Happy Thanksgiving, Part II

Here are some pictures from our Thanksgiving. It was a good time. Titus did great in the car. We felt like a real family with the car loaded down: playpen, stroller, dog and his kennel, ice chest full of food, plenty of diapers and changes of clothes... Mr. T did great too. We saw lots of family, played some games and watched some football. Of course, we ate lots of turkey too--Dad fried one this year that was wonderful!
Here's a picture of Mr. T for those of you who miss seeing his pictures here. He did "escape" my parents' house a couple of times. Grandpa and Dad rescued him and carried him back to the house on Grandma and Grandpa's Mule. It was pretty exciting. I love this picture of Titus hugging Grandpa!

Here's Titus with Meemaw in his candy cane PJ's that Aunt Alma gave him.  *Please note, they are "candy cane" pajamas, not Santa pajamas.  :)
And here he is sound asleep! Too much turkey?

Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! We hope you have a great time with your family and friends. We have so much to be thankful to the Lord for!!! Here are some pictures!
Here's Titus in his latest outfit! Thanks Rhonda!
Here's his newest stuffed animal--here he is playing with the Elephant.

A Christ-Centered Christmas

What are your Thanksgiving and Christmas traditions? How do you make sure they are Christ-centered?

I have been really enjoying this book--you can read it here online "for free"! I love the practical suggestions for the special days and everyday occasions that shape our families.  

It is a great read as we look forward to Thanksgiving and Christmas.  

One way we celebrate Christmas is with the Advent calendar my mom-in-law made for us.  It has a large felt tree with different velcro ornaments for each day.  

Example:  Day 1: Apple; Read Genesis 2:15-3:15.  "The Apple reminds us of the sin of Adam and Eve and begins the long wait for the Redeemer whom God promised."  

Noel Piper has a format for one too in the appendix of the above book.  You could use it to make your own--as simple as you like: with paper, stickers, kids' drawings, etc... or fancier with fabrics and velcro.  Let me know what your family does!

Along those lines, I read a great post on Shepherd Press Blog about gift giving.  Check it out here.  A couple of highlights:

"Giving to honor God is not necessarily the same as giving to make your child happy. In fact, the two goals may be in opposition to each other! The ultimate example of giving to glorify God is Jesus Christ."

"Following Christ in giving also means that your gifts must be holy. Your gifts must not be stained by the love of the world. If you choose gifts that based primarily on what the world thinks is cool, the gift is not a holy gift. If your gift is an attempt to make the recipient beholden to you, it is not a holy gift. "

"Some gifts given at Christmas would be better repackaged and given throughout the year. The overtime it took to earn the money to buy the really special gift might have been better invested in being home and spending time with your child. No one knows more about giving that pleases God than his Son. This year, truly seek Christ as your example for the giving of gifts."

I Rolled Over!!!!

Woohoo!  

Happy Election Day!

Just a reminder to vote and mostly to pray for our country and its leaders. Here are a couple of verses to think about today.
The man who fears the Lord, "He is not afraid of bad news; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord." Psalm 112:7
"The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord ; he turns it wherever he will." Proverbs 21:1

Let's remember to thank God today for His Sovereignty over all events!

Tagged

So, Loriand Alison tagged me, and now I will try to come up with six random things about myself for you....
1. I've been tagged before and never got around to doing this--sorry!
2. I really like this show. If you have ever seen it, please comment. My favorite character may have been Hector--I use past tense because sadly this show is no longer on PBS.
3.hmmmm... This is harder than I thought. OK--I love Christmas. I plan almost all year long. I have finished about half of my shopping already, but if things go as they normally do--I will wait til the last minute on some of it. Besides, it is fun to get out in December and do some shopping. I try to go out the day after Thanksgiving--just so I can say I did, but I refuse to fight for any items. I also decided last year to avoid Toys R Us during this time. Sorry Titus!
4. I worked with my dad some during the summers growing up. He's a builder and I learned a lot--for example--how to dig a ditch for pipes.... and also that I never wanted to build my own house. I know you get to pick your own bathroom faucets, and tile, and paint, and appliances, and.... But you get the picture. I actually prayed that the Lord would give us a house that we liked that was already built--and He did! I am so thankful for it--and that we got to avoid the stress of building!
5. Out of time for now--I'll finish later... maybe.
I'm back... I love to bake and I especially love this time of year and baking with pumpkin.  Last week I baked a pumpkin for the first time.  It turned out great and I used it for a pie for the neighbors. (They took care of T for us during the retreat, so I figured a pie would be good payment.)  Try the pie recipe, learn how to cook a pie pumpkin and roast its seeds here. Roasted pumpkin seeds taste like popcorn to me. It does take time but it's really not that bad. I did it in stages throughout the day while Titus was playing or napping. I got the pumpkin at the pumpkin patch--here's another picture from that trip. Also I thought I would add the tractor picture just for fun--it's also from the pumpkin patch!
6. I don't believe that any of you are still reading....

I tag TITUS and MISTER T.
6 Random things from TITUS!
1. I love Mr. T. Here is evidence:2. I am a big boy. I had my 3 month birthday. This above is a picture of what I did for my birthday.
3. Can you believe I had to get a bath after that???
4. I don't like to get my hair washed.
5. I made it through Sunday morning worship Sunday! OK--so Mom was keeping the nursery with Rhonda and I stayed in there with her. But no crying.... So some of the other kids were crying, but I just slept and entertained everyone. Did I say that I am a big boy???
6. I can ALMOST roll over.

6 Random Things from MISTER T:
1. I love Titus.
2. I love Word of the Day and Camp corn dogs.
3. I have now changed my lifestyle and make healthier food choices. I now eat only Eukanuba and whatever is on the kitchen floor.
4.. I love rescue vehicles and howl at them every chance I get. If they need me, I am ready!
5.. I am 6 years and 3 months old.
6. I love the neighbors Louis and Fay. I ignore the dog, Israel, on the other side of our home.

Titus Says Don't Forget To Vote

Just a reminder from Titus to go vote Tuesday! :)