days in the life of a
Previous POSTS
December 2008
December 1, 2008
RANDOM THOUGHTS FROM OUR MINNESOTA TRIP




































"Grandma's Prince Charming."  If you look really closely, you'll see that Karter is sporting one of the several outfits Grandma Terry bought him the day after Thanksgiving.  The poor little guy was running out of clothes that fit him, and I couldn't let my little tooker go around naked, so Grandma had to fix him up.





































Most people who go shopping on the Friday after Thanksgiving do so to get some Christmas bargains.  Emily, Dana, and I did buy a couple of Christmas presents...but mostly we shopped for Karter and ourselves!  I never get to take the girls shopping, so we did!  But I'd say Karter came out the best of us, with lots of new winter clothes to wear.

See how excited he is with his new outfit? 

























And speaking of Karter (I promise I'll speak about something else in a minute!), look how he sits up all by himself!
He's only 5 1/2 months old, and he's very steady on his bum.  He's rolling over, eating cereal, and sleeping 11 hours nonstop at night!  The child is an over-achiever, I tell you!

How fun it is to see my son with his own son!  Kristoffer and Dana are terrific parents!









































Kristoffer has always had a flair for the richer things in life.  My classy son has a cappuccino machine, and treated us all to cappuccinos in the evening.


























La-ti-da!  And YUMMY too!































Minnesotans are very nice and friendly, but it takes a different breed to live in that cold tundra!  This time of year, it's all about the snow!  People all over their neighborhood put these stakes along the edges of their lawns...so the snowplows will know where to go.   

I thought it got dark early in Indiana...in Minnesota, it starts getting dark at 4:30!  We noticed that the sun never gets very high in the sky even on sunny days. 


























Hockey is king.  Even little Hampton has its own rink, which will open the day after Christmas.  When we went out to eat, all the TVs in the restaurants were turned to hockey games (instead of the basketball or football we would see in Indiana).  And people were glued to the games!  Apparently the University of Minnesota has one of the top college hockey teams, and everyone follows their every move.

























And here's a landmark that will shock your socks off!  In the country just outside of tiny Hampton, sits the largest
Cambodian Buddhist temple in the United States.  It's a huge complex, surprisingly arising up amid the surrounding farmground.  Who woulda thought????





























One thing is for sure....ALL GRAY MEN LOVE FOOTBALL!  Even little Karter is captivated!










































What a blessing little Karter is to our family!  We are SO BLESSED!!!  To have all of our children together for Thanksgiving, for the first time in 4 years...it was wonderful!  And well worth a 12-hour trip across boring farmland, listening to XM Elvis Radio (or, worse yet, Kim singing Elvis!)!

Thanks, Kristoffer and Dana, for hosting our gang!  See you in a month for our Christmas celebration!  LOVE YOU!!!
December 3, 2008
HOLLY DAYS

























I've always had a fondness for holly, especially at Christmas time.  I had always pictured holly as an exotic shrub that grew in special places, and I'll never forget how surprised I was one fall when I was a teenager and we were visiting my grandparents in North Carolina and I saw it growing wild in the woods behind their house!  We picked some sprigs to take home, but they were too dried up to use by Christmas.

























When we built our home and Kim was planning the landscaping, I asked him to buy some holly bushes.  He did and they thrived, with beautiful waxy green leaves...but NO BERRIES!  I mean, the BERRIES are what makes holly Christmasy-looking!  At first we thought maybe the shrubs weren't mature yet, but after a couple of seasons with still no berries Kim was reading his gardening catalog and discovered why.

We had no male hollies, only female!

























Apparently the little girl hollies were lonely for some little boy hollies to make some little baby holly berries!

Who KNEW?!?!

So Kim planted some male holly bushes, which made all the hollies happy...

























...and...the bushes were soon filled with beautiful, shiny red holly berries!


























Peeking through the snow, they are lovely in the winter landscape.
 


























Maybe I'll let God do my Christmas decorating this year!  It's hard to top this!

Happy Holly Days!
December 2, 2008
WEE ONE HAVING Wii FUN

























I know...you're probably sick of hearing me gush about my darling, intelligent, adorable, sweet grandson Karter.  But I had to share this video with you because...well, just because I think it's so dad-gum cute!





































He gets so excited sometimes, flailing his arms like he wants to take off!  That's how he was as he watched Dana, Kristoffer, Kyler, and Kamaron play doubles tennis on the Wii game system.  He watched the game on the TV screen and would get so excited!  Then he looks around at them, wondering what they're doing.  It was entertaining just watching him.

I apologize up front for the poor quality of this video.  It is actually a video of a video...you might say I had MAJOR technical difficulties, but hopefully you can get the gist of it.  Ignore those crazies in the background!  They get a little competitive sometimes (imagine that!)!


Note:  This is where I had PLANNED to embed the video, but I've got some bugs to work out.  So...after pulling out my hair for awhile, on to Plan B.  It's not the best, but it'll have to do...

click here to see video
December 4, 2008
CHRISTMAS LUNCHEON AT THE PARAMOUNT


























Tuesday morning I got spiffed up (or "sprayed and pinned" like my brother Mark used to say!) and joined some of my Anderson tennis friends for a luncheon and style show at the Paramount.  Part of Anderson's "Festival of Trees," this holiday event was a fundraiser to benefit the Gruenewald Historic House, a museum and famous landmark in the city.




























Gorgeous trees and glittery decorations throughout the Paramount set a festive mood.





























Betty, the sweet blond dressed in black sitting at this table, generously bought tickets for two tables of gals who began playing tennis together years ago.  Some of these gals no longer play, and some are newer to the group (like me!), but their friendships extend way beyond the courts.
 

























It's a treat to see everyone dressed up instead of wearing their tennis duds.  Not that we don't look great on the courts...

(Sorry about the blurry photos, gals...I should have brought my nice camera instead of my little one!)






































Lovely trees lined the ballroom.  Many had already been auctioned off and a few were for sale.  Beautiful!



























Naomi sat next to me and she knows EVERYONE in Anderson, it seems.  What a precious, fun lady she is!  And a tough little cookie on the tennis court, too!





































It was a nice time with a wonderful group of ladies!  Thank you, Betty, for so generously bringing us together for such a lovely holiday luncheon!
December 5, 2008
PIN PALS CHRISTMAS

























Way back 25+ years ago, a group of young mothers decided that in order to keep what was left of their sanity, they needed to get out once in awhile with friends to laugh, share their lives, and especially to have a brief respite from the demands of homemaking.  So...they bonded together and formed a club through the county Home Extension office and called themselves "Pin Pals"...not "pen", but "pin" as in "diaper pins" (if anyone remembers what those are!)

Over the years, some have dropped out, moved away, or left the group for one reason or another.  New friends have joined the group, but Pin Pals continues to meet every month with their main purpose being friendship and fellowship together...with a little home ec stuff thrown in once in awhile.

Instead of the monthly meeting, December is traditionally a time to go out to eat and exchange Secret Pal gifts.
So this past Tuesday, we did just that at Alexandria's Latte Cafe!





































Brenda is our fearless, faithful President.  She's the ultimate organizer and keeps us all in line...small but mighty!
She's one of the Founding Mothers of Pin Pals.  Brenda's the mom of 2 boys, one grown (and getting married in the spring!) and her baby is a senior in high school. 





































Robin is another of the Founding Mothers.  She and Brenda are both school bus drivers...PATIENCE personified!
Robin has 2 grown children and 2 still in school, keeping her young!  And can you believe she's a grandma?!





































The only other original Founding Mother that is still active (I think!) is Jodean.  Jodean's 4 (count 'em!) BOYS are all grown and she's a grandma too!  Aren't grandmas getting younger all the time?!  (I like to think so!)  Jodean has all my admiration...she's going back to college and making a new life for herself.  She's a sweetheart, too!

























Debbie is the next member on the seniority list.  Debbie has 2 grown children and is treasurer for the high school and middle school.  Besides celebrating Christmas, we also got to celebrate Debbie's 50th birthday!





































Linda is fairly new to the club, but we've known her for years!  Being a fifth-grade teacher, she's a "mom" to 20-some adorable little children every single day!  She's a wonderful teacher, a great friend, and has an amazing knack for decorating.  We love having Linda join us!

And then there's me...I've been in for several years now.  And a couple of gals who couldn't make it that night, Sue and Peggy. 


























Over those 20+ years or so, this group of friends have been through a lot together, sharing each others' lives.  From celebrating births and weddings and the good things of life, and grieving losses and deaths and the tough times that come our ways, the strong thread of friendship that has bound them together continues to grow stronger as the years roll by.  Friendship is a precious gift...and these gals are precious to each other!
December 6, 2008
KNEEL AT THE MANGER

























Are you in the Christmas spirit yet?  I wasn't...until I went to our church children's Christmas pageant this week.

























Seeing these precious little ones celebrating Christ's birth is what Christmas is all about.  (Hi, Hannah!)


























Have you ever seen any cuter angels than Rachel and Morgan...
 

























...and the rest of this angelic host?


























And what would a Christmas program be without shepherds and sheep, camels, cows, doves, and a donkey?


























...And, of course, Mary (Sadie) and Joseph (Dylan) and baby Jesus (a doll ...asleep in the hay?!)!


























"Baa, baa," little Drew-lamb!





































Ashley was a darling little lamb, too!


























Four-year-old "donkey" Abby sang about her gift to the baby Jesus.






































Abby is a doll, just like her mom Leann!  And a great little singer, too! 





































"Camel" Tyler did an awesome job, too!  Our church is blessed with gifted children!





































Speaking of gifted children, 3 1/2-year-old Reina stole the show with her singing!  No stage fright here!






































She belted out those Christmas songs!  What a little doll she is, and smart as a whip!


























Pastor Ryan's boys, Evan and Drew, were sweet, and their brotherly jostling for position on stage added to the show.





































These children are so special to us!  Kim and I have enjoyed spending time in the nursery with them since they were tiny, and it's fun to see them growing and learning new things and praising God!  Great job, Ashley and Clay!





































Sweet little 2-year-old Sadie was perfectly cast as a little angel.

























I know God had to be smiling as these little ones sang to Him!


























All of us in the audience certainly were!  If this doesn't get you in the spirit of Christmas, nothing will!

Thanks to ALL the beautiful children and parents and directors Leann and Lee Ann for a very special evening!
December 7, 2008
O CHRISTMAS TREE





































Standing proudly in our great room, the artificial Christmas tree is waiting to be adorned with lights and baubles.

This is our 7th year for an artificial tree.  For the first 21 years of our marriage, Kim and I always had real trees.





































The first year of our marriage, in 1980, we had FUN picking out, putting up, and decorating our first Christmas tree.

It was downhill from there on out.

Kim and I rarely fight.  Oh, we get aggravated and peeved at times, but I'd say in our 28 years of marriage we've probably had only 25 or so real fights.

And 21 of those have been over putting up the Christmas tree!

























We'd have so much fun tagging our Christmas tree at the tree farm with the kids and Mom and Dad.  (Love the hair!)

























It was just like a Norman Rockwell vision, great old-fashioned family times, everyone smiling and joyful!

























Or maybe GOOFY and joyful (Kristoffer!)!

























The perfect family day!

Then, when it came time to put it up, it was a whole different scenario.

How can a tree look so perfect growing in the field, and then have so many flaws when you put it in your home???

The tree was always too tall (it didn't look THAT tall in the field), or the end of the trunk was too fat to fit in the stand (who looks at those things?), or the trunk was crooked as a snake's back (it grew perfectly straight up in that hilly field!).

Of course, the day we chose to put it up it would be about 5 degrees outside, where Kim was crabbily trying to saw off the trunk, put it in the stand, get it to stand up on its own, and bring it into the house without scraping needles all over creation, with me fussing at him the entire time.

He'd set it in the place where I wanted it (not where he had in mind!).  Kim was done...or so he thought.  But what about that ugly bare spot???  It needed to be turned!  So, grumpily, he'd struggle to turn it as more needles fell all over the carpet, then he'd have to readjust the stand to balance it again.  "Just a little more, Kimmie..."    "Growl, growl!"

And on and on it went until I was either satisfied with it or he had had enough.  But invariably, it always ended with one or usually BOTH of us mad and definitely NOT in the sweet spirit of the season!





































It made for some good pictures, anyway.  This tree (1999) had a SLIGHT lean to it!  It fell down a couple of times, which did not add to the yuletide joy in our house.




































But the final straw (or should I say "limb") in this ongoing saga was in 2001 when Kim proudly cut off a rogue branch from one of our huge blue spruces and decided that it would be our Christmas tree for the year.

Okay, it did have character, I'll give you that.

I really kinda liked its quirkiness, except for one tiny flaw.  MAJOR DEFECT, I should say!  It was completely flat on the back side.  I was fine with the flatness (you couldn't really tell)...except...it made it extremely side-heavy (is that a term?) and out-of-balance, and it took some mega-rigging with cement blocks and fishing line to prop it up. 

Kim kept his patience through all that (after all, it was HIS hair-brained idea to begin with!)...





































...and I actually loved its quaint, country charm.

Until...

One evening as we watched television in the next room, the whole thing came tumbling down.  Ornaments were broken and strewn all over the kitchen floor, not to mention needles!  We were all tired and tempers began to flare.

That was our last real Christmas tree!  And our last Christmas tree fight...but it was a doozy!!!





































The next December, we bought this beautiful artificial one that we've been using ever since.

No, it doesn't smell evergreeny and it doesn't have sweet little pinecones that crackle when they open up, and it doesn't have the natural character and charm that the other trees had.

But decorating the tree has become peaceful and joyful and calm again.  And Kim and I will just have to find something else to have our annual fight about!
December 8, 2008
BICYCLE BUILT FOR TWO


















We've always wanted one, talked about how much fun we could have tooling around on a tandem together.  But we never seemed to have the time or the money to actually get one.

So, this year, Kim and I decided to buy a tandem bicycle for part of our Christmas gifts to each other. 

I figure it'll either bond us closer together...or...send us to divorce court (just kidding, of course!)

So in the blowing snow and freezing cold on Saturday, we set out to Indianapolis to pick out our tandem.

Kamaron, our bicycle-expert/crazed son, had done some research for us and advised us on what he thought would be a good bicycle for a good price.  You can't believe how high-tech tandems can be...some are $5000+!  Of course, we had no desire to pay anywhere near that, but he thought this bicycle would be a great quality bike for the price.  So, with that in mind, we set out to Indy to check it out.

Now it's been my experience (sorry Kamo and Anique...you don't fall in this category!) that many serious bicyclists are a little on the strange side.  Quirky.  Odd.  Goofy, even.  Passionate about their sport, for sure.  And the little salesguy that met us at the store was all of those and more.

He was a twerpy little fella, mid-40s I'd say, but very friendly and knowledgeable.  When we walked in the door, he asked us how he could help us.  We told him we were interested in buying a tandem.

"I have just the bike for you!"  he excitedly said...



















...and led us straight to THIS!

This bicycle is actually more sporty-looking than the one he showed us, which was quaint and dorky, at best.  I wish I'd taken a photo of it, but I couldn't think fast enough. 

Now, there's nothing WRONG with this bicycle, don't misunderstand me.  It's just not what we had in mind.  This is a bicycle I could see two old fogies on, riding a couple of blocks around their Florida retirement community.  And it'd be perfect for that!  But it's not for serious athletes (like we are!  Okay...you can stop laughing now...), that's for sure.

But little Bob was so thrilled about selling us this bicycle.  We were being polite, listening to his enthusiastic sales pitch.  He pulled it out, rattling on about its durability and its amazing 7 (count 'em...7!) speeds, and...this is the kicker....he proudly rang the little BELL on its handle!!!

Kim told me later that he knew Bob was in big trouble when Bob rang that little bell!  Kim knows me well...I was coming unglued, giving Kim desperate looks while Kim's eyes were chuckling back at me.  (Say something, Kim!!!  Or I will!!!)  Bob just wouldn't let us get a word in edgewise, and I knew we were about to burst his bubble! 

But that bell was the final straw!  I am NOT riding a bicycle with a BELL...yet (never say never, right?!)!  All it lacked was a basket with plastic flowers on the front and we're definitely in old-fogyville!  Not this girl... not yet anyway!



















A few bicycles down was a red version of this one, so when Bob took a breath, I casually asked about it.  You could see his eyes pop out and he began stammering around, and then he was off on his sales pitch about this bike! 

We could almost read Bob's mind...
"These people think they're going to ride this bike?!  Are they crazy, or what?  This bike is for athletes, serious bicyclists who know what they're doing.  Not chubby, middle-age folks like them!  They must have more money than sense, but...oh, well.  A sale's a sale..."

I loved it right away, but the one in the store was just a little too big for us.  So cute little Bob is ordering us a 2009
version, just like this one in the picture.  It's Mediterranean Blue too...instead of red (I like blue better anyway...and the color of the bike is an important feature, don't you know?!).  My only fear is...




























...will this seat get lost in my derriere?!    There will definitely be some major overlap!  We may have to change the seats to look more like the first bike...


















...or my derriere may need to shrink considerably! 

Kim wonders if maybe Bob had it right the first time.  Maybe we SHOULD have gone with the old-fogy style with the comfy seats.  Maybe we aren't cut out for the road model and should have gone with the cruiser.  Bob was probably closer to the truth that we want to admit.

But I'm not ready for bells and baskets on my bicycle just yet!  Now the seats...well, they're negotiable!

Guess we're never too old for a new adventure!  We'll keep you posted on our tandem tales...

December 9, 2008
MY HUMBLE OPINION



























Let me preface this post by saying I am not an avid reader nor am I a literary expert by any stretch of the imagination. I don't know a lot about authors and am probably not qualified to do a book review of any sort.  But I do enjoy reading and, like everything else, I do have an opinion about the books I read.  So I share with you this humble opinion of mine about a recent book I read, realizing that many may not agree...but, hey...it's MY humble opinion and you can certainly have yours too!

The Shack has had recent popularity as a (loosely-termed) religious novel, and I have found that people who have read it either love it or really don't care for it much at all.  There aren't many who are wishy-washy about it...it's either great or bad, nothing in between.























It relates the story of a man whose young daughter was brutally murdered and the deep grief, guilt, and depression that engulfed him.  And then he gets an invitation to meet God at the shack where the little girl died.  When he goes there, he spends the weekend with "God" and "Jesus" and "the Holy Spirit," and is able to come to terms with his loss through his encounters with the "Trinity."





















The back cover of the book has raving reviews from some famous folks.  And there are several of my own Christian friends whom I respect that join in with raves about the book.

I'm not one of them.  I just didn't care for The Shack at all...and I'll tell you why.




























There are two main reasons I don't like The Shack. 

First of all, God is portrayed as an Aunt-Jemima-type character, a big, sweet, cheerful, black, motherly woman who is always cooking up yummy goodies in the kitchen.  It's not remotely close to how I envision the Almighty God of the Universe!

Now those who love the book will admonish that Christians too often stereotype who God is and what He looks like, and the intent of the author is to broaden our thinking on such things.  I'll agree that we all have our own mind's image of what we believe God to look and act like, and we often "put God in a box," as my husband would say.  But this is so far OUT of the box that I just can't buy it.  God is Holy and Awesome and no man has seen his face. 

" 'But," God said, "you cannot see my face, for no one may see me and live.' "    Exodus 33:20

"No one has ever seen God..."     John 1:18

There are several other scriptures that reinforce the same thing.  If you believe the scriptures are God's Word (and I do!!!), I think it is undisputable that no one has ever seen God.  He is Holy, beyond our imagination!  And I just can't go for Him/Her (the gender issue is a whole other argument!) tooling around the kitchen, fixing food, listening to raunchy music, and making silly crude comments.  It's not the God of the Scriptures. 

Which leads to reason number two:  in my opinion, The Shack belittles the Bible as God's Holy Word.  The scripture is never quoted by the characters and, when the grieving father brings up verses, he is always ridiculed for his understanding of the Bible.  It is implied that the Bible is written by men alone, not the infallible inspired Word of God as I believe it is.

There are other reasons that I'm not a fan of The Shack, but these two are enough to keep me from recommending it.  It makes some good points about religion and our understanding of the Trinity, challenging traditional thought and ideas about Christianity.  It's an interesting twist on things, but I'm just not buying it.

And that's my humble opinion...for what it's worth!






                 "Jingle bell, jingle bells, Jingle all the way!"  Loud, clear, and strong...in perfect English!




























"Dashing through the snow, in a one-horse open sleigh..."  (or "two-horse" in this case!)  What would Christmas be without classic, romantic visions of years gone by.  This couple looks so cozy and sweet, riding across the peaceful countryside with the only sounds the crunch of snow under their sleigh and the jingle of bells on the harness.
We imagine them to be a rich couple madly in love, sharing a romantic jaunt on a crisp, sparkling winter day. 

Dare I guess that our vision may not be what's happening at all?!  They are freezing, their cheeks burning as the icy wind smacks them in the face!  Snowstorm clouds loom in the background, and the beautiful lady can't believe her crazy husband has her out in this nasty weather when she could be snug and warm at home by the fireplace! 

I'm just SUGGESTING it MAY not be the idyllic scene we envision! 

It's just a SUGGESTION!!!  Sorry to burst your holiday bubble!

























I love jingle bells!  Some of my favorite Christmas decorations involve Christmas bells.


























A couple of years ago, I bought the entire 24-piece Thomas Kinkeade Jingle Bell Ornament collection.  You know, the ones they advertise in the mail and they send you small installments (3 ornaments) every 6 weeks and you hate to stop buying them until you have the entire collection even though they are expensive and you don't need them.  Especially when you get the July shipment and it's 95 degrees outside and you're NOT in a "jingle bell" mood...if you know what I mean.  But I bit the bullet and completed the set, with the admonition to my children that when I am dead and gone this collection is part of their valuable inheritance (?).  They are excited...yes, they are...about inheriting my Jingle Bell ornament collection.

But speaking of not being in the "jingle bell" mood when it's 95 degrees out...

























...it was 95 degrees and these girls WERE in a "jingle bell" mood.  I will never sing or hear "Jingle Bells" again without thinking of these Indian girls.

They live at Hope Children's Home and they sang, in perfect English, "Jingle Bells" for Vanessa and me.

No one could be farther away from "dashing in the snow in a one-horse open sleigh" than these girls!!!

Yet there they were, poor children living on the very tropical southern tip of India who have never (and probably never will!) seen snow let alone dash through it, singing with all their hearts a Christmas song for their American
friends.  The words meant nothing to them, yet they had memorized this familiar carol to delight us!  And it did!!!  


December 10, 2008
JINGLE BELLS
December 11, 2008
NEW TOY!

























Consider this a warning to all those in my life...I've got a new toy!  And I'm looking for innocent subjects/victims!


























One of my Christmas gifts from Kim was this new Sony HandyCam camcorder.  He's usually a stickler for never allowing me (or anyone!) to open gifts before Christmas, but he knew that I'd want to learn how to use it before Christmas.  So...he bent his rule (just this one time!)...and took me shopping for it, so I could get what I wanted.


























I know...I am spoiled!  And I love it!  And I LOVE my new camcorder!!!  It records in HD on hard disk. 






















One of the really cool features is that I can actually take a still photo WHILE I am recording or during the playback.  That is amazing!  I took the photo above and the one below while I was recording.  Not bad for the first time...





















Hi, little Karter-Elf!!!

























So watch out Karter...and everyone else!  Grandma has a new toy and she's on the lookout for video-worthy subjects.

Here, for your viewing pleasure, is a practice video for me to learn how to record and actually download it on YouTube. Yes, I'm a technonerd now...I have a YouTube account.  If I can just learn how to use it...

ENJOY!!!  

(Note:  Do I sound that silly in real life?!  Please don't answer that...)

December 12, 2008
OUCHIES
Sunday was not a good day for the Gray kids.  Two of the four got major ouchies!




























Emily called me Sunday evening from the Greenfield Hospital Emergency Room.  Every mom loves a call like that!
She was baking brownies for her algebra class to have on Monday and dropped a Pyrex baking dish that broke and cut her foot.  At least that's the story she's telling us.  My coffee buddies wonder what those newlyweds were up to in the kitchen, horsing around (???) enough to drop a baking dish.  Whatever the entire truth is, it had to hurt!




























Thank goodness favorite son-in-law Zach was on the scene, as he knows first aid procedures from his physical trainer days at IU.  He got everything under control and took her to the hospital. 

She had to get a tetanus shot as well, and she says now her arm hurts more than her toe!

And then on Sunday night...





























...Kyler splashed hot grease on his arm at the Wright Food Court while at work, burning his arm.  There are a couple of smaller burns, and one nasty blistery big one.





























His co-workers tried to get him to go have it treated at a clinic, but he refused to go sit and wait forever for them to do what he could do himself.  So he doctored it and bandaged it up.  That has to hurt! 

In both cases, they could definitely have been injured a lot worse.

Wonder who they get their klutziness from???  It COULDN'T be their mother....  
December 13, 2008
LONG NIGHTS MOON


























I hope you got outside after dark (no excuses...it gets DARK at 5:30!) to see the December full moon.  GORGEOUS!


























Did you know that the full moons of each month have names?  Actually, December's full moon has several.


























Most of these names came from the Native Americans, who used the moon phases as their calendar. 


























Some Indian tribes named this the Cold Moon.  It even looks cold, hanging out there in the frigid sky.



























To the Cherokee tribe, the December full moon was the Snow Moon.  Can you imagine how difficult life was for the
Indian families when it snowed, shivering in their small wood and mud huts as the winds howled outside?  Food was
scarce and every day was about survival.  I wonder how those Cherokee moms entertained their rowdy children during the long, cold winters.  Talk about hard times! 





































Colonial Americans referred to this as the Christmas Moon, heralding the Christian Christmas celebration.


























My own personal favorite, another name with Native American roots, is the Long Nights Moon.


























Being close to the Winter Solstice on December 21, we all know how long the nights are this time of year. 


























It gets dark at 5:30 or so and the sun doesn't show its face until around 8:00 a.m.  That's 14-15 hours of darkness!


























But...the good news is...after December 21 the nights will start getting shorter and the daylight hours longer!



























So hang in there!  Spring is just around the corner (ha!).


























Cuddle up by the fireplace and think about those Indian families trying desperately to stay warm and survive until spring. 

Venture out into the frigid night air and take a gander at another one of God's awesome creations, suspended up in the heavens just as it has been since Adam and Eve walked the earth.  The same moon that those Indians saw every night so many moons (get it?!) ago. 

Soak up the rays of the Long Nights Moon!
December 14, 2008
HARD TIMES

























Our nation is experiencing hard times.  We hear it constantly on the news and daily read helplessly about the dramatic decline of the stock market. 

I was in India in early October when the bottom seemed to fall out of the US economy.  Every morning, some of the businessmen on our mission team bemoaned the fall of the Dow and their financial losses.

It's all relative, I suppose.  When you talk about hard times, nothing we are going through compares with the daily lives of most people in the world.

These men are not fretting over the stock market and their retirement funds.  They just hope to survive until tomorrow.

























This woman isn't worried about losing her home.  She doesn't have one.





























The family who lives here was so proud to invite me into their home.  It made me ashamed.  I'm wanting new carpet for my home.  They'd be thrilled with a floor other than packed dirt.



























No utility bills to stew over.  But they hope no one will die from a cobra bite or malaria or typhoid fever or dinghy fever or dysentery or a host of other deadly maladies that are rampant in these unsanitary tropical conditions.


























At least these villagers don't have to deal with construction slow-downs.  They are busy trying to rebuild their village and lives after the tsunami nearly destroyed them all 4 years ago.

























Maybe we aren't able to go out to eat as much as we used to.  This woman and baby go out to eat...begging for money and then eating what little she can scrounge up in an alley.





































Our children complain about going to school.  This little girl doesn't have to go to school.  She carries her sister around all day and asks strangers for rupees so her family can survive.





































If you think our medical system is in crisis, go visit a hospital in India.  Then you'll think again.


























High oil prices and the auto industry crisis don't effect this man's existence at all.  This is his only transportation.





































We worry about someone infringing on our human rights.  I'm reluctant to share my faith at times because I fear rejection and ridicule.  This man was nearly killed simply for being a Christian and living his faith.  Today in India and many other part of the world, Christians are being killed, imprisoned, and persecuted in numerous ways just because they are Christians.  My greatest fear of persecution is that someone will think I'm a Jesus-fanatic (as I should be!).





































I'm not making light of the hardships many are going through right here in America, in our own communities.  But before we all get into a pity party mode (propagated and nurtured in large part by the ever-present "woe-is-me" media
attitude), take a moment to put things into perspective.

God has blessed us tremendously by allowing us to live in the greatest country in the world.  Compared to the vast majority of people on earth, even during tough economic times we live spoiled and rich lives.  We have a place to lay our heads at night, food to eat, all of our needs (and most of our wants!) met.

I'm as guilty as the next person for wanting things I don't need, feeling entitled to the good life.  Sometimes I need a wake-up call, and India was just that.  I love nice things as much as anyone, but I'm reminded that God's gifts to me are all around.  And they don't involve the stock market at all!

  
December 15, 2008
MR. COON COMES TO CALL

























Funny how things happen sometimes.  Yesterday Kim and I were talking at lunch about, of all things, raccoons.  I don't even remember how we got started on that topic, but Kim mentioned that the other day he had seen a raccoon near the barn...a bad thing, because raccoons like to get into chicken houses, eating eggs and creating mischief!   He also said that one of the boys (Kamaron or Kyler, he couldn't remember which!) had seen some eyes shining in the darkness over by the shed across the road when he was home this fall and they figured it was probably a raccoon and that we probably still have some hanging around or even holed up in the shed.  (I believe that may qualify as a run-on sentence.  Sorry, Mrs. Manning!)

























I stood up from the table with dirty dishes in hand, turned toward the window and glanced out, and...lo and behold!...
standing there at the edge of our yard was a raccoon!


























It's unusual to see a raccoon strolling around in the middle of the day like that.  He was pawing and digging around
there where we had thrown all those dead skunks last fall.  I'm sure he could smell them.  We still can once in awhile if the air is just right (or wrong!).  Maybe Mr. Coon was hungry.

























Or maybe he just needed a good place to poop and he thought the skunk graveyard was as good as any.

























He's got a thick, healthy fur coat.  Do people still kill raccoons for their fur?


























This fella would make a nice coonskin cap.  Haven't seen anyone wearing a coonskin cap recently.....


























When I got too close, Mr. Coon high-tailed it outta there, which was actually quite comical.  As he scrambled across the bumpy field, he even went airborne a couple of times!

Kim watched it all from the kitchen window.  He claims the really comical part was watching me chase the raccoon with my camera.  Now THAT would've been a picture!  Glad he didn't have a camera handy!

December 16, 2008
SUITE SEAT

























If there's anything better than going to a Colts game on a dreary Sunday afternoon, it must be watching Peyton Manning and company from the Anthem Suite.


























That's how Kim and I spent our Sunday! 

























Plenty of catered food and drinks and snacks...


























...comfy seats to where you can socialize...


























...and a fabulous 40-yard-line view of the game!

























There are even COLTS M&Ms!!!

























Peyton Manning is my favorite Colt.  I love to watch him operate!
 
























And a cutie to boot...in his own charming, boy-next-door way. 

























Dallas Clark is a great tight end.  Or should I say HAS a great tight end?!  Anyway, he's fun to watch!

























Gotta love Marvin Harrison!  In his own quiet reserved way, he has worked his way into NFL recordbooks as a receiver.

























And when he's not in the game, he's always sitting off to himself at the end of the bench, away from the hoopla.

























Here's hunky Hunter "the Punter" Smith doing his kicking thing...


























...and even hunkier Adam Vinatieri doing HIS kicking thing...

























...and what would a football game be without the cheerleaders doing THEIR kicking thing!


























Kim and I had a lot of fun watching the game and talking to Anthem clients and co-workers.

























This is Rob, who Kim has worked with for years and is now the President of Indiana Anthem/Blue Cross Blue Shield.
Rob is a Purdue alumni and huge Boilermaker fan, and just did a commercial with Purdue Pete, the Purdue mascot.  Here Rob is giving me his best "Purdue Pete" look.  I think they resemble a little, don't you?  (Just kidding, Rob!  You are WAY cuter than Pete!))

























And this is Rob's wife, Melissa.  We bonded last spring when we were both training for the Mini-Marathon, sharing our tales of suffering and running woes.  Kim and I have been on several trips with Rob and Melissa, and she's a lot of fun to chat with.

























It was a great afternoon all around!  The Colts won 31-21, going to 10-4 on the season and still in the playoff picture.


























What a fun way to spend a rainy, dreary, gray December Sunday afternoon!
December 17, 2008
BUCKEYES

























Making Christmas candy is a Gray family tradition.  When we were young and ambitious and energetic, we would make 5 or 6 different kinds of candy to give away at Christmas.  As the years have passed, the 5 or 6 different kinds have gradually been whittled down to our 2 favorites, buckeyes and caramels.

























With the weather cold and windy Saturday morning, Kim volunteered to help me make buckeyes.  The past few years, I've done the entire job myself, so I was glad for his help.

I think.

The hardest part about making buckeyes is the mixing.  You throw in lots of powdered sugar, sticks of butter, blocks of cream cheese, and peanut butter and knead it all together with your hands until it is smooth.  We make 3 batches and that takes a lot of arm power!  Those forearm muscles (what are they called, Zach?!) get a real workout.  Me being a wimp and all, I was very happy to have Kim help me with that part because my arms get tired pretty quickly.

(Please note the peanut butter mixture on Kim's tummy.  That's how my man operates.)

When it's all smooth, you roll the dough into lots of balls.  At least, they're supposed to be balls!  Some of Kim's looked more like odd-shaped boxes. Or rhombuses.  Or rhombi.  Or something like that...

This is where Kim and I differ.  I'm all about precision.  Kim's all about speed. 


























I tried to demonstrate for him the proper way to form a ball.  As you can see, he didn't think much of my tutorial.
He has his own methods.


























My balls were perfectly formed and shaped with care.  Kim's were whatever shape they happened to be after a couple of quick roll-arounds in his palms.

Whenever we got all the balls/boxes/rhombi/odd shapes formed, we set them out on the deck to cool.  Or freeze.  It didn't take long.


























Meanwhile, back at the ranch (in the kitchen)...

Time to melt the chocolate coating for the buckeyes.  Now, I will let you in on the 2 secret ingredients that make this buckeye recipe the best!  Okay, I guess they are not secrets any more since I'm telling you about them right now. 
First of all, it has cream cheese in it.  That's the secret to the smooth dough.

The second is the paraffin.  Adding part of a cake in with the melted chocolate chips is the ticket (as Mama would say!) to the shiny hard chocolate shell.  Without the wax, the coating is dull and soft. 

And I'm all for shiny and hard.  And precise!

























This is enough to make me salivate, all that chocolate oozing around in the double boiler.  I got it a little too full...but it worked out. 

When it's all melted and smooth, all you do it stick a toothpick into each ball/box/shape and dip it into the chocolate.
Stick the tray back outside for a quick cool-down, and they're ready to go.  Or eat.

























The perfect-looking buckeyes with more chocolate on them are the ones I made.  The wackier-looking ones are Kim's. I like lots of chocolate.  Kim says his look more like real buckeyes (the nuts!).  Whatever!

Either which way, they ALL taste yummy!  And I'd guess this container has about 5 million calories in it...

Not that we're counting, are we?!
December 18, 2008
PRECISION vs. SPEED (again!)
























I love to wrap gifts!  Yesterday I had so much fun, not going anywhere all day and wrapping Christmas gifts instead!


























Don't you just love all the pretty, shiny holiday papers?!  But my very favorite part is the bows.  I love to make bows the way I learned to as a child, with curling ribbon.  It's a little old-fashioned and time-consuming, but I still think it's fun to curl the tails into tight little ringlets of ribbon!  And I like the way they look.

It's important to me that they look attractive and enticing.

And precise.  I like for gifts to be wrapped neatly, with the paper square and the ends perfectly tucked.





































Kim got his shopping done last week.  Even though he's already spoiled me with a new camcorder and tandem bicycle, he wanted me to have something to open on Christmas.  So he shopped and wrapped and was done.


























Quickly, efficiently...but NOT precisely.



























Kim is all about the big picture.  He does not dilly-dally over details.


























Just think of the contortions this poor box went through as Kim wrapped it!

And he must have used a whole roll of tape.

























And this one...well, he covered MOST of it!  Like I said, he's not about the details!





































But, you know, I wouldn't want it any other way!  Because this is Kim's style, and I love it!  And I love HIM just the way he is!

(I can hardly wait to open them!!!  Kim says the little one on top is the BEST gift he's EVER given me!  And he's making me wait until December 30 when we have our family all here!  It's a trick...I know it is...that's his style too!)


December 19, 2008
LIGHTS OF CHRISTMAS




















Christmas is a festival of lights, bringing warmth and cheer to the dark, cold nights.  We don't put up outside light decorations, mainly because Kim would never have the patience to mess with that, but I do love putting candles in each one of our 33 windows.

There's nothing that says "Home Sweet Home" like driving down the road in the dark and seeing our house lit up with candles.  It just feels welcoming, cozy, and peaceful. 

I'd leave them up all year if Kim would allow it.  He says he has trouble sleeping with the candles on.  I say if he closes his eyes he won't be able to see them.

But maybe it's better this way.  Now they are special.  And my favorite Christmas decoration...well, almost.

























Middletown has a unique way of hanging its Christmas lights.  They simply zigzag them through the main streets.  When we first moved here, I thought it was kind of corny.  Now I like it.  It's different, quirky, vintage.  Kind of like Middletown itself.   


























My guess is that these are the same lights and lighting scheme that they used the first time Middletown decorated for Christmas, probably back in the early 1950s.  Change comes slow (if ever!) around these parts!





































Inside my house, I've got lots of white lights everywhere.  Here they light up part of my Santa collection.


























And, of course, they are all over the limbs of the Christmas tree.  Along with the...


























...bubble lights.  We've had these since Kim and I were first married.  We used them for years, packed them away for another series of years, and now we've resurrected them from the bottom of the light box to grace the branches once again.  Only about half of them bubble anymore, but I like them anyway.

























But I have to say, the window candles are still my almost-favorite.


























My very favorite Christmas light of all is found in this Nativity scene.  Jesus is the true LIGHT of Christmas.

He is the Light that gives comfort and warmth in this cold, dark world. 

Christmas is the celebration of the Light of the world coming down from God as the ultimate gift.  The Light for all of us, to help us make our way through the twisting paths of our lives.  The Light that always shines, never dimmed no matter what the circumstances.  The Light that can never be extinguished.

JESUS is truly the best CHRISTMAS LIGHT of them all!


December 20, 2008
NEW CHAIR FOR THE HOUSE HOUSE
































Every 20 years or so, my parents get a new piece of furniture.  They believe in frugality, getting the most out of their stuff!  This year for Christmas, my brother Mark and I bought Mom and Dad a new recliner for their living room.  It's about time.






































The old recliner now has a new home in their barn.  Now their barn is not the typical barn.  Oh, yes, they use it for storage and such, but it has a cozy little living area, as well, with the cutest little wood stove for heat and chairs all around it.  They like to come hang out here, away from the telephone and TV, just enjoying the quiet and watching the fire burn.

When this chair was new 20 years ago, a lot of turmoil was going on in our lives.  Mama had just been diagnosed with esophageal cancer, undergone radiation treatments, and had major surgery to remove her esophagus.  She was told the survival rate was 5%.  Twenty years later, she is going strong and is cancer-free.  She did a lot of her recuperation right there in this chair.

If this chair could talk, what tales it could tell!  It has eavesdropped on countless conversations and been a snuggly spot for an afternoon nap.  It has seen its share of TV shows and read its share of books and devotions.  Many knitting, quilting, and sewing projects have been conceived and produced right from this very spot.  What a faithful chair it has been! 





































But now this old chair is tired.  Buttons are missing, the fabric is stained and worn, the frame is a little creaky.

It has earned its right to retire by the wood-burning stove in the cozy, quiet barn.









































And this is the new whippersnapper that's taken its place.  Mom tried out nearly every chair in the furniture store before deciding on the first one she saw.  It's a microfiber beauty, comfy but not too puffy, generous but not too big, solid and sturdy to last a long time.

A new chair for the House house!  We'll go shopping again in 20 years!
December 21, 2008
SANTA'S ELVES
























Okay.  We may not LOOK like the typical Santa's elves, but, hey...we aren't typical! 

We had the privilege of playing Santa to a needy family this year.  In lieu of exchanging gifts we don't need, my sister Barb and her family, my parents, and Kim and I decided to "adopt" an area family for Christmas this year. 

And we had a blast doing it!




























Mom and Dad did the research and got the names and information for a family of 8 that requested extra help this year.
She contacted Barb and me, we divvied up the family, and went shopping!  Then we got together to wrap and deliver the gifts.

The Xeroxed copy (I didn't know anyone used Xerox any more!) was very dark and practically unreadable!  Mom got the bright (get it..."bright!") idea of using a flashlight behind the paper to illuminate it so we could make out the names of the children. 

Barb studied it very carefully... 



























...trying to figure out if this little boy's name was Can (Can???  Who names a child Can?!), Carl, Cari, Cori...

And then we got tickled!




























If you've ever been around the House women when we get tickled, you can attest to the fact that it's not a pretty sight!
But it sure is funny!  And once we get tickled, any little thing sets us off into riotous giggling!

And it got even funnier when Mom got out her magnifying glass (who keeps a magnifying glass handy?...Does she think she's Sherlock Holmes?!), thinking that would help.  We were laughing so hard I had trouble focusing the camera.  Finally, Mom decided just to call up the father at home and ask him.

(For those who need to know, the child's name was Cori.  I'm so glad it wasn't Can.  That worried me, thinking a child out there was named Can...)

Anyway...

























...it was a jolly time wrapping together.  Yes, we are easily entertained!  My sister Barb is a hoot!  And Mom gets a little (little?!) silly sometimes!  I try to keep them calm, but they get me going too!


























Dad was smart and stayed in the living room, away from the chaos.





























Don't look too closely at this dinosaur gift-wrapping job.  We were getting tired and it was time for lunch...we don't work well under duress.  And when the House girls get hungry, we are definitely under duress!
 




































Check out THIS box Mom had for us to use!  We thought it was maybe a little too racy for our Christmas family, but Mom tried to imitate the cheerful holiday (hot little elf!) look.    Glad Tidings indeed!!!

























All finished and ready to deliver! 

If this pile of gifts from Santa brings half the smiles on Christmas morning as it did to his "elves", our mission will have been accomplished.

It truly is more blessed to give than to receive!  And a lot funnier (and funner!) too!!!  I think we may have started a new family tradition.

December 22, 2008
NO CRYING HE MAKES

























Christmas is all about a very special child.  And what makes Christmas special to me is seeing it through the excited eyes of the children in my life. 

























Some of the precious children in my life are those that go to our church.  And one of the very special ones is little
4-year-old Abby, who played the donkey in our children's Christmas program.





































Abby is the third generation of a dear family we have loved since the day we met them!  We first met her grandparents when we started going to the Sulphur Church 22 years ago and their own children were just teenagers.  Abby's mother, Leann, was one of the few babysitters my children ever had, and she's such a beautiful young Christian woman and a special friend.  Leann and CJ have two darling little girls, Abby and Anna. 


























Abby is quite the little character, with the sweetest personality.  And she always has something to say!  She has been blessed with wonderful Christian parents who are diligently rearing her to love the Lord.  Since the day she was born, Abby has heard Bible stories and learned to sing songs about Jesus.  She is just a delightful little girl!

So I must share with you a little anecdote that has made me smile all week...


























Last Sunday, I taught the 4-year-old Sunday School class at our church since their regular teacher was out-of-town.  Of course, the December curriculum is all about the events surrounding the birth of Jesus in Bethlehem.  The children in this class have all heard the story many times and are very familiar with it, but it is so exciting to them to talk about this baby in the manger.  The story is still filled with the magical wonder that we sometimes lose as we grow up.

As part of the lesson, I had a recording of "Bethlehem Sounds," just some background noises one might have heard from the streets of Bethlehem at the time that Jesus was born.  There are donkeys braying, cows mooing, street vendors selling their wares, chickens clucking, hooves clacking across the cobblestones...you get the idea.  I had the children listen carefully, and with each new sound they would enthusiastically name what it was.  They loved it and were very good at it, being country kids like they are.

At the very end of the recording, the crying of a newborn baby is heard.  "Oh!  Listen!,"  I told the children.  "I wonder what that sound is?"

Another little girl in the class, Reina, proudly shouted out, "It's baby Jesus!  It's baby Jesus!"

Little Abby looked puzzled for a moment, then patted my arm.  "No, Miss Terry, it's not baby Jesus,"  she insisted.

"Yes, Abby, it is baby Jesus.  Can you hear the little baby crying in the manger?  That's baby Jesus," I told her.

"No, no, Miss Terry!"  she said firmly.  "It's NOT baby Jesus!  Remember...'The little Lord Jesus, no crying he makes!' "




























Little Abby has probably sung "Away in a Manger" a hundred times in her short little life and she knew what it said!
I thought quickly and tried to explain the in the song baby Jesus was asleep on the hay, and that he wasn't crying because he was asleep.  But she was adamant...no crying he makes!

It makes me smile, and I am quite sure God is also smiling at the innocent faith of this little one. 

Christmas is for precious little children like Abby, who hold baby Jesus so close to their hearts!  It is so real to them!

And Christmas is for precious big children like us, who are blessed enough to get a fresh glimpse of the wonder of Christmas through the eyes of a child!
December 23, 2008
MYSTERY MEN





































"After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, "Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews?  We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him."..........they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stopped over the place where the child was.  When they saw the star, they were overjoyed.  On coming to the house, they saw the child with his mother Mary, and they bowed down and worshiped him.  then they opened their treasures and presented him with gifts of gold and of incense and of myrrh."                                        Matthew 2:1-2, 9-11


























I have always been intrigued by these mysterious men who visited Jesus.  We actually know very little about them, yet artists and songwriters have taken great liberty in creating our image of the Wise Men.





























We sing "We Three Kings of Orient Are" every year, but even the title of the song makes wrong assumptions. 

We (when I say "we", I mean those Biblical scholars that have studies such things in depth, not "me"!) don't know how many there were.  The number three is assumed because the Bible lists 3 different gifts.  Scholars believe there were probably several more, maybe even as many as 10 or 12.




































"We" do know they were not kings.  They were Magi, an old and powerful priestly caste that was wealthy, very well-educated, and highly respected for their great knowledge.  They were well-versed in many areas, especially astrology.
These were men that sat around and debated things, discussing in great detail subjects that ordinary people did not have time to ponder.  I would compare them to our modern "think tanks", a group of philosophical and scientific geniuses.























"We" also are quite sure that they did not come from what we consider the Orient.  They were probably from an area east of Judea, perhaps Arabia and more likely Persia (modern-day Iran).  They were certainly not Jews, but they knew the scriptures and the prophecies very well. 





































I'm always fascinated at the way they are depicted in nativity scenes.  First of all, they wouldn't have been there while Jesus was still lying in the manger.  They would have had to travel for many months to arrive, and the scripture says they came to a house.  Jesus was likely between one and two years old before the Magi's visit.





































Yet we hang onto our mind's picture of these 3 men arriving at the stable with the shepherds, each one carrying a gilded box of valuable gold or spices to lay at the newborn's feet.


























I wonder how diverse this group really was.  Have you noticed that there is always one darker-skinned Magi and the other two are usually white?  This fella is probably a more accurate depiction, looking more like a man of Middle East descent.  I doubt that any of them were Caucasian, but perhaps there may have been a black Magi in the mix.














When was the last time you really studied the night sky?  When Kim and I were in Tahiti, we couldn't get over the vastness of the night sky and the zillions of stars we could see.  Here at home, there is always residual light from somewhere so it's never that dark.  Plus we are too "busy" staring at the television after supper to stare at the sky. 

The Magi were experts in astrology.  I once read about a teenage girl in the 1950s (not that long ago!) that used the stars alone to guide her family's sailboat from Tahiti to Hawaii.  Can you imagine that?  Most nights, I can barely figure out where the Big Dipper is! 

Those Magi must have been like that, and they would have noticed any deviation in the stars.  Some scientists believe that on that night the planets of Venus and Jupiter may have phenomenally aligned just so in the night sky, producing a spectacular, extra-bright star-looking object.  Maybe so.  But it wasn't accidental.  God placed that star in the sky as a birth announcement for His Son! 

Not only did they see the star and wonder about it, they packed up and left for a very long, hard, dangerous trip to they-didn't-know-where...not a task to be taken lightly.  They must have been awed beyond imagination to do that.
















I believe they were prompted by God to seek out Jesus.  God is prompting us too!  Christmas is the perfect time to seek Him out.  It is true that Wise Men (and women!) Still Seek Him!  

And we all want to be wise, don't we?!
December 24, 2008
VISITING SANTA

























Being the wonderful mother I was (?), I wanted my children to have the ultimate Christmas experience each year.  And what would Christmas be without a visit to see Santa?

So, camera in hand, every Christmas season Kim and I would bundle them up and take them to New Castle to Santa's Headquarters, where Santa* held court every evening and children and parents lined up to see the big guy.

Everyone was happy and smiling and excited.

Except my children (and my husband...but that's another story...).  My little ones were scared of Santa*.

Here is Kristoffer in December 1984.  He was 2 years old.

He does not look thrilled to be sitting on Santa's* lap, does he?  Look at the body language.  But being the good-natured little boy that he was, he humored me and reluctantly cooperated.

Emily, however, did not cooperate.  And it wasn't until she was 3 years old that she would even go near Santa Claus.  She cried hysterically at the sight of Santa in a mall or anywhere.  Apparently she just was not into weird-looking men wearing red suits.  Smart girl, she was (and is!).

So Kristoffer was on his own with Santa until...



























Christmas 1987.  What a delightfully joyful group of children with Santa*!

Kristoffer is less-than-thrilled, Emily is very hesitant, and Kamaron is just outright scared or mad!

Poor child!  Probably traumatized him for life!  






































Christmas 1989.  Our first Christmas with all 4 children.  They are happy and smiling, posing with Santa*.  Except for baby Kyler, who was almost 1 at the time.  He's keeping a watchful eye on big brother Kristoffer.

I thought we were over the Santa-hump.



























But I was wrong.

Christmas 1990, the following year.  Kyler was another year older and wiser (almost 2 now!) and he definitely did not trust the strange elf.  If it weren't for the cookie Santa* gave him and the comfort of his daddy's arms. he would've had nothing to do with Santa*!  Kyler could always be bribed with a cookie...some things never change!



























The other 3 had no trouble with Santa in 1990.  Kamaron, at 4 years old, is relishing his time in the spotlight!







































Six-year-old Emily is cute and happy sitting on Santa's knee.






































And at 8 years old, Kristoffer is almost as tall as Santa.  Is that his list Santa is holding???
































By Christmas 1991, all the kids had conquered their Santa-phobia and posed with this mall Santa.

Santa Claus is a wondrous, mysterious character to a young child.  I often think how we are so careful not to let our children talk to or take candy from strangers, and then we shove them toward this white-bearded fellow in a goofy red suit and hat and force them to be friendly and even sit on his lap!  I mean, really! 

But Santa Claus will always have an important role in the lives of children at Christmas.  So what if there's a little terror involved along the way?!  They'll get over it...mine sure did!  For the first time in 26 years, Santa will not be stopping at our house this year and it's just a little sad for all of us!  Wishing you all a very blessed Christmas!!!   




*[Just a side note for those who may know him...the man dressed as Santa in all the photos above (except the last one) is someone we have come to know very well, although we didn't know him at all back then.  Denny goes to our church and has a tremendous Santa Claus ministry in our area.  Yep, that's a younger Denny!]

Another side note...this has nothing at all to do with the earth-shaking message of the post.  But just go back and take a gander at the coats the boys are wearing.  All 3 wore the same brown coat when they were little!  And Kristoffer and Kamaron both got mileage out of the red coat.  Just an observation....for what it's worth.

December 25, 2008
HO, HO,...AAHHH!


























MERRY CHRISTMAS TO ALL!!!

I got this cup for Christmas when I was a child.  Guess that makes it an antique, huh?!  This cup is me, today, on Christmas morning!  The shopping is finished, the gifts are wrapped, the candy is made, the baking is done, and I'm chillin'!

I have to admit I'm feeling a little nostalgic today.  Not that nostalgia is bad...but Christmas is different this year.

For the first time in 26 years, Santa Claus won't be "Ho-ho-ho-ing" to wake up the children.  There'll be no rush of sleepy-eyed, excited kids clambering down the stairs to check out the pile of goodies that Santa has left.  Santa won't be stopping at the Gray house this year.

Oh, there's plenty of gifts under the tree...so many, in fact, that we can scarcely walk into the room.  But no gifts from Santa this time.

While a little part of me is sad to admit it, things are a-changin' around here!  The children are grown and have spouses, fiances, and girlfriends to celebrate with.  Some of the old traditions will be replaced by new ones this year.
And that's okay...it's just feels a little strange, that's all.

It's going to be a calm, quiet, peaceful Christmas Day.  Sleeping in, padding around in our pajamas, sipping coffee.  I'll fix the traditional waffles with strawberries and whipped cream and we'll just enjoy a wonderful leisure morning.  Just the three of us...Kim, Kyler, and me.

We'll go to Kenny's for lunch with the Gray clan, bringing gifts for the little ones.  Then we'll head over to Mom and Dad's for supper.  Nice, relaxing family times with no stress or commotion to deal with.  Been there, done that.



























So, here's to a wonderful Christmas Day with the ones you love!  Take time to pray and reflect on the real reason we celebrate this special holiday!  God Bless you and yours this Christmas and always!!!

December 26, 2008
FAMILY CHRISTMASES

After our own small Christmas celebration (awaiting the BIG one on December 30 when everyone will be home!), Kim and Kyler and I headed toward Hagerstown to celebrate with our families.  Here are a few highlights of the day.  For more photos, go to the Photo Gallery page. 

Gray Family
























Kenny and his fiance Joyce hosted the Gray family at Kenny's home.  We had a few missing (the Limeberry family as well as all my gang except Kyler), but it was still a houseful.


























Foster (5) and Sydney (9) were anxious to open their presents.



























The Ozbun family, minus the Limeberrys, were there.  Joey and Leslie were home from New York City, and Tiffany was in from Ohio.  Kim's sister Pam was looking cute, as usual!



























Paige (11) and Brooke (18) open up their gifts.  This is Brooke's last year to be in on the gifts, so she was soaking it up!



























All the excitement just plumb tuckered Kim out!  After his nap, we moved on to the next celebration!


House Family


























Mom and Dad enjoyed having us in for an early supper, complete with lots of laughter!  It was a small group this year, but we had loads of fun.  There were 9 of us:  Dad, Mom, Kim, Kyler, me, Barb, John, Sarah, and Joe (Sarah's boyfriend).


























The goal was to have a simple meal, low-stress and low-fuss.  Yeah, right!  This was just the dessert table!  But we're certainly not complaining...everything was scrumptious!






































Meet Joe!  He's a really nice young man and we hope we didn't scare him off!  The conversation got a little crazy at times, if you can imagine that.  But he was a trooper and we liked him a lot.  And isn't Sarah beautiful?!



























Grandma Lois with Kyler, hanging in the kitchen.






































Barb and John are always a lot of fun to be around.  Craziness reigns wherever Barb is!


























It was a holly, jolly day!  We're counting the days until all our family is together for our own Christmas hoopla!
Hope you all had a wonderful Merry Christmas as well!
December 27, 2008
MAMA SMURF






































A crazy, weird, kind-of-scary thing happened  to me on Christmas evening at my mom and dad's house. 

After dinner we were sitting around the table, talking and laughing when suddenly, my sister Barb (who was sitting across from me), alarmingly said, "Ter, are you feeling all right?  Your hands are turning blue!"

I looked down at my hands and, sure enough, the outside edges of both my hands were blue.  Kind of a light, pasty-bluish, corpse-like color, and some of my fingers were bluish too!

Barb said, "I think you may have a circulation problem.  Look how blue you are getting!"

At first, I thought perhaps it was just the lighting.  I do have prominent blue veins on top of my hands and I thought maybe the light was causing everything to look blue.

Then I began to think...DO I feel okay?  REALLY???  I mean, I know I've eaten too much today and I feel kind of bloated and blah, but that has to be just from eating and sitting around all day.  RIGHT?!?  Maybe there IS something wrong!

I got up and went into Mom's kitchen, where it was much brighter and, sure enough, my hands were BLUE!  Mom, Barb, and Kim didn't know what to say or do.  My hands were definitely turning blue!

Then I got scared!  Maybe this was it, I was going to die right here on Christmas evening with my entire body turning blue for lack of blood because my heart must be giving out and soon I'm going to get dizzy and weak and lose consciousness and pass away right here on Mom's kitchen floor on Christmas Day!  It wasn't the way I had pictured leaving this world, for sure!

Then Mom and Barb began brainstorming and someone asked if I had eaten anything blue or had my hands in anything blue that might have stained them.  "No," to both questions.  Was I wearing anything new?  What about my jeans?

Well, I had worn my jeans briefly the day before but they had not been washed.  Light bulb!!!  MY JEANS MUST BE
THE CULPRIT!  I rushed to the sink and started soaping up my hands, and it wasn't long before the soap suds were blue and my hands were coming clean.

WHEW!!!  Major sigh of relief, followed by side-splitting laughter from everyone!  Apparently the dye in my new blue jeans had rubbed off on my hands, causing them to turn blue.

And scare the livin' bejeebers outta me! 

Kim started calling me Mama Smurf.  (There is no such character...until now, I guess!  Smurfette is the closest I could find.  And she's a lot cuter than Mama Smurf would be...)


























I wish someone had grabbed the camera and snapped a photo of my blue hands, but we were too alarmed and excited to think to do that.  (Note to self:  Next time a crisis occurs, grab the camera and start shooting.  Just kidding...I think!)

But, Praise the Lord, I lived to tell the tale!  Look, Mom!  No blue hands!!!

When I got home, I started investigating!


























I found the tags that I had cut off the jeans.

I guess I should have read the instructions before wearing!!!  Sure would have saved me a near-death experience (okay...that may be a little over-dramatic, but it DID give me a brief scare!)! 

Have a SMURFY-GREAT day!









image from www.kickingtheblues.com
December 28, 2008
FRESH START


























New year, new calendar!  One of the highlights of beginning a new year is getting a brand, new calendar.

I've gotten a little picky over the years on what I want my calendar to be like.  So, when I'm shopping for others'
Christmas gifts, I always stop by the mall calendar kiosk and pick up a new calendar for myself.

My late mother-in-law Peggy got me started on this whole thing.  She bought me a narrow spiral-bound calendar that fit just perfectly in the little nook-in-the-wall just below my phone in our old house.  It displayed a week at a time, with plenty of room to write things down.  She bought it from a gardening magazine company and for years and years, she always got me a new one. 

They became a journal of my life, at a time when I didn't take time to keep a real journal.  And I've held onto them all, in their own unique way chronicling my life the past 20-some years.

Then the gardening company quit offering them or went out of business (or both), and I was on my own.  That's when I started visiting the mall kiosk every Christmas.



























I've got a couple of requirements for my calendars (told you I was picky!).  First of all, they must be small and spiral-bound so I can fold them back and they'll lay flat.  Next, they have to have plenty of room to write down stuff, and I prefer no lines to deal with.  And third, they have to have nice photos or artwork.  Not cartoons or silly things, but beautiful pictures of nature, landscapes, birds, animals, beaches, lighthouses (this year's!)...the kind of things I like.


























This year I've been using the Audubon calendar.  It had gorgeous photos, and we filled it up.






































This was the wildest, busiest, most hectic week of my life so far!  The week of Emily's wedding, then Karter was born in Minnesota on June 16, and I was director of our church Bible School June 16-20.  Craziness, I tell you!  Great fun, but crazy busy!  I'm hoping not to have a week like that in 2009...but one never knows!



























So here we are, a new year just around the corner.  The calendar is neat and clean and blank...but not for long!
Exciting things just ready to be written on the white pages of the book and into the history of our family...Kamaron's wedding on August 1, for starters.

Can't wait to see what 2009 looks like!
December 29, 2008
I'VE EARNED MY STRIPES





































Kyler gave me part of my Christmas gift early.  It's this beautiful crimson and cream scarf, sporting the famous IU candystripe design that was (and still is!) popular back in the days when Indiana basketball reigned supreme.



























The Hurryin' Hoosiers were the envy of the college basketball world.  I took this photo in 1978, when I was a student at IU and the basketball players were the celebrities on campus.  This is the era that made the candystripe pants famous, a symbol of excellence.  New Coach Tom Crean is bringing that tradition back to Indiana basketball.

The saying "earned your stripes" originated from the military practice of awarding stripes for rank or outstanding service.  Stripes are not given out randomly...they have to be earned.






































So, when Kyler presented me with this scarf, I was thrilled.  I think I've earned my IU stripes!

Not only did I earn my masters degree from IU, all four of my children have gone there.  Two have graduated, one will in May, and the youngest one is well on his way.  We are a Hoosier family!  Even though Kim has his masters degree from Ball State, he is part of the Hoosier nation as well, as a good portion of his salary has gone to Indiana University the past several years!  Plus, he loves to root for the Hoosiers as much as I do. 

There are more stripes to earn, for sure...but I've earned some already.

Kyler got the scarves because he was shown in a promotional video for the Indiana University Scholarship Committee.
He is one of the students on the committee and they did this video to attract prospective students.  At the very end of the video clip, you will see Kyler (top middle) and Kara (middle right) wearing their scarves...look quickly or you'll miss them! 

Click here to see the video.  Enjoy!  Now...Go out and earn YOUR stripes!
December 30, 2008
MY BEST CHRISTMAS PRESENT EVER






















1 month old














Today my baby is 20 years old!  How can it have already been 20 years?! 

Kyler Evan Gray was born on December 30, 1988...weighing in at 10 lbs. 1 oz. and 22" long (must've been all that Christmas candy!).  Being my fourth child, I thought it would be a quick, easy birth.  Not so, but eventually he came out screaming and beautiful and perfect in every way!

I've always said he's the hardest Christmas present I've ever had to unwrap.  But also the very best Christmas gift ever!
























10 months old













What a cute little feller he was!  Always had those big blue eyes that just melted us!

























2 years old




































3 years old












Kyler was a tough little guy, too!  With 2 older brothers and a sister, he had to be tough to survive. 























5 years old
Kindergarten













Off to school!  And a cheesy kindergarten smile!


























9 years old
4th grade











Kids are so cute when their teeth are falling out and coming in.  They have that goofy, adorable look.



























10 years old
5th grade










Check out the braces!  If ever a child needed braces, Kyler did.  But his teeth are beautiful now!


























14 years old
Freshman










He just kept getting better looking as the years went on.
























17 years old
Senior









photo by Mike McKown



And was quite the stud in high school.  I love this senior picture of him!


























19 years old
July 2008










Today Kyler is 20 years old, a sophomore at Indiana University, a big strapping young man with a heart of gold.  He is a wonderful Christian man, and we are so proud of the person he has grown to be.  God certainly blessed us when he sent Kyler our way 20 years ago.

Happy Birthday, Kylo!!!  We love you!!!
December 31, 2008
MUNCHIN' TUNKIN




















Tunkin is here!  And he's munchin' everything in sight!

Some may wonder why we (I!) call him Tunkin.  It's one of those nicknames that just happened and it stuck.

I often referred to my little ones as Tooker (now don't ask me how that got started...I've long ago forgotten!), so when Karter was born I called him Tooker at first.  Then I started calling him Punkin.  And then somehow or other the two names sort of merged together and the name Tunkin was born.  

And he's been Grandma's Tunkin ever since!





































Little Karter is 6 1/2 months old and he's in that stage where everything goes directly to his mouth.  He's chewing and drooling on anything he can grab.  And he loves his Uncle Zach!



























He's a munchin' Tunkin!



























Grandma tried to teach him his shapes and show him how to put them in the right holes.  But he'd rather chew on the holes instead (he probably already knows his shapes!  He's a brilliant child, you know!).


























Displaying the Gray Efficiency methods (as Anique would point out!), having one shape in each hand makes it easy to have an available chew-toy at his disposal at all times.


























But this is the best munchie of all!  Grandpa Kim is teaching him to hold his own bottle, good for chewing the nipple and getting a swig of the good stuff, all at the same time.

Yep, he's definitely a Gray man...like all Gray men before him, little Tunkin loves his munchin'!