~Merry Christmas!!!~

"For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.

And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.

And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying,

Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men."

~Luke 2:11-14~

As many of you have probably noticed...I haven't been posting as much lately. That would be due to the fact that I started college in the fall and my time to type out all of the many happenings in life has become somewhat lesser in priority next to homework etc. :P However, the fact that things have been happening and the interest to post about them has NOT gone away...the updates are just a little delayed in their comings! ;) So, with that being said ;) ...Christmas break has come and I've decided to get you all caught up! ;)

This month (as well as the previous ones!) have been full of lots of activities...some of which have included (but are not limited to the following ;) )....

1. Finals Week

(Woohoo!!! One semester down...several more to go. :P lol! ) This semester I have taken LOTS of music classes...voice lessons, piano lessons, choir, vocal diction etc. It has been really fun and I look forward to exploring more next semester! (I'm excited about the opportunity to get to take violin lessons in the Spring!!! :D My desire in developing skills in music are to use them for His glory!

2. A Trip To See Christmas Lights

My older brother and I had the privilege to go with a group from one of the college ministries to go see Christmas lights early this month, it was lots of fun! :)

3. Caroling, A Christmas Skit and Games

Several families in our area, thought it would be fun to bake several dozen cookies per family, put them together on plates and take them to others in our community while caroling! So we did just that! :D It was loads of fun! There were 6 big vans, 1 mini van and 1 suburban...around 60 of us going caroling! :D It was SO neat to see the joy on peoples faces as we went from house to house!

Later that evening, we shared a meal together and then some of the children reenacted the Christmas story, which a sweet friend of mine helped organize! :)

Here were the shepherds....

and the wise men! :)

Here I was "standing with the angles"! ;)

We also enjoyed playing games! Here my older brother and friends had fun competing in chess! Some of the rest of us enjoyed playing a game called "Operation Telephone". (Similar to "Charades".)

4. Historic Dance Christmas Social

We also attended our historic dance groups annual Christmas Social where we all get together to enjoy fellowship and refreshments, play parlor games and dance "The 12 days of Christmas" (as sung by Miss Piggy)! We had a delightful time! ;)

5. Christmas gatherings with family and friends and re-tellings of the Christmas story!

This year I made up some delicious chocolate fudge to share while visiting relatives! (For the recipe, click here! :) )

First we were blessed to spend time with my dad's side of the family! We had a great time visiting, enjoying wonderful food, exchanging gifts, playing games and catching up with everyone! (I guess we were so busy enjoying our time together we didn't get any pictures to share this year :( ...oh well, we'll try again next time! :) )

Our family enjoyed a special meal together on Christmas Eve! :)

We also visited my mom's side of the family!

Here's my sweet grandparents! I am SO thankful for them! :)

We used the Wii for some recreation time! (Grandma even joined in for a round of tennis!) :D

After a wonderful meal, presents and fellowship, my younger brothers and cousin used the felt board to show the story of Jesus' birth while the Christmas story was read, then we joined together in singing some Christmas songs!

We have had a very blessed Christmas this year in remembering the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ! I am humbled to think that my God loved us SO much that He would send His only begotten Son to die for our sins that through Him we might have the hope of eternal life! What an AMAZING gift!!!

In closing, I would like to leave a link to a song that has been a blessing to me, it tells about the life of Christ. I hope it is an encouragement to you as well! :)

In Christ Alone

May the Lord richly bless you all! :)

Rejoicing in the life of my Lord and Savior!

~Chloe~ :)

"but grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. To Him be the glory, both now and to the day of eternity. Amen."

~2 Peter 3:18~