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Just Dance.
Oh how you make us laugh!

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Two teams that played hard right through overtime, which makes a win even a bit more sweet.

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Maybe just a tad too much...

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Some days are extraordinary in that they are just so ordinary and that is wonderful.

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In your heart you
know it's true
though you hold no expectation
in the deepest part of you
there's an open hesitation

but it's true
kingdoms and crowns
a God who came down to find you
it's true
Angels on high
sing through the night alleluya
heard it told you
think it's odd
the whole thing fraught with complication
the play begins with
baby God
and all His blessed implications

but it's true
kingdoms and crowns
a God who came down to find you
it's true
Angels on high
sing through the night alleluia

alleluia, alleluia

Oh it's true
kingdoms and crowns
a God who came down to find you
it's true
Angels on high
sing through the night alleluia

- It's True by Sara Groves 

This song has echoed over and over in my mind this holiday season.
Families are broken and tragedy breaks our hearts and budgets are short and expectations are high and I am never enough. If I were counting on emotion to rouse a cheerful joy, it would be neither sincere or lasting.

Thankfully, the celebration is for Christ, the babe who comes to the weary world; Jesus who saves us from our sin; Immanuel, God with us. Truly, grace is ours and it is sufficient for me. No other gift compares.

It is true. And I too sing through the night alleluia.

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Daybreak on the edge of Laredo, Texas.

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Noche de paz, noche de amor,
Todo duerme en derredor.
Entre sus astros que esparcen su luz
Bella anunciando al niñito Jesús
Brilla la estrella de paz
Brilla la estrella de paz

Noche de paz, noche de amor,
Todo duerme en derredor
Sólo velan en la oscuridad
Los pastores que en el campo están;
Y la estrella de Belén
Y la estrella de Belén
Noche de paz, noche de amor,
Todo duerme en derredor;
sobre el santo niño Jesús
Una estrella esparce su luz,
Brilla sobre el Rey
Brilla sobre el Rey.

Noche de paz, noche de amor,
Todo duerme en derredor
Fieles velando allí en Belén
Los pastores, la madre también.
Y la estrella de paz
Y la estrella de paz

-Silent Night (Spanish)

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Thankful for old friends and sweet babies and that Behold! There IS Good News of great joy that is for all people! (Luke 2:10)

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It doesn't take very long to get used to caroling when a "cold" night is in the low 60's. Even so, I was just a tad homesick with plenty of sweet memories.

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December birthday party and coloring posters and Mario cupcakes and a boy who has held our heart for every one of his 9 years.

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One glimpse of the tin and suddenly I remembered childhood and for no good reason, I felt like I should buy a fruitcake.
$27.95 for a fruitcake?

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LOOK at that price of gas! Thank you Kimberly and Krogers Rewards Points!

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"The second is like it, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself."
Matthew 22:39

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Root Deer and Reinbeer

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One thing that I love about my husband's Iphone- being connected to the internet on the highway when we are traveling and ready to stop for food.
Thanks to Yelp, we found Thai Delight in Buda, Texas- and enjoyed fresh green curry and pad for barely more than eating at a fast food joint.

mmmmm.

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The daily delivery.

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5/6ths of chicks back in the nest.
Let the festivities commence.

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Girl's best friend.
Dog's best friend.

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A true picture of the day would include a thermometer, tylenol, kleenex, and the pillow.
But a poinsettia is much nicer.

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There aren't many days that call for hot chocolate and whip cream in south Texas...

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That night there were shepherds staying in the fields nearby, guarding their flocks of sheep. Suddenly, an angel of the Lord appeared among them, and the radiance of the Lord’s glory surrounded them. They were terrified, but the angel reassured them. “Don’t be afraid!” he said. “I bring you good news that will bring great joy to all people. The Savior—yes, the Messiah, the Lord—has been born today in Bethlehem, the city of David! And you will recognize him by this sign: You will find a baby wrapped snugly in strips of cloth, lying in a manger.” Suddenly, the angel was joined by a vast host of others—the armies of heaven—praising God and saying,
“Glory to God in highest heaven, and peace on earth to those with whom God is pleased.” When the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds said to each other, “Let’s go to Bethlehem! Let’s see this thing that has happened, which the Lord has told us about.”
Luke 2:8-15 (New Living Translation)

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Thankful for the older women who continue to instruct me and show so tangibly how to love others well-
who mix up batch after batch of sticky Royal cement,
who oooh and aaah at gingerbread creations with layer upon layer of candy upon icing,
who truly delight in the joy of others,
who serve wholly and generously.

They blessed me and mine today, and I am grateful.

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The wonder of The Nutcracker- the music which transports us so quickly back to the days of Christmas seasons past, of Saturday matinee shows all dressed up, of little girls watching the video in delight. Isn't it rather a comfort, to know exactly what happens next? Isn't it a joy, to see the little mice scampering from the soldiers and the big girls twirling and leaping across the stage?

Thanks one more time, Mr. Tchaikovsky, for that sweet bit of enchantment again this year.
(and thanks Rio Grande Valley Ballet for another great show!)

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Tally for the day:
2 girls on time to science class
1 meal delivered
Revelation study attended
1 basketball game won
1 student council meeting held
1 basketball game lost
121 miles of driving finished
Advent reading complete

phew.

(today's photo credit to Lydia, who definitely got the best shot o' the day!)

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happy birthday nannybannany!

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On this afternoon, I plugged the crockpot in, which was immediately followed by a POP and a flash and a puff of smoke and a singed mark on the bottom. BUT, the Handyman disassembled it, and with some tools and a trusty mini-soldering iron, it seems to be working again.

Except, can you really trust a crockpot with potentially faulty wiring...?

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Decorated for Christmas on Jackson Street.

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First thing in the morning I read in Psalm 122-
I was glad when they said to me,
"Let us go to the house of the Lord!"
And I was.
Then later in the afternoon, driving east on the expressway, I was glad again.

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Tonight we joined the audience at the Centro Cultural in Reynosa, Mexico for a performance of a very well done Charlie Chaplin-esque play. And the neatest thing? The actors were kids from Isaiah 55, the school for the deaf in Reynosa. What fun to watch, and rejoice with them in a job well done! (See those hands in the air at the very bottom of the photo- that's a member of the audience "clapping" in the front row! I love aplause in sign!)

And then we ate good Mexican food with fun friends, and stopped for yogurt too! Bonus!