Pre-Christmas Festivities

Well, in true blog fashion, life has gotten in the way of my blogging time! I say that.... I had an awful case of insomnia last week where I could've blogged my entire life, day by day, but I decided getting on the computer would keep me up later than I already was... so I voted against it!

We're still in Christmas season here on the good ole family blog. Who's excited? I AM!!! I have lots to blog about... mostly about God's incredible goodness, but I am going to try to knock out all of the Christmas posts so I stay in a time line that makes sense! I really need to get the blogger app for my phone so I can do this on the go, but it's like $3 and has awful reviews.... all of that to say, please just hang with me here! If you haven't subscribed via email, maybe it's a good idea to do that so you don't check the blog and get disappointed when there's nothing new to read! :) {click to the right where it says 'Subscribe to the Rhea Lane Families by Email!'}

Still working our way into Christmas, and in no particular order, here was life the two weeks before Christmas day!

A dear friend from my weekend at Emmaus hand knitted scarves for our little group! They are darling! I got it in the mail and because of all the bright colors, London quickly claimed it as her own! This picture is just too cute for words!

 Baby had a little hand injury at school, then banged her fingers up a few times at home. We added one more band aid right after I took this picture. This was a hard week on her poor little hands, but Dora was representing strong!!

 London's school Christmas program. It was so cute! Her little class only sang one song, which none of them sang because they were too distracted, but they were adorable none-the-less!

 As soon as London's song was over, they ushered her class out of the auditorium. She was not happy to be leaving momma after being so excited that she had company in the middle of the day!

The Thomas' gave us one of their family Christmas cards. This was my backseat view for about a week. London held onto that card like it was a priceless treasure and would stare longingly at it as we drove everyday! We love us some Knox and Lucas!

 One of my favorite Mommy days ever. We went for a run one morning and struck up a conversation with a woman who was training for a marathon. She had 1 mile left of a 17 mile training run so we tried to encourage her by telling her she was almost there and she could do it! For the entire rest of our run, anytime we would pass a girl running, Lu would scream 'WAY TO GO!! YOU CAN DO IT!!' I was too happy for words. 

One of my favorite nights of the year. Our company has our annual Christmas party at The Club in Birmingham, which is a great restaurant that looks out over the city. It is so ritzy and dreamy to be all dressed up and looking out over all the twinkling lights of the city. I just love all the wives of these boys I work with and we had a ball catching up and celebrating a great year at work! I left with a heart full of gratitude and feeling very blessed that God landed us in this beautiful city full of terrific folks. 

The next morning was my birthday and I woke to friends bearing gifts! What a way to start the day! My best friend made me breakfast cupcakes and gave me the most darling phone cover you've ever seen in all of your life! Another sweetest friend brought me a mega cup of my favorite coffee (that doesn't taste like coffee!) A few hours later, the best sis-in-law on the planet showed up with a giant Pinkberry on ice! BEST DAY EVER! I don't deserve friends and family this good. 

 A few days later we kicked off Christmas break and two weeks of sweet hangs with this babe! I was so very excited for some much needed time off! Spending time with Lu in anticipation for Christmas was just too much fun! We both acted like wild child kids pretty much the whole break!

 "Make the Baby in the Bed" game is too much fun! I don't think I'll ever lose the memory of these sweet giggle squeals! 

This is one of my favorite parts of Christmas. Caden and Lizzy's school Christmas project was to color scenes from The Night Before Christmas. Here are their Santa drawings. This owns me. How darling is this? Caden's is on the left and Lizzy's on the right. 

 My christmas break project was to put together a gallery wall that I've been working on for months now! It is busy, but I LOVE IT. All the pictures have such great memories behind them and I still just stand in the kitchen and stare at the wall. It is the happiest place in my house! My two favorite pieces are a frame that has handwritten recipes from both of my grandmothers then just below that is a picture of Papa as a young man, standing by the well at his grocery store. Umm. My heritage. There hanging on my wall. My heart swells within me. 

A Very Sweet Sixteen

I just can't believe it. Baby girl Charley turned 16 on December 19th. My word. The years have flown by in the blink of an eye. I so clearly remember the day she was born. That sweet, tiny little bundle of love. And I remember her being such an organized little girl.. lining her toy plates and bowls up by size and color order. I remember buying her little girly school supplies before she started grade school then watching with bittersweet feelings as she moved on up the line to high school. Here she is half way through high school. Oh my heart....

Her sweet mom and dad threw Charley a surprise 16th birthday party at Barry's house and they went all out! I wasn't there for it but they had an awesome DJ and dance floor. They had a big celebrity looking wall that said 'Charley's Sweet 16' where all the kids could dress up with crazy accessories and pose for pictures in front of it. They had a hot chocolate bar outside and snacks inside. About 30 of Charley's best friends all came by to party on!

A week or so later, she jumped in my car to head to family dinner. I asked how her party was and she talked 90 to nothing for the next 15 minutes. It was great! She had a total blast! I love her so very much so it just thrills me to no end when people make a huge fuss over this sweet child! She is such a doll and I'm so glad that she had a super memorable 16th birthday! Happy Birthday, you beautiful girl!! I love you so much!!

Caden had the flu but did not miss the opportunity to be a total party animal! Charley said he danced and danced and danced!

A little trip to the North Pole

Weeks ago, we made our annual trip to Bass Pro Shops to visit Santa. This is always one of the highlights of my year! This store is so cool and we all love it! The kids are fascinated with the animals (as are the adults) and they do a fantastic job of making it a magical place for the young-uns! There are tons of toys to play with and carnival stations set up... not to mention enormous gear that it's totally fine to climb all over!

 I didn't get a good shot of them but will check with Lala to see if she got a better one!

 As you can tell from the look on his face, we lost Caden right here so there aren't many more pictures of him. Poor guy. I don't think he was feeling well and the rest of the visit was a little teary. 

 Lizzy was posing. London was scared to death. I am coaxing her with all my might to get close enough for a picture and right about that time and older man walks behind them and screams 'ROOOOAAAARRR!' I got the shot right before London screamed bloody murder! :)

 oh the cuteness.

 2 most beautiful little girls on the planet.

 Making her daddy ever so proud.

 And my favorite part of the trip... London was waiting her turn to go see Santa and right before she walked off she had me lean down so she could tell me something....

Bullet dodged, Santa. 

A serious post....

I am hoping to get at least 2 posts up tonight in an effort to catch up before Christmas, but one I've held onto has been my thoughts on what happened in Newtown, Connecticut. We've all heard plenty on the topic, but at our quiet little house, we don't have cable. And I don't use the computer at night. So my exposure has simply been a mother's thoughts and God's holy word.

I've thought so much about what happened. Two beats of my own heart are 5 years old..... it is too real and terrifying to even finish that thought with the 'what if's'. My best friend is a teacher and we have talked in depth about how part of her job duty is to be a human barricade should bullets pierce the safety of her room, this without concern for the children that she raises in her own home.  Even just typing the words... a hotness swells in me. A heartbroken heart turns to steel. You see, I am a mother and like all mothers, I say without hesitation, 'over my dead body' to anything happening to my child without my consent. So this tragedy turns us momma's to pure cold steel as we ache for the momma's who couldn't protect their children from this horrifying day. I stare at this blinking cursor on my screen with no words, just a hollow, dull pain for these families. But as a parent, I will cry out to God. I will be part of the chorus being lifted to the heavens for mercy to fall like rain on Newtown.

However, in light of this, the Lord has drawn me back into His faithfulness. I feel like in the wake of this awful day, the whole nation is perhaps right where it should be.... in a season of Advent. In a season of waiting and yearning for of our Savior. I’ve been reading the bible through this year and am still in the Old Testament, but these few weeks have felt like Old Testament times to me. A people crying out to God to deliver us from the sin of our nation. Crying out for forgiveness. Crying for mercy. 

I am there. I find myself lost in thought thinking, 'God come quickly.' But this aching also has turned my heart to Christmas. As the people awaited a Savior, we do too. In only a few days now, our Savior was born. Everything I live for and believe in revolves around the birth pains of a young mother 2000 years ago. The blessed birth of my Redeemer. My heart is turned towards Him in such a mighty way again.... In gratitude with a stilled heart for what his birth meant. The celebration of his birth meant the reality of His death. The next 33 years of His life were lived on mission. A mission that nailed Him to the cross for me. For yoU. For every single one of us. He came to be love. To teach us, to show us, to love us. 

I'm humbled by it all again. I will celebrate in gladness but will remember that He came fully knowing the outcome of His life. For that, I will be still and evermore thankful. I can just imagine it...

2000 years ago... The birth so long foretold...

a Savior has come to all people...

The Thrill of HOPE... the weary world REJOICES!

Lamentations 3: 25-33 (MSG)

25-27God proves to be good to the man who passionately waits, to the woman who diligently seeks. It's a good thing to quietly hope, quietly hope for help from God. It's a good thing when you're young to stick it out through the hard times.

28-30When life is heavy and hard to take, go off by yourself. Enter the silence. Bow in prayer. Don't ask questions: Wait for hope to appear. Don't run from trouble. Take it full-face. The "worst" is never the worst.

31-33Why? Because the Master won't ever walk out and fail to return. If he works severely, he also works tenderly. His stockpiles of loyal love are immense...

Merry {Hippy-to-the Hop} Christmas, Y'all!

Well, we do Elf Yourself videos every year, but I totally stole the same one one of my best friends made of she and her husband (which was totally hilarious if you know them!) So, to see our annual 'Christmas Card', please click the link below! 

http://host-d.oddcast.com/php/application_UI/doorId=1083/clientId=299/?mId=46614947.3

Merry Christmas, Y'all! It's the most wonderful time of the year! 

Thanksgiving 2012

Dear ole blog, 

I promised to have the Thanksgiving post up and open to the public by 9:00 am. Here it's 3:59 and I have literally 60 seconds to post before I must hit the door screaming, 'CHOP CHOP', as my dear ole dad would say. 

So, here is my 60 second recap. Food? Good grief. Is there any better holiday, really? Family? How about a whole afternoon long visit with Uncle Barry, Doreen, and their adorable Pooch! I'd just give anything if we all lived closer together and could sit at their feet hearing tales of their life in the great Wild West more often! My Uncle is cooler than yours. Sorry, facts are facts. Another fact, my grandmother has the scariest cat ever born. A month later and London still says 'Din Din's cat is MEEEEEE-EEEE-EEEE-EEEAN.' (very sing songy!) Charley Rhea is just gorgeous. The colors of this season are blowing my mind. So incredibly beautiful!!

Thing I learned: 

You can entertain kids for hours by throwing sticks in trees and making pecans fall off the branches. Also, they think you are a hero for being able to do it. Awesome. 

 Backseat smooches from my favorite little turkey!

 Screwing sticks into Lizzy's head, of course!

 Sword fight

 The kids attacking Unc! So funny!!

 The kids WON!!

 {eating the 'christmas candy' on the tree}

 sweet mommy tickles!

 mid-day craft project. Ice cream cones, icing, and 'decorations'! Very fun and sugary!

 An extraordinary darling child...

Din Din, I just love thanksgiving. It's just the perfect break to get away and enjoy our family! Thank you for graciously hosting us each year! We love you and this time of year so very much!