Cut-out cookie time!

These are still my favorite Christmas treat. My recipe has nutmeg in it...mmmm!

Christmas busy-ness

School's out! Yay! We had our home school co-op party on Tuesday, where we caroled a nursing home and decorated cookies and ate pizza. We had a good turn-out, and it's always good to see the kids interacting with each other. Wednesday was our AWANA store and Christmas party and the last one until January (she said with exceeding great joy). Thursday afternoon we went to Rebecca's school to watch the 4 classes on her wing put on a little Christmas program. It was SO CUTE! I loved it. If you watch the video you'll see Rebecca's dance moves. Ha!
Friday I drove the girls 3 hours to Conway where we had lunch with my Mom, then we met up with Mike and a bunch of students and they followed us another 3 hours to Rogers where we got to see Chris Tomlin and Louie Giglio's "Glory in the Highest" tour. It was indescribable. (No pun intended. Okay, it was.) Seriously, it was a very moving, worshipful experience. I loved it. We also had supper and spent the night with Chuck and Holly and Kate and Grayson. They were very good friends of ours our first year and a half in Magnolia, and we've missed them a bunch since they moved. It was great spending a little time with them.
On our way home yesterday the girls and I stopped to visit my Mom again, and my brother Matt and his family, who are spending Christmas there before moving to Colorado Springs. It's been a year and a half since we've seen them, so that was fun. We'll get to see them again Christmas day.
It was dark the last hour of our drive, so we judged the Christmas lights we saw to pass the time. Our neighborhood won. :)
We also kept track of state license plates on the trip, and would you believe we saw 31 states, just driving 6 hours and back, all within the state of Arkansas? I guess there's no place like home for the holidays.

Do you see what I see?

When you look at this picture, what do you see?
I see my grandmothers, who used ornaments as nametags on my Christmas presents.
I see my Dad, who brought me a little doll ornament from Germany.
I see my Mom, helping me paint a little wooden elf when I was five.
I see Mike's dad, and I can imagine Mike decorating the tree as a little boy in Texas.
I see Mrs. Barrett, and the families in Virginia that became family to us.
I see my brother, so proud of our Stuart heritage he gave us a Stuart plaid bear.
I see each of my baby girls.
I see the baby I lost 7 years ago today, and my friend Marnie, who came to our house that night with a little Joshua ornament.
I see a trip with my friend Sandra, when Mike and I were dating, and the hope I had that the ornament I gave him would end up on my tree forever.
I see our honeymoon, and each of our moves and mission trips and vacations.
I see teachers, and I see students.
I see Mikayla's friend Josephine, my high school friend Amanda, college friends Angie and Mandy, Fort Worth friends Karry and Beverly, former student friends Matt and Jackie, Chris and Julie, and Becky, and Idaho friends Tim and Denise.

I see love.

I won again!!

I won another blog drawing! Vicki Courtney was giving away Travis Cottrell's Christmas CD, and I won. :) It came in the mail today, and we're listening to it on our lazy Saturday.

Ten on the Eleventh (hey, life is busy)

10 things we've done in the past 10 (11) days

1. Sunday night (technically Nov. 30, but I'm counting it)--Heard Robert and Sharon Pinkston share about their work in Canada at our church's Lottie Moon soup and cornbread supper. I went to college with Robert and Sharon, and they haven't changed a bit! I loved seeing their kids, and learning a little about their lives.

2. Monday night--Attended a one night marriage seminar at Beech Springs camp. Mike and I got to spend a few hours without kids, talking about our relationship, visiting with other adults, having supper, laughing at videos. It was fun.

3. Tuesday night--BCM Christmas party, with good food which included cheesecake!, silly games, Luke 2, and dirty Santa. We got a $10 Sonic gift card and some funny Christmas socks!

4. Wednesday night--AWANA night--my most, um, challenging Cubbie wasn't there, so it went really, really well. :)

5. Thursday night--Magnolia Christmas parade, concluding with the Celebration of Lights at SAU. This is one of my absolute favorite things about living in Magnolia. The parade is short, but has people we know, and 3 bands, and I just love cheering for them and embarrassing my children! We watch from near campus, then walk over for cookies and cocoa, choir and handbell performances, and the girls sit on Santa's lap. We even get a free picture, about 5 minutes later!! It's neat to see how the girls have changed each year.

6. Friday night--Jessica and Mikayla's Sunday School Christmas party "Christmas Around the World." I got to share about Mozambique. It was fun and exhausting.

7. Saturday night--Mike and Kecia's Sunday School party for supper, then I went to choir practice, then I went back to the party--just in time for it to end.

8. Sunday--Hanging of the Green--Another favorite thing about Magnolia. It's even more fun now that I'm singing in the choir. We decorated the worship center, and the adult choir, kids choir, and youth choir sang, usually together. I just wish I didn't always tear up when the kids sing, it makes it hard to see my music!

9. Tuesday--made a gingerbread house. The girls did most of it by themselves!

10. Wednesday--AWANA pajama night + movie, followed by choir rehearsal...in my pajamas. It was fun, I may start wearing them every week!

Sandusky Academy Christmas Recital

You are cordially invited to the Sandusky Academy Christmas Recital. Sit back and enjoy!
"Ode to Joy" by Jessica Sandusky on the piano

Mikayla Sandusky on the recorder presents: "I Saw Three Ships"

"The Holly and the Ivy"

and "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing"

Thanksgiving wrap-up

Wednesday: wrote Christmas cards while driving to Beaumont, Texas, to stay with Mike's brother and his family. Saw "Blind Side" and "Planet 51"
Thursday:
7 am--woke up to the words "We need you in the bathroom." Mikayla's stomach had been hurting her all night long, and she had, um, rid herself of the problem. On Mike's foot. After that she was fine!
10 am--drove to Magnolia, Texas, to have Thanksgiving dinner with Mike's family. Even his Mom got to come!

Rebecca, of course, was spoiled rotten by all the cousins.

All the family had a lot of fun cooking, talking, and laughing together.

We ate around 3, and then my friends Mark and Karry, who live in Phoenix, drove up from his parents' house to visit. She and I shared an apartment for 2 years in Fort Worth, and it was soooo good to see them!

The Texas A & M vs. ut game was fun, in spite of the bad ending. Mike, David, and Tod cheered for A & M, while Zachary and Ethan cheered for ut. But it was all in good fun!

While the boys watched the game, Jeannie and Robin helped Mikayla and Rebecca make a gingerbread house. They had fun, and it turned out really cute.

Friday:  We got back to Beaumont late, because we didn't leave until after the football game, so I didn't get up early to shop on Friday, but I did shop. Renee took me to Target and the mall, and it wasn't too crowded. I had fun, and got some good deals! We pretty much shopped all day, while the kids and husbands played on the Wii and played miniature golf. Rebecca had fun playing with their dog, Bear.  When she thought he looked cold, she covered him with her blankie!

Saturday: We took the kids to play at a park, then had lunch at the mall before driving home. Mikayla was dying to do the bungee jump thing at the mall, and talked Rebecca into doing it with her. They loved it! I kept trying to get a picture of them doing flips, but my camera was too slow.

We took a slight detour on our way home, to see the Festival of Lights in Natchitoches, Lousiana. None of us had been there before, and we all enjoyed it! We looked at the lights, ate Natchitoches meat pies, foot long corn dogs, sausage on a stick, gator (yes, alligator) bobs, and funnel cakes on the river, and watched a fireworks show. It made us all feel so festive.

Walking back to the car we all "got" to pet a live gator--only in Louisiana are gators so much a part of Christmas! There's even one pulling a crawdad on waterskis next to the nativity scene at the bottom...ha!

It was another late night, and a busy time, but a really good Thanksgiving break. Now we're counting the days until Christmas!!