Merry Christmas!

Today is a day to celebrate God's love. A day of love, of hope, of peace, of joy and life. A day to give thanks for the greatest gift one could ever receive, Jesus. A day to be thankful for the blessings around us: mom's slow and steady healing from surgery; sissy's nuttiness, generosity and love; granny; Louie; my Emin; warm clothes to wear; a warm place to sleep; food to eat; health; and the ability to love.

It seems that I just can't get over love. It keeps coming up. Perhaps because God is trying to work more love into me, so I can show His love to others. It overwhelms me when I take a moment and think about God's love. The Love He sent this day, Jesus.

To all who may happen across this place, may love fill you to over flowing... and keep on growing in you and your life.

The kids..

Mom got her pictures developed so now I have a picture of the kids. They are so sweet. Since these photos they have grown a lot. Little Greg is the brown, black and white (on the left) and little Louie is the black and white. They seem to be a bit camera shy, but they sure love the attention and affection, all they can get.

About a week or so ago, my friend helped me out with giving me a ride back from mom's after dropping her car back off to her. My friend got to meet these two characters, live and in person. They could just about win any one's heart.

I asked, and come this spring it should be 'babyland' out at mom and Louie's place. Lots and lots of babies... if you try to find me and can't, come this spring, now you know where I'm at. Just loving on the kids.

I just found out tonight that a friend of mine and a fellow drama troupe (our church's troupe) member was in an accident the other night. Snow, ice and nasty winter weather caused him to loose control and hit a semi-truck (18 wheeler) head on. He's hurt pretty bad and in intesive care. His daughter was just bumped and bruised and delivered a healthy baby last night.

It kinda reminds me of the fraility of the human condition.

It also reminds me of how BIG God is.

God made the stars and the sand of the earth. He made every cell within the human body. He knows how many hairs are on our heads, no need to count, He knows. God knows our every action, our every thought and feeling.... and God knows what He has planned for this friend. With feverent prayer and all the love we can give, we are all believing and thanking God for his healing. A healing that has been paid for by precious blood. However, if God should see fit to take my friend home, then God knows why and I shall not question. It will be loss for those alive, but gain for Garry.

A tree with ornaments, a vision of love?

How could a tree, whether fake or real, be a vision of love? A Christmas tree, to me, is not just some tradition, some ritual nor is it detached from me, meant only for visual beauty and enjoyment. It is in the memories held there and the meaning put into it.

My tree is old, passed down from my sister, to mom, and then to me... it sits crooked and it's branches are bent all funny. The tree is not thick and full like the new trees, it has many holes and gaps. It even has some of the icicle tinsle on it, left from the years growing up where it was a 'must' and 'put on one at a time, don't clump it'.

The funnest part about putting up my Christmas tree is reminiscing over what the tree represents to me, the many memories and the many ornaments. You could say, I almost 'collect' ornaments, some are as new as this year and some nearly as old as I am or perhaps even older, as they were collected by mom. Each year I like to look at the special ornaments; ornaments that friends and family have made and given; ornaments from my 5th grade teacher, Mrs. Erickson; a party hat from discipleship class; ornaments from Bluebirds or made at Grandma's house, ornaments meant to represent things, such as the year I played basketball or the teddy bear my sissy got for me when I was sick.

The best ornaments of all, are those made to point our way to the true Light of Christmas, Jesus; a star which guided the wisemen to the Christ child... the nativity or perhaps the cross, no matter how ornate, to remind us of Jesus love for us.

A Christmas tree is just a tree, with lights and pretty ornaments. It may be the center focus of a room, but it truly isn't the center of Christmas. For me, it is a vision of love.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Happy 84th Grandma!

babies.... kids...

Babies are wonderful, no matter if they are the human or the four legged kind. Baby goats, kids, are sweet. Call me crazy if you must, but hold a baby goat in your arms, look into their sweet face and I'm sure you'll love them too. Unless of course you're not an animal person. I really don't consider myself too much of an animal person, but the first baby goat, the first kid, in my arms and I was just "in love". To watch them hop and play is just so much fun. We have two new "babies" in the family, little Louie and little Greg. Their personality so closely matches their namesake's. In just the two days I got to pet and play and feed them, they've changed, grown and gotten more fun... and they have the sweetest faces.

Snow, snow and more snow...

..but today there is sun!

And finally it would appear the snow plows are out and about making the roads a tad bit easier to get around on.

It is so beautiful, the fresh snow covering the ground, before it gets muddied and mucked up. The last couple of snows we have had, have been shimmery and light weight. The hard to make a snowball kind of snow, but fun to play in kind.

Now if only my someone could more easily share the snow with me. Perfect weather to play in the snow, come in and drink hot chocolate sitting by the fire... oh, wait I don't have a fireplace... sitting by the incense stick... doesn't sound as good that way.

Guess it's about time to shovel that massive snow-plowed drift from the end of the drive way.

love...

Love endures long and is patient and kind; Love never is envious nor boils over with jealousy, is not boastful or vainglorious, does not display itself haughtly. It is not conceited (arrogant and inflated with pride); it is not rude (unmannerly) and does not act unbecomingly. Love (God's love in us) does not insist on its own rights or its own way, for it is not self-seeking; it is not touchy or fretful or resentful; it takes not account of the evil done to it [it pays no attention to a suffered wrong]. It does not rejoice at injustice and unrighteousness, but rejoices when right and truth prevail. Love bears up under anything and everything that comes, is ever ready to believe the best of every person, its hopes are fadeless under all circumstances, and it endures everything [without weakening]. Love never fails [never faids out or becomes obsolete or comes to an end].

And so faith, hope, love abide [faith - conviction and believe respecting man's relation to God and devine things; hope - joyful and confident expectation of eternal salvation; love - true affection for God and man, growing out of God's love for and in us], these three; but the greatest of these is love.

- 1 Corinthians 13:1-8 and 13


It amazes me how little I seem to love, the kind of love described above, when I read these words. I fall short of this kind of love more days than I ever could match it. I can only pray and seek God to show me how to love as He made love to be. I can only praise God for His imense love and extraordinary grace. I am thankful that He has shown me love, shown me how to love, graced me with amazing family and friends to love and even for the opportunities He allows to strengthen and grow my love for all mankind.