Season to be Thankful and Jolly

Kicking off the holiday season at the Yankee Candle Co. Christmas village

3 Breeden Boys at the Yankee Candle Co. Christmas village

Jamestown Ferry Ride (Tim and Gabe)

Jamestown Ferry Ride (Tim and Chase)

Chase and Bella at Dawn's Baby Shower (love Bella's smile...she just lost one of her front teeth!)

A Beautiful Fall Day isn't complete without Nerf guns and bows and arrows.

Thanksgiving is now behind us, but the season to be thankful should last forever. One of Chase's bible verses (Ephesians 5:20) for November should radiate in our hearts year long: "Giving thanks always for all things unto God and the Father in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ."

Fall festivals may be winding down, but we still have so much to be thankful for this year. Just to have friends, family, jobs, and good health are a few things we so easily take for granted.  We were blessed to get to spend Thanksgiving Day at the Turner's house yesterday with Tim's side of the family.  Although I didn't get to see my family on Thanksgiving Day, I'm fortunate enough to get to see many of them throughout the workweek. After seeing so many negative events highlighted in the news lately, such as the horrible terrorist attack that occurred on November 13th in Paris, I'm extra thankful for all of my family and to know the Lord as my Savior; to know that the loving God I serve is mightier than the hatred that fuels senseless acts of terrorism. Unlike other religions, Christianity is based on the ultimate sacrifice Jesus made for us on the cross so that we can have the gift of salvation; I'm thankful it's not something I have to earn, because I know I'm humanly incapable of earning such an amazing gift of grace and mercy.

Speaking of gifts (although no gift can surpass salvation), it's time to gear up for the season to be jolly! As many folks are out stripping store shelves of Black Friday sales, Tim is working and I'm staying home catching up on things around the house (including this blog).  I'll eventually be getting out Christmas decorations from the attic. Chase and Gabe have already relayed their mile long Christmas wish lists for Santa. In fact, they've already seen Santa in person this year. A couple weeks ago, Tim and I woke up on a Sunday morning and got the kids ready for church as we usually do, only we really didn't go to church. Instead, we surprised them with a trip across the river on the Jamestown ferry to see Santa at the Yankee Candle Co. We enjoyed browsing around the toy shop and looking at the Christmas decorations. Chase had no fear of Santa and went right up to him without hesitation. Gabe, on the other hand, was very reserved around Santa and unsure of the jolly ole fellow. However, we were excited he made it through pictures without any tears (which is a first for him). The pictures turned out great, but I can't post them on here as they will be Christmas gifts for some of you reading this!

I remain proud of my boys even though they have a few hiccups every now and then. Chase had perfect attendance in school for the first 9 weeks and made the honor roll. He also has his first loose tooth and is looking forward to a visit from the Tooth Fairy soon.  Gabe continues to do well with his routine of preschool and speech classes. I have several people ask me all the time how speech is going. I can see progress, but I keep trying to explain that speech classes aren't going to result in him speaking coherently overnight; it's going to be a long process that will require patience and hard work. There are some days Gabe just isn't focused (which is to be expected of a 3 year-old) and there are other days when he is very cooperative with his teacher. Aside from speech, there are some days in preschool he does well and other days when he gets put in time-out for being a distraction in class or getting in a tiff with another student. Likewise, Chase isn't a golden child either; he has had a couple notes home from talking too much in class (imagine that!). There are also days that I feel like more of a referee than I do a mom as a result of breaking up debacles between the boys ("brotherly love"). We're still having potty training wars at home with Gabe; he does well taking care of his business at school, but he reverts to not using the potty when he's at home even with constant reminders. I think some of it is just laziness and stubbornness on his part. My point in saying all of this isn't to exploit my children's flaws, but to point out the obvious: no child is perfect and I'm not going to be one of those mothers that ignores imperfections and only gives praise.  Love and discipline go hand in hand.

Needless to say, the boys have plenty to work on over the next month to ensure Santa will visit. I think it's safe to say we all have areas we can improve in our lives. One thing I notice about the holidays is that so many folks stress about it. This isn't "the most wonderful time of the year" (as the song goes) for everyone as some are mourning the loss of loved ones; some are battling depression, broken relationships, financial struggles, addictions, or other physical ailments. Whether our burdens seem big or small, God wants us to hand them over to Him. My devotional yesterday morning pointed out that anxiety is explicit evidence that we're not seeking God's agenda above all else even though we tend to shake it off as one of the "lesser sins." Matthew 6:33-34 hit home for me as I know so many friends and family members who suffer from anxiety; we've ALL experienced fear and worry at some point in our lives. The take-away for me in this devotional right here around the holidays (perfect timing), is to remain thankful and to choose to face each day's challenges with confidence in God's wisdom and plans....even if it comes in the simple form of not stressing over what gift to get someone or worrying about how to squeeze in all of the holiday festivities in our already busy schedule.

Although remaining stress-free is easier said than done over the holidays, most of us still have so many fun things to look forward to this Christmas season. We plan to make a day trip to Scottsville to celebrate Tim's grandmother's 81st birthday next Saturday.  Chase and Gabe's Christmas play will be held at Faith Outreach Education Center later in December. Chase is going to be one of the three wisemen and Gabe will be in the choir; the students have been diligently rehearsing for the play since before Thanksgiving. We have Christmas baking and our annual cookie giving we do for our neighbors; this is a small way for us to reach out to our neighbors and show them God's love by slipping invitations to church in the goodie bags. Of course we can't hand out invitations to church in good conscience without going ourselves, so you can count on us being present for the Christmas Eve service at Liberty Baptist Church. We have "Mack the Elf" (Elf on the Shelf) that will watch over our house everyday between now and Christmas Eve and pop up in different locations. Thankfully, we'll get to be with our loved ones over the holidays....and perhaps one more loved one will be here by then with Baby Charlie being due right before New Year's. But above all, we have the gift of our Savior to celebrate! Join me in kicking off this holiday season stress-free with God as our focal point!