2010

2010 or MMX. That's the year we will be in tomorrow. My son will turn double digits and I will have a milestone birthday that I don't look forward too. 2010 is a year that I am believing and praying that God is going to do some incredible things ~ not only in my family but within our church, community and friends.

Here's a link to a page I found interesting about the year 2010 and events that will take place this year http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010. Not bad events, but just events in general.

May 2010 bring you a year filled with the peace and joy of our Lord. May the words we speak and the things we do glorify the One who gives us life. Many blessings to you as you enter this New Year and may you surround yourself with the love of Jesus.

Contests

When I have spare time I like to enter contests and sweepstakes. I've certainly been blessed these last couple years doing it. I've won $500 worth of clothing, a trip to Sheridan, WY, CD's, DVD's, Records, T Shirts and other things. Sometimes when I win I'm not always able to use them so have enjoyed blessing other people with those wins. I don't keep track of what contests I've entered and sometimes I even forget the wins I've won so I've decided that for the year 2010 I'm going to blog about each contest I've won. I haven't kept track in the past on how many I've won in a year but blogging about it this year should help me keep track of it. So, stay tuned....

Christmas Pics

Oscar trying to get his present

Looking at my gift certificate for a massage!!

Gifts for dad's new car

They figured out they got a Wii!!

Playing the Wii

Gingerbread House that was made

Papa helping the boys


Opening their stockings

Showing off their shirts from their aunt and family

Dad playing the Wii

Merry Christmas

Today is CHRISTmas. It's not just a day for us to receive gifts but it's a day for us to remember Jesus' birthday.

A Long, long, long, long time ago, in a town very far away, there was a man named Joseph who dearly loved a young lady named Mary. Mary had been told by God that she would be the mother of a very special baby boy. She was so excited! She just couldn't wait to hold her baby in her arms. She would make clothes for the baby, and Joseph, being a good carpenter, would make things the baby would need, like a cradle and special, child-sized furniture. They anxiously awaited the birth of their new son. It seemed that the day just couldn't come soon enough.

One day they received news that the king wanted everybody to be counted. He didn't want to just count all the people in one town, or two towns, or even three towns. He wanted to count all the people in the entire kingdom. And the king didn't think it would be good enough to simply go from house to house to determine how many people there were. No, he wanted every person to go back to the town in which they were born in order to be officially counted.

Mary and Joseph busily packed their clothes and other necessary items for their long journey. No one had cars or any type of vehicles back in those days, but they did have a donkey to help carry their load. Sometimes they would walk on the dusty roads, and sometimes Mary would ride on the donkey to rest her sore feet. Day after day, night after night, they kept moving. When nighttime came, they would try to find a room at an inn, so they could get a good night's sleep. But sometimes, since so many people were being forced to travel, it just wasn't possible to find a room, because all the rooms were taken.

It was a very long, very dusty, very tiring trip. Finally one night, they saw the small lights off in the distance. "We are almost there," Joseph told Mary. Then they started to go slightly faster. "What a beautiful city Bethlehem is from here!" Mary exclaimed. "I wonder if it is just as beautiful inside?"

Once inside the city gates, Joseph tried to get a room at the inn. Unfortunately, the inn keeper had to turn them down. "I'm sorry," he said. "There just aren't any more rooms."

"But we have been traveling for days, and we are so tired. Are you sure there is no place for us to stop and get some rest?" Joseph asked as calmly as he could. It was getting very late and he was getting quite frustrated, but he tried to be kind and patient.

Seeing the problem and feeling compassion, the inn keeper said, "Well, there are still no rooms, but I could offer you the stable." Now, a stable is actually a barn. It's a place the inn keepers kept the animals that were traveling with his guests. It wasn't a very good place to sleep. There were no beds, and it had a bad smell because of the variety of animals, but it was a shelter where they could lie down for the night.

Joseph thanked the inn keeper for his kindness and led the donkey to the the stable. Mary gathered piles of straw to make a semi-comfortable bed. They laid down for the night and were finally able to sleep.

But, suddenly, Mary woke up. She turned to awaken Joseph. "What is it?" Joseph asked sleepily. "I think the baby is coming tonight!" Mary said with excitement. Joseph bolted upright, forgetting how sleepy he was.

That night the special baby that had been promised to them was born. Mary cried for joy and cuddled him closely. Joseph took his turn holding the little baby. They didn't take long to decide what they were going to name the baby, because God had already told them the name. Joseph held the baby up and said "His name will be JESUS."

They wrapped him in a soft cloth to keep him warm, and Mary made a bed of straw in the manger, which was usually used for the hay that the cows eat. What a wonderful night it was there in the small stable! Baby Jesus, the GREATEST GIFT TO THE WORLD, was born that night.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS!! Merry Christmas from our house to yous!! May your day be filled with the beauty and wonder of our sweet Saviour's birth!

A True Classic

Goodbye Old Friend

10 years. That's how long we had our little, green Ford Escort. It took me to and from Wellmark for the 5 years we lived in IA the first time. That's the only car Renn knew for the first 3 years of his life. It went on two cross country trips and survived both! It truly was a great car for us but fter 10 years and shy 200 miles from hitting the 200,000 mile mark we had to said goodbye. It truly was on it's last leg and after much decision we decided to trade it in for a much newer Ford. After 10 years you can't expect a lot for a trade in but we got some out of it. It's a nice little car and works for us well. The dealership got a kick out of us though. We returned to the same dealership we bought the Escort from, traded the Escort back to them and got this Focus!! Renn was hoping we would come back with a yellow Mustang!! Good thinking Renn but not this time!!

Let's Put CHRIST back into CHRISTmas!

More Snow Pictures

Kev's car buried

Garage door ~ where my van is parked

Zayvn

My foot in the snow

Snow drift

Renn in front of the car

Renn standing in front of the garage

Me jumping into the snow off the ledge

Very cold outside with the wind blowing. Can't stay out there very long but I wanted a few pictures.

First Snow of the Season

Oscar eating the snow

Zayvn and I sledding

Here goes Oscar and me!

The first snow of the season came today. Predicting about 6 inches tonight and a blowing wind of 45 mph tomorrow which puts us in a winter storm warning. The boys got out of school early today and I'm assuming there will be no school tomorrow. We went and enjoyed the snow for a bit. Even Oscar got in the fun!!