Snow!!!!

This is the Weather Channel's prediction map for the big snowstorm bearing down on the mid-Atlantic region this weekend. Michael's in the path as well and it will probably be worse for him. They still don't know how much we'll get but the general prediction so far is 8" to 12"! How fun!!! Can you tell I don't see much snow?

More to come....I have things to do this morning but I thought I'd let you enjoy what we awakened to this morning!

This Time Last Year.....

....I was getting our house ready to put on the market and welcome Hamp and our Boston kids home for Christmas. In looking back over a couple of blogs from then, I felt like I was reading a story about someone else. Very surreal.

(Speaking of blogs, I've wondered again recently whether I should keep one going, if people are reading, etc. But I've realized that it's become my journal to some degree and it even has pictures. So for now, I'll continue it and it's cheaper than therapy.)

One of the pictures I came across shows what I probably miss the most about our house and is one of the scenes imprinted in my memory forever.



Having heard me mention this once or twice, the Prince family gave us a DVD last night that made me smile and helped bring a little of that homey feeling to our apartment.



It must be somewhat realistic because Kit had no trouble napping in front of the "fire" today.



It even came with the option of listening to Christmas music, so we spent a quiet afternoon working on paperwork inside while it was cold and rainy outside. We've decorated the apartment a little bit along with putting up our tree but it was strange to know that none of our kids would be in our home for the holidays.







We only have a little over a week before we leave to drive to GA for Christmas and I'm starting to feel the time crunch now. There is a lot to do with work, wedding planning, Christmas prep, and general living that threatens to raise the stress level to undesired levels. I'm trying to remember what God really brought home to me this past week as I went to see the Chris Tomlin/Louie Giglio Glory In The Highest Christmas tour near DC on Thursday.



On the almost 3 hour drive there (for our friends who still might have to deal with Atlanta traffic on I-75, just know that compared to DC traffic, GA interstates look like Sunday afternoon drives by comparison), I asked God to prepare my heart and give me ears to hear what He had for me. And amazingly enough, I came away with...ears to hear. If you think about it, there's nothing new anyone could say about Christmas. But what Chris and Louie did was make us all stop and really listen - to the words of songs, to the story in Scripture. And you know, it really was a "holy night" and "good news for all people". Think about it - Creator God left heaven and invaded earth to become one of us so we could become His. After 400 years of silence from God, He reconnected with His people in the cry of a newborn baby. It was messy and He came to a world full of hurting and broken people. Sounds familiar, doesn't it?

So my prayer is that in the busyness of the week ahead, I'll remember why we celebrate this season. Gifts, food, clothes - they're not the point. The point is people. To quote the heartbeat of Gallery Church in Baltimore, "what if we decide everyone matters"? That's what Christmas is all about.

This And That

I feel like I've been in a rock tumbler today. I realized that I actually haven't had many days like that since moving because I haven't known enough people or had that much to do to keep my days very full. But adding work to the mix has taken a lot of my free time so when things like holidays or traveling are thrown in, I suddenly remember what being too busy is like. For the record, I'm not a fan of it and am not sure we're supposed to live that way, but that's another entry for another day.

I have discovered a not so healthy way to stop and just "be" for a little while but I wish I hadn't. It's Matthew's fault for introducing me to it during Thanksgiving.



That, folks, is a peppermint hot chocolate and it's quite tasty. I feel certain I'm not burning off near the calories necessary to drink it on a regular basis, but I suppose there are worse ways to not take care of myself.

Moving on...I got a few good pictures of the snow we saw in Boston this past weekend. Most of it fell after dark so I didn't get to really see it which is my favorite part. But the view out of our hotel window the next morning was beautiful.









A sight that made Michael sigh rather loudly was all the snow sticks that are placed at the side of curbs to mark where they are so the plows know where the road ends. They were everywhere - in our hotel parking lot, shopping centers, neighborhood streets - proof that winter is upon him.



We did some wedding talking and planning as we met with Bekah's parents but I'm not sure she felt like much progress was made.



It's fun to watch her and Michael together. :)



After church on Sunday, we all had lunch together in Rockport before Bekah's parents had to head back to New York. I got this picture of Motiff Number 1 as I sat by the window in The Greenery where we had lunch. If you've seen the movie, "The Proposal" you might recognize this from the scene where they arrive in "Alaska" and she has to climb in the boat. Those scenes were filmed in Rockport and the mountains in the background were added in through special effects. Pretty cool, huh?





I love the little town of Rockport which is north of Gloucester and just south of Maine. The whole north shore area is beautiful and makes me think of a Norman Rockwell painting.





As I finish this, Hamp is on his way home from work where he was called to a fire in the exhaust pipe area by the presses. Sometimes you just have to laugh because there is no end to the ridulous things that keep happening. Yes, I realize it could be the end of a job for him here if things don't improve soon. If that becomes reality, then I guess we'll be adding another chapter to this tale we've fallen into, won't we?

Thanks, God!

No pictures yet, but I just had to pass on the thankfulness I have in my heart for the latest blessing God has given us. We're in Boston for the weekend to meet Bekah's parents and get some details planned for her and Michael's wedding in March. We all had dinner together last night even as Michael was battling a nasty stomach bug. Hopefully, he's on the recovering side of it now.

Anyway, I've watched several friends have the joy of seeing their children not only marry awesome people, but marry into great families. While I believe that any family is a precious addition when true love and care for them exists, there's just a special blessing when they are also believers and that common foundation is present. That's the case with Bekah's parents and I'm looking forward to what the years ahead will bring as together we share in the joys and trials of our children's joined lives.

That's all I have to say - just "thanks, God". I must confess that those aren't the words that came to mind as I awoke yesterday morning to discover the Christmas tree had fallen over in the night. Cleaning up tree needles and drying the tree skirt were not on the list of things to do in order to get out the door for an early afternoon flight. I just wanted you to know that I have a lot to learn still in the art of giving thanks...

One last thing - we should see our first snow of the season today! And we would have if we'd stayed in Baltimore or apparently even Atlanta. It's not supposed to last long or stick and cause any travel troubles, but it's still exciting to know it's coming. Our hotel is behind a shopping area that has an Off Broadway shoe store in it, so it looks like my quick trip yesterday was timed perfectly for the forecasted weather. Pictures soon.

December?

It seems like I've been rushing from one thing to the next this week...maybe because I have been! To recap the rest of our Orlando trip - the guys had a great time playing golf, the girls had a great time at the Magic Kingdom, and Tech did not beat Georgia. But to steal a summary from my nephew - Georgia still lost more games than Tech this year, they still lost to Kentucky, and their mascot died. And they are not playing for their conference championship this weekend like Tech is. Yes, I'm trying to find something to grasp since THE game was lost...again. You'd think I'd learn to wait and talk trash until after the game is over.

We arrived back in Baltimore to nice weather for this time of year. We tried to ignore the 75 degree, very sunny day we were leaving in Orlando, but that was hard to do. It was a busy week for both of us and now we're preparing to leave tomorrow to fly to Boston for the weekend. We're going to meet Bekah's parents for the first time as they come to town also and spend some time with everybody if Michael can get well. He's picked up a bug or two somewhere along the way so we're hoping he feels well enough to enjoy the weekend.

I have a few pictures from our Disney trip but we ended up not taking very many. The most amazing part of the decorations was Cinderalla's castle which is lit every night to complete the magical effect of the Main Street area. Pictures can't do it justice, but we tried to capture some shots of it.



I loved the mouse eared greenery on all the lamps.



As dusk falls, the castle is lit every night with rotating colors. This is a shot of the blue light on it.



It got cooler than we thought it would when the sun went down, so these two tired princesses were trying to conserve body heat as we waited for the castle lights to come on.



There's a little show beforehand with Cinderella's friends trying to decide how to help her decorate her castle for Christmas.



A statue of Walt Disney and Mickey Mouse stands guard nearby.



Then the Fairy Godmother and Cinderalla come out and decide the best way to decorate is to make it look shiny like the glass of her slipper. The castle waits expectantly as the music begins to grow louder.



And then like magic, the lights come on one section at a time until the whole thing is lit like icicles glistening in the night sky.



It truly is an amazing site and worth traveling during the holidays to see.

To top the day off after we got home, Jenn and Will came over to bring their sweet Bella so we could meet her. She's such a cutie and was a very happy baby considering we kept her up about 2 hours past her bedtime.





And now it's December...less than a month until Christmas. I've had a few moments of heart tugs missing traditions from home and friends and gatherings. I knew we had to create some new ones and so we bought our tree this week and got it decorated. Kit had a moment of re-enacting the part of "The Night Before Christmas" where it says, "not a creature was stirring, not even a mouse" and I captured it before she woke up.



Our tree isn't as big as usual because there's not much room for one in the apartment, but it fits nicely in the little nook between the dining area and living room.





It might not look like it used to, but the Christ of Christmas brings life wherever we are and I'm reminded of that as I look at my newest ornament.



Whether the skyline of Baltimore or more familiar sights, I'm excited to see how this year will end and what God has for us as 2010 waits right around the corner. But for now, I'm heading to bed so I can fly to Boston tomorrow for the weekend. More to come soon!

Family

It's Saturday morning and I have a few minutes before I need to start our last full day here in FL. It promises to be a fun one! The guys are playing golf, the girls are going to the Magic Kingdom, and then we'll all gather together to watch Tech beat Georgia. :) Actually, Matthew's decided to drive back tonight to beat the madness that will be I-75 tomorrow heading north from Florida. Even though he's done it before, I'm sure I won't sleep great until I know he's home safely. It's a mom thing...

I'm already sad knowing that our time together is drawing to a close. It's been a while since we've had an extended time in the same place without packing and moving someone and we've been blessed in that we actually like being with each other.

I wanted to share a few pictures from the week so far, but I'll have many more after today. When we first arrived, we went to the rehearsal for the singing trees that Tiffany and Nikki are singing in for the holiday season. The pictures are blurry but it was still fun to get to see part of what they've been involved with for the last couple of months.







On Wednesday it rained all day so we just relaxed and enjoyed staying inside. Then Thursday was Thanksgiving Day and we had a yummy meal that Tiffany cooked. Ellie was quite happy with our family tradition of sharing the turkey with the family cat after the meat has been removed that the humans will be eating. Poor Kit missed out since she stayed in Baltimore.



We didn't have a fancy table set since the girls don't have one in their apartment, but the food was excellent and we were together which was all we needed.



Much to her dad's delight, Tiffany made a banana pudding from scratch (the Vanilla Wafer box recipe) and it was not only amazing to look at but tasted that way too.





We went to see "The Blind Side" that evening and it is an excellent movie that I think everyone should see. Then yesterday we spent the day outside going to downtown Disney for a while, taking some family pictures, and playing putt putt. Nikki took most of our family pictures and she hasn't finished editing them yet, so I'll have to share those later.







Hamp was the putt putt champion, but my favorite picture was of Nikki and her hole in one dance.





As you might imagine, there was a lot of laughter as we played but time doesn't allow me to show you all the pictures. Here are a couple to give you an idea.









I'm out of time for now - Disney beckons! We head back to Baltimore tomorrow and God is having mercy on us by giving us 60 degree sunshine there before snow is predicted for later in the week. Enjoy the rest of your weekend...and go Jackets!!