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Christmas 2013

Christmas 2013

We woke up to a beautiful day, to celebrate Jesus’ birthday and our love for one another.

Christmas Morning

Christmas Morning

While we missed our extended family that lives on the east coast, we still enjoyed a wonderful day with just our children.  I am very thankful and blessed that the grandparents sent the kids gifts, even though we couldn’t be there with them.  Even though they weren’t with us in person, they were definitely with us in spirit.

Our tree this year, did not last long at all.  It was a fire hazard by the time Christmas day arrived.  The needles had already started turning brown.  In years part, we always left our tree up until mid-January, however, it came down the day after Christmas.   We still loved looking at the ornaments and talking about where they came from and who gave them to us.  The memories our tree could tell you.

Christmas Tree 2013

Christmas Tree 2013

I always enjoy watching our children open their gifts and this year was no different.  We always ask a few months in advance for the kids to make us a list of a few things they would like.  We have been blessed to be able to get the kids a couple of things that they wanted.  As you can see on their faces, they were surprised and very thankful.

Samuel opening Legos

Samuel opening Legos

Michael opening books

Michael opening books

Sisters looking at favorite gifts

Sisters looking at favorite gifts

Another thing I love about Christmas, is seeing what my children want to give and make for their siblings.  We have been blessed with children who love to give and do for others.  This year, my oldest daughter surprised her siblings with homemade light sabers.  Her creative mind is constantly moving and she always creates amazing things.  This year was no different.  I think the younger children enjoyed these gifts, as much as the store bought ones.

A loving sister making her siblings a gift, lightsabers out of paper tubes.

A loving sister making her siblings a gift, lightsabers out of paper tubes.

I also got a surprise this year.  My wonderful and amazing hubby surprised me with a Kindle. He knows I love to read and I have been having trouble reading ebooks from my phone.  The print is just too small and it gave me headaches to read from my phone.  He knew that and bought the Kindle, so that I could enlarge the print.  It was definitely a wonderful surprise and one that I won’t forget any time soon.

a surprise for me from my hubby

a surprise for me from my hubby

I am truly blessed with an amazing family.  I love their hearts and minds.  They know we celebrate Christmas because of the beautiful gift that God gave us, His son, Jesus.

So while Christmas has come and gone, we will still continue to celebrate Jesus and do our best to follow in his footsteps all year long.

How was your Christmas?  Do you have any special memories or special gifts from this year?  I would love for you to share them with me. 

 

 

 

 

 

Christmas Tree 2013 ~ family traditions

Christmas Tree 2013 ~ family traditions

We have several family traditions that we like to keep during the Christmas season. One of those traditions that we love to do, is going to pick out our Christmas tree. Every year, usually the Saturday after Thanksgiving, we head out to choose a tree. The past couple of years, our oldest son hasn’t been able to join us, but this year, he made sure that he was off work. We enjoy this time with one another, to bond together as a family and to celebrate the true meaning of Christmas. Jesus.

Samuel and Claire

Samuel and Claire

I love watching the kids run from tree to tree, checking out the size, if there are any holes in the tree, is the trunk straight. They look at everything! Even the older two kids get into making sure the tree is just the right one.

Michael and Claire

Michael and Claire

This day was no exception. It had to be just the right one. They looked at almost every single tree in the lot. It was so much fun and a lot of joy, watching the kids. All the laughing, smiling and joking with one another, brings so much happiness to this momma’s heart.

Sarah and Samuel

Sarah and Samuel

They did finally all agree on one tree and then we were on our way home with it, tied to the top of the van and joking all the way home, wondering if we would have a tree still attached to the van.

Once we got home, dad put the tree in the stand and then we got the tree set up in the corner of the room. Dad then gets the lights and puts them on the tree. We usually let the tree settle with the lights and then the next day, the kids put the ornaments on the tree.

Kids decorating tree.

Kids decorating tree.

I love watching the kids decorate the tree. They look at each ornament and always ask, “who made this ornament?” Or “who gave us this ornament?” I love reminiscing with the kids about Christmas’ of the past.

Some of the ornaments that are our favorites, I am sharing below. The angel topper is 20 years old. We got that angel when our oldest son was 11 months old. It has been with us through our moves to NC and CO. I look forward to seeing my husband put it on the tree, every year.

Angel Topper

Angel Topper

Being from Florida, we are huge Florida Gator fans. When we moved to NC, we had a friend who didn’t want us to forget about Florida and he sent us these ornaments. The kids are so careful when they put these on the tree. They make sure they are up at the top, so they don’t get knocked off.

Gator Ornaments

Gator Ornaments

Other than our angel topper, I think my favorite ornament is one that I painted with the kids. It truly summarizes what the who Christmas season is all about. Jesus. All because God sent His precious Son to us, in a Holy Night.

O Holy Night.

O Holy Night.

My husband and I do our best to teach our children about Jesus and why we celebrate his birth. While we have some amazing traditions, teaching them about Jesus is our most important one.

What Christmas traditions do you have with your family? I would love to hear about them!

My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids ~ review

My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids ~ review

Disclaimer: I received this ebook in exchange for a review. All opinions are my own thoughts. Affiliate links are included in this post.  If you purchase anything, I will get a small percentage.  This does not affect your price at all. 

As a parent, it is important for me to teach my kids the true meaning of Christmas. While we talk about Jesus being the true meaning of Christmas and we read the bible to show the kids, sometimes, it is nice to have something for the kids to write and look at on their level.  This is where Heather Bowen and her “My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids“, come in.

So what is My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids?  This devotional is a fifteen day journal that will help restate what you have been teaching them.  How does this Christmas journal help reiterate what you have been teaching your children?  Over the 15 days of this journal, you and your children will read scripture, pray, games, puzzles, journaling, crafts, baking and even service projects.

I mentioned that one of the ways your children will be learning about the true meaning of Christmas, is through journaling.  Heather uses an acronym WISH (write, investigate, share and hear).  For example, on the first day, the kids will write ways they can obey, they will look up scripture to investigate more, they will share with someone what they have learned and then will hear more from scripture when a parent reads to them.

My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids is a 69 page devotional that is written for ages 4-12.  However, it can be adapted for any age.  I found myself enjoying reading the journal.  While I haven’t started using this with my kids just yet, I am truly excited to have found a fun way to help the kids understand even more, the true meaning of Christmas.  I am looking forward to digging more into scripture, sharing with my children and learning with them ways to not only for us to focus more on Jesus during this Christmas season, but learning ways of sharing with others, the true meaning of Christmas.

Heather, at UpsideDown Homeschooling is having a sale right now for My Christmas Wish: A Devotional Prayer Journal for Kids.  You can purchase this great devotional for you and your children for $2.99.  Be sure to look at her Gratitude journals while you are at her blog.  I know you won’t be disappointed in the product!

 

 

Teaching Creation Thursday~ {Demystifying the Mayan Calendar}

Teaching Creation Thursday~ {Demystifying the Mayan Calendar}

TeachingCreationsThursdays

Growing up in a Christian home, going to church my whole life and reading the bible, I believe everything that the bible says.  I know with all my heart that God sent his son to die on a cross for my sins.  I also believe, just like the bible says, that Jesus will come back one day to gather his children.  It also says in the bible that no one knows the day or the time that this will happen, only God does.

Matthew 24:36

36 “But concerning that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father only.

Mark 13:32

32 “But concerning that day or that hour, no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son,but only the Father.

Yet there are some people who believe differently.  Some actually think that the Mayans have predicted the world will end on December 21, 2012.  That is tomorrow.   There are a lot of people preparing for this, buying extra supplies to help them survive.  A lot of people are afraid and are worrying about what will happen. As a Christian, I am not worried at all.  If you believe in God, believe what the bible says, then you shouldn’t be worried either.  I do my best to live my life to the fullest, praising and giving God all the glory.  By doing this and raising my children to do the same, we are ready for when Jesus does come back.

Dr. Carolyn Reeves has written a couple of articles talking about the Mayans and what they believe.  Please read her one article below and then go visit the other article that she wrote for the American Family Association Journal.

Demystifying the Mayan Calendar

Written by Dr. Carolyn Reeves

It’s time to demystify the Mayan calendar, which ends on December 21, 2012. It is causing quite a stir among many people who are wondering if the Mayans have really identified this date as the time for worldwide catastrophic events.

My husband and I were traveling through a small town recently and stopped at a local café to eat. A young man seated near us was passionately trying to persuade his friends to stock up on food, water, batteries, and other supplies, because December 21, 2012, was going to start a period of worldwide catastrophes.

Later that week, I read a news account of a large number of New Agers who were gathering in France near a mountain where they believe space ships were coming on December 21 to beam them up before calamity struck the earth.

During the following week, I asked several people what they thought about December 21.  Some people said they planned to buy extra food and supplies for that time–just in case.

So, what are Christians to make of an ancient Mayan Indian prediction? First of all, the early Mayans were not a primitive ignorant tribe.

They had an in-depth scientific knowledge of astronomy, made correct observations of heavenly bodies, and developed accurate calendars based on these skills. Amazingly, they were able to recognize that our sun travels in a long pathway through the skies, and it was predicted to intersect another astrological pathway in the skies on the winter solstice (December 21) in 2012. They considered this intersection to be so unusual that they may have started with this date and worked their way backwards as they constructed their calendar.  The Mayans also developed shorter accurate calendars, but the long count calendar is the one getting all the attention this year.

The end of some of the Mayan calendars was believed to mark when the sun moved into a new house. There is evidence that entire Mayan cities moved into new homes on these dates, abandoning or burning their old homes as they left.

The Mayans didn’t progressively acquire their knowledge of astronomy on their own.  It seems as if older civilizations across the Atlantic Ocean, such as Egyptians, Phoenicians, and Chaldeans, were the first to possess accurate science-based knowledge of astronomy and keep up with time and dates. Some of these early civilizations also produced skilled sailors who were able to travel far and wide in well-built ships looking for minerals and other resources.

At some point, a group of Mediterranean navigators are almost certain to have crossed the Atlantic and established cities in the Central America area, from which the Mayans descended. Similarities between the Mayans and the early Mediterranean civilizations are strong evidence of this connection–massive  pyramids, a cuneiform type of written language, a similar mathematical system, similarities in artistic works, and accurate knowledge of astronomy.

The Mayans probably lost much of their scientific and technological knowledge over the centuries as they became immersed in pagan worship of the sun and eventually lost contact with Europeans, but they retained the knowledge used to make their calendars.

As for the last day of the old Mayan calendar, it is just another day in which the sun may cross an astrological pathway in the sky on December 21, 2012. It may well be a rare solar event, but it’s no more a sign of bad luck than someone walking under a ladder on Friday 13th at the same time a black cat ran across the person’s pathway. Christians would do well to reject such superstitious signs as a source of knowledge and reality.

 

so thankful and blessed, I made it to #1000!

so thankful and blessed, I made it to #1000!

On July 19, 2010, I started reading this wonderful blog named A Holy Experience. On it, Ann Voskamp talked about being thankful and how you can always find a blessing. She suggested keeping track of those blessings. I am so glad she did. I have noticed a big change in how I look at things. I don’t worry as much as I used to either. By looking at what all God has blessed us with during the good and the bad time times, I know that God is always with us no matter what. I have been putting my faith and trust in God so much more since I began this back in 2010. I plan on continuing counting my blessings every day for as long as I can.  While she had suggested counting a 1000 gifts in one year, it has taken me a little over two years to reach 1000.  I am excited about reaching this number and looking forward to counting many more.  Some of these I have counted before, but feel like they should be counted more often.

991.  Having the freedom to homeschool my children.

992.  Being able to stay home with my children.

993.  My husband of 20 years. (We celebrate 20 years on October 3rd of this year)

994.  My four children (Michael-19, Sarah-14, Samuel-8 and Claire-6.)

995.  My parents for raising me in a living Christian home.

996.  The Word of God to live by.

997.  Hubby’s job with great insurance.

998.  God providing us with a place to live.

999.  His mercy and grace that He gives me daily.

1000.  Jesus, dying on the cross to save a poor wretched person, like me.

I would love for you to join in counting the many blessings that God gives. Stop by A Holy Experience and visit others who are also sharing their many blessings.