Stop and smell the roses...and wake up too!

Life is funny...here I am, December 17th, and I have a HUGE to-do list before Christmas, which somehow is only one week away! I had a million grandiose plans and even started making lists of gift ideas in the summer! Lists that, to this day, sit pretty much untouched on my phone! I saw a commercial around Thanksgiving where the idea was the two women in the commercial kept saying "we have 3 months", then "2 months", then "1 month", then...CRAP. That's how I feel. Yesterday, it was August and school was just starting. Today, the kids are done with their first semester and Christmas is in one week!

Work is beyond crazy, and that has contributed to the time flying by...but I'm so thankful that I'm working on Monday, then I'm off for the rest of the week (and the following Monday!). We're going to clean house (pretty much first on my list), bake cupcakes, paint our nails (minus Josh on that one), go to the park, make dinner together, go shopping...and whatever else sounds like fun. :)

So, in addition to being a part of the rest of society trying to stay afloat this time of year, I've been reminded recently how powerful God is, and how He uses every event in a person's life as a tool to bring us (and others) closer to Him. My brother, who is only 33 years old, suffered a stroke last week. Last Friday, he was rushed to the ER. It was a scary day, for me, for my parents, for Chris. Since then though, he has been healing at lightning speed. What could take some people weeks or months to recover from is taking him days. Through this, I've learned that the most dire of circumstances can be allowed to occur in order to bring glory to God, and that nothing is too big for Him. I'm thankful that He's called me to be one of His own, and am thankful that I serve a God who is relentless in His pursuit of those He loves.

Now, here are a few pictures of our Christmas decorations. We are juggling decorating for Christmas AND semi-massive remodeling of portions of our home. The girls, who have always been in their own room, recently moved into the same room. The desk, which was in our "loftice" (loft/office) has been moved into Rylie's old room, and the "loftice" is being turned into a playroom. Shew, that's even a lot to type. :)

Our Christmas Tree

The kid's Christmas Tree

Our mantle...I made the stocking hangers with inspritation from Shanty-2-Chic. I am not close with these sisters, but I knew them growing up, and it's so fun to see them so successful in the blogging world. They are amazing at some of the DIY projects they make look so easy! The link for these is here: 

http://www.shanty-2-chic.com/2011/10/chevron-stocking-hangers.html