Blissfully Snowed-In...

The week leading up to Christmas was its usual, wonderful blur....We went to what has now turned into one of our family's favorite Christmas traditions, the Christmas caroling party with dear friends from Scottsdale Bible Church. A lovely group of families who gather to share scripture, fellowship, food and of course, caroling. We are grateful to be invited each year (as we do not attend the same church) and leave feeling like Christmas is officially residing in our joyful hearts. 

The next night was our cookie decorating party (see previous post) which is absolutely another favorite family tradition. Then, it was Wade's company Christmas party, which is always a special time for us to say thank you to the guys who work so hard every day of the year. I'm proud to say that our gathering is always Christ-centered and I love listening to Wade talk about how the company puts God first in every decision. Perhaps, this is why his business continues to be blessed despite the current economic downturn. Amen!

Christmas Eve included church and then extended family fun at our house, well into the night. Colton finally decided that all the kids should go to bed by 11:00 so that Santa would make sure to stop. (Colton knows that Santa flies on by when the kiddos are not tucked quietly into bed for the night.) Colton had also expressed some concern earlier in the week, saying, "I have been a little naughty and I'm sad to think that I may be getting coal this year." With his last minute rally to get the troops into bed, he wanted Santa to know he was trying extra hard at being good.

Then came Christmas and the day evaporated quickly, as it typically does. We had a cake for baby Jesus and we all sang Happy Birthday. The kids enjoyed their three gifts, plus one from Santa (he did come, by the way) and then it was off to Nana's house for an extended Christmas Day with aunt Val and uncle Alan. My mom made a delicious Christmas dinner, which Wade and the boys ate quickly before running out the door for the Dallas/Cardinals football game.  The girls spent the night at Nana's and I drove home to collapse, grateful for the day spent with family and the chance to celebrate the birth of our Lord.

This week, post-Christmas, has been relaxing and fun. Lots of downtime, kids playing, no schedules or alarm clocks. Wade and I attended an Indian Hindu wedding, which was really interesting. We are friends with the bride's parents and were invited to the event a year ago. Basically, for four hours we watched and listened to the unfamiliar rituals of a Hindu wedding without understanding a word of it. My attention span took a severe dive early on during the ceremony, given I don't speak Sanskrit, so I redirected my attention to the amazingly ornate sari's that the women wore. They were extraordinarily beautiful and I pretended to guess how much each one cost. Some were heavily jeweled and others were much less ornate. They looked exceptionally comfortable and I imagined myself wearing one.  Drifting back to the gala, I think that I counted about 10 of us who were not Indian and we all clung somewhat together like foreigners in our own land. My favorite part of the day was spending it with Wade, just the two of us. And, he wore a tie! Since our marriage 16 years ago, I think he's worn a tie about three times. I, too, dressed up for a change. I found a dress in the back of my closet that was "made in India" and looked quite festive. I did get a few looks from some of the authentic Indian women, which I took as a compliment. Here we are looking quite debonair.

Following the wedding, we planned to head North for several days of relaxation. Snow storms have been forecasted and our trip went smoothly. The weather was beautiful as we came up, the skies were clear and the roads dry without a trace of fallen snow. We settled into the cabin, getting it warmed up and cozy.

This morning, instead of the familiar wail of the alarm clock, we woke to the quiet sight of snow falling.  It's been snowing all day and we're visually measuring the snow fall that sits on the deck railing, estimating between 8 and 10 inches thus far.  Wade and I took a walk down the street, while the kids refused to leave their cozy, jammy-filled sanctuary. Their only request is sledding, which we hope to do in the next day or two, road conditions permitting. Here's a couple photos of our snowy wonderland. For now, we are blissfully snowed-in!