Christmas Country Style

We had a great Thanksgiving holiday and we hope that you all did as well. For the first time, I made pies entirely from scratch. Even the crust! And I have to say that they turned out pretty yummy. Crust is not nearly as intimidating as I thought. How do you like my crust center? First person to name the shape wins bragging rights.

Mark took the opportunity to work some more on the basement project. Since this photo was taken he has also hung the insulation and is ready to drywall.

Saturday we picked out our Christmas tree and let it settle in to its new surroundings.
Then we decided we just could not be outdone by the Billmeier's. So, we headed to the Bruce barn and taught Sheba a few country dance moves...

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Mark and Sheba are so exhausted from all the dancing they can barely stay awake to hang the lights on the tree!
Hopefully we can finish the lights and other decorations today!

Busy

What's been keeping us busy? Lots of projects around the house!

Remember that rain in June that flooded many homes in Indy and south? Well, we weren't flooded, but we did get enough water that requires some work in the basement. Mark has torn down the drywall on two walls, sealed the block foundation, and is now reframing for new drywall.
You may not know this, but we get a TON of leaves in our little yard. In order to fit them in the compost area, we have to mulch the leaves first.
We recently picked up the crib from my brother's house and Mark had it set up in 15 minutes!
Monday our fridge decided to die and we came home to a puddle on the floor. Everything had thawed (thankfully our beef is in an extra freezer in the basement) and spoiled and the fridge was not fixable. Let me tell you about H.H. Gregg...they price match! We found a great deal online at Costco and H.H. Gregg matched it PLUS delivered the next day.
Some of you have asked how to pray specifically for our adoption so I made a little list on the right. Feel free to pray for us as God leads you. We appreciate every single prayer!!

November

This month is National Adoption Month so I thought I would share a poem that was read to us in our home study class.

Trip to Australia

Deciding to have a baby is like planning a trip to Australia. You’ve heard it’s a wonderful place, you’ve read many guidebooks and feel certain you’re ready to go. Everyone you know has traveled there by plane. They say it can be a turbulent flight with occasional rough landings, but you can look forward to being pampered on the trip.

So you go to the airport and ask the ticket agent for a ticket to Australia. All around you, excited people are boarding planes for Australia. It seems there is no seat for you; you’ll have to wait for the next flight. Impatient, but anticipating a wonderful trip, you wait—and wait—and wait.

Flights to Australia continue to come and go. People say silly things like, “Relax. You’ll get on a flight soon.” Other people actually, get on a plane and then cancel their trip, to which you cry “It’s not fair!” After a long time the ticket agent tells you, “I’m sorry, we’re not going to be able to get you on a plane to Australia. Perhaps you should think about going by boat.”

“By BOAT,” you say. “Going by boat will take a very long time and it costs a great deal of money. I really had my heart set on going by plane.” So you go home and think about not going to Australia at all. You wonder if Australia will be as beautiful if you approach it by sea rather than air. But you have long dreamed of this wonderful place, and finally you decide to travel by boat. It is a long trip, many months over much rough seas. No one pampers you. You wonder if you will ever see Australia. Meanwhile, your friends have flown back and forth to Australia two or three times, marveling about each trip.

Then one glorious day, the boat docks in Australia. It is more exquisite than you ever imagined, and the beauty is magnified by your long days at sea. You have made many wonderful friends during your voyage, and you find yourself comparing stories with others who also traveled by sea rather than by air.

People continue to fly to Australia as often as they like, but you are able to travel only once, perhaps twice. Some say things like, “Oh, be glad you didn’t fly. My flight was horrible; traveling by sea is so easy.”

You will always wonder what it would have been like to fly to Australia. Still, you know God blessed you with a special appreciation of Australia, and the beauty of Australia is not in the way you get there, but in the place itself.

Nov 4th