Holy Ice Storm!

Thankfully we have power now but our county still looks like a war zone from the recent ice storm.

Trees down in our yard...

limbs down everywhere!

Despite the agony it caused with bad roads and no power, the ice was beautiful in the trees.

I had fun walking outside and getting these shots!

The ice is still lingering, but our roads are clear now and power has finally been restored to most of our county. The kids were gone during the storm but Mike and I stayed here and roughed it! Ha:)

When it warms up Mike has already warned me that we have lots of work to do outside to clear up the mess.

Gorgeous!

I think I would rather stay inside and enjoy the festive decorations and wonderful candles burning on the mantle than clean up that mess! I think Mike is just excited at the thought of pullin out his chain saw!!

We are officially on Christmas break now-the last two weeks that we have been out due to weather were just warm-ups for the real thing! The kids are so excited that Mike will be home with us this week and we really have nothing major on the agenda!!! Precious family unstructured time is such a blessing.

The kids want to see Yogi Bear at the movies and we have one more run to the mall to finish off our Christmas list. Kyle has a few AAU practices and scrimmages but other than that we are just going to be together and enjoy the week. Enjoy this week with your family and lets all try to remember that it is all about the babe in the manger who came to save us all from our sins! There is no gift out there in a mall or superstore that can ever top that.

Winter has definitely hit us very hard. Wednesday night ice and snow hit our county and we have been without power since Thursday morning. Luckily the kids are happy and warm with my parents in Radford. We are so blessed that they are happy and well taken care of there. I keep asking Mom if they miss us and she kindly says no.

Mike and I have been surviving. In some ways it is frustrating and annoying to be without power because I could get so much done without our sweet babes underfoot. I would love to run the vaccuum all over the house and do a good pre-Christmas cleaning on the house. I would love to cook and get everything ready for Christmas during this time but that cannot happen without power.

Mike and I went out to dinner last night and then we came home and snuggled on the couch and read with our flashlights. I miss my kids and I miss electricity, but it has been fun to be "away" at home. Our lives stay so busy and hectic that when life comes to a sudden halt due to weather it is kind of a gift. I will definitely celebrate when the lights come back on but I will always remember these few days that we have "roughed" it together in our cold house.

Mike drove me to the gym this morning because our roads are still a mess. I got a good workout in and then a hot shower! We are praying that the electricity comes back on soon so we can get the kids, but in the meantime I am enjoying Beverly Lewis' lastest book via flashlight:)

Our Angel

Last Night we dug out from the snow to attend the children's play at church. David was an angel and actually had a part! He had to escort Mary at one point and he nailed it! The trouble and silliness came during the down time waiting on his part:)

I could not stop smiling and giggling at our "angel without a halo" He refused to wear the halo which was fine with the director of the program:) I am so thankful for the wonderful people that work with the children at church.

The funny part of the story (or maybe not so funny) is that all the angels were suppose to sit on a bench right in front of the communion table. Well, dear ole Dave did not want to sit with the other angels and share his bench, so he had a chair with his name on it.

His sweet friend, Lakken was in charge of the star and at one point when the star was NOT suppose to be raised, David tried to "help" her and raise it. Thankfully Ashley was on the front row and redirected him. :)

Instead of singing Joy to the World with the other angels, he decided to turn around and make sure all the angels were singing:)

He had a blast doing the play but I was very nervous sitting there watching it. He waved to us and did his silly reindeer ears, but other than that he did his part well and he had fun with his church friends. He is just so silly. During the finale, all the children were suppose to stand up and sing the final song. Well, the bigger kids were in front of David and he could not be seen. He moved from his spot so that we could see him.

I am so thankful for opportunities like this for David to shine. Kyle chose not to participate this year and that is fine with us. David definitely loves being in the spotlight and he loves music-maybe we should take him to Nashville! Ha:)

The kids are at my parents today so I can get Christmas together. I have had kids home for vitually two weeks with all this crazy snow, so I have had a hard time shopping and getting Christmas together. Last night Mike and I attempted to put together one of Hope's toys-we still have work on it tonight.

I have really tried to simplify Christmas this year and let it be FUN! I feel that so far we have had way more fun memories than stressful ones. I did very little decorating this year since we are leaving the day after Christmas for a little getaway with some friends. Last night's program at church was such a wonderful way to stop and just enjoy a reminder about the TRUE meaning of Christmas-that sweet babe lying in a manger:)