Goodbye 2008. Hello 2009!

Such a great picture of my boys. Both are so happy and we feel so blessed!

As we head into 2009, My husband and I need to stop and count our blessings.
It has been quite a year!
We have survived:
a dream job interview/process
selling our house
buying a house
having another baby
moving
remodeling our new house
starting new jobs
older son starting kindergarten
daycare for the baby
directing a play for the first time
finding another new daycare for the baby
blizzard conditions in small town NE
And the holidays (which its amazing anyone survives)

We feel very, very blessed with all our family and friends.
Thank you all for your support, prayers, and encouragement throughout 2008!

Things I learned over the past week....

I have realized that Christmas is a time of giving, a time of love, and a time of innocence. But...I learned a bit more.

Things I learned:
1. Boys like to play boy things.
2. One does not share their Husker toys.
3. Not all gatherings are fun.
4. Babies teething during the holidays really puts a damper on things.
5. Santa does come to the house, but the excitement isn't always there.
6. Christmas goodies disappear quite quickly.
7. Laundry piles up fast.
8. It's amazing how quickly friends come for a visit then have to go home.
9. 5 boys, 1 girl, and 2 babies sure can make a mess!
10. 1 evening out without the kids is not enough. I need another night!
11. Cleaning up the toy mess isn't as bad as it used to be.
12. Waking up in the morning is nice when you don't have to go back to work till 1/5/08.
13. Looking forward to more time relaxing!
14. Small town after Christmas sales isn't as stressful as it would be in the big city.
15. A smile or laugh from one of my sons goes a very long way!
16. A few hours of fun in the snow brings memories that last a long time!
17. Looking forward to the thaw more!
18. Amazed on how we survived the weekend.
19. Ready to take down the decorations more this year than previous.
20. I really love all 3 of my boys....and appreciate them even more after this past holiday.
21. 2 year old girls can sit if they with the right person to sit with.
22. Crawling babies move quickly.
23. Pictures from the past are precious commodities.
24. Still missing the Baby Einstin movie box.
25. Melting snow is a blessed sight.

Hope you all had a great Christmas!

Silly Santa

So, today my son and I went after Christmas shopping to catch some deals. One of the stops was the local jeweler, so they could check my ring and make sure all was ok. While they were taking care of my ring, another jeweler was asking my son some questions (conversation as follows).

"Did you have a good Christmas?"
"Yes, I did"
"Did Santa come to your house?"
"Yes."
"What did he bring?"
"An Airplane."
"Anything else?"
"He gave me a train track. But he was too lazy to set the whole thing up."

Straight No Chaser

Last Christmas, my friend, M, posted a link to this group. It was so cool. I went back recently and found this Christmas song link was gone.....so I searched for another. It's below. The song is cool and all done acapella. Enjoy!

Merry Christmas!

Straight No Chaser: The 12 Days Of Christmas

Screendoor on a submarine

I was checking out my brother-in-law's blog and he had a Rich Mullins clip. Well....I thought, "why not go searching". So, I did. I found the cuppie game we used to play at camp. For you former NLOMers....You might find this interesting. I've done this many times.......I have never seen this clip before.

Rich Mullins and the cuppie game

Thoughts for December 5

I check out the blogs of my family and friends and caught this picture. Isn't it just so sweet and innocent (just like me). =)

We haven't blogged much lately. After the past few months of stressful planning and such for the One Act Play Competitions, our older son's activities, school functions/activities, Learning Community weekends, visiting family in SD, keeping from being exhausted with a baby, move, new jobs, bills, and all the things that go with family, I was eager to find a picture to calm my nerves and help me come to a sense of peace. This picture hit home. Just a simple set of flowers. Nothing too fancy and yet so soothing.

To those who are curious as to what's been going on. You will find our Christmas letter packed to the rim. But to say the least, things are good. It's nice to know that there are simple things in life to keep us calm in the midst of all the commotion and bring us all back to sense of reality. Life goes on.....even though it is among the noise, the whistles/bells, and all the things that gets thrown at you.

Life is good.

A FUN thought for the day

My friend posted on his blog about his son singing along to one of his favorite songs
(Lutheran Husker).
It reminded me of my son and husband and I on our way back home from a trip to Omaha
about a month ago.
We had the radio turned up as loud as we could with this song:Bon Jovi - Lost Highway

I was SO VERY happy and proud!!
Not only had my 5 year old requested the song,
but he sang almost every word of the song and at the top of his lungs with both of his parents.
Goosebumps and chills just made me want to savor the moment forever.

My husband says that I will burn in hell for teaching my son these songs,
but I'm willing to take my chances! =)