Christmas and end of 2019

 We have had an interesting Christmas season this year with all of us experiencing change of plans because of sickness.  I think that is why when we finally managed our family Christmas on the 29th, we were so incredibly thankful to be together.  Gwen's family had three different events cancel.  Doug's family also had parties cancel.  So having all 11 of us healthy was reason to celebrate.  I got the "crud" on the 22nd.  I really didn't feel all that bad, just very hoarse and I did have a fever.  We canceled our plans for the 23rd (maybe next year we will make it to Chicago Chriskindle market) and by late in the day on Christmas Eve, I was feeling better.  We decided to go to church at 9:00pm with Gwen, Tim and the kids.  It was especially fun since I really didn't think we were going to make it anywhere for services.  I was thankful to be on the mend to enjoy the candlelight service.

Ken and I spent Christmas day mostly just watching movies and favorite shows.  I cooked a ham and both Ken and I think it was the best ham we have had in a very long time.  Doesn't that figure?  If we were having a crowd of people over, the ham would have been dry and tasteless.  This ham dinner was a wonderful, flavorful cap to our lazy day.  Our kids have a tradition of staying home so that their kids can enjoy Christmas without having to go anywhere.  I really believe this is a wonderful tradition and am so thankful that they have held on to this special family time.  

Shortly after arriving at Gwen and Tim's for our Christmas Celebration, we took our yearly family pictures.  In past years we have not taken pictures until later in the day, which has not always been the best decision.  This year the kids were willing to sit for pictures, knowing that present opening would happen after the pictures were done.

It is interesting what you see in a photo that was missed at the time you were actually taking the pictures.  My heart did a bit of a flip when I looked at the picture of Ken and I with the kids.  Anna is holding tightly to Lucas bear.  This is very fitting since Lucas would have most likely been filling that spot next to Anna.  Anna was 9 months old when Lucas was born and there will always be an empty spot between Anna and Grace.  And this year we were also missing one of our three family doggies.  Sadly Sammy, Doug and Susie's first pet together, suddenly died the week before Christmas.  Their older dog Kylie is quite confused by Sammy's absence and stays close to Doug.  We didn't even notice her sitting beside Doug and Susie in their family picture, but it is very fitting this year.  

The kids were very patient waiting to start the gift opening.  Even with all five of them, it was really a not so crazy, present opening.  Everyone had lots of fun, there was plenty of torn paper and toy assembly in the hours after.  We had a wonderful dinner followed by some crazy video games.  I even manged to WIN one game, which is truly amazing.  Even Grace was playing along, drawing pictures on her mom's phone.  Such a great family time together.    

For several years, Gwen and Tim and the kids have chosen a gift for us from their church's Kenyan and Haitian Market.  We have received amazing art made from oil drums.  There have been beautiful ornaments made from grass and reeds.  This years star is made from rolled paper.

I so love these precious gifts that help support people who so desperately are trying to earn money to provide for their families.  I especially love that this is a star.....  All I could think of were these words from the familiar carol..

Star of wonder, star of night, star with royal beauty bright.

Westward leading still proceeding, guide us to thy perfect light.

Glorious now behold Him arise

King and God and Sacrifice!

Alleluia, Alleluia,

Heaven to earth rejoice.

So I am leaving 2019, still proceeding.  Going onward, seeking guidance from the perfect light of Jesus.  There is nothing better than knowing that the little baby we celebrate is now filled with glory and reigning as King and God as the sacrifice for us.  It is reason to shout alleluia and to rejoice with all of heaven and earth.  Yes, a fitting end to 2019!

Jesus, our glorious King and God, all we can do is thank you.  Thank you for knowing exactly what we would need to find you in this dark world.  Holy Spirit, thank you for showing us the way to go.  Thank you for shining your light around us and through us.  Keep us close to you as we walk on in the next year.  Give us hope to quench our doubts, faith to empower our steps, and joy to fill our hearts.  Amen.  

Unexpected change of plans...

It is never a good thing when a little one has a stomach bug and a fever.  It is especially bad when this happens the day before your family Christmas celebration is supposed to take place.  Yes, Grace got the dreaded winter yuck and we made a decision to postpone our Christmas gathering until after Christmas.  We just wanted everyone, especially Grace, to be able to enjoy our time together.  All this to say, Ken and I found ourselves with no plans yesterday.  Around lunch time, Gwen called and asked if we would be interested in going to Great America "Holiday in the Park" with their family.  Their family has a membership to the park (since they live so close and the kids love the rides) and there was a special deal with discounted tickets that day.  Gwen said that they decided to go since our Christmas celebration was canceled and the weather happened to be WARM.  Of course, this is Chicago, so by warm, I  mean 40 degrees.  Considering it was the first day of winter, that is actually very unseasonably warm.  With the prospect of a great light show to photograph, Ken was happy to go.  So with very little forethought, we jumped in the car and met Gwen, Tim and the kids just after the park opened at 2:00pm.  As we were walking up to the ticket area, a women in a wheelchair noticed our group and called Gwen over.  She actually had decided it was too cold for her to be out for so long and she handed Gwen a free ticket and said she had decided to go back to her car.  It seemed unlikely that this paper ticket was actually a valid entry ticket, but we took it to the ticket booth and surprisingly it was really a free ticket!  So Ken and I both got into the park for $20 and we did not have to pay for parking either since Gwen and Tim have parking passes.  It really made the entire event seem very special.  We could not have planned a nicer day, weather wise, and at such a low cost for us to join them. 

We took the iconic picture with the carousel in the background and it was really funny to see ice floating on the pool behind us.  Our plans included seeing a show, that would provide a warm place to sit for awhile after several hours walking around outside.  Then there was a parade and a special tree lighting ceremony of the large tree that we are standing in front of in this picture. 

This is the tree before the tree lighting!  It is really a big, big tree and it is hard to see the scale from these pictures.  

We loved the Christmas musical show.  It was a really wonderful half hour of singing and dancing.  The most surprising thing was the last portion of the program was all traditional Christmas Carols.  It was so good to hear the name of Jesus loudly proclaimed.  We came out of the show, into the dark and the park was glowing with all of the light displays.  The parade and tree lighting were great.

This picture does not do the tree justice.  It was lovely.  

We went to several other areas of the park, all had amazing light displays.  Unfortunately my phone battery died (a combination of an old phone and the cold makes my battery life lousy!  Sidenote....I really need a new phone).  Ken and I decided it was time to go when I couldn't feel my toes and my fingers were tingling from the cold.  We had not really put much thought into our attire for this event and I didn't wear my boots (which would have been much warmer) and I only had thin gloves.  Nevertheless, it was a wonderful few hours spent in a very unexpected way.

It is always difficult when plans change last minute.  Especially when it is for a long anticipated event.  But lets face it, life can just happen and sometimes things don't go as planned.  I was thinking about all of the small blessings that filled this day for Ken and I in spite of the change of plans.  First of all, the weather could not have been any better for an outdoor activity like this.  Breathing in the fresh air and doing all that walking was wonderful.  Secondly the free ticket was just such a blessing.  Even though spending the extra $20 would not have been a big deal for us (the experience was certainly worth more than that), it was so unexpected.  Just another way I felt that little touch of love from the Lord.  A few days ago I was mentioning to Ken that I really missed going to a Christmas concert this year.  We actually missed one concert because of a different "unexpected change of plans".  What a blessing it was to see and hear this amazing performance of Christmas music.  A special blessing for me was the tree lighting.   I don't think I ever really mentioned this to anyone, but I have always thought it would be fun to see a big tree lighting and actually be a part of the crowd watching that happen.  And there I was, surrounded by crowds of people, yet with my own people, watching light chasing away the darkness as the tree exploded with dazzling brightness.  What a blessing it was that Gwen and Tim thought to invite us to this event. I realize that not everyone is as blessed as Ken and I, with adult children who include us in so many family things. Many don't live close enough to their extended family to have these memory making times.  I am just so thankful.

Christmas is all about sharing the love and joy of Jesus with others.  I don't think there is any better gift I could get then a day like this one.  Kids do get sick and plans do have to change at times.  But in the midst of all of that, there are so many small blessings to be found if you just take the time to look for them.  I know that I needed that reminder.  If you have had plans change, things cancel or been disappointed with yourself or others during this season, I encourage you to just stop and look for the small blessings.  Each small thing is a nugget of love and joy just waiting to be passed on and shared.  Look for those little things and be blessed!  Merry Christmas

Jesus, thank you for the reminder that there is always something to be thankful for, even in the midst of changes.  Holy Spirit, give us eyes to see the small blessings that surround us.  Help us remember to find the joy in every situation and to share that love and joy with others.  Thank you for coming to us as a tiny baby.  Amen

The same message, just a different way

I just realized that, even though I had said that I was going to do whatever I could to make this Advent season more relaxed and calm. I seemed to have failed.  My last couple of weeks have been really full and I have even gotten home really late some nights.  I know that 9:00pm doesn't sound late, but at my age (and getting up at 5:30am), that IS really late.  Yet, as I was thinking about this blog, it became clear to me that my schedule these past weeks has been all about Advent and doing what is really important.  I have attended several Christmas gatherings, that all have brought me much joy and laughter.  So, in spite of the way my calendar might look, I have been more focused on the true meaning of Christmas. 

This week I spent Tuesday with Gwen and the kids since it was their home school co-op Christmas program.  That lovely young lady, Lia, in the picture above (who is almost as tall as me) sang with her choir.  I have to admit that sitting in the pew, hearing her sing brought me back to some of Gwen's early programs.  Let's face it, there is nothing better than Christmas songs, sung by children.  Earlier in the day, all of the kids were busy making Christmas cards for their co-op friends.  Ellie decided that they should make crayons to include in the cards.  So she worked on finding all of the broken crayons around the house, peeling the papers off and deciding which colors to mix together in the crayon mold.  She managed to make enough for all of her friends, as well as all of Anna and Zeke's friends.

Before long, Ellie decided that she also wanted to create beaded crosses for her friends, so Lia and I helped her sort out specific colors from large vats of beads.  Zeke and Anna worked had making cards for their friends.

And then Ellie decided that she also needed to color a picture for each of her friends.  

While this was going on, Lia decided to make cookies for all of her choir and her friends.  

As I watched these kids spending time on these hand made goodies for their friends, I was thinking about the love and care that they were putting into each project.  This wasn't some small trinket or toy from the store, by their parents.  Each gift had a hand made card and an item that had required some effort and thought.  That is what the season is supposed to be about.  It was a day well spent for me.  One that filled my soul with peace and calm and love and joy.  

One of the best early "Christmas" presents that I received last week, came flying into my life via a Facebook message.  I was invited to join a Facebook group, started by someone that I had never heard of until that day.  Turns out, we are related!  Not only that, he lives less than 5 miles from my house. Dave Anderson has been doing much research on his own family tree and decided that he would like to find out more about his "Johnson" relatives - all descendants of Axel and Betty Johnson - my grandparents.  It turns out that Dave's grandfather was a nephew of Axel Johnson and came from the same town in Sweden to settle in western Minnesota at the same time as my grandfather.  

Axel and Betty Johnson

Now I know that you might be thinking that this is a really distant relation, but for me, having any relative living so close is quite fun.  Not only that, he has been sent boxes and boxes of pictures and family documents from Sweden that he is trying to sort and identify.  Most were sent to Sweden by those families who all settled in western Minnesota before 1900.  I saw pictures of my aunts and uncles that I had never seen before.  I am so thankful that Dave is taking the time to sort through all of this stuff.  Not only is he sorting it, he is connecting us through pictures and stories.  He has a heart to keep these memories from being lost.  Thanks to this Facebook group, in the last week I have connected with several of my cousins.  I had a phone conversation with a cousin that I know I have never talked to as an adult.  During the phone call she referred to me as "Lynnie" and said that she only remembered me as a little girl.  That short call brought me so much joy.  This genealogy stuff is really interesting, the idea of seeing a family tree is wonderful, but it is the stories that are so important.  

I have shared on this blog that I believe that all of us have been given a unique destiny.  Part of this destiny, is a spiritual heritage that has played a part in who we are and the direction our lives have taken.  Over the last several years, I have become more and more convinced that this is a message that needs to be shared.  This blog has been part of that prompting by the Holy Spirit to share that message.  Additionally, I have begun writing a book with the central message that our prayers can and will impact our future generations. This fictional based on facts book is focused on my mother's parents.  I don't think it is an accident that I am now looking at my dad's parents and learning more about God's plan for our family line through them.  Getting to meet Dave and his wife was quite a gift for me.  Through Dave's work,  I heard the message from the Holy Spirit, loudly and clearly, that I must keep on sharing.  Yes, it was the same message I heard so long ago, just delivered in a different way.      

Yes, it is really amazing to look at my grandkids and think about their great great grandparents.  These loving, caring, young children carry a piece of Axel and Betty and Arnold and Nora in their spirits.  The spiritual heritage that was centered on their love for Jesus, has been sown into this distant generation.  There is so much hope in this message.  We can make a difference in the future as we pray for those who are yet to come.   Tonight I want anyone who reads this blog to know that you matter.  Not only for right now, but also for generations to come.  Don't let the stories from your family get lost or forgotten.  Make it a point to tell and retell those family stories.  Take lots of pictures and preserve those photos with journaling that tell the story. (A shout out for scrapbooking!)

 This is a great season to begin doing this.  As we tell and retell the Christmas story, let us all remember to share family memories.

Jesus, thank you so much for this season.  Holy Spirit, keep our hearts open to love and care for all those around us.  Give us courage to smile and talk to those we meet on the street.  Help us to keep Christmas memories alive in our family.  Thank you for photos and documents that help us know the past and appreciate our family heritage.  Thank you Jesus, for children and Christmas carols.  Amen