Over the meadow......

We really did go over the meadow to grandma's house. Rich's parents have never lived within driving distance for us to spend Christmas day together until now and we really enjoyed the day.

We awoke to Uncle Gary arriving with bags of goodies, much like Santa, except he had all the ingredients he needed to cook us a delicious breakfast and his famous mashed potatoes for dinner. Later in the day, after mom made a delicious meal, we went to Rich's sister, Wendy's house, for dessert with some extended family we haven't seen in far too long. It was so great to get caught up and to see all the kids, 13 I think, together.

There was some juggling of clementines by Rich's dad, really, what says Christmas more than that? And a seriously choreographed dance routine by Zoe, McKenna, and Wendy's adorable Madison. I feel so blessed to be a part of Rich's family. The only thing that would have made it perfect is if Pam, John, and the kids would have been there.

Finally, one of the most special gifts I received was from Pam. She gave me her "prototype" as we like to call it that she diligently and lovingly stiched and created with her own hands. I got the original, and I know it is going to be difficult for me to put him away after Christmas, I just may not.

Goal Accomplished

Chad found out today that he made the All-State Football Second Team. He has anxiously been waiting for the results to be posted. I think he was a little disappointed he didn't make the First Team.... he's a perfectionist and over acheiver who doesn't like the word second. This is a huge accomplishment, especially for a Junior. There are times that I think in the big scheme of what is really important in God's world, what does football have to do with it? It is such a big part of Chad's world, so it is a big part of our world, and I think that if used properly, it can be a great opportunity to talk about God and be a testimony for Him. We've talked to Chad about that and I know he realizes that this is something that God has given him ability in and he wants to us it for His glory. I really could not be any prouder of Chad for working so hard at acheiving a goal, there really is no better thing for me as a mom than for my kids to do that!

Blog Envy

My cute sister-in-law sent me the link to her blog today, and I had no idea that she had one, check it out at pammycakes2.blogspot.com, and it totally inspired me to start my own, which I have been contemplating for awhile. The reason I have been hesitant is I have some awesomely interesting and adorable friends here at work that also have blogs that are fantastic so it adds alot of pressure to measure up. Check out their blogs at http://www.xanga.com/brannabee or http://blogs.messiah.edu/expressed. So from this point on I'm making my entrance into the blogging world.