The Eve of Christmas Eve

Last night we celebrated our first Christmas together. I finally got to open Scott's present.















I guess I was teasing Scott a bit.




















Scott gave me the third season of Bewitched. I'm a big fan of that series. And a Fernando Ortega CD.















Scott got a C.S. Lewis book, two G.K.Chesterton books that are fiction, and a Christmas CD of Third Day.














































































These are our stockings. They're still empty.




















And this is an ornament that says Our First Christmas.




















This is our first Christmas tree with presents all around...mostly for my neices and nephews.

















We have a manger scene too.
















Some cheap decorations.
















And here's another view of the living room. It's bright and red.

The Man I Love

This picture was taken 2 and a half years ago in a grocery store in Minneapolis where we must have had a lot of time on our hands.


I just want to say that I love my husband so much. He means the world to me. Whenever a person gets married, many times they say that they cannot imagine loving the other any more than they already do. But it happens, and you love that person much more deeper and stronger. It's a love that isn't about just feelings, but it is a real love. The more time and effort you make to love that person, the more you'll love them. It makes me wonder how my grandma gets along without my grandpa. They would have been married 60 years if he had lived a few months longer. I know my grandma misses him so much. And I can't imagine ever losing Scott, yet we've only been married a few months. I know I need to treasure all the moments we have together. I don't know what I would do without him. So I want to thank the Lord for the husband he has given me. I couldn't ask for more. And I want Scott to know how much he means to me.

Fun at the Dorm!

Me and Holly!
















Well, last Tuesday I got to have some fun at the dorm.
I feel like I haven't been to the dorms for a long time, but
we were putting on a surprise shower for Sandy Rader, the
one on the way right. She's getting married in May. It was
actually a umm...personal shower, so you can have a lot of fun
with that...and we did! :)

Pray for the Doolittles

Doug Doolittle, a previous staff member of Northland, has been diagnosed with cancer. He is now pursuing quality life with his family as the doctor's give him little time to live. Please pray for him and the family.

Specifice ways he asks us to pray:

1.Pray for tumor growth – that God would slow down the growth of existing and new tumors.
2.Pray for pain relief – that God would ease my pain and discomfort.
3.Pray for rest – that God would allow me to sleep better at night.
4.Pray for voice – that God would allow me to record my testimony and that my voice would return.
5.Pray for diet – that God would allow me to eat enough food each day to maintain my weight.
6.Pray for my back – that God would allow me more time sitting up so I can get more done.

Quote from Doug Doolittle: "God’s Grace has sustained us and continues to sustain us through my cancer ordeal. We have been blessed and encouraged the past few weeks by letters, cards, meals, Christmas Carolers, and men sitting with me so Diane & the kids can go to church. God continually provides blessings and encouragement for us. He is so Good."

Quote from Diane Doolittle: "Our youngest recently had several bouts with the flu. Before I went to bed the night that he was up sick, I read Psalms 68:19. "Blessed be the Lord, who daily loadeth us with benefits, even the God of our salvation. Selah." As I was awake in the night and holding a sick child and thinking of my dying husband upstairs I thought…loadeth us with benefits? THESE are my benefits? It’s a load all right. I looked up and saw a note that was given to us that day from a teenaged boy who had lost his mother very unexpectedly to a heart attack a couple years ago. His letter was full of praise to God and encouraging us and giving us comfort. That is a benefit. Then I began to "count my blessings" and realized that God indeed had loaded us with benefits and continues to do so daily. I began to thank God for all that He has done for me. The most important being the gift of salvation that He has allowed me to accept. How different my life would be right now if I did not know the Love of God. Count your blessings and the load of benefits that He gives every day. Our God is good….all the time."

View their website at http://www.ourwhisperingpines.com

Let them know you are praying.

Our First Christmas!

I'm so excited about spending our first Christmas together. We've already had so much fun decorating our Christmas tree and making gingerbread houses. I wonder what our next project will be. Well, I guess we need to finish our Christmas shopping. And now, since we're married we have twice the amount of neices and nephews to shop for. I have 8 neices and nephews on my side, and Scott has 7. And I'm thinking that the older ones will be harder to please. Oh well, I'm sure we'll find something if we put our heads together.

Enlisted for the National Guard

This is me and my little but big brother Matt. He's 18 years old and in his first year of college. A few weeks ago he enlisted for the National Guard. In many ways it makes me so nervous that he'll be in the National Guard--who knows when he'll be drafted to Iraq or some dangerous place like that. But then in many ways I'm proud, proud to be the sister of someone brave enough to fight for our country. In February he'll be leaving for his training until June. He'll learn the mechanics of putting together hummers. I"m so thankful that God will be with Him, and I pray that God will use him to be a witness to the other men he'll be living with. So I ask you to pray for him as he enters this next stage of his life.

~Matthew, I love you and I'm so proud of you!
Remember that God is with you always.~

Born In Bethlehem

Baby Jesus, born in a stable, a humble Savior's birth.
You left your throne in Heaven above, to live here on the Earth.

Baby Jesus, lying in a manger, crying for the world.
The Angels told the Shepherds of the Good News for us all.

Halleluiah, the King is here, given for all men.
For today the Holy Son of God, is born in Bethlehem.

Come now Sinners and you Saints, all peasants and all Kings,
And bow before the Earth's Redeemer, let all voices sing.

Halleluiah, the King is here, given for all men.
For today the Holy Son of God, is born in Bethlehem.

Halleluiah, the King is here, given for all men.
For today the Holy Son of God, is born in Bethlehem.

Baby Jesus, do you know you'll die for all our sins?
Dodn't be afraid, for in 3 days, you will rise again. Cause you will rise again.

Halleluiah, the King is here, given for all men.
For today the Holy Son of God, is born in Bethlehem.

Gingerbread Houses!

Scott and I made Gingerbread houses this week.
It took us two days to do the baking and decorating.
We had so much fun coming up with creative things
to do. Actually Scott's the creative one.














This is a bench and lamp light that I used on my
house. Scott of course thought of it.














These are the tops of them.














Mine is the one on the right.



















This is Scott's tree he made out of
peppermints. He's so creative like
I said.



















Mine is more traditional.



















Scott's is more realistic with his shingled
roof.














And here we are still smiling after all the work it was.














And Scott even decorated the back of his with a cross.
I never would have thought of that.
But we had so much fun. Maybe this will be a tradition
every Christmas. Wait and see what we'll come up with
for next Christmas. :)