Update and thoughts of Christmas

Man, I looked at the date and it's time for a post:


This Christmas was ok. I always liked Christmas growing up, was never a die hard Christmas lover and setting up decorations in September. As I have gotten older, I have become rather a Christmas hater...let me explain. I don't care for all the expectations that come along with this holiday. Like it's the most wonderful day of the year and when families get together it's the most wonderful thing ever. Frankly I find it not the most wonderful day of the year, far from it and I don't really enjoy huge family get togethers when there is alot of underlining crap. Rather stressful.


I DID enjoy having some smallish parties with a few friends that was intimate and relaxing and having Christmas eve night and Christmas morning with just our family

When it comes to Christmas, the BEST Christmases hands down where the ones that me and my family spent overseas for the one reason that getting gifts for everyone wasn't even an issue. The giving of presents weren't stressed on TV or even stores. It was just normal and the emphasis was getting together at other peoples houses just to hang out and enjoy each other. I really enjoyed that. I remember playing games and enjoying talking with all these different types of people and the buying the right presents and making sure everyone got a present wasn't even an issue....ahhh. CAn there be such a Christmas in the States. The shopping craze is really annoying, but my love language isn't gift giving so maybe that's part of the reason too :)


I do have to say though. Being together with my Andy and Morgan and Caden was thee best part. So I say the best day of the year is when I get to be with them!

Data is Scary!

Morgan is getting to the age where is she very aware and watching what is happening around her and what is said and most noticeably what is on TV.

We were watching TV last night and Star Trek: Generations was on. It's rated PG so we thought ok, we'll just see. The movie was going on and we were off and on switching channels throughout the movie. She did watch the last part with Data who finds his cat on the destroyed Enterprise.

The movie ended and she started crying hard. Apparently, Data is very scary to a 3 year old and the thought of a nice cat with a scary person was to much. I never thought of that. Andy and I both ask her why she is crying and she answers..."nothing". Must have learned that response from her mom ;)...

So needless to say, nothing is watched now with her in the room except G movies and sports....it's going to be a looooooong winter

Where I'm at

I've had some interesting thoughts the last few days about where I am at life. Meaning, being at home with 2 little ones. Having a RN degree but not currently choosing to use it. Being fulfilled in what I'm doing every day.

While I'm wiping Caden's nose or putting my almost perfect 3 year old in time out, :) I've had thoughts like "well if I started working and serving others and wiping their noses and butts, then I'd really be hearing God's call on my life." I was thinking these thoughts while waiting to pick up my daughter from preschool the other day and I got a picture/ memory of one of the days when I was working at the hospital after we had had Morgan.

I vividly recall sitting at the nurse's station charting on the computer and feeling annoyed that the call light had gone on again!! If only those patients could get their own bed pans and stop their own IV machine from beeping!! :) I was thinking, if only I could stay home with my kids, then I could truly serve the people that need me! and I would content and everything would be right.

I remembered this while sittng in the parking lot and the fact that I was saying the same thing about staying home with the kids really struke me that I have a contentness issue in this area. Just recongizing this, a light bulb has gone on and as my husband asked, "don't you think someone is talking to you?".

...yes, I don't want to not recognize where I am in life and miss what God has for me today even in the little small, monotous, un-noticed moments in my day :)

Memories in the past year that I'm grateful for

Thoughts from the past

I love being a mom and now that morgan is 3 and 1/2, she gets to go to fun birthday parties and has some friends that she really likes. I'm getting use to seeing my little girl interact with other girls and even helping Morgan friends. It's kinda've weird doing it, and I'm very aware that her friends might have different values/ways of living in their house/ opnions, but at the moment their playing with my daugther so indirectly I'm affecting them

I was thinking of this when we were at a play house last night and I was helping Morgan get her shoes on and then her friend asked me to get her shoes on as well, cause her mom wasn't right there. I helped both girls and it brought back a memory when I was about 14 years old......


My family was camping with another family at a beach when we lived in the middle east. The mom was English and her name was Christine and the dad was Egyptian who's name was Ahmed. They had one son who's name was Sam and he was the same age as my brother and I'll never forget how Sam used the word "pardon" when he didn't hear you or understand you. Americans usually say "what" or..."huuu" but hearing this little boy use the word "pardon" in his English way of saying things was really cute. Anyways, we were camping on the beach which is a very sandy experience, and all the kids were getting ready to go into our tent and Sam's mom carried over some water in a bucket and was washing her son's feet off before he went in the tent and then just like I was her daughter she washed my feet. It felt really weird having someone touch my feet and caringly clean them. I remember thinking, this is like something in the Bible!! But I was touched cause she was not my mom but was doing the same for me as for her son...



So anyways, those thoughts were going through my head while I was helping morgan and her friend get their shoes on. I hope that as Morgan grows up, I can help/serve her friends and touch their lives in caring ways.

Biographies

So, if you didn't know, I love biographies. I like to read about people who do things that interest me. Currenlty I'm reading Andre Agassi's new book Open. Very interesting. I think it's appealing cause I have followed his career and watched him on TV and listened to him commentate several times.


What the outside actions and appearances don't show is surprising. He mentions matches in the book that I recall seeing and he writes about how he was struggling physically/mentally/emotionally, almost to a complete break down. Could never tell by watching the match. Makes me think about how God looks on the inside and us people look on the outside. How misleading that can be!!



I always wanted to be telepahtic (be able to sense what other people are feeling/thinking). This past few weeks, I have heard of people I know who are going throw really really tough life situations. My heart aches for them. Ino more want to be like Diane Troy (on next generation Star Trek, anymore. That would be a burden to carry probably to much for my fragile psych :)...So...grateful for something funny