Shear chaos ...

Did you know that our Emily is a beautician? She came home to Michigan all prepared with her fancy scissors, and set up shop in our kitchen! There were plenty of takers yesterday ...
I think Aunt Emily selected Christopher to go first. He had so much hair to cut!

I'm sure Jesse took much better pictures of this process ... I was just kind of stepping around and over equipment and children to snap a few quick shots ...

Very nice haircut, Christopher! Except now I really can't call you Wild man Chris any more ...

Matthew was next and he mostly sat very still and quiet ...

But Uncle Adam came to Emily's assistance now and then to steady his head and tilt it appropriately ...

Matthew's blanket even got turned into a puppet for a little added amusement along the way.

Emma just wanted a tiny trim. Her mamma and her really like long hair, so Aunt Emily was careful to do just exactly what they wanted.

It was right about now when Aunt Sabrina phoned from Austin and her first question was: "Is it shear chaos yet around there?!" I told her it was a very appropriate and timely question!

After the little kids' hair was finished, Emily did Diana's hair as well! I didn't post these pictures because most women I know don't really appreciate pictures of themselves in the middle of having their hair done.

We ordered pizza for dinner since our kitchen was occupied with other business. Dylan came over mid-afternoon, stayed for dinner, and visited with everyone too.

After dinner, Emma and Christopher attempted to play a game of Checkers ... but Christopher really really struggles with understanding the very strict rules of the game, and he doesn't enjoy losing any more than Emma does.

We had a very happy day, this day before the Eve of Christmas! By about 7:00 in the evening, Jesse and family returned to Di's parents, Grandpa Jones and I cleaned up a little bit around here and then ... slept! :)

Home for Christmas!

EVERYONE came home for Christmas last year ... Sabrina and family from Austin, Nick and family from Houston, Adam and our Emily from Minneapolis ... EXCEPT Jesse and Di couldn't come from El Paso because Jesse wasn't even IN El Paso. He was across the ocean in very far away Iraq. So the situation being what it was, I couldn't even listen to the song "I'll be Home for Christmas" without a very heavy heart.

This year is a very different circumstance. Sabrina and family cannot come home, nor can Nick and Rachel. So I still can't listen to some of the beautiful songs of Christmas without sadness! It's tough to be an old granny far away from ones that are so loved.

Monday, we got ready to welcome Jesse home. I was looking forward to seeing Diana and the little kids too, but I hadn't seen Jesse since July 2007 and in the interim, he had been in a place I had never dreamed for him when he was my little boy. I had wanted to have a big welcome home sign made up to put in front of the house but with all of our pre-Christmas activities, 15 inches of snow, meal preparation, etc. I never did get that sign accomplished.Jesse and Di and children left El Paso early Saturday morning and actually arrived at Di's parents house by 10:00 Sunday evening. That's pretty good driving time for a 1600 mile trip! Here is their SUV coming down the street!

And here is Emma catching snowflakes on her tongue!

Tom and Judy had come over especially to visit Adam and Emily late in the afternoon, so they were able to see Jesse's family too.

The little ones lost no time at all and got right to playing!

Everyone of them really enjoyed the marble run in the playroom. I explained to each of them that THIS is what I got for their daddy and it was all wrapped up under the tree for him to open Christmas day. I told them it was a secret and not to tell him. This was just a fun game for me because I knew they would each whisper this secret to him as soon as they could ... and they did!

Grandpa Jones ran his trains for awhile ...

We played many games of Checkers. Aunt Emily and Emma are trying to beat Uncle Adam in this game ... and they did! But I'm not sure if he didn't LET them have this win ... losing is kind of hard on our small Emma Joy.

Tom and Judy left early evening to be with some of their family. Adam and Emily left a little later, and then we all went to bed. Some of us got a little bit more sleep than others ... but then it was morning and definitely time to play!

Last year's Hallmark present from Aunt Emily is a big hit. Matthew especially likes to see the snowman dance and wiggle along with him ...

We had many races with the marble run, played with every single Matchbox and Hotwheel car and truck in the basement, had all of the micromachines out and about, put every puzzle that we own together and apart ...

... and we took a playtime break to watch the Polar Express, complete with our very own tickets to ride the train!

Our favorite puzzle was this huge fire truck ... Sabrina has one just like it at her house, and I think Nathan Paul will find one wrapped up for Christmas for him too!

Emma and I tried to make some kind of building out of our alphabet puzzle, but we had trouble making it stay together!

We finally gave up the building idea and just made a nice design for the carpet ...

Wild man Chris (I call him this because of his wild hair) was wearing the Christmas bell because when we were watching the Polar Express, he played the part of the little boy who got the first bell of Christmas. Emma played the part of the kind little girl and Matthew was Billy (the little poor boy who almost didn't get on the train). I was the conductor, and so awarded the bell to Christopher.

I have lots more pictures, but these give you a feel for the last few days. We've had a great time so far.

But we haven't forgotten you dear families down there in the great state of Texas ... wish you could be here with us!

The first day of winter ...

Yesterday was the first official day of winter ... no doubt about that in West Michigan! We were expecting Adam and Emily to arrive mid-day Sunday, but they surprised us and arrived late Saturday night. They wisely paid attention to the weather reports and drove straight on through from Minneapolis instead of making a two-day trip out of it.
When I came home from Super Saturday, Mr. Jones had the little candles in our windows lit and the Christmas tree lights ... I thought he did this just for me so that I could see how pretty the house looked when I drove down the street ... but actually, he turned them on because Adam and Emily were home!

We had a nice time visiting with them Saturday night, and they took the opportunity to wrap just a few presents ...

Sunday morning, we awoke to near Blizzard conditions and received almost eight more inches of the white stuff before it was over! Thomas K. stayed inside most of the day yesterday. He is very frustrated with the bitter cold and the knee-deep snow ...

We don't know where we are going to put any more snow ... and there is a system that promises us another half foot tomorrow!

Our deck is so drifted over it just blends in with the back yard! We heard from Jes and Di late Saturday night. They called us from Tulsa, Oklahoma after being on the road for almost 14 hours. They were hoping to drive through to Springfield, Missouri before stopping for some rest. We hope to hear from them today ... they were going to try to arrive some time in the middle of the night last night over at Diana's folks ~ so we'll have to wait and see! Just three more days until Christmas. I don't think any of us are worried about NOT having a white one!

Our magical winter wonderland ...

Purify me from my sins, and I will be clean;
wash me
and I will be
whiter
than snow.

Create in me a clean heart, O God ...
Psalm 51:7 and 10 NLT

Washed clean, pristine. Purified. Totally forgiven. How beautifully a fresh fluffy snowfall illustrates God's wonderful grace ...

Since about 3:00 this morning, we received just under 12 inches of fresh snow ... on top of the three inches we already had. Schools and events city-wide were cancelled! No noisey school busses ... and no snow plows came by our street all day.
I walked out in the woods for awhile early this afternoon ... knee deep in places ... amazing the quiet and the accompanying peace ...
We are officially snowed in! The mail didn't even get delivered today ... except our doorbell just rang (at 7:45 p.m.) and it was a package (addressed TO Adam) from UPS!

Weather reports tell us that we are just going to get ourselves dug out from this storm before another one comes our way late tomorrow night! And another storm is expected Tuesday night!

Our neighborhood looked so beautiful this afternoon. I layered up and walked everywhere ... and then I reluctantly returned to our house to help shovel out the driveway. Mr. Jones did most of the work today! I was too enthralled with the beauty of it to care if we got out or not!


I promised I would post these pictures for dear Sabrina to see ... her family is unable to make the trip "home" this Christmas ... she, and they, will be sadly missed!