Has it really been nearly a month since I blogged?  I think we can safely say that my computer time has been effectively reduced!

We had a wonderful Christmas and celebrated my son's and daughter's birthdays, too.  Birthday week  always includes a trip to Chucky Cheese's.  I don't know who has more fun, the kids or Dad! They love to play skee ball and the virtual roller coaster machine. It gets loud in there though! 

The kids got cowboy boots for their birthdays--black and red for Earnest T and bright pink for Thelma Lou. I don't know how many pictures we've taken trying to capture Earnest T.'s fast draw or Thelma Lou's  pink-booted fancy footwork.

Christmas Eve was unforgettable. We had a lightening storm that evening as we headed to church with wind gusts that approached 40-50 miles per hour. Even traffic on the usually "speedy" highway near the house was slowed to a crawl. The crowd who made it to church was small, damp, but joyful.  After church we ventured on into the mountains where my Dad lives, praying the roads weren't  flooded.  We celebrated with him and my brother and then home to bed.

Christmas Day began with prayer by the Christmas tree before the children opened gifts. We had so much to thank God for--He saved my life this year, gave us a healthy baby, protected us,  and loved us. Our son is now ten and daughter is seven. Each year they become more of a joy to us! We have so much to praise Him for.

Later we had dinner with my husband's family. I think we left a little early because my husband wanted the lion's share of the banana pudding I made...

One funny note--I had been trying to find out what Handsome Hubby wanted. My friend Jennifer told me how much she enjoyed her MP3  player, especially since she could download Christian programs from www.oneplace.com . Another neat website with Christian programs available for download in DVD format is www.lightsource.com  . My little brain begins to spin--"Hmmm, wouldn't that be much neater than carrying and purchasing all those cd and dvd albums? Wouldn't it be more convenient for HH to have this gadget on his lunch break ?"  So in early December, I began trying to gauge his response to the idea. He was lukewarm at best. So I just bought him Adrian Rogers cds from Love Worth Finding ministries--his favorite.

On Christmas morning I see a small bag for me under the tree and Dad confidently asserts, "Honey, i know you'll love yours!"  I pulled it out and said, "Why how nice! Thank you honey!............What is it?"

Yep, he'd bought the MP3 player because he thought I'd hinted at it for me!  Later on in the day I confessed to him the truth of the situation. We had a good laugh, returned it, and now I know NOT to hint obviously about anything in front of him!