Christmas eve started with both of us going to work. Jason got off work at 1pm and I got off at 2pm. We headed home to change - I wore jeans to work and had to dress up, Jason wore khakis to work and changed into jeans. Choir practice started at 3pm and the first service at the Dayton campus was at 4pm. The church was full, but it seemed like most were visitors. The choir sang our 6 songs (as the sun came through the stained glass windows) and Doug Roe did the sermon. It was over a little after 5pm and we headed off to O'Charleys with Pat and Becky Caudill - always a great time with those two!
The 2nd service started at 7pm and we got back just in time. (We kinda got lost with the new exits on 75 and ended up way east of downtown.) Ken, Melissa, the kids, and Jim all came to the service. I had to sit in the front with the choir, but snuck back while we were sitting down to say hi to the kids. The church wasn't as full, but it seemed to be mostly people I recognized. Seemed a little more like our normal Sunday service. We had communion and Kevin Hoffman did the sermon this time. It really felt like Christmas with family.
After hugging everyone in the choir and everyone left at the church we headed to the Cheesecake Factory with Ken, Melissa, kids, Jim, Michael and Shirley (Ken's dad and girlfriend). Jason and I had dessert while everyone else ate dinner. Kenton was so funny, dipping french fries into everything - including the caramel and whipped cream on my plate. We had to leave before everyone was done so we could make it to the last (late) service at the Beavercreek campus.
At the Beavercreek campus we ran into so many of our old friends that we haven't seen for awhile. I said hi to the choir and caught up with some of them. We sat in the back so we could sneak out after we heard a few songs (it had been a long day and we had already heard the sermon twice). Our awesome small group leaders, Ralph & Anita Ludwig, happen to sit behind us, so we got to say hi to them too. We snuck out and ran into Eric Wright and Sarah and Tim Zechini. Jason had a great time goofing with the guys, as usual, and then we finally got out of there. It was just so awesome seeing everyone Christmas eve!
Christmas morning we slept in and then got up to open presents. Jason got me a beautiful snowflake set by Brighton. Appropriately named Snow Diva. I wrestled Jason's ipod Touch from him to wrap it, Cyndi style. Actually, I just put some ribbons on it and hid it. Then I had a trail of clues for where he could find it. (David, Amy, Stacy and I used to do this a lot as kids.) I think he enjoyed it, though he did seem a bit annoyed about running up and down the stairs. :)
We headed to Dad and Claire's house around 1pm and had appetizers along with Grandma Doris and Grandpa Bob (Claire's mother and step-father). Both Amy and Stacy called while we were opening gifts and I got to catch up with both of them. After opening gifts we had a delicious ham dinner with the return of the ice cream in chocolate cups. (Claire had to try to the chocolate drizzle again.) It was a low-key Christmas day with great company and before we knew it, it was 8pm.
When we got home I gave Mom a quick call to wish her a Merry Christmas. It was really odd not heading down to Florida as I have almost every year for the past 9 years. (I'm such a creature of habit.) I know I just saw Mom and Gary at Thanksgiving, but I miss them already. We're planning on camping over Memorial Day weekend, so we're just focusing on that.
Friday Jason had to work until noon so I went shopping with Melissa at the Greene. Great sales! After we got home Jason and I headed to Kentucky to celebrate Christmas with his family. Saturday morning we gave them stockings with gifts inside. Both Gayle and John said they've never received stockings as gifts before. (Yay!) Later that afternoon (while temperatures were 72 degrees) we opened a few more gifts. Then Sunday Jason's sister, April, and her boys came over for Christmas dinner and more gifts! And before we knew it, Christmas was over and we had to go home.
It's been an awesome week and I can't believe the last day of 2008 is tomorrow. I have a "year in review" blog started, but still need to think about things before posting it. Stay tuned... :)
Showing posts with label Vineyard. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Vineyard. Show all posts
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Monday, December 22, 2008
Christmas pictures (so far)
This year we weren't sure what to do about a Christmas tree with two very curious kitties in the house. The tree I've used the past few years usually sits covered in the basement. Earlier this year the two boys demolished it. Not just knocking it down, but it was completely flat at one point. So we were trying to figure out how to secure a Christmas tree to the walls or bolt it to the floor when we had a great idea. How about a palm tree? The long trunk would keep ornaments high off the ground and if we decided we hated it, Jason would move it down to the man cave in the basement. (The parrothead/Coca-cola man cave in process.) So we found a nice little $21 palm tree at Flower Factory, brought it home, put some lights on it and then decorate it.
Ta-da!!
Unfortunately we didn't realize how top heavy it would be with all the ornaments on it. The cats helped us fix this. When we got home from work the next day, it was tipped over and most of the ornaments were scattered all over the house. We set the tree back upright, put some support around the pot and it's stayed put ever since.
Next set of pictures was taken at Jason's work. They had a Christmas party for the kids with a visit from Santa. Santa was played by one of Jason's friends from his previous position with Sojourner. Everyone had to sit on Santa's lap, so we got a few pictures...
And lastly, some pictures from the Christmas party last Saturday. (See previous blog if you haven't read it yet.)
Face Painting
Jason serving tables
Santa caught me peeking in through a window of his house!
Groceries were also given to the families
Ta-da!!
Unfortunately we didn't realize how top heavy it would be with all the ornaments on it. The cats helped us fix this. When we got home from work the next day, it was tipped over and most of the ornaments were scattered all over the house. We set the tree back upright, put some support around the pot and it's stayed put ever since.
Next set of pictures was taken at Jason's work. They had a Christmas party for the kids with a visit from Santa. Santa was played by one of Jason's friends from his previous position with Sojourner. Everyone had to sit on Santa's lap, so we got a few pictures...
And lastly, some pictures from the Christmas party last Saturday. (See previous blog if you haven't read it yet.)
Welcome to the Christmas party!
Gifts for the 800+ kids
Some of the caroling elves
Face Painting
Jason serving tables
Santa caught me peeking in through a window of his house!
Groceries were also given to the families
Sunday, December 21, 2008
Catching the Spirit of Christmas...
Not sure why, but I just wasn't ready for Christmas this year. I admit, I didn't want to listen to Christmas music until last week. I can't seem to get excited about Christmas shopping. I put up minimal Christmas decorations. I didn't even plan the annual (no longer annual) ugly ornament exchange.
What makes Christmas feel like Christmas? Snow? Pretty lights? Carols and candles? What happened to celebrating Jesus' birth? Where does that come into the picture? Over and over in my head I keep asking myself "what's the point?" We spend so much money at Christmas, for what? To get money spent on us too? No, no, no, really, I know that's not it. But doesn't it really feel like it? And so many of us right now don't have the extra money. We can't really be surprised when so many people are frustrated and grumpy this time of year.
So we go to the mall and first try to figure out which end of the mall to go to. (Which is usually the wrong end.) Then we try to find a parking spot. We circle the parked cars waiting for brake lights and then hoping they're leaving and not just pulling in. Of course we run into 2 or 3 other cars going for the same spot. (And the grumpiness doesn't help this situation.) Finally we find a spot that no one else is going for - and we're grateful that it only took 10 minutes. Then we make the decision - take the coat in and carry it around for hours, or leave it in the car and freeze to death. (It was 3 degrees when we left the mall tonight. The "feels like" was -18 degrees.)
Then we head to our store of choice with coupons in hand. Prices are really great, but they've cut the number of workers in half, so trying to find help is difficult. We have to be patient, but there's always those that are out for a better deal by complaining loudly to a manager in order to get another 10% off. (Is it worth it?) And the poor retail people, who have to put up with us while working until midnight each night, have little Christmas cheer either.
Like I said, where does celebrating the birth of our Savior fit into all of this? How do we get into the real Christmas spirit when things seem so helpless, hopeless? What is the real spirit of Christmas?
I found my answer. It might be different than yours, but it definitely worked for me. Serving others. Finding a need and doing what you can to meet that need. Even if it's just taking an extra moment to smile at someone and saying "Merry Christmas."
Yesterday our church had their annual Christmas party. The party involves serving a banquet-style dinner for 1,400 people in need and giving out almost 900 gifts to the children there. I really needed to be part of the party this year. Walking around and seeing people who were truly happy, really enjoying their time with family, laughing, and even skipping around, really helped me see that so many in need still remembered what Christmas was all about. For me, serving people meant doing face painting for 2 hours. I'm really great at snowmen on the cheek! I also did Santa, presents, poinsettias, Christmas trees, and candy canes. And so many of those that I got to interact with through painting their faces were teenagers or adults. The Christmas party fun is definitely not just for the kids. :)
Then today the real fun started. First there was choir practice at 8:00 am. Our little alto group is just four women, but I really love those women - Marti, Nancy, and Sally. We've had so much fun getting to know each other over the last few weeks of practice. Yes, choir is about singing, but there's also a kinship that is created by trying to help each other and staying together.
Then at 9:00 am we had worship team practice. Today was my first time singing on the worship team. I auditioned before Thanksgiving and Jim (the worship leader) put me on the schedule for toay. I didn't think about it too much, I just didn't want to get nervous. The songs were all so familiar and I've sang the harmonies almost every time I've sang the songs. The only difference was this time I was singing into a microphone. Oh, and standing in front of everyone, instead of hiding back at the soundbooth.
Church started at 10:15 and after Kevin opened with prayer, we started singing. What an experience! It was incredible watching everyone singing and getting into worship. I had so much fun and it was like I was hanging out singing with friends. And I just loved singing my favorite Christmas song, What Child Is This, and my favorite worship song, Praise Is Rising (Hosanna). It was just such an incredible experience. I asked Jim if I could sing with them again and he said I was going to stay in the rotation of singers. (Yay!)
After church we had a Christmas get-together at a friends house. We ended up hanging out with some of the funniest people we've met at the Dayton Campus. It was good to just sit, eat, tell stories and laugh. Then we had to rush off to go to the Fairfield Commons to wrap gifts. Our church wraps gifts for free every year as an outreach to the community. We were part of the 4-6 pm group, and also the 6-8 pm group. I helped wrap gifts for about 3 of those 4 hours. About the time I got tired of wrapping gifts, it was 8pm and the last shift of people starting coming in. Perfect timing!
There are a lot of stories that came out of wrapping gifts, and I don't have the time to share them all. However, I will say that everyone was smiling and chatting like we all knew each other and so many of us met for the first time that day. We got to talk to people while we wrapped gifts and hear their stories. So many wanted to give donations, but that's not why we do it. (And we don't take donations.) We tell them that we're just showing God's love in a practical way. And they seem to understand.
The Christmas spirit finally got me this weekend. I've got my focus back. And the presents waiting to be given are a sign of how much I love those that are in my life.
I need to share other stories from our Christmas experience, but I've run out of time for tonight. Stay tuned, we got a visit from Santa (and have photos with him), and we also put up a palm tree for our Christmas tree this year (and photos of this too). I'm sure I have pictures from the Christmas party that I can post too, but that will have to be tomorrow.
What makes Christmas feel like Christmas? Snow? Pretty lights? Carols and candles? What happened to celebrating Jesus' birth? Where does that come into the picture? Over and over in my head I keep asking myself "what's the point?" We spend so much money at Christmas, for what? To get money spent on us too? No, no, no, really, I know that's not it. But doesn't it really feel like it? And so many of us right now don't have the extra money. We can't really be surprised when so many people are frustrated and grumpy this time of year.
So we go to the mall and first try to figure out which end of the mall to go to. (Which is usually the wrong end.) Then we try to find a parking spot. We circle the parked cars waiting for brake lights and then hoping they're leaving and not just pulling in. Of course we run into 2 or 3 other cars going for the same spot. (And the grumpiness doesn't help this situation.) Finally we find a spot that no one else is going for - and we're grateful that it only took 10 minutes. Then we make the decision - take the coat in and carry it around for hours, or leave it in the car and freeze to death. (It was 3 degrees when we left the mall tonight. The "feels like" was -18 degrees.)
Then we head to our store of choice with coupons in hand. Prices are really great, but they've cut the number of workers in half, so trying to find help is difficult. We have to be patient, but there's always those that are out for a better deal by complaining loudly to a manager in order to get another 10% off. (Is it worth it?) And the poor retail people, who have to put up with us while working until midnight each night, have little Christmas cheer either.
Like I said, where does celebrating the birth of our Savior fit into all of this? How do we get into the real Christmas spirit when things seem so helpless, hopeless? What is the real spirit of Christmas?
I found my answer. It might be different than yours, but it definitely worked for me. Serving others. Finding a need and doing what you can to meet that need. Even if it's just taking an extra moment to smile at someone and saying "Merry Christmas."
Yesterday our church had their annual Christmas party. The party involves serving a banquet-style dinner for 1,400 people in need and giving out almost 900 gifts to the children there. I really needed to be part of the party this year. Walking around and seeing people who were truly happy, really enjoying their time with family, laughing, and even skipping around, really helped me see that so many in need still remembered what Christmas was all about. For me, serving people meant doing face painting for 2 hours. I'm really great at snowmen on the cheek! I also did Santa, presents, poinsettias, Christmas trees, and candy canes. And so many of those that I got to interact with through painting their faces were teenagers or adults. The Christmas party fun is definitely not just for the kids. :)
Then today the real fun started. First there was choir practice at 8:00 am. Our little alto group is just four women, but I really love those women - Marti, Nancy, and Sally. We've had so much fun getting to know each other over the last few weeks of practice. Yes, choir is about singing, but there's also a kinship that is created by trying to help each other and staying together.
Then at 9:00 am we had worship team practice. Today was my first time singing on the worship team. I auditioned before Thanksgiving and Jim (the worship leader) put me on the schedule for toay. I didn't think about it too much, I just didn't want to get nervous. The songs were all so familiar and I've sang the harmonies almost every time I've sang the songs. The only difference was this time I was singing into a microphone. Oh, and standing in front of everyone, instead of hiding back at the soundbooth.
Church started at 10:15 and after Kevin opened with prayer, we started singing. What an experience! It was incredible watching everyone singing and getting into worship. I had so much fun and it was like I was hanging out singing with friends. And I just loved singing my favorite Christmas song, What Child Is This, and my favorite worship song, Praise Is Rising (Hosanna). It was just such an incredible experience. I asked Jim if I could sing with them again and he said I was going to stay in the rotation of singers. (Yay!)
After church we had a Christmas get-together at a friends house. We ended up hanging out with some of the funniest people we've met at the Dayton Campus. It was good to just sit, eat, tell stories and laugh. Then we had to rush off to go to the Fairfield Commons to wrap gifts. Our church wraps gifts for free every year as an outreach to the community. We were part of the 4-6 pm group, and also the 6-8 pm group. I helped wrap gifts for about 3 of those 4 hours. About the time I got tired of wrapping gifts, it was 8pm and the last shift of people starting coming in. Perfect timing!
There are a lot of stories that came out of wrapping gifts, and I don't have the time to share them all. However, I will say that everyone was smiling and chatting like we all knew each other and so many of us met for the first time that day. We got to talk to people while we wrapped gifts and hear their stories. So many wanted to give donations, but that's not why we do it. (And we don't take donations.) We tell them that we're just showing God's love in a practical way. And they seem to understand.
The Christmas spirit finally got me this weekend. I've got my focus back. And the presents waiting to be given are a sign of how much I love those that are in my life.
I need to share other stories from our Christmas experience, but I've run out of time for tonight. Stay tuned, we got a visit from Santa (and have photos with him), and we also put up a palm tree for our Christmas tree this year (and photos of this too). I'm sure I have pictures from the Christmas party that I can post too, but that will have to be tomorrow.
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