Christmas card

I'm joining Faith at walk with me by faith and am posting our Christmas card to you.

For the last several years, I have given photo cards just because it's a great way to show off my boyz. I love, love getting them from other families in return! It makes it so much more personal and a great way to see people that I haven't seen for awhile.

I created this card this year, but I couldn't get it to fit any layout that CVS or Walmart had to offer. Why didn't you just print it, you ask? Because the photo cards you order from those places give you an envelope that fits and I don't have to find one ( or buy one).

so...this is the card I actually sent out this year. It's still personable and each picture tells a story of what we did this year as a family.

So consider this my card to you this Christmas! I hope your Christmas is blessed this year as well as you new year!

quiz

These kids amazed me today! My son is part of a bible quiz team and so far they are undefeated! I don't say that to brag by any means! These kids practice hard! The plus of all this is that they are planting God's word in their hearts and minds!


You have to have a quick bottom side to even get the chance to give an answer!



But Daniel managed to "quiz out" once, a first for him!


What would quizzing be without an awesome shirt?

And of course, if there's a new baby, I'm so THERE! This is Jeff and Julie Christman's new daughter. Isn't she just a doll?

My bro

I had a wonderfully exciting Shoot with my brother and his family. As you can tell, I had to use my secret weapon a little earlier than I had planned, but with kids, things never go as you plan!

As you can see, my secret weapon was being thoroughly enjoyed as the evidence shows!

He wanted to eat it so bad, and finally gave in and just had a "taste"...


Of course, we had a little fun too!



Candy Canes! The great bribe!

comfort for a friend

picture by Chad Pullins

"I have been driven many times upon my knees by the overwhelming conviction that I had nowhere else to go. My own wisdom and that of all about me seemed insufficient for that day."~ Abraham Lincon

I'm leaving to comfort my friend this morning at the funeral. Do me a favor guys and take a moment to thank Father God for what you have this day, this hour, this second and take nothing for granted!

God gives and He takes away. We thank Him for His gifts! We praise Him that these gifts never really leave us, but are stored in Heaven, awaiting our appointed time to claim them once again!

Critter tracks, maybe standing still

I find myself in a place of lost thought this morning...Nothing really seems to be too important. I thought I might post about the cool tracks I shot in the snow, but that doesn't really seem that prudent.

I got to check face book this morning, and I saw a post from my friend Tobi, who just lost her hubby. I plan to go to the funeral on Friday, but the world just seems to keep moving even though I'm not really all that interested in it.

It makes you pause when something like this happens. It makes you aware of your fragility and just how quickly your life as you know it can flip upside down.

So, maybe I'll post about critter tracks later, but today, I am just standing still.

The greatest decoration of all

This is an email that I received. This did not happen at my house!



"Good news is that I truly out did myself this year with my Christmas decorations. The bad news is that I had to take him down after 2 days. I had more people come screaming up to my house than ever. Great stories. But two things made me take it down.

First, the cops advised me that it would cause traffic accidents as they almost wrecked when they drove by.

Second, a 55 year old lady grabbed the 75 pound ladder almost killed herself putting it against my house and didn't realize it was fake until she climbed to the top (she was not happy). By the way, she was one of many people who attempted to do that. My yard couldn't take it either. I have more than a few tire tracks where people literally drove up my yard."

a prayer request

I got word this morning that my high school best friend's hubby was killed last night. They have two children, ages 16 and 9. He was hit while cleaning up an auto accident.

Please pray for Tobi, Dallas, and Joanna!

watch people age by year

We had a Christmas this weekend, and there are some people in our families that we don't get to see for a whole year it seems. I always get a kick out of seeing what hair style their sporting this year, if they lost (or gained) weight, how much their kids grew...

Of course me...I never age.

Ya, right! I'm sure they think the same about me!




But that's okay, it's all fun! Someday, we are going to be the older generation and we will seem old to the young ones. UGh, did I say old? Grandpa, 96 is NOT old! It's just advanced!


Poor Eva was not feeling up to par and decided to lay down on the floor and take 5. So I seized the opportunity of stillness to capture her sweetness once again.


And then there's Nette who does not have a basketball under her shirt but is patiently waiting for her little guy to arrive. Like Anytime NOW~


Ah Holiday! Good times!

Brotherly Love

what does it mean?

I am weird at times and my mind can raise strange questions like... Why do we have the Christmas tree tradition and where did it come from...

So, praise the Lord for internet, I did some research and found out! It started with the Egyptians hanging metal objects on trees to celebrate special events in their lives. The Romans decorated trees also and gave gifts to each other.

It migrated to Germany, but was banned by the Christians because of it's pagen origin. Only in the late 1600's did they bring evergreen trees into their homes in hope of a quick spring. The first tree celebration was called " The feast of Adam and Eve". They were called "paradise" trees and represented the "Tree of life" from the Garden of Eden.

That idea was brought to the United States and only became accepted as a decoration in 1850.

This is only a quick summery and was only meant to satisfy my own curiosity. There are many accounts of the origin of the Christmas tree, but this was good enough for me.

The one thing I would like to stress though is that this year, have your kids give something to Jesus. This is why we give gifts to one another, just as the Wisemen did.

tip* do it before they get all their other great gifts!!! Like Christmas Eve!