A Wonderful Christmas

My parents and siblings came to Texas this year for Christmas. We had a wonderful time together!

We cooked....and ate...

(I really did help, but at this particular moment, I had been instructed to sit down and put my feet up. Mom was wonderful in all she did to help, as was the rest of the family!)

We played games...

We opened a lot of presents...


































We even had time to relax...















Merry Christmas Everyone!!

hippopotamusses

Some friends recently introduced me to this great hippopotamus Christmas song. They couldn't believe that I'd never heard it before. In case you also fall into that category, I've included a link of a You Tube version of the song below.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=KtqIM_bPTws

I think this song is particuarly entertaining for a couple of reasons. First, the pronunciation of "hippopotamusses" cracks me up! Isn't it so like kids to be convinced that they're saying it right, but really be so wrong? But it doesn't even matter because it is so cute! I'm telling you, kids are the only ones who can get away with horrible grammar and pronunciations.

My parents tell me that when I was young (but still much older and wiser than my little brother), one such situation occurred. Keenan was asking for more "sghetti"; I firmly corrected him saying, "it's not 'sghetti', it's 'p-sghetti'!" And of course in my stubborn little mind, I was absolutely right!

The other reason I like the hippo song is because it accentuates how children can get obsessed with something and be absolutely sure that it would work out. I remember telling my parents that of course there was room for a horse to live in our backyard! (and I still think, why not? it'd be so much fun!)

the golden compass, part 2

Well, here it is a week and a half later, and I've finished listening to "The Golden Compass." Actually, I finished it last Wednesday, but I've been having a rough time getting my thoughts organized concerning its merit. It definitely left me hanging, and I already requested the next book on CD from the library. Hopefully it comes soon!

As far as fictional stories go, it is great - truly intriguing and fun to read (or listen to). At best, I would say that my thoughts are inconclusive. While I thoroughly enjoyed the story, I am hesitant to regard it as worthy literature for children. I suppose the main reason for my confusion is that I've heard so very much from various Christian organizations basically condemning it. Focus on the Family's Plugged In representative gave the movie 1 out of 5 on the family friendly scale. Even Dr. Darrell Bock, a noted Dallas Theological Seminary professor whom Heath & I both admire, was shown on TV last week saying that Christians should at least be wary of the books. Do you see my dilemna? Do I dare disagree with such wise men and women?

I think I'm beginning to understand why prayer is needed so much as we learn to live righteously and teach our children to do the same!

the golden compass

Recently, I received a message from a Facebook friend that directed me to a website about the movie "The Golden Compass." I'd heard nothing previously about this movie, and I'm generally one to ignore such messages, but on this particular day curiosity won out and I clicked the link. Snopes.com opened and the question posed was whether or not the new movie "The Golden Compass" is "based on books with anti-God & anti-religious themes". (For those who may not be as nerdy as my husband and I, Snopes.com is a website devoted to researching urban legends.) This particular legend was deemed "true" and from what I gathered from the article, there is a debate among Christians about the danger of letting our children both see the movie and read the book. Sources said that the author (Philip Pullman) of the three volume series "His Dark Materials" of which "The Golden Compass" is first, is decidedly athiest, and that his books are meant to be actively opposed to C.S. Lewis' "The Chronicles of Narnia." Apparently, the movie is a tame version of the books, which causes alarm that children will see the movie, love it, read the books, and be indoctrinated with all sorts of anti-God ideas. By this time, my curiosity was aroused even further and since I very belatedly joined the search to discover for myself the quality of the Harry Potter books, I decided I would not fall behind on this one. Immediately I found the audio recording version of "The Golden Compass" in the Dallas Public Library's system and requested the next available copy.

I've been listening to it since Monday on my drive to and from work (an easy 45 minutes one way). I am about halfway through, and I won't deny that the story is intriguing. I feel constantly pulled in by the plot and all the unknown factors. It is a magical, fanciful story, and already I have come across several great themes. Themes like the desire & need to rescue those who have been lost or enslaved; prophecies of one to come who will save all life; the battle between good and evil; the knowledge that there exists another world, one that cannot be seen. And I'm sure there are many more. Although it isn't a Christian book, so far I can't say that it is anti-God any more than I can say Harry Potter is anti-God. As of yet, I cannot rate this book as either a "bad" or a "good" book; only that it should be read with the understanding that it is a fictional work of the imagination of an imperfect man. Just as anything must be held up against Truth, so must this book.

As I continue to listen to the story and finish it, I'll keep you posted on any further thoughts...

If you're interested in finding out more, here's the link to the Snopes.com article, as well as a few other news articles:
http://www.snopes.com/politics/religion/compass.asp
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/21595083/
http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,305487,00.html
http://movies.about.com/od/thegoldencompass/The_Golden_Compass_2007.htm
http://www.christianpost.com/article/20071105/29957_'Golden_Compass'_Author_Denies_Promoting_Atheism_in_Books.htm
http://www.familylifeculturewatch.com/2007/11/the-controversy.html
http://www.bpnews.net/BPnews.asp?ID=26849
http://www.oneplace.com/Ministries/Family_News_in_Focus/archives.asp

a little Thanksgiving, a little Christmas

Our day of thanksgiving was spent at one of my co-workers' house. The day promised to be entertaining and comfortable with the company consisting of my co-worker, his wife and 2 college age boys, their air force friend, and my co-worker's wife's niece from Korea and her 3 friends. We watched a little football, played a little Wii, ate too much food, talked and laughed a lot, and generally had a wonderful time!

Saturday was our day to pick out the Christmas tree and get out all of the holiday decorations. I was incredibly excited and made plans to cook the extra turkey in our refrigerator. However, morning brought with it a messy, dreary, rainy day. And then began the deliberations on whether or not we'd go ahead with our plans. We decided to take the risk and went to Home Depot to pick out the perfect tree. Since it was raining, though, we were some of the very few who wanted to stand outside and look at the trees - shocking, I know. Even the sales associates were nowhere to be found. Seriously, it took the customer service lady about 10 minutes and 3 or 4 intercom calls to get someone with a coat on up to the front of the store to help us! (The gate around the trees was locked, thus necessitating us waiting for the sales associate.) Finally, we followed the rather unwilling Home Depot dude out to the tree lot and began our search. It didn't take too long because we were quite cold and getting wetter by the minute. We found the perfect tree, got it wrapped and in the car, and went home.

Heath cut off the lower branches and got it set up in our living room to let it dry for awhile before we began decorating. In the meantime, I made some stuffing and sweet potatoes, put my first turkey in the oven, and rested after all that work!

I'm not sure why the kitty is so exhausted, but I sure was tired!

Later that evening, we had a wonderful time decorating with Christmas music playing and our bellies full of Thanksgiving goodies. Truly we have a lot for which to give thanks!

Our first turkey turned out very yummy! I think the turkey bag and some advice from my mom saved the day!

Didn't it turn out pretty?

a flock of friends or foes?

On my way to Bible study last night, my attention was caught by a large gathering of little black birds at the corner of Marsh and Preston. It must be a yearly occurrence because I remember seeing them last fall, too. Around dusk, they begin to gather by the hundreds, filling the tops of every tree lining the street, as well as all of the telephone wires. It is almost a creepy sensation to drive through the intersection as their chirping and cheeping and cawing fills your ears, but last night I was merely curious. What makes them gather every year only in the fall and only at dusk? Why these trees at this intersection? Who organized this meeting? Is there a city bird council to debate important matters concerning safe aviation and the successful marking of cars? Maybe it's a secret meeting to discuss an overthrow or uprising against the current goverment...Or maybe they're interested in helping us humans keep our city clean and they're going to organize a trash pick-up day.

Whatever it is, I really would like to know...

my down-home hair salon

This may sound arrogant, but I think I found the coolest hair salon in Dallas. Notice, though, that I did not say "the most upscale hair salon." The upscale salon is probably easier to find in this rich metropolitan city. My salon is only about a 7 minute drive from our apartment. It has a fun, family atmosphere where everyone seems to know each other; somehow, even though I know no one and should feel out of place, I feel strangely at home. It's a comfortable little salon with no pretentious decor. It's probably more likely that the furniture all came from a second-hand store down the street than a fancy Dallas store. That's what I love about it - it has character. All the stylists are Hispanic, as are many of the patrons, so there is very often a lovely mixture of Spanish and English coversation floating around. It seems that the majority of the customers are elderly women getting their weekly or bi-weekly hair setting. I think they're adorable! I love to just sit back and watch from my conveniently centered perch. And then there's my stylist. The first time I called for an appointment, not knowing who to ask for, she was the one with an open time slot. Her name is Rosie, and she is a hip Hispanic mother of 2 children. From my first apppointment with her, I have appreciated her ability to cut my hair quickly and exactly how I wanted it (that's a feat because I struggle to communicate exactly what I want). In fact, this morning I went in for my normal 2 month cut, and I walked out 15 minutes later completely satisfied with the result!

It probably was a combination of the early morning coolness and the wonderful fall smells that put me in such a great mood. But I still love everything about my hair salon - even the dirty floor, water spotted ceiling, and furniture with cracking paint. But especially, I love the people that I get to come in contact with; it's easier to believe that they are real people with real problems than any of the upscale mansion owners that I see.