This one's for the girls

My Mom has the best friends in the world. They've all found each other after losing their husbands, and have been there for each other like no one else could. I have thanked God many times for each of them, as well as prayed for them. Mom told me this week that some of them read my blog (!) and wanted to see the picture of them looking up the chimney. So here is that picture, along with the ones that I haven't deleted yet from our Christmas card picture attempts:

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all of you from Jessica and all of us.

Gingerbread contest results

Well, my white-haired granny in the green dress won the gingerbread contest, with Mike's big guady dude and Jessica's family with a dog (my personal favorite) tying for 2nd. None of them exist anymore. :)

Another Favorite Thing

You know what else I love?
My "Time-Life Treasury of Christmas" double CD. (If you go to that link it's not the exact one I have, but close. Mine doesn't have Kenny G.) It has all the old-fashioned Christmas songs and performers, like Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole, Perry Como. I love it! And I love hearing my girls sing along. And I laugh when Julie Andrews sings "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" and they say, "Did you know that's the grandma on Princess Diaries!!" Oh, is that who that is? :)

You know you're in the South...

...when you go to look at Christmas lights in flip-flops and no jackets because it's 78 degrees...and the next night it's in the teens.

...when it's so humid your driveway is soaking wet--under the carport.

...when college students call you Mrs. and ma'am

...when your children begin to add syllables to words (hair=hay-er, door=doe-er)

And I'm happy to be here. :)

Gingerbread contest!

I posted a contest on facebook with one gingerbread entry from each member of the family. If you'd like to vote and aren't on facebook, you can go to this public access , and vote in a comment here!

Kiss first, fuss later

My girls learn early in life to go to Daddy's side of the bed when they have a bad dream. I'm just cranky in the middle of the night--I don't mean to be, I just am! So last night (4 a.m., actually) when Mikayla opened our squeaky bedroom door and said, "Rebecca's crying," I sighed (huffed, actually) and went into their room whispering (none too gently) "Why are you in here crying?" Rebecca: "I had a bad dream." Me: "Then why didn't you come get in bed with us?" (Translation: why didn't you get in bed with Daddy so I could still be sleeping?) Then I sat on her bed and leaned over and kissed her, and she was burning up. I carried her into the kitchen and took her temperature--101.4. Poor baby! Mother guilt. She's hovered around that all day, with no other symptoms. I hope she gets to go to her preschool Christmas party tomorrow.
It reminds me of when Mikayla was around this age (and had never had a stomach bug before) and she woke me up in the middle of the night saying her stomach hurt. I told her to go sit on the potty and I'd be there in a minute. By the time I got myself up and in there, she had, um, let's say, lost her supper...sitting on the potty like I told her to.
Speaking of obedience, the other day Mike told Rebecca to go brush her teeth and if he went in there and she wasn't brushing, she'd be in big trouble! She said, "Yeah, I'll get a swat with a wooden spoon. Or a towel! Or a piano bench!"

My Favorite Things

Last year I had so much fun posting pictures of my favorite ornaments; this year I thought I'd show you some of my other favorite decorations, such as these "vintage" decorations I got from my MawMaw. I just love them!

The next picture shows how I've counted down the days until Christmas since I was a little girl. The poem at the top says:

From now 'til Christmas
Is the longest time of the year...
Seems as if ole Santa
Just never will get here.

So untie a piece of candy every night
Before you say your prayers
And Christmas Day will be here
For everyone to share.

I told Mike a few minutes ago that this is the first time in I don't know how long that I've sat at the computer for more than a minute or so. He asked why, and I said 'cause I've been too busy living life to sit down and chronicle it! I don't mind the busy-ness of this time of year, though, when it involves more of my favorite things, like listening to children sing at church. It has always made me cry, even before I had kids of my own up there! I think it's because they look so sweet and innocent and sincere, and I'm praying with all my heart they stay that way. (Can you find my 3 angels?)

While this picture is NOT one of my favorite things, the new tradition is. Mike bought us a jigsaw puzzle by Walter Wick (creator of I Spy books) last year, and we had so much fun putting it together that we're going to do one every year! Warning: jigsaw puzzles are addictive!

Here's a picture of a moment I loved--a rare moment of peace! Jessica and Rebecca were coloring together while listening to Christmas music.

Gingerbread men are traditionally our first Christmas treat.

And the finished products always make me smile.

Home school coop field trips and parties are a new favorite thing. Today we caroled at a nursing home, then had hot chocolate and made gingerbread houses out of graham crackers. They had fun with friends and WAY too much sugar.





I have so many more things I love this time of year...but that will give me more to blog about another day!

It's the bus-busiest season of all...

*Names added in answer to questions! :)*
I love Christmas! I even love the busy-ness of it, most of the time. It has taken time away from blogging, but isn't that a good thing? Especially after hearing Jessica say something along the lines of, "You're always at the computer these days. When we don't know where you are, we always find you there." Ouch. Anyway...
Here's my weekly update:
Monday: Rebecca's preschool Sunday School party! We ate pizza and cookies...

played music...

made ornaments...


and listened to a story.

Tuesday: Our last worship time with BCM for the semester on Tuesday. I love those students. And I love my husband. I love watching my husband teach those students. I had taken Rebecca to the potty, and was standing back a bit when he started talking, and I don't even know how to put it into words, but there's just something about watching your man teach God's word.
Wedensday: Cubbies. Crazy, as usual. 13 3 & 4 year olds, Christmas coming, and a thunderstorm. Can you picture the excitement? Thankfully the electricity didn't go out until after we were home. We walked in the door and Rebecca asked how we were going to watch TV! We lit every candle in the house, and made sure everything was off in case it came back on in the middle of the night. Which it did.
Thursday: Mike left for Idaho, to do premarital counseling for some former students (Brian Hammond and Katie Brittingham) he's marrying in July. We're all going then, and can hardly wait! The bad news is, he missed the Christmas parade. It was freezing cold, but fun. Especially afterwards, when we walked to campus and listened to the band and choir, and watched as they lit up the different parts of campus. Then we followed a path lit by luminaria to see more lights, hear our church's handbell choir, eat cookies and cider, and sit on Santa's lap! It was even more fun this year than last, because we knew so many more people. And best of all, it's all free! :)
Friday: My Sunday School party. I almost didn't go, but my friend Rebecca talked me into it, and I'm glad. We had good food, good company, and a good game of Dirty Santa/Chinese Christmas/White Elephant. Let's just say I'm re-gifting at the BCM Christmas party next week!
Saturday: I didn't have to go anywhere, but the kids had choir rehearsal and a play date.
Sunday: Hanging of the Green at church this morning. It was so neat to watch all 3 of my girls singing in the same choir. Every child up there looked so precious, and sang so sweetly. I get emotional when kids sing. It was a good service. This afternoon I skipped my weekly nap (gasp!) and made fudge and ornaments with the girls instead. It was definitely worth it. They had another choir rehearsal this afternoon, then we had a soup/cornbread missions supper at the church. I really enjoyed the speaker, and we had some mutual friends! My favorite quote of the evening was from Charles Spurgeon: You're either a missionary or an imposter.
So there you have it. Another week in the lives of the Sandusky family. Back at home we were doing school and keeping the house clean (trying, anyway) and decorating more for Christmas--here's Mike putting up the train:

And our 2 trees (we're so spoiled):

This picture almost looks as good as when I'm not wearing my contacts!

And of course, there was plenty of silliness.



Believe it or not, I do feel rested after the weekend, and ready to start all over again. Especially since my hubby comes home tomorrow!

The Week in Pictures

We spent Thanksgiving week in Texas with Mike's family...but before we left, we put together our fake tree, so it would be ready to decorate when we got home!


I took Jessica on a date on Wednesday, as suggested in Secret Keeper Girl. We went to "Tea for Two Tearoom" and had blackberry tea and a huge piece of chocolate cake. They brought the tea in individual tea pots with cups and saucers, which was very special. I was surprised when I tasted it and it was ICED tea! Funny. We also went to Build a Bear so that "Holly" could get stitches, and looked around the mall a bit while we were there. It was a nice time together. I forgot to have the waitress take our picture at the tearoom, so we took one of ourselves in the van.

We got home just in time for Mike's "bonding time" with the girls...a Polar Bear Run! Okay, since it was 70 degrees outside it may not qualify as a true Polar Bear run, but the water was only 50 degrees, so I still think they were CRAZY!






Yes, he even put my baby in!



That evening Andrea gave each girl a lovely polka-dot manicure and rainbow pedicure. They loved it!

Rebecca spent a lot of time on her Mamaw's lap. She wasn't feeling real well, and needed the cuddles, and Mike's mom ate it up!

And after a lovely Thanksgiving and fun Black Friday shopping in The Woodlands, it was time to say good-bye.


It isn't as obvious in this picture as in real life, but Jessica is now taller than her 17-year-old cousin!

Andrea calls Mikayla her "mini-me."

When we got home, there was our tree, ready to decorate!

How can you tell when a 4-year-old is helping decorate the tree?