Glorious Christmas!

What a wonderful time we had on Christmas! I can't tell you how much fun we had with family, and watching Ruthie tear into presents! She got all kinds of good stuff. She loved singing Happy Birthday to Jesus as well! She kept saying, "gin" (again) Mommy! We sang it over and over!

Let's see, Christmas day, Ruthie and I just laid around in our jammas all day. We played and played. Later that evening, we went to Grandmama and Pappy's house to celebrate with my brothers, sisters, and some cousins. Randall met us there a little later, since he had to work. Ruthie had fun playing with all her cousins. She mainly played on the stairs.

The day after Christmas was Randall's first day off, so that's when we celebrated our little family's Christmas. Ruthie got up and we told her, "Look at what Santa brought you!" I guess she thought Santa was at our house or something b/c she backed up to the door and wasn't going anywhere near those presents! I ended up picking her up and taking her in there. She got into it! She kept saying "peas" (please) Mommy" on every present wanting me to open them! We played all day long, and she also helped me bake some pumpkin bread! She took a good long nap just in time to get up and get ready for Nana, Pawpaw, and the Aunt Steph, Uncle Ski, and their family to come over. We had a BALL with them. Aunt Steph and her family stayed for a while and we all just visited and enjoyed each other's company!

Saturday we celebrated with Randall's dad's side. We were missing a few people, but we had a good time visiting. We just ate some KFC and visited for quite a while. Ruthie had a so much fun playing with Pops and Grandad. She didn't take a nap that day, so she was WORN out by the time we hit the road to go home.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I know I was pretty upset about Randall having to work Christmas Eve and Christmas day. In the end, God did it for a reason. If he hadn't worked both those days, he would have taken his vacation and had to work one day, be off for one, go back for one day, be off for one, and work another day, and then be off. Since they made him work, he now has had off Dec 26th-Jan 3rd! What's nice is I have off all those days as well. The Lord works in mysterious ways. He knew this was for the best, but of course, I had to doubt it all. Now I am thanking Him for allowing us to spend some much quality time together! Ruthie is enjoying every moment too!

I am going to add a few pics from the past few days-

Opening her first present!


Being lazy with Daddy after opening gifts. She LOVED her boots and wouldn't take them off!
Ruthie and I at my parent's house-

Helping me with pumpkin bread! We had so much fun!

Opening her bicycle from Nana & Pawpaw-

Family pic at our house on Dec 26th-


Here she is playing with Pops-

I hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and I hope everyone has a happy new year!

Wanted to share these pics!

Emily made cookies with her little girl, so I had to as well! I wanted to share the photos. We had such a good time. She wasn't too sure about spreading the icing with her fingers, as you can tell! LOL!

What is this stuff all over my hands?!



SPRINKLES!


YUMMY!

I made a mess!

Have you heard the song-

"Stealing Cinderella?" Oh my goodness, talk about tears. It doesn't matter how many times I have heard it. I still cry like a little baby. I see Randall & Ruthie together and it melts my heart a thousand time over. She loves her Daddy so much. She has him WRAPPED around her little finger. I hope so much that they don't lose their special connection.



Here is a scrapbook page I created today. I am making a yearly scrapbook and giving it to Randall for New Year's Eve. He has only seen a few pages so far, so I hope he will enjoy looking at it. I think there are somewhere around 40 different pages. I have worked pretty hard on it.

Laying it on my heart

Church is just amazing! I can't explain to anyone what it has done to me. I am so happy we found this church! I know some people who don't enjoy going to church, and feeling like they have done wrong. I on the other hand, do. I want to know what I am doing wrong, and fix it for Him. I love learning and studying for Him.

Wednesday night's sermon, was awesome! It was all about our spiritual gift of mercy. Brother Troy's defined mercy as- not softness, nor sentiment. Mercy is a multitude of greatness. God IS mercy and he expresses it through the Son of God.

He said something that hit me hard. He said, "next time you get mad at someone, think about what you did to God." Wow. I realized the truth when he said that. I have been upset with a few people lately, and after he said that, I just bowed my head and prayed. I dis-obey him all the time, yet he forgives me every time I ask for it. What a loving God we have!

-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Ruthie is learning so much lately. It warms my heart so much to teach her about Jesus. She's still small, and doesn't comprehend everything, but she's getting there! The other day, I had all my daycare kids sitting around at circle time. I asked them if they knew who's birthday it was on Christmas. Nobody knew. I told them that Jesus was born on Christmas, and THAT is why we celebrate, not for presents, but for Him. I told them that when they wake up on Christmas day, they need to say, "HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS! THANK YOU!" It's amazing how fast they caught on! Every time I mention birthdays now, Ruthie will say, "Happy Birthday Jesus!" Picture me grinning from ear to ear! Randall too! She is so smart and amazes me everyday. She's so goofy though. She LOVES her pajamas, aka "jammas." She wants to wear them ALL day long. She threw a fit the other day b/c I made her get dressed.


I am off for almost 2 weeks. All but one of my daycare kids are kids of teachers. I know I will enjoy my time off. I was a little upset b/c Randall has to work Christmas Eve, and Christmas day, both 7am-7pm. Randall made a good point though. We will spend all day Christmas just celebrating Him in our own ways. Make the whole day about Him. No presents, just read, study, and pray. What a great way to spend Christmas!

Sharing a few pics!

Can you say NERD?!?! She's a mess!



Making faces and being down right silly!


Sitting on top of our vacuum cleaner! Daddy taught her to do this! Imagine that!



She loves to make me smile!

Handing it over to Him-

It's just one thing I have to learn to do. It's the hardest thing to do, but I have to do it. He can handle it. He has endured so much, nothing compared to me.

At church, I have begun taking notes in my notebook. I learned that I pay attention much better. Every time he says a scripture, I write it down before I look it up, that way I can always go back to it if I didn't hear him too well. It's helped me out a lot. Last Sunday, he went through so many different scriptures. He was talking about the birth of Christ, and the earliest prophesies of when and how He would be born. It was amazing. There were a few that stuck out to me.

John 14:1-4

" Let not your your heart be troubled; you believe in God, believe also in Me. In My Father's house are many mansions; if it were not so, I would have told you. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also. And where I go you know, and they way you know."

He IS coming. Only He knows when, but I can't wait. I am ready. I have accepted Him as my Saviour. When that day comes.........what an AMAZING day that will be. I get all excited thinking about it!

1 Thessalonians 4:16-18

" For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of an archangel, and with the trumpet of God. And the dead in Christ will rise first. When we who are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore comfort one another with these words."

The reason I placed the word comfort in bold is b/c that is EXACTLY what that scripture does to me. I find comfort in that scripture. That no matter how hard and stressful life is, He is there. I just have to put my faith and trust in Him. Amazing is His word! Amazing!

Ok, after typing all this, I thought of a challenge or idea I guess you would say. If you are reading this, I would like to know YOUR favorite scripture, or one you find comfort in. Let me know. I would love to read up on it!



Update on Grandad- He ended up having his gallbladder removed. I think it was for the best. He is still in the hospital, but Randall is up there now. He has only been alone one night. I am so happy that Randall can be there for him. As much as I want him home, I know Grandad needs him more. Ruthie sure is missing him though. He will be released tomorrow. Of course he is being stubborn and wants to go home instead of going to Dad's, where he can be looked after at all times. I love him for it though!

I hope Ruthie isn't getting sick. She has this horrible cough. Poor baby. I think it's starting to get to her throat. She was saying "Mommy" and sticking her fingers in her mouth earlier. Please pray for her. I hate seeing her not feel like her normal self. I got some cute/nerdy pics of her that I need to upload and then I will share them!

I am feeling a little stressed tonight. I know this weekend will only add more. Tomorrow is Randall's work Christmas party. Sue is keeping Ruthie overnight I think. I know we will have a good time. Saturday morning is his plant's children's Christmas party. Saturday night is Lexie's pageant, which I am really looking forward to! Sunday is church that morning, and Amethyst's play that evening. I will just have to nap with Ruthie over the weekend that way I make sure I get some rest.

Have a great weekend everyone!

I have BABY FEVER

and I have it BAD! This is one of my favorite pics of Ruthie when she was little. My camera was really crappy then, so it's not the best quality pic, but it is just precious. I miss her being so little.

The other night we went over to our friends' house and they have a little boy who is 3 months old. I didn't think I was ready to have a baby just yet b/c I didn't think I was ready for sleepless nights again. Holding that sweet little boy and hearing him drink his bottle and seeing him smile at me just b/c I was talking to him, made me ready. My heart is so ready to have another baby, but my body isn't. I want to lose weight before we conceive another child. Now I am not saying that if I conceive I won't be happy. I would be thrilled. My concern is, I had gestational diabetes while pregnant with Ruthie. It wasn't easy. I have read that if I lose weight, and exercise I *could* reduce the risk of having it with the next child. I would like to reduce my chance if all possible. So, Randall and I talked about when we would try to conceive and he said sometime around April. That gives me 4+ months to lose some weight. I need to lose about 30 pounds to make myself happy, but I don't think that is possible. I want to lose weight the healthy way. I hope that I am able to lose weight. I just need the extra push. So, this might be a weight loss journey blog for me as well!

Grandad is still in the hospital. We really won't know anything until Monday, so please continue to keep him in your thoughts and prayers. THANKS!

Special thoughts and prayers needed!

Last night, Randall's Grandad went to the hospital complaining of stomach pains. They did an EKG on him and it turns out he has elevated heart enzymes and they were worried, so they sent him to a larger hospital. They know he has a lot of gallstones, but they are still worried about his heart. I am just asking for some extra thoughts and prayers for him please. This man means so much to me. I am not kin to him by blood, but he treats me as one of his own. He is such an amazing man. He has such a kind heart. He ADORES Ruthie and she ADORES him. He loves all his grandchildren so much. I wasn't really close to any of my grandfathers. I wish I could have been, but I wasn't. Grandad has shown me so much love and compassion. I know that I am the lucky one to have him in my life.

Wednesday night's sermon was about our spiritual gift of giving. Grandad has this gift. When Brother Troy talked about it, Grandad was the man who popped into my head. Grandad doesn't have much. What he has he worked HARD for. He knows the true meaning of living life. He would give us whatever we needed even if he had to search hard for it. He amazes me. I know that he will always be there for us no matter what.

Christmas survey!

Ok, It's nap-time and I am bored. I did a 30 minute workout and it is HOT in my house. I am letting the wood stove burn out.

Tara tagged me, so here it is hon!



1. Wrapping paper or gift bags?
Both. If it is hard for me to wrap, I place it in a gift bag. It's a family tradition to wrap all the gifts from Santa in tissue paper. I am not sure I like it though......Ruthie's gifts were harder than crap to wrap! LOL!

2. Real tree or artificial?
Real. Our family owns a Christmas tree farm, so it's free. I love searching for the perfect tree. Ruthie had a ball too!


3. When do you put up the tree?
Usually around the first of December. It's was more fun than ever this year. Ruthie got into it. I gave her a few cheap/unbreakable ornaments to hang low and she keeps taking them off and putting them back on.


4.When do you take the tree down?
Usually the week after New Year's.


5. Do you like eggnog?
No. But honestly, I can't say I ever tried it. I don't think I will either. I just don't think I would like it....but who knows?!


6. Favorite gift received as a child?
I would have to say my bike. I got a blue/pink bike one year. My brothers and sisters and I used to wake up super early and go downstairs to see what Santa brought us before Mom & Dad were awake. Since they wrapped in tissue paper, we could easily see what we got. So, one year I woke up to see if I got a bike. I didn't see it anywhere. I was sooooo sad. Well, comes out it was hiding behind the curtain! What a great memory!


7. Do you have a nativity scene?
No, but I wish I did. We don't have many decorations. What we do have was given to us.


8. Easiest person to buy for?
I would have to say Randall. I always know what he wants/needs.


9. Hardest person to buy for?
I would have to say my Dad. He never wants anything. Usually we end up getting him tools. Exciting huh?


10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received?
A baby doll. My aunt did it as a joke, but I thought she was being serious. I was so upset. I HATED dolls. Turns out there was more, but that baby doll is still at my Mom & Dad's. At least it wasn't popcorn and a joke book! LOL!


11. Mail or e-mail Christmas cards?
Mail. I was going to do that during nap-time, but I just now remembered!


12. Favorite Christmas movie?
This is the easy one. Miracle on 34th Street. I love, love, love that movie. My mom and I always watched it together.


13. When do you start shopping for Christmas?
We usually wait till the last minute, but not this year! We started in late October!


14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present?
Nope, not yet!


15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas?
Pumpkin bread. Seriously, we eat so much pumpkin bread during the holidays! YUMMY!


16. Clear lights or colored on the tree?
Right now they are white. I don't mind colored, we were just too lazy to search for them!


17. Favorite Christmas song?
Hark The Herold Angels Sing


18. Travel at Christmas or stay home?
We usually go to my parents on Christmas Eve. That's not really considered "traveling" though. They live less than 5 minutes down the road.


19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeer?
Whoops, didn't change the answer to this one. I sure can! On Dasher, now Dancer, now Prancer, and Vixen, on Comet, on Cupid, on Donner & Blitzen & good ole' Rudolf!


20. Angel on the tree top, or a star?
I am really embarrassed to say that we don't have anything on top of our tree. We plan on buying one when they all go on sale.


21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or Christmas morning?
With my parents- Christmas Eve. Randall, Ruthie and I- Christmas morning. But this year it'll be different. He has to work on Christmas day.


22. Most annoying thing about this time of year?
SOOOO many rude people out shopping! It's the holiday season, but nobody is nice. I just put on a huge smile and greet everyone!


23. What I love most about Christmas?
I have to agree with Tara. Everything. I love giving. I love seeing the kid's faces when they see what's under the tree. I love celebrating the birth of Jesus.

I don't think many people read my blog, so whoever reads this is tagged!

Time is flying by!

Words can't describe how fast time has flown. In a way it's sad b/c I wish I could just video-tape it all so I can watch it all over again. Ruthie is growing so fast. New words are coming out of her mouth daily. She amazes me. Last night was such a sweet moment. Words won't even come close to explaining this moment, but I will give it my best shot. Randall and I were laying in the living room watching t.v. Ruthie was just playing in the floor with her babies, books, and cars. She picked up one of her favorite books, Babies First Bible Songs. I look over and she is sitting there swaying back and forth holding her little finger up, singing- This Little Light Of Mine. What a PRECIOUS moment that was. Oh how sweet her voice is. I teared up. Randall and I both stopped what we were doing instantly, and crawled down there and sang the whole book with her, again and again. She loved it, but not near as much as we did. She is so beautiful. It's moments like these that I pray I will never forget. It's moments like this that I need to remember when she is throwing fits and my patience is running out. It's moments like this when I need to remember what life is all about. It's moments like this that I need to remember when life isn't going exactly how I want it. Thank you God for giving Randall & I such a precious, precious gift. She shows us how much you do love us. You were willing to give us someone that adores us and loves us no matter what we do. Thank you Lord, thank you.

Friday I was sooooo sick. I felt worse than I have felt in a long time. Randall had to work. I called in, felt awful about it, but there was no way I could take care of those kiddos. I went to the doc and he told me it was the bug that was going around. I came home and slept. Ruthie was so good and was an angel. Saturday I felt much better. So, Randall, Grandad, Steph, Ruthie, Amethyst, and I all headed up to OK to see Dad & Darlene. Their new house is just beautiful. We ended up staying overnight, but we had a great time. Ruthie loved spending time with them and I know they enjoyed it as well. I hope that we are able to do it again someday.

The word trust was brought to my attention the other day. It amazes me how this word made me see so much more. Let's just say that it changed the way Randall and I felt. We talked about it and we realized that we need to hold one hand up for God, and hold the other up for each other. We need to grow together with him, not apart. I want so bad to grow with Randall. We are studying together and enjoying each other much more. I hope that this continues.