Photo Album Christmas 2019

This will be a photo overload post. You have been warned.

On Christmas Eve Andrew and Katie arrived and we headed over to Dan and Jamie’s for dinner before the Candlelight Service at church.

Christmas Day dawned and Josh and Laura boarded a plane from Seattle to Spokane.

When they arrived at our place we enjoyed some Swedish Pancakes. After pancakes and before Dan and Jamie would arrive Josh, Laura, Andrew and Katie took the short drive to Douglas Falls Grange Park for a Christmas day hike.

Naps were over and Dan, Jamie and the kids arrived for our family Christmas. Auntie Lolo got a good long hug from Addy. Jaymison and Addy’s Granny joined us for our celebration, too.

Before we had our dinner we gathered around the tree and enjoyed our stockings filled with goodies.

After dinner (Prime Rib, Yorkshire Pudding, Creamed Corn, Brussels Sprouts, Fruit salad) and after our Christmas Crackers we gathered around the tree again to open up our gifts to each other.

Before we began opening our gifts, Dear read the Christmas story from Luke chapter 2. I wish I would have gotten a photo of Addy being very still while seated on Uncle Andrew’s lap with her eyes on Gramps for the whole reading. A sweet update, Laura did take a photo of Addy and I’m adding it below. Thank you, Laura!

Let the paper and tissue fly!

Katie pulled out the presents and read the tag to Addy so she could deliver the right gift to each of us.

Jaymison was content for a few minutes in his baby walker but soon ended up in someone’s arms.

Addy was on the move most of the evening.

These well thought out gifts made us all get a good laugh especially the one for Laura that says, “Just the Driver”.

Dan’s gift to his father got the biggest laugh of the night! That’s a good solid fork attached to a lanyard that Dear can wear around his neck. Dear has a pet peeve about wimpy forks that practically bend when you use them and he has frequently complained about wimpy utensils. Dan got this bright idea for this gift to his dad when he passed some solid flatware in a store and he drilled a hole in the handle to attach the fork to the lanyard!

Belly laughs people, belly laughs. So much fun.

A glorious time of celebrating our Savior and the gifts of Christmas.

On Boxing Day we all gathered for our 2nd breakfast of Dear’s famous Swedish Pancakes.

Jaymison gently pulled on the Christmas tree branches.

Addy enjoyed time in her playroom which is also Josh and Laura’s guestroom when they are here. She enjoyed the marble game and looking for things with Gramps’ flashlight.

The kids went home for naps and we were all going to meet up and enjoy our Boxing Day dinner at El Ranchito in Chewelah.

Dear surprised everyone at El Ranchito when he unzipped his vest and revealed his fork on a lanyard around his neck. We had a good round of belly laughs again!!

On the morning of Katie’s birthday (December 27th) we all gathered at Dan and Jamies for waffles and eggs. Dan was our cook of the morning.

Addy enjoyed showing us many of the new toys she and little brother received. Dear and I headed home right after breakfast to prepare for Andrew’s father and his wife’s arrival and so that I could bake Katie’s birthday cake.

Addy wanted to help light the candles and I said no thus this expression found it’s way to her face. Love the furrowed forehead! Another photo fail as I forgot to get a photo with Andrew, Katie and Andrew’s dad. Oye!

On Saturday morning we all gathered at Dan and Jamie’s again and Josh made his famous Huevos Rancheros ala Josh. I left the breakfast early as I was not feeling well and didn’t want to pass anything on to the grands.

Our boys with their beards before Dan shaves his off.

Josh and Laura left to the airport from Dan and Jamie’s. I spent the day at home doing nothing but trying remedies to fight my cold.

Katie and Andrew left early on Sunday morning for home after an egg scramble and packing up their car to the gills with all their gifts and Josh and Laura’s gifts.

A family challenge has been thrown down for us all to commit to some healthy habits before we have the family photo shoot our kids all gifted me with. We plan to take those photos in March or April when we are all in Colville for Addyson’s birthday party or Jaymison’s birthday party.

My goals are to drink more water, take my D3 everyday, walk at least 5 times a week for the length of a sermon, memorize scripture and look into the WW groups in our area and maybe join up with a group.

This morning I finished my Bible reading plan for 2019. I’m researching others and if I don’t find something similar I’ll just carry on again with this 5 day a week program that worked well for me in 2019.

“God’s Word is always true and His promises are sure.” Jack MacArthur in “The Finding of an Old Book”

8 Months Old and Growing…

Time flies when you are growing! Jaymison is now 8 months old.

We all love to see his smile. What’s even more fun is to hear him laugh at his sister’s antics. Belly laughs!

This past weekend is was time for our kids to hunt down their Christmas Tree. Sledding and snow and cutting down a tree were all firsts for JJ.

The little family trudged out on their 20 acres to find the right tree for 2019.

Addy got right in there to help her daddy cut it down.

Back up the hill to the house for Addy’s new favorite drink…

Hot “toe toe”

He doesn’t seem too sure about this white stuff.

Sister will help him enjoy the snow! Next year he’ll want to pull the sled.

Do you have any snow in your neck of the woods? Looks like we are going to get some more snow on Thursday and then on Friday and the weekend temps are going up so we will have a lot of slush. Tomorrow will be a good day to stay in and finish up my wrapping.

Today we bought our Christmas Rib Roast on a good sale at $6.97 a pound! The butcher cut us a nice center section and trimmed it and cut the ribs away and then tied them all back on for good roasting. We’re set for the meat and we bought some other things for our traditional Christmas dinner. Lots of hams and turkeys were being purchased while we were at the store.

Come Lord Jesus, Come…

We wait with expectation in this season of Advent.

I was happy to put all the Fall decor away. Today I pulled out all the Christmas bins and am starting slowly to put things up here and there. The Christmas Carol music is on the piano.

Addy loves to help whenever and wherever she can.

On Sunday the guys offered to watch Addy and JJ while the girls got in a couple hours of Christmas shopping without them tagging along. When we came out of North40 snow had begun to fall.

JJ survived well without his mommy close by and even had a wee nap.

We said our goodbyes to Josh and Laura and then Addy and JJ went home for their afternoon naps.

Have you started decorating for Christmas? Are you sending cards this year?

God’s Artwork

I’m thankful for the beauty all around me. One morning this last week when I went out for a drive into town the Camry caught my attention.  The detail of the ice on the car was like beautiful artwork or carvings.

This Saturday morning we are already at 31 degrees but they are predicting a snow flurry this morning. Sunday and Monday are the warmest days this coming week but just above freezing. The rest of the week is at freezing and below. Hope our travelers do not have any problems coming over the Cascade mountain range.

We freshened up some rooms in our country bungalow and I’ll share some of those changes next week.

I’m itching to decorate for Christmas but I’ll hold off till after Thanksgiving.

Speaking of Thanksgiving and Christmas, I have a tip for you. I needed to send off some Thanksgiving cards to loved ones and popped into the Dollar Tree in Colville. Don’t forget that they have a nice variety of cards all the time and some are even 2 for a $1.00. That beats the $3.99 and up you have to pay elsewhere these days. Your welcome.

I’m attaching a few photos here just to keep up with family doings. Our grands are still enjoying time on the other side of the mountains at Uncle Josh and Auntie Lolo’s house. They are coming back home on Monday.

JJ is pulling himself up and standing and he’s so proud of himself.

Hi mommy, I can see you better from here.

New adventures await. Never a dull moment for his parents and sister! Soon he’ll be chasing Addy around.

Thank you, Auntie Lolo, for all these great photos you text us!

Aunts and Uncles

In this Thanksgiving focused season I’m thankful for aunts and uncles who love to spend time with their niece and nephew.

Last Saturday a trip to the Bellevue Children’s Museum included all Addy and Jaymison’s Uncles and Aunties. (Not counting Great Uncles and Aunties)

Uncle Josh sticking his head in and…

Jaymison enjoyed watching for a while…

Thank you dear Lord for Uncles and Aunties and Mommies and Daddies. Thank you that our grandchildren have so much love, nurturing, modeling, teaching and guidance in their upbringing. May they all know (our grands and our kids) that God loves them and cares for them. Thank you God that first and foremost you have shown us your love by giving us a Savior who died for our sins, Jesus Christ your son. Thank you that we can have forgiveness of our sins because of His sacrifice for us on the cross. And because of this sacrifice we have hope of new life in Him and with you when our sins are forgiven and we live in obedience to your living Word. Thank you God almighty in Jesus name I pray…

1 John 4: 7-12:

Beloved, let us love one another, for love is from God, and whoever loves has been born of God and knows God. Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love. In this the love of God was made manifest among us, that God sent his only son into the world, so that we might live through him. In this is love, not that we have loved God but that he loved us and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. No one has ever seen God; if we love one another; God abides in us and his love is perfected in us.

1 Peter 1: 22-25:

Having purified your souls by your obedience to the truth for a sincere brotherly love, love one another earnestly from a pure heart, since you have been born again, not of perishable seed but of imperishable, through the living and abiding word of God; for

“All flesh is like grass and all its glory like the flower of grass. The grass withers, and the flower falls, but the word of the Lord remains forever.”

And this word is the good news that was preached to you.

Thanks Be to God…

I’m so thankful to God for giving us the joy of grandchildren. What fun it is to enjoy seeing them grow. Our earnest prayer is that God will call them and save them. That they will understand their need to confess their sins and be born again into God’s family. Oh how I love them…

Thank you to Laura for capturing this moment. Oh how I love you, too.

We are heading to Spokane early today for a day of shopping at our big box and other stores that we do not have in Colville. I’m hoping to find some Christmas gifts and stocking gifts. Dear needs some things for the shop that we will pick up at the Home Depot.

I haven’t had the time to share till now that I hit my first deer on Friday of last week. It was better than it could have been since the deer decided to turn and I didn’t hit her head on but grazed her on the driver’s side of my car. My brakes worked exceptionally well and my airbags did not deploy. Praise the Lord. I hit her on our road about halfway to our home. She was able to run off into the woods. I’m so thankful that my first encounter was one that ended so well. We are seriously considering some deer guards (brush and grille guards) to put on our car. You know you live in the country when you consider these accessories to your car!

All the Love

 

A week ago Sunday after we enjoyed the Sounders championship game Josh and Laura invited our dear friends over for dinner. Addy had so much fun with her friends. They enjoyed dress up and other games during the evening. We all ate together and Addy was sad when her friends had to go home. Some of my bloggy friends had the privilege of praying for David Daniel because of his very early birth and for all the complications along the way. He is such a sweet boy and we continue to pray for God’s touch on his life and for his whole family.

Hope you’ve all had a good weekend.

7 Months Old

I’m waiting for the official 7 Month Old photos to be messaged to me but in the meantime here is our 7 month old 4 days shy.

We got the official 7 month old photos so I’m adding them here.

He’s enjoying rice cereal with peanut butter, squash and other pureed veggies. Applesauce is good, too. He is pulling himself up when there is something he can grip. His crawling skills are getting good and fast. Chords hold a curiosity that we all have to curb. His smiles are genuine and sweet. He can spot his mommy in a crowd. He loves singing, being sung to, and he’ll chime in with sounds that seem like he’s trying to sing, too.

Baba loves you, Jaymison Joshua!