Heather's Christmas survey....FUN!

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? hot cocoa w/marshmallows and peppermint stick from Cracker Barrel.(I'm all out, Mom!)
2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? wrapped...and thanks to Joleen, with ribbons and bows!
3. Colored lights or white on tree/house ? lots of lights....doesn't matter the color. especially chasing lights!
4. Do you hang mistletoe? LOL...I bought it after Thanksgiving and it's still sitting here in the pkg, next to my computer!
5. When do you put your decorations up? the weekend after Thanksgiving
6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? On Christmas day...Lasagna
7. Favorite holiday memory as a child? When I was a kid, my grandparents used to run a tape recorder while we unwrapped the gifts. Going back and listening to the comments out of context is hysterical! Where are those tapes anyway?
8. When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? If I stop believing in Sanata Claus, he might stop coming to my house!
9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Our family gift exchange is Christmas eve. Then Santa comes to our house. Doesn't he come to yours?
10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? Love my pre-lit tree!!!!! Annual, dated ornaments along with all the handmade ones from the kids over the years.
11. Snow… love it or dread it? Love it...from indoors
12. Do you know how to ice skate? yes, but never gonna happen again!
13. Do you remember your favorite gift? So many over the years, but like Jo, I once followed a scavenger hunt through my grandma's house and found my present in the dryer. THE DRYER WAS RUNNING!!!!!!! LOL I still remember getting my first bike. I was 6. It was hidden in the garage. a beautiful red schwin. I wish I still had it!
14. What’s the most important thing about the holidays for you? the family all getting together. The chaos of the kids.
15. What is your favorite holiday dessert? FUDGE! You go, Jo. Now we just have to teach you how to make it! So I can stop :)
16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? My kids coming home Christmas eve and spending the night to wake up EARLY, together the next morning. It was hard last year without it. 2 years ago, Brad & I woke the kids up at 3:30 am! That was the best ever.
17. What tops your tree? A poor ancient angel who requires surgery each year before she can go up!
18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving? I love to receive, of course, but it's too much fun giving and watching the joys in my loved one's faces. This is my favorite.
19. Favorite Christmas Song? Oh Holy Night, sung by John Berry
20. Favorite Flavor of Candy Canes? Hershey's chocolate mint.

Poor Buster!!!

Today Buster had to have an unplanned surgery. The night before Thanksgiving we found a bump on his left side. We took him to see the dr. that Friday, but they didn't think it was anything to worry about. Not only has it doubled in size since then, but it nows seems to bother Buster. We took him in today and the vet has no idea what it is. He removed it and will send it for a biopsy. We should know more by Friday. he said it wasn't a cist like he though, but some kind of tissue growth. We pray it's nothing serious. Buster looks so sad!

Christ in Action

On Friday night, Sarah had an open house with the ministry she has been particpating in. I wanted to video tape it to share with everyone, but I don't have a working battery for my video camera. I took lots of still pictures. Sarah hasn't been in it very long and doesn't participate in all the songs, however, she does very well in the songs she does participate in and we are very proud of her. I really hope you all have an opportunity to see this presentation some time. It truely is something else to see! See if you can pick her out of these shots.....it's not as easy as you'd think!

Molly

Every year since i've known him, Brad has given me a Christmas present before Christmas. I used to think it was because he just couldn't wait, but I realized now, it's just a fun tradition with him. This year, he really surprised me. He gave me a puppy!
She was rescued from a shelter in Ontario. She is a terrier mix and is 4 months old. She has the sweetest personality and Buster loves her! She will be a ltitle bit bigger than Buster, which is perfect! Maybe he won't bully her so much. We already know she can hold her own with him. She is a little bit intimidated with her surroundings, but is adapting very well. She already will potty everytime on her pad as long as she's in her pen (an area we gated off in my bedroom). When she has the rest of the house, she pottys wherever! This is my least favorite part of raising a puppy, for sure! She sleeps through the night and is a super cuddle bug! Here are some pictures of Molly, Buster and Jake getting to know each other. Since these pictures were taken, Buster and Molly play all the time - keep away, chase, and wrestle! Molly can even steal the toy from Buster! Of course, she has to trick him into dropping it first!

Here I am!!!!!!!

Well, life has been so busy lately. I've been really great at taking the pictures, but have had no time to put them out there to share with you all. We'll use this blog as a catch up.

First, Sarah has been very busy in her new ministry called C.I.A. (Christ in Action). It is a mime and sign troop that goes around spreading the gospel with music. She's been working very hard and is doing very well. We are very proud of her as well as the group. We quickly felt like we belongs to this "family". Most of the kids in this troup have been doing this for several years; some up to 8 years. As the kids grow up, they take over leadership roles in the group. It's great! I'm glad for Sarah to be involved in such a great project.

Next, Thanksgiving was so fabulous! I really had a great time. I'm already feeling sad about next year. This was the first year that we had all of our children and their families with us. In addition, all of my family, with the exception of Laura and James were there too! Thanks to a quick weather change, we moved it all indoors. Although it was crowded, it was terrific. The food was to die for, as usual, and for the first time ever, we made enough deviled eggs! There were actually 4 left over! :) With turkey, ham, potatoes, sweet potatoes, stuffing, veggies, salads, homemade bread (Thanks, Kim!), pies (Alex even baked from scratch!) , birthday cake and all the trimmings, I'm sure no one went home hungry! Thank you to everyone who made this day so special. I find myself counting down the days until Christmas, so we can be together again! Can't wait for that lasagna...

Speaking of Christmas.....on Friday after Thanksgiving, we decorated for Christmas. It was lots of fun, and we even had Deana home to help. Sarah and Deana are now tall enough, that they don't need any help trimming the tree. This is both exciting and sad for me. Some days it's very hard to see them all grown up! Our neighbor, Brielle, has been asking Mom and Dad for a baby sisiter. Since they have not obliged her, she came over to be "sisters" with the girls and helped with the tree. Here are the rest of the pictures of Sarah and Thanksgiving, along with our Christmas decorations! 21 more days and counting!!!!!!!!!!!

Christmas Card Catalog

I have been working very hard on creating this catalog of Christmas Card designs to offer to individuals as well as small businesses. I have been blessed with several orders thus far! I already have placed supply orders for an order of 150 Pine Berry cards, 140 Cardinal cards, 12 Thanksgiving Blessing cards, and the 60 Santa with his Toys cards for my family. I have completed the two small orders already! Today I took an order for 50 Cardinal Cards, 25 Snowflake cards, and should have another for 125 either Pine Berry or Peaceful Wishes. Last night I took a special order for 100 Happiest Holiday cards in special colors. Actually I really like their chosen colors better than my original ones! I designed a couple of other cards last night and hope to get orders in for those, so I can place another supply order. I am very excited, but also a little nervous. I hope I priced them right! I also hope I can fill all the orders with satisfaction and in a timely manner. With the retreat coming up as well, I am very busy! Anyway, maybe these pictures will help you come up with an idea for your own cards. Let me know so I can make sure to have all your supplies ready for you! Here is my catalog....

If I had a camera with me...

If I had a camera with me I could have shown you what a wonderful week of experiences I had.

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you Brad's face when he opened Andre Agassi for his anniversary gift. (Okay, not Andre, but a great picture of him!)

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you Grandma enjoying the Kenny Rogers concert, and making sure that we all knew that she wants "Through The Years" played at her funeral!

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you Aimee's face as she tried to explain to us the difference between one pound of coffee beans and one pound of ground coffee!

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you the fabulous moon last night! It was gold and orange. It was shaped in such a way that it was missing from 11 o'clock to 3 o'clock and it was chopped from 3 o'clock to 6 o'clock. It was amazing. At one point it was hiding behind the mountain, and only a tiny piece was showing. It gave Sarah and I the opportunity to discuss the colors of the moon (in reality) and about the lunar eclipse. Apparantly, it's not white.

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you Joleen in her beautiful purple dress. The shoes?????? WOW!

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you Sarah sleeping in her bed (at 11:00 in the morning!) with 3 pillows, 2 fleece blankets and a quilt, Jake, Buster, AND Spencer!

If I had a camera with me, I could've shown you me.....tired, stressed, busy, and BLESSED!

The Colors of Me

I feel white
When I'm in control and no one can stop me
I feel white

I feel red
When I'm angry and losing control
I feel red

I feel orange
When I catch my second wind
I feel orange

I feel yellow
When I'm happy about things in my life
I feel yellow

I feel purple
When I know I'll be with him
I feel purple

I feel green
When I'm sick or confused about things
I feel green

I feel brown
When things are not going as they should
I feel brown

I feel blue
When I'm lonely or depressed
I feel blue

I feel black
When I'm lost within myself
I feel black

I feel clear
When I don't understand what I'm feeling
I feel clear