Snow Day Snack

God bless Hubby's uncle, who came and cleaned our furnace so that it would stop sounding like an explosion (although he came at 4:30 a.m. and did a whole lot of banging). I am so thankful for a heater that works, but I am ready to thaw out. My children keep begging to play in the snow, and I just can't stand the thought of being outside. I did finally go buy some snow boots, eradicating the excuse of not having shoes that I can play in. Unfortunately, when you wait until January to buy snow boots, this is your only option. I am pretty sure they are men's boots, but Hubby disagrees with me. The good news is that they were 50 % off.

So since I keep avoiding the actual snow, I find myself doing "snow" activities indoors. First, we "played in the snow" with shaving cream in a cookie sheet. The diggers plowed paths for the princesses so they could go to their ball at the castle. My job was to give the princesses nice warm baths (at the sink) when they got snowy. Then we made snow cream. Yummm... Today we had this for our snack.

I got this idea from http://www.familyfun.com/ and adjusted it a little. The stick is one of the chopsticks that the girls were supposed to wear in their hair on Halloween. The giNORmous hat is an apple wedge cut in half and a grape. The body is made of thick banana slices. The scarf is made of fruit leather (which I naively called fruit roll-ups until yesterday when I was just a child). Since I couldn't find mini chocolate chips, the eyes and mouth are made of chocolate sprinkles, and the nose and buttons are colored sprinkles. The arms are broken pretzels.

That was fun. Now I'm ready for sunshine snacks. How about you?

My Shepherds

I struggle with not wanting to blog when I can't find the funny in me. It's just not there right now. Many people I love are hurting, sick, grieving, or wounded. As Little Sissy said, "My eyes keep getting sparkly." It's true. My heart is heavy, and I find myself whispering prayers in any given quiet moment.

One of the reasons is that my childhood pastor went to be with the Lord on Monday. I can't say that I remember any of his sermons, but I remember his life, his ministry, his passion for holiness. I remember that he came to the hospital to pray with me when I got my tonsils out. I couldn't believe he thought I was important enough for that. After all, I was only 11. I remember him calling special prayer for my sister, who had serious health problems as a child that went undiagnosed for a long time. I remember the way he honored his wife and made her seem like a queen. Pastoring is so much more than delivering sermons. It's a lifestyle--shepherding people.

There are other people who shepherd people without it being their vocation. My dad and my grandpa are 2 of those people. My grandpa is not doing well, and that is the main reason my eyes keep getting sparkly. I love that man so much. I love how He loves his family and is so proud of all of us. I love how he points every conversation to God's goodness and faithfulness. I love how he never complains even when he's in so much pain. I love how he is so manly and yet so unafraid to display emotion. I love how he has loved Grandma for all of these years even through some very difficult times. He is ready to go home. My prayers are that he will be able to do that surrounded by family, with no pain, and that it would be a sweet reunion with his Savior. My other prayer is that my dad, who is on a missions trip to China, Burma, and Bangladesh, can get home quickly to be with him.

No one is perfect. I know. But there are some people who set the bar pretty high. I am thankful for such a legacy, and I want to live my life in such a way that the people in my life feel shepherded. pastored. loved. cherished. like I have.

Shorn

I'm convinced that whoever created tub crayons--and soap that looks like ice cream--does not have children. At least not children who color on walls and eat soap. Anyway...you can see that Little Buddy LOVES his new tub crayons. You can also see the bad haircut that was...

Now introducing....Little Buddy's post-Christmas buzz (and ravioli face). I'm sooo sad that his curls are gone, but by my estimation they should be back for birthday pictures in February. He's still adorable and really looks like his daddy now. I just loved his blonde curly locks.

Like a Good Friend, A Good Bra...

I saw a sign that said something about how good bras are like good friends. They always support you, and you always hold them near to your heart. Because my mind can't stop until a metaphor is completely exhausted, I thought of a few more similarities. (Sorry, men, but I have to read your sports posts too.) Like a good friend, a good bra...


1. lifts you up when you are down.

2. knows how to hold you tight but still gives you room to breathe.


3. adjusts with you through different phases of your life.


4. knows that though she may be cast aside for a while, she will still be your best friend through pregnancy and motherhood.


5. only reveals your secrets with your permission.


6. makes you look good without needing to flaunt her presence.


7. makes life more colorful. The more the better!

No Pictures Please

Remember how cute Little Buddy was in his Christmas picture? Well, he got a haircut. Not a cute one either. We were trying to avoid clippers because his hair is so beautiful and curly, so we got out the scissors, strapped him in his booster, and let him watch Backyardigans while Daddy tried to cut. There were lots of tears and quiet mumblings not meant for little ears, a couple of loud outbursts, and a grand finale of the slamming of a barber kit lid. I won't say who was doing what. I'll just say that he may be getting a buzz soon. Or a real haircut at the barber shop. We'll see how it looks tomorrow.

City Kid

Big Sissy got Lincoln Logs for Christmas. It's a good thing, too, because she was starting to get resentful that both of her siblings got Legos and she didn't. She LOVES to build and create. So tonight she built a farm out of her wooden logs (which ironically comes with a plastic and paper stagecoach). She already told me she had built a sty for the horses. Assuming she meant stables, I asked her if one particular area were the stalls. "Yes," she informed me. "The farmer and his helper will probably need to go potty while they're working." I guess I should have asked if it was the horse sty. We can't even pretend to know about country life.

St. Louis Christmas

I just got back from Illinois. I'm exhausted, and my house is a wreck, but those are signs of a great Christmas. The kids were more excited than ever this year, and that just made the season so joyful. The celebrations started early in the month at church, with Breakfast in Bethlehem, and continued all month.

These are my darlings on Christmas Sunday morning. Notice the lack of big girly bows in the girls' hair? That's because I had to leave early for choir practice and Daddy got the kids dressed. I am proud of him for getting them there!

Sunday night was our Carols & Candlelight Service. The kids got to participate by dressing up in costumes and singing Away in a Manger. Even Little Buddy stood up there for a little while. He is the shiny one in the middle with the very large wise man hat. Adorable, if I do say so myself. Little Sissy was a sheep, which was very appropriate since she carried Brown Lamby with her the whole time. (This photo was stolen from Joseph's mommy. That would be Baby Jesus's grandma. Oh, please forgive me.)

Since I'm such a diligent mama who would never let an occasion go by without photo documentation, of course I packed my camera on our trip to Illinois. Somehow in the excitement, however, I let the batteries go dead and never get recharged THE ENTIRE TRIP. I don't know how that happened, but I am relying on family members to provide photos from our time there.