Where to begin? Well I have no idea, so much has happened and I don't think that even I want to read a detailed telling of all of it... so here are some pictures that I hope tell a great story for you all :).
Okay that might be a little lazy of me... the goal here is brevity right? I mean brevity and cleanliness are next to godliness :)...
The first couple of pictures are from our amazing MK Christmas party... you see these wonderful ladies have decorated some great gingerbread men... that was a wonderful and busy night. During the party was also my boys Christmas play, so I rushed off after decorating the room to see them perform and then rushed back just after hearing Creed say his speaking solo :). It was a blessing to be able to be at both. This year we did an MK talent show and it was very fun! I'm already looking forward to next years!
The next fun event we did with the MKs was ice skating. It was great getting to see them enjoying the ice rink and it was good visiting at the snack shop. They are so goofy!
Another Fun thing we do with the MKs is go to Bethlehem Revisited... the pictures below are from that wonderful time... Creed and Asher had a blast and except for losing Asher at the end we did too. Glad we found him again :).
It was wonderful having my sister and her husband over for some Christmas cheer this year. We had the joy of doing family photos and then the kids opened presents. It was nice to celebrate with them! And I like the way the pictures turned out!
Now for some video!!! This is a clip from Marks concert! He is so gifted and it's fun being able to see him in action!
And I guess to go along with that, here is a crazy picture from my kids performance at Church.
Our Family likes to open gifts on Epiphany, do stockings on Christmas and reflect on our relationship with God on Christmas eve. We re-dedicate our lives to Christ as a family, we talk about the year and then we light our candle from the center (Christ) candle. It is a good tradition and the kids like playing with fire... so do I actually. It was really precious this year to explain in more detail what salvation means to Asher. He is asking great questions and is taking his faith more seriously!
Okay now for some random cuteness... Kids off of school for so long... lots of fun time playing at home and being silly and fun and then finally Dad needed to get out of the house so we had an adventure or two out and about, didn't matter how cold it was.
Okay so there is the cacophony of photos from our break! The good times kept on rolling. Christmas was relaxing and very fun. Jessica and Joel Satre joined us and it was great spending time with them. We did a Netflix Christmas movie marathon! It was really fun! Then New Years broke upon us in a cloud of damp drizzle, promising snow that never came. The weather ended up canceling my wife's plans to see her Grandmother for her 80th birthday, which while very sad and disappointing, did give us some extra time together with family, which was nice. Kelsey and Patrick were going to drive to Albuquerque with Diane and David and ended up staying with us instead for a few days.
The picture below cracks me up. We had just gotten back from an outing and Charlie climbed up on the sunroof of Diane's car and just... well... you can see.
This final picture captures what we are all feeling now after the Holidays, a little tired, but refueled and ready for a new year and for the kids to get back to school... I mean for our schedules to get back to normal.
Thankfully no health issues to report and things are looking good, if not overly busy, this next month or so. I am really enjoying the Cowboys playoff run so far and I'm hoping it continues (random sentence but it needed to be in here somewhere). This weekend I'm off to Austin to visit with my friends the Sieks. I'm already thinking about Thailand this summer but have two more mission trips before that one. Cameroon is right around the corner and I would appreciate your prayers as I wrap up all my loose ends before I leave. I also start class next week and I'm looking forward to it. It's a week long course called Learning that Lasts.
Our lives are busy but we are enjoying them!
Blessings to you and yours and thanks for being a part of the wonder and joy in my life!
Caleb
p.s. I have a wonderful mission trip to Cameroon coming up which will cost $1800. Thanks for your prayers and financial support! It is wonderful to have peace buying the tickets knowing that God will use you to get me there and back again :).
If you want to support what I do a little or a lot, on a one time basis (for a mission trip to Cameroon perhaps :) or on a recurring basis, click on the tab "Supporting the Work" at the top of the page. Diane is my beautiful wife and the mother of my precious children Creed 7, Asher 5, Liam 3, Echo already in heaven and Bella, getting bigger all the time.
