my true love gave to me–

Five loads of pukey laundry

Four children sleeping on the kitchen floor near the throw-up bowl

Three hours of sleep

Two cranky parents

And one husky who was mad he missed his walk and pooped on all the Christmas toys.

Good thing Jesus is our reason for celebration–and He’s eternally good!

We’ve been baking cookies

crafting

playing with our many nativities

working through our Advent materials

and spending time with good friends.

Lord, as we celebrate your birth on earth, let us turn our every smile and sweet moment to you in glorious praise.

Chuck’s grandfather passed along his Lionel trains to Chuck’s dad, who passed them along to Chuck. He hasn’t done much with them since his father’s death, nearly 5 years ago. But this Christmas he’s beginning to pass on his love for trains to his own children.

Brad was so excited, he asked Chuck to wake him up every morning before he leaves for work so they can run them together.

Chuck’s been collecting train sets since we’ve been married. He has a set for each child. I pray one day they sit around their tree with their own children, showing them how their daddy taught them to run the trains.

While hubby and I enjoyed adult company to honor our Sunday School volunteers (he teaches fourth grade boys), our children were treated to something I’d never try at home

Shaving Cream Creations

I always feel refreshed after I hang with my home school moms. We understand each other very, very (did I say very?) well. A few nights ago a dozen or so of my favorite home school moms joined me for a Christmas party. We chatted, and ate, and chatted, and ate. And toward the end of the evening, we shared some music and prayed for one another. What a tremendous blessing, full of encouragement. Thank you, God for this wonderful group of women!

My little guy hit the jackpot on his birthday.

We stumbled upon cake and punch when we stopped into the library.

We nearly had a private showing of Astro Boy at the local movie theater.

We even let him put his feet up to get comfy. (BIG treat.)

When we arrived at Friendly’s, our favorite entertainer (Applejohn) was there making snowman balloons, and Friendly’s had just rolled out their winter Snowman Sundae.

To top it all off, the new movie he’d been waiting for, The Dog Who Saved Christmas, was on television. We couldn’t have planned the day more perfectly if we’d tried.

Happy 6th Birthday, Brian!!

Brian had a bunch of puppies over to celebrate his sixth birthday.

They played all the games puppies like to play:

Tug of War

Scooby Says

And greeting other puppies.

They also built prototypes for doggie  parks, doggy hospitals, and doggy obstacle courses.

For kibbles and bits, they scarfed up puppy-paw cupcakes and ice cream…

out of real doggie bowls.

We didn’t have time to post the fire hydrant on the bathroom door or pretend to pee on trees. Well, maybe we had time, but Mama censored things a bit. But these little puppies are all worn out and ready for their warm, soft puppy beds.

It was 70 degrees on Sunday! After a yummy post-church lunch at Italian Sensations, we ventured over to Bel Air Family Golf. What a great place.

We strolled our way through the miniature golf course,

and hit a bucket of balls on the range afterward.

What a fantastic day! I loved hearing the kids hit the sweet spot. And they were so proud of themselves. Now they want golf lessons. Anyone know of any good ones in Harford County?

If I lived in the Castle, I’d start my day with my Bible and a cup of hot tea in this little cubby.

Then I’d join the children for breakfast at our own special table,

where we could look through this arch

into the ballroom and the fire started on chilly mornings.

After schooling, I’d grab a novel and a mug of hot cider and read on this porch

while they traversed the land,

discovering all sorts of special spaces made just for curious children.

Maybe I’d grab my journal and settle into this seat, 

and look up into this.

Maybe I’d invite a friend for tea and chatting here,

and we’d spend our quiet time taking in this view.

On rainy days, I’d encourage the children to explore the wood-lined room under the stairs

while I ran my hands over the smooth wood of the parlor.

If I lived in the Castle, life would be magical for us all.

I made a new friend at the Greater Philadlephia Christian Writers Conference this summer.

She and her husband are missionaries with CLC Publications just outside Philly. She invited me to visit with my family, and I couldn’t resist the offer.

We started our visit with a tour of the U.S. Mint–no photos allowed there. We learned all about how coins are made and actually watched the process happening live. How cool!

Friday night we toured the CLC publishing house. What fun to physically see the Editors’ offices and the old print room–and everything in-between. I asked to see the infamous ”slush pile,” but these days it’s more of an electronic thing.

We spent Saturday in downtown Philly strolling the same cobblestones great men in history walked.

The  line was very long to see the Liberty Bell, so we took our photo with the display at the Visitor’s Center instead, opting to come back on a weekday to see the actual bell.

We spent the majority of the day in the Franklin Institute science museum. (I’ll add another post with those photos soon.)

Sunday we worshiped with our friends and toured the Castle. The castle was my favorite place in Philly.

We had a fantastic time with new friends, in a new place. I hope we can get back there again next autumn.