I hope that you and yours had a very merry Christmas.  We did at my house! We spent the first part of Christmas week traveling. We went to visit my family near Memphis. I was thrilled to see my mom, my little nephew (and his parents), my favorite aunt and uncle and my cousins. On the way home we stopped for a night in Nashville. We went to the Opryland Hotel to see the Christmas lights and the giant nativity. We took the riverboat ride through the hotel. The next day we went to Opry Mills mall and did one of my favorite things…we shopped! I just picked up a few stocking stuffers, but being that I never go to the mall anymore, it felt like a big day out. The kids rode a carousel and we ate at the Rainforest Cafe. Everyone had a great time.

We spent Christmas Eve with Joshua’s family, and this is always fun. We all came home with new pajamas, which we wore a lot during the next two days. My favorite thing about Christmas day was that it was so relaxing.  We opened gifts, we ate a simple breakfast, and we relaxed. We ate a simple dinner, and we relaxed some more. For two days, we didn’t go anywhere or do anything, other than rest. This has never happened before! It was heavenly.

Yesterday after church we all pitched in and had a big work day around the house. Joshua cleaned up the porches and the garage, while some of kids and I cleaned up the inside of the house. Today, we have no school, the house is cleaned, I’m refreshed and I actually feel ready for anything. What a great feeling.  What an amazing way to head into the new year!

I’ve had a lot of things that I have been thinking and praying about. Our church is getting ready for our annual fast. This is a time when we seek direction from the Lord for the upcoming year. I am very exited about the fast this year, which for me, is highly unusual. I rarely look forward to fasting! Most especially, I am looking forward to meeting with God and I’m looking forward to what He is going to do in our county, in our church, and in my family this coming year. God is good!