Merry Christmas!

Finally a decorated tree!

Well, it didn't happen until the day before Christmas Eve, but we finally were able to decorate our Christmas tree!  We love how it turned out!

 First step was to make some homemade ornaments for our tree.  We found these styrofoam balls at Walmart.  I had one excited girl when we put some glitter glue in the cart, too!

 Everyone worked hard on their creations!

 Even Micah got in on the fun.  Give this kid a paintbrush and he's entertained for a long time!  He loved it!

 Then, we realized our star was in one of our Christmas boxes that is still in our box trailer.  (We have yet to unload it!)  So, Josh set out to make a star using glitter and a leftover box.  I love how it turned out!

 Then, I curled a long strand of giftwrap ribbon for the garland.  It was lightweight enough for the cedar branches to hold it.  As I got to the top, I noticed a little greenish something staring back at me!  Patrick and Beth came to my rescue and took the lizard outside and away from our tree!

 As tradition holds, I was the one to put the star on our tree.  And it actually stayed there!

 This Christmas may not be turning out like planned, but we are making special memories.  And togetherness is one of the sweetest!

And Voila....our finished tree!  Patrick even hung my picture on the wall behind it!  It's starting to feel like home, and beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

Moving Day

At last!  Moving Day!  We went early Saturday morning to get the biggest U-Haul truck possible.  Would everything fit?  That was the question in our heads!  It's amazing how much stuff you can accumulate! I thought back to our move from St. Barths to Fort Myers.  We had no furniture.  None.  Yet, the Lord provided EVERYTHING we needed! Couch, loveseat and chairs, Dishes, 7 beds, so many casseroles and kitchen items,  my Grandma's China Cabinet (what a precious heirloom!), lamps, dressers, Oh my it's overwhelming!  As we moved our things, I was reminded of people that gave us so much!

 Denise determined she was the supervisor! :o)  Actually, she is the lady we hired to go behind us after we leave and make sure everything is cleaned up and in order before turning in the keys.  Poor lady.

 My Mom and Keri swept and cleaned.  Keri brought warm homemade banana bread and Mom brought cold cokes.  They know us well!  Thanks for the photo bomb Bro. Hurley!

 My sweet Mam-maw is amazing.  Even though she has been in pain for so long with her back, she still worked and cleaned.  She is the type of lady that just knows what to do.  She asked me, "What can I do to help?"  I said, "Mam-maw, I just don't know, there are just so many little things that I need to throw in the box."  And then, she went and found things needing to be done and helped so much!  I just love her!

Bro. Sanchez, Marc, The Hurleys and my boys loaded the truck and somehow (It's a miracle!) fit everything in the truck.

What a blessing it has been to live at the house by our church.  It was the place that God used to help me in this phase of my illness.  God knows exactly what we need and is always right on time!

Christmas with Denise and Marc

While we were in Fort Myers, we wanted to celebrate Christmas with Denise and Marc.  Warning, complete picture overload! :o)

 Even though it wasn't Christmas Day, we were all so excited to spend this time together and exchange gifts.  Do you notice the paint still on Patrick's arm?  What a man!

 We also opened the gifts sent to us from family in St. Barths.  How thoughtful of them!

 Their very own Hot Chocolate Disney Mugs from MaMa was a huge hit!

 There was also a lot of happiness and giggles over this french doll that sings and walks.  Callie affectionately named her Lucette.  Thanks Mariane and Georges!

 I posted, not too long ago, about my Gold Coffee.  How about 4 packs more! Yes, yes, yes!

 Grammy bought some sweet gifts for her grandchildren!

 My girls can't wait to get their room decorated and set up.  Have I mentioned how bright their room is?  You almost have to wear sunglasses to enter with the paint colors they picked out!  :o)

 Marc gave us a gift card with a nice amount for each person in our family to spend.  He said there is only one requirement, It has to be something we need.  There has been much debate the past couple of days about what is a need and a want.  Ha!

 My Mother in Law is the best!  She always spoils me at Christmas time!  I didn't think she could top the year she gave me a Quilter's Sewing Machine.  Well, this year's gift is a close tie, that's for sure!  When I unwrapped the box and saw "KitchenAid" on the side, I thought, "No Way!"  I've always wanted a KitchenAid mixer!"

And that's what was in the box!  Yipee!  She bought me a silver one to go perfect in my new kitchen!

Such a great evening with our family.  They were so thoughtful and sweet and showered us with many gifts.  Thanks Denise and Marc!

More to do!

Well, we've worked.  And worked some more.  We have muscle aches we never knew were there!  Yet, there is still much to be done!  Isn't that the story of a homeowner? Love it!

(Cue the Jaw Harp Music for these next photos!)

(I'm thinking of the episode on Little House on the Prairie called End of the Rainbow.  Anyone else remember that one?)

 Lovely green something or other growing on our home.  Oh my.

A nice load of trash needing to be taken to the dump.

There's still the Master Bath...haven't even touched that yet, trim work, trim paint, touch up paint, curtains to hang, and we haven't even touched the outside either!

And unfortunately our carpet wasn't going to arrive for a bit. So, we decided to head back to Fort Myers, let Josh see his Grandparents, and get a U-Haul truck to make the final move.  A little hectic moving in without carpet?  Oh yes!  But, the thought of being moved in before Christmas sounds mighty nice.  We are so longing to be settled in one place...and together.

So, it was off to Fort Myers we went.  It was a whirlwind trip, but it was great.  More pictures to come!

A different kind of tree

Plans, plans, plans....they are not exactly turning out the way I had them in my head.  But, I like the real version better!

Since our move is being bumped up so close to Christmas, we haven't had a chance to unpack any Christmas boxes.  (Kind of hard when they are almost 300 miles away)  So, we decided we can at least get a tree!  One of the things I put in the rental van as we came to see Josh arrive in the airport was our tree stand.  Priorities, priorities!  So, we went to the Tree Lot...closed.  Lowe's....5 trees left with half the needles gone.  Choose and Cut Tree Farm...closed, closed and closed again.  What were we to do?  Then, from the backseat Silas said, "Mom, next year can we be like Mickey Mouse and chop down our own tree in the woods?"  Patrick and I looked at each other.  Forget next year!  Let's do it this year!

 We found the perfect Cedar Tree on our property!

 There was so much excitement and giggles about picking out our tree.

 Of course, Josh is like his Daddy and any reason to use a power tool is a good thing!

 A Christmas Tree, a christmas tree, We have a REAL tree!!