December Photo Project: Day 16

"'Twas Christmas in the trenches where the frost so bitter hung. 

The frozen fields of France were still, no Christmas song was sung."

Christmas in the Trenches, John McCutcheon

December Photo Project: Day 13

"O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer our spirits by thine advent here; 

disperse the gloomy clouds of night, and death's dark shadows put to flight."

What a joy to witness this beautiful sunrise on this Sunday morning!

Stuck With You

Yes, it's true (yes, it's true), I am happy to be stuck with you,

'cause I can see (I can see) that you're happy to be stuck with me.

(Josie's a big Huey Lewis & the News fan)

"The B-I-B-L-E"

This has quickly become one of Matthew's favorites,

but I think it's just because of the "no, no, no" at the end.

Mr. Sun

Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Please shine down on me.

Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Hiding behind the trees.


These little children are asking you


To please come out so we can play with you


Mr. Sun, Sun, Mr. Golden Sun

Please shine down on,

Please shine down on,

Please shine down on me.

Sugar on the Brain

For some unknown reason I was singing, "Pump up the jam, pump of the jam, pump up the jam, pump it up" earlier and the following conversation took place:

Stephen: What does that song mean?

Julie: I don't really know. It's just a silly song.

Andrew: Well, actually you can pump jelly into doughnuts.

Photo Time

Christmas Card Photo Session One

Christmas Card Photo Session Two

Christmas Card Photo Session Three

Let's just not bother.

Apparently the third times not the charm, at least in this instance. I'm not sure I can scrape together anything decent, but the experience did inspire a new song.

"The Annual Nightmare"

I feel my blood pressure risin'.

I see trouble on the way.

I see tears overflowin'.

I see bad times today.

Chorus:

Don't go around tonight.

There's bound to be a fight.

Christmas picture takin' time.

I hear children cryin'.

I hope the end is comin' soon.

I see little ones a-squirmin'.

I'm not in the Christmas mood.

Chorus

I hope we got one decent picture.

I think I will go and get a beer.

There's a reason to be happy...

Christmas comes but once a year.

You Don't Count the Cost

It happens to a mother when she is giving birth
Her heart is filled with joy while her body's filled with hurt.
She holds the baby close to her despite the pain he caused,
'Cause when it comes to love, you don't count the cost.

-
Billy Dean, You Don't Count the Cost

Wishin' and Hopin'

Wishin' and hopin' and
Thinkin' and prayin'
Plannin' and dreamin'
Contractions will start
In the daylight or the dark.

So if you lookin' to find news you can share,
All you gotta do
Is wait and wait and wait and wait
And after you wait some more
The baby will be here.

Waiting for the baby to be born,
In the night or in the early morn
Anytime is alright with me,
'Cause it won't happen,
Thinkin' and a'prayin'
Wishin' and a'hopin'

Just wishin' and hopin'
And thinkin' and prayin'
Plannin' and dreamin'
This baby will come...
So the boys can have cinnamon buns.
So if you're thinkin' how long it seems to take
All you gotta do is

Wait and wait and wait and wait
And after you wait some more the baby will be here
He or she will be here, the baby will be here.

Jesus Loves Me

As I rocked and sang to Matthew tonight, I was touched by the poignancy of these words.

Jesus loves me! This I know,

For the Bible tells me so;

Little ones to Him belong,

They are weak but He is strong.

My friend (and recipient of the neat burp cloths) gave birth to a daughter today.

Jesus loves me! loves me still,

Though I'm very weak and ill;

From His shining throne on high,

Comes to watch me where I lie.

A friend successfully came through surgery for cancer and is recouperating.

Jesus loves me! He will stay,

Close beside me all the way;

If I love Him when I die,

He will take me home on high.

A brother in Christ waits to leave the pain of this world behind and finally be perfected with His Saviour.

Yes, Jesus loves me!

Yes, Jesus loves me!

Yes, Jesus loves me!

The Bible tells me so.

Thank you, Lord, for your many reminders.

Siblings and Sewer Pipes

A rather unusual combination unless you know my children.

For some reason the older boys have been unusually obsessed with sewer pipes for the last month or so. They somehow manage to work the subject into most every conversation.

At dinner, Stephen talks about food going down his sewer pipe.

They periodically ask about what happened to the pair of underwear Andrew flushed down the toilet last fall and wonder whether we can get it back.

I often find them both with their heads inside the rim of the toilet watching the water swirl down.

We store our playdough and cutting supplies in an old baby wipe container and last week Andrew was fashioning, well, I'll just say #2, and dropping it into the potty (the pop-up hole in the top); I can guarantee that this never occurred to my sister or I to do.

They connected a bunch of pool noodles together to make their water pipes then sent pencils sliding through.

Since they forgot to ask Uncle Wes about the flow of water and waste through the sewage pipes to the water treatment plant, I had to sit down and read about it in Underground, a wonderful (though advanced) book by David Macauly. The boys were thrilled. Now we can sing a song about sewage:

Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Oh, they carry the waste away.

Well, the house pipe's connected to the lateral,
The lateral's connected to the submain,
The submain's connected to the main pipe,
Then it goes to the water treatment plant.

Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Them pipes, them pipes, them sewer pipes,
Oh, they carry the waste away.