Merry Christmas

Today is the day we celebrate our Lord's birth. Because our Savior lives, we REJOICE.

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing...Romans 15:13

Mark is 28 today...Happy Birthday

Happy Birthday, Mark!!!

28 years ago, Mark made his appearance. He was the most beautiful baby I had ever seen and I think he still is quite the handsome fellow!

I remember being amazed that this tiny creature had been inside me. Such a miracle. It is one of the most wondrous things of God, the privilege of carrying a baby and giving birth. I think this makes being a woman very special. Nothing on earth brings more joy. Mark's original due date was December 24th. I was very glad he decided to come a few days early...three to be exact. Since he was born close to Christmas, his little stocking hat that is put on all newborns was red with a white cotton ball attached at the end. He had his own little Santa hat.


He was quite the attraction, although it does not appear Zach was too thrilled with him.


I was a very happy Mom!




Such a cutie!

Mark on his wedding day

So Happy birthday, Mark. I hope you will consider the miracle of your birth, and how happy it makes your loved ones that you are on this earth and in their lives. I hope you have a great year!

Unexpected sight

On Thursday afternoon, Warren and I were driving down Main Street to take the grandkids to McDonalds when we spotted a pickup pulling a horse trailer parked at Farley's. There was a small crowd of people around the horse trailer. There was not the usual horse in this trailer...there was a camel and not an ordinary camel with the one hump...this one had two humps. I wondered if one of the Wisemen had stopped for dinner at Farley's after all it was Christmas time. I asked Warren to turn around the car so we could take Erynn and Reid to see the camel; it is not every day one gets to see such a creature up close. After many excuses and me shooting them down one by one, he finally turned around and we became one of the crowd.

We discovered that the camel was not the only animal being pulled. Tucked in beside the camel was...well, I am not exactly sure what you would call it. The animal looked like a light brown horse, but it had the stripes and was the size of a Zebra. So what do you call a cross between a horse and Zebra? I don't know, but the animal was unusual. The grandkids were thrilled and amazed to have seen such a sight in our little town of Roswell. I am so glad Warren indulged us with the adventure.

Looks just like one of the Wisemen's camels

Thanksgiving

Warren and I traveled to North Carolina to spend Thanksgiving with our youngest son. It was quite a shock when Luke met us with his new "no hairdo." Yes, Luke looks like Kojak. It did not take as long to get use to it as I thought it would. In fact, I rather liked it because the focus is more on his eyes--and I think they shine and are very nice much brighter than his head.

Luke and his new "no hairdo"

He uses this special razor that has match car wheels.

It was our first time to try deep fried turkey as well. It was mighty good. Finger licking for sure. Luke and Warren set up the fryer in the driveway.  Luke gave the turkey a special cajun rub.  The turkey was definitely good.  And Luke made chicken fingers.  So good as well.

Warren lighting the burner of the deep fryer. They had

a fire extinguisher handy just in case.


The Cajun rub

Then, we went Tree shopping...

Luke among the trees.


Of course, I had to take a bunch of pictures of us. That was one of my favorite things to do since I am trying to perfect my portraiture shots.

Here's my stunningly handsome husband

We watched several movies...The Toy Story 3, and The Christmas Carol starring Jim Carey.  We had a great time with Luke over Thanksgiving. I am so thankful God has blessed us with such a great family. I love them all dearly.

Christmas Crisis

"Are you the one who was to come, or should we expect someone else?" (Matthew 11:3) These are the words John the Baptist sent his disciples to ask Jesus when he heard what Christ was doing, as he (John) sat in prison. In my mind, John's question is even more relevant in our present time as we experience more and more attempts to take Christ out of Christmas. If Jesus is not the one, then we shouldn't follow Him. But if He is, then we should follow Him at all costs. John, of all people, should not need to ask this question. He knew Jesus was the Messiah beyond all doubt.

• He and Jesus were cousins
• Mary and Elizabeth (John's mother) were pregnant around the same time
• We are told in Luke that John leaped in his mother's womb when Mary spoke. (Luke 1:39-45). So, John recognized the Messiah while still in utero!
• His mission of preparing the way for the Messiah was never a question in John's mind. In John 1: 19-28, John is in a controversial conversation with the religious leaders. It was his job to point others to Christ--not obtain followers of his own. His desire was for his disciple to be completely devoted to the Messiah to come.
• He pointed Christ out to others as the Messiah. John 1: 35-37, "The next day John was there again with two disciples. When he saw Jesus passing by, he said, 'Look, the Lamb of God!' When the two disciples heard him say this, they followed Jesus. (One of the two was Andrew).

John was clear about WHO Jesus was--he was absolutely certain about the identity of Jesus.

• In John 1:29-34, the time between the two previous encounters, we find John exclaim about Jesus as He approached John, "Look, the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world! This is the One I meant when I said, 'a man who comes after me has surpassed me because He was before me.' I myself did not know Him, but the reason I came baptizing with water was that He might be revealed to Israel."
• Then John gave his testimony: "I say the Spirit come down from heaven as a dove and remained on Him. I would not have known Him, except that the One who sent me to baptize with water told me, 'the man on who you see the Spirit come down and remain is He who will baptize with the Holy Spirit.' I have seen and I testify that this is the Son of God."
• John declared, "I baptize with water...but among you stands one you do not know. He is the one who comes after me, the thongs of whose sandals I am not worthy to untie." (John 1: 26-27).

How could someone who knew Jesus was "the one" now send his disciples with a question--"are you the one?" All those close to John had heard him declare the supremacy of Jesus. It must have shaken his follower's confidence. I am sure they, too, were waiting to see how Jesus would answer John's question.

John was having a crisis of faith. How I identify with John, because I experience my own crisises of faith. John was in prison because of Herodias, the wife of Herod's brother, Philip. Herod arrested him for calling his relationship with Herodias an affair. On Herod's birthday, Herodias' daughter danced for him. Herod was so pleased he said he said he would give her what she wanted. Coached by her mother, she requested John's head on a platter. (Mat. 14:1-12). This prompted the crisis--John was in prison about to be beheaded when he sent the message to Jesus. Jesus could rescue him if He so pleased--He was the son of God!

Jesus' response--"Go back and report what you hear and see: the blind see, lame walk, leprosy is cured, deaf hear, dead are raised, good news is preached to the poor. Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of Me." (Mat. 11:4-6).

Not exactly what John expected to hear, I am sure. John already knew all that. Jesus' acts didn't eliminate John's doubts. Why would Jesus tell him, "blessed is the man who does not fall away on my account?"

I think Jesus was telling John, I am not going to spare you what is about to happen to you. I am not going to spare your life. Yes, I have done this for others, but that is not the path I have for you. You will be blessed if this does not cause you to fall away. I imagine that was pretty hard for John to take in...to know Jesus had a different plan than what John wanted. Jesus does not save us from pain and suffering, but from meaninglessness. A life without Jesus is meaningless. For Jesus, John was exactly where he needed to be, fulfilling God's purpose in his life. Jesus' invitation is "follow me." He never lied about he danger or cost associated with becoming His follower. He told them up front, " I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore, be as shrewd as snakes, and innocent as doves. " (Matthew 10:16).

By the very nature of our present worldly culture, which is counter to Christian doctrine, we are experiencing a crisis of faith. John dared to speak the truth and it resulted with him being imprisoned and eventually beheaded. His cost for following Christ and living his life accordingly cost him dearly. We must...I must be a light in this dark world pointing others to Christ. The birth of Christ is what Christmas is all about. I almost wish we would focus on Christ and what He means to us rather than giving presents to each other. I think our greatest gift we could give each other is a note expressing how we see Christ lived out in their life.

It is Christmas! Make others know beyond doubt that Jesus is the One. He is the Messiah. Like the song says, "Go tell it on the mountain, over the hills and every where...that Jesus Christ is born!"

Our 29th anniversary

Warren and Rob--29 years together. Yeah!

We have been married 29 years and I must say it has been the best adventure of my life. There has been ups and downs, but all in all, it has been great. I would do it again in a heart beat. We actually have been celebrating this whole weekend. Saturday we both had fun preparing a feast fit for a king thanks to Allen Brother Steaks. Warren grilled the steaks, and I made the sides and dessert. He wanted "The Best Cake" with the chocolate ganache and, of course, I wanted the homemade ice cream. So we had both--and on Sunday as well.

I thought I'd better touch up the gray hair that was starting to peek through at my roots. Since it had been awhile since I had an all over job (before the wedding), I decided I was due. I colored my hair, and then asked Warren if he would frost it. He readily agreed, and that is just what we did after a few instructions. I think he did an amazing job. More importantly, it was at a fraction of the cost...$15.00 as opposed to $125. He will be my hair dresser for color from now on.

Rob

See what a great coloring job Warren did on my hair

Today, Sunday, we set out to memorialize our anniversary with a photo of the two of us. All the great spots had people in them, and the sun was setting fast, but we did manage to get a few good ones. Even though we did not do much, I thoroughly enjoyed the day. My husband is the greatest. I am looking forward to another year with him.

Rob's clown outfit

On Halloween night, rather than having a "trick or treat" our church did a "trunk or treat". I was the person who welcomed people to the event and handed out bags to the children to collect their treats. Here is a picture of my costume. The kids had a hard time deciding what I was trying to be--a lot kept asking if I was a clown. It is pretty obvious to me, but for some reason it was not to them. Isn't that a dramatic sunset in the background? New Mexico sunsets have to be some of the best around. I thought it went rather nicely with my outfit.

Rob McKelvy (photo taken my Alicia Mackenzie)

Roswell tornado and Smiggley still missing

Here is a picture of a recent tornado (October 21) that touched down about a mile north of Pine Lodge road and Atkinson. It was taken by a friend from her backyard.

Smiggley is still missing. I am going to go to the Animal Control center today to see if he got picked up. I have looked and looked for him. No luck.