I’m a graphic designer?

I was looking at my twitter account today and noticed something that I had written in my bio section:

husband, dad, pastor, mac-user, music-lover, tv-watcher, graphic designer and marketing student

hmm…graphic designer. graphic designer? It caught me off-guard because since I’ve moved to Illinois, I’ve hardly done any graphic design. And that made me a bit sad.

I took my first graphic design class at UMass Lowell back in 2000. I was able to use it a ton during my time at Harbor. But with demands for my time in other areas, I’ve not been able to do as much in the past year.

So here’s hoping that in 2010 I’ll have more opportunities to let my creative side come out!

brilliant thinkers… great thoughts

I love free stuff…especially when it comes from someone as brilliant as Seth Godin. I’ve loved everything of his I’ve read.

He’s giving away his latest e-book for free. It’s a collection of short, one page essays from a variety of individuals, authors, leaders, CEOs, thinkers…and it is well worth your time.

new Christmas music

I am an admitted lover of Christmas music. I can’t wait to get it out each season…and I usually start listening before Thanksgiving!

My dear friend Amy Petty has released a new Christmas song… A Lullaby for A King. Amy is an amazingly talented singer/songwriter, and she has crafted a beautiful song for the season. And the great thing is that when you purchase it, all the profits are going to Habitat for Humanity.

So go ahead… download it now! And enjoy…

now this is a bubble bath

Now this is what I call a bubble bath! Lotsa suds…

three weeks in…

So it’s been 3 weeks since our Aubrey was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes. I can say that we are tired of it.

It has been a learning experience…lots of doctor visits, phone calls with nurses, adjustments to insulin, instructions to Aubrey’s teacher and the school nurse, checking her blood sugar level again and again…

And with each new day we are constantly reminded that this will be with her for the rest of her life. And that makes me sad.

Aubrey for the most part is doing well with it. But she has her moments…wouldn’t we all? I hurt for her…and as her dad, I want to make it all go away.

But I can’t.

And so I pray… I pray that God will be with my sweet Aubrey. That he will help her to be strong and brave. That he will help her to deal with the flood of emotions that she experiences each day because of all that is going on inside her tiny body. That he will help her as she learns how to live a healthy, good, fun life in spite of this awful disease. And I pray that she will know that she is loved…by her mom, her dad, her brothers and sister, her entire family and all her friends…but mostly that she will know that she is loved by God.

We will beat this thing, my princess.

Colin turns 9!

We celebrated Colin’s 9th birthday today. Lynda took him some Jimmy John’s subs for lunch. He wanted to pass out Hostess Twinkie cakes for his birthday snack in his class (has to be a prepackaged snack for school!). We had tacos for supper…one of his favorite meals. And then cake and gifts with the whole family.

I’m so proud of Colin. He is great little guy…full of compassion and kindness…loves to laugh and be silly…a Lego fanatic…a great brother to Aubrey, Ethan and Addison (but also instigates his share of mayhem with them too!)…can’t get enough wild weather and “Storm Chasers”…and  is adventurous and loves to try new things. And the best part is that he’s still young enough to want to cuddle up on the couch with me and watch a movie…I love that!

Happy Birthday Colin! I love you buddy.

tree trimming with the family…

An almost-nine year old that likes to follow the rules.

A six year old who likes to do it her own way.

And two two-year-old twins.

Tree trimming with the family didn’t go exactly as I had imagined it. Boxes were flying…tissue paper was everywhere…bubble wrapped was getting popped…fights over who gets to put up what…tears. It was chaos.

But it was family time. And memories were most definitely made.

Note to self: when taking the tree down after Christmas, pack the ornaments that are kids friendly separately from the cherished, heirloom ones!

Christmas trees and gingerbread cookies

We enjoyed our long Thanksgiving weekend as a family. Instead of hitting the mall on Friday, we were trying to think of something to do. That’s when Colin told us that he and his 3rd grade class decorated a tree for the Festival of Trees. We had no idea. We had to check it out.

decorating a gingerbread cookie

proud of his tree

countdown to Christmas

After we prepared our family for Easter with the Resurrection Eggs, I was eager to find something we could use with the kids to lead up to Christmas. I stumbled upon Countdown to Christmas while browsing the bookstore yesterday. It’s a simple format with a short daily reading followed by an activity or question to engage the kids in the story.

With all the anticipation of Christmas morning, I am excited to use this to help us keep our focus on Jesus.

I’d love to know if there is something you’re doing to prepare for Christmas this year…

small group: purpose of Christmas

Our small group is a funny group. We’ve got 11 adults and about a bajillion kids… we don’t get together as often as we would like… when we do, it’s loud, there are lots of interruptions and usually a few tears from the playroom. It’s our group… and we like it! I love our time together.

Over the next three weeks, we’re going to study The Purpose of Christmas. With all that flashes on the tv screen and screams from my inbox about what I should spend my money on this Christmas, I’m looking forward to focusing on God’s original purpose of sending his Son to earth.

What are you doing to prepare yourself for Christmas this year?