Are you in the mood?

These temperatures outside are really playing with my emotions. I can't think of any previous year where I wanted spring to come so badly, but I will say that usually about this time of year I start sorting through my junk mail box for cruise deals. I stay hopeful every year that I'll find a deal that we can actually do.....still not the wisest decision.

Josh and I now have a joke that when we pay off our credit card debt we'll reward ourselves with a cruise, putting in on the credit card, of course. Then we'll go on another excursion when we get that paid off and just make a fun game of it. Good idea, right?

Well, since that's a way off I thought I would share with you with pictures from our honeymoon. We went on a Carnival cruise to the Bahamas, Dominican Republic, St Thomas and St John.

When I look at these pictures it's hard to imagine that Heaven will be so much more beautiful. More of a paradise. But it will be.

Aaaaaaahhhh. I can still feel the warm sunshine and hear the crystal clear waves.....


***Pictures: 1 -- Paradise Island, Nassau
2 -3 -- Trunk Bay, St. John (rated in the top 10 most beautiful in the world)
4 -- Dominican Republic

grace in liquid form

A sweet friend recently posted this announcement and I wanted to share my extreme joy with you.

Get free brewed coffee during "Starbucks Coffee Break" on March 15 from 10 a.m. to noon

A Starbucks press release says: "Starbucks will host its first-ever Starbucks Coffee Break, inviting customers across the country to enjoy a complimentary cup of freshly brewed coffee. In stores and on street corners, from insulated brewing equipment and giant coffee backpacks, partners (employees) will pour tall (12-ounce) cups of coffee to surprise customers and delight commuters.

Alright, now who's going to meet me???

V day delayed

***Try to guess what this picture says before reading***


I guess since I posted on Valentine's day three times I should update on how it played out. After discussing what we wanted to do we realized that a week night just wasn't going to do, so we postponed it. Josh had an abnormally difficult week at work and with his stress levels it seemed like the best decision. But even though we said that, I still wanted to do a few little things to make his day special and a little easier.

My PLAN was to wake him up with cinnamon rolls and coffee. Then to show up at his school during his planning period with heart shaped chocolate chip cookies that I decorated and Isaiah was going to wear a shirt that I made that says, "my daddy rocks." I also planned to have a good dinner ready with a homemade card and a few other things (still secrets).

What HAPPENED was me waking up to a dressed up Josh kissing goodbye as he headed off to work and me yelling, "you were supposed to wake me up when you woke up!!! Why didn't you wake me up?!? Oh no!!! I was going to make you cinnamon rolls!!!" (I know it's a little dramatic but I was half asleep) He calmly replied that he had a staff meeting and had to be at work 1 hour early. Ugh.

So, no cinnamon rolls and coffee for Josh (I had coffee). I woke up, went to the bathroom and there greeting me on the mirror was a sweet little note from Josh telling me I'm beautiful and that he loved me. I looked in the full length mirror and there was another one. They were in cabinets, on doors and in the fridge....so sweet. Then I got dressed and put Isaiah in his onesie that I was so proud of. I had ironed on the words "my daddy" and under it a picture of a pile of stones. The idea was for it to be a cute and obvious "my daddy rocks."

Well.....I met a bunch of ladies from church at Chic-fi-la for their heart shaped chicken biscuits and debuted Isaiah's shirt for them. One of them understood it. Even Stacey stared at it for awhile so I knew Josh wouldn't get it (did anybody else guess it?). I was right. He stared and stared and I finally had to tell him. Oh well. The cookies came out ok.

Somehow the day got away from me and I don't even remember what we had for dinner (I think chicken) so it wasn't the extravagant dinner I planned or the card and little "extras" but I have to say, it was one of my most favorite evenings we've had in a long time. Just cuddling, talking, kissing, watching a favorite show and eating our favorite Norwegian chocolate with candles lit and the smell warm vanilla sugar seeping out of my oil burner. It was such a sweet time and I still have Valentine's day to look forward to!

Tiny joys in the dead of winter

I have wanted to be green thumby for the last several years and just couldn't take it any longer. I planted basil, thyme and mint seeds several weeks ago, and Dee said I could get a few little sprigs of his rosemary and oregano plants to start my own. I have hope for a future garden of tomatoes, cucumbers, etc when it gets warm (aren't you impressed?).

The basil and thyme came up pretty fast. No signs of life from the mint though. I keep thinking back to going over to Beth's house in the summer and having freshly squeezed lemonaid with sprigs of mint floating on top.....tasted like the picture in a Martha magazine looked. Perfect.


Josh said he heard that mint was really hard to grow. Know of any tips?

Summer lemonaid is calling my name.

A budding apologist

Our living room at 11:30am this morning. Josh and Isaiah reading "Apologetics to the Glory of God" by John Frame (thanks, Jason).






Isaiah is really into it here. Watch out, Ravi!

Follow up to valentine's ideas

Ok, here's some help (if you're like me and still racking your brain). Girltalk did a contest last year for the best Valentine's Day ideas from wives. They had some creative ideas and a link to several others.

Here's the winner: From Kathy....

As for Valentines Day itself, I do have some traditions that my husband and children USED to think were silly, but now look forward to. The day starts with heart shaped pancakes. My mom started the pancake tradition when I was a little girl, and STILL makes them for my dad...they just celebrated their 53rd anniversary!! Place settings for breakfast and dinner from dishes to glassware to table linens are combinations of pink and red. Each person in the family gets a some little gift from me at both breakfast and dinner: a card, a small nosegay of flowers, a tulle wrapped bundle of candy, homemade heart-shaped cookies, a stuffed animal with a Valentine theme, some type of "heart" jewelry for my daughter--you just never know what might appear on the table. Of course, there are surprises in everyone's lunch: notes from me telling them how much I love them, napkins in a heart theme, a heart-shaped muffin perhaps. I've even been known to cut sandwiches into heart shapes. I also try to do something special for each person. This year, I will surprise each family member by doing a chore that usually belongs to them. I'll try to pick the chore that each person MOST DISLIKES, and enjoy the looks on their faces when they go to do the chore and discover the chore is already done. Let's not forget ending the day by sneaking some red foil wrapped Hershey's Kisses onto each person's pillow.

Posted by Carolyn Mahaney on February 13, 2006 at 09:14 AM in Marriage, Valentine's Day | Permalink

Love day ideas

I posted this question earlier and just wanted to put it out there again.

What do you and your precious "other" do or plan to do for Valentine's Day???

What was your favorite memory of Valentine's Day (even if you're single)???


It's less than a week away and I'm in trouble. I hope Josh has a plan (he said he did) because I'm stumped. I'm usually big on sentiment, not expense but I also want it to feel special. And this year is a little extra special because it's the first year having to find a sitter so it feels even more like a retreat and a break. I want to just really celebrate our marriage and God's faithfulness to us, so whatever I give him I want to reflect that.....so, probably not Season 6 of Seinfeld.

Anyway, just wanted to hear your ideas, plans, recipes, favorites, etc....

Happy Love Day, Everyone!

Happy 1/2 Birthday, Isaiah!!!

I still can't believe you've been here 6 months! It feels like you've always been a part of our family and yet it feels like yesterday that we found out we were pregnant with you. That was such a joy-filled day for me and Daddy. We couldn't wait to tell everybody that you were coming soon! We ran out and bought cute little clothes (I got you a onesie from Seattle with little whales on it that you can't fit into anymore), Daddy wore a t-shirt that said, "I'm going to be a Daddy!", I got bigger clothes, we moved all the furniture out of your room and cleaned out our closets to make room for you. We picked out furniture (that was so fun), we painted your room bright green because we didn't know at the time if you would be Isaiah or Ella. We stocked up on bottles and burp clothes and diapers. We had family and friends surround us and lovingly give us showers for you (where they give a lot of presents to the person having a baby so they'll have everything they need). Your grandparents and aunts and uncles and cousins all oohed and ahhed over our very first pictures of you...and you only looked like a little peanut, so that's what we called you. You were also called "little bit." We prayed for you and many other people prayed for you. We talked to you, read to you and sang to you. We told Max all about you. We laughed when you kicked me...which was all the time! You were (and still are) a very energetic baby! Daddy loved to kiss my tummy and feel when you would move around, and our favorite doctor's visits were when we got actually see you! I remember talking about how big your feet were! You were wholely loved even before you were born.

I can't describe what a gift you are to us. You continue to amaze me and teach me new things about myself and God everyday. What a little mommy-sanctifying machine you are! (Mommy needs that) You are so filled with wonder at our "huge" house. You haven't even spent time outside yet! You love different textures and colors and you have to "feel" everything. You also put everything in your mouth. Maybe that's why eating is your favorite part of the day. You went through an entire box of rice cereal in just over two weeks when you first started eating.
You also have the sweetest, most precious smile I think I have ever seen. I cried the first time you looked in my eyes and smiled. I still choke up sometimes. You make me laugh hard every single day, and I could get lost looking into your huge light blue eyes (I prayed that you would have your Daddy's eyes and God agreed). They earned you the nickname "Big Iz" from the very beginning.

And, little boy, God has graced you quite a bubbly personality. I am listening to you talk to yourself in your crib right now (you should be sleeping). You love to talk and yell really loud. You don't like to be still at all unless you're eating. You would much rather practice standing and flip yourself over to reach what you want. Right now your favorite toys are your exersaucer and the crinkly star that you chew on. You don't like doing the same thing for very long and you really don't like to take naps (you're yelling about that right now). You love to see your Daddy walk through the door, but you don't like being taken away from me (we're working on that). You don't really like baths yet, but you're trying. Your newest trick is getting your knees under you and rocking back and forth as if you're threatening to crawl any minute now. The last few nights Daddy and I have turned on your video monitor and watched you work at this as you talk to yourself. No tv show can compete with that entertainment. You are so funny! You've been falling asleep with your little bottom up in the air lately and I'm always afraid I'm going to wake you up with my giggling. Sometimes you laugh when we tickle you, and Isaiah, that's better than the most beautiful music to me. It's a rarity that you let us hear it so we just sit on pins and needles waiting for our chance. We are your captive audience.

There is so much to say about you. I could go on and on. You have been a picture of the sweetness of God's heart to me. I see His kindness and precious favor in you. What a Father He is and what good gifts He gives us. Our prayer and desire above all is that you come to know Him as your Daddy and love Him above all else. We pray that your heart will be captivated by Him and who He is, and that He would continue to shape you and all the little things that make you who you are into a beautiful man that brings Him much glory.

I hope to continue these letters to you as you grow. I'm closing this one with a poem that I can't take credit for, but Daddy and I feel the same way the author does. I changed a couple of words to make it about you:

"How many times I've stood beside
Your bed when you're asleep, and tried
To find the words for my desire:
That you might be a living fire
For God. Sometimes I say, "O Lord,
Make [Isaiah] great! Open your Word
And let him see enough to break
His heart and then, for Jesus' sake,
To heal the remedies of grace;
And give him strength to run his race."

Sometimes when you're asleep, I touch
Your face. If you could know how much
The warmth of your life means to me!
For every freckle.....let me see.........
Perhaps a million dollars?.........No.
They're not for sale! And for the glow
In your calm face there is no price.
Which means I have a very nice
And costly treasure lying here.
It's what we mean when we say, "Dear."

Tonight I'll probably just stare
At you and marvel that you're there
Asleep, and that you've just turned eight [6 months],
And say, "O Lord, make [Isaiah] great!"

--by John Piper (for his son Abraham)

How would you respond to this statement?

"We should pursue our holiness, not happiness."



Now, I know my audience here and how you probably feel about that statement (at least most of you), but how would you respond to someone who says this, yet lives out a real delight in God in their life?

Josh and I have encountered this said several times over the last few weeks and are just praying for wisdom in how to humbly respond.

I would love to hear what you would say.





"All men seek happiness. This is without exception. This is the motive of every action of every man, even those who hang themselves." --Blaise Pascal

i heart norah

Yesterday marked a much anticipated day for me. I have been waiting for this for some time now. Here's the announcement from the horse's mouth:

"On January 30, 2007, Norah will release her third and most personal album yet. Not Too Late -- a collection of 13 original songs, all of which were either written or co-written by Norah herself. Featuring the sweet and soulful lead single "Thinking About You"...."

Listen to "Thinking About You" here.


And while you're listening, let me explain. I was turned on to her music while in college (I opened and closed Jackson's Java to her) and her songs quickly became landmarks in my relationship with Josh. Her version of "The Nearness of You" was our first dance at our wedding....and many sweet living room dances following. In fact, pretty much anytime we're celebrating us or Josh just wants to create a romantic atmosphere at home for me, he pops Norah in. There's something about her thick, soulful voice and easy music that just gets me. I love it and even though this new album looks like it will sound identical to her first two, I'm glad. I could just soak it up. I hope more and more people will buy her albums and then maybe she'll record more often....seriously, the world is just a more relaxed place with her music in it.


Speaking of relaxation and romance....what do you and your sweetie do for Valentine's Day???

I am currently brainstorming ideas for our love day and since we're on a budget these days, I'd love some ideas. Anything, really. Crafts, menus, recipes, outings, things that worked well in the past, etc. I really enjoy sentimental ideas like making cards and I usually feel like I have good ideas until the pressure is on and then I draw a blank.

If you're in the same boat as me, here are a couple of interesting websites I found today that may help as well:

--a word of caution: these contain quite a few links with ideas for "married" activities as well.

http://holidays.lovingyou.com/valentine/

http://www.mydearvalentine.com/valentine/idea-tips/

Drama princess

I love reading blogs that quote cute things little ones have said, and since my little one can't talk yet I'll share a funny moment I had last night with my sister Doria and her daughter Trinity. Let me preface it by saying that Doria has been known to be very dramatic and Trinity (4 yrs old) has inherited that trait and then some. She is also going through a HUGE princess phase.


Doria was standing in the kitchen when we hear a sweet little voice say,

"Your Highness, I'm stursty"

"Oh yeah, that's what she's been calling me these days. The other day she said, 'Oh Your Highness, I love your hair!' and she also now refers to us as 'Mother and Father'."


Other recent quotes from Trinity are (in a very sincere tone):


"Oh, thank you, thank you! I praise you! Thank you!"

"Oh Mother, I just want to make you happy!"

"Mommy say, 'I'm not mad.'"

Prodigal Party (which one?)

A very dear friend and I were having a lively debate last night that has me really thinking and a bit confused. She, being Democrat (but not straight ticket), and confused me who has historically voted Republican (but not straight ticket) were discussing which moral issues should take priority when Christians vote. The obvious main moral issues are the sanctity of marriage and abortion and one that is often overlooked but still extremely important is the issue of caring for the poor and needy. While I'm sad that we have to choose (often the lesser of two evils) how are we to go about making this choice Biblically. My pastor gave a powerful sermon last week on abortion and the sanctity that God has placed on life. My heart couldn't nod in agreement any harder. I also am passionately convinced of God's great wisdom in the order He has set into place concerning marriage between a man and a woman. But what about the poor? What about health care for our children? Did not Jesus heavily emphasize and live out a call to give to the poor and care for those around us in need? Is this not what He spent the majority of his ministry doing besides teaching? Is this only the church's responsibility? Or do we have a responsibility to voice our concern for the poor on our ballots?

I ask these questions because I simply don't know the answer....and maybe I'm asking the wrong questions. Maybe I've missed the point. What I am sure of is that the "spiritual" line between the two political parties is greatly thinning. The differences seem to be harder to discern with the increasing amount of religious fog surrounding the candidates. Christians are a huge target for both parties and they're demanding that we decide which moral issues we will get behind more.

We've all heard our President quote scripture from the Oval office and profess his faith. His father too. But now there's Obama showing up in the pews....and even Hillary. And while it's easy to jump to my own judgements and opinions about where they may or may not stand personally, the issues remain the same.....and both sides are calling on Christians to make their choice.

So, what do you think? How do you go about deciding on these huge issues from a Biblical perspective?

I would love to hear your answers.

Here's a very interesting article in this month's WORLD magazine on the subject (if you have a subscription).

the Colts.....my final answer

I admit that before today I knew pretty much nothing about the the Colts or the Bears, however, I decided that I really want to enjoy the Superbowl this year despite our beloved Panthers not being (or deserving) any part of it. I had heard a lot of the hype surrounding the fact that the two coaches are the first African-American coaches to go to the Superbowl.....HUGE. And in all that hype that both are Believers....even better. After reading about the tragedy of Colt's head coach Tony Dungy's son and his faith in God's goodness in the midst of tragedy, I was convinced. What a man!!!

Read for yourself here.

My Meme (what does that mean, by the way?)

I got tagged....yeah!!! Thanks, Melanie! The funny thing is that I'm sitting in our office where ALL of our books are kept and there are several piles on the desk. Hmmm..... Ok, the two nearest (one on the right and one on the left) are the Bible and the Second Book of Practical Studies for Clarinet by Nilo W. Hovey. I think I will choose the Bible and the next closest which is Foundations of Education by Ornstein/Levine. Here you go:

"And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, who returned and made all the congregation grumble against him by bringing up a bad report about the land--the men who brought up a bad report of the land--died by plague before the Lord. Of those men who went to spy out the land, only Joshua the son of Nun and Caleb the son of Jephunneh remained alive. When Moses told these words to all the people of Israel, the people mourned greatly." (Numbers 14:36-39)

"Social promotion policies, which promoted children in public schools to higher grades to keep them with their age cohort, even if they had not mastered grade-appropriate skills and subjects, had eroded academic standards. These policies, neo-essentialists charged, had lowered academic standards and produced a notable decline in scores on standardized tests such as the SAT and ACT. In addition, some neo-essentialists were concerned that a morality permissive environment in the schools had weakened civic values of industriousness, responsibility and patriotism."

(don't look at me....it's Josh's book)

That was fun. Ok, I tag....Kristin T., Stacey and Michelle.

Here's what you do:

1. Grab the book closest to you open to page 123
2. Go down to the fourth sentence
3. Post the text of the following 3 sentences on your blog
4. Name the author and book title
5. Tag 3 people to do the same

Fret not yourself

Through tears and panic I read the sweetest verse the other day. Luke 12:32...

"Fear not, little flock, for it is your Father's good pleasure to give you the kingdom"

I honestly don't know if I've ever read that before, though I've read Luke several times. It's one of those things where God reveals a verse to you like it's the first time and your heart really gets it. Anxiety has definitely been the unwanted guest in my heart lately....mainly due to a rash. Inflammatory Breast Cancer is in my family and I've noticed a rash that's come and gone pretty much since I've had Isaiah. I never thought much about it because it almost covered my whole body at one point and then went away. This one area is the last to leave and it was when I researched the symptoms of IBC that I freaked out. At the time, if felt like I had several symptoms and I was convinced I had breast cancer.

This is something I've battled for awhile now. Not just the fear of cancer but being convinced that I will have it eventually. I have no idea where this all started...probably too much reading and definitely too much idle thinking. I feared the diagnosis, treatment, more fear, prognosis, leaving Isaiah and Josh and anything else Satan brought to mind. All of this built up fear came to a head this past weekend. I have been battling a cold that feels like it's gone straight to the reasoning part of my brain. I was completely handicap. No matter how many scriptures and promises I read or how much I talked through it or prayed through it, this intense fear did not let up. I cried off and on all weekend out of sheer panic and had constant headaches. It would let up some then hit me hard again. Despite missing church because I didn't feel good (probably the worst decision) we had a very busy Sunday planned with my sister-in-law's birthday and a good family friend flying in from Norway for Christmas. I just couldn't wait to get to my in-law's house where hundreds of distractions would greet me. I didn't want to think anymore. On the way there it hit again...probably the hardest and as I was reading promises again. I truly felt like I couldn't control it and it wouldn't stop. I was crying and having trouble breathing, but in the midst I had the clearest thought from the Lord. "This is much more about what's going on in your mind than your body." I told to Josh to please pray for me and as he did it just completely lifted and peace came for the first time all weekend.

I am convinced that there is something uniquely powerful about having someone else intercede for you that didn't happen when I was just praying for myself. As Josh prayed against Satan's attack on my mind the fear and panic just left. I don't know if I had a panic attack or not, but it is abundantly clear that God is teaching me to put my trust in Him....and even more that He is able to cause my heart to trust Him when I clearly can't on my own. I was completely unable.

Through the whole journey, the verses I read sank deep in my heart calling it to once again stop trying to save itself....."Whoever loves his life loses it, and whoever hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life." It's easy to call your life "rubbish" when things are fine, but at the very thought that things weren't fine my heart tightened it's grip like a little girl clutching the toy she didn't want to surrender and shouting "mine!" I'm not sure this ever gets any easier. I am sure that my heart desperately needed to go through it and will again over and over.

Update Friday morning 11:00am:

I am just returning from the doctor's office where a very kind woman looked me over and basically just said that it looked like an ordinary rash or skin irritation that may or may not be caused by yeast (who knew?) and gave me a prescription for a cream. I told her my family history and she offered an ultrasound later if I was still worried, but didn't see any need for it now. She did however tell me that the "mini pill" I have been on is known to cause anxiety and depression as well as weight gain. I nearly cried right there from relief. I just had no idea what was going on with my body. This confirms my previous feelings about birth control and makes future decisions much easier.

Thank you for this journey, Lord. Forgive me for not trusting You. You are the God of my mind, body and heart and have proven over and over to be for me....all of me. Thank you for your grace and kindness. Help me to continue to treasure you above health, family, the future and all the unknowns You will call me to. You are good.

My "brush" at the mall

I woke up with a great plan of beating the crowds to Concord Mills to pick up a few things. I didn't quite get there as early as I wanted but at 10:30am it still wasn't bad yet so I was able to run into Bed, Bath and Beyond to get what I needed without too much trouble.

Now, since I've been at home I've had a morning ritual of having my coffee with Rachael Ray and Martha Stewart, and someone had told me last night that Martha would be at Books A Million today signing her new housekeeping handbook. The book is like $50.00 or something and to be honest, Martha really gets on my nerves and seems to be quite full of herself on TV but I really like what she does so I just endure her.

Well, I thought that if I could buy the book and get her to sign it I could sell in on Ebay and make a little off of it (I know, I know). When I got to Books a Million needless to say there was a line winding through the ailes to the back of the store...definitely not worth it. But, her chair and TV cameras were set up by the front window so I stood outside trying to decide if a picture of her on my cell phone was worth it.

I had just finished discussing this with my friend Laura and was fidgeting with my phone when I heard, "And Martha, you're going to go right this way." I looked up to realize that she, a very tall woman, a very tall man and a tiny, little cop were directly beside me and I was completely in their way! I literally hopped out of the way to not get walked on. She had come in through an exit door that I was standing right beside, but I thought she would come through the back of Books A Million. Her handlers were escorting her to the store and weren't stopping for me....rather they were just looking at me like, "Uh, move." So I got a picture of the side of her head (not recognizable) and this adorable Hispanic woman came up to me and loudly asked me as Martha was walking by in earshot, "Who is here?!?" I point and say, "That's her right there." "Who?" "Martha" "Martha who?" "Martha Stewart" "Oh, I don't know." She was truly the highlight.

If Martha had walked in 5 seconds earlier she would have heard me talking about how much she annoys me and how not worth waiting for this picture was. But, despite my pride I have to admit, when it comes to a celebrity I get just as giddy and excited as most of the general public....then try to act like I don't care.

My impression? She's much taller and thinner than she appears on TV (of course) and she wears an incredible amount of makeup (of course).

Oh, and be sure to look for my thighs on channel 9 news. I was standing behind Martha looking through the window while they were interviewing her (she was sitting) and it didn't occur to me that the camera was rolling. Oh boy!

"Sick" day

I woke up at 5:00am yesterday morning to Josh running into our room from the computer, diving onto the bed and exclaiming, "I not go to school!" in his cute little boy voice. So that was that. Everything was already done. The sub was hired, plans were made and the day off was official. He did have a lot of work to do on his master's class but that didn't stop us from acting like it was any other Saturday. We layed around, had a big breakfast, played A LOT of Sudoku (addictive, don't start) and finally cranked up the Christmas music classics and put up the tree.

It really was a fun day, and even though he had to stay up late to get all his work done we fell asleep with the glow and sparkle of our first Christmas tree as a family of three.

Lanier Update

For those of you who haven't heard, beautiful Karis Faye Lanier peeked her head into the world (rather she was pushed, pulled and everything else) at 2:08pm this afternoon. She was a whopping 9 lbs 7 oz and 21 1/2 inches long....big girl!!! She has cute curly brown hair and blue-gray eyes....she's going to be a heartbreaker.

Stacey was such a trooper and is doing fine.....exhausted but fine. It was really cool to watch her just so naturally transition into being a nurturing, loving mom. She was definitely made for this. I'll let them give the detailed update with pictures, but I am a proud aunt and couldn't help but share.

Thank you, Jesus for a beautiful, healthy, strong niece and godly, elated, sleep deprived parents.

Check their blog for updates here.

The Nativity Story

Has anyone seen this movie??? I haven't and admit to having low expectations, but this morning I was reading on "girl talk" (a blog by Carolyn Mahaney and her daughters/in law) about their experience going to see it and it made me a bit curious. Here's an exerpt:


To borrow the words of Dr. Al Mohler from his review: “The movie faithfully presents the main thrust of the Christmas story. That is no small achievement. The movie, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, takes some liberties with the biblical accounts found in the gospels of Matthew and Luke. Nevertheless, the invented scenes and dialogue do not distract from the biblical storyline.”

The Nativity Story also proved to be very moving. It only took about thirty seconds before I was wiping my eyes. I found myself affected once again by the events surrounding my Savior’s birth. He entered this world with a glaring absence of celebration and fanfare: “And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.” (Luke 2:7) It’s a rare occasion when a movie provides such a sweet reminder.

Watch the trailor here.

First Christmas Practice

So I've decided that we will all wear reindeer antlers for our Christmas card this year (Josh is a little less than thrilled). I found these cute little head bands at the dollar store and thought how bad can it be...they were a buck! And Isaiah's light up!

I thought it might be good to get Isaiah used to the idea before we actually take the pictures and here's what I got. Hard to tell how he feels about it.

I probably should wait to tell Josh about the picture I saw of a family who had their kids all dress up in heavy coats, mittens and tobogans, and stick their tongues to a pole like Ralphie in The Christmas Story. I'll save that for next year.