Christmas Eve/Day 2018

I love this man!  He is helping in the kitchen and making his favorite snack.  As I was rinsing and getting the seeds out of the jalapeños I started coughing and chocking and couldn't stop as I was inhaling the heat from them.

So Ben came in and took over :)

Presenting "Rats" yes that is what they are called....not sure why but they are very yummy and he grew up with these delicious little guys.

(jalapeños, cream cheese, wrapped in bacon and baked)

Christmas Eve we get silly and play games together.

I love seeing my kids have fun and get along with each other too.

I love these three so very much!!!  I'm truly a blessed mom.

silly sisters!

silly Sara!

Christmas Eve is always about yummy munchies!

The after math of Christmas no matter if you have a ton to open or just a few or how old your kids are there is always a mess lol.

Our Christmas Dinner!

We did Mexican food!

It was great family time!

He gathered His angels

Yesterday on Facebook I discovered a very sweet dear friend of mine went to be with the Lord.  She was delight, a bubble of joy, a light of love God's love shining bright where ever she went.  She shared God's love and always lived thankfully in her heavenly father.  Always had a huge beaming smile to go with her huge, tight hug of love and care.

No matter how much time went between when I'd see her she would take that moment to touch in with her joyful spirit and love on you at that time and pray for you.  she would even send her hugs and love online through facebook and her page that she shared and posted encouraging, inspirational quotes and prayers of God's love.  She did her best to bring the joy of the Lord into your life even for just a moment.

She was an inspiration! I will always cherish you Ms. Roni--I love you and I will miss you.  I know you are alright and better than ever and running and dancing with our Lord, our heavenly father and savior.

Matthew 24:31 NLT
And he will send out his angels with the mighty blast of a trumpet, and they will gather his chosen ones from all over the world--from the farthest ends of the earth and heaven.

I found this poem that I thought was perfect.

Precious Memories

I am gone, but please don't weep or grieve with great despair

For I am  now with Jesus Heaven's beauty I now share

Try to look beyond today for there's much for you to do

God has many blessings waiting on this earth for you

And think on precious memories until the day we'll be

Together in God's Heaven for all eternity.

This morning I read online once again.....another sweet and special lady left us to go be the Lord.  Her name was Meg Dawson.  I didn't know her as well personally but I knew of her through stories and others that had friendships with her.  I did meet her once and you could see the glow of the Lord radiantly beaming off of her. 

My prayers are with the loved ones of these two beautiful woman.  Grieving is not something we can ignore and I pray that the Lord will be with all healing their hearts but comfort in the Lord is something we can feel and hold onto.  I pray that all will feel His great comfort in their lives as they miss these two beautiful ladies.

I'm grateful to have met and known His precious daughters.

Gifts, Thoughtfulness, and Kindness

My mom has always done an awesome job at picking out the perfect card, with the best words at the right time!  Always!  It was a beautiful Christmas card from my sweet little momma :) She knows how to put a smile on my face and warmth in my heart.

This card was surprise.  Its from a friend that I don't know very well but has been in my life in a positive way.  When we do run into each other we talk a ton and she is so uplifting and full of joy too.

This year was my 2nd Christmas at my new job.  It was a great year and I continue to enjoy my job and I have yet to complain.  Working where I work really is like a family more than a team, good people to work with and good clients too.  Last year I enjoyed generous gifts of gift cards from a couple of the advisors.  This year wasn't any different.  I'm thankful for the generous gifts and thoughtfulness.

I wanted to show my appreciation for the year with gifts.  I had big plans but ended up keeping it simple and small.  I ran out of time and money, mostly money but I quickly realized that the littlest gifts are sometimes the best and can really express thankfulness and appreciation better than a huge gift.  There are three other hot tea drinkers in the group so I wanted to get each a new mug with some tea in it, instead I bought three different types of teas and gave each with a little bow and ribbon a few of each type.  It was a hit!  They loved the gift, one even took a picture of where she placed it in her tree and shared it with me.   I found a really cute mug with a camel on it with a Christmas scene on it.  I wanted to fill it with his favorite coffee from his favorite coffee shop but ende up just giving him the mug with a candy cane in it.  He loved it!  He was so excited about the camel and how detailed it was and that it had two humps just like his.  

It was a nice reminder that a-little can go a long way and it was great to see the excitement and the happy reactions from the ones I gave too.

I didn't do much for the kids either this year.  Some of it was money but some of it was they are older and two of them have jobs and get things they want or need.  I did get a few things they didn't know about and they were very pleased.  My heart was happy!

I gave Ben a card and wrote a little note to him.  He gave me a huge long lingering hug, kissed me and told me thank you.

Gift giving can be a powerful thing and it doesn't take much of a gift to give either.

Thankful for the reminder :)

Sweet 16 pt.2

Part 2 of Sweet 16 begins with the next day, Saturday the 8th being her actual birthday.  Her friends spent the night, while they slept I got up and took some of the left over decorations that Karlee left behind and decorated the dining room area to surprise Sara with a Birthday Breakfast!

A few of her favorite things, bacon, cinnamon toast and fruit.

I gave her a necklace.

Look at that silly smile on that silly beautiful young woman.

The rest of the day she spent being a lazy teenager and then eventually she hung out with another friend later that took her out for sushi.  I went out and about by myself to do a tiny bit of Christmas shopping.

It was a good day and a good weekend.  Now moving on to whatever the next adventure holds for this 16 year old......first stop is getting her drivers license and then.....Lord help us!!

Sara Sweet 16 pt.1

Last weekend was Sara's birthday, on December 8th!  My youngest, my baby, my baby cakes, my Sara bear........16!!!! Crazy!  We started celebrating her on Friday night and into the rest of the weekend.

Look at that sweet face!  Look at that smile in every single picture!  I love her smile and the light that shines from her, she really is my sunshine!

Karlee surprised her by decorating her room so that after she came home from school she would find it this way.  Sara was so surprised!

Her dad and her grandparents sent flowers to my work for Sara.  Sara loved them!

Friday evening we met up with Kyle, Karlee and two of Sara's friends, Matty and Caylinn to enjoy her favorite place, Wild Flower.

After dinner we went home for a little bit when they decided that they wanted to go to Little America to take cute pictures of them with the pretty light.  So we did that, it was cold but fun.

My beautiful 16 year old daughter.

Went home, got cozy warm and ready to unwind for a bit before calling it a day.

December-The Beauty of the Season

December is a month of joy and family.  A time to reflect on Christmas memories of the past.  A Season that urges you to sit still with a warm cup of your favorite beverage, cozy and comfortable with family and friends.  December in all its hustle and bustle of shopping brings out the joy of giving to others.

I love the twinkle that comes with December.  I love the lights on the Christmas tree.

Lights of wonder.  Lights that can take you back to your childhood.  Lights that shine and twinkle with hope and love of the next year.

I love seeing all the lights on people's homes when I'm out and about at night on cold December nights.

This is my angel that my mom had put together for me.  I have plain lights for every other month of the year but for the Christmas season I love the multicolored lights.

I love the closeness that I feel this time of year with my family, my kids and friends.

We are not too far into the month yet and Christmas Day is upon us, I'm going to do my best to focus on joy, giving and togetherness.

I hope that everyone can slow down some during this season and not get wrapped up in the hurried part of it with entertaining, celebrating or shopping and enjoy the moments that are right there in front of you.

Enjoy the season.