Our One Christmas Tradition

Through the years, traditions have come and gone in our ever growing family. As the number of children grew, the number of traditions fell!! One that has sustained though is the annual "matching Christmas pj's" - the day of the year my husband (and now teen daughter) humor me and wear what I want them to wear....

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

2013

2104

2015

2016

2017

This year, our big kids joined into the pj tradition fun - we did not even attempt to get a full family photo on christmas day with 7 kids under age 7 (we are smarter than that!) , so the candids of the day will have to serve as evidence! 

We may only have one real sustainable Christmas tradition - but it's a fun one! 

All I want for Christmas

Dear honey, 

Because I am the best wife ever, I have solved the dilemma of what you are getting me for Christmas. 

Take out lunches and dinners from now through Christmas Eve. 

Last night, you bought me (and our people) pizza.

Tonight, we are having soup from Ralph's for dinner and Hawaiian Ono BBQ for dinner. 

Tomorrow for lunch, it sounds like an El Pollo day. 

Tomorrow night, you have a pass because the neighbors have invited us for dinner. 

I will cook breakfast for our people - out of self preservation to make sure that some part of their routine stays intact so they don't totally and completely lose their minds. 

Christmas Eve it's lunch out after church.

I will make our spaghetti dinner Christmas Eve - a tradition started the year Cami came home from China and it was all we could do. 

What a gift it will be to me to not have to plan, cook, serve and clean up after people while trying to keep us all sane in the "anticipation of Christmas" craze. 

I love you and you are welcome. 

Your loving wife. 

This is us (or welcome back!)

Life moves by us in the blink of an eye - but yet some days feel like they are never ending. Such is the story for our family, and so many others in the same season. Although sometimes I'm not exactly sure which season we are in.....we are raising children and watching grandchildren grow up (all together too fast, I might add). We are celebrating milestone birthdays and anniversaries. Our closest friends range from retired to new moms and dads. 

As we have entered into this season of Christmas, more than one Christmas greeting to us has included "we miss your blog". These aren't people who loved the reflective posts I wrote on adoption or the "fired up" ones I wrote when feeling self righteous, but from our family. The people who love us through those events. 

So while it's not new year's yet, as a small gift to them and to ourselves, I am going to blow the dust off and begin again. 

Welcome (or welcome back) to our family... 

Becky, Katie, Cami, Julie and Zachariah

Ashlee, Megan, Melidee and Emilee - and thank you to our precious son-in-law Jon who is overseas serving his country. 

Matt, Laurel, Amelia, Aleina and Averee

This is us, minus the one who bravely serves his country and is far away this season. We range from 6 months to 60 (this coming February). We are loud and messy when together, and incomplete when we are apart. We are honest about our struggles, loyal to a fault and more than a little frazzled sometime. We love Jesus and each other