Gingerbread Christmas Tree

More Christmas Pictures

Emily eating cake at the very pink, Madonna Inn

My mom also has a "near" Christmas birthday, so we took her out to Madonna Inn where they serve mile high cakes in a restaurant that is decadently decorated.

Amy received a new doll, lots of doll accessories and a matching coat. Sean and Evan and I had fun making pretend fruits, veggies, cookies and candy out of sculpy clay for her and her dolls.

Emily enjoying her new ball, jewelry, and doll bed.

Christmas Pictures

Sean actually had to work Christmas day so we celebrated on the 24th. Here's the family with matching hats knitted by Sean's sister Molly.

Emily Cleaning

Emily is at the age where she loves to "pretend" all things. She is loving her new cleaning supplies, her cooking and tea set and her baby accessories. She still thinks her new baby high chair is for her though!

Evan's Birthday

Evan has a birthday very close to Christmas so we always celebrate it with family when they are here for the holidays. He's turning 1o this year, so hard to believe! I can't find the picture of him with his new Lego set, but he had a great time shooting his BB gun. And if you've never tried the game Blokus, it's tons of fun!

My Christmas Gift to You

I'm so thankful for you, my family and friends (some new and some old). This past year has been a difficult one for me, but softened through the friendships I've made and kept up with through blogging. If you happen to read this blog, (and I know you!) but have not commented or told me you read it, drop me a comment below and I'll add your name too!

Sean- Thank you for being my best friend, and my hearts desire. God has blessed me immeasurably by giving me you for a husband. I love you!!! And thanks for starting this blog for me and guest blogging during the times I get busy. You're the greatest!

Mom- Thank you for raising me in a Christian home where you and dad taught me to love Jesus. Thanks for all the late night talks and good advice. You have been one of my closest friends since high school, and I want you to know that I appreciate all you have done for me. You are a terrific mom!

Jessica- Thanks for introducing me to the world of blogging, Sovereign Grace, John Piper, and the perfect apple pie recipe. I miss you!!! Thanks for hanging in with me through many a hard time and not always giving me the answer I wanted to hear, but needed to hear. I love keeping up on your sweet family.

Jenn- You were my first blogging friend. When I met you I was skeptical of this whole blogging thing. I wasn't sure I'd like it or have time for it, let alone meet new friends. What a surprise for me when you commented back! Even though we've never met, I love hearing what God is doing in your life and seeing all the cute pictures of your kids! I hope I can get to meet you in person some day. Look me up if you ever come to California!

Leslie- You are such an inspiration to me! Thank you for your thoughtful words about Classical Homeschooling, good books, kids with heath problems, and most importantly keeping our eyes fixed on the cross and the good news of Jesus Christ. One particular post I'll probably remember the rest of my life. We're on verse 17 of the first chapter of Colossians. Much slower than I had hoped, but we're still plugging away at it and really enjoying memorizing a big passage of scripture.

Bethany- I have enjoyed reading about your family, your faith, and your favorite things! I was so blessed by your offer to help me out when I come down to L. A. I'm not sure I can even express through a blog how thankful I was (and am) for your offer of hospitality. It came unexpected at a time I was feeling particularly low and was a reminder to me of God's care and goodness. I can't wait to meet you and your boys!

To all the ladies at Chesapeake Community Church- The witness of your love for the Lord, and for each other, has reached out over thousands of miles! Thank you for your testimonies of what God is teaching you about loving your husbands, teaching your kids, making your house a home, enjoying what God has given you, and remaining faithful through trial and loss. When I read your blogs, I am encouraged by your grace filled examples.

Cara and Cat- You are both like family to me. Thank you for your friendship for all these years! Camping again next summer?! I'd love to revive that tradition again.


Thank you all for the blessing of your friendship! Merry Christmas!

Christmas Newsletter

We thought you might like to see excerpts from our annual Christmas Newsletter. We had just come back from a snow trip to Sequoia National Park which provided a nice winter theme for the photos.




Emily continues to be a source of entertainment for the entire family! It’s been a joy to watch Evan and Amy play a part in her development. The older kids excitedly screamed “she’s walking!” when Emily took her first steps this year. These shouts were quickly followed by cries of “she’s walking!” as Christina and Sean raced to move everything fragile out of her reach!






Amy is participating in the Central Coast Children’s “Debut Choir.” She remains involved in AWANAS and continues to memorize Bible versus at a rate that makes her Dad dizzy! As always, we are thrilled when our kids learn to read. Amy is gobbling up reading time and enjoys the “American Girl” series of books.








This year Evan earned his yellow belt in Karate and advanced to the rank of Webelos in Cub Scouts. In his spare time he can be found hunting tin cans and plastic bottles in the back yard with his trusty BB gun. For ten weeks this summer Evan participated in a clinical study at UCLA for kids with Tourette’s Syndrome. The study has helped us all understand a little more about TS and let Evan know just
how normal he actually is!

Christmas Stockings

Continued guest blogging by Sean for Christina ........




You can imagine our surprise many years ago when Sean and I discovered we had grown up with similar Christmas stockings. My stocking was made by my Aunt Karen. Sean's was made by his Aunt Mary. Both had our names knitted in to them and both sport images of Saint Nicholas!














When our children were born, their Aunts weren't quite yet knitters (things have changed now and we've got the beanies to prove it). So back then we turned to my friend Jessica's Mom to craft the kids stockings. As you can see, we kept the "St. Nick" theme. While Sean's stocking is the smallest, he does his best to STRETCH it out each year to accomodate more booty!

Our Christmas Tree

After being tagged by my goood friend Jessica (in response to Laurie's Tour O' Trees), it was my husband who made sure to get our tree on the list (and type this blog!)

Each year we go as a family to find our Christmas tree. We used to find them at "cut your own" tree farms. The kids would pick the tallest tree and Sean would spend the next 20 minutes sawing away with the dullest of saws borrowed from the tree farm.

Unfortunately, our very dry California climate (sorry to my water-logged and snow-bound friends) makes for VERY dry trees. They never lasted long. Sean hesitated to turn on the lights, describing the dry shrub holding them as a "tinderbox."

The big box stores, however, sell trees grown in Oregon. These trees are dripping with moisture and fragrance. This year we selected a beautiful Noble Fir. The acquisition went amazingly fast. The only "hic-up" in the process was when the cashier told Sean what the total price was. But as Sean later explained, there was no turning back.....The tree had already become part of our family.

The Ornaments on Our Tree

Continued blogging by Christina's alter ego, Sean.....

As you can see, our Christmas tree is covered with ornaments. Most have special meaning to our family. Each year we buy the children an ornament and place it in their stockings. The ornaments often represent something that the children did during the year. Amy received a Ballerina ornament when she was in ballet and Evan received a little red wagon ornament the year we gave him the life-sized version.

Sean's two sisters also send ornaments every year. His sister, Molly, often sends several for the kids. And Sean's sister, Katie, has an amazing ability to find cute little appropriately-themed police ornaments. Needless to say, our tree has filled up.




This ornament was hand-crafted by my creative and extremely talented friend, Cara. It was from a time when we were a family of four. Cara made Evan in a soccer uniform and Amy as a ballerina. And of course, Sean was wearing what used to be his trademark "off duty" fanny pack. Too funny!






The year we did the candy cane ornaments the children handed them out as gifts to their aunts, uncles, and grandparents. Sean always feared the ornaments would be carried off by armies of aunts. But they remain today. And as Sean pointed out, "still tasty after all these years!"






Madeline joined our tree the year Amy was enjoying her Madeline doll house. The teacup ornament was a gift from Molly, knowing that I love collecting the bigger version.






And we gave Evan the Star Wars ornament simply because this was the year (and every year since) that he has been consumed by anything STAR WARS.

Another Reader in the Family

Last week, Amy reached a milestone in her homeschool education. She finished her phonics book and is now reading chapter books independently. When Evan reached this goal we finished off his Hardy Boys collection that Uncle Aaron had started for him. Fortunately, CostCo had them at the time, cheap.

Amy especially enjoys the American Girl collection of stories. So she is now the proud owner of the Molly set. Again, CostCo has them right now complete with a mini doll! What a joy it is to watch her enjoying reading. And what a delight to see her able to read the Scriptures for herself.

In Memory of a Fallen Hero

This past week a beloved friend, of my dear friend Cara was killed in Iraq. She wrote a beautiful and moving tribute to him. Yesterday, I read Psalm 144 to my kids explaining that Troy prayed this Psalm before he flew. They had many questions. Amy was actually confused and thought that our friend's husband was the one who had died. I was glad to have the chance to clear that one up!

I wanted the kids to understand God's sovereignty in this situation, to grasp how good He is even in in the midst of war.

"Praise be to the Lord my Rock, who trains my hands for war, my fingers for
battle. He is my loving God and my fortress, my stronghold and my deliverer, my
shield, in whom I take refuge, who subdues peoples under me. ...Deliver me and
rescue me from the hands of foreigners whose mouths are full of lies, whose right
hands are deceitful. " Psalm 144:1-2,11

Even though God did not choose to rescue Troy in the way we tend to think of, God rescued him from sin and from this world and brought Troy to Himself.

Reading Quiz

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Dedicated Reader You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.
Literate Good Citizen
Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
Book Snob
Fad Reader
Non-Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Create Your Own Quiz

I'd say that's true about me.

I was going to post about how Amy's reading is coming along. But this was quicker. We're getting our tree tomorrow and the living room had to get cleaned! There is only so much I can do in a day. Check back in a day or two for Amy's update and hopefully pictures of our Christmas tree.

Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake

This is what I am bringing to our family's Thanksgiving celebration. I won't be hosting this year. It comes from Sunset Magazine (November 1979/1996/1998). It's very easy and so good.

This year I found some gingersnap cookies made with canola oil and dehydrated cane juice for the crust. The brand is Mi-Del. The cookies were a hit. I had to go buy another bag for my recipe!

I'm going to make this today and freeze it then pull it out Thanksgiving morning. What are you making this year?

Marbled Pumpkin Cheesecake

8 oz. gingersnap cookies
2 Tablespoons sugar
3 Tablespoons melted butter
2 8oz packages of cream cheese ( I use neufchatel)
3/4 cup brown sugar
2 large eggs
1 1/2 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice
1 can pumpkin

1. Crush cookies to make 1 3/4 cups crumbs. In a 9-inch springform pan, mix cookie crumbs, sugar and butter. Press over bottom and about 1 inch up pan sides. (I always do the sides first, then press the bottom. That way you don't get a big lump in the crease.)

2. Bake crust at 325 F until slightly browner, about 15 min.

3. Meanwhile, in a mixer, blend cheese, brown sugar, and eggs until smooth. Spoon 1/2 cup of the cheese mix into a small bowl. Add five spice and pumpkin to remaining cheese mixture and mix well.

4. Pour pumpkin filling into hot or cool crust. Drop rounded Tablespoons of the reserved cheese mixture onto the pumpkin filling. With a knife tip, swirl to marble the white and orange.

5. Bake in 325 F oven until the center barely jiggles when cake is gently shaken, about 50 minutes. (At this point, I turn the oven off and open the door slightly to cool.) Cool on rack. Cover and chill until cold, at least 2 1/2 hours. Run a knife between cake and pan rim; remove rim. Serve with whipped cream flavored to taste with pumpkin pie spice or crystallized ginger.

Picking Apples

We made some yummy baked apples with these. We were fortunate to get the last U-pick day of the season.

Fall Pictures

As I was checking my memory card on my camera, I saw some pictures from this fall that I meant to post but never did. These are from our trip to the pumpkin farm.

Holiday Crafts Part 2

I've been trying to remember the other crafts we've done in years past. It's funny how my memory slips after just a few years. I didn't make any extra, so I don't have any pictures or examples to show you. But here are some other ideas that we've used. Many years Evan made one craft and Amy made another, that is why there are more than one per year.

• Homemade lip gloss- I got a recipe off the internet
• Rootbeer that the kids help make and bottle at a microbrewery. (Sean's brother used to work at one. But the public can do this too.)
• Seed kits - We saved seeds from our garden, then bought little tins at Michaels to put them in. As a bonus, the kids made little labels to fit on the containers to tell what seeds were in each one.
• Birdhouses - This was last years project. Dad took over since I had a baby to nurse!
• Soap-on-a-Rope - I got the recipe off the internet. Basically, you shave Dove soap, add oatmeal and maybe something else, microwave and roll in a ball around rope tied in a knot. It was very fun for little ones.
• Fizzy bath salts - A recipe from Family Fun Magazine
• Candy Jars - From Martha Stewart Living Magazine
• Candy Frames - In the oven we melted round peppermint candies together forming a frame. We put the kids school pictures (wallet size) in the frames with red rick- rack glued as a hanger.

I'm not good at coming up with ideas on my own, but I'm really good at copying a good idea! Almost all these crafts you can find online. If you would like more information about any particular craft, I'll try and see if I can find my original recipe. I have a huge file drawer of all my magazine clippings!

Holiday Crafts

When Evan was 4 and Amy was 2 they started the tradition of making Christmas presents for their relatives. Until last year that has consisted of 5 grandparents, and 12 aunts and uncles. Now we have 2 cousins with 2 more on the way. What began as a way to minimize cost for so many relatives, has now become a fun tradition.

The first craft we made were beeswax candles. I bought sheets of beeswax and candle wick at a hobby shop. To make the candle, you place a piece of wick 1/2 inch longer than the sheet of wax, on the edge of the wax. Then roll tightly, rolling the wick into the middle. When you are done rolling gently smooth the seam into your candle. You can cut the wax to different sizes to make different heights for your candles. You can also cut it into a triangle and roll from the widest end to the tip for a spiral candle. We used a maroon colored wax and didn't cut it. We rolled from the long side to make a tall candle, then grouped two candles together and tied with a black ribbon.

My kids had a lot of fun making and giving these as gifts. I'll try and post some of our other ideas. Sometimes it's helpful and fun to have some crafts for the kids to do over Thanksgiving weekend. If you have ideas for gifts that kids can make I'd love to hear them.

The Jeans Dilemma

I thought this was sooo funny because I had almost the same conversation with my husband just last week! I came home with HIS jeans, which took 2 minutes to find, but none for me. But don't worry, I didn't throw my cell phone at the salesperson!

Homeschool Project

This week Emily had ( and still has) Roseola and is feeling miserable. So for school we are pinch hitting with activities that need less "Mom involvement". We're doing lots of flash cards, Quarter Mile Math, reading and handwriting. We also finished a project that we started this summer when we were studying California History. Here is our Mission San Francisco de Asis also known as Mission Dolores. Pictures were taken by our aspiring photographer, Evan.