7 quick takes: a photo diary from a festive three weeks

--- 1 ---

Thanksgiving on November 22 -- with pies and some of our favorite people in the world.

hiking on Mount Bonnell the day after Thanksgiving with my brother and his family

--- 2 ---

Brian and I celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary.

With all the festivities we didn't actually celebrate until the Monday afterward on our day off from work.  Maybe you'd have to be married for 22 years to understand how an hour long drive around the outskirts of Austin, with mellow tunes and a pinkish sunset was the perfect way to celebrate?

--- 3 ---

Alex turned 19 on November 30.  We celebrated early before he went back to school in Houston.

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And then we sent him cupcakes.  (by the way, if you live in Houston or love someone who does, have Sprinkles Cupcakes deliver -- they're great!)

--- 4 ---

Our mailman unwittingly delivered the very special cookies that would reveal the gender of my sister and brother--in-law's baby (coming in May!)  I'm not sure I'm supposed to tell you yet so you'll have to guess whether the frosting was pink or blue.  

--- 5 ---

On December 8 Natalie turned 15 AND we attended our first-ever Hannukah party.

--- 6 ---

Brian and I drove to Temple to spend a few hours with my cousin Jared and his beautiful family.  We tried to give his wife Natalie an afternoon to herself while the rest of us went Christmas shopping for her.  

It's been a long time since Brian and I have shopped with toddlers!

Jared is a retired veteran and we're so proud of his service to our country. And we're proud of his wife for supporting him in some very difficult days of his disability.  All the way through Target in Temple, TX I kept laughing with Jared that we probably hadn't shopped together since we were little kids.  How in the world -- all these years later -- did we end up living an hour apart from each other in TEXAS?!?

                                                     --- 7 ---

Alex is back home already from his first completed semester, we're getting ready to celebrate Christmas together and amazed at the goodness of God toward us.  

Tonight we enjoyed Kendra's high school choir's performance of pieces from the Messiah.  I still get goose bumps.  I don't think I could possibly ever get tired of hearing Isaiah's poetry, do you?

Hope to spend time together meditating on the wonder of the Child who was born to us each day of Advent.  In the meantime....

Enjoy a beauty-filled weekend!

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