Christmas times~

Wow~ Christmas has come and gone....Tom the kids and I spent Christmas Eve at church. It was a wonderful service...just love Christmas Eve traditions. Amanda sung in the choir as she has done for the past two years..it is wonderful to watch her development her faith and devotion to the Lord. I just love this time of year as each week we celebrated and lit an advent candle at church and then the candle-light service. We went to see our family at dad's and mom's for a bit and than back home to continue our families traditions. Tom and the kids went to look at lights as they have every year since the we have had children~ and than they come home and we read Luke and a blessing of Psalm 20. And than the children open their stockings and than their gifts. I surprised Tom and the kids with a Wi and they have really been enjoying it together. I was up baking until four-thirty for the nursing home...but! got it all done. They have taken such good care of grandma I want them to know it is appreciated....because they just don't take care of her but you can see that they really care for her...and for that I am blessed~ I baked cookies and pumpkin bread and muffins and put it on trays with candies...I had baked on Christmas Eve also but there are two different sixteen hour shifts so I wanted to make sure to cover both. I saw grandma both days..knowing that her time of being able to travel out longer is feasible. It is too uncomfortable for her and I don't want to cause her any undue stress. She was so happy when we opened her stocking and her Christmas gifts have yet to be opened because of her being too tired and over-excited but they will keep for later this week. Everyone had been to see her with the exception of my parents..which makes me very sad for grandma although I am sure that she can't remember that they haven't been to see her in over eight months~ But..only so much I know that I can do and I can't allow myself to get too stressed either because I have her and the children to take care of~ We spent the day with my parents as Tom and I believe it is important that the children have as much time as possible with my dad as it is easy to see the Lord may be calling him home soon. Yesterday we had a lovely time with Chris and the children opening gifts and having a Chinese feast! I was just too tired and could not cook...life is just too short to worry and so we ordered out and it was an absolute blessing. Today is finally a day to just rest...nothing to get done but to spend some quiet time with our family. I know that I will be paying a price for all the running around but I am so grateful that the Lord allowed me to get everything done I wanted and needed to do~ It has been a lovely month...The Lord has blessed us with a job for Tom and the children with good family times and God has given me the stamina to make it through and for all these many things...I can only praise him~