Ethan has had a very eventful week with his Nana & Poppa.  My mom (Nana) keeps him Tuesday/Wednesday/Thursday while I’m at work, and they have a great time.  But Ethan was especially excited about this week because my dad was off work so they all got to hang out together.  On Tuesday, my amazing parents brought homemade tomato basil soup, pineapple/walnut bread, cheese muffins, raspberry butter, cinnamon struesel muffins and peanut butter bread up to my office – and they brought enough for everyone!  They surprised me with Ethan walking in the door with a basket full of cups, bowls, spoons, etc.  Then they let Ethan help them make the same delivery to our church office staff. 

On Wednesday, they took him to his very first movie!  They went to the mall to see Charlotte’s Web and said he did great.  I’m sure riding the escalator up to the theater was one of his favorite things about the trip.  When I picked him up that afternoon he kept talking about the pig and spider and the big movie.  They also made a detour in the mall so Ethan could ride the carousel. 

Then on Thursday, my parents were going to make candy deliveries to all of the widows/widowers from our church.  I love that they just take Ethan along with them.  They went to about 30 houses that day, and said he had the best time.  They bought him a little Santa hat and practiced saying “Merry Christmas” before they left to prep him.  Those ladies and men LOVED Ethan!  Mom said he would get the sack and run up to the door to knock and just say “Merry Twismas!”  I’m sure it had to make some of their days to have a little guy come to their door with a gift and a smile.

So, Mom and Dad, thank you for not only taking great care of Ethan and loving him, but for helping teach him that there is more to life than playing with your toys, watching Mickey Mouse, and being entertained.  Thank you for teaching Ethan about gratitude, giving, sharing, and the spirit of Christmas.  He loves both of you so much.

A few weeks ago I FINALLY decided on how I wanted to do Rachel’s room (I think by this time with Ethan I had his room completely finished…topped off with a packed hospital bag), and the winner went to pink (it’s really a rose color) and chocolate brown. Clay started painting her room today and I’m so excited! We’re getting wood floors put in 1/2 of our downstairs Tuesday – including Rachel’s room – so this will really make the colors stand out. But I digress…

A few friends from college – we call ourselves the domestic divas – get together every year at the Kennedy farm for crafts, food, scrapbooking, etc. Well, this year Cara was so sweet to make the diva weekend a party for Rachel. Everyone brought pink and brown scrapbook supplies and goodies for me and now I have no excuse for not getting started on her book. You should see all the paper, stickers, letters, etc. that I have – and it’s all so girly!!! Not that there’s anything wrong with Ethan’s scrapbook, but it was nice to see something other than blue, green, red or brown stripes and polka dots. We stayed up late Sunday night icing cakes and cookies, making journals, scrapbooking, eating, and just catching up. Then we woke up Monday morning and did more of the same.

Girls, thank you for making that time so special for Rachel and me. Won’t be long before the newest little diva is here!

I’m not sure how many people are as Christmas music obsessed as I am, but I absolutely love it. It actually annoys me when I get in the car and realized that Clay has been in there last and has changed the radio station because I can’t imagine anyone wanting to listen to anything else in the month of December…(now that everyone knows how crazy I am). Well, a couple of weeks ago I heard a song that I had completely forgotten about from last year – Joseph’s Lullaby by Mercy Me. If you haven’t heard it, you need to. Here are the lyrics:

Go to sleep my Son
This manger for your bed
You have a long road before You
Rest Your little head

Can You feel the weight of Your glory?
Do You understand the price?
Or does the Father guard Your heart for now
So You can sleep tonight?

Go to sleep my Son
Go and chase Your dreams
This world can wait for one more moment
Go and sleep in peace

I believe the glory of Heaven
Is lying in my arms tonight
But Lord, I ask that He for just this moment
Simply be my child

Go to sleep my Son
Baby, close Your eyes
Soon enough You’ll save the day
But for now, dear Child of mine
Oh my Jesus, Sleep tight

When I heard this a couple of weeks ago in the car I really did pull over and just listen to the words because the song hit me like a ton of bricks. I really only ever think of Jesus as a grown man who taught others and was crucified for our sins. I’ve been thinking lately about how it must have been for Mary and Joseph to hold the Savior in their arms at night and sing him to sleep. I’ve been singing this song around the house and then looking at Ethan trying to comprehend what Jesus must have been like as a 2 year old. Did he ask for milk 100 times in a row without even taking a breath? Did he love to throw things? Did he think it was hilarious to run around in circles until you’re so dizzy that you fall over? Did he just stop sometimes and give his mom a big kiss for no reason at all? It has been humbling to me to think of Joseph and Mary taking care of their baby boy…knowing they would have to give him up. Really, if you haven’t heard the song, download it…or if you’re local – listen to 94.9 and you’ll catch it.

We finally have our Christmas tree and decorations up! I love our house all decorated for Christmas – the smells, the lights, the colors – everything! I’ll have to take some pictures when we get the final touches done. Clay came back from his Vegas trip late Friday night, so we spent all Saturday morning decorating the tree and getting everything out. Ethan was hilarious with the ornaments – with every ornament he would say, “Oooohhh, more! Christmas ball!” And then he would hang them on the tree. I’m not sure if it’s all 2 year olds or just ours, but he is fascinated with anything tall or high. So, he of course wanted to put all of his ornaments at the top of the tree. We have a few too many now at the top, but that’s the way he likes it so it’s okay by me.

Saturday night was our Bible class Christmas party and it was so much fun. We started out at my parents’ house for appetizers and of course everything was perfect. The house was decorated beautifully, the Christmas music was playing, and the food was excellent. Mom and Dad – you did a great job and we all had a great time. We stayed there for about an hour, and then all 25 of us loaded up and went to another house where 4 of the widowed/single ladies at our church had the main course. The lady who hosted built her house in 1961 and it was an amazing place. I just love the feel of those older houses and how “lived in” they are. From there we all went to the Gaylord Texan to see the ice show. If you haven’t been, I would highly recommend it – mainly because Texans don’t ever get to see anything like that. They give you a big parka to wear before you go in because it’s 9 degrees in there. You walk through rooms and rooms of ice sculptures (hopefully I can get some pictures up soon – a friend has them on her camera), and then the last room has 3 ice slides. Obviously I didn’t slide, but most of the group did and I think I had just as much fun watching them. It was a great bonding time for our Bible class.

Then yesterday we darted out of church and headed up to McKinney for a Christmas party with our old small group from Prestoncrest. I knew that I missed those friends, but had no idea how much I missed them until we were all back together again. When we first started meeting there was only one couple with a baby (and now they’re pregnant with their 4th), and so we all really bonded through our first pregnancies, buying our first homes, changing jobs, etc. I pray that even though Clay and I live an hour away now, we can still get together every now and again. I’m kicking myself for not getting any group photos. But I did get a few good ones of Ethan because the lighting was so good in Kirk and Sonal’s living room. Ellisons – thank you for hosting yesterday and for including us in the party…you don’t know how nice it was for us to be with all of you guys again.

So, after putting up decorations and 2 Christmas parties, we’re definitely in the holiday spirit. Now if I can just finish up my shopping and get the presents wrapped, I can just relax and enjoy the rest of the month!