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| Posing by the tree before church one December Sunday |
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| Jaycee and Gabriel excited for the broadway musical A Christmas Story to begin |
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| Waiting for the broadway musical A Christmas Story to begin |
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| I love the way Gabe is looking at the dog in this picture...the Bumpuses! |
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| Posing by the big Christmas tree in our church lobby area |
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| Visiting Santa at Bass Pro Shop |
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| Love my boys! |
Can you believe we're already concluding the year
2016? The years go by within a blink of an eye, don't they? We can't slow down
time, but we can make an adamant effort to enjoy this holiday season rather than
allow the busyness of the season to consume us to the point that we forget the
true meaning (JESUS!).
Since my last post, we enjoyed Thanksgiving. What a
wonderful time it was to fellowship with Tim's family. Chase admires Kenden and
Gabe loves playing with Jaycee. In fact, perhaps Chase idolizes Kenden a little
too much. Let me explain: Kenden wears glasses (as do several of Chase's
classmates and other older cousins) and Chase thinks that wearing glasses is
cool (in contrast to what I thought as a kid). Chase started complaining of not
being able to see well in class so I naturally assumed he might need glasses for
being slightly nearsighted. Well, I took him to the eye doc right before
Thanksgiving and he had two pair of Raybans picked out within 5 minutes of us
arriving at the office. The doctor examined him all to determine that Chase can
see perfectly fine. Although I was relieved with the results, Chase was almost
in tears that he couldn't get those Raybans. The doctor and staff assured me
that they see 2-3 kids a week that end up not needing glasses because many kids
think that wearing glasses is a cool ordeal (think about all of the cool frames
available now compared to what I had as a kid). Anyhow, we'll get Chase's vision
rechecked next summer when vision insurance is renewed just to make sure Raybans
aren't in his future.
We visited Tim's grandparents in Charlottesville the
first weekend in December. Both boys were well behaved during the visit and car
ride. Chase soaked up all of the doting he received from his great grandmother
Lucinda and several other aunts and cousins from that side of the family. We're
thankful for every year we get to spend with our loved ones. I'm blessed to say
that my children still have both sets of grandparents, 3 great grandmothers and
1 great grandfather (and 1 great step grandfather) alive.
The same weekend we went to Charlottesville we also
got to experience a "Walk through Bethlehem" at First Baptist Church in
Hopewell. It was really neat seeing the story of Jesus' birth being told through
the perspective of the town of Bethlehem. There were actors dressed up like
Bethlehem town vendors, Roman soldiers, Mary, Joseph and of course the star of
the show: baby Jesus! There were even real goats, sheep, a donkey and a camel to
represent all of the animals that were present for our Savior's birth.
Of course the month of December wouldn't be complete
without Mack Paul Breeden (our Elf on the Shelf) keeping a close eye to ensure
the boys are behaving. They've still had their moments of mischief, but you can
only raise the bar but so high with a 7-year old and a 4-year old. However, in
spite of their mischief at home, they continue to do well in school. I'm amazed
at how well Gabe has done with his speech just since my last post. He's also
writing his name now, memorizing bible verses in school, citing the alphabet,
and writing various numbers and letters. Chase continues to get straight A's.
Both boys had their own Christmas presentations at school this year. Gabe was a
shepherd boy for his play last Friday and Chase sang in the chorus for the older
kids' presentation on Tuesday. Last night we also attended one of the Christmas celebration
services at our church with my grandmother. It always warms my heart to sit in
church next to a woman who was crucial in exposing me to God's love and the
story of Jesus when I was a child.
The boys got to see Santa at Bass Pro Shop after
church exactly one week before Christmas. This was the first year Gabe was
actually excited to see Santa and of course Chase has been excited to bend
Santa's ear for several years now. The boys realized they forgot half of what
they wanted to tell Santa as soon as we got home so they wrote a note to Santa
with the remainder of their wish lists. I told them to leave their lists on the
table so our elf Mack could deliver it to Santa that night. We'll find out soon
enough if all of Mack's reports back to Santa have been positive enough for them
to get everything on their wish lists.
Santa is such a fun aspect of Christmas for our
family, but certainly not the primary focus. We were also able to give to those
who are less fortunate than us this season.
We filled 3 shoeboxes with goodies and practical items for the Samaritan
Purse project that delivers shoeboxes and spreads the word of Jesus to children
all over the world. We also gave several bags of canned goods to our church
pantry and to FOEC so they can disseminate them to several people in our
community who are struggling just to have food on the table. My bible study
group (called a "Connect Group") collected money to surprise the Smithfield High
School staff with doughnuts one morning just as a "thank you" for all that they
do for the children in our community. Last but not least, we baked cookies to
hand out to our neighbors; we always include an invite to church or Jesus-themed
Christmas ornament to share what the holidays mean to us every year. We never
know what struggles our very own neighbors could be facing or if they even
believe in God so this is such a small way for us to show them we care.
We got to do something extra special as a treat this
year. We went to see the musical "A Christmas Story" at the Children's Theatre
in downtown Richmond. Tim's parents, Jaycee and Kenden went with us. The kids
were so attentive to the show. Although everyone seemed to enjoy it, Gabe seemed
to have the most fun singing and dancing along. He left the theater dancing and
singing one of the songs. Make sure you don't shoot your eye or get attacked by
killer icicles this Christmas. Ha! Seriously, let's keep our eyes focused on
Jesus this Christmas and in 2017 and beyond! May God bless you and yours!
