Hi there!

I cannot believe it has been over two months since my last post. Where does the time go? No, seriously! I’m almost embarrassed at how long it has taken me to write a blog post. I remember writing my last post on a warm, fall day and here it is mid-December and it’s looking to be the coldest night so far this season. And not just cold…bone-chilling, hard to breathe when you go outside, need to wear a Snuggie inside kind of cold! And on nights like these, I am reminded how fortunate I am to have a warm house to call home.

So, where have I been? Well, our fall turned out to be a very eventful one. After selling our house in late July and feeling a huge sense of relief (see Live What You Love), we moved into a rental home that we were certain we’d live in for a couple of years based on our *plan*. However, sometimes things just aren’t what they seem and God has other plans for us. If someone would have told me back in July that I would be a homeowner again after three very short (or long) months of renting (depends on how you look at the situation), I would have said they were nuts! But…that is exactly what God had planned for us and here we are (in the same town nonetheless, but for all the right reasons) happier than we have ever been as homeowners. And as crazy as it sounds, we always struggled with our first house never feeling quite like home should feel. But this house…oh this home feels just like home should feel and we LOVE it!

We were blessed with an unusually warm fall and enjoyed every single day of it. One visit to the apple orchard and one to the pumpkin patch were huge highlights of the year for Miss L (she still talks about the pumpkin patch almost daily!). Halloween came and went and Miss L dressed up as a “bew-da-fly” (aka beautiful butterfly). We went trick-or-treating and she discovered just how good chocolate really is!

During Thanksgiving, we were overjoyed to learn that another cousin is on the way for Miss L in 2011! That makes three precious babies due for our family next year…three little bundles of joy to love and cuddle and love some more. Congrats Kelly and Mitch (due late March 2011), Cali and Aaron (due late March 2011) and Randi and Steve (due late June 2011)!

As of late, we have been enjoying the beauty of this Christmas season. Twinkly lights. Fresh snow. Warm fireplaces. Greetings from family and friends, near and far. Driving through neighborhoods to look at lights and Christmas displays. It’s amazing to watch the wonder of the season through the eyes of a child. Miss L looks forward to finding our “Elf on a Shelf” each morning, turning on the Christmas tree lights, watching Frosty the Snowman and other holiday specials, baking cookies and working on homemade gifts together. And amidst the chaos and materialistic tendencies of the season, it’s so important to J and I that Miss L understands what Christmas is truly about. She may be only 2 years old and not understand everything about the season completely, but it melts my heart when she looks at the nativity set and says “Goodnight Baby Jesus” or exclaims “Happy Birthday Baby Jesus” when we read ‘The Story of Christmas’ or when she helps pick out gifts for children in our area who otherwise may not receive gifts this season. She’s getting it.

May you enjoy all the blessings of this season! Merry Christmas!

*Photo: nuttakit