He Sent His Son

We taught the 6 year olds today at church. It was a fun lesson - we had them dress up as wise men and reinact Matthew 2. Part of the lesson included singing the song "He Sent His Son" - and I really love that song! So I wanted to share the lyrics:

How could the Father tell the world
Of love and tenderness?
He sent His son, a newborn babe,
with peace and holiness.

How could the Father show the world
the pathway we should go?
He sent His Son, to walk with men
on earth, that we may know.

How could the Father tell the world
of sacrifice, of death?
He sent his Son to die for us
and rise with living breath.

What does the Father ask of us?
What do the scriptures say?
Have faith, have hope, live like his Son,
help others on their way.

What does He ask? Live like his Son.



Here's a link to the music, it's a really pretty song. (Click on the Words and Music button at the top left hand corner for the recorded version)

Christmas in Arizona

So they handed out this poem at church today... I think I needed to hear it...

Christmas in Arizona

The visitor sadly shook his head
As he basked in the tropical sun
Call this Christmas? to us he said
Well not where I come from
Christmas needs snow - and ice and cold,
And the sound of sleighbells ring;
and so for me, I can't be sold
On this winter that feels like spring.
We looked at him and then we smiled
As he scoffed aloud at our plight;
Cause he was so far from right.

For no snow fell on Bethlehem
On the night the star first shone,
There was no blizzard nor howling gale,
that swept with a shriek and a moan.
The breeze was soft, and what is more,
The night the Christ child came
Hibiscus bloomed near the stable door,
As Mary murmured His name.
Bouganvillea of violet hue
Arched in a graceful bower;
Poinsettas, wet with midnight dew;
Enhanced that sacred hour.
The Heavenly Host in the starry sky,
Proclaimed the birth of the King;
And the rustling palms echoes the cry,
As the whole earth seemed to sing.

So we find here in our sun-drenched land,
Untouched by the ice and snow,
That the spirit of Christmas is near at hand
And we feel God willed it so.

Blog Updated...

So I just spent all night updating this blog... whew! And here are the last picture additions. I also wanted to give an update on what we've been up to. Kale and I joined Zack down in Yuma about 2 months ago and we are adjusting to desert life. I must admit I am pretty homesick at times for the northwest, especially with all the snow coming down right about now (and don't you complain to me about it :) because it's one of my favorite things! Zack is doing really good - he just helped in a big bust the other day and his supervisor was really impressed with his abilities. And he's enjoying himself a lot which makes us all happy. I'm still not sure about the hours. Right now he's working 4pm-2am and around the first of the year he'll be on mids 12am-10am. Plus, he has weird days off too which makes all the days feel weird... but we are getting used to it. I feel like I'm complaining - which I don't mean to. We're doing good! I'm so thankful we are back together as a family and that we aren't worrying about job security like we have every other winter for the last 5 years. I'm also really happy because it's Christmastime. I love this time of year! We've been reading christmas inspirational stories every night - and it's been so nice to get into the christmas spirit! Kale is doing really great. He is learning to associate words with actions which is really fun and he is always smiling and investigating. He's really the best little boy. So Merry Christmas!! (I'm saying it now because I'm not sure when I'll update again... :)



















Helping put up Christmas lights



















Wearing his new PJ's - Doesn't he look old?











A package to Zack... the operator's first language wasn't english... hehe.



















Our UPS tree... hehe



















Ooops... this is why we try to keep the seat down ALL the time.



















My Grandma Hannah Shaw's famous Banana Pie..... mmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmmm!

Kung Fu Kale

Zack and I watched the Karate Kid on our first date... so for a wedding day gift I gave him one of those Kung Fu headbands. We found it the other day and put it on Kale. Here's some of the fun... watch for the beatdown at the end of the video... I'm still sore! :)

Our little Mozart

These are pretty old too - but too cute not to post... I love Kale's dancing - he can groove! Lately he's been doing some funny "stomping" with his feet when he gets really excited, and everytime he does it I get that song "she's a maniac" from Flashdance stuck in my head. Except I substitute she for he... anyways... it's pretty funny, but he doesn't do it often enough to get it on video... so you'll have to take my word for it! :)

Catch up pics

Some of these are really old, but enjoy!

Picacho Peak Rec Area

A few weeks after we got here I was getting a little cabin fever and I wanted to see some of the area, so we drove up to the Picacho Peak State Rec Area which is about 45 minutes north of Yuma. The drive was interesting - it was unpaved pretty much the whole way and a little scary at times. But I was very happy to find that this place isn't totally flat everywhere, and in fact it's quite beautiful. We packed a lunch and had a great time exploring. It's right on the Colorado River, so we took Baker so he could go for a swim! He had a great time. We had to cut the trip short because a fisherman's boat broke down and he needed a ride back in to town, but it was still a great day trip. Sorry they are horribly out of order.

Thanksgiving

We had Thanksgiving a few days late because Zack had to work. It was the first time we'd ever cooked a turkey, but I found a great recipe online so it turned out really yummy. We really missed being around family, but it was still nice to be together. We have so many things to be thankful for!

Kale & Sadie

A couple of weeks ago we traded babysitting duties with our friends Tanner & Katie so we could both go see Twilight. Kale & Sadie had a great time and I took a few pictures and videos...

Our humble abode

I know I've been promising these pics FOREVER... so here they are... minus our bedroom and bath & Kale's room because he was asleep when I took these. There's still not a lot up on the walls... we'll get there eventually. Here yah go!