I Need a Silent Night

I've made the same mistake before
Too many malls, too many stores
December traffic, Christmas rush
It breaks me till I push and shove
Children are crying while mothers are trying
To photograph Santa and sleigh
The shopping and buying and standing forever in line
What can I say?

I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice
Through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night


December comes then disappears
Faster and faster every year
Did my own mother keep this pace
Or was the world a different place?

Where people stayed home wishing for snow
Watching three channels on their TV
Look at us now rushing around
Trying to buy Christmas peace


I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night


What was it like back there in Bethlehem
With peace on earth, good will toward men

Every shepherd's out in the field
Keeping watch over their flock by night
And the glory of the Lord shone around them
And they were so afraid
And the angels said fear not for behold
I bring you good news of a great joy that shall be for all people
For unto you is born this day a Savior, who is Christ the Lord
And his name shall be called Wonderful Counselor, Prince of Peace


I need a silent night, a holy night
To hear an angel voice through the chaos and the noise
I need a midnight clear, a little peace right here
To end this crazy day with a silent night
To end this crazy day with a silent night

The above are lyrics from Amy Grant's song.  I heard this song a few weeks ago and it so connected with me.  As much as I love our crazy Christmas, I do wish we could spend the season with a bit more quiet time and reflection.  It is essential that my children realize the reason for the season.  I feel like I do an adequate job of conveying that to them, but I do feel that because of the rushing around and busyness, we don't have much down time.  I know when all my children are older and out of the baby stage, it will allow for more opportunites to serve and give back.  Something that is very important to Matt and I. 
     I love the line when she says, "did my own mother keep this pace?"  It takes me back to my childhood where Christmas was simple yet so amazing.  My mom and dad made the whole month of December feel so magical and special.  From my mom baking my favorite sandies every year, to going with my dad to get the tree, to the anticipation of when the Christmas specials would come on tv, it was just so much more calm.   Back then, you put up your tree a week or two before Christmas.  Now decorations hit the stores the day after Halloween. Back then, you had one real tree.  Now, you have eight artificial trees.  Back then, you gave the teachers homemade gifts.  Now, you give them gift cards.  Back then, you made sure you were in front of the tv when the Grinch, Frosty, or Rudolph was on.  Now, you just buy the dvd or find it on one of your 500 channels.  Back then, everybody said Merry Christmas and nobody was afraid.  Now, people seem so afraid of offending others that they say "Have a good holiday" or they say nothing.  Back then, we had gift exchanges in our classrooms followed by fun, exciting parties where no grown ups except the room mom and the teacher were there.  Now, it's donuts and water and a school filled to the brim with parents. 
     Oh, I love our Christmas traditions.  I love the things that my my mom did that I still do and I also love the new traditions that have been created in our home.  I love watching my kiddoes' faces light up each day when we do our advent calendar.  I love hearing the anticipation in their voices and to see them writing their lists to Santa.  I love the shopping and photo taking and Christmas card preparation and endless baking and crafting and decorating.  But oh my goodness, I am absolutely pooped.  I used to despise January.  There was this big buildup to Christmas...and then the letdown.  But for the past few years, around this week in December, I find myself looking forward to a new year and a fresh start.  I look forward to spending more time with Jesus and getting back to my morning devotionals.  I look forward to getting back on track doing bible activities and devotionals with the kids and maybe even couples' devotionals with Matt.  I look forward to getting closets, cupboards, and drawers cleaned out.  I look forward to my baby turning 2 in January (not really)!  I look forward to taking some sewing and/or jewelry making classes!  I look forward to watching my nieces and nephews grow!  I look forward to all that 2010 has to offer.  Matt and I are especially looking forward to possibly having a new baby by the time the year is over.  Over the past few months, I have been asking God to help prepare my body, mind, spirit, and soul to be healthy and whole so that I can bring a new little one into the world.    2009 has been a great year and I know 2010 will be even better.  I just want to survive the next few weeks of craziness.  But between now and then, I would just like one silent night to just reflect and be still.  Maybe this was it!!

Happy 12 year Anniversary to my hubby!!--Updated

I can't believe it has been almost a month since I have blogged.  We always say, in our family, once Halloween hits, it's CRAZY TIME!!!!  In November alone, we have our anniversary, my sister and brother-in-law's anniversary, Jacob's birthday, my grandmother's birthday, my sister's birthday, and my brother Kirk's birthday.  And then December comes, and there is LITERALLY not a free moment.  So I am finally getting to our anniversary post.
We spent our anniversary in the Woodlands, one of our favorite places.  When we got married in 1997, the Christmas season truly didn't begin until after Thanksgiving.  But is seems like each year, it begins right after Halloween.  There is something so wrong about that.  But at the same time, I love it...because I love Christmas...everything about it...the shopping, decorating, baking, crafts with the kids, music, lights, movies, extra family time...  And Matt loves it just as much as I do.  So now on our anniversary, there are always lights and decorations up, and some years, there is even Christmas music already on the radio.  So...back to the Woodlands.  It was very festive there.  We ate at Jasper's, a fabulous restaurant that we have wanted to try for years.  We ate outside right by the fireplace with a terrific view of the huge Christmas tree in the courtyard.  We had planned on seeing a movie since we average maybe one grown-up movie a year. But we thought, instead of spending our anniversary sitting in the dark not talking to each other, we would rather just walk around Market Street and hang out and shop!!!  We had a great time and reminisced and just enjoyed being alone!!!!!  I am so blessed to have the most amazing husband in the world!  To you, my dear hubby, here are 12 things I love about you!:
1. Jacob
2. Alexa
3.  Natalia
4.  You are the hardest working guy I know.  You tell me all the time, "I do it all for you guys."  And I know that's true.  Thank you for all the LONG hours, fighting through traffic, and late nights on the computer.
5.  You are a wonderful father.  You are so helpful to me and have been since day one.  You even did Jacob's first diaper change in the hospital.   You are not just a father, you are a daddy.  You recognize the importance of knowing each of your children's hearts, and try hard to carve out a special relationship with each one of them. They will benefit from this big time as adults, and so will you!
6.  You are not a complainer.  If I need to run out and get a pedicure or get my hair done, you don't whine about it.  If I need some alone time, you let me have it.  You tell me I work harder than you do, and that I deserve time to myself. 
7.  You cook things for me that you don't even like.  You always make my special salsa and grill vegetables for me in the spring and summer. 
8.  You enjoy shopping! 
9.  You indulge my need for incessant decorating, and you even help me.  Sometimes you come up with better ideas than me..ie the leopard Christmas tree stand that you built.
10.  You love to laugh.  And make me laugh.  And you laugh at my goofiness.  We have so much fun together.  We could even have fun in an insurance seminar.  There is no one on earth I would rather be with than you! 
11.  I love your beautiful eyes and cool spiky hair!!  :)
12.  The way your faith has grown since finding our church is awesome to see!  I love that you have a relationship with God and it continues to strengthen and mature.

So here is a trip down memory lane starting with a wedding photo and then some pictures from 1993-1997, our dating years.  There are some great clothing and hairstyle choices.  I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday to my sister Shannon!!

I'm so glad you had a fun birthday and we had a good time celebrating with you at Alicia's, having your beloved Mexican food.  And watching them put cherries and whipped cream on your nose.  Thanks for always being there for me.   I am so thankful to God for giving me a built-in best friend.  I love you.  I pray that one day my girls will have the same relationship that you and I have!

UNBELIEVABLE...this guy negotiaties "no homework" contract for his kids

What's next? Is he going to get the school to agree that his kids don't have to take tests because the studying gets in the way of extra-curricular activities? I still remember when I was teaching and something was due and students would say they couldn't turn it in because they had football, soccer, ballet, cheer, underwater basketweaving, chess club...etc. I would always tell them, "I know your activities are important but school comes first!!!!" I can't believe this guy is actually a lawyer! What's going to happen when these kids go to college or are out in the real world? Ugh!!! Absolutely ridiculous!!

Not my Favorite Stage of Toddlerhood

Bedroom wall.  Purple crayon.  Busy little girl.  'Nuff said.

Happy 88th Birthday GJ!!!!

Happy Birthday to my awesome Grandma Jeanne!  We love you!!

Happy 9th Birthday Jacob!

Happy Birthday to Jacob!  It hit me yesterday that you are HALFWAY to 18.  Where has the time gone?  What a joy you have been to your daddy and me...and to your entire family!  In honor of your birthday, I am going to do 9 facts about you.

1. You are a great big brother.  On Saturday mornings you like to get Natalia out of bed and then bring her downstairs.  I ate lunch with you at school yesterday and brought you home a little early.  You kept watching the clock around bus time and said, "do you want me to go down and wait for Alexa?"  You rode to the bus stop on your scooter....and waited right there for her.  She got off the bus and gave you a big hug!  You take care of your sisters and are already protective of them.
2. You are so interested in the 50s and 60s.  I love that you have an interest in history...especially in the pop culture from different decades.  I bought an old social studies book from the 50s at an antique store and you are fascinated by it.  You took it to school to show your teacher.  You also pointed out to me that the characters in the book have typical 50s names like Cal and Betsy and Patricia.  You love to point "50s names" out to me.  "Mom, that sounds like a 50s name"...We were on YouTube yesterday and since you are into wizardry and magic, you wanted to watch Bewitched.  I remember being 3 or 4 and while my mom was cooking dinner in the late afternoon, old reruns of that show would be on.  I loved that show.  I also thought it was cool that the actress who played Tabitha was named Erin Murphy which was the last 2/3 of my name.  We  watched one episode of the show and then you begged for one more...so we watched another.  We had fun laughing at Gladys Kravitz, the nosy neighbor!
3. You like to read a chapter book before bedtime.  You have never enjoyed bedtime...from the time you were a baby.  You just didn't want to be alone.  For the past few years, after getting tucked in, you would come down several times saying you couldn't fall asleep.  I have always told you that reading is the best way to occupy your mind before bed, until you're so tired that you drift off.  Well, you have been doing that, right there on your top bunk, reading for 30 minutes, and it's working.
4. You are a very responsible student.  You have a ton of quizzes, tests, and benchmarks this year.  You are always prepared and know what to study for.  You made all A honor roll for the first 9 weeks.  You told me the other day, "Mommy...I don't know how to say this...but I think...I LOVE school!"  Words can not describe how happy this made me. 
5. You have a great variety of friends and always stay busy after school.  Yesterday, when I came to eat lunch with you, you had barely sat down before you said, "Mommy, can Camryn eat with us?  You know it's our tradition."  Since Camryn ate with us when I came for your birthday lunch last year, we had to do it again.  Not a problem...she is a sweetheart.  She even gave you a hug when it was time to go. 
6. You have quite an appetite.  You have tried several new foods this year: most recently is monte cristos (battered ham, turkey, and cheese sandwiches) which you have begged us to make.  Last Sunday morning after the time change at around 9:30 I came out to the kitchen and you said, "I'm making a buffet."  You had already put on a plate turkey slices, pepperoni, sprinkle cheese, and were in the process of getting a pickle.  You have also become quite the pizza critic.  Daddy and I find it funny that you would much rather go for the chain style pizza like Pizza Hut versus one-of-a-kind pizza that we have been able to find throughout Houston or on vacation. 
7. You are always coming up with new projects to stay busy.  The desk area in the kitchen will be clean one minute, and the next will be littered with paper scraps, glue, tape, scissors, crayons, markers.  All I have to do is follow a trail, and find that you have come up with some new creation, invention, project that will keep you busy for the next few days.  Then it's back to the drawing board!
8. You love old movies.  You used to think black and white was not cool, but at just 9, you have learned to appreciate them.  Last year, when we watched the old A Christmas Carol, you loved it.  Just last night at dinner, you told us that the DVD is in the car because you watched it on the way to Dallas this past summer.  Daddy and I just looked at each other and laughed.   We are anxiously awaiting watching the new version in 3D later today.  You also LOVE It's a Wonderful Life.  We've had several discussions about the lessons to be learned from that movie.  Especially, to appreciate your life and also what a difference you can make in other people's lives.  Even the little things...You have even watched Rear Window and know all about Alfred Hitchcock.  And then of course, is Monster Movie Night that you do every Friday night in September and October with Daddy.
9. You have such a love for Jesus.  Your door is decorated with SEVERAL signs, but my favorite one that you made says: "Don't believe in Jesus?  Then leave".  It reminds me of GOT MILK?...got Jesus?  My most important job as your mommy is to teach you to walk with Him and to grow your faith.  On that, I feel successful, because you are doin' it!!!

You are the best son a mom could ask for. I am so privileged to be your mother and to be able to raise you and watch you grow. I can't even begin to think about a year from today when you are 10. But for now, I am just going to enjoy you being 9.  Happy Birthday, Jacob!  Daddy and I and your sisters love you bunches, buddy! 

My Wish for Jacob

Last year I made a book for Jacob with the lyrics of "My Wish" by Rascall Flatts which is actually the song playing on the music player if your volume is up.  The quality of the photos isn't the best because they were all scanned in.  Birthday post to follow....