Since Christmas is just around the corner, I thought I would share with you ten little things I love about the Christmas season.
1. I am so thankful for my wonderful little family (Andrew and Eden) and I love them dearly. They are so precious to me. I love making new memories with them and reminiscing about old ones.
2. I am also thankful for my extended family (Mom, Dad, Brothers, In-laws, Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, and Cousins). They make mine and Andrew’s life so joyful. I love being close to each and every one of you.
3. What a blessing it is to still have a job during these troubled times and to be able to help others who are in need.
4. I’m so thankful for the gifts under the tree. They were hand picked with love and the blessing to be able to be around family during this Christmas season so we can give them these gifts of love.
5. I love curling up on the cozy couch watching Christmas movies and drinking hot chocolate with lots of marshmallows and whip cream
6. I love the smell of Christmas sent candles and will burn them till there’s no wax left.
7. I love getting Christmas cards from family and friends
8. I absolutely love to decorate, especially the Christmas tree.
9. I love keeping old traditions like going to the square to look at the lights, making Christmas cookies and candy. More then I love keeping old traditions I love to make new ones as well.
10. Most of all I love to reflect on how Mary and Joseph felt when holding their new born son Jesus and what a blessing our Lord Jesus is to us all.
Here is a touching video my mother sent to me. The singing is amazing. It brings chill bumps to my arms. What a good feeling it is to know that we are saved by the blood of Jesus. This is a man who started out as an infant and grew to be an amazing and powerful servant of God sacrificing his life to save the lost.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sDeXUvWbLp8
Another point I ponder during the Christmas season is the power of death. This past Wednesday night at church, our preacher taught from 2 Corinthians
chapter 4 verses 7-12.
This verse says:
But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us. We are hard pressed on every side, but not crushed; perplexed, but not in despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed. We always carry around in our body the death of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be revealed in our body. For we who are alive are always being given over to death for Jesus sake, so that his life may be revealed in our mortal body. So then, death is at work in us, but life is at work in you.
Many people during this time of year are grieving due to a loss of a precious loved one. Our preacher is dealing with that right now with the loss of his father a few years ago and the scare of almost losing his mother a couple of weeks ago. With the heavy burden of death on his mind he decided to share this verse with the church family. What a wonderful verse this is. This verse goes on to say in verse 16:
Therefore we do not lose heart. Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day. For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all. So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.
Death can be a scary thing and can drag a person down, but looking to the bible for encouragement is a wonderful way to start the healing process. We know God has a plan for us all, so take advantage of being with your family that is still living and reminisce about the good things that your lost loved one left behind.
Deck the Halls with Buddy Holly
Before it’s too late I wanted to share our first Christmas decorating experience with you.
Now that mine and Andrew’s finals are over with, we were able to fully devote ourselves to decorating for Christmas. I was super excited about getting all of our decorations out, one because I forgot what I had and two because I love to decorate and come up with creative ideas. Andrew was in charge of putting the tree up. He was super excited!
Now that mine and Andrew’s finals are over with, we were able to fully devote ourselves to decorating for Christmas. I was super excited about getting all of our decorations out, one because I forgot what I had and two because I love to decorate and come up with creative ideas. Andrew was in charge of putting the tree up. He was super excited!
I worked on decorating the mantle and other little things.
The Santa Simpson was a present from Andrews brother Mark a few years ago. Eden thinks he's the funniest thing. I could take him or leave him. HA HA, but he sure adds life to our house.
I had some left over ribbon from a bow I made. I wasn't for sure what to do with it so I came it up with this idea of cutting it in halfs then tying the ribbon around twisty ties. It makes for a cute candle wreath I thougt.
Here is a little better picture of how it turned out
I love these cute little snowmen my mom gave me.
The smallest one is holding a sign that says BURR. (Tell me about it little guy. It's cold outside!)
Of course our mantle.
I just love Eden's stocking. I ordered it off of pottery barn kids for a pretty good price. What I really liked about it is it can grow with her.
Another cute gift from my mom. It's Texas sized Santa Cowboy.
How appropriate.
My home made whimsical wreath to match my whimsical tree.
I was super pumped about putting a Christmas tree in Eden’s room. The tree is a pretty silver color with metallic ornaments on it and a big silver bow on the top that took forever to make. I’m not really talented in the bow area. After it was decorated I plugged it in for Eden. She liked it so much she clapped. That truly made my day.
Once Andrew got the tree up and the lights on we decorated it together. That was a fun time for us. We loved looking at all the sentimental ornaments.
I had to get an up close picture of the gifts because I love the wrapping paper I got from
Hobby Lobby. What a lovely store.
As I was taking pictures of the finished products I just had to snap a picture of Andrew. He was in the process of cleaning his shotgun for work. What a handsome guy.
By the way Eden was asleep when he was cleaning it.
Safety First. ALWAYS!
Thanks for touring my Christmas decorations. We all had fun putting them up.
Merry Christmas Everyone!
Andrew was able to get two weeks of vacation during the Thanksgiving holiday so we took advantage of his long vacation and made a trip to Springdale to visit family.
The trip was wonderful. We were able to spend time with family and friends, what a way to go. While our trip was wonderful Eden and I were sick half the time and ended up sharing our sickness with a few people. We’re so sorry. The good news is everyone is on a healing climb now. Thank goodness.
Ok back to our trip. We arrived in Springdale Thanksgiving night after a long car ride. I say long it’s only a 4 hour trip but it was long because Eden couldn’t breath due to her congestion so sleeping was on and off for the 4 hours we were in the car. Also Andrew was stopped on the way as well. I didn’t realize he was speeding but apparently he was. It was a small town called Granice or something like that. Once we were stopped Andrew rolled down the window ready to plea his case. The officer walked up to the window and quote said, “I think we know why were here.” Andrew answered, yes sir I know better then to speed through a small town like this one. As he was saying that, he handed the officer his license. The officer took a look at Andrew’s identification and then said well you know we have deer around these parts so be careful, and then he let us go. I was really glad that went as quickly as it did because Eden started crying in the back. We finally made it safely to Andrew’s parents house were we stayed. It felt so good to be there. Eden was really excited to see Grandma and Grandpa Venable along with aunt nutmeg.
The next day was our Thanksgiving day. This was our time to spend a day of thanks with Grandpa Matt and Grandma Niecey, Aunt nutmeg, Uncle Mark and Aunt Renee, along with Mrs. Ethel our adopted grandma, and Tyler & Nick. It was so good to be around family. We ate lots of wonderful food and shared what we were thankful for, a Venable tradition. After we ate our dinner we sat around and talked while we let our stomachs settle, which led to the idea of caroling. So we dressed Eden up in her snowman outfit and went caroling. Now when I say caroling the idea of singing well was not in anyone’s mind especially when Nick, Tyler, and Andrew are together. The first song we were going to sing was frosty the snowman. We stopped at my best friends house first but no one was home, so off to the Dobbs house and no one was home either. Our last stop because it was quite cold outside was the Harris’s house across the street from the Venable’s. We rang the doorbell and waited for a while but know one answered. As we were walking away the door opened. We were pretty excited to actually get to sing. So Andrew asked if we could sing and they gladly said yes.
Here are some precious pictures of our little frosty.
Here is a video of how the song went.
We all had lots of fun. Singing might just become a new tradition.
Saturday we met up with my parents for the first time. Eden was thrilled to see them as well. She loves her some Papa Lowe and Gammy. For lunch we ate some of my dads wonderful cooking and then Mom and I were off to shop before we all went to the twins 2nd birthday.
That night was the twins birthday. It was wonderful to see all our other family. Eden enjoyed every minute of being there. She ate a little ice cream which I caught Papa Lowe feeding her and then did a lot of playing with her cousins.
I captured some playtime moments.
(once my internet stops acting up i'll post more pictures. Agh frustrating!)
Anyways, Eden was exhausted by the end of the night which allowed her to sleep well that night.
Sunday morning was slow moving. We didn’t make it to class like we wanted to but we did make it to services. It was wonderful to see all of our friends from church. Latter that afternoon we ate lunch at Grandpa Matt and Grandma Niecey’s house. Uncle Mark and Aunt Renee were there and brought their dog Cloey. Eden loved Cloey. I’m sure she wishes she had a dog but one day that time will come.
The rest of the week was relaxing and fun. We spent some time with Mark and Renee, I had a girls night with my mom and some ladies from church. I recommend seeing Australia. It was a wonderful movie.
That weekend we spent time with my parents in Branson. When I was little we use to go to Branson every year before Christmas to look at the lights. We thought it would be a great tradition to start with Eden. I hope we can do this Branson trip every year. We had so much fun while we were there. We went to the Dixie Stampede Friday night. Eden loved every minute of it. You all know how much she loves to jump, well she did just that the whole time. Her eyes were so bright watching the horses, pigs, camels, and outrages. Toward the end she got a little antsy but that was expected. The show was wonderful as well as the food. Thanks mom and dad for such a wonderful time.
The next day we spent time shopping trying to buy for everyone on our list. Let me say the list was long but I love buying for people. I think I got a good start on my list but I have a little ways to go. It will get done though.
Sunday Carey surprised us. It was really good to see him. We all went out to eat for lunch and then spent our afternoon on the Fayetteville square taking pictures. It was cold let me just say but it was great cutting up with family and taking some good pictures. We had to say bye to uncle Carey but will see him soon for Christmas. Love you bubba.
Our time was cut short in Springdale due to the fact that I had to take my finals earlier then I expected. We had to say all of our goodbyes which made us sad. We love our family so much. The good news is that will see them all again real soon.
We had such a wonderful time being with the ones we love. We are so blessed to have family like we do. I am so very thankful for each and every one of them.
The trip was wonderful. We were able to spend time with family and friends, what a way to go. While our trip was wonderful Eden and I were sick half the time and ended up sharing our sickness with a few people. We’re so sorry. The good news is everyone is on a healing climb now. Thank goodness.
Ok back to our trip. We arrived in Springdale Thanksgiving night after a long car ride. I say long it’s only a 4 hour trip but it was long because Eden couldn’t breath due to her congestion so sleeping was on and off for the 4 hours we were in the car. Also Andrew was stopped on the way as well. I didn’t realize he was speeding but apparently he was. It was a small town called Granice or something like that. Once we were stopped Andrew rolled down the window ready to plea his case. The officer walked up to the window and quote said, “I think we know why were here.” Andrew answered, yes sir I know better then to speed through a small town like this one. As he was saying that, he handed the officer his license. The officer took a look at Andrew’s identification and then said well you know we have deer around these parts so be careful, and then he let us go. I was really glad that went as quickly as it did because Eden started crying in the back. We finally made it safely to Andrew’s parents house were we stayed. It felt so good to be there. Eden was really excited to see Grandma and Grandpa Venable along with aunt nutmeg.
The next day was our Thanksgiving day. This was our time to spend a day of thanks with Grandpa Matt and Grandma Niecey, Aunt nutmeg, Uncle Mark and Aunt Renee, along with Mrs. Ethel our adopted grandma, and Tyler & Nick. It was so good to be around family. We ate lots of wonderful food and shared what we were thankful for, a Venable tradition. After we ate our dinner we sat around and talked while we let our stomachs settle, which led to the idea of caroling. So we dressed Eden up in her snowman outfit and went caroling. Now when I say caroling the idea of singing well was not in anyone’s mind especially when Nick, Tyler, and Andrew are together. The first song we were going to sing was frosty the snowman. We stopped at my best friends house first but no one was home, so off to the Dobbs house and no one was home either. Our last stop because it was quite cold outside was the Harris’s house across the street from the Venable’s. We rang the doorbell and waited for a while but know one answered. As we were walking away the door opened. We were pretty excited to actually get to sing. So Andrew asked if we could sing and they gladly said yes.
Here are some precious pictures of our little frosty.
Here is a video of how the song went.
We all had lots of fun. Singing might just become a new tradition.
Saturday we met up with my parents for the first time. Eden was thrilled to see them as well. She loves her some Papa Lowe and Gammy. For lunch we ate some of my dads wonderful cooking and then Mom and I were off to shop before we all went to the twins 2nd birthday.
That night was the twins birthday. It was wonderful to see all our other family. Eden enjoyed every minute of being there. She ate a little ice cream which I caught Papa Lowe feeding her and then did a lot of playing with her cousins.
I captured some playtime moments.
(once my internet stops acting up i'll post more pictures. Agh frustrating!)Anyways, Eden was exhausted by the end of the night which allowed her to sleep well that night.
Sunday morning was slow moving. We didn’t make it to class like we wanted to but we did make it to services. It was wonderful to see all of our friends from church. Latter that afternoon we ate lunch at Grandpa Matt and Grandma Niecey’s house. Uncle Mark and Aunt Renee were there and brought their dog Cloey. Eden loved Cloey. I’m sure she wishes she had a dog but one day that time will come.
The rest of the week was relaxing and fun. We spent some time with Mark and Renee, I had a girls night with my mom and some ladies from church. I recommend seeing Australia. It was a wonderful movie.
That weekend we spent time with my parents in Branson. When I was little we use to go to Branson every year before Christmas to look at the lights. We thought it would be a great tradition to start with Eden. I hope we can do this Branson trip every year. We had so much fun while we were there. We went to the Dixie Stampede Friday night. Eden loved every minute of it. You all know how much she loves to jump, well she did just that the whole time. Her eyes were so bright watching the horses, pigs, camels, and outrages. Toward the end she got a little antsy but that was expected. The show was wonderful as well as the food. Thanks mom and dad for such a wonderful time.
The next day we spent time shopping trying to buy for everyone on our list. Let me say the list was long but I love buying for people. I think I got a good start on my list but I have a little ways to go. It will get done though.
Sunday Carey surprised us. It was really good to see him. We all went out to eat for lunch and then spent our afternoon on the Fayetteville square taking pictures. It was cold let me just say but it was great cutting up with family and taking some good pictures. We had to say bye to uncle Carey but will see him soon for Christmas. Love you bubba.
Our time was cut short in Springdale due to the fact that I had to take my finals earlier then I expected. We had to say all of our goodbyes which made us sad. We love our family so much. The good news is that will see them all again real soon.
We had such a wonderful time being with the ones we love. We are so blessed to have family like we do. I am so very thankful for each and every one of them.
Taking time to reflect on Eden's 7 month milestones now that she's 8 months old
This post is a little late due to a lot of things (sorry friends), but let me start off with the most important thing…
Eden is now 8 months old. I say this every time she turns another month older but time really does slip through the cracks. As Eden gets older she surprises me more and more with her abilities to do new things. Eden has such good spirits and keeps me laughing quite often.
Let me recap some of her 7 month milestones
She officially has her two bottom teeth. With a few cranky nights and days her two pearly whites shine brightly as she smiles. With those teeth in, she is now working on her top left eye tooth and her front tooth right beside it. (and the cranky times keep on rolling)
Let me say how much I love the Baby Einstein Videos. She now has Baby Mozart, First Signs, and Baby Noah. It has been fun to watch how well she has taken to these videos. Her new favorite one to watch is Baby Noah. She has learned about so many different animals. Her favorite animal would be the elephant. I can tell you her least favorite is the penguin or any other artic animal. Don’t know why it just is. These videos though have allowed Eden and I to share quality time together. We try to act some of the animals we see on the video. This allows for some fun and new noises for Eden to make
Eden loves to dance. If she hears a song she likes she doesn’t even have to think twice she drops everything and starts bouncing. It’s so fun to watch her get into certain songs. The songs she really enjoys the most she’ll bounce and clap. I must say she’s getting pretty good at keeping with the beat.
Toward the last part of her 7 months she started standing without pulling up on anything. This was a big surprise to me. I was in the kitchen one day cleaning the table off and I look in the living room and in the middle there stood Eden without anything around her. I guess something sparked her interest and she decided to stand up. Once I processed what she had just done I spoke in that mom squeaky exciting voice “Eden Look at YOU, I’m so Proud of YOU!” I think I startled her but I truly was excited! I have a feeling she’ll be walking in no time. Scary!
Eden has definitely figured out her voice. Andrew and Eden love to have a screaming contest. When I say screaming it’s not really a loud scream but like an AHHH, kind of like when you go to the doctor and he puts one of those Popsicle sticks in your mouth and he tells you to say AHHH. It’s really funny to watch.
Another thing that boggles my mind is how fast Eden’s hair is growing. I think it’s going to be really strait with a medium thickness. Ha-ha I really don’t know but I know its growing fast.
As I’m typing this blog Eden’s 8 month birthday is creeping up on me. Shirley I can handle blogging about her wonderful achievements and funny times a little sooner then I have this time around.
Here are a few pictures of our precious girl.
Eden is now 8 months old. I say this every time she turns another month older but time really does slip through the cracks. As Eden gets older she surprises me more and more with her abilities to do new things. Eden has such good spirits and keeps me laughing quite often.
Let me recap some of her 7 month milestones
She officially has her two bottom teeth. With a few cranky nights and days her two pearly whites shine brightly as she smiles. With those teeth in, she is now working on her top left eye tooth and her front tooth right beside it. (and the cranky times keep on rolling)
Let me say how much I love the Baby Einstein Videos. She now has Baby Mozart, First Signs, and Baby Noah. It has been fun to watch how well she has taken to these videos. Her new favorite one to watch is Baby Noah. She has learned about so many different animals. Her favorite animal would be the elephant. I can tell you her least favorite is the penguin or any other artic animal. Don’t know why it just is. These videos though have allowed Eden and I to share quality time together. We try to act some of the animals we see on the video. This allows for some fun and new noises for Eden to make
Eden loves to dance. If she hears a song she likes she doesn’t even have to think twice she drops everything and starts bouncing. It’s so fun to watch her get into certain songs. The songs she really enjoys the most she’ll bounce and clap. I must say she’s getting pretty good at keeping with the beat.
Toward the last part of her 7 months she started standing without pulling up on anything. This was a big surprise to me. I was in the kitchen one day cleaning the table off and I look in the living room and in the middle there stood Eden without anything around her. I guess something sparked her interest and she decided to stand up. Once I processed what she had just done I spoke in that mom squeaky exciting voice “Eden Look at YOU, I’m so Proud of YOU!” I think I startled her but I truly was excited! I have a feeling she’ll be walking in no time. Scary!
Eden has definitely figured out her voice. Andrew and Eden love to have a screaming contest. When I say screaming it’s not really a loud scream but like an AHHH, kind of like when you go to the doctor and he puts one of those Popsicle sticks in your mouth and he tells you to say AHHH. It’s really funny to watch.
Another thing that boggles my mind is how fast Eden’s hair is growing. I think it’s going to be really strait with a medium thickness. Ha-ha I really don’t know but I know its growing fast.
As I’m typing this blog Eden’s 8 month birthday is creeping up on me. Shirley I can handle blogging about her wonderful achievements and funny times a little sooner then I have this time around.
Here are a few pictures of our precious girl.
She loves to look out the back door and watch the squirles
She gets so excited!
Eden trying her first bitter biscuit
She absolutely loves those things
Pushing her bumbo seat around is her new favorite thing to do
She found that she can go faster if she does this. Since then she has tried several new objects to push.
This is also a favorite. I have a video of her twirling around in it. Mybe I'll post it soon
Thanksgiving recap post soon to come, followed by Christmas decorating fun.
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