Merry Christmas

We wish you a very Merry Christmas and pray you and yours will have a beautiful time of fellowship and remembering the true reason for the season today and tomorrow.

An angel of the Lord appeared to them, and the glory of the Lord shone around them, and they were terrified. But the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid. I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people. Today in the town of David a Savior has been born to you; he is the Messiah, the Lord. 

Luke 2:9-11


After today I will be taking a bit of a bloggy break to spend time with my peeps before Tonto heads back to work and my girl back to school. We'll chat in 2012 and I have no doubt there will be a full onslaught of pictures upon my return. :-)

Santa Baby

Though I love to decorate and throw the occasional party, craftiness really isn't one of my gifts. The same cannot be said for my daughter, though. In fact, she's taking art as an elective this year and her talent truly blows me away. It's absolutely amazing.

So when she told me she was hoping to exchange gifts with a group of girlfriends this year, I was more than ready to hop in the car and see what we could find at the store they would like. Imagine my surprise when she informed me they were all making something. And she wanted to make something crafty as well.

The one Christmas craft I had in mind was very similar to the one a friend had already planned so I headed to Pinterest for a little inspiration after seeing some cute snack bags on Big Mama's blog. After review by the girl, it was decided we would indeed craft some gifts.

I gathered all the necessary materials and steeled myself to begin the process Monday evening. By the time I got home, though, Tay was passed out and had a rough sinus headache. There was no getting around the craftiness last night, though.

As it turns out, I had a blast hanging with my girl. And I think our project was a success...

She was very helpful and proved once again that she has a knack where this type of thing is concerned.

She's also pretty handy with the Krazy Glue!

As I was basking in the glow of such a wonderful evening and making memories with my baby...

...she looked at me and said, "This was awesome! Next year can we make something for my teachers too instead of giving them store bought gifts?"

At least I have a year to prepare this time, right? :-)

Candlelight Christmas

Sunday evening our church had Ladies' Candelight Christmas, which is one of my absolute favorite events of the season!

I had the opportunity to host a table again this year and my mom was gracious enough to loan me her incredibly adorable snowman china. To go along with the dishes, I went with a silver/navy/dark red color combination.

And, of course, it included bling. That's sort of my middle name, after all.

I had grand plans to bake a red velvet bundt cake; however, once I learned one of my favorite bakeries had them for a very reasonable price, I decided to leave the baking in the hands of professionals. It was good decision, friends.

Once I started pouring water, I realized the whole 'napkin in the glass' idea may not have been completely thought through...

But my mom's china was really the most awesome thing on the table. What makes it unique is that each plate has a different design. The first one, pictured below, is the first in a series...

Each in the succession builds the snowman until he looks like this...

Each of the tables was beautiful. See...

Love how each is so unique and usually you can tell a lot about our personalities through the tablescapes. So thankful to have had the opportunity to visit with good friends, eat dessert and remember the One who is the true centerpiece of this special season.

Road to State

Last Thursday evening the girl and I headed up to the high school for the state championship pep rally. Truth be told, I only really went because I'd promised her a state finals t-shirt and that's the only time they were for sale to the public. But I decided, in the name of helping Tay build precious memories with her friends, that we could stay for the actual pep rally.

While there I noticed they had the various billboards that were in town throughout the season hung in the gym. The beautiful lady on the right is Dave's cousin :-)

There was much cheering, fun music,

dancing by the Goal Tenders, inspirational speeches,

and a recognition of the momentous occasion. This was the first time Midway has ever made it to the playoffs.

After work Friday evening, my little fam headed to Cowboys Stadium. Let's just say getting there was an adventure because sweet mercy at the traffic, friends.

Eventually we made it to the stadium, though, and we even found some seats. It was a Christmas miracle.

The girl was with a group of friends and they apparently spent more time checking out the various amenities Jerry added to this venue than watching the game. :-)

Our team fought hard and the score was very close for most of the game...

...and could have even been called a defensive battle.

Clearly there were a few (or 50,000) fans on hand to root the team to victory!

And had we made a few more plays at opportune times...

...we may have won. But, alas, it was not meant to be. Lake Travis won for an unprecedented fifth time in a row.

It was disappointing but the Panthers had an amazing season and it was such a fun ride. We were blessed to be able to join the team on their road to state.

And, in the end, my girl and one of her sweet friends were able to see the trees all lit up at the stadium. I even conned them into taking a picture!

But what I really want to know is how much taller is my child going to get?!?!

The Heisman Comes Home

Last Wednesday (yes, I'm behind, why do you ask?) evening, Tonto and I took the girl to the men's basketball game. We even ponied up some money and bought real tickets (as opposed to getting the freebies by using my Baylor ID - didn't want y'all to think we're counterfeiting athletic stubs in our spare time) so my man would have to climb 47 stairs.

His knee is still rather temperamental and apparently it is truly not a fan of these winter fronts that keep blowing in and out like my bangs without the proper amount of hair product.

But I digress...

Anyway, we wanted to see the men's team in person because they are truly human highlight reels this year. Absolutely. Amazing.

There was a little extra incentive for this particular contest, though, because the Heisman Trophy and its winner had made its way back to Waco.

But first there was the always exciting welcoming of the team while the lights are out and my camera wants to use a flash that it is forbidden in the Ferrell Center.

Coach Drew was fiery this particular evening. Reminded me of The Coach Kim Show... :-)

There was some great basketball played by our guys. In fact, the other team only scored 16 points in the first half. Pierre Jackson (aka P-Jack) is #55 below and is one of my absolute favorite players ever. His enthusiasm and 40+ inch vertical make my heart smile.

Every school has a Heisman Cam, right?

And more great defense...

And then it was time...

...to welcome RG3 and his new hardware back home!

Absolutely,

positively,

amazing, friends. And the One More Year chant made my day. Mainly because that's what has been echoing in my head for several weeks now. Imagine what we could do next year if Griffin stays at Baylor!

No matter his decision, we'll still be able to watch Rob and his amazing teammates one more time at the Alamo Bowl. Cannot. Wait.

No matter what happens there, though, we'll always have this....

And, behold, we have seen the Heisman Trophy with our own eyes and are filled with great joy!

O Christmas Tree

It's been really rainy and dreary around these parts this week. Though we need the rain, I can't say that my hair and I always welcome it with open arms. It does make the house feel quaint, though, and provides some nice lighting for late night Christmas tree pics. :-)

We have a new to us tree this year and the girl and I decided to add some color with burgundy (not to be confused with maroon) ribbon. :-)

Of course, she abandoned me halfway through the decorating process and, quite frankly, I just chalked it up to 'tween hormones. Turns out, though, that she was actually getting quite sick. In fact, her poor nose swelled shut and she was on steroids all last week.

Must to my surprise, she was in the best mood the entire time she was on the meds. I guess some things don't run in the family because I'm quite a mess when I have to take steroids....

You may be wondering why in the world I'm sharing this random story. That's a fair question.

Yesterday afternoon I found out one of my sorority sisters had been found dead in her home. Her very young children found her. Her husband was out of the country on business. A tragic loss. 

We also have a precious couple in our lives who are facing some surprising health news this week that could result in the need for surgery. Quickly.

And those are just a couple of things off the top of my head that are making my heart heavy this week. 

So I guess what I'm saying is that these inconsequential stories that happen on random evenings in early winter with my girl are ones I want to remember. Forever.

And now I will. :-)