Christmas FIRSTS!

There are several firsts for my family this year. This is the FIRST year we have hosted Christmas in our home. Tre's mom, dad, sisters, aunt, uncle, cousin, and granny all came to stay with us last night. They have some family traditions and staying in the same house for Christmas Eve is one of them. WE had a great time eating and celebrating with our white elephant gift exchange last night and more food and gifts this morning! We went to church together for the FIRST time at Clearwater First Church of the Nazarene where we had our FIRST outdoor Christmas Eve service. It was beautiful outside! There were stars in the sky and the praise band sang some beautiful carols. This is the first Christmas where my family is spread all over the world. Sarah, Casey, and Kieren are all in Africa and my parents spent the morning packing their suitcases to go and visit them. They left this afternoon and should arrive in Cape Town, SA tomorrow night. I'm so blessed to have a wonderful family. I miss them terribly, but enjoyed talking to them all on the phone. One of the more obvious FIRSTS was Kylie! The funny thing is that she missed half of it. While the rest of us opened our gifts this morning, she slept! We had to set all her gifts aside and we had a special Kylie Christmas after breakfast. She enjoyed ripping the paper and putting everything in her mouth. Santa brought her a ball that moves and sings, it was a HUGE hit!

As the "kids" of all ages are playing with their toys and the women are in the kitchen cooking, I cannot help but be thankful. It has been a year of ups and downs and crazy circles in between, but God has been in control the whole time. I am so thankful for His guidance and LOVE that have transformed my life.

To our friends and family. Merry Christmas!! May you enjoy the blessings God has given you too :)

4 Wonderful Years!

Today Tre and I celebrated our 4th Wedding Anniversary!! We were able to score some pretty sweet Disney tickets today! We sent Kylie off to her grandmothers to be with her grandma and Aunt Kate. Then Tre and I went to Hollywood Studios, Magic Kingdom, and Epcot. We rode the best rides and had fun taking in all the sites. I can't remember how many times we looked at each other and said "We're at Disney!" We were also wearing "Happy Anniversary" buttons so everyone in the park knew what we were celebrating. Kinda corny I know, but we still had fun. It's crazy to think that 4 years have already gone by. WE know that we would not be where we are without the Lord and we are so thankful for His hands in our life and marriage! Thanks to all of you who have led the way with your example of a Godly marriage and those of you who have stood by our sides. WE love you all!

Crazy Hair

We got Internet at our house today, yea!!! This is exciting for you too, because it means we should be better about updating the blog.

These past few weeks have been wonderfully crazy. We had my parents down here for Thanksgiving. It was so nice to spend time with them. Kylie was great with them, and she earned major brownie points. She loved to smile at them, and even took naps in my dad's arms. Then we left for a trip to Nashville/Memphis for Beca (college roommate) and Trevor's wedding. In spite of the frigid temperatures that we are no longer used to, it was beautiful!! It was great to be around our closest friends from college and just enjoy each other's company. Of course we had to all stay together in one house, thank you Leah and Josh for being gracious hosts. Kylie got to meet Cecilia Boice, who will hopefully be a pen pal in the future. We returned to FL and just kept running as our church was preparing for Drive Thru Nativity. We construct these huge scenes from Modern to Bethlehem as we take people back to the true meaning of Christmas. It was a lot of hard work, but absolutely breathtaking when it was all done. Saturday and Sunday nights we dressed in our costumes and acted out our parts - Kylie was baby Jesus and did a great job!

Speaking of Kylie, she is growing and changing daily. Recently she has discovered how to grunt, kinda reminds me of Satan, but I cannot help but laugh when she makes the sound. She also started playing in one of those toys where she is in a standing position, reaching for toys that spin and make sounds . . soo cute! The biggest event was Kylie's first haircut. Her hair was seriously out of control, growing longer on all sides! We cut a little off the sides before we went to Memphis for the wedding, then in a moment of impulse I attempted to cut her bangs a week later. Her hair is now under control, but Tre referred to her as one of the three stooges after I cut her bangs. Hopefully we'll survive without therapy.



All in all, our lives are crazy . . basically like Kylie's hair. But our God is so faithful, and He is in control. I may not always understand what He is doing, but I am so thankful for His power in my weakness.