Our Adventure with Boys...

December 28, 2013

Christmas 2013...

We started Christmas break with one sick kiddo but we made the most of it reading lots and lots of books and watching some movies.

Christmas Eve was extra special this year because Wes led worship for 4 services at church and Micaiah joined him playing drums for "Go Tell It On the Mountain." Joshua was part of the kids choir that sang that song too.

One of my favorite memories other than Christmas Eve service will be the boys giving gifts to one another. They were so excited to pick out the gift and I loved watching them interact as they gave/received the gifts.

Christmas morning came early with Joshua continuing his Christmas morning tradition of looking at his stockings, getting really excited and then throwing up...yep, real life there folks. Sometimes it ain't pretty (especially if you have a strong gag reflex).

Micaiah was just as excited as you can see in the pictures below.

Eli's facial expressions are always fun to see. He definitely is the most animated when opening his gifts.

Will was so excited to find M + M's in his stocking...

Poppy joined us Christmas morning...

Eli showing us his really loose teeth on Christmas morning...

Will playing with his new favorite train...

And then he snuggled up in Mommy's sweater after a long morning... I have memories of doing the same thing with my mom.

Christmas day was what I would consider "ugly-beautiful." It came with great joy, anticipation and delight but also with feelings of sadness (missing family members that are no longer with us, broken family relationships and the realization that some family members live too far away to enjoy a meaningful connection during the holidays).

I think these are common feelings at this time of the year. If we allow them to...they ultimately point us to the one that promises redemption. He came as a child to live among us and promises to return and make all things right.

"If we can see Christmas as a foreshadowing of future lasting joy and not an attempt to fulfill our dreams, we can unburden it from unrealistic expectations and transpose the melancholy of its passing into hope." ~~Jon Bloom

December 8, 2013

Multitude Monday #4378 - #4402...

"Send me your light and your faithful care,
    let them lead me;
let them bring me to your holy mountain,
    to the place where you dwell.
Then I will go to the altar of God,
    to God, my joy and my delight.
I will praise you with the lyre,
    O God, my God."
^{Psalm 43:3, 4}

Today along with the Gratitude Community I list His endless gifts as I draw near to Him...

...brothers and beautiful smiles...

...hearing and seeing Micaiah's heart for his brother and how he offered to help him learn to read...

"Mom, maybe I could help him learn to read because I'm a kid and that may make a difference."

...a friends beautiful refinishing work on an old buffet for our dining room...

...that Joshua was brave and made it through his oral surgery...

...in laws that drive hours to help with childcare for a few days...

...time to run errands alone...

...a difficult meeting that brings clarity...

...my mom's physical and emotional support after the meeting...

...seeing this perfectly timed quote by Ann Voskamp...

"Tears are never a sign of weakness. Tears are always the sign of an open heart."

...my husbands business mind and how his explanation regarding this difficult meeting put things in perspective...

...a perfectly timed text followed by a phone call from my dad...

...honest, authentic conversation that brings tears around the dinner table with some of our closest friends...

#Christmas #dinnerParty with the most authentic friends...@jlagreca, @andreammaurer, @timmaurer, @joshglaser9

...fire in the fireplace, candles lit, surrounded by friends...

...a lovely visit with the previous owner of our home...

...Eli and Joshua helping Daddy light the advent candle at church...

Lighting the advent candle this weekend at church while Daddy leads worship...#latergram

...a late night phone call with my aunt...she's always been more like a sister to me...

...an incredible sermon on JOY by George Hopkins on Sunday that challenges me to think on the question...

"Do I delight in the JOY that's sustaining?

Or am I putting my delight in things that will fade away?"

...and then he continued with Psalm 43:5...
"Why, my soul, are you downcast?
    Why so disturbed within me?
Put your hope in God,
    for I will yet praise him,
    my Savior and my God."

...and he followed up with "There are times in our lives when we need to preach to ourselves. Sometimes we need to sing to ourselves and let that song be our own song. And say to ourself 'Soul why are you so downcast? Hope yet in the Lord, for He is still present and He is still near'"...

..."Joy to the World"...