Gingerbread House 2011

All in the family, a great Gingerbread House!

14 years ago I was a Pampered Chef lady and I sold enough to earn a stoneware mold for a gingerbread house.  Technically is is a schoolhouse, but no one really cares.  That Christmas we made our first gingerbread house, Cheyenne was four and Savannah was two.  We had so much fun.  Cheyenne was intent on putting on the candy and Savannah was intent on eating the candy.  All the while Cheyenne worked Savannah sat back stuffing her little mouth with her chubby fingers saying "It's bruful mommy, bruful." She couldn't speak clearly for all the candy in her mouth and had colored spit running down both of her sides of her chin.

Well, 14 houses later and Savannah still likes to eat candy, but then so does Cheyenne- particularly the hot tamales.  We have added 2 more children, Sierra and Jonathan.  They have grown up making the houses and last year we invited my nieces to build a house with us.  Katie and Rylie came back again this year and added to the fun.

Jonathan is by my side whenever I am in the kitchen.

That makes my heart happy!

Our Masterpiece

Christmas Outing 2011

The Ross Family 2011

Each year we take a little excursion to do some Christmas "event".  For several years when the older two were little we would go to Marshall, TX.  Then, we did some other events like ICE at the Gaylord Texan or the Polar Express in Grapevine.  Some were more fun than others, but all our outings have been fun.

This year we went back to Marshall.  As best I can remember without getting out the scrapbooks, we haven't been there since Sierra was 18 months old and I was pregnant with Jonathan.  Well, Jonathan is now 10 years old!  My, My, time really can get away from you.  Sierra and Jonathan were very excited about their first ice skating experience.

I have to say, when we were hitting Marshall before it was neat, the courthouse was always a sight to see, but that was about it.  They would put up the ice skating rink and a few other odds and ends but not much more.  That was then.  Now, there is a lot of things for the kids to see.  The lights around the courthouse were set to music and that was awesome!  I really recommend taking the family to Marshall for Christmas fun.  Tonight was cold!  It really felt like Christmas ought to feel.

As for the ice skating.... We had so much fun.  We probably all looked like wounded ducks, but we laughed and laughed.  Savannah took to it pretty quick.  Of course Tony acted as if he did it all the time.  Cheyenne was going great until she busted her knees and called it a night,. I am sure the knot on her knee will heal soon!  Sierra did get it, she said she would do better in a bigger rink since she didn't know how to turn.  As for Jonathan he stuck to it.  By the end, he had it down.  Thankfully he didn't mind all the ice and snow stuck all over him.  I busted with grace twice, its kind of hard to have a complete wipeout when you don't get more than 12 inches away from the wall.  All in all, we did pretty good.  Most everyone looked like we did.  It was easy to pick out those that did not grow up here.

If you get to Marshall, there is a really good Mexican place on the square.  Casa Tamasa was quite good and priced great. 

Mary, Did You Know?

During the Christmas season when we focus on celebrating the birth of our Saviour, Jesus Christ, I can’t help but think of the crucifiction as well. They are inseparable, without either one there would be no salvation and redemption.

For many years I pondered on Mary, what it must have been like for her. The joy of bringing the Son of God into this world. The bitter saddnes of bringing the Son of God into this world. Being the jewish girl that she was, she knew the prophecies, she knew what lay ahead, she knew the sacrifices she and Joseph had already made to get this baby here. This was her son, too. She loved him as any mama loves her baby. Given all of that, I always wondered why she didn’t get more credit. She gave her son as well as God.

God gave his Only son, Mary of course had more children, but did that really mean it was no big deal that she gave Jesus? Then it came to me- when all of the events of Jesus’ death began to happen and as she stood there and watched him die on the cross- as a human, she could do nothing. It was out of her control. She certainly sacrificed, felt the greif, and was probably so angry she could have spit nails, but all said and done she had no control. Jesus was a grown man and he made his choice to follow God’s path and set us all free from eternal death and restore us to our Creator.

Now God, on the other hand, He was almighty God. He could have stopped the pain with a thought. He could have said “enough” and Jesus’ suffering would have been over. As God, he was in control and he had the power. But, He did not. He gave his only son. How much must He love me and you. He could have stopped his child’s suffering, but He saw the big picture- our redemption- and He restrained himself and let Jesus die. What a sacrifice, what hurt. God felt the same pain, grief, and anger as Mary. We are made in His image, we have feelings and emotions so does He.

God gave his only son…. So Celebrate this Christmas- Our Redeemer Lives!

Remembering

One of my magazines came in the mail over the weekend.  As I was thumbing through it- I will read it from cover to cover, but first I have to look at the pictures- an article caught my eye.  The title was something about minimizing stress over the holidays.  This peaked my interest so I stopped perusing the photos to have a quick read.

There were some really good tips.  One of those tips was to have a cup of hot coco verifying my assumption that hot chocolate will make you feel better.  However, none of the helpful bits of information really spoke to the heart of the problem- our schedules are too full to really enjoy the important things!  Now, you might think this is a post headed in the direction of a mutal lamenting over the busyness of things and giving ourselves permission to justify the busyness and change nothing.  You would be wrong.

Life is hard, there are many demands that cannot be shirked, however, there is much that we engage in that has no eternal value.  Eternal value does not only refer to introducing souls to Jesus Christ as their Saviour, however vastly important that is, but it also refers to those things that, when we are dead and gone, still mean something. I want there to be a lot of stuff left when I am gone that really means something

 There are two questions that I ask myself when deciding what goes on to my plate.  The first is one I began asking about 18 years ago with the birth of my first child- "When Cheyenne is grown and looks back at her time at home, what do I want her to remember?"  Now bear in mind, memory is about much more than singular events or activities.  It is about the memory of feelings, the atmosphere of the home, what my actions conveyed to her about herself.  Of course, as other children came to our family the question applied to them as well.  This question drove me and guided the choices I made.  So, when I have to choose between a church Christmas party or having time to make the Ginger Bread House from scratch- that is simple, we make the house, those in the Sunday school class will understand.  And if they don't? Who cares? My children are only here for a short time and then they fly from the nest, that is what matters.  Yes, I might could have arranged things to get both items in, but what will my kids remember?  Will they remember me fully engaged, laughing and relaxed; or will they remember me tense, under presure to get it all done and irritated if they weren't gluing on that candy fast enough?  The atmosphere means more than the activity.  That is what kids remember, isn't that what you remember when you think back to your childhood?

The second question is one that seems a bit morbid on the surface.  "If Tony (any one important can go here) were to be gone tomarow, what would I have wished we had done today?"  Our society is really hard-wired to avoid talking or thinking about death, but in reality, it is one the few things we cannot avoid.  So, if it were to come early, what choice would I make?  If I have to choose between the Lions club meeting or hanging out watching a Charlie Brown Christmas, Charlie Brown Christmas with the family all piled up on the sofa wins out.  If I am feeling bad about missing the meeting, I will have a cup of hot chocolate.  After all, scientist have now proved it makes you feel better!  If I were to lose one of my beloved the next day, would I have been glad that I chose to make one last memory or would I still feel bad about not missing the meeting?  Making memories would be the best thing I could have done.  We need to live as if we were dying- because in fact we are.  This is when life really begins-when we treat it as a treasure that we won't always have.

Now, obviously we all have obligations, like supporting our families, that must be done.  But what I am speaking to is balance.  The world will still function if you stop doing all the activities.  Your child will not suffer from not playing sports.  The honest truth on that one is- more than likely- your kid does not have the ability to play beyond high school.  If he does, he will excel no matter what age he begins to play, so for the sake of sanity sports can wait. And this goes for anything.  4H is something we love, but last year it just about took over our lives!  We had to scale back.

I pray as you read this post, you do not feel condemed.  I want you to feel like someone just handed you a get out of jail free card!  You can get off the merry-go-round.  But you will have to jump, it will not stop.  Enjoy the holidays, they only come once a year, make this a year to REMEMBER!

Time with Tony ranks higher than anything else on my to-do list!