Merry Christmas!

I was woken up this morning by K rustling around the house trying to wake the rest of the family. Surprisingly, she hasn't succeeded, yet. That give me a few minutes to wish you all a Merry Christmas.

It's been the first year J has been off work in 13 years! We spent the day yesterday finishing last minute preparations and headed to my parents' house. My mom made lasagna and we ate, opened gifts and enjoyed the evening.

I feel very thankful. This year our family was adopted by three different community groups to help with gifts and food. I am a little proud, but i have to admit, it was a great help. With the fire expenses, we would not have been able to get much this year. The kids have many gifts to open and several boxes of food was delivered. Yesterday a friend stopped by with some gifts and gift cards from people from her work. She had been here helping with our fire work party, told them about our family and they wanted to help out this season. I am excited to use one to buy some new sewing material!

Tonight we are giving back...we are headed to our church to help serve a free dinner to the less fortunate. Turkey, ham and all the fixings!

I hear all the kids now so we will start our Christmas morning traditions. Have a wonderful day!

nearly here!

Christmas is nearly here. I have been thinking about how much my children learn from the world. We don't have television, we haven't been to the mall, yet they still talk more about Santa than Jesus on His birthday. The older kids understand the true meaning but are still "wrapped up" in gifts. (get it?). But when I talk about Jesus' birth, the little boys just don't get it and start talking about their own birthdays. It reminds me of true human nature and our selfish behaviour. Sometimes looking at my kids is like holding a mirror up to my face. Do I truly understand and celebrate the real meaning of Christmas? Do the activities we participate in reflect His love to others? Do I expect less from others and give more?

Haggai 1:5 Now this is what the Lord Almighty says: "Give careful thought to your ways."

So these few days leading up to Christmas I will be giving careful thought to my ways and hopefully my children will pick up some good things.

Tis the season

Today we are cooking up a turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and the rest of the fixings for a big Christmas dinner. We are celebrating together early so J. can be home to enjoy the good food and time with us while he is on his days off. He works many holidays so we are certainly used to that. He has been employed in this line of work for over 11 years. Usually we go visit family to stay busy if he is working. But this year, my parents are in HAWAII. I am so jealous. My sister is having her in-laws visit. My in-laws are all over 5 hours away, most over the mountain passes. So we are alone this year. We will be opening our gifts early on Christmas morning, before J. leaves for work at 9 am. Then I will be trying to find some fun activities to do with the kids. I hope their new gifts will keep them entertained for a while. I told them what I want for Christmas this year is for everyone to get along!

PS. Please think about the people who work in the service/emergency field this Christmas. They work hard in the cold nasty weather and most times are not much appreciated.

Ways to Celebrate

I was on facebook today when I saw my friends, Beth and Jeremy Howard in Uganda, posted some great links. I checked them out and was moved. to tears. I have a lot of emotions going on lately, but this just convicted me. I am already excited about the Advent Conspiracy site.

The whole idea is to worship fully, spend less, give more, love all. To spend quality time with those you love, help serve, and give to those in need.

• We have been spending less this Christmas, that is for sure. Everyone is getting one gift from us, and kids are drawing names between siblings. Things are simple and easy.
• We have enjoyed spending time together as a family this holiday season. We have enjoyed watching Christmas movies together, cooking and eating, playing games, singing, dancing, listening to Christmas music, reading, doing small crafts, and putting on little puppet shows.
• We have given a bit to those in need (we could always do more). We put together a shoebox for Operation Christmas Child. We gave to a local food drive. We are doing an angel tree gift. J. helped with a shopping trip for local kids in need. We sponsor a child in Africa through Compassion.
• I feel we are lacking on the worship end of things. Of course my children know the reason we celebrate Christmas. We have a nativity scene on our piano and we have a birthday cake for Jesus every year. We go to church, and the kids are in a play. But what about TRUE worship, TRUE sacrifice?

Check out these sites:

http://www.aholyexperience.com/2010/11/christmas-its-just-deciding-whose-birthday-it-really-is/

"It was dark, I do remember that. Bedtime. Smoothing back hair, kissing foreheads. One round moon hanging large outside the window, an ornament dangling off stars, decorating the night. I had gifts to wrap. So, pull up the blankets. Prayers. And then, when I’m at the door, one hand on the doorframe, resting in the light of the hallway, I turn to close the door a bit on the dark and he stops me with just one question:

“What does Jesus get for His birthday?”

The words hung… strung me up.

I say the words into the black. Um… A cake? Our love?

I can hear him turn again in the bed, roll over on the pillow. Restless…

“But Mom…. if we get wrapped presents for our birthdays, real sacrifices from people who love us — they gave up other things to give something to us — then why don’t we do that for Jesus’ birthday?”

I stand at the door looking into all that light cast down the hallway.

Why is the sky blue, why do we blink, how do clouds hold all that water, the children ask me a thousand questions and the world spins dizzy on a million questions I don’t know the answers to and I stand in the dark, the light right there, and I grope for the answer that could change the world…

“Why don’t we give up things so we can give to Jesus for His birthday?”

Is it always this way, that a little child will lead them?

He was four or five that year, I can’t remember. I just know that now he’s fifteen and I stepped out into the light and we’ve done all the Christmases since his way, giving away. It’s not at all wrong to do it differently, but just for us… all the Christmas gifts — gifts for the Christ Child."

Read the entire post please!

And this post:

http://www.christmaschange.com/wordpress/2010/12/03/ten-things-to-do-on-christmas-morning-when-all-the-gifts-are-for-him/

Ten Things to Do on Christmas Morning When all the Gifts are for Him

1. Birthday for Breakfast

Serve Birthday Cake for Breakfast — with ice cream and an arch of balloons and birthday hats and light the candles and sing of wondrous grace! He has come! And for us!

Our tradition is angel food cake for the birthday cake — made with freshly ground wheat — and I think of the wheat that fell to the ground, died for us and the harvest of the many.

2. Sup with Him — Feast Fit for a King

And we make breakfast a feast fit for a king. One of our best meals of the year is reserved for Christmas breakfast — recipes we serve only for Christmas Morning Breakfast —- Victorian French Toast with whip cream and fresh fruit and a cranberry raspberry slushy drink and Sausage bake and orange juice and pineapple and we decorate with floating candles and and a nativity scene center piece and our best linens.

He’s invited us to His table, adopted us, made us one of His own— and we have time to come, to say yes to His invitation!

3. Gifts for Him, the Birthday Child

After breakfast, we gather together to give gifts to the birthday babe, the King Come—- and these are all gifts to the least of these, because Jesus Himself said, when you give to the least of these, you give to me, so we pick out more gifts from His catalogues. We don’t open presents but we open a far deeper joy.

One family writes of their creative Christmas mornings of giving Christmas gifts only to Jesus:

On Christmas morning this year, we had our oldest dress up as a wise man, and he went around the house, finding tin foil stars and taking the gifts he found there to the baby Jesus that we had in the living room. It was great! We plan to five the same kinds of gifts to Jesus this year...

What a creative way for kids, the whole family, to celebrate Christmas morning– tinfoil stars that have notes of donation to the least of these, a boy dressed up as a wise man, really worshipping!

It sounds, yes, terrifying, to not exchange gifts on Christmas morning, it did to me —- but the utter and unadulterated joy we unwrapped in giving away to those Jesus says He’s with, the poor.And we discovered all that He is absolutely true to His word: it is always better to give than to receive. And when we give to them we are giving to Him, it leaves us filled and satisfied in the realest sense.

Satisfied that everything fits and nothing will be returned and no batteries are needed for we have done the one thing that is needful — touched the hem of God, murmured adoration and offered up gifts to Him.

4. Serve Him a Meal

A loaf of fresh bread to an elderly neighbor spending his first Christmas alone, a still-in-the-dark cup of coffee and an egg sandwich delivered downtown to a homeless person, ladling bowls in a soup kitchen at lunch time, delivering sticky buns and a hug to the family who buried a child this year, gifting all the neighborhood with cookies and a card rejoicing in Christ come —- serve Christ a meal this Christmas, bread of heaven come down for all the hungry.

5. Invite Him In

It may be a single relative in need of a welcoming hearth, a lonely person from your faith community, a widow from down the road, a grieving friend, a lonely stranger, but to invite someone in need to His party because Christ who came to a world that had no room in the inn now calls all to come and He calls us to His kind of hospitality.

We have done this and this is His party and this is who He wants to come — the one who feels as unwanted as He did when He came to us. So we open the door and say come and celebrate with those He came for…

6. Give Yourself Talent Show

We know a family who gives the only gift we ever can really give, the gift of ourselves, by offering a little Christmas Day Talent Show. He does a crazy little tap dance — and everyone laughs —- and she joins him —- and everyone howls. What can you give of yourself to offer to Jesus, your family, on Christmas morning?

7. Join all of Creation

We spend hours outdoors on Christmas day, joining all of Creation and the heavenly throng in giving Him praise. We walk through the bush and sing Christmas carols, we go sledding down the back hills, we play in the snow and we laugh. We’ve decorated trees outside with treats, strings of popcorn and cranberry, suet and peanut butter and, if the conditions are right, it’s the one day of the year that we pour maple syrup over snow and eat taffy — we taste and see that the Lord is good!

8. Tell the Story

Over the years, we’ve told the Christmas story on Christmas morning with cousins and kids getting dressed up and re-enacting it for us, with kids written-performed-directed puppet show, with blankets and spotlight and silhouettes. Old men have been Joseph and toddlers have been Mary and this is the story that we love to tell — to remember the gift who came.

9. Sing the Hallelujah Chorus

Sing it in the woods, on the streets, in a nursing home, a hospital hall, a prison lounge, around the piano with the family, for the next door neighbors, a shut in across town. We join the angels this day and we fill the world with the music of the Messiah here. Find a way, somewhere, to sing because isn’t this the day of all days, we need to sing?

10. Follow the Light

And come Christmas night, we follow the light and some years it’s outside in the woods, luminaries, candles in jars, lighting a path to a nativity scene and we sing worship in the deepening dark, and some windy years, its filling the house with candles and spending the last hours of Christmas day singing glory, glory, glory, glory to God in the Highest.

Great ideas and reminders of what we need to be doing this Christmas season. I love it. I think we will have having a family meeting tonight to brainstorm ideas.

Christmas gift giving

K. and E. looking in the Santa bag

This year we are following the growing trend in our family; less is more. Last year we did pretty well, I think I stuck with giving each child three smallish gifts. This year, my goal is to keep it to one gift each from J. and I. Yesterday we had the kids draw names between each other. They will each pick out and help buy a gift for one sibling. Then as a family we will be buying gifts for extended family and close friends. I will try to do some homemade crafts or baking for teachers, mail carriers and the like.

On Christmas morning we don't have stockings, we have a Santa bag. Santa fills the red sack with individually wrapped small gifts labeled for each person. But Santa does not take center stage here.

We are going to be focusing on the ONLY reason for Christmas. What we aren't spending on toys and stuff, we will be giving to others. We will be spending quality time with each other, making memories. Loving Christ. Worshiping the King.

Check out this site: http://www.adventconspiracy.org/

I am still trying to figure out plans for celebrating Christmas eve and day. Unfortunately J. is working both. He works over 10 hour shifts. We will not be seeing him much these days. We have celebrated Christmas many times without him, but we always had family to visit and keep us busy. This year, family is not available. One side is across the state, the other have vacations and in-laws to celebrate with. So we are contemplating changing the date of Christmas to one that J. will be off work.

Christmas morning

C. was tired, but S. was very happy about Christmas morning!

A new game...

K. was VERY excited about a Taylor Swift CD.

E. got a dinosaur that growls, chomps and walks! He sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus all day.

A rush of emotion

We've had a great day today. We celebrated Elijah's first Christmas being home with our family. It was great. Samuel is nearly two so he is at a fun age too! I have been meaning to try to call Mercy this week, but the timing just isn't working out. There is a ten hour time difference. So, we just settled with sending her an email message and keeping her in our thoughts and prayers today. While I was preparing dinner I heard a song that's been on our playlist:

by Third Day. It is about an adoptive family who adopted a baby from China…

….But half a world away I hang the stockings by the fire,
And dream about the day when I can finally call you mine.

It’s Christmas time again but you’re not home,
Your family is here and yet you’re somewhere else alone,
So tonight I pray that God will come and hold you in His arms,
And I’ll tell you from my heart, I wish you Merry Christmas.

As I hang the tinsel on the tree and watch the twinkling lights,
I’m warmed by the fire’s glow,
And outside the children tumble in a wonderland of white,
And make angels in the snow.
But half a world away you try the best to fight your tears,
And hope that heaven’s angels come to carry you here.

Christmas is a time we celebrate the Holy Child,
And we celebrate his perfect gift of Love,
He came to us to give His life and prepare a place for us,
So we could have a home with Him.

It’s Christmas time again but now you’re home,
Your family is here and now you’ll never be alone,
So tonight before you go to sleep I’ll hold you in my arms,
And I’ll tell you from my heart, I wish you Merry Christmas.

It brought a flood of emotions and memories of waiting for two years for Elijah. December 2007 is the first time I heard this song. I played it and would cry and cry. I shed some tears today while thinking about Mercy. Our family does not feel complete, not until Mercy is home with us.

I also got a message from one of Mercy's caregivers. She said Mercy is talking about going to America all the time and is very excited. She also said that it may take a while to get Ministry of Gender approval. It was not clear if it was a month or more. Please pray they can get approval soon. I have a feeling it will work out perfectly with us getting our i600a approval as well. Lord willing.

not much

Christmas is two days away... we've been busy with J. on his days off. We've run errands, went to the movies, shopped for last minute gifts, C. and E. spent the night at Grandma and Grandpa's house, and J. baked cookies last night! Oh, and I can't forget that we got our septic tank pumped! Today we will make a grocery store trip and finish the final touches on things before the big Christmas eve celebration at my parent's house. Christmas day we are going to be having a blessed time together and eat a big turkey dinner. We will of course have our traditional birthday celebration for Jesus.

Have a very wonderful Christmas and remember the true meaning of the season!

Much love from us.

Wish list

Love this so much. Need an idea for a friend with special needs kids or a mother of a large family? Here are some great ideas. Many of them are meant for humor, but I would graciously accept any of these gifts!!! This list is from this site.

So you'd like to give me a gift this holiday season? That's nice. I appreciate that so much that I'm going to save you some shopping time. Put the wrapping paper away, forget about the bows and gift tags, and just give me one of these. All I want for Christmas is:

• Babysitting: A few nights out this year will do me a lot more good than another sweater or DVD.
• House Cleaning: Oh, yeah. Come clean my house. Anytime. Do you do windows?
• Homework Help: Teach my kid math; help her write a paper; drill him with flashcards; give me a break.
• Sounding Board: Therapy? Expensive. Someone like you, who I can call and gripe to for hours. Priceless.
• Faster Internet Service: Dial-up is making me old before my time. Take up a collection to buy me a faster connection.
• Back-Up: Come to appointments or school meetings with me. Bring tissues. And maybe a baseball bat.
• Child's Play: My child wants to play with me, all the darn time. You take a few shifts, okay?
• Sleep: Offer to take my kids to school one morning. Also wake them up, and get them dressed and fed. I'm sleeping in.

Our tree

In all it's glory. Including child friendly ornaments, LED lights, and a childproof fence to finish it off!

Christmas Letter

Edited for privacy...

Greetings to you this Christmas season. I apologize for the emailed Christmas letter, but it was the only way I could get our note out to all of you before the end of the year. I hope you will understand.

We have had an extremely busy year. We are thankful for all we have and the health and happiness of everyone in our home. We’ve had a lot of great changes, and would love to share with you what has been happening in our lives.

J. is still employed and just celebrated his 10^th anniversary at his work. (edited info)

K. is still a stay at home mom and is no longer home schooling the kids. We decided to enroll them in the local public schools and now we have more time with E. and S. at home. She volunteers for an organization for the Medical Advocacy Team. www.medicaladvocacyteam.blogspot.com Her role is to find host families for international children who are ill and need to come to the U.S for surgery. It is a rewarding job to help children in this way. She enjoys journaling, gardening, reading, playing with the kids and going on fun day trips with the family.

L. will be 13 years old in March and is becoming a young man! He is in 7^th grade and attends H. Middle School. He enjoyed playing soccer again this fall. He loves to read, build things, play outside, and is very helpful with the little boys. He is getting excellent grades in school. He’s a very smart guy.

C. is 11. She is in 5^th grade at C. Elementary. She loves art, animals, making people laugh, singing and helping in the kitchen. She’s compassionate and caring. She likes to play outside, and cuddle on the couch watching movies. She’s doing really well in school and is making a lot of good friends.

K. is 6. She’s in 1^st grade at C. She is a funny, sweet little girl. She loves to cuddle and loves her daddy. She loves singing, dancing, coloring, dressing up, pretending and everything most six-year-old girls like.

E. is our little 3 1/2 year old boy from Haiti. He came home to us in March of 2009. He is a happy, cuddly, sweet boy. The adjustment has been going well and he is such a blessing to our family. His adoption was complete and final on 9/9/09! He is funny and loves to laugh. He had his first experience with snow today and had a great time playing in it with his sisters.

S. will be two soon. He is the sweetest, happiest toddler. He charms everyone he meets! He loves to be active, is running everywhere and gets into everything! He is trying out words daily. He loves his brothers and sisters and they are very helpful caring for him.

Recently we decided to adopt again. (If you would like to hear more about this journey you will have to read my private blog. See the side bar to find out how and let me know who you are!)

We still live in the country, on our 5 acres. We have been working hard around the place and have been remodeling our studio. We have also been busy ripping up our rotting back deck with plans to replace it soon. There are many projects we hope to finish soon! We are hoping to get a few small farm animals in the future. Chickens would be fun…

We hope you and yours have a very Merry Christmas and wonderful New Year. May God bless you!

Christmas Party

group photo with Father Frost and Snow Maiden

The kids enjoy their gifts!

Dance Machine! Who knew you could boogie to "Good King Wenceslas"?

C. and E. sing Christmas carols

S. gives his buddy a big hug.

Oh Christmas tree...

Did you see the t-shirt J. is wearing?

Christmas festivities are in full force here, and it's beginning to feel a lot like it! Things started off with a bang with gift shopping after Thanksgiving. Now we are experiencing VERY cold weather, which the news calls "Arctic Freeze". We are not used to this. We got our tree on Friday night at a nearby tree farm. It ended with cold, hungry and upset kiddos. The older two argued over who got to cut down the tree. Thankfully we live about 5 minutes away and we got home quickly. We ate and decorated. I left off many of my fragile ornaments this year and we have a baby gate wrapped around the finished project!

C. and K. got to stay after school today to make handmade ornaments and decorate the school's tree. They had a great time. C.'s music class will be performing in a few days.

On Saturday we will be going to a holiday party hosted by the local Spina Bifida Association. While we don't have a child with SB, there is not a support group nearby for children born with encephaloceles. Thankfully the SBA was gracious enough to let us join their group since S. does have a neuro-tube defect and hydrocephalus. I hear the holiday parties are wonderful and I am looking forward to it!

L. ready to cut down the perfect tree.

K. helped pick out the tree and keep an eye on the boys.

E. was cold but always has a smile for the camera!

S. liked to point at the trees and say "tee!"

Sorry, no pictures of the decorated tree yet, my camera's battery died.

Sharing about Christmas

This morning I had a cuddle/chat session with E. Here is what we chatted about:

Me: Do you know what is coming up?

E: Coming up?

Me: Christmas is coming soon!

E: Yeah!

Me: Do you know what Christmas is?

E: No

Me: Christmas is Jesus' birthday!

E: Yeah!

Me: What do you do for Christmas?

E: singing, "Happy Birthday Jesus, Happy Birthday Jesus, Happy Birthday dear Jesus, Happy Birthday Jesus."

This is what we COULD have chatted about:

Me: Do you know what is coming up?

E: Coming up?

Me: Christmas is coming soon!

E: Yeah!

Me: Do you know what Christmas is?

E: No

Me: Christmas is about Santa, presents, trees, decorations, shopping, eating and having parties!

E: I want!

I came across this site today. It sounds like a great idea, similar to others I've heard before and what we try to do yearly anyway. But it has a catchy name and is helping others reach out to those in need.