I'm Back,,,

Sorry to all my 5 fans out there about my negligence towards my blog. I was told by one of my fans that if I didnt write soon, i would be "kicked off the island",,,and so i thought i better write something!
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I dont know how it is where you are, but here in Nashville, there is a controversy on calling "Christmas" by that name this season. It seems that some people are offended by this term and would rather it be called "holiday season." People get offended these days by anything. I'm not saying anyone is right here, but let me tell you what I witnessed today after church.

I was in line at Target with 65% of the people in Nashville buying last minute gifts for my adorable nephew, when the woman in front of me started to yell at the cash register girl. Apparently the girl told her "Happy Holidays" and the woman yelled back to her that it was her right to call it "Christmas". But to me, no matter what you call the day, there usually has some kind of Christmas spirit and joy that goes along with it. This lady was lacking any sort of cheer, and i told the girl that she did fine in handling that situation. The girl pretty much ignored the lady yelling at her and politely handed her the change. NO "Christmas" cheer was spread to that girl.

But in this mass-marketing world, have we lost sight of the true meaning of the day? I wonder if God looks down at us and thinks to himself "They missed the whole point." There is a girl in our young marrieds class who told us about a tradition her family always does on Christmas Eve. They always make a birthday cake for Jesus and sing songs to him. I thought that was really cool. SOme people laughed at the thought, but it does make sense and it is special.

And of course, being the cake lover that I am, I asked "What cake does Jesus like the most?" She told me "white cake." that figures.

I love Christmas. I love the carols at church, the family time, and watching "Christmas Vacation" at least 3 times that weekend. My favorite carol is O Holy Night. I always get chills when i hear that being played or sang. I know we all have our family traditions, some old and some new. We all have great holiday memories and not-so- great memories. There is probably nothing we can do about the mass marketing of the retail world. But we can remember the true meaning and pass it on to others.

Check out this scripture and you will get one of those "Ahh-ha!" moments:

Isaiah 1:1-18.
I won't write the whole thing, but you should read it. God talkes about the different feast and celebrations and meaningless offerings. this is kind of sad at the start, but towards the middle you can see how God wants us to come with sincere hearts to bring Him gifts. (like the wise men) And in verse 18 where it refers to "white as snow", that sounds like Christmas.

God is not impressed with all that we have made of this day with all the shopping, and fruit cakes and traffic. Have we missed the point?

This is such a special time of the year to be with your loved ones, but let's not lose sight of the greatest gift we were given from God.

And remember to bake baby Jesus a birthday cake! (figuratively or literally!)

merry CHRISTmas!

SEC Bound

this past weekend was my first ever trip to the SEC Championship football game. Now, of course we all know the Vols are not one of the 2 teams there because they had the crappiest season ever. This year it was LSU vs. Georgia, and so my husband was thrilled we got tickets. he was like a little kid--it was hysterical. i worked some Saturday morning(bummer) and then we left for Atlanta. I was planning on wearing my orange UT sweatshirt, but took it off before we went into the stadium. i was neutral and wore a black sweater. Ash had a red polo shirt on and was barking the whole time for the Dawgs. I was watching UGA, the mascot bulldog the whole time. i must admit the atmosphere was unbelievable and the fans were outstanding. there was a little section or 2 for LSU and then the rest was black and red. Georgia rolled over LSU to lead them to victory and a great night for Ashley. We then stayed the night at his brothers place in Atlanta and hung out with them most of today. We were talking about the fun weekend with the win and visiting family and how great things were when,,,,,,

we got a flat tire. all the wind was let out of our sails. then it began to rain. So, in the pouring rain, Ash changed the tire and then we went to eat at Shoneys. All we wanted was some strawberry pie, but they were out. so, things took a drastic turn there towards the end. so, now we are home, but Ash has a SEC title and a bid to the Sugar Bowl. He had a great weekend overall!!

ok, my favorite show "Grey's Anatomy" is on,,,,,gotta go!

love you all