THIS IS OUR STORY

as far as grace is concerned — there are just not enough hours in the day to watch movies about the end of the world and CRAFT! yesterday she started her morning with church, then straight home to finish watching WAR OF THE WORLDS. i was busy putting together the biggest and most intricate marble maze ever designed — for josh. after lunch i found grace hanging out in my den waiting for me to whip up a craft. just when i thought i had exhausted all of my resources for kid crafts — i found a few grace was interested in.

first we made monster bookmarks that turned out so much cuter than the examples we found on the internet. then, we made owl pillow boxes. we made three — one for each of grace’s favorite teachers. grace filled them with jolly ranchers. THEN…because she was still feeling crafty, we made MONSTER POPS. i have to admit — they were easy to make and even more fun to decorate. grace had the time of her life — not to mention she did such a great job on every last one. we wrapped them up and she delivered some to the neighbors, saved some for our family, and chose the best ones to hand out to her teachers.

i don’t know how we are going to top our SUNDAY AFTERNOON CRAFT-A-PALOOZA — but grace reminded me, as she walked out the door this morning, to come up with some more awesome crafts for us to do when she got home from school. her craft habit has become my full time job. i love it – mostly i love the time we spend together and how happy it makes her.

the company perry works for is privately owned by a man named jim. i have heard lots about this man, but never met him before the office christmas party. i knew that he was a christian man with a kind heart. i sent a sponsorship package to him — hoping the company would help me fund my trip to africa. he sent a personal check from he and his wife. at the christmas party, he sought me out and gave me a long, tight hug and told me that he was proud to have met me and enjoyed my follow up thank you so much he carried it in his briefcase for over a month — reading it again and again.

i met his equally impressive wife. she shared with me that jim was about to do something he had never done before…and he was a bit nervous about doing it. he was about to tell the employees how his company tithes it’s earnings. she went on to tell me, just as jim would share later…that proceeds from the company have built schools in third world countries, brings medical care to villages all around the world, sponsors services to mend the hearts and minds of girls who have been victims of rape,  sponsors full-time missionaries, funds homeless shelters and food pantries, and funds a christian services center to rehabilitate, educate, and spiritually guide kids at risk.

how blessed are we to be a part of something so amazing. i love that my husband works for this kind of company. not only are jim & nan incredibly successful in their professional and spiritual lives — they truly appreciate that their success is a product of dedicated, hard working employees!

we are counting down to the annual company retreat to mexico. ole! an entire week of sun, sand, and complete relaxation. it is impossible to believe that this will be the *first ever* actual vacation perry and i have taken since we got married. that’s FOURTEEN YEARS! needless to say — we can’t wait.

when my thoughts turn to Africa i think about the people living in the slums of mathare valley. when i flip through the pictures i get lost in the eyes of the children that i photographed. i pray that i will be able to go back – that God has plans for this heart that was broken wide open in Africa.

last night was the first time i really took time to look at the safari photos. sometimes i have to remind myself what an amazing adventure that was. many people travel to Africa just to experience an actual african safari. isn’t it on everyone’s bucket-list? i was shocked when our missions leader told me that a safari was part of the short term mission. i saw it as a *bonus*. i certainly didn’t foresee that day as a spiritual one – rather one of complete reward for the lack of hot water and comfortable beds.

but there God was — in the sunrise & sunset. in every magnificent creature. in the just born baby Eland. on the banks of the hippo pond. and in the black and white strips of every zebra. and there *I* was. in Africa. in the wild.

it was a poignant reminder how God is in every detail. i can’t imagine standing in the middle of the african plains – and not proclaiming, “how great is our God!”

i am an extremely practical person. i’m am horrible at spending money on junk…especially kid related junk that will just end up at the goodwill within the year. and factor in a trip to africa where i saw hundreds upon hundreds of children without on single piece of junk to call their own. it was a difficult christmas to indulge my children.

perry and i decided early on that we wanted to get the kids their own ipods/iphone — it was a lot of money, but it was something they would actually use and really enjoy. of course, i was second guessing the decision right up until christmas eve.

then, christmas morning came and josh made me realize that some gifts are priceless. i would have never guessed that he would be so surprised, so happy, and best of all…so grateful.

although we had a few invites to ring in the new year with friends…the kids insisted that we continue our tradition of bringing in the new year at home. just the five of us. grace was so excited to be on the official decorating committee — she had so many ideas that it would have taken half of 2011 to get them all finished. we settled on cupcake toppers and a banner. we blew up a ton of balloons — and the new light up balloons were a nice touch. we had the snack buffet — wings, pizza bagels, philly cheesesteak bites, glittery white chocolate popcorn, doritos, cupcakes, and champagne (sparkling grape juice). we watched all the live performances from times square…while grace danced to every song. josh fell asleep at 10:45. grace fell asleep at 11:30 – but snapped awake 10 minutes later – determined to make it to midnight. we rang in the new year squashed in our bed – watching the ball drop on tv…it was perfect.

HAPPY NEW YEAR.

My Dearest Grace,

To answer the question you asked earlier this morning.

I am the person who fills your stockings with all those goodies. I also choose and wrap the presents under the tree, the same way my mom did for me, and the same way her mom did for her.

I imagine you will someday do this for your children, and I know you will love seeing them run down the stairs on Christmas morning. You will love seeing them sit under the tree, their small faces lit with Christmas lights.

This won’t make you Santa, though.

Santa is bigger than any person, and his work has gone on longer than any of us have lived. What he does is simple, but it is powerful. He teaches children how to have belief in something they can’t see or touch.

It’s a big job, and it’s an important one. Throughout your life, you will need this capacity to believe: in yourself, in your friends, in your talents and in your family. You’ll also need to believe in things you can’t measure or even hold in your hand. Here, I am talking about love, that great power that will light your life from the inside out, even during its darkest, coldest moments.

So, no. I am not Santa. Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness. I’m on his team, and now you are, too.

I love you and I always will.

Mommy

he would have been in SO much trouble for saying “Oh my God!” if not for his flood of emotion. just for the record.

“Then the angel said to them, “Do not be afraid, for behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord. And this will be the sign to you: You will find a Babe wrapped in swaddling cloths, lying in a manger. And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God and saying: Glory to God in the highest,
And on earth peace, goodwill toward men!”
[Luke 2:10 - 15]