Christmas 2011 Pictures

I thought I'd share a few "highlights" with you from our Christmas this year!  We were blessed, the kids were spoiled by everyone and we were able to teach our children about keeping CHRIST in Christmas again this year too.

My cousin made us this beautiful new kitchen table and even made 4 upholstered chairs with it.  Not only do I love the saying but the top of our old table had got messed up when we moved and you had to be careful where you sat drinks, where the kids put paper to write, etc.  We are loving having a beautiful and usable table again.  

On Christmas Eve, we let the kids open presents from each other & their clothes from us.  Abbey was so excited about her gift to Wyatt this year. She wanted to do her own gifts this year and wouldn't let us help her at all. She had crocheted him (all by herself) a necktie and she couldn't wait for him to open it and wear it.  He wasn't quite as excited as she was but I loved the thoughtfulness and creativity she had used in her gift giving this year!  

I was excited about my gift for David.  When we were in Peru back in July he loved the bag the missionary Josh was using.  We looked at buying one while we were there but Josh said he knew a guy personally in Lima that handmade them and they were much higher quality and would last for many years.  David was disappointed he couldn't get one and has talked about how he wish he would have just bought one ever since we got home. I secretly contacted Josh after we left and he asked his Peruvian friend to make one especially for David.  He brought it home when they came home for furlough in Nov. and I paid him then.  It is a handmade leather satchel from Lima, Peru. I saved it to give to David on Christmas Eve and I wish you could have seen his face when he opened it. He loves it and it will be very useful with him going on the mission field himself now too!

Christmas Day we went to supper at my grandparents house.  I feel so blessed that I still have both of my Dad's parents (who are in their 80's) here to enjoy life with.  They are especially head over heels in love with our kids and they love having them around to entertain them too.  My Papa was a Southern Baptist preacher for many years and in bluegrass gospel groups too so he and David love talking music and Bible together as well.  We loved being with them on Christmas Day.  

The big surprise for our girls came in the form of American Girl dolls from my parents.  David & I refused to buy them because I personally think they are outrageously expensive but the girls have "oohed" and "aahed" over them for a couple of years now and begged for one.  My Mom decided they just needed to have one special doll each and so my parents got them both one for Christmas.  The girls had no idea and they were so excited!  I have to admit, the girls love them and play with them everyday and change their clothes, pretend with them, etc. so maybe the interest will last more than a few weeks!

Mom got me a cake pop/donut hole maker and the Bakerella Cake Pops cookbook. I already make cake pops by hand but had asked for the cookbook for inspiration.  My sister had been wanting the cake pop maker so Mom got me and her both one.  It will certainly be used and enjoyed as I love to be creative with food.

My sister got me this beautiful necklace from Word. Custom Hand-Stamped Jewelry. I love it!

My parents also knew how much David & I will be traveling in 2012 preparing to become full-time missionaries so they got us the tri-fold expandable rolling suitcase and my sister & brother-in-law bought us the 3-in1 Travel Tote System from ThirtyOne!  Both will be very handy in the months to come.  

Our little nephew Marshall's 1st Christmas ~ It is so much fun having a little one in the family again.  David & I just love being with him and we "argue" over whose turn it is to hold him, feed him, rock him, etc.  On Christmas Day, our family & my sister, brother-in-law & Marshall all spent the night at my parents house & Marshall slept in the bed with me & David. Even though it was a lot of up & down and not sleep like we are used to, we loved every minute of it.  We are head-over-heels in love with our little nephew! 

Christmas is Over...Now What???

Christmas is over, now what........

Favorite Christmas Ornaments/Decoration {Link-Up}

One of my parts of Christmas is putting up our Christmas tree and filling it full of ornaments and getting to enjoy it for several weeks. Our Christmas tree isn't just a tree...it's a memory tree!  Each year growing up, my parents, my Gran-Dot, my Aunt Pat and my Aunt Charlotte would give me a Christmas ornament ever year. I have to admit that as a child, they didn't mean much but when I got married, they became special treasures.  The 1st Christmas David and I were married, we filled a 6 1/2 ft. Christmas tree with nothing but those ornaments from over the years and our tree was overflowing and oh so pretty.

Each ornament is written on with the year and the person who gave it to me so I will always remember.  That tradition continues even to this day and now that we have children, the tradition has continued with them and they now get ornaments from these people as well as from us. It is my hope that one day they can fill their own trees with these special ornaments from people that love them. Today, I am linking up with Meghan at Tuckers Take Tennessee for her Favorite Christmas Ornaments/Decoration Link-Up and am going to show you some of my special ornaments from over the years!  I encourage you to start this tradition in your own family...it's never too late!

This is a dough ornament that was handmade for me in 1977 (the year I was born) by my first cousin Kim.

My Mom handpainted these ceramic ornaments in 1978. I have 3 different ones of these on our tree.

This is the last Christmas ornament I have from my Gran-Dot where she handwrote the tag before she got Alzheimer's and could no longer do it.  This is one of my most treasured ornaments because she and I were extremely close and shared a very special bond.  I miss her very much but rejoice that she is in Heaven.

This is a handpainted egg ornament that was bought in Voronezh, Russia and reminds me of my mission work in Russia and Siberia in 1996 and 1997.

This is mine and David's "Our First Christmas" ornament back in 2000.  This ornament symbolizes the beginning of "OUR" ornaments for our tree.  

My Mother-in-law used to give me beautiful mercury glass ornaments each Christmas and I loved them! I have a few of them on our tree and I love how they sparkle amidst the lights of the tree.  

David gave me this ornament last year for Christmas.  It is a handcarved wooden cross that shows the story of the birth of Christ in miniature detail.  We have several spiritual ornaments on our tree as well from over the years and they are a great reminder of what Christmas is really all about.

And what Christmas tree would be complete with one of those awesome Trolls Doll ornaments from the late 1980's?! I was the "cool kid" that got one of these that year....ha!    

Twas the Week Before Christmas

This week is really busy for us.  Tuesday I went to town and bought the kids some clothes, new shoes/boots, socks, underwear and all that fun boring stuff they like to open up at Christmas.  Yesterday, our 8 year old had surgery on both ears at Children's Hospital so we were up at 5am and home late that afternoon.  She is in quite a bit of pain and running a fever so David stayed up with her until 3am and I took the 3am and on shift.  She slept better on the couch but was just restless, fussy, whiny, etc. all night.  So I'm pretty tired this morning.

At some point in the next 2 days, I need to go to the grocery store and get all my baking/cooking supplies for the items I'm making for our 2 holiday gatherings.  Sweet potato Casserole is something I am requested to bring to almost every gathering we go to.  Everyone really loves it and it just an understood that I will be bringing that to any gathering that requires food...ha!

Not to mention, I need to go to town again and buy the kids Lego sets and stocking stuffers to be done with "Santa" presents. Yes, we "do" Santa at our house & I think there is absolutely nothing wrong with it.  We do teach our children about the birth of Christ (all year long, not just on Christmas Day) and do focus on Christ at Christmas but Christ is the focus of our home everyday...not just Christmas so we have no problem with "Santa".  I'm trying to figure out how to avoid Walmart at all costs this close to Christmas but seeing as it is the only big store in our town I fear I may find myself there within the next 2 days....ugh!

Saturday night we will have our traditional roast and veggies dinner and then the kids will open gifts from us.  Then we will read the birth of Jesus from the Bible and put out Santa's goodies and go to bed.  Sunday morning, we will be up early for them to rip into their Santa gifts while David & I sit on the couch sleepy-eyed nodding, smiling, watching them enjoy Christmas morning.  Sunday afternoon we are going to up to my grandparents house to spend Christmas with my Dad's side of the family.  Mamaw & Papa are the only grandparents I have left and they are in their late 80's and both so, so precious and we can't wait to spend some time with them on Christmas Day.

Sunday night, our family and my sister, brother in law and nephew are all having a Christmas slumber party at my parents house.  We are all going to spend the night with them!  Best of all, our 1 month old nephew Marshall gets to sleep with me & David in our room.  He will be in his bassinet but we get to take care of him that night and we are so excited.  Can you tell it's been a few years since we've had a little one since we are excited to be getting up & down all night feeding him, changing him, rocking/burping him, etc?!  Then Monday morning, we will go eat breakfast at Cracker Barrell and then go back to my parents house and all exchange Christmas presents.  It is going to be a very fun Christmas weekend.

Our Big Announcement....

For several years, our family has been praying about our calling to go into ministry.  The past year, our direction has become very clear and God has really shown us what He wanted us to do with our lives and for Him as a family.  David & I want to work with the unreached people groups in the world who have never had the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ. 2.1% of the world's population falls into this category! Often, these people have never even seen white people and sometimes these areas are considered hostile regions. In fact, some portions of Papau New Guinea are still head-hunter tribes.  However, our hearts are heavily burdened for these people groups and they deserve to hear about the hope of salvation, the love and sacrifice of Christ and learn how to have that personal relationship with him just as much as anyone else in the world.  We want to be part of taking that message into these areas. Therefore, it is with much excitement and great anticipation that we share with you today that we have been accepted as a full-time missionary family with To Every Tribe!

To Every Tribe is a mission agency with an intense two-year training program called the Center for Pioneer Church Planting (CPCP).  Our family will be moving to their campus in Los Fresnos, Texas (near Brownsville) in July 2012 to begin our missionary training.  While about 60% of our training will be done in a classroom setting, we are very excited that approximately 40% of our training will be done through hands-on, on the job training in Mexico and Papau New Guinea where we will be able to put our classroom knowledge into first-hand use.  

While we embark on this call to missions in our life, we want you to come along with us!  There are several ways you can help us and we would love for you to prayerfully consider them.  

#1:  We need your prayers!  This is a life-changing journey for us and especially our children.  Transitioning to a new state (Alabama has always been our home even for David & I growing up), a new culture, a new house (as we will be living in a 700 sq. ft. 2BR, 1 BA apartment on campus), etc. will be huge steps for us. Not to mention, the emotional, physical and spiritual rigors of attending classes while participating in community and short-term mission trips that we would never undertake without lots of prayers. So, first and foremost we are asking you to keep us and our children in your daily prayers as we begin to fulfill the call God has placed upon our lives. 

#2:  The tuition for our missionary training at the CPCP is $12,500.  We will also have a monthly housing bill of $650 and basic living expenses around $700.  In total, we are asking for a support base to help pay for the $12,500 tuition and monthly living cost totaling $1,350.  Would you prayerfully consider being one of those people to help support our family as full-time missionaries??  Also, if your local church would be willing to have us come and share our vision and passion for what God has called us to do, we would love to come visit and share in person about what we will be doing starting in July 2012 as a full-time missionary family.  We hope to be traveling all over the US in Jan. - May 2012 sharing our call to missions and our passion and vision with churches.  

#3:  Whether you choose to pray for us or help support us monetarily, we would love to include you in the monthly updates we will be sending out.  As we learn, study, plan, prepare, pray and reach out to the unreached people groups who have never had the opportunity to hear about Jesus Christ, we want to keep you informed and on the front lines with us!  

If you have any further questions or 

would like to partner with us in anyway, 

please contact me via email.  

My email address is:  Bamagv@aol.com   

AND....check out www.jesusisworthit.com

The Homeschool Mother's Journal

In My Life This Week: It has been an awesome but super busy week for me.  I am singing in our candlelight Christmas service at church and we have had practice several nights this week which makes my schedule super packed...but fun!  The kids are also preparing for their Christmas program that is Sunday morning too.  We also got some VERY exciting news for our family this week and I will share that Monday on my blog so check back then!  Not to mention, our 8 year old is having yet another ear surgery at Children's Hospital next Wednesday so I've been making plans for that and for caring for her afterwards so she will feel well enough to actually enjoy Christmas next weekend.  

In Our Homeschool This Week: We are preparing for a short homeschool week next week due to Sidney's surgery and have tried to get ahead a little this week.  Also, a local friend who decided not to homeschool blessed our family by giving us a huge box of homeschool books.  These 2 books in particular we began using immediately alongside our current Science & Geography curriculum and the kids are just loving them.  

I'm Grateful For:  This week I have been especially grateful for the husband God gave me.  There are just not words enough to describe what he means to me and how much I love him.  He is a blessing to me on so many levels and I praise God that He chose David for me.  We are about to embark on the most wonderful journey together and I am just constantly amazed at the man of God, the husband, the father and the friend that God placed in my life through marriage.  

I am Cooking:  I love cooking and baking and the holiday season let's me do plenty of both.  I love trying new recipes and being creative with food and have done both of that this week.  Tuesday night, I made a really simple Pizza Crescent recipe that I had never tried before.  The kids loved it and David (my "meat & potatoes man") even liked it too.  It was so easy, quick and simple yet delicious.  I also made Cake Batter Rice Krispy Treats last night and we had some family over and the pan was empty by the end of the night.  They were delicious!  

A Photo, Video, Link or Quote to Share..... When we moved 2 years ago, we had a nice kitchen table that we loved but after it sat in storage for 5 months while we gutted & remodeled our house, the heat had messed up the top of the table. You had to be careful where you sat your drink because it would tip over and spill, the kids couldn't even do school work on it because the table was so bumpy and uneven, etc. We still used it anyway though and would just tell people where to sit their drinks, not to write on it, etc. Well, last night, when I got home from music rehearsal at church, David's cousin and his wife and their 2 girls were at our house.  They had come to surprise me with my Christmas present so when I walked in the door from church I saw........a new kitchen table & 4 black chairs with beautiful red upholstered seats!  

I'm Linking Up with The Homeschool Chick!  

A Pinterest Christmas

I have to admit, I love Pinterest. I love being able to bookmark all the things I discover online that I like and keep them neatly organized and stored in one location.  With Christmas just days away, I thought I would share some fun Christmas ideas I have on my "Creative Christmas" Pinterest board with you.  Hopefully, if you are still working on Christmas gifts/ideas (like I am!) you will find some inspiration.  You can also follow my Pinterest boards by clicking the red button in the right sidebar if you would like to. 

A great stocking stuffer idea

Want your Christmas tree to really sparkle?

FREE Advent Book by Ann Voskamp

DIY Glitter Ornaments

Ugly Christmas Sweater FREE Party Kit

Decorate Packages Without Bows

Keepsake Child's Christmas Tree Canvas Art

Handmade Gifts from Your Kitchen

DIY Glitter Pillow

Make your own Stockings

DIY Mod-Podge Ornaments

Button Wreath Ornaments

Handmade Wrapping Paper

Radical Together (Book Review)

After reading David Platt's book "Radical", I was super excited to have the opportunity to read "Radical Together" as well.  In Radical, David Platt’s plea for Christians to take back their faith from the American Dream resonated with readers everywhere and quickly became a New York Times bestseller. Now in Radical Together, the author broadens his call, challenging us to unite around a gospel-centered vision.

While the goal of this book is to teach you to how to take what you learned by reading Platt's first book, "Radical" and actually live those principles out in our everyday lives.  I have to admit, a large portion of this book was just more details about what I had read in Radical.  Not that it was a bad thing, it just made for quite a bit of repetitive reading.  It did offer more details and insights in these places but I was not a huge fan of the large amount of repetition found throughout this book. 

The book did have some wonderful key points though despite the repetition and I was again challenged by Platt's writings. I loved his challenge to our churches today to get rid of the "mega-church" mentality and go back to the grass roots foundations of small home church type settings that provide more intimate discipleship settings.  A large portion of the writing in this book is geared toward churches today and I love how Platt points out that one or two believers in a church are not much of a threat to Satan and his schemes but that an entire church of believers that are committed to joining together to take the Word of God and the glory of God to every person on the planet IS a serious threat!  Through Radical Together, Platt is teaching us to be a church of believers that are drawn into a Biblical gospel that is measured more by self-denial than self-fulfillment.  I would still highly encourage anyone to read both Radical and Radical Together as both of these books speak powerful words that will revolutionize and transform your thinking, your view of life and ultimately how you are fulfilling the Great Commission. 

Disclaimer:  I was given the above mentioned book for review purposes only from Blogging for Books. No monetary compensation was received.

A Woman's Guide to Fasting (Book Review)

Growing up, I always read about fasting and praying in the Bible and knew that during fasting it was a time of intense and purposeful prayer but honestly, I didn't quite understand the importance of it, or even how to really "fast" and so it was not something I did in my life.  I heard others talk about it and when I married my husband, he is one who fasts for certain things and during certain seasons of life but I still wasn't totally on board with fasting and didn't have a good understanding of what true fasting meant.

Lisa Nelson has written a wonderful book called "A Woman's Guide to Fasting" and in it, she does a beautiful job of explaining what fasting means spiritually, how to fast the way the Bible teaches and what to expect before, during and after a time of fasting.  She writes in a way that is easy to understand and relate to and it really makes Biblical fasting come alive. She talks about the different lengths of fast (did you know fasting can simply be giving up one meal?), teaches you how to safely end a time of fasting and even encourages you along the way.  Most importantly from this book, I learned that during a time of fasting, my goal is not to abstain from physical foods but my goal in fasting is to receive a spiritual breakthrough in my walk with Christ.  Lisa puts it so simply when she says " “True biblical fasting is not about the external act of not eating; it is about the internal work of the heart seeking hard after God.”  This book is one that I know will be beneficial both now and in times to come. I highly recommend that you read "A Woman's Guide to Fasting"  if you are unsure about Biblical fasting, considering a fast or simply want to know more about how to fast safely and get the most from it spiritually.

Disclaimer:  I was given the above mentioned product for review purposes only from Bethaney House.  No monetary compensation was received.

Fractazmic Card Game (TOS Review)

It can be very challenging to find ways to make learning Math "fun" but thanks to I See Cards, learning about fractions can be both fun and exciting.  Fractazmic is a card game that helps children learn to convert and add fractions.  It is a card game that contains 60 brightly colored cards and is a wonderful educational game for 2-4 players that is geared toward grades 1-8.  Best of all, it is extremely affordable and retails for just $6.95!

From the website:

Fractazmic is  a 2-4 player game that uses math and language skills. The object of Fractazmic trap is to gather as many hands as possible before the first player runs out of cards. Hands are captured by either (1) playing a card that brings the sum of all cards thrown to 1 or (2) forcing the next player to throw a card that brings the sum to greater than 1. If any of these events occur – the player captures the round and is the first to start the next round.

This game was way above Wyatt's (1st grade) learning level but he liked to "help" his sister's while they played it.  Our 3rd grader has not yet covered fractions much so it was a complete learning lesson for her all the way around and our 5th grader has a basic introduction to fractions. She has dyscalculia so we aren't quite up to learning level when it comes to Mathematics but that is o.k. too.  We work at her own pace so she retains and fully understands Math concepts before moving on.  I have to admit that despite them not being real familiar with fractions, they gave it their all in trying to understand it and learn from it.  I do believe that they will enjoy it even more a little further down their educational road but they still ask to play it occasionally and so we do.  The only negative thing I can say about the product itself is that while the cards are nice and sturdy and hold up well with usage, the box ripped down the side the 2nd time the kids opened it. It is not a very sturdy box and with kids opening and closing it, it did not hold up well.  However, we just put the Fractazmic cards in a ziploc bag for storage and that works great.  

I See Cards also has other great educational games such as Pyramath, Prime Bomb & more so make sure you check out all their other learning tools as well.  You can also read what other TOS Crewmates have to say about I See Cards and Fractazmic too! 

Disclaimer: I was given the above mentioned products for review purposes only as part of the TOS Homeschool Crew.  No monetary compensation was received.

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday, where you and I can share a few of our secrets from the week, revealing some things we’d rather forget. Why? Because it’s therapeutic and makes us all feel less alone. (from McMama's blog)

I did not wake up Saturday morning in a complete panic because David and I both forgot to move "Nicholas" (our Elf on the Shelf) into a new location the night before. I made a mad dash to the kids room to make sure they were still asleep (which thankfully they were) and quickly moved him to a new location in our home. About that time, I heard rustling in the girls room so I rushed back to our bedroom, jumped in bed, pretended to be asleep and then woke up all excited when Sidney came rushing in to tell me where she had found the elf that morning (that I had placed about 5 minutes prior to her discovery!).

During our practice for the Preschool Christmas program at church Wednesday night, I would never have let a child go the bathroom without me and the other teacher noticing so that when the child's mother came in to pick her up, we thought we had completely lost her and then proceed to make a mad-dash through the children's building looking for her only to discover she was in the bathroom of our classroom the entire time taking care of her "business".  Yeah, I'm sure her Mom wanted to give us the "Teacher of the Year" awards that night!  

After enjoying a most wonderful Sunday morning at church and then spending the afternoon with David's grandmother and aunt, we would never arrive back at the church that night for our annual Christmas banquet and as we get out, I see everyone bringing in their dessert dishes and remember, "Oh crud, I signed up to bring a dessert tonight too!".  No, I would never forget something that I signed up for a month ago and they even reminded us Sunday morning about...me, forget?!  Well......

Come join the fun & share in our "fails" this week with MckMama

on her "Not Me Monday" blog post. 

Elf on the Shelf Adventures

This was our 1st year to do the Elf on the Shelf with the kids.  One night after dinner we were all sitting in the living room and the doorbell rang.  Sidney ran to answer it and there was nobody there...just an elf & a book!  There was a note that said "Love Santa" on the book.  We gathered around and read the book and learned that Santa had sent them an Elf on the Shelf to report to Santa each night about their behavior.  They decided to name him Nicholas. However, the 1st night they were not too sure about him and Wyatt was so nervous he wanted to sleep with us.  After much reassurance, the next morning they woke up excited about Nicholas and now they love him.  So here are some pictures of the many adventures "Nicholas" has gotten into at our house so far.

Hanging out on the piano

Checking out David's guitar corner

Nestled in the Christmas tree

Plotting a course with Santa

Napping on the couch

Turned our gallon of milk green

Trying to open the Torani syrup bottles

Chillin' with Santa

Playing in Wyatt's room with Ring Caps

Snowball fight with the Littlest Pet Shop animals

Rolled our tree with toilet paper

He & Rudolph painted their noses red while they slept