All of Mama's extended family gets together for a family reunion of sorts around Christmas time. She had three brothers and a sister, and the majority of the family lives in the Bryan/College Station area. So, we made the drive down the day after Christmas. It had been a while since we had been down but it was our turn to host. It's always kind of crazy and chaotic, but it was fun to see family I hadn't seen in a while.
My mom and my aunt NolaAnn setting up for the day.
Uncle Jeff and Dad.
Deborah with little miss Katie.
Mama's sister Joyce, mom's cousin Jan, Deborah, and mom.
We have a crazy number of Aggies in our family. Sad truth - these aren't even all of them!
Me & Leeann. She's my third cousin. We serve together in student ministries at church. We didn't know it for the first year. Out of control!
Gin Rummy tournament. These were the trippiest cards ever!
It is my goal to finish blogging all of my Christmas experiences by the end of January. I'm getting close! Thank goodness! It is time to move on to the present, and I just can't seem to do that as long as Christmas pictures are sitting out there unblogged!
So, I got back from ski trip on the 23rd. Christmas Eve I met my mom, sisters, cousin, and grandma for lunch and then we started making the trek back to my grandparent's house in Granbury. The infamous Christmas snow was already falling in the metroplex, and quite heavily the closer we got to Granbury. Needless to say, it was a long trip, and I was driving. Once we got there, it was a wonderful Christmas Eve dinner with my family and grandparents. My aunt, uncle and cousins joined us on Christmas day. It was a beautiful, sunny Christmas day, so after the presents and lunch we enjoyed some time out on the back patio with the fire pit. It really was a wonderful Christmas!
Rebekah and the mom
PapaDub and Grandma
My cousin Erin and her husband
Grandma and dad
The present my cousin and her husband got for my grandparents. Their dog (Boomer) is having a hard time getting around, so they made him a scooter. It was hilarious.
The week before Christmas I headed out to Crested Butte, Colorado with the high school kids from church. I had four girls from my small group, one of their friends, and our favorite friend from Kyla's group in my room. They are such a great group of girls, and I really did have a blast with them. The skiing was great, the skits were hilarious, as usual, and it was just an all around good time. I took my point and shoot camera, but the battery was dead, so I only have a couple of pictures from my phone, and a few I stole from the student ministries pictures!
The whole group the last night before we got on the bus.
Tori, Rachel & Aaron
Me & Mel. In case you're wondering, it is quite fashionable to take pictures with goggles on top of your head. Skiing is a very attractive sport.
Some of my girls are on that ski lift in front of me, but you can't really tell that! I love snow!
Fireplace in our room. One of the nights during free time we stayed in our room, made a fire, baked cookies, and watched girlie movies!
Oh, Katie...
Me and sweet Sarah. She was sick most of the time, which was VERY sad! Thankfully she got well enough to at least enjoy some of the scenery!
And if you happen to be bored, one night at club the skit/video were Twilight themed, and they were hilarious! Here's that video for that and the ski trip video so that you can see how much fun we had!
My last Christmas party of the year was with my small group girls. We decorated cookies, had a white elephant gift exchange, and just hung out. I love these girls, and they are definitely funny. I guess I don't have a lot to say about the party...just a lot of pictures.
Every year we get together with the college roomies and have Christmas. This year we crashed Michelle & Charlie's apartment, enjoyed some Maggiano's takeout and some quality time. As always, I had a blast with these girls, things are never boring. Natalie performed part of her drama that she helped direct (and starred in) at her church for Christmas. She such an actress...perhaps if PT school doesn't work out. We opened our presents and took our traditional picture with all of the gifts. Overall it was just a fun night with some of my favorite girls!
Nat performing. I fear she might kill me for this one.
As I sit here and think about the last year, as I'm sure you know, it's not filled with all happy thoughts. It's been rough. But in all the things that were thrown at me, there was such a sweetness that came in my relationship with God. Such a nearness. Because it was the only way I could keep plugging on - with Him right beside me. And when I sit and ponder that part of this last year, I could not be more thankful for the way things have gone. Not that I'm wishing for another year like 2009 - I could definitely do without that for a while. But I will be forever grateful for the way God has shaped me, and molded me, and drawn me to him this year. It has been one heck of a roller coaster for which, in hindsight, I can say that I am grateful for.
As I laid in bed last night after I rang in the new year with my family, I prayed for the year to come. Because, you see, things seem to be looking up. No more studying, the possibility of buying a house, and just some fun stuff on the horizon for my life. And while things looking up is good, it also scares me. Braun did all the talks for the ski trip. He talked about kings of the Bible, and how some of them were faithful to God, some weren't, and some were faithful based only on the circumstances of their life. I don't want to be the latter. I don't want to be someone who only walks closely with the Lord when things are hard. My prayer for 2010 is that I would grow closer to the Lord, not out of desperation in hard times, but solely because I love Him and want to know Him more. My prayer is that my life would bring glory to God, in good times and in bad.
