preparing

I experienced the season of Advent more this year than I think I ever have, so I just wanted to briefly share why I think that was (apart from simply God's grace for me)... what it was that pointed me to Jesus amidst the chaos of shopping and planning and decorating and socializing and traveling.

 1. Behold the Lamb



We fell in love with this humble musical performance a few years ago in Nashville, and we have been listening faithfully and tirelessly to the album each Christmas since. No other Christmas music can remind me of the Truth about Christmas and the God's unique plan quite like these songs. This year's performance, which happened to be at the very beginning of December, was no exception. I left that night feeling more in love with Jesus than I had felt in quite some time. That evening was the perfect kickoff for Advent because it focused my vision squarely on the One who deserved it. (Now, in preparation for next year, please go purchase the CD- one of the best $10 purchases you will ever make- and mark your Google calendar for a show next December. You will not regret it.)


2. Jesse Tree

 image

(from About.com) The Jesse Tree is a unique Advent tree that can be very useful for teaching children about the Bible at Christmas, and a fun activity, too! The Jesse Tree represents the family tree, or genealogy of Jesus Christ. It tells the story of God's salvation plan, beginning with creation and continuing through the Old Testament, to the coming of the Messiah. The name comes from Isaiah 11:1, "Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit."
Each day of Advent a homemade ornament is added to the Jesse Tree, a small tree made of evergreen branches. These symbolic ornaments can each represent a prophecy foretelling of Christ. Other variations include creating ornaments that represent the ancestors in the lineage of Christ...

I remember someone explaining this to me before I had children and thinking, "Seriously? That is waaaayyy too much effort for a Christmas tradition". Two things changed my mind. First, I was invited into a Jesse Tree Exchange, which meant that I just had to make 25 of the same ornament (and then we had a party and everyone got one of each), so I didn't have to be uber creative. Second, we bought this book (though there are many) and just started doing it. Cooper loved it and looked forward to it every day. Wonderfully, I found that I could only lead him in a devotion if I had spent time reading the Scripture on my own. Hence, I was encouraged to spend time with God (which, if I'm honest, is especially rare that time of year), watching the story of the Messiah unfold throughout the Old Testament.

On Christmas morning, we all gathered around Cooper's bed and- before we even entered the realm of presents and stockings and treats- we read the final Jesse Tree devotion and the Bible verses about Jesus' birth, hung our baby Jesus ornament on the tree, and prayed. It was such a sweet and perfect way to begin the morning. 


3. Amazon shopping

This is not a joke. I know I am basically putting the "little guy" out of business and I'm sad about that, but I cannot help it- Amazon shopping saved my Christmas.  From the comfort of my living room, I ordered almost every present that we purchased and had them all delivered to my door for free. So much time and energy and emotional well-being preserved by not going out into the holiday madness! And great deals too! I'm telling you- online Christmas shopping is where. it's. at. :)

Okay, so there's my prescription for a great Christmas. 1, 2, 3.  All joking aside, these really blessed me this year... hopefully they will bless you as well!

Sidenote: in trying to find a link for "advent", I stumbled across this site. Please peruse, especially the "About" page. So beautifully true.

a full christmas

We barely made it home on Christmas night because the snow had begun to fall pretty heavily. I think it's the only time in my life that I can remember having a true "White Christmas". How exciting and, as we saw the next morning, how beautiful!

The view from out front door was breathtaking. I love how perfectly clean everything seems after a good snow.

I am always reminded of God's assurance that He will take the "scarlet" of my sinful, disobedient self and make me as white as snow. Pure. How cool is that?

What is not so cool? When your pretty little tree in the front yard is so heavy-laden with snow that it decides to take a nap across your driveway. This is especially problematic when the car you are supposed to drive to Tennessee is on the other side of that tree.

A few hours later, with the unsolicited help of several of our kind neighbors, Curtis had de-snowed the tree and had it high enough off the ground that we could be on our way. Phew!

We didn't dare pack up and go without documenting exactly how much snow we were leaving behind.

Nine inches, thank you very much. We'll be lucky to get 9 inches TOTAL next winter, I bet!

It would have been really disheartening that we were driving away from the most impressive winter wonderland that we've seen in 10 years IF it wasn't for our destination! We were all so excited to be going to Knoxville to spend time with our Chesney family. 

It wasn't a well-documented trip on my behalf and I don't think I got even one picture from our Christmas celebration, but I did grab some snapshots of a few random highlights:

Upon arrival...

This beautiful face was one of the first we saw... "Aunt" Susan. When people ask me how Susan fits into Curtis' family, I usually say something like, "Well, she's actually his cousin, but she feels a whole lot more like a sister." Her presence in our family has really blessed me.

Then there's Scott, Susan's other half. He is great blend of goofy (note the face in this picture), thoughtful, and wise, so we obviously love spending time with him as well. 

Fun at the dinner table...

In an effort to get all of the kids to eat their dinner one night, Scott created a kind of game-show where they answered "what's your favorite" kind of questions... favorite vegetable, favorite Disney movie, etc. If you check out the windows in the background, you can see that the kids weren't the only ones who were fully entertained!

Each question was met with hands flying up, hilarious answers, lots of giggles, and then Scott saying, "Great answer! Now, take a bite!" My favorite was the way the younger kids would simply repeat the older kids answers and then- as the parents chuckled- just fall over laughing at how funny they were.

Impromptu Congo Line...

Though Cooper and Annabelle did not stay up long enough to participate, there was loads of fun and entertainment after dinner as well.

Sometimes you just can't help what the music does to you! :)

The quintessential kid photo shoot...

Aren't they just precious? 

From left to right: Annabelle (10mos), Katy Ann (7 1/2), Ava (4 1/2), Cooper (3), Austin (5), and Millie (almost 3). In case you are wondering, Katy Ann and Austin belong to Scott & Susan. Ava and Millie belong to Luke (Curtis' brother) & Elisa.

When we realized for the millionth time how futile it was to attempt a "pretty" picture, we decided just to go for a silly one. While all the kids were pretty funny, I would just encourage you to focus on Millie (farthest right) in these next few.

Is that the lead singer of Kiss?

 

... who is possibly throwing gang signs??

Kelly and Annabelle.,.

We even got a little time with Marion's boyfriend, Kelly! He was sweet to hang out with my baby for a few minutes.

She loved it and was so content in his lap. So precious.

Visit with Ninny...

On our way out of town, we stopped by to see Curtis' grandmother, "Ninny". She loved seeing the kids and- as always- telling old stories about Curtis.

What I want to know is- who is that fat kid in her lap?!?

It was a joyous trip to Knoxville with sweet memories. We left, as we often do, feeling really full.

christmas morning at home

I could tell you that the kids woke up bright and early on Christmas morning, but that would be a lie. There was nothing bright about the pitch-black sky we awoke to before 7:00am. We were joyful, though, (even the sleep-deprived parents) and all snuggled together in Cooper's room for awhile to do our final Jesse Tree devotion... to remind ourselves of a similar dark sky under which baby Jesus, God in the flesh, was born so many years before.

I could also tell you that the kids were bright-eyed and bushy-tailed but that, too, would be a lie. Just look at these faces when we presented them with  their Christmas gifts (you may have to click on the photo to enlarge):

Ha! This year, we gave each child just one "big" present and then filled their stockings with little goodies. At first, they were a little... unsure.... of their trampoline and activity table.

Moments later, it was pure giddiness!

It made my heart happy to see them loving their gifts! Success!

The stockings were a big hit- lots of fun surprises. For Cooper, the highlights were a Thomas shirt and Thomas electric tooth brush (can you sense a theme?).

Annabelle was pretty uninterested in her little toys, but was totally intrigued by the edible treats. You can tell she hadn't experienced these before... taking the wrapper off was a new concept. :)

Cooper was soon over the stocking and back to focusing on the jumping. And the face-making, apparently.

Per usual, for Annabelle it was all about the food. She's her mother's child.

This year was our first time celebrating Christmas morning in our own home. While there was part of us that was sad about all that we were missing, the morning was so sweet and so much fun for us all... we knew it was the right decision for our family. And how great to see these two, wearing their new Christmas pajamas, sitting together in front of our tree? Priceless.

----

Later that morning, we headed over to my parents house to spend the day with my side of the family. One of the benefits of living in the same town!

The day held many happy memories with Grandpa and Mammy, cousins, and aunts & uncles, more exciting gifts, and lots and lots and lots of people (15 to be exact)... it was a crazy day!

Cooper thrived and took it all in stride, for the most part. He eats up any time he can spend with his cousins, especially.

Annabelle loved it all, but didn't handle all the action quite as naturally as Cooper. Again, she is her mother's child. It did make for an extra-snuggly baby, which her daddy sure appreciated!

Unfortunately, amidst all of the fun, I didn't manage to take many pictures of the rest of the day. Suffice it to say, we had a blast and treasure time with every one of those wild Andringas!

twas the night before christmas

I looove "decking the halls" for Christmas (I have 3 large tubs worth of Christmas decorations). However, with Cooper's birthday and more keeping us busy in December, we were slow to get all of our decorating done. After hearing me lament the fact that "I guess we're just not going to have time to get a tree this year" (tear, tear), Curtis surprised me by showing up with one after work!

 

We decorated it less than a week before Christmas... just in time!

Even our "little old man" Annabelle wanted to help out.

I laughed when I saw this picture. Why? It was strangely familiar...

(December 2007, the night before going into labor with Cooper)

Get some new pajama pants, girl! Or better yet, stay out of the pajamas!

On Christmas Eve, we were able to go to our church's service and then spend time with family. Here are a few favorite shots:

A rare sibling picture (we were all in town for the span of less than a week)!

Katie (29), Kevin (21), Whitney (25), Heidi (23), Peter (26), Ashley (31)

My sweet little nephew, Myer (8 months).

With a smile that is undeniably contagious.

Cousin Bess turning my baby into Rudolph's baby.

Not her best shot, but oh so festive!

Speaking of not best shots, we tried to get a cousin picture.

How does anyone ever get a good one?! Ridiculousness.

And yet, maybe it's just us. We can't even seem to get a family of four picture that is decent!

Christmas Eve dinner, though I'm not sure much was actually eaten. 

Sidenote: We will most likely be able to use this picture as blackmail against an adolescent Cooper- dinner at a Disney princess table! :)

My dad finished the evening of festivities as he did every year of my childhood, by reading The Night Before Christmas.

After a new tradition of the kids opening some new Christmas pajamas, we headed home tired but expectant... the next morning would be Jesus' birthday!

three years

I can't believe that I am writing this, but our little boy turned 3 this week. Three. Three years ago, after 40 weeks and 3 days of carrying him inside of me, we drove to the hospital in the drizzling snow and soon got to meet our precious one...

We had no clue. We had no idea how much we would love him. We had no idea how hard it would be. We had no idea how entertaining he would be. We had no idea how drastically our life would change. We had no idea how deeply soul-connected to that tiny being we would become.

 (age 1)

Now we do. Cooper Richard, our beloved firstborn... He is wild and passionate, sensitive and compassionate. He pushes our buttons like no one else can and yet, with a smile or a few brilliantly chosen words, can melt even our toughest anger.

 (age 2)

He is smart and stubborn. He is innocent and inquisitive. He is a lover of music, of order, of trucks and trains.
He is the big brother to our baby girl, the laughter in our days, the reminder of our need for Jesus, and our perpetual delight.

When it came time for his third birthday, I wanted to make it special and exciting just for him...

 On the morning of his birthday, we brought him doughnut holes in bed. Three of them. There is perhaps no treat in life that Cooper would be more excited about, probably because it usually accompanies a special bike trip with Daddy to Dunkin' Donuts.

Obviously, he hadn't fully woken up yet. Also, I should mention that he had a nasty cough and a fever of 101 the night before. Poor kid.

 Nothing that a few doughnut holes can't cure! One chocolate, one cinnamon, and one powdered sugar later... he was all smiles.

It was a fun day as we tried to spoil our sweet and sick boy with special privileges, words, and treats, including a lunchtime trip to Chick-Fil-A with the whole family!

The next day we prepared to have a big birthday dinner with my parents as well as my brother Peter and sister Heidi who were in town. 

Birthday baking together (my favorite mommy-son activity) led to Cooper's favorite part... batter licking! We did a brownie tower in place of a traditional cake, because we are holding off on the birthday party until January. Cooper was not disappointed.  

He ate up every bit of the event.  The song...

 the candle-blowing...

 and more blowing...

and then definitely the eating.

 Annabelle graciously gave her brother center-stage for the evening, but seemed to innately know that she wanted- no, needed- one of those brownies. Reach, Annabelle, reach!

 Cooper's attitude was so humbling and refreshing during the present-opening. After receiving the first gift, he was so excited and thankful that he never asked for or even noticed that there were more to come.

Don't worry, he figured it out quickly! He absolutely adored each one of his gifts and couldn't have been happier, especially since he got to play with Grandpa.

Our baby boy is not much of a baby anymore. He is growing and changing faster than I realize (and certainly faster than I can document!).  We are genuinely grateful and humbled that God entrusted this little one to us. Every day, it is an honor, a challenge, and a joy. And, it is fun.