Goodbye To 2025

I love our memory jar tradition! 

This jar has been going in our house now for 11 years and I'm so thankful for the idea from Pinterest back in 2014. :)

Some Verses/Words Of Wisdom From This Year:

"May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in Him." - Romans 15:13

Maybe that's how God feels. I know He is always there for me. But when I'm going through an especially tough time, I become acutely aware of my need for the peace of His presence. I mentally reach for His hand and am comforted, knowing He is supporting and loving me. I had not through of the joy it must give Him as well, to have me want my hand in His.

There are only two ways to live your life. One is as though nothing is a miracle. The other is as though everything is a miracle.

Let your light for Jesus shine so that others see it and can't help but know it's His love pouring out of you.

If you live a life like that, the music never stops.

Learning to trust that the circumstances right now are for our good even when they don't feel good and for His glory even when they don't hold the shimmer and the shine I think His glory should.

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge Him and He will direct your paths." - Proverbs 3:5-6

While you wait on God's answer, don't loose confidence in His goodness. - Lysa T

God's blessings are always perfectly timed, even when they challenge our understanding.

Faith that is deeply rooted cant easily be destroyed.

Today is the best day to enjoy life.

Not dwelling on what was missing but embracing what I had, I celebrated the gift of life God had given me all these years, and everything that is yet to come.

God does not promise us a life exempt of pain. But God promises to walk with us each day and give us peace. We must rest in those promises and the precious gift of life we're given each and every day.

"You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on You, because he trusts in You." - Isaiah 26:3

You never know when God's gift of extraordinary will cross paths with what you thought was just an ordinary day.

The default of an area is always darkness, until light shows up. One only has to recall whom they follow to know that a clear, straight path will emerge in time if they stay close behind the Savior. In a world where one could be persuaded that darkness is winning, sending us into despair, it is comforting to know we are connected to Jesus even when He seems hidden. Like the sun, when He rises in us, darkness has no choice but to flee.

Thank You, God, for unexpected moments of beauty that touch our souls.

Here is a look back at some of highlights of 2025!

Boys Hangouts, Cast for Lorelei, December Date and Ringing In The New Year

Makin fit in a couple of friend hang outs during this time off from school including a day going to Activate (an active gaming experience) followed by the mall where they played pool at Dave and Busters before heading over to play pickleball at a fitness center. Idalisa (Brayden's mom) just kept checking with Robin and I to make sure we were ok as they kept adding another activity to their day. A day or two later they played Dungeons and Dragons and Brayden's house.

Lorelei got a cast put on for a week to help heal her elbow. We are SO thankful for the answered prayer of getting into Scottish Rite for her follow up.

Brad and I squeezed in our December date at the last minute and worked on some New Years goal-setting over coffee at Starbucks. (My first peppermint mocha of the season!)

We had one kiddo who didn't want a party and one who did, and two exhausted parents...so we just had a girls party for New Years. Brad and Makin fit in some time together watching a movie while Lorelei had friends and I visited with Juliet (one mom of friends) over the firepit.

They didn't stay until midnight so then our family continued to ring in the new year with our traditions or reading the memory jar and watching a few countdowns until we were ready for the local countdown to begin. Dallas had a pretty impressive show this year! Happy New Year!

Christmas

We traveled to spend Christmas in Oklahoma this year with Nana, Papa, Aunt Heather, Uncle A.J. and Reese.

Did you know that I also like jerky?

Cookie time!

Pictures can never do it justice but love our panhandle sunrises and sunsets.

Makin photo bombing Uncle A.J.s photo.

Christmas Eve

Christmas Day

We decided to recreate this photo.

When you are exhausted, but don't want to miss out on the fun.

After Christmas

Lorelei was offered a horseback ride from a friend of Papa's and she was elated.
Sadly, about 10 minutes into the ride she fell off and dislocated her elbow.
All things considered, we are very thankful that things went
 as smoothly as they could have under the circumstances!

The Pups

Reese Cuddles

Catching Up!

What are you lookin at?

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Highlights 3

Watson's Birthday

We did make sure to fit in extra fun for Watson on his birthday. but it was a bit jam-packed and we didn't get the cute pictures I was hoping for. He did enjoy an outing as well as a home-made puppy cake by Lorelei, which he absolutely loved.

Happy Birthday Watson!

Probably a good time to add the recent Watson pics!

Brad used our photos to turn Watson into "cartoon Watson" using AI.
Too cute!

The Light Park

We were excited to drive through The Light Park. The lights were amazing and there was a radio station you listened to as you drove through that went along with the music.

Movies

I've learned that extra movies just help make December a bit more relaxed.

Our movies this year were:

The Star, The Grinch (2018), The Santa Claus 1,2, and 3, Home Alone 1 and 2, White Christmas, Its A Wonderful Life and The Best Christmas Pageant Ever.

Watson is always trying to get certain spots on the couch.
Makin complains about the little heater who has to lay right next to him.

Lights at Grandscape and The Firehouse

We headed to walk around Grandscape and enjoy their lights (And spent over an hour at Scheels where the boys got to play a Jurassic Park game that someone put on unlimited play while Lorelei and I walked around with Watson bringing people joy...) and then headed back to the firehouse we stumbled upon last year to check out their music/lights show and walk around their lights display.

Reindeer Games

We had the biggest group yet for Reindeer Games with 19 kiddos. It was loud and wild and crazy and they loved it.

First two pics...anticipation! The tree is used each year and each plate has a number on it. The kids choose a number and that is what determines what game we will play next. 

Watson knows when visitors are coming and was watching for them.

Turns out 19 is a bit much to fit around one island!

Gifts

We opened gifts a bit early as we were heading to Oklahoma for Christmas this year. The kiddos each had custom-made ornaments this year. Makin's was a slang ornament I had made on Etsy and Makin engraved Lorelei's ornament with a logo from Valley View Ranch (camp) along with some of her favorite things about camp on the back.

Advent

Thankful for this tradition to focus on the reason for the season.