Christmas Eve

Just for Fun

The cool dude Christmas mornning...with not enough sleep.

Thanking my princess for the beautiful frame and bracelet she made me. (Thanks for your help, Donna - it's nice having a crafty neighbor. :))

Max opening his Santa shorts and hat. Why did I buy him these?....because I knew he would wear them. :)

Charlie opening his gifts....which will be shredded in minutes.

Some Christmas Traditions

Since Landon was a toddler we decided not to "do Santa." (I'm struggling with how else to say it? Hmm...) Anyhow, we chose to wake up on Christmas morning and celebrated Jesus' birthday instead. (I don't have anything against the jolly ol' guy...but we just didn't want him to get the attention on Christmas morning.) My sister-in-law, Jeanette, made us these adorable stockings 10 years ago, so I tossed our store bought ones and have used these ever since. (She makes Martha Stewart look un-crafty! Is that a word?) I also made Jesus one (...but, it's definitely not as cute!). So every Christmas morning we put a birthday gift in His stocking - then the following year we read the gift and discuss if Jesus was blessed by the gift (promise) we made. It's a nice way to hold each other accountable for our promises to Him.
If you care to visit my post last Dec., I shared about my 'favorite' Christmas tradition.
I was hungry and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink, I was a stranger and you invited me in, I needed clothes and you clothed me, I was sick and you looked after me, I was in prison and you came to visit me.' ~ Jesus

Of course the Ginger Bread House....(P.S. I buy the kits after Christmas, usually for a buck or two....and freeze them for the next year - it works great.)

Payton and I making tamales alone for the first time. (That's my daughter, a Red Sox t-shirt on while cooking. I have a picture of her as a toddler, holding her brother's snake with high-heels.)

Nineteen Years Ago.....

Our wedding ceremony took place in the Squadron at Davis Monthon AFB, Tucson AZ. Our wedding "was" planned in New Mexico. We knew Max was going to be deployed in January, so we chose to get married in Dec., so our families could be together for our wedding and Christmas before he left to Dessert Storm. Well...it didn't go as planned. We had to cancel the wedding because he received his orders and could not leave the state of AZ. So, I got on the next flight to Tucson while my mom and my friend, Cathy, cancelled my wedding. I was heart broken, but it was short lived, because the my soon to be husband was leaving to war! (It's all relative, isn't it?) He really wanted to get married before he left. (That's my practical husband, wanting to make sure I would get his insurance, etc. if anything happened to him. I wanted nothing to do with that thought...but, I did want to be his wife, and he did promise to marry me again when he returned. He knew I wanted a church wedding with our families present, and...I had a beautiful wedding dress to wear. ;)) Our plan was to go to the court house to get married, but Max's co-workers informed him that the justice of the peace would actually go to the squadron to marry us. He called to ask me if I was fine with that? Of course, I agreed. (It was better than trying to find parking down town...and trying to walk in heels. :)) My assumption was we would stand in his office and recite our vows. (P.S. Even though we weren't in a church setting...God was there, and will show up anywhere He's invited. :) Our promises were made to each other, and to Him.) Anyhow, I would never have imagined in such a short time that I would actually have a 'wedding!' By the time Max picked me up...his best man, Tony Jones, had flown in from Las Vegas, Cathy had a corsage and a boutonniere delivered, Max's wonderful co-workers had purchased a cake and champagne. They took pictures and video taped the ceremony, and they did a beautiful job decorating the room with crated paper and silk plants. But the clincher was...one of the guys went home and picked up several of his old ties that they all wore with there flight suit. They hummed the wedding march (not only are they my heroes because they're warriors...but they could really carry a tune!) and the commander walked me down the made shift isle. My wedding was AMAZING. It didn't consist of a three tiered wedding cake, professional photographer, gifts, etc. (Not to say there is anything wrong with that, it just didn't happen for me.) But it was a beautiful reminder of how every occasion can be made special if there is thoughtfulness and love involved. I thank God for everyone that made my beautiful wedding special, but more important...I thank Him for my wonderful groom! Happy 19th Anniversary, Snoopers! (Now the goofiest pet name is made public..."and" the BIG hair. Ugh! ;))

Tea Party

Payton and I had the greatest time with some homeschool friends this weekend at a Tea House. The girls had a blast! They must have tried on dozens of hats, boas, etc. We ate lots of cutsie sandwiches, scones, petit desserts and had our very own pot of tea. (Which I'm sure had caffeine...explaining why ten girls had so much energy to try on SO many accessories! ;)) It was a wonderful afternoon for mother and daughter.

It was also nice that the guys had time alone...although, lunch at Moe's and hanging out at Books a Million wasn't nearly as fun as a dressing up for tea party. ;)

A Birthday Dream Come True!

Payton's favorite thing in life are horses! Thanks to a friend, she got to spend her 11th birthday with KC (and all of us, but she didn't notice we were there!). Thank you, Ginger, for blessing our birthday girl. The rest of the day was filled with "lots" of food and fun. This girl knows how to celebrate...we all collapsed at the end the day. She would make such a great Queen. She LOVES royal treatment. This reminds me of her 5th birthday in Germany. We gave her a royal day. Included, was a bell to ring if she needed anything. She wouldn't even sit down without ringing the bell so daddy or Landon could push in her chair. It's too bad the bell got lost in the move. :)

Happy 11th Birthday, Princess. May God bless you as much as you bless us. I love you very much!