Five
Whitney Houston

If you find other great Christmas Albums on Grooveshark, or other great Christmas songs, let me know! I want to add them.

Is there anything better than a house filled with music?

Sseko Sensation

I had a great time last night with some
sweet ladies at the sandal shindig.

They braved the cold and the rain to come hang out.



Cameron taught us so many beautiful ways to tie our Ssekos.

If you want to buy Ssekos, but you're worried you won't know how to tie them, all the neat ways we learned to fashion our shoes are online.

I could not believe how many cool ways there are to tie these shoes. One of the girls last night said something along the lines of..."Its like getting 10 pairs of shoes for the price of one!"

So true.

It was a blessing to me to look around my house at the group of lovely women...but also to see so many sandals all over the room.

Ssekos are more than just shoes to me.

Think about this: Just One Fair Trade purchase from every American churchgoer this Christmas would lift one million families out of abusive poverty for one whole year. Let’s make sure that when gifts are given, they speak of the sort of world that Jesus came to show us — one where the last is first, where the poor are included, the sick are healed, and the captive is set free. - www.tradeasone.com

My heart is flooded with hope when I think that just one fair trade purchase this Christmas could change someone's life for an entire year. That's something for the church to rejoice about!

More Great Advent Ideas

The Dutys posted the study that New Life made available for family worship during Advent.

Although Advent actually started last Sunday night, I don't think this study begins until today (Dec. 1). This study is terrific and probably better than the one we're using for families with younger kids.

The one we're using is only four days per week. That works better for us. Last year we kept getting behind if we missed nights since the study was every night.

Bottom line...if you haven't started celebrating Advent but want to, you can start today using the study above or the one we're using and not be behind!

We have both studies printed and will use parts of each of them!

Some families make advent countdowns or calendars. I used to do that when our kids were little, but now they can read a calendar so I don't go to all the work. For little kids it is so fun to have something to count the days down to the celebration of Jesus' birthday.

Kirby has a great idea for counting down the days until Christmas. You wrap a Christmas book for every day of advent. Every day your child opens one. The book lover in me is absolutely in love with this idea! Go check out her post. The idea with pictures is at the bottom.

Next year Hudson will be old enough to enjoy an advent calendar. Those wrapped up books will be sitting under our tree!

Kendra and several other women from New Life made an advent calendar out of toilet paper rolls. Kendra posted a tutorial on her blog. So cute!

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If this snuck up on you, I know there is this tendency to feel behind and feel defeated.

Please don't do that!

The goal is to make the Christmas season a time of worship...a time of anticipation and focus on the Savior's birth.

You do not need cute calendars to do that.

You do not need a million different activities.

You don't need the cutest advent wreath that ever existed.

Those are all very fun and there's nothing wrong with them.

But...if you don't have those things, it does not mean you're a B-Team Mother.

You just need to stop...cuddle up with your family and tell the greatest story on Earth!

If the crafty stuff is not "your deal" then don't make it your deal! Add your own style and personality to the way you celebrate Advent.

Or maybe the crafty stuff is "your deal" but you don't have time right now, or the money to bring your ideas to life...

Take comfort in knowing...

The story of Christmas...of Jesus coming to this earth to be Immanuel...God with us...is the only thing we truly need this holiday season.

This story...minus any opening acts, man-made bells and whistles is POWERFUL. It changes our lives...and will change the lives of your children.

Happy Celebrating!