Favorites About Christmas

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hot Chocolate with vanilla, cinammon, real milk & whipped cream.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just sit them under the tree? He used to leave them under the tree, for some reason now, he wraps them up.... strange (!)

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Both and Both.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Not lately

5. When do you put your decorations up? My preference will be the first weekend after Thanksgiving, but it seems I never finish getting decorations up...

6. What is your favorite holiday dish (excluding dessert)? Mashed potatoes (mom's!).

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child: Probably the Christmas I got a puppy... I had been hinting all year... singing "Something Barked On Christmas Morning" etc... and sure enough- - Santa brought me a fat little puppy we named Nipper. I am not an early riser, and sleep like a log, so mom had to bring the puppy upstairs (she had been crying and whimpering all night... unbeknownst to me, and was so chubby she couldn't get up the stairs herself) and she licked my face until I woke up -- pretty cool, I must say!!

8. How and When did you learn the truth about Santa? My suspicions were confirmed when my mother said, "you're old enough now you don't believe in Santa anymore, do you?"

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? Yes, I had to start the tradition with my mother, who would then dictate which present I got to open... usually something thrilling like underwear.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? As many lights as possible, all the ornaments I can find -- my ornaments are actually in my MIL's loft in Scotland, so last year we made do with some dollar store bows and bells, but it looked great -- it is slowly starting to increase its ornament collection ;-)

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? Because we're in the desert, it is rare and wonderful.

12. Can you ice skate? oh. no.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? I remember getting a Donald Duck record player when I was like, 3 or 4... pearl and diamond earrings one year, an oil painting beginners kit, a fabulous digital camera (which I promptly lost two months later... still sick about it)... barbie townhouse, the puppy

14. What's the most important thing about the Holidays for you? Keeping in touch with special friends, family and creating new memories and new traditions with himself.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? Mini Mince pies from Tesco, cheesecake.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? Christmas breakfast (which will be on the 30th this year) with friends that are family (breadsticks!), himself & I staying up until 12:01 Christmas midnight so we can open our gifts and play, then have a nice long sleep in the morning with a huge proper British fry up, and giving my mom her variety of popcorn salt(s).

17. What tops your tree? I haven't found the perfect ______; so right now there is a giant shiny red bow.

18. Which do you prefer giving or Receiving? I enjoy them both.

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? Mary Did You Know ~ O Holy Night ~ Still, Still, Still ~ Baby, What You Goin' To Be ~ O Star Of Bethlehem (these last three I sang in High School and still sing them to myself at the holidays!) ~ John Denver & The Muppets entire Christmas Album -- it is the only version of "The 12 Days Of Christmas" I enjoy :-) ~ White Christmas (Bing Crosby) ~ Little Drummer Boy/Peace On Earth (Bing & Bowie). There are probably more, but that's a good start.

Timely Topics That Test...

Test what -- our faith? Our flexibility? Our Openness to change? To ask ourselves hard questions about why we do what we do?

My bottom line -- it is ultimately the relationship between me and God. He sees my heart, He sees my intention, He sees my sin. Yes, we are directed to fellowship with our brothers and sisters in Christ. And where groups of people gather, there is conflict & disagreement... and how we deal with others who disagree with us is a good litmus test of how we are faring ourselves with our fruits of the spirit. (love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control)

God of the Old Testament is also God of the New Testament, and He never changes. There are things we can't imagine Him caring about, yet He was quite specific about a lot of things in the O.T. That sometimes gives me pause when I start wondering about what things are 'salvation issues' -- it is hard for me to imagine the use of instruments in worship as a salvation issue. Music being my passion and blessing and gift. Yet, if I'd grown up in any other 'denomination' I would probably have been false & arrogant and incredibly vain and un-humble. But while it is hard for me to imagine, I am finite, and cannot possibly begin to understand where God is coming from - His purpose.

I just kind of started in on my thoughts -- they stem from this website -- which I love going to and seeing what direction the winds are blowing...

Keith Lancaster's blog - comments from Dec

• Why is it okay for a woman to serve communion east and west, but not north and south?

• "In case someone missed the "east and west" meaning, I found it hilarious when someone told me "It's okay for a woman to pass the tray left or right down the pew, but not from pew to pew" (north to south); thus the smart alec question I asked..."

I love this theory...

• "My 89-year-old dad has ... a theory on this subject. He thinks God directed the position of women in worship in recognition of man's inherent nature to sit back and let women do all the work, so that as women would assume more and more responsibility the men would just keep withdrawing from that responsibility."

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We've been busy!! We're having an Open House on the 30th - I'm planning on it being an annual Event every year on the Saturday between Christmas and New Years.

I'll do more soon -- it's all been good!!