Snow!

It wasn't in the weather forecast, but it's snowing anyway. Today right before naptime Luke asked me, "When is it going to snow?" I sadly told him that where we live, it doesn't snow every year. About a half hour before he woke up, it started to snow rather earnestly here. In the past hour we've accumulated probably an inch and a half of snow. It's beautiful. The weather man says it will all be gone by 8pm. I'm not sure that I believe him. Regardless, it's lovely and fun. The boys went out for a few minutes already. We live in a rather windy area, so they spent most of that time wiping snow out of their eyes. Perhaps if the stuff is still around in the morning, they can enjoy it again.

Looking out the playroom window at the snow.

Luke is ready to go. His clothes all clash, but he's warm.

No, I haven't gained sixty pounds. I'm bundled!

Paul attempting to catch a snowflake or two on his tongue instead of in his eyes.

"We like to eat this stuff."

More Christmas Cuteness

The last two days have been rather laid back, despite a minor plumbing incident that has rendered my dishwasher and garbage disposal inoperable for a time. That's not a fun story, so I will skip it. There will be a plumber here tomorrow hopefully. Back to the laid back part of these past two days...Yesterday I never managed to get out of my pajama pants. Today I put on jeans, but never changed out of my pajama top. Perhaps tomorrow I will manage to dress myself fully. I did finish Sense and Sensibility today. I've been on a bit of a Jane Austen kick since about May. It all started with Pride and Prejudice. Then came Emma and I figured I was through it, but then one of my former students told me that Mansfield Park was her personal favorite. It might be mine as well. I'm thinking that 2010 will need to include Persuasion and Northanger Abbey. I'm not sure why I often feel the need to read an author's entire canon, especially if s/he is dead. William Faulkner is the exception. I could go on, but that's not a particularly fun story either.
The boys have been spending time with their new train bits. They both received a new engine and new track accessories that include a coal chute and a magnetic crane. I thought I would share a few more pictures from the Christmas festivities and post holiday fun.

Luke and Paul opening Aunt Krista's present: miniature wooden replicas of London (for Luke) and Paris (for Paul). So fun!

The Daddy-Man has the entire week between Christmas and New Year's off. It's a gift from his employer, Takeda, every year. I love this company. And we love having Daddy home.

Trains. Trains. Trains. Trains. Trains.

And more trains. Such fun!

Merry Christmas!

What a great morning! We started with birthday cake and going around the table saying what is special about Jesus. Luke began by telling how Jesus turned water into wine. Paul was next. I asked him, "Paul, what makes Jesus special?" Paul replied, "Jesus baked waffle." So hard not to laugh. Erik jumped right in and reminded Paul how Jesus fed the five thousand. Not sure if that is what Paul meant, but he smiled and nodded.
After cake (and yogurt because we need a little protein in our lives) we read from Luke's picture Bible and sang "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" and Luke asked us what herald meant. That's hilarious because I think that up until now both he and Paul have thought it was Harold the Helicopter from the Thomas stories, hence the popularity of this song in our family.
Next we brought out the stockings. Each boy got his very own package of freeze-dried strawberries. I know. That doesn't seem like a big deal, but it's a huge luxury in our world. There were other dried fruits and yummies also. The Chocolate Brownie Clif Z Bars went really fast. Definitely a favorite.
Following stockings, the "real" presents emerged. The Elmo puppets from Aunt Nikki and Uncle Ed were a HUGE hit, especially with Paul. In fact, for the rest of the present opening either Erik or I needed to be working Elmo. Whenever we attempted to set him aside, Paul would say, "Do Elmo puppet." So we did! Here are a few pictures of the morning's sweetness.

Saying "Happy Birthday, Jesus!" as loudly as possible!!

Happy Boys eating Chocolate Brownie Z Bars

Love at first sight!

Big Hug!

Paul spent the morning sharing his presents with Elmo. It was super adorable.

Merry Christmas, Everyone!

Advent Goodness

What a busy time of year! I want to start by writing about something fun that I did last night. Our church has a partnership with a public school. Odd sounding, isn't it? This is an urban school where over 80% of the students are at or below the poverty level. Mosaic believes in serving the community in Jesus' name with no strings attached. So last night, I went to a craft fair at a K-8 public school that was planned, funded, and staffed entirely by a church. I served free cups of hot cocoa for two hours to a diverse group of students and parents. It was SO MUCH FUN! It reminded me of what I loved about being a public educator. The people! Watching these folks come in from the bitter cold and enjoy themselves as a community was simply a huge blessing. The kids were able to make free, quality gifts for the adults in their lives while the same adults enjoyed a hot cup of coffee and tasty seasonal goodies. I look forward to the next event at the school and hope to take the entire family eventually.

In Bangsund-Land, we have enjoyed the beginning of Advent in so many ways. I began pulling out decorations the Saturday after Thanksgiving. Luke looked at me in surprise and said, "Is it Christmas?" I told him it was indeed Christmas time. His next question was, "Where is our tree?" We found our Christmas tree at a local u-cut tree farm the next day. The boys enjoyed the free mini candy canes and the big machine that wraps the trees. I enjoyed the $13.50 price. :-) The tree is precious and sweet standing in our living room. We also put up the Christmas train for the first time this year. I received this battery powered train as a gift my senior year in high school with much delight, but this train had not known love until it met Luke and Paul. They adore it. Paul is still a bit young, but Luke does an awesome job of realigning the wheels and getting it back on the track when needed. It's amazing to me the things he can do without help now. Time. It flies.

Looking toward Christmas morning, we are excited about focusing our celebration on the person and birth of Jesus Christ. There will be birthday cake and singing. Presents will be given. Just this morning during school time I was telling Luke the BSF story for the week from John 7. (We had to miss BSF today because Paul had a fever...he's doing better now.) Anyway, in John 7, Jesus goes to Jerusalem for a Feast and people everywhere are talking about Him. Some believe He is the Messiah. Others do not. There is LOTS of controversy. (Not unlike today, eh?) I shared with Luke that when people hear about the Lord Jesus, some believe He is the Christ and some do not. He processed this and said, "I know that Jesus is the Christ." I actually had to take a moment to appreciate childlike faith. Unable to say anything in reply, I silently thanked God for His Word and how clear these matters can be if we allow faith to blossom. That is what we will be celebrating this year. Jesus is the Christ, the Son of the Living God, born in Bethlehem to save and redeem on Calvary.

Some pics of the peeps:

Luke checks out the tree and approves.

Paul supervises the cutting.