Merry Christmas

Of course I haven't had much time to update my blog, with Christmas and all the busy-ness, not to mention that Carys spilled juice on my keyboard and broke it (!) and I can't find my camera cable to download pics (i will find you!).

For Christmas I wanted to post an entry from Pastor Greg Laurie's blog a couple years ago, that always stuck with me and made me love the beautiful song "I heard the bells on Christmas Day" even more. Below the story I'm posting the song if you'd like to hear it.
I hope anyone reading this has a wonderful Christmas, and that you are blessed by the joy and reality of Christ's birth!
"Great is the mystery of Godliness, that God was manifested in the flesh"
1 Timothy 3:16

Greg's blog 12/24/08:

As we prepare to celebrate Christmas Eve, I thought I would tell you a story. It’s a story about one of the most beloved of all the Christmas songs we sing this time of the year.

The sadness of the holidays
One of the most familiar songs we hear during the holidays is “I Heard the Bells on Christmas Day,” by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, and the story behind it is interesting.

In 1860, Longfellow was at the peak of his success as a poet. Abraham Lincoln had just been elected President, giving hope to many.

But things soon turned dark for America and for Longfellow personally. The Civil War began the next year, and Longfellow’s wife died in a tragic accident in their home. Longfellow suffered severe burns on his hands and face while trying to save his wife.

He was so badly burned that he could not even attend her funeral.

Sorrow at Christmas
In his diary for Christmas Day 1861, he wrote, “How inexpressibly sad are the holidays.” In 1862, the toll of war began to mount, and in his diary for that year Longfellow wrote, “A merry Christmas say the children, but that is no more for me.”

In 1863, his son–who had run away to join the Union army–was severely wounded and came home in December. There is no entry in Longfellow’s diary for that Christmas.

A new Christmas song is born
Longfellow wanted to pull out of his despair, so he decided to try to capture the joy of Christmas in verse. He began:

I heard the bells on Christmas day

Their old familiar carols play,

And wild and sweet

The words repeat

Of peace on earth, good-will to men.

As he came to the third stanza, he was stopped by the thought of the condition of his beloved country. The Battle of Gettysburg was not long past. Days looked dark, and he probably asked himself the question, “How can I write about peace on earth, goodwill to men in this war-torn country, where brother fights against brother, and father against son?”

God is not dead
But he kept on going, and wrote in the sixth stanza:

And in despair I bowed my head:

“There is no peace on earth,” I said:

“For hate is strong,

And mocks the song

Of peace on earth, good-will to men.”

But then, catching an eternal perspective and the real message of Christmas and Christ Himself, he wrote in the final stanza:

Then pealed the bells more loud and deep:

“God is not dead, nor doth he sleep!

The Wrong shall fail,

The Right prevail,

With peace on earth, good-will to men.”

That’s right, “God is not dead, nor doth He sleep!”

If you want a blessed Christmas Eve tonight, focus on that.


Casting Crowns Live

Nailed It!

I went to the most amazing show at the House of Blues on Sunday night to see Needtobreathe, one of my absolute favorite bands, and they were just totally wonderful, soulfull goodness and I loved every second of it. Six months pregnant and my feet were killing me but I would have stood there for another 2 hours listening to these guys. If you haven't heard their music please do yourself a favor and pick up The Outsiders cd. The lead singer Bear has the most amazing voice, oh man, they just scratch me right where I itch! I found this clip on you tube of the acoustic song they did near the end of their set. This isn't the exact show I went to, but its the same version they did last month.

Let It Snow!

Here she is doing her best to eat snowflakes....
More to come from Thanksgiving in Idaho!

Wish List

Quite possibly the coolest diaper bag by OiOi...though I'm not sure how long it would hold up!


Cuisinart Ice Cream Maker.....because ice cream rules


J Crew Bootcut Cords....i wish they made maternity clothes, but its probably better for our bank account that they don't


Chevron Rug from West Elm...I would put this under our dining table


Steve Madden Buckkie boots, I would sport these all winter!

Surprise!

My mom turned 60 last week. We managed to pull off a surprise party for her at our house. It was a lot of fun putting together. The decor was a sort of rustic theme, food highlights were pulled pork sandwiches (from Johnny Rebs...yum) with hawaiian rolls that my professional sandwich maker (Nathan) so graciously put together, and cupcakes from the Frosted Cupakery on 2nd street. Yes, yes. My fabulous friend Andrea took pictures with her fabulous camera....check out her blog here, she's for hire!

the reveal...she turned bright red, good times!

Pumpkin cupcakes with cream cheese frosting...it's a win-win people

I found this yummy apple cider punch recipe at bhg.com, google it!

the food table...we put together these chip cones with scrapbook paper. More trouble than they were worth? Possibly. Fun to do arts and crafts with my husband? Definitely.

Collage by Andi

(sorry for the closeup of my mug but look at Carys' hair, and my adorable niece Sydney!)

I love how sweet this picture is, my mom with my nephew Derek.

Watching the slide show....tear. Nothing like a photo montage set to good music. I used Matt Redman's "You Never Let Go" and Matt Maher's "Hold Us Together", two of my absolute faves.

one more decor pic, sorry I can't resist. stems in clear water, is there anything better?

Me, my mom, and my bro

Confession Time

Anyone who reads this blog probably knows that I am not a girly girl. At all. I like to watch Sportscenter probably more than my husband does. I grew up with a shrine to Michael Jordan hanging above my bed. I didn’t discover eyebrow tweezing until 12th grade (exhibit 1: my junior year picture, just take my word for it). My varsity jacket was the boy version, not the “cheesy” one with the zippered hood. Back in elementary school, I had a knotted hairball on the back of my head so gnarly that it took the Super Cuts girl an hour to comb it out. I’m pretty sure this happened multiple times. Those poor Super Cuts girls, they probably drew straws when they saw me coming! Maybe it’s because I was so tall growing up, liked to play sports, and felt awkward, that I never felt like I fit in with girls that well. I was that girl who was friends with boys. Yes I did have some amazing girl friends, but I was so not the girly one.
Long story short (too late!), along the way from then to now, I think I have gotten much better in the girly department. I do love to shop, I like makeup and I’d like to think that I have some form of my own style. But still, I always dreamed that I would be raising boys. I would have a couple sons, and then maybe throw a daughter in there just for fun. I had it all planned out, didn’t you know that God? So there I was in 2008, pregnant with my first boy, right? I vividly remember the ultrasound tech telling me, “it looks like you have a little princess here!” I thought there must be some mistake. But I hated the feeling of being disappointed when I had this amazing miracle growing in my belly. Then a few months later I met the 2nd love of my life and I couldn’t believe how blessed I was. My beautiful, sassy, hilarious daughter Carys Jordan (yes, named after that Jordan), I wouldn’t trade her for anything in the entire world. I really do love having a daughter!

So now in 2010, I was ready to have a son. OK Lord, I told him, you taught me a great lesson with my daughter and now I know you were right all along, so now gimme that boy!….right? This time my doctor even told me, the heartbeat sounds like a boys because it’s slower, I felt different this time around, heartburn and other stuff, it must be a boy. I was all pumped up, and there we are looking at the baby’s legs spread eagle on the ultrasound….ain’t nothing going on down there except 3 little lines and this baby is a GIRL too! I felt like a terrible mama yet again, I should be really excited! I cried in the parking lot while Nathan hugged me, I couldn’t believe I reacted this way. What I was acting like was a spoiled brat who doesn’t know what is good for them. The next 2 days I kept thinking about the baby I wasn’t going to have, more than the baby that I was having. Oh it sounds so mean when I read that! Now I know that the Lord is showing me something about His will, that it is ALWAYS better than ours. I know this sounds like Christianity 101, but its something that is truly learned when you are faced with a certain reality. Easy to say, but not always easy to take. It was my pride that led me to think that I know how my life is supposed to go, and this pride is truly ingrained in our flesh. We can’t overcome it without HIS help. And He is also telling me that I am girly, I am His daughter, and I am not defined by anything but that.

I am so thankful that God always gives us another chance, when we are repentant after acting like complete fools. His mercies really are new every morning. I started to think about women who can’t even conceive a child, who am I to be even thinking this way at all? I think about how much fun I have with Carys, dressing her, snuggling with her and decorating her room…..and how much I just absolutely adore her. How she loves tutus and kitties, dinosaurs and elephants.

And I rejoice at the thought of the 3rd love of my life that is coming my way.

It's a girl....again!

I'm not going to lie, I am still in shock that we are expecting another girl! Looks like the Lord's will for me is to raise some adorable, lovely young ladies. I have so many lessons to teach them: be bold in your decorating, aqua/red or orange/pink are good color combos, retail is for suckers, the Yankees stink....

Maybe something in me knew because a while back I saved this picture of a cool shared girls room that I just loved. Now this is pink done right...and the portraits are my favorite part.
(from online magazine Lonny)