And Friends are Friends Forever

On Saturday evening, we were blessed to share a meal with Dave and Jamalyn and their sweet children, Margaret and Nathan. They will be moving soon from Milroy to Indianapolis to a new home and a new church. Joining us for dinner were Jim and Jere, David and Shylah, Jennifer and Dustin, and Adam.

Nathan was sporting his neat new haircut, and was thoroughly enjoying the dining experience. He declined the high chair, and was glad to sit (and stand) on a big chair with the group.

I'm thinking he'll be popular with the ladies... just look at that smile.

Margaret was not so interested in eating dinner, but was having a great time playing with the nativity set. I heard her say, "Mary, time to wake up."

While Margaret is not much of a meat eater, it appears that Nathan fits right in with the Stewart group. He found the t-bone to be quite tasty, and attacked it the best way.... cave man style. :)

Mmmmm..... so good!

I think I'll start calling him T-Bone.

He shared with Daddy Dave. What a good boy.

He even saved room to share some peppermint ice cream dessert with Mom Jamalyn.

It tastes so much better with a little on your hands and face.

Dave and Jamalyn brought me a beautiful plate with a saying to remind us of the special times we share with friends and family.

God sure knew what he was doing when He brought Jamalyn to GUMC. We immediately fell in love with her sense of humor, her energy, her practical faith, and her compassion. Dave and Jamalyn are pastors with the gift of making everyone feel like family. Our connection has included so many special shared experiences.... book club, climbing out of Haiti in a hurricane, marrying David and Shylah, Margaret's visits to the farm, Purdue games, and texting my bff. I am so excited for their new opportunity, and I know St. Luke's will be blessed, just as we have been.

A Kindergarten Christmas

It was dark and wet outside, but warm and bright inside Arlington Elementary School as we were entertained by Kindergarten, 1st, and 2nd grade students celebrating the Christmas season with music.

We were welcomed to the program by Principal Julie Innis, and the auditorium was filled to capacity on both levels with parents, siblings, and grandparents.

After hearing the tone chimes and the band presentations, we were ready for the Kindergarten class. They started with 10 Little Angels, and then sang 5 Little Snowmen. I guess counting is the thing when you're in Kindergarten.

Matthew liked keeping his hands in his pockets, but did take them out to do the motions for the songs. They were a cute group.

This is a short video clip of the group singing 10 Little Angels. Be sure to pause the blog music so you can enjoy the singing.

After the show, Matthew greeted his fans with a big smile. He enjoyed being surprised to have his daddy and Darci come for the program.

Getting Ready for Haleigh

On Friday, we went to Louisville to visit Andrew and Darci, take Matthew down, deliver some baby items, and help paint the room in anticipation of Haleigh's arrival. Also on Friday, we celebrated the arrival of Fritz Charles, born to Darci's sister Molly and her husband Nick.

We got to work quickly, covering the yellow paint with a nice shade of white. Here is the room, with one coat done on Friday night.

Here is Andrew on Saturday morning, working on the second coat.

This is Jim's Saturday morning pose. He says he's in management.

Andrew fills the pan with paint.

And surveys his work to check for missed spots.

Jim and Matthew worked on Legos while the painting was going on. This was good, since on Friday night Matthew's shirt got a little too close to the paint.

We finished up the painting, cleaned up, and went over to Baptist Hospital East for a tour of the labor and delivery area. We learned about the accommodations for mothers and babies, and then got an opportunity to see some of the rooms and areas for visitors. We were thankful to be able to tag along on the tour, and get a preview of the place where Haleigh will be born.

Matthew was getting hungry by the time we were done at the hospital, and was anxious to eat some lunch. He chose BBC, where he ordered his favorite, chicken fingers with buffalo sauce.

He had some time to do a little coloring while we waited for our food.

Most of the folks at BBC were there to watch the UK vs. UNC basketball game. Andrew was even sporting a UK shirt to show his support. I just hope Haleigh knows she's a Boiler and not a Wildcat!! UK did end up winning the game, so it was a happy day in Kentucky.

Andrew does have his own mug at BBC. Thankfully, it supports his Purdue roots. :)

Jim and Matthew enjoyed watching the game together.

And for dessert...... one of my favorites, Graeter's Ice Cream.

Andrew tries butter pecan in a waffle cone.

Matthew had his favorite, cookie dough. He thinks it should be everyone's favorite because it is sooooo good!

And I chose one of the special holiday sundaes, named for each of the original 8 reindeer. Mine was Cupid's Kiss. Peppermint ice cream, hot fudge, whipped cream, pecans, and a cherry. Heaven!

After dessert, it was back to work to get the crib put together. Here, Jim and Andrew contemplate the best way to proceed. Since they borrowed the crib from Matt and Shelley, there were no instructions to facilitate the process.

The men think that power tools make a job easier, but it was actually Darci's location of two small allen wrenches that did the trick.

A little trial and error, a little patience, and the crib is assembled. It's beginning to look like a baby's room! It was so much fun to help with the painting and with the crib, and to share in the preparations for a new little one.

And from the looks of this beautiful wreath on their front door, it's also beginning to look a lot like Christmas.

After a big day of cinnamon rolls, coloring, Legos, making treat bags for his class at school, touring the hospital, lunch at BBC, and dessert at Graeter's, one little boy is plum tuckered out. He was happy to get the chance to take a snooze. One of the perks of being 5. Of course Grandpa got a little snooze too.... I guess that's one of the perks of being 5-0!

We Wish You a Happy Birthday

To celebrate Janet's birthday, we enjoyed lunch at one of our favorite places, El Reparo. We had great food and great company, and our crowd got larger as the lunch hour went on.

Here is our group to start, which included Josh, Erica, Janet, Grandma, Grandpa, and Elizabeth.

Look who else got to join the grown-ups for Grammy's birthday.... sweet little Emerson.

It wasn't long before Jason and Roger arrived to join in the celebration.

Aunt Jess got there in time to share some Emerson love.

Although Janet was spared both singing and the sombrero, we all enjoyed good conversation and full tummies to celebrate her special day. Emerson even managed to take a little snooze after lunch, one of the perks of being a baby!

It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

On Sunday after Thanksgiving, we thought it would be a good day to get in the Christmas spirit by getting the trees up. Jon and Adam hauled Nana's (still decorated) tree up from the basement, and Jim, Jennifer, and Dustin went to Bowman's to chop down a tree for our home. Well, they actually chose one off the rack, but it sounds good anyway.

Here is the tree with the lights on, all ready for decorations.

I enlisted help from Matthew to do some of the decorating, and he had fun putting on some of his special decorations.

He was happy with the spot he found for his Lightning McQueen ornament.

This is one of MY favorite ornaments. Of course there are several photo ornaments on our tree, and each is my favorite. Those were some cute kids. :) Still are cute kids, just bigger now. How did that happen??

And here is the tree all decorated. The angel on top is a keepsake from the Christmas wedding of Brian and Lucy. We all traveled to Texas that year, and Santa even found us! We also had a little ice storm there in Texas, just to make us feel at home.

And here is the Christmas glow we enjoy throughout the season, along with the scent of evergreen the tree provides.

The stocking are hung by the chimney with care.

I got this coconut creche in Haiti, and it's so much fun to put out on the coffee table.

This is the ceramic nativity set that Grandma Stewart made for us many years ago. We have enjoyed it as part of our Christmas celebration through the years, and the nicks, chips, and repaired spots just remind us of the baby that came for each of us. Despite our sins and shortcomings, God gives us the gift of eternal life through his Son, Jesus Christ.

"So they hurried off and found Mary and Joseph and the baby, who was lying in
the manger. When they had seen him, they spread the word concerning what
had been told them about this child, and all who heard it were amazed at what
the shepherds said to them. But Mary treasured up all these things and
pondered them in her heart. The shepherds returned, glorifying and
praising God for all the things they had heard and seen, which were just as they
had been told." -Luke 2:16-20

Take time to enjoy the season, share God's greatest gift, and have yourself a merry little Christmas.

Special

The Saints played the Patriots on Monday night. Just in case you missed it, I have included a highlight video here. It was maybe the awesomest game I've ever watched (except for the ones featuring my own children, of course). Is awesomest a word?? Well it should be.





I was nervous about the game all day, and settled in to watch it in the basement by myself (Jim was at a meeting) with my Saints t-shirt and my beads on. On the couch for the first Saints drive: field goal. Patriots first drive: long possession ending in a touchdown. Saints ball: punt. MOVE TO FUTON. Patriots ball: Brady throws interception. Pretty much Saints game from that point. No more moving necessary!


When we were in New Orleans, we found a great children's clothing store that had some neat shirts for kids. Here is what the tag says:


Of course, I had to get one for a special little boy, and here he is modeling his shirt.


I have heard Drew Brees and Sean Payton use the word "special" to describe their team this year. In fact, after the Patriots game, when Coach Payton was asked about the performance of his quarterback, he said "he was special." Yes he is.