Correct Perspective

The kids and I are studying Ancient History and we are going through Genesis to Judges right now. Which includes the study of ancient Eqypt. We have learned many interesting things about mummification (takes 70 days) and why they mummified bodies. We have also learned that they had a plethora of gods they worshipped and used to try to explain creation (funny if they would just learn about the one WHO created it all). Anyway...one thing they did get right.
It said that the Egyptians made their houses out of mud b/c they realized their time here was so short. But they built their tombs out of stone b/c they realized the afterlife was eternal. Oh how we get that backwards. We spend all our time and effort on builidng our "kingdoms" and homes here and this time we have here is so very short. Yet we often neglect the building of that which is eternal. Our time should be spent getting to know and understand the ONE we will spend eternity with, those things He desires we spend our time on this earth doing and telling others about Christ so they too have a hope for what life after death will be.

Lots of Updates

I have posted quite a bit today so be sure and scroll down and down and down. :-) The pressure is on to update the blog since I didn't send out a Christmas letter this year but put our blog on our New Year/Early Valentine/Early Easter cards. :-) Which by the way are still sitting on my dining table. I was 20 short, so had to reprint. They WILL go out next week.

Christmas #2

We celebrate Christmas Eve with Rody's family and had a ball. It was so much fun to see the excitement of the kids and all the legos, cars and babies EVERYWHERE. Did I mention Legos? We have some major lego builders in this family and David and Carson set to work immediately. We are so blessed with the opportunity to be close enough to our families to get to spend time with them. One of the great blessings of Christmas was learning both our nephews had accepted Christ as their Savior!!

Chesser Family Pics

We were able (with a little coaxing) to get some cute pics of all the Chesser grandkids and pics with Granny and Grandad. Our kids love getting to hang out with all their cousins and we are so blessed that they all get along so well. I am so glad they know their cousins and get to enjoy them...this was something I missed growing up.

Helping with Chores

While their momma sat in the warm, cozy house...the little ones braved the cold weather to help with chores. And loved EVERY minute of it.

Christmas Scenes from the Ranch

We were blessed with snow on Christmas Eve at the ranch in Roswell. It was gorgeous and the kids were so excited. We got some beautiful pictures I wanted to share. One of the things we love about visiting the ranch is that it is quiet, serene and you get to see some of the most beautiful sunrises/sunsets. My kids would add...the cows, horses, rabbits, quail....

"Cool" Christmas Gift

Our sweet neighbors surprised us with this "cool" Christmas gift. It was so pretty we didn't want to eat it...but we did. Thank you Burnetts for the yummy gift.

Christmas Fun at Church

We had a very sweet family in our church to put together a Christmas party including a "caroling hayride", we all brought goodies and then we played games. The best part, besides watching the adults play musical chairs, was getting to bless a family in our community with toys, clothes and food. It was so great for my kids to hear their kids say "All this is for us?". It was such a blessing to get to love on their family and show them the love of Christ. And to watch the adults beating each other out of chairs....

Christmas Fun at Church Continues

John & Analiza, Some of the Armstrong Crew, Cayla & Aaron, and some of the men at our "Hot Chocolate Stop" (Justin, Jake S. & Jake A)

Christmas #1

I was thinking as I prepared to write this post...my kids have no idea that Christmas is ACTUALLY a one day holiday. They think it is a perpetual event. Since we travel for Christmas we always open our Christmas the weekend before we leave so the kdis have time to play with their stuff before we pack up and head out. We had a great Christmas this year. Up early, of course, opened gift (Kimmy even got a gift this year), then a breakfast of breakfast casserole and monkey bread. The kid's favorites. It was a fun day filled with lots of lego & lincoln log building and playing doll house.

I am laughing as I work on this post Katie said "Mom, let's see what I got for Christmas." As we looked through everything she said, "We need to do that again." I said "What?" to which she replied "Open all those presents". One of these days she will be a parent and understand all that it takes to make "it happen".

Bikes

Bikes were the big gift this Christmas...Kyra and David had outgrown theirs and we determined this was a great way to keep the Chessers in shape in 2010. Here are a few pics. Sorry D I didn't get one of you. It was sooo cold outside, but that didn't stop them and NO I could not get Katie to wear a coat. That girl has her dad's heat index.

Chores

After starting the "chore chart" while on vacation at the beach, it is finally complete and posted to start off the New Year. And the funny thing is...my kids are soooo excited about it. After 2 weeks of doing this I am thinking to myself, "Why have you not done this sooner?" I am getting my kids to do minor tasks that help keep our house in shape and they don't even gripe about it..too much!! Now my front, back and sunroom windows get washed every week (and I'll let them have the squeegy thing for the big windows when it gets warmer..they love that too) often with the help of little one who loves to squirt. My kitchen floor gets vacuumed every morning, D's closet is organized every week, trashes in all the rooms are taken out, their rooms are picked up, the kitchen and sunroom get mopped (crazy, but they like to do this one too) and they help with laundry. In addition to mom getting help, I hope I am equipping my girls to manage their own homes someday and for D to be an able helper. :-D Again I ask "Why didn't I do this sooner??"

Looking Pretty & Handsome

All dressed up for church...they are growing up so fast. I can't believe as I pull out Kyra's dresses and remember Kyra being so little in them and now to think Katie is in them. And Kyra is developing into this beautiful young lady. Wow! Where does the time go?

Preparations for Being a Big Sister

Everyone knows that in order to be a good big sister...you must be skilled in the art of reading to your little brother or sister. So Rody was able to catch Katie "practicing" being a good big sister when we was reading to her baby "Ella".

Reading to Her Baby

Coversations with David

I love having conversations with David. He is my kid that will come sit on the counter while I am cooking and talk or find me doing odd jobs and tag along. So last night I put the "New Year", "Pre-Valentine's" "Pre-Easter" "Pre-Baby Announcement" card I had done and still not sure when I will get those in the mail..but they are done. Anyway, I was looking back over the last 3 years how much the kids have changed. Kyra entered the room and I preceded to tell her and David what a great big sister and big brother they were to Katie and will be to the new baby. David just throws his hands up in disgust and says "Well it will probably be another girl!" Why? I asked. His answer "Because that is all we have...is sisters!!" I said "well buddy if we have a boy then it will be even. 2 boys, 2 girls." His reply..."Yeah but it will probably be a sister." :-) He has offered if it is a boy that he can sleep in his room and he will even wake up in the middle of the night and feed it. With #4...I MAY just take him up on that. :-)

Fall in December

There are several things I love about San Angelo...one is that our tree in the front yard right outside our dining room (No I don't know what kind of tree it is. It is not an evergreen but stays green all year) attracts the coolest birds that we get to see during our morning breakfast and devotionals. We've have Blue Jays and this beautiful Cardinal that Rody snapped a picture of. I'm thinking this will be great science project this spring to study the birds and then put out bird feeders. The kids loved the hummingbirds when we were in CO so I think they would really like this.

Then one afternoon, the kids (after having been bribed with new rakes) spent the afternoon raking/jumping in the leaves. They did a great job. Then 2 days later, Kyra came in most disgusted and called the whole family to the side yard. "Look!!" she says!!! And you guessed it...the yard was completely full again. Sorry Johnna and Sutton for the leaves we have not gotten yet that have found their way into your yard.

Making Ornaments

I remember at Christmas making salt dough ornaments and knew if it included dough, flour and a rolling pin...not to mention paint (which I will not mention we STILL have not painted them) that the Chesser kids would love it. So adorned in our jammies we set off for the "artistic" part of schooling. Making salt dough ornaments. Of course in the back of my head, the "good intention" side of Wendy thought oh this would be great..we could take them to a nursing home to the residents or give them to someone. And yes they were cut out, baked and are in a ziplock bag ready to be painted. Hey that will be our art project for January. See I knew there was a reason I waited.

The Nutcracker

Okay still catching up from 2009...Kyra and I had the opportunity along with the Edwards to enjoy a mother/daughter evening. We have a couple of young ladies from our church that were going to be performing in the Nutcracker and as Kyra was in ballet this last semester, we thought this would be fun for the girls. The performance was great and Kyra and Savannah had a ball picking out their friends and teacher among the dancers. Kyra was cute..she leaned over during intermission and said "Mom, they don't talk at all." Nope--it's a ballet.