Another week of good times (and goodies!) around our house.
Day 15: Gardenland Express Train & Flower Show at the Missouri Botanical Gardens (if you live in the area...GO!!! This was fantastic fun for all of us)
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| watching the trains & playing "I Spy" |
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| The Holly and the Ivy |
Day 16: Bake Christmas cookies to take to our friends & neighbors (and, of course, some for ourselves). On a side note, this was just the beginning of several days of baking...the house smelled amazing!
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| stirring up the Gram Ruth cookies is hard work, but well worth it! |
When we were delivering to our neighbors, I couldn't help but see God's hand in the way things worked out. We started out with the few houses that are clustered around ours. There were few porch lights on and even fewer people who were answering their doors. We had a few boxes left and decided to walk around the corner, past the big lot, and try some of the folks down the street (we really don't know our neighbors well, in all honesty). At the very last house we approached, we were greeted with the most grateful of recipients. It was a man who was living with his mother taking care of her after she had spent 2 weeks in the hospital and was recovering from surgery. His father had passed away earlier in this year, and he said his mom would really like the cookies. If just one more person that I had planned to deliver cookies to had been home, we never would have made it to this house -- the one that most evidently needed some Christmas cheer. I just love it when God shows up in the little things!
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| assembling some boxes and plates of deliciousness |
Day 17: Make a manger craft. We paired this with a reading of Luke 2:1-7 and learning the songs "Joy to the World" and "Away in a Manger."
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| we like crafts! |
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| the finished product -- pretty cute, I think |
Day 18: Make a gingerbread house (again, a 2-day project...assembled one day, decorated the next)
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adding the delicious finishing touches to our tummies our house |
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| the twins also made gingerbread houses at school, so we have a little gingerbread village in our dining room right now! |
Day 19: Drive through The Way of Lights at the Shrine -- so beautiful!
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| this is the only thing I could even come close to capturing on film! |
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| worshiping the newborn king! |
Day 20: Make a shepherd craft. We also read Luke 2:8-20 and sang "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," and "Go, Tell it on the Mountain!"
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| A happy shepherd dance...Go! Tell it on the Mountain that Jesus Christ is born! |
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| the shepherds joined our nativity |
Day 21: Wrap presents! Yay!
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| goofy gift wrappers! |
