Up to my Eyeballs in Grading....

......so not much time to blog tonight. More tomorrow after I get through these stacks of portfolios and statistics exams. Why, oh why, do I assign so many lengthy papers and projects?? For now, just a little December photo from our home to yours.

Nativity.

If I had to choose one favorite activity that symbolizes what I want my family to remember about the Christmas season, it is setting up our nativity scenes for the season. I just love getting out the pieces, looking carefully at each one, and reminding the kids of the role that each person and animal had in the first Christmas night in Bethlehem. The kids really love and look forward to getting the nativities out each year......they beg and beg to get them out! Of course, they always want to know right away where the Baby Jesus is, so it always makes for a teachable moment for redirecting their attention back to where it needs to be this season. There is so much to pull their little minds away from Jesus at Christmas, that I want these scenes to be a constant reminder about what Christmas means for our family. The kids have a Little People nativity set that I bought on Kennedy's first Christmas, and they love enacting Jesus' birth with these fun and colorful little people. When I first discovered this set, I bought a set for several friends and I just think it is an awesome way to bring Jesus' birth alive for little ones. They would love to play with it the whole year through, but I have decided to pack it away and bring it out only in December, to highlight the significance of the event and hopefully raise the anticipation factor. The second set is my cherished nativity that my sister started for me the Christmas after Matt and I were married. It is sort of a rustic, earthy set, and I just love it. It is one of my most cherished Earthly possessions, and I love that it communicates that Jesus' birth was not one typically characteristic of a King; it was simple, Earthy, and really went unnoticed to much of the world. But, oh, how significant that event is to the history of the world and to each and every person to ever live and breathe. We have a third nativity, also, one that is also very precious to me. It is one that a very special couple, the Racignols, gave us for our wedding. It was such a creative gift because for the first couple of years of our marriage, new pieces would randomly appear.....the gift that kept on giving! This year, I am going to wait until Christmas Eve to set this one us as a way to retell the Christmas story. This set has many, many pieces so it is a fun and meaningful way to add the details of the Christmas story. This year, I ordered a new nativity--a hand-carved teak wood set--designed especially for kids to play with. I saw it in a Sensational Beginnings catalog last year and just fell in love with it, so when I saw it again this year, I just had to have it for our family. I see it as an investment in the spiritual growth and development of my children, so the few dollars it cost was well worth helping them to embrace the true and lasting joy of Christmas.

One Year Ago Tonight....

my sister married her soul mate. What a gorgeous day.....two people very much in love, surrounded by the most important people in their lives. The perfect settings of a little country church in northern Michigan followed by a beautiful reception in the quaint snow-blanketed town of Traverse City. So many fond memories. How beautiful Kendra looked. How Dan looked at Kendra. My sweet, adorable little girl dressed in green with bright Christmas-red patent leather shoes. Both of my sweet kids dancing the night away with more energy than I could imagine. So a happy, happy anniversary to Kendra and Dan as they are celebrating their first year of marriage.....may God richly bless you with many, many, many more in this sometimes mysterious but always amazing and fulfilling marriage journey. We love you both very much.

















Well, I am going to have to set my holiday preparations aside for a few days to finish my grading....Yuck. My least favorite part of my job. I had a house-full of students today for a little Christmas get-together, and it was a really fun time. We packed up a load of gifts to share with a family in need, and it was neat to see all these students--who don't have a lot of extra money--be so generous. The true meaning of the season. Giving. Serving. Spreading joy. Working together to impact lives for Jesus. Such a cool, meaningful thing. I'm so thankful that my kids got to be a part of this and see these "big kids" living out life for Jesus.

All is Calm, All is Bright.

This is the scene at our house tonight as I arrived home from getting groceries. I am preparing to host 30+ of my university students on Sunday for a little Christmas get-together, so I have been busy getting ready, choosing recipes, buying groceries, decorating, etc. And it was so nice to come home to this Christmas Card-esque scene. The white lights twinkling in the front window, casting a faint light on the snow-mounds of the front yard. Pine garland draped on our front porch. This picture just reminds me that no matter how busy life gets, no matter how bitter cold it is outside in the world, it is always warm, cozy and just right at home. Cozy. And. Just. Right. Ahhhhhh, settling in for a long winter's nap.

Happy B-Day Hazy. Christmas Recipe.

December 7 brings around another birthday for my little sister, Haley Jo. Happy Birthday, Hazy! I hope that you have a very happy birthday and that you get lots of pampering and special treats. We hope that you are enjoying the photo printer and that you will get many, many years of use out of it.

I am really into Christmas movies these days.....I have pretty much watched one every day for the past week, and I'm loving it. What a great way to get into the groove of the holidays. Tonight, on Lifetime, I found a movie called "The Recipe for the Perfect Christmas" and it got me thinking about what goes in to my idea of the perfect Christmas. So here, in no particular order, are some of the factors that help to make the season bright for our family. Gently falling snow. Our nativity scene. Readings of the Christmas story from Luke 2. Our blue and red-gingham stockings ready to be filled. White twinkle lights on a fragrant pine tree. Our family ornament collection. Choosing a new ornament to add to the collection. Christmas Eve appetizers. New red pajamas. Getting out the Christmas CDs, especially Point of Grace. Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, Frosty and Snowman, and The Polar Express. Children's Christmas program at Church. Stirring hot cocoa with candy canes. Furry Santa hats. My snowman collection. Stockings hung by the fireplace. Our quilted tree skirt. Decorating Christmas cut-out cookies with friends. Building snowmen. Opening the doors of the advent house, night by night. Gingerbread lattes, skinny decaf with whip. Lifetime Christmas movies. Fun Christmas stamps. Holiday craft projects. Writing the annual Christmas letter. Making and sending hand-made cards. Letters and cards from family and friends. Adding to the family Christmas scrapbook. Planning Jesus' birthday party. Taking lots and lots and lots of photos. Mailing Christmas packages to friends across the miles. Red sweaters with colorful stripes scarves. My kids' Christmas art. Jingle bells. Pine wreaths with red bows. Writing wish lists. Looking through catalogs and ads. Buying items for charity giving. Christmas-scented candles. Children's Christmas books like The Velveteen Rabbit and The Mitten. The Christmas welcome mat. Short Christmas stories. Brown packing paper with colorful ribbon. Favorite carols like "O, Holy Night" and "Silent Night" and "Joy to the World." Christmas punch. And, most importantly, doing whatever we can to keep Jesus at the center of Christmas Day and every day.

Snowman Joy!

Snowmen have always been part of the holidays in our family. It is fun to look back at five winters' worth of photos to see the unique and fun snowmen who have been part of our family. The pictures above show the snow family that we made last winter, including a mommy, daddy, two kids, snow bunny, and snow mouse. I recall so clearly how excited Kennedy was to add the snow-animals to the family. And how wide-eyed Hayden was when he reached out to touch the snow-dad's head, which proceeded to fall right off! The other photo is from today, when the kids and I made this adorable snowgirl. Kennedy reminded me that this is not a snow-man but rather a snow-girl, because she is wearing pink gloves and hat. There is just something about a snowman that is such pure fun....so reminiscent of childhood winters past, so fun to see this little snow figure adorn our front lawn for weeks to come. Pure white adorned with a bright orange carrot nose, brightly striped scarf, pink hat and mittens and coal-black stones for a mouth and buttons. I had another idea for this year's Christmas card, but I'm thinking that I might want to use this series of photos to do something fun.....I'll be sure to scan and post the card when I'm done. Hopefully, that will be Friday's job.

Warms the Body and Soul

This has become somewhat of an icon of the Christmas season in my life. No so much because I drink a lot of these, but because I am a professor at a university where a majority of students and faculty can be seen carrying various sizes of these around. When you see these red-and-green paper cups start to appear, you know the season has arrived. Everyone seems to have their favorites. Eggnog latte, tall, whip. Non-fat mocha, no whip. Skinny vanilla spice chai latte. Tonight, the desire to have one of these colorful cups of creamy warm liquid overtook me, so I ran through the Starbucks drive-through on the way home. My choice was a nonfat decaf. Gingerbread latte with whip. Just sounded like a cup of Christmas to me. It's funny; I like the IDEA of these special coffees, but I usually end up enjoying a first few creamy sips before letting the rest of it get cold and ultimately throwing it away. Let's see....at over $3.00 a pop, that is the equivalent of a dollar a sip. Good thing that I only get 1 or 2 per season. I'll stick to my vanilla spice chai, and I like my at-home version much better than the too-spicy version at Starbucks.

I just discovered the movie "Miracle on 34th Street" that is just now starting on TV. While I have seen pieces and parts of this movie many times, I can honestly say that I don't think I have ever watched it beginning to end in its entirety in one sitting. Maybe I'll watch it tonight. I love black-and-white photos, because of the emphasis on the face, skin and eyes, but I'm not sure that I have the same appreciation for black-and-white movies. I'll give it a chance....maybe it's an acquired taste.

I had an interesting discussion with my students today surroudning blogs and whether they are a positive or negative thing. I think that my students were seriously though pleasantly shocked that I have a blog. Maybe I'll share this site with them on Thursday.

Well, I broke down and bought that Fisher Price camera from E-Bay. Interesting that you cannot find one anywhere in a store, but there are over 1,000 of them for sale on E-Bay. Some of these people must make a full-time job out of projecting the "hot item" of the season and buying them out to sell on E-Bay. Nevertheless, thanks to "hipChicagomom", my son will be getting the camera with case for Christmas. And let's just say that I will be paying for several manicures for hipChicagomom! It's amazing to me that with one click of a button, I could find something that I have driven to several stores and searched high and low around several towns for. The advantages of the technology age. This is the first Christmas gift that I have ever purchased from E-Bay so, assuming that I receive the merchandise and all goes well, maybe this will be a part of future holidays. Now, back to my movie and cold Gingerbread latte........