Christmas Joys

It's the little things that make Christmas a magical time of year.
A friend, whom I highly respect and admire, dropped by last night to give me a gift:  a gift of her delicious homemade bread and these beautiful pot holders.  Seriously, I may never use them because they are beautiful.  In fact, I may just decorate that space above my sink with them because they completely match my kitchen!!

 Then we had an impromptu kid's Christmas party today.  I baked some gingerbread men and let them decorate them.  We played a couple of games and watched a movie.  Simple.  Sweet.  Fun.

 Want some?

We have also gone caroling and visiting others.  We've taken pictures, made gifts,  and finally got the Christmas tree up and decorated.
How do you make your holidays "bright"?

The Grinch Brings Tears

I know what you are thinking..."wow, she's extremely emotional to squeeze tears out over The Grinch!"  Well, you may be partially correct, but that's because the Christmas season always gets me.
However, today was a very special day.  A sweet friend gave us tickets to go see the local production of The Grinch.  She didn't, however, forewarn me of the emotional punch I was about to receive.
One of the local dance studios puts on their rendition of The Grinch every year.  They modify it and keep it au courant so there were special little tidbits in there that kept us laughing, like references to ObamaCare or What Does the Fox Say.  The dancers and performers did wonderfully and I was quite impressed by some of the singing.  One singer, particularly.
Before the event started, an individual's mother was singled out in the crowd and it was announced that her son would be reporting as a new marine recruit the next morning.  I was so glad to be let in on that information because near the end of the production, this young man had a solo and hugged his mother during it.  It was so incredibly touching and a moment I will not soon forget.  I sucked back tears and gave myself a headache from trying to rein in that emotion.  I didn't know these people.  I barely even was let in on the information of his soon departure.  And yet, I, along with many in the audience, felt the love, sorrow, and gratitude of and for this young man.
"I'll Be Home for Christmas" tugs at my heartstrings when they insert the Christmas wishes from active duty members from around the world.  I am so grateful for those who serve our country and sacrifice their lives and time with family, especially during special events such as holidays, birthdays, and anniversaries.
To this young man and his mother, I wish the best for you.  We love our men and women, and their families, who serve in the armed forces.  Thank you and may you have a merry and safe Christmas.

Quotes from Gianna

Living with Gianna is tons of fun.  Sometimes the things she says catches you off guard...and then you laugh a lot.
For instance:
"I'm going to take this (marker board and marker) to write down what the humans say."
Or, how about this one: 
"Hey, those girls have tattoos!"
"Do you know what a tattoo is?"
"Yes, it's the thing goes round and round(gesturing around her waist) and has different colors."
"Oh, you mean 'tutu'."
And this one, which really made me laugh:
"Can I drive the car?  I promise I won't bump into you!"  (She meant the shopping cart.)

Recommit

A friend reminded me of the reason I was keeping a blog:  to write down and cherish the memories we make as a family.  She's right:  kids grow up way too fast and we forget things way too easily.
So, I'm going to do better.  If nothing else, for my kids.
To start it all back off, I'll begin with another quotable quote from Gianna.  "I drink the pickle juice so the trash doesn't get wet."  An important thing to think about:  the reason for our actions.  So, smile and have a wonderful day.

Forgiveness

Dear daughters, there is something I wish to share with you.  Something you may not understand now but will appreciate in the future.  I know that at some point you will have a disagreement with someone and it will lead to hurt feelings either for you or the other individual.  I want you to know something; something that will enable you to handle it with grace and humility.  It doesn't matter what really happened.  No one person is absolutely correct, so don't waste time saying or thinking you can explain it or that the other person didn't understand.  Do spend the time apologizing for injuring the other person's feelings.  You can always do better and recognizing that you hurt someone, even unintentionally, and that you can be sorry for that will help you, and hopefully the other party, move on.  Don't worry about being right, be more concerned about doing right.  Let Christ be your example.  He had friend deny him.  He had people who should have known better spit on him and attempt to humiliate him.  He didn't waver.  He stood tall and accepted their choice to do those things and then this...he did not seek revenge or plot or analyze.  He asked the Father to forgive them, each and every one of them, because they didn't understand what they were doing.  I think the same is true of our interactions.  We never fully comprehend the other side, so forgive, ask for forgiveness yourself, and move on.

Busy Bees

I have so much to share and so much for which I am grateful. It has been a whirlwind of a year thus far. Can someone please tell me what happened to the first 5 months of this year? How did we already get to May? Time flies when you are having fun and we ARE having fun. We love our little bit of heaven in North Carolina. We have a great church family and the community is awesome. Our girls are thriving and have tons of friends from many venues. I've been serving the young women in our ward. It keeps me busy, but in a wonderful and fulfilling way. It is truly awesome to work with these daughters of God. They are wonderful examples to me and my children. I love that they have so willingly and openly accepted us. I also get to work with some amazing women who are becoming very dear friends of mine. I think this is one aspect of serving that truly builds unique bonds. I learn so much from theses sisters as well. It is incredible to think of the growth I can actually recognize in myself over the past few months. There are other exciting things happening and I can't wait to share pictures from my brother's wedding! I'm super excited to have this new sister-in-law. I've known her for several years but have recently actually started a relationship with her. SHE is an amazing woman and incredibly talented in MANY ways. Just wanted to let anyone out there who still might be following to know that we are alive and well and loving life! Hope you are, too!

Gratitude for Inspiration

I've been a grumpy pants lately. I don't know why I'm in a funk; I just am. Knowing that, you can imagine that I was feeling like Eeyore when I heard the washing machine error signal going off. "No Drain" it claimed. This happened a week ago and I flooded the back porch where the washer is located getting the dog hair pulled out because I was washing their blankets. Not knowing what it could be, I had the epiphany to get an old metal pizza pan and slide it under the drain area to catch the water and pull it out from under the machine. Perfect! But, there was no hair and no obvious reason for the machine not to be draining. I got down low and peered into the drain and could see a shiny thing that resembled a quarter. GREAT! I thought. I didn't empty pockets before doing laundry...again! (Usually I'm washing some sort of un-washable thing when this happens...like a memory card or jump drive...also not good days.) I tried reaching the quarter but was unable, plus, if I needed to bend my knuckles to pull it out, that wasn't going to happen in those tight confines. I know what you are thinking, because that was my next thought, too. A pair of pliers! Yeah, I immediately knew that was not the correct choice and had this peaceful thought come into my mind. "Go get your crochet hook." Simple. Sweet. And I knew it was going to work without a doubt. I went to get one and came back out, hooked the quarter and pulled. POP! First try. I am grateful for inspiration. I am grateful to know that those thoughts are not my thoughts. There IS a higher power watching over me and guiding me. I am grateful to know that power is God and that he hears me and answers my prayers...even quick, frustrated, grumpy pants ones. Listen to this and this.