we support the captain

Today was a sad, sad day for Texas Tech University. Head football coach Mike Leach was fired - the winningest coach in Tech history, not to mention unconventional and entertaining. If only someone would fire the people who really need to be fired (ahemGeraldMyersandthecorruptadministration). Wreck Em'!

Merry Christmas!

We are so excited to be with family over the next several days which means our Christmas will be full of food, laughter, games, togetherness and celebration in honor of Jesus. Our Christmas expectations have changed at the last moment as Paul's Grandma passed away last night. So, there will be a trip to Arizona in the coming days as well. We made the decision that we would look for ways to give presence in addition to presents this year...it looks like God has given us tangible ways to do that!

May your Christmas be full of JOY!

family picture

So, because Jonas was scared, pictures with Santa turned into a family event.

The Star showed up too - right above Santa's shoulder...


and Jonas is way more interested in the bowl of candy next to us...

Labor of Love

song by Andrew Peterson

It was not a silent night
There was blood on the ground
You could hear a woman cry
In the alleyways that night
On the streets of David's town

And the stable was not clean
And the cobblestones were cold
And little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
Had no mother's hand to hold

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love

Noble Joseph at her side
Callused hands and weary eyes
There were no midwives to be found
In the streets of David's town
In the middle of the night

So he held her and he prayed
Shafts of moonlight on his face
But the baby in her womb
He was the maker of the moon
He was the Author of the faith
That could make the mountains move

It was a labor of pain
It was a cold sky above
But for the girl on the ground in the dark
With every beat of her beautiful heart
It was a labor of love
For little Mary full of grace
With the tears upon her face
It was a labor of love

the Season

I would like to share my thoughts on Christmas, "the holidays", and anything else that comes to mind. Some are deep, some not so much.

- I think I may addicted to sugar. Like, I am totally fine with eating cookies for lunch or dinner or both. This doesn't normally happen during the other 11 months.

- It bothers me when we (and by "we" I mean people) refer to giving gifts or getting present as "christmas". For example, "our church is helping to provide christmas for those who won't have one." I kinda thought that Christmas had already been provided a long time ago. A news station in our town holds a "Christmas is for Kids" campaign every year. That bothers me. I am all for giving (and getting) gifts. I actually think in some ways it is a way to celebrate and worship Jesus. I am even good with Santa (more on that in a bit). However, something doesn't sit right in me when the act of giving "christmas" is what Christmas is all about.

- I have begun to love cooking. This has been a new thing over the course of about 2 months. In fact, I really really want to get fancy cooking stuff and even take a cooking class.

- Santa. It has been an on-again, off-again discussion between Paul and I regarding what to do about Santa. We are giving Jonas a "Santa" gift this year and will probably continue to do so. But, we are still undecided on how to balance the fun of Santa with the truth of Jesus.

- We hosted a Holiday Open House/Housewarming Party a few weekends ago. It was sooo much fun. It was a blast to have our dear friends in our new home, some for the first time. It was fun partnering with Paul on decorating and cleaning and cooking for the party. It was fun to get out all of our Christmas decorations and find a new place for them in our new home. I love how it turned out.

- We have been conversing about family values for about a year now. The other night we saw The Blind Side. That movie made me think, and I am not quite ready to write my thoughts on it. But, one of the values we have is to be relationally open (see previous thought)...that is why we had so much with the open house.

- Jonas has been so much fun lately.

- We are finished with our Christmas "preparations". Done with shopping. Done with wrapping. Done with shipping. Now, we are just enjoying the season. I've been baking some, which is more fun than a chore. We've played some board games in the last few nights. We've sat and enjoyed hot chocolate and a good TV show. After such a whirlwind August - November, where we had about 2 weekends that didn't have "to-dos" on the calendar, we are enjoying Christmas.

And now for some pictures.


decorating our home...




open house spread

the little lollipop looking things are actually cake pops...so fun and so yummy!

snowing at the Maney's

18 months

On November 20, Jonas turned 18 months. We are really loving this age. There are some trying moments (like when he throws a huge fit in the middle of a store or restaurant or something), but we love that Jonas interacts with us so much.

At 18 months, Jonas...

-weighs 21 lbs, 13 oz...still a lightweight
- is 32 inches tall
- still wears 12 month pants and some 18 month shirts
- naps for about 3 hours a day...we have a great sleeper!
- communicates with some words as well as pointing while saying uh, uh
- says cat, dog, all gone, outside, more more (it sounds like mo mo, and he does the sign for more), da for daddy, mama for mommy, snack, uh oh, ball, what's that or shhh (and listens for what it might be), buh for bird, bye bye
- loves to play ball
- loves his trucks and usually makes the "truck sound" while playing
- really likes to be outside
- runs and will race us
- has a lot of older friends that he loves to keep up with
- likes to be pushed around on his riding toy
- loves to read books and will even "read" to himself sometimes
- has a fascination with big machines...trucks, semis, trains, cranes, etc
- doesn't like to ride in the little seat of a grocery basket...he would rather ride in the front with all the stuff
- is really social. He likes going to school so much.
- will pick up when we ask him to help us clean up toys or any mess, really
- likes to sleep with his feet propped up against the side of his crib. I'm not sure how his feet don't fall asleep
- laughs and has a completely captivating smile
- loves dogs and will let us know if he sees one
- loves to snuggle in the mornings while he drinks his milk
- gives lots of kisses, hugs and pats
- wants to do things by himself and is really fascinated with the way stuff works
- has already gone on his first camping trip with dad


camping with friends


18 months...

thankful

we are thankful for family and friends, for new houses in familiar places, for being with sisters and moms and grandparents and cousins, for health, for jobs and the ability to our bills, for love and laughter, and for Jesus.