Christmas 2011

We had a great Christmas as always this year. Alexander really got into Santa this year...we even had a runway for his reindeer and sleigh in the back yard. Totally awesome! Santa left Alexander a cookie that looked like him, a huge stocking FULL of presents, cars, tractors, and even his very first Bible. We made sure Alexander was aware that yesterday was Baby Jesus' Birthday and when Mamaw quizzed him yesterday evening about it he answered her right away that today was Baby Jesus' Birthday. :)

 

But, he still loved hearing about Santa and was so excited that he couldn't go to sleep. He spent the entire weekend trying to drill things and saw things open with his new tool kit. Ricardo was excited about his Carlos shirt. Santa Aunt Mary and Santa Uncle Rick brought me an awesome new tool cabinet and tools which made my year. I was so excited...I actually screamed and jumped up and down!  We ate way too much, laughed a great deal, and as always were very thankful that we were able to spend the whole weekend with our family(s).  Alexander has the best time with his Grammy and P and of course his Aunts and Uncles. We're very thankful and blessed to have them in our lives.

Happy Hanukkah

I wanted to send a small tribute to our good friend Auntie Trish during her Jewish Holiday Hanukkah. Trish is actually my only Jewish friend (that I know of) and we just love her kindness, generosity, and her uniqueness. Hanukkah is also known as the Festival of Lights, it's an eight-day Jewish holiday commemorating the rededication of the Holy Temple (the Second Temple) in Jerusalem at the time of the Maccabean Revolt of the 2nd century BCE. Hanukkah is observed for eight nights and days The Christian Bible refers to Jesus being at the Jerusalem Temple during "the feast of the dedication and it was winter" in John 10:22-23.I thought it was a good time during this festive season to write about the importance of respecting one another and remembering that regardless of whether our religions are different, we are all God's children. Many people, my family included, celebrate the birth of our Lord Jesus during this time and remember that our faith is wrapped around his life and promise to us for all enternity. But, many people do not have the same belief system but are still very Godly people. I think during this time we need to remember our friends and loved ones that might celebrate the love of God differently than we do and relish their place in our lives and thank them for the diversity that their beliefs bring to us. And, more importantly thank them for showing us that although we may have very different religious views, our common love of life, humanity, and God brings us very close together. I thank God through my appreciation that I have friends that are Jewish, Muslim, Catholic, and Christian. I am thankful that my Muslim friend, although she doesn't celebrate Christmas, loves God and even brought me a Holiday Gift to show her appreciation for our friendship. I believe that God has a place in all generations and in all lives and that if we just take a moment to remember that we are human and God, in whatever form, made us to be like him we can truly make this world a better place.


Happy Holidays to all my friends and family! God Bless!

Berkshire Carousel Christmas

Yes, we gathered at the Carousel again for the annual Berkshire Christmas. We had a great time as always eating, laughing, and trying to score as many rings as possible. I got 17 rings in one go-round...beat that! This year was great because one of my best friends got to come and we had the best time chatting and hanging out which is something we don't get to do often enough! We stayed the whole weekend in my home town and even spent the night with Grandma and Grandpa. I'm not quite sure why I didn't take any pictures at their house. Oh, I know why...because I didn't get a spare second because my child was bossing my poor grandparents around the entire time. I felt obligated to help with traffic control. Sunday we headed to church and then to my parents for lunch and my cousin and her family came too so it was loads of fun the entire day. Grampy even took Alexander and Noah to the park for a while yesterday afternoon which gave all of us time to relax for a bit.

Seeing old friends

Had the awesome opportunity to go back "home" for the weekend to see my family and some great friends. We went to church with grandma and grandpa today and I got to see one of best buddies from high school. You can see how ornery he is just by looking at this pic. So thankful we got to visit even if it was just for a few minutes. He seems really happy and has a very sweet wife and two cute kids.

Santa came early

A brand new bike got dropped off at our house from Abuela yesterday. Alexander was up riding it through the house in his feety pajamas at 7am this morning!

Breakfast with Santa

Today we headed to breakfast with Santa at the Y. This is the first year that Alexander really has an interest in Santa. Of course, we had to go with our buddies. The kids had an awesome time and so did we!

FSA CONFERENCE 2011 - SUNNY LAS VEGAS

This year the Federal Student Aid Conference was in Sunny Las Vegas. It was gorgeous weather, about 72 each day and sunny of course. My boss and buddy Lori and I headed out there on Monday (11/28) and had the best time. We got to see a lot of our friends from other Ivy Tech Regions and hang out with them and enjoy their great company. Shout out to our pals from Bloomington and Ft. Wayne...had a great time with all of you at Ellis Island - $7.99 steak special YAY! We learned some valuable information and had great times and laughed A LOT! Dig down deep Lori, dig down deep!