So much fun

What were we doing

in these silly poses

that could possibly

lead

to

this?

If your answer was playing the Kinect, then you'd be correct.

We did the track and field one and it was awesome!

I did fear for Daddy T's life after he raced my brother, though.

How we celebrated

We celebrated Christmas at the farm on Christmas Eve.  Actually, my brother and Aunt Molls and us came up the day before Christmas Eve so we could see my Mom and Dad a little longer.  We had the best "Christmas Eve."  We love to sing Christmas carols because for some reason, my dad's heart enlarges 2 sizes on Christmas Eve and Christmas and he does things that he normally wouldn't do. 

I packed some of my therapy drums and instruments and my guitar and songbook and took them to the farm so we could sing that night.  Everybody had an instrument and played it to their best of ability and sang.  The kids loved it the most.  The djembe is the most prized drum for them...well, actually it's the tubano, but I left that at home!  It was actually fun to make music with  my brother again.  We had done it so much growing up since we were both in band together and were given lots of opportunities to play together in jazz band, etc.  We hadn't actually played together in quite a while, though, so that was my favorite part.  I do hope that becomes a new tradition for our family.  Even Daddy T obliged us and played the bells.

Aunt Molls has rhythm!

Day 22 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

I had never heard this song until this year and I have fallen in love with it.  I love the lyrics and enjoy pondering about them.  Published in 1848 and written by Cecil Frances Alexander, this carol reminds us of the Nativity and Jesus' birth, and the city of Bethlehem.  It was actually a children's poem at one time which helped the children learn the story of Jesus' birth.

Once in Royal David's City

Once in royal David's city,
Stood a lowly cattle shed,
Where a mother laid her baby
In a manger for His bed:
Mary was that mother mild,
Jesus Christ her little child.

He came down to earth from heaven,
Who is God and Lord of all,
And His shelter was a stable,
And His cradle was a stall;
With the poor and meek and lowly,
Lived on earth our Savior holy.

And through all
His wondrous childhood,
He would honor and obey,
Love and watch the lowly mother,
In whose gentle arms He lay.
Christian children all should be,
Mild, obedient, good as He.

For He is our child-hood's pattern,
Day by day like us He grew,
He was little, weak, and helpless,
Tears and smiles like us He knew,
And He feeleth for our sadness,
And He shareth in our gladness.

And our eyes at last shall see Him,
Through His own redeeming love;
For that child so dear and gentle,
Is our Lord in heaven above,
And He leads His children on,
To the place where He is gone.

Not in that poor lowly stable,
With the oxen standing by,
We shall see Him, but in heaven,
Set at God's right hand on high;
When like stars
His children crowned,
All in white shall be around.

Day 21 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

Philippians 2:9-11

Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

Reread this verse. What do you notice about the position of Jesus' name throughout this verse? This name of Jesus that gets thrown around so flippantly these days holds power. When you say the name of Jesus, do you think about that? It's the name above all names!

Day 20 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

When reading the words to this song, think about the fact that Jesus is a stem from the lineage of Jesse. Jesus bloomed in Bethlehem and continues to bloom within our hearts when we receive Him.

Lo How a Rose

Lo how a rose e'er blooming,

From tender stem hath sprung,

Of Jesse's lineage coming,

As saints of old have sung.

It came, a flower bright, amid the cold of winter,

When half-spent was the night.

Isaiah 'twas foretold it,

The Rose I have in mind,

With Mary we behold it,

The virgin mother kind.

To show God's love aright,

She bore to us a Savior,

When half spent was the night.

Day 19 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

Matthew 1:18-25

(18) This is how Jesus, the Messiah was born. His mother, Mary, was engaged to be married to Joseph. But before the marriage took place, while she was still a virgin, she became pregnant through the power of the Holy Spirit.

(19) Joseph, her fiance, was a good man and did not want to disgrace her publicly, so he decided to break the engagement quietly.

(20) As he considered this, an angel of the Lord appeared to him in a dream. “Joseph, son of David,” the angel said, “do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife. For the child within her was conceived by the Holy Spirit.

(21) and she will have a son, and you are to name him Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.”

(22) All of this occurred to fulfill the Lord’s message through his prophet:

(23) ”Look! The virgin will conceive a child! She will give birth to a son, and they will call him Immanuel, which means ‘God is with us.’”

(24) When Joseph woke up, he did as the angel of the Lord commanded and took Mary as his wife.

(25) But he did not have sexual relations with her until her son was born. And Joseph named him Jesus.

Day 18 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

Joy to the World

Joy to the World , the Lord is come!
Let earth receive her King;
Let every heart prepare Him room,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven and nature sing,
And Heaven, and Heaven, and nature sing.

Joy to the World, the Savior reigns!
Let men their songs employ;
While fields and floods, rocks, hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat the sounding joy,
Repeat, repeat, the sounding joy.

No more let sins and sorrows grow,
Nor thorns infest the ground;
He comes to make His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found,
Far as the curse is found,
Far as, far as, the curse is found.

He rules the world with truth and grace,
And makes the nations prove
The glories of His righteousness,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders of His love,
And wonders, wonders, of His love.



Day 17 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

Matthew 2:1-12

(1) Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the reign of King Herod. About that time some wise men from eastern lands arrived in Jerusalem, asking

(2) "Where is the newborn king of the Jews? We saw his star as it rose, and we have come to worship him."

(3) King Herod was deeply disturbed when he heard this, as was everyone in Jerusalem.

(4) He called a meeting of the leading priests and teachers of religious law and asked, "Where is the Messiah supposed to be born?"

(5) I"n Bethlehem in Judea," they said, "for this is what the prophet wrote:

(6) 'And you, O Bethlehem in the land of Judah, are not least among the ruling cities of Judah, for a ruler will come from you who will be the shepherd for my people Israel.'"

(7) Then Herod called for a private meeting with the wise men, and he learned from them the time when the star first appeared.

(8) Then he told them, "Go to Bethlehem and search carefully for the child. And when you find him, come back and tell me so that I can go and worship him , too!"

(9) After this interview the wise men went their way. And the star they had seen in the east guided them to Bethlehem. It went ahead of them and stopped over the place where the child was.

(10) When they saw the star, they were filled with joy!

(11) They entered the house and saw the child with his mother, Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him. They they opened their treasure chests and gave him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh.

(12) When it was time to leave, they returned to their own country by another route, for God had warned them in a dream not to return to Herod.

Day 16 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

"Believe it or not, a Christmas carol describes Herod's horrible deed.  Set in a minor key, this haunting lullaby, with words from a song written in 1534, is titled 'Lully, Lullay,' but is often called 'Coventry Carol.' The song originated in Coventry, England, where the local crafts guild performed a pageant depicting Herod's slaughter and the subsequent sorrow.  During the pageant mothers sing the children to sleep with 'Lully, Lullay' so Herod's soldiers can't find them.  The words themselves sound like a mother lullying her baby to sleep."--Ann Marie Stewart

Lully, Lullay

Lully, thou little, tiny child

By, by lully, lullay

Lully, Thou little tiny Child

By, by Lully, Lullay.

O sisters, too, how may we do for to preserve this day

This poor young ling for whom we sing

By, By, Lully, Lullay.

Herod the King in his raging, charged he hath this day

His men of might, in his own sight, all children young to slay.

Then woe is me, poor Child, for Thee, and ever mourn and say

For thy parting, nor say, nor sing,

By, by, Lully, Lullay.

Day 15 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

To understand the birth story, we need to understand a bit about Herod. Here is a short rundown. Very short, I know, but feel free to study him for yourself.

• Ruled Judea from 37BC until his death in 4BC.
• Known as Herod the Great.
• Known for his impressive architecture. He used Jewish labor to complete his designs.
• He lived in a multi-story, fortress-like place. it was called the Herodium. It was strategically placed to sit on a hill so that he could see the entire region from his palace.
• He was a horrible person with no regard for human life.
• He married ten times.
• One of those times of marriage, he actually married a woman from the royal Jewish family. Ironic, huh?
• He had his uncle, mother-in-law, (favorite) wife Mariamme, father-in-law, his three sons: Antipater, Aristobulus, and Alexander, his barber, and a close friend all executed.
• He had the high priest and his brother-in-law drowned.
• Five days before he died, he had 3,000 of Jerusalem's most respected citizens arrested and ordered for them to be executed when he died. It has been said that he wanted the people to mourn on the day he died, even if it wasn't necessarily for his own death.
• He had all children, age 2 and under (including his own son) killed because he was afraid of losing his position as King. It is believed that 30-60 children who lived in a village of three hundred were killed. The range is said to be between 200-2,000, though. Despite the true numbers, that is a lot of mothers with broken hearts, wailing for their child. I can't even imagine the grief that was heard that night.

Taking all of this into consideration, can you see why the wise men could have been afraid to NOT return to Herod? They could have been executed for their disobedience. However, they followed God and chose to return home via a different route.

___________________
Info taken from Preparing My Heart for Advent by Anne Marie Stewart. She used the information from Vander Laan and Focus on the Family Video (video production) and from Joseph J. Walsh's book, Were They Wise Men or Kings? The Book of Christmas Questions.

Day 9 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

Today I share with you a song that we all know and love because it has the fun "Gloria" part. In fact, I think that's the part that most kids learn first! I want you to read the lyrics to this song and see a neat perspective in each verse.

The first verse has to do with the angels and their perspective on Jesus' birth. Then it moves to the shepherds and what some must have asked of them because they were so excited and the Bible says that "All who heard the shepherds story were astonished. The shepherds went back to their flocks, glorifying and praising God for all they had heard and seen. It was just as the angel had told them." (Luke 2:18, 20)

Moving on to the third verse, we hear the answer from the shepherds. They are telling them to come to Bethlehem, see Him, adore Him. The song ends with the picture of the birth, complete with Jesus lying in a manger (just as the angel had told the shepherds).

How amazing is this song! I love looking at Christmas carols in a new light and a fresh perspective. It makes these songs that much more meaningful when I sing them. Sing this song today and if you have children, teach them the "Gloria" part.

Angels We Have Heard on High

Angels we have heard on high sweetly singing o'er the plains
And the mountains in reply echoing their joyous strains
Gloria in excelsis Deo.

Shepherds, why this jubilee, why your joyous songs prolong?
Say what may the tiding be, which inspire your heav'nly song?
Gloria in excelsis Deo.

Come to Bethlehem and see Him whose birth the angels sing;
Come, adore on bended knee, Christ the Lord, the newborn King.
Gloria in excelsis Deo.

See within a manger laid, Jesus, Lord of heav'n and earth!
Mary, Joseph, lend your aid, With us sing our Savior's birth.
Gloria in excelsis Deo.

Day 8 of Preparing Your Heart for Advent

I love reading and re-reading the Bible. I'm always amazed at the fresh perspective God gives me as I study His word, no matter how many times I've studied a passage before. This can certainly be said of the Christmas story. How many times have we read this story? I mean, I think many of us know it so well that we often skim over parts of it because our brain recognizes it. This year, I've slowed down and purposefully have been studying it through a Bible study that I'm doing. In case you haven't guessed, I'm sharing little pieces that I've been studying throughout. Take a look at this passage below.
"A few days later Mary hurried to the hill country of Judea, to the town where Zechariah lived. She entered the house and greeted Elizabeth. At the sound of Mary's greeting, Elizabeth's child leaped within her, and Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. Elizabeth gave a glad cry and exclaimed to Mary, 'God has blessed you above all women, and your child is blessed. Why am I so honored, that the mother of my Lord should visit me? When I heard your greeting, the baby in my womb jumped for joy. You are blessed because you believed that the Lord would do what he said." (Luke 1:39-42)

Backing up to earlier in the passage, an angel comes to tell Zechariah that he will have a son, call him John the Baptist, and will turn many Israelites to the Lord, among other things he says. Zechariah, who is by this time old and whose wife, Elizabeth, is old and has been unable to bear children, doubts what the angel tells him. He asks for a sign. So since he has doubted, he is made silent until John the Baptist is born. An angel then goes to Mary and tells her she will give birth to Jesus, the Son of God. She believes and responds with "I am the Lord's servant. May everything you have said about me come true." (v.38)

Now that we have a little background, we pick up with the passage quoted above. Mary travels 80-100 miles, which is believed to be about a 4-day journey, while pregnant, to see her relative Elizabeth. When Elizabeth hears Mary's greeting, Elizabeth's child leaped. How incredible if you think about it.

How did John the Baptist know Mary? Well, John had the Holy Spirit in him from before birth, according to verse 15b where an angel tells Zechariah "He will be filled with the Holy Spirit, even before his birth." Then the passage above tells us that Elizabeth was filled with the Holy Spirit. They knew Jesus and saw that prophecy was being fulfilled. It was a neat realization to see that these women and children were the first to have the Holy Spirit.

Now this is not a life-changing revelation, but it is something truly awesome to think about and to ponder. They knew Jesus and believed and were a part of the prophecy being fulfilled. Do we believe or do we doubt?

25 days of Family

Last year, I put together a little Christmas calendar that was full of family activities for us to do.  It was a good way to get us in the habit to make sure that we do something together as a family everyday.  It doesn't always happen that way, but I find that Christmas is a good time for us to focus on being together as a family and being very purposeful about it. 

So, along with our focus on Advent, we are also going to be doing the following things.  I love the chance we have to be together as family and to make memories, even if they are just playing duck, duck goose!

25 Days of Family

1-Watch a VeggieTales Christmas movie.

2-Play Duck Duck Goose.

3-Bake cookies and take some to neighbors.

4-Put together a puzzle.

5-Game night!  Pick a game to play.

6-Color a Christmas picture.

7-Watch a VeggieTales Christmas movie.

8-Drive to see Christmas lights.

9-Bake cookies and take some to neighbors.

10-Put together a puzzle.

11-Play Duck Duck Goose.

12-Make a foam Gingerbread house.

13-Make a Christmas place mat.

14-Movie night!  Pick out a Christmas movie to watch and pop popcorn.

15-Break out the crayons and color a picture.

16-Write a letter to Santa.

17-Bubble bath!

18-Roll up some socks and have a "snowball" fight.

19-Puzzle time!

20-Movie night!  Pick out a Christmas movie to watch and pop popcorn.

21-Bake cookies and take some to neighbors.

22-Play miniature golf!

23-Write a Christmas story.

24-Movie and game night!  Oh, don't forget to feed Santa and Rudolph and bake Jesus a cake!

25-Christmas Day!  Read the Christmas story together in Luke 1-2.