Computer Trouble

Hello all!  I may not be posting anything with pictures for a while.  My computer is sick and so am I so I don't have the energy to figure it out right now.  Happy New Year!

Outside Christmas Lights

Today's theme is "nighttime" but I am choosing to do one I missed on the 16th  - "outside Christmas lights."

Since we live in an apartment, hanging outside lights isn't an option, but driving around to look at outside displays that others have created has always been one of my favorite things to do during the Christmas season.  Below is a picture of one that I thought was pretty on our way home this evening.  

Ornament

"Ornament" was the theme for December 8th.  Since I didn't photograph an ornament on that day and couldn't quite capture something representing "grateful" today, I thought I would photograph this.  

The day we were leaving GA, J&BA presented each of us with gifts from Burkina Faso and Mali, neighboring countries in Africa.  This ornament is the gift that was given to A.  I believe it is a dried gourd that has been sanded and carved.  It is beautiful and the detail is amazing.  

Morning

Merry Christmas!

Favorite Part(s) Of Christmas Eve

Today's photo challenge was to capture my favorite part of Christmas Eve.  That is hard.  The first thing is not something that I could take a picture of.  After the service held at church this evening, DL said "Merry Christmas" to me.  This may seem like a small thing but when I explain, you will know why it is top of my list.   DL has Huntington's disease.  For her to say something that clearly is unusual and for her to choose to use those words with me is a blessing I am not sure how to articulate.  How could I capture that moment with a picture?  

Next on my list of favorite parts of Christmas Eve was sharing a meal with N&CP.  N is from Costa Rica.  One of their traditions is to share a meal with family on Christmas Eve at midnight.  So, the P family invited us to share in that tradition this year.  Several families from the homeschool co-op were there.  Because so many in the group have small children, they chose to serve the meal at 10:00 pm instead of midnight.  We arrived at 8:00 to play games and hang out.  I now know how to play chicken foot dominoes!  Then we had tamales and rice for dinner.  It was delicious!  Pictured below is N&CP with A(on N's lap), S(on C's lap) and J(standing); little I was already in bed when we arrived.  The picture was taken near the end of the evening, well past the typical bedtime for these amazing youngsters.  I snapped 30 pictures and yet didn't get one where S was sitting still. This was the best shot.  

As mentioned earlier, we had a service at church this evening as well.  It is the first Christmas Eve service that has been held at this church for as long as I have been attending.  It was definitely one of my favorite parts of the day this year.  Pictured is our youth pastor preparing to lead us in worship.  

Simply Sunday

Luke 12:23-24

Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes.Consider the ravens: They do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn; yet God feeds them. And how much more valuable you are than birds!

Snapshot Saturday - Our Trip In Pictures

More details to come after I am rested...