Merry Christmas!

To all of you who care so much about us and check in on us through our blog, thanks for keeping up on us throughout the year. Thanks for loving us and being a part of our lives. We are so thankful for the friends and family we've been blessed with over the years. We have such an amazing support system of people who sincerely love us and influence our lives. Thank you for your prayers and ongoing love for all five of us. One of the greatest gifts we thank God for is you.

Merry Christmas!
Cal, Jaim, Bry, DJ & Elle

Christmas Ideas

Just wanted to share a few quick things with you during this "most wonderful time of the year" (which happens to be playing on the satelite radio as I type):

Scarves:
This is a cool no-knit scarf that I learned how to make. So I made a few for gifts this year. I learned that the thicker the yarn, the better. These are nice to give as homemade gifts to friends who like to change up their wardrobe with a scarf. I even made a couple for myself. You can find the directions to make your own here:
http://www.marthastewart.com/good-thing/no-knit-scarf





(Sorry to be so indulgent here with all the pictures of myself. I couldn't help myself because Bryant, the 8 year old, took all these for me. Actually, he took about 75 pictures, but I won't bore you with all of them. He was funny, telling me how to pose, what expression and so forth. I mean, he was REALLY getting into being the photographer for a change. When he was finally satisfied with the many pictures he took, he said, "Don't worry Mom, you're still the mother of all photographers." He thought that was the most brilliant thing he'd ever come up with. So I'm posting these pics out of parental pride. That's my boy, the aspiring photographer!)



This is me cracking up at Bry, the passionate photographer.


Beginer Topiaries:
Next, I made several beginer Rosemary topiaries that I wanted to share how to do. I made 10 and will give a few away as gifts this year. The others, I plan to nurture all year and give them as full topiaries next Christmas. They are very hardy plants that love even the harsh Arizona sun. I enjoy the process and it's a labor of love. Plus they smell lovely and look so darn cute once they've grown into full globe topiaries.
You can find the directions for these at: http://www.papagenos.com/blog/template_permalink.asp?id=140

Here is how you begin by stripping the single stem and putting a straight stake for support:


It's fun to use different pots:


I like to give them to friends in a pot that matches their personality or style:


Remember to rotate the pot so it will grow straight up. Otherwise it will get fuller on one side and start to lean towards the side that receives the most light. This is the desired final product:


Using Christmas Cards:
Lastly, I'm collecting all my Christmas cards this year and keeping them in a stack to use as book marks. My plan is to rotate through them and pray for the families and friends each time I use their card. This is a good way to remember to pray for the ones I love. I try to pray for my loved ones anyway, but this will serve as a good reminder. Just a thought, I thought I'd share.

Fast Pace in a Slow Town

Catching up:
I haven't been very good about blogging these days. I hope in the weeks to come that I will regain some focus and order in my life. Right now, I'm just hanging on for Christmas and the move into our own place. We plan on moving into a darling home near the heart of Ajo's downtown plaza, by the weekend of Jan 2. No, we haven't sold or rented our house in SC, but things are in the works and we feel confident that things will be established soon. I will keep you posted when that happens. (In the meantime, please keep praying for the situation- we greatly appreciate it).

Daily life:
For a little town, there sure is a lot to be done here! On most days Cal leaves before dawn and says good bye while I'm usually too asleep to really acknowledge what's going on. Homeschool takes up the majority of our day. Then, at 4:00, we head down to the Parks and Recreation for Bry's basketball and Delainey's dance/cheer practice. Elle usually plays on the playground while the other two do their thing. On Monday and Wednesday evenings, I work down at The Ranch House (my parents' restaurant). Those days are especially hard because I don't get to really connect with Caleb but the tip money has been nice. I also enjoy helping out with the family business now that I'm here. It also makes me thankful that I've been able to stay home for the most part with our children all these years, because even working 2 nights a week feels demanding and hectic at times.

Where we are:
Life is good in this funny little town deep in the desert. I can honestly say, we are enjoying it very much. The weather has been simply amazing and I've fallen in love with the Sonoran Desert all over again (remind me of this when it hits 115 degrees this summer). This peculiar town of Ajo is home.

Caleb is also settling in very well at ORPI. We are so certain we are exactly where we're supposed to be. This is the career meant for Caleb and Caleb seems meant for this career. In many ways, I feel like my "Caleb is back". I see a spark of confidence and satisfaction that I used to see before when he was rangering. Plus, he looks really good in his uniform, which is always a plus. He will become the PEB coordinator for his park and will be receiving training for this position in February. He is very excited about the possibilities within this line of work that he loves so much. He also highly respects and enjoys his fellow rangers here, which is enjoyable and inspiring for him. Needless to say, being outdoors again is simply exhilarating for Caleb. He feels very blessed to be in a line of work and a place he enjoys so much.

As for me, I'm so much busier here than I anticipated between homeschool, working for my mom and everything else that pulls at my attention. Photography, I anticipate will also pick up very soon. I've been asked to do all the senior pictures for the local high school, which I'm very excited about. These kids were Caleb's first set of 5th graders here. I really like this group of kids and to do their pictures is a privilege. I also have a wedding in March and another in August. I need to gear up and make some room in my life for my love of photography.

Extras:
Somehow, I've been managing to fit some great reading in. I just finished "The Witch of Blackbird Pond", which I HIGHLY recommend. Bryant and I read it together and I loved all the wonderful lessons I could pull from this book and share with him. It was a Newberry winner and an all-time fabulous book. I'm so glad I got to read it with him and share the experience. It shined a brilliant light on the dangers of legalism and the hurt that comes with it. I became so connected with the characters and found myself cheering them on or wanting to jump in and defend them. I can't wait to read it with my girls in the years to come.

Currently, I'm smack dab in the middle of the book, "Is The Bible Intolerant?" by Amy Orr-Ewing. If you want a thought provoking, knowledge-growing book to wrap your brain around, this is a deep but very good one. It goes on to answer many questions such as, "Is the Bible.... Sexist? Oppressive? Homophobic? Outdated? Irrelevant?". I find myself squeezing in little reading sessions so I can continue to inch on through the pages filled with great information. My brain is absorbing so much right now, it is stimulating.

I've also just started "Hinds Feet in High Places" by Hannah Hurnard. It is a beautiful allegory that I checked out at the library, but I'm sure will want to buy a copy to add to my own library once I'm finished. It has been compared to "Pilgrim's Progress" but with lighter reading. I can't wait to complete this journey with the main character, Much-Afraid.

Christmas!:
We are prepping for all the wonderful Christmas festivities and have been wrapping gifts for the past few days. We plan on baking today and Tuesday to get all of our treats made. On Wednesday we plan to continue our family tradition of making tamales. (Tamales are probably my favorite food in the whole wide world) Delainey will march with her cheer leading squad in the Christmas Eve parade downtown. We will spend Christmas Eve and Christmas morning with my family. I can't remember the last Christmas that I was home. It has been years. I'm thankful to be here with people I love so much.

Back At The Ranch

Yesterday we spent Thanksgiving with about 30 family members at my Uncle Gary & Aunt Brenda's place. This is where our family in Arizona spends Thanksgiving and Easter every year. I felt so good to be back with everyone. We had such a great time. It was cool because Aunt Brenda gave each of us a chance to say what we were thankful for. I think it is so important to speak our gratitude and give God the thanks He deserves in our lives. Yesterday was a very good day to do that. The weather was gorgeous with big clouds all around and just enough coolness in the air to keep the heat away. The time with family was priceless.

Uncle Gary's place is a wonderland for kids. So I took some pictures of the kids riding horses, chasing the cows, getting dirty and having a great time. This is the stuff childhood memories are made of. Sorry I haven't blogged in so long- been a little busy. I'm attaching lots of pictures to try to make up for my lack of posts lately.

Bry is studying Native Americans in school right now and loves anything to do with Indian culture and history. He also recently found out that we have Indian ancestors, so knowing he is part Indian has added to his infatuation.


The kids loved playing in the cattle shoot.


This is my sweet little neice, Kenzie.
I got to take some great pics of her yesterday too.


Surprisingly, Elle wasn't at all afraid of the horses.
She happily rode this one all by herself!


Delainey LOVES living close to Kenzie again.
They are 2 years apart but DJ thinks she's a
teenager half the time so she keeps up pretty well.


Climbing on the cattle shoot...


More climbing...


Elle pretending to be a cow.


This is my nephew Dylan.
Isn't he handsome? Such a fine young man.


Uncle Gary graciously gives every kid a ride.
Here is riding with his grandson, Brendan.


Elle, the cow, playing.


Bry, the Indian, riding.


Little Miss Independent


...on a mission!


DJ about to be swallowed by a horse.
(this child has no fear)


Everybody loves Raymond and what's not to love?


Uncle Gary and Elle, one more go round.


Elle finally settled in with Daddy after hours
of independent climbing and stomping.


Coleman chasing the cows.


Delainey was the horse hog. She didn't want to let
anyone else ride, but the other kids didn't stand for that.


The cows wanted their picture taken.
See how they all pushed to get to the camera?


Brendan, "Pee-wee", winking


Bry stirring up the cows.


Pucker up Dylan.




SO MUCH TO BE THANKFUL FOR!

Quick Trip Recap

Well, tomorrow marks one week since we arrived back to "the Grand Canyon State". I can't honestly say we're settled at all but that will happen in time. Right now this feels a lot like a visit. We're having a good time.

Our trip was seriously better than I could have hoped. Thank you for your prayers as we traveled. The kids were great and the road was easy. Our kids would get the truckers to honk at us by pulling down the imaginary horn as we drove by them. The kids would see a truck coming up ahead and would say, "Get your horns out!" Then, as we traveled through Winslow, my thoughts were on the song by the Eagles..."Standin' on a corner in Winslow Arizona, such a fine sight to see...". Finally, we got up to 7,000 feet at the Grand Canyon and relaxed with some good friends for the night. I've heard it said that the Grand Canyon has heard "WOW" in every language. I've seen that canyon many, many times and I still was wowed.

More updates and pictures to come. Please continue to pray that our house in SC would sell soon. We're glad to be home but miss our dear friends in Charleston too. Love you all!

Top 10 Predictions No Matter Who Wins the Election

1. The Bible will still have all the answers.

2. Prayer will still work.

3. The Holy Spirit will still move.

4. God will still inhabit the praises of His people.

5. There will still be God-anointed preaching.

6. There will still be singing of praise to God.

7. God will still pour out blessings upon His people.

8. There will still be room at the Cross.

9. Jesus will still love you.

10. Jesus will still save the lost when they come to Him.


I'm pretty sure God approves this message!

I got this in e-mail form and liked it so much I wanted to put it on my blog today. I'm so thankful that even though we can't put our hope in our nation, our government or a new president, we CAN always put our hope in God. He is Ancient of Days, the Alpha and Omega and He knows our every need.

We Made It!

Last night at exactly 6:03, we pulled into town with the view of "A" Mountain directly in front of us. We were in Ajo. We were home. My nephew, who was born when I was 15, turns 16 this week. We arrived just in time for his 16th birthday party and drove straight there. I was so glad to be back for this hallmark.

My brother and his wife, Kenda were only 17 and 18 when Brandon was born. "Unexpected" would be a good word to describe this pregnancy. I remember my childish first reaction of disappointment and even a hint of anger. But I also remember being at the hospital the night he was born. When I first laid my eyes on that perfect little boy, it was love at first sight. Love changes everything, doesn't it? I truly could swear I heard angels sing when I looked at him. How could our family be so blessed by something we initially feared? Grace, that's it. Grace has marked our family greater than any other thing.

So last night was monumental for our 2 families. Kenda's younger sister, who I grew up and graduated with, was also there. We were there together the night Brandon was born. We shared that life-changing event together and last night we got to celebrate Brandon's life together once again. I am so unspeakably proud of my brother and Kenda because of the amazing job they have done raising Bradon and now Dylan and Kenzie also. I think about how young they were and all the hurdles they've overcome. I'm also proud of both sets of parents for sticking by their teenagers, encouraging them, supporting them and building them up. I'm so thankful I got to see the beautiful fruit of years of commitment and God's grace.

Brandon truly is a fine young man. I am very proud of that kid. None of us knew that he would be given his first car last night. Bobby and Kenda miraculously kept it a secret from all of us. So when my brother pulled up in the coolest car I've ever seen a 16 year old get, we all were shocked! I wish I had the moment video-taped but it's permanently stored on my brain's hard drive. It went like this:
Kenda had all of us walk out to the road. Brandon kept saying, "No way. If my parents got me a car..." So Bobby pulls up in this tricked out black Cavelier that was way better than Brandon's wildest dreams. Bobby turns the music on and opens the doors. The doors open straight up- like a Lambourghini! So cool! It also has a really great "system", which apparently is a priority for a 16 year old. It was a great moment. Kenda was crying those parental pride tears and we all said, "WOW". I wouldn't have missed that for the world!

I feel like this whole leap of faith back to AZ, that makes ZERO sense to many of the people in our lives was confirmed last night. We are exactly where we're supposed to be- even when, no ESPECIALLY when it makes no sense to the rest of the world.

We made it, we're home.