It really was a pretty nice year.
And the weather on this last day of the decade was hard to argue with.
Five of us decided to dress appropriately and walked through a trail not to far from our house.
This is not a very Butler thing to do. But it was a lot of fun.
Muddy. But wonderful.
After dinner we had lots of yummy foods.
Deep friend Oreos…
Pork Rib BBQ.
We watched “Kung Fu Panda,” “101 Dalmatians – Live Action,” and then the little girls went to bed.
Better late that never!
Merry Christmas!
Katriel prepared and directed a play based on the life of Jesus. She called it, “The Miracles of Jesus.” And she blew us away.
Johanna was also in the production, but I only had video of her.
Love this photo from Hobby Lobby.
Everything else about this day is just extra.
The sunrise was elegant. I can’t wait for the day when the skies will be rolled back like a scroll. Almost everyday I wonder if today might be the day.
Until that time, we will press forward. I enjoy doing life with this crew and experiencing the “extra.”
Some of us wore our shirts from MVMCP.
We started our morning with the kids sharing some of their gifts with us. Tabitha made fudge with Nan, and Katriel made us all some crafts.
She was VERY excited about the gift she made Nigel.
She made him a coloring book about the Grinch.
Johanna is always very subdued….
Or not.
Miss Mary at church made this for Johanna. She pulled Johanna’s name as a child to pray for and she has gone out of her way to make Johanna feel special.
My little “Jessie” got a Jessie!
And we’re poised to up our coffee game!
Nigel was the only kid to get a gift from Mom and Dad. Stewart got a laptop on Black Friday and the girls had the Disney trip.
Our tradition of family breakfast feast!
Nan tried to get away with a whole pan of Cinnamon Buns for herself, but we called her out!
Marie blessed us with another pan of Christmas cookies she’d decorated “in secret” at Nan’s house weeks before (they were frozen).
The afternoon was spent playing lots of new games.
And Tab caught a gorgeous sunset from her bedroom window.
Dinner was superb – Nan blessed us with prime rib again this year.
So simple, and yet I’d take this over cruise food any day.
Lots more games. It’s how we winter.
Somehow I ended up with exactly two pictures from Christmas Eve.
It was a very different Christmas for us.
John had to work a half day and the kids had slept over at Nan’s house.
We had an early dinner of snacks because Nigel, Marie, and Tabitha had to be to church early for music rehearsal.
And the next thing I knew we were home
where we started a new tradition?
Christmas Eve pie and movies.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!
The kids slept over at Nan’s house for Christmas Adam again this year.
They ate fun foods, played fun games, and watched fun movies.
They took two photos at the end – one of the group that stayed home from the movies and the ones who went to the movies.
They went to see Star Wars IX: The Rise of Skywalker.
The still pictures don’t show how into the stomping and clapping Katriel got.
But I think we can tell she was into it!
Johanna and I had some errands to run. She was rewarded with this fabulous Frozen 2 display at TJMaxx.
She was dressed for the occasion!
We finished school early to dive into some frosting fun.
They were pretty and delicious!
Dayspring Disciples 