Of ... Merry & Memories & Wishing We Were Normal -

If I hold the laptop just so with my left leg .... my right hand can reach the keys to type without my right shoulder moving. Regan fell asleep on my shoulder while we were reading. It was a ridiculous book that tried combining every princess story into one .... I was falling asleep too : )

Chad is sleeping too ... in his bed.

Rex is on his way home - yay. We have a hot grocery shopping date tonight - nothing says sexy like buying butter & cheerios :)

The other kids are outside. California has near record breaking warm temperatures right now ... I have quit insisting they wear shoes.

Part 1 is called Christmas.

It was beautiful. It really was.

Here's a little known fact about me .... I'm actually really good at freaking out ;)
I know, you're all shocked.

I did not want to freak out this holiday season. Not about schedules or presents or parties or babysitting or money or relationships or late nights or bad attitudes or messy houses or not enough time or laundry or getting sick or starting my period or my hair or a christmas card picture that didn't turn out or the weather not being cold.

Or anything else.
Are you getting the point ... I'm pretty good at all of that.

But I've lived with Rex for a lot of years now & he hardly ever. ever.

Ever.

Freaks out.

And I've known Jesus even longer & He never. ever does .... so I'm learning.

And it's refreshing.
And freeing.
And peaceful.
And enjoyable.

I never made a red velvet cake, or wore earrings. I went days without even making our bed, the boys didn't have real christmas outfits & my Christmas morning pictures are blurry & grainy.

And Jesus still came.
And joy to the world.
And the weary world rejoices.
And where there is joy there is strength. 

6am 12.25.13

I lit candles. It was the earliest they'd been up ever on a Christmas morning.

(note to self. i love the way benny always sleeps shirtless & jack always sleeps in the shirt he wore the day before ... button up, collared or not : )

she especially likes gifts from rex :)

she is fabulous in every way possible

 

he slept right through 6am so his picture from christmas is flashy & blurry in the evening

So it really was beautiful.
I love family.

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Part 2 - is called the girls.

what am i doing here?

We all met when we were about 14. We wore bad home school jumpers together. We grew up, got jobs & boyfriends & traveled & went to school & got married & had babies & moved away.

And every year - every.year - we .... our moms and us and one by one our girls ... we get together. We play bingo, we eat amazing food, we laugh & cry, we stay way too late, we give gifts.

Then thing is though ... they are gifts.
Our husbands get along & our kids are the same age.
And they breathe Jesus.
My life is so very much richer because of them.
So very.

all our girls ... with one more coming in may, xo

i wish there was a better word than friend to describe her ...

and roo poppy :)

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Part 3 is called the-kids-take-better-pictures-for-grandmas-card-than-ours :)

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Part 4 is called Texas & it's going to be long.

Meet my brother :)
He had a birthday & became a doctor in one long weekend - we had to celebrate.
That  & his lovely wife had a 10 week old baby we hadn't met yet - so bonus.

see what i mean! sweetness in the flesh

they missed the focus on us, not the sign memo :)

he gave dad all of about 24 hours notice saying he could present his diploma ... cause he's a planner that boy.

she wore purple tights & cowboy boots - cause she's that cool ... and it's texas :)

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This is mom & dad all reminiscent of 34 years ago when he was the graduating doctor & I was the tiny baby she held. They cried.

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Again he only waited till the last minute to make reservations at the nicest steak house in Dallas ... so this is literally at 11:30pm when we finished dinner.

He's trying hard for favorite uncle status .... she's got playing hard to get down.

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we tried for an adult picture ...

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Part 5 is called the end :)

Merry Christmas from all of us.

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ps ...
a behind the scenes of Christmas card pictures. Sailor pleaded that we just 'be like normal people and take a picture like Costco & everybody else does.'

I thought that was very funny.
And so you have proof .... we are just not normal :)

yep .... not normal :)

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