Friday, December 31, 2010

Pics from Christmas

Here are some pics from our different Christmas celebrations:

Jack loves getting clothes!
Of course, he loves getting cars, too! Here he is with Grandpa and his new Batmobile
Jack was so excited about this new shirt that he decided he had to try it on then and there!
Even Matt had to try on this shirt as soon as he got it from his sister.

Here is Jack opening his stocking on Christmas morning
Jack absolutely LOVES his Iron Man action figure
He also loves his Cars play rug as you see below


This truck from Brent & Heidi was definitely the hit of the party when we were at Granddaddy's house. Jack was playing with it all morning.


Ava was blissfully ignorant of all the fun that was happening around her.
Jack sure was interested in Granddaddy's new singing hat!

Thursday, December 30, 2010

Happy New Year!

Do you have any resolutions? Heidi asked me that a few weeks ago, and mine's always the same - lose weight! But after thinking about it a little bit, I like the verse, "Let your moderation be known unto all men, the Lord is at hand." I thought that would be a good verse to live by this year. If we live in remembrance of Christ's return every day, the things that are important to us might be different. And that affects many areas of our lives. But it's a good goal!

What a great Christmas! We had the best time with our families and at church. Good food and good fellowship - can't beat it! Jack racked up with so many nice things and his birthday is coming, so it might be about time to clean out that toy box again since it is piled pretty high. Time to get rid of old stuff and make room for the new, right? I've done the same thing with myself, and Matt has, too. I'm looking forward to the next couple of weeks since we have a few birthdays and then I'm heading to Colorado with Ava. I can't wait to see Chris and Alicia and the kids and for them to meet Ava in person. It's been fun skyping a few times with them. And now we can do that at home since we got a web cam for Christmas.

Check out my brother's new book Morning Manna by R. Chris Hanks. Lifeway is carrying it, and you can order it online. It is a devotional that will be a blessing to you! Chris and Alicia are so talented and can do anything. They make candles, too. Their candles are in high demand and are sold in stores all over Colorado. They are called Mountain Lights, so check them out, too! I think you can order them online. So that's my commercial for them - go buy a book and a candle! I can't imagine anyone paying me to write! OR make candles! WOW!

Thursday, December 23, 2010

The day before the day before....

Fun shopping! Time with my sisters - so nice to have Nancy home! I am looking forward to our day together today before tomorrow when everything really starts. Church, the Fures for their Christmas, and then home to get ready for ours the next morning. I'm so excited to see Jack's face opening his presents. Ava won't be too aware quite yet! Then to the Hanks at 10 am for presents and fondue! What I love the most about this time of year is time with family. Can't wait!

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

Pictures from the Christmas program day


Waiting to go in...

Walking and waving....our little star

These pictures turned out terrible. But here's one anyway.

At home



Christmas Program

Well, the Christmas program this year was a success! Whew! Sigh of relief. I'm glad it's over, and I'm glad it went so well. All of the kids did a great job. Jack was in the front row and we could hear him singing. And he did his part right and when he was supposed to - again, WHEW! And they were all dressed up and so cute! So we had a great time. The families both came and all came over afterwards for some sandwiches. It was so much fun. We let Jack open a present early for doing so well.

So this week we are making our gifts for the church. Our annual fiddle faddle. Well, we just started doing it last year copying Chris and Alicia, and everyone really liked it. It enabled us to do more for more people in the church, and it's something we are making ourselves. And it's kind of fun. And quite tasty!

So this Sunday is our cantata and then Monday Nancy comes home - whoohoo! We are very excited especially Ava since she hasn't met Aunt Nanny yet. We are looking forward to some good quality family time this Christmas.

My car is again in the shop - what is it about Christmastime and car problems? I think it was in the shop last year, too, right around this time. But thank the Lord, He is providing us with our needs. We have a house to live in, food to eat, cars to drive, and clothes to wear. Oh and our health! Really no complaints!

We are all ready! Decorations up, presents bought, and just waiting....I need a project! Really though I'm glad I'm done. This way I can be ready to enjoy my family when they are all here and off work without feeling like I have a lot to do. So looking forward to it all! Merry Christmas to you all!

Wednesday, December 8, 2010

As I was working on the blog, I heard Jack playing with his phone. It rings and says, "Information. May I help you?" He answers, "Uh yeah, I'm a superhero. Bye." Told ya!
We had a crazy busy week last week. Lots of church stuff on top of the regular schedule, so it got kind of crazy. This week is our slow down week with last night being the first time at home in a while. I went to the mall yesterday and had a blast. I don't do that like I used to, but it's still just as fun!

I think we are caught up on Christmas shopping - just a couple of small things left! So that is a good feeling. Ava is almost 5 months old. She is using her hands so much more now which means look out if you're holding her. She will grab anything. She had her 4 month appointment last week and is perfect according to Dr. Sprenkle. She did a little better on the shots, but it's still heartbreaking. As I was signing the consent form, I felt like such a traitor. Yes, honey, I gave them permission to hurt you! UGH! But I guess it's better than getting a terrible disease. I must keep things in perspective.

Jack is loving the snow. He has been able to play in it a few times and loves it. We have enjoyed having the Balls back home downstairs, so he has been able to play with them, too. Kind of nice in the winter especially to have playmates! He is in a superhero phase. I don't really get it, but it's kind of cute. Daddy's still his favorite playground. He's getting ready for his Christmas program and has a speaking part this year, so we'll see how that goes! It's exciting to see how much he can memorize. I'm really looking forward to his opening presents this year. It will be fun to watch him.

So the next thing is to get the Christmas cards out! I will be working on that this week. I usually have them done by now, but there really hasn't been much time. So here we go!