Happy Thanksgiving, Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!!

Wow, I can not believe how quickly time flies by. It has been quite a long time since I have posted anything- I don't even know where to begin. Let's start with our Thanksgiving. We were able to spend Thanksgiving with my family in The Woodlands, just north of Houston. I was so thankful to see my family- the last time I had seen them was in August. Thanksgiving just went by so fast- we got there Wednesday evening and left Sunday after church, but I just wish it were longer! On Thanksgiving morning, we all participated in Run Through the Woods, a 3 mile walk/run and a 10k. Ryan and one of my brothers did the 10k while the rest of the family did the 3 mile walk/run. I was really proud of myself- I ran the whole 3 miles! Ryan and I after the run. It was pretty early, hence the tired looks. After the run, we went home for a delicious Thanksgiving lunch.My dad, the expert turkey carver.

When we came home from Thanksgiving, this is what we found in our house. Our tile apparently was not put in properly and when we came home the floor was raised and the grout was popping out. The floor makes this cracking noise when you walk on it. The maintenance man said they were going to replace all the bad tiles, but they have not done that yet. Hopefully that will happen soon.

Two weeks after Thanksgiving, we flew back to The Woodlands for my mom's 5oth birthday! It was also my dad's 49th- their birthday's are 2 days apart. It was a short weekend, but I was so thankful to my sweet husband who allowed us to be able to do that. I know it was really special for my mom- it was the first time in a long time where all of her kids were there for her birthday. We saw The Blindside, ate at great restaurants, and made Christmas cookies. It was a fun weekend! The picture is a little dark, but here is our family.
My brother, Michael, was home for Thanksgiving and my mom's birthday on leave from The Marines. He is stationed at Parris Island in South Carolina. We gave him his Christmas present early since we would not see him at Christmas- he had asked for money so we gave him a big stack of $1s with the Geico eyes- it got a laugh out of him and everyone else.Here we are with my brother, Michael. We won't see him until August of 2010 when his 4 year commitment with The Marines is up.The kid photo: Michael, me, Ryan, my other brother Kalen and his girlfriend LindseyHere we are with my parents. Happy 50th birthday Mom and 49th Dad!!

After we got back to McAllen, we had a few Christmas celebrations. The first one was with the students we work with at UTPA. We had so much fun with them- eating, watching Charlie Brown Christmas and The Nativity Story. For some of them, it was the first time they had seen either of those. I am so thankful for the both of those movies and the way they help remind us of what Christmas is all about. I think The Nativity Story was great in helping to bring the birth of Jesus to real life for some of the students and we really enjoyed discussing the true meaning of Christmas with them.Here I am with the girls.
And here is Ryan with the guys.
Ryan and I got dressed up for the evening- doesn't he look cute in his sweater vest!?!

The next Christmas celebration was a Gingerbread making party with some of the girls from our Sunday School class. The girls are all teachers and had some time off for their Christmas break and I was really thankful to be able to hang out with them.Bailey and Giona with their Gingerbread houses- don't they look great!Here is my Gingerbread house. It was my first time to make one and I had so much fun!Me and my friend Erin

When we came home from my parents after Thanksgiving, we brought a few Christmas decorations with us. I must say, I did have a few of the "Our 1st Christmas is not what I expected" blues. I am always surprised at how many expectations I have that I don't even realize until I am in the midst of it. I tend to be an idealist. In my head I have this perfect scenario of how different circumstances should be and I am just shocked when it does not turn out like that. Our first Christmas is one of them. I think in my mind I just thought that our first Christmas season together was going to be some magical time where we both are floating on air and it is the most sweet, romantic and fun time of the year. You always hear people say "It's your 1st Christmas! How exciting!" And it is exciting because we're married and enjoying Christmas together, but to me I just felt like I wasn't experiencing everything I thought I should be. I think in my mind I thought we would have a Christmas tree and spend one evening decorating it together, drinking hot chocolate and listening to Christmas music. We would go look at Christmas lights all the time, walk hand in hand while we shop together and brave the crowds just because that's what you do and watch every Christmas movie that exists- see the idealist in me? If you've seen Elf, there is a part in the movie where he says, "First we'll make snow angels, then we'll go ice skating, then we'll eat a whole roll of Tollhouse cookie dough as fast as we can, and then we'll snuggle." I can definitely be like that with this ideal plan/expectations. But, it really didn't happen like that. I put up a few decorations by myself, did a lot of the shopping and worked through my emotions of not having a Christmas tree (space, time and money were all a factor) while Ryan worked all day long and I went to class in the evening, thus missing each other. We were going to be spending our first Christmas at my parents, and while I was so thankful for that, there was some part of me that kept feeling like this is not what I thought it would be. Ryan and I went together to pick out my Chirstmas present and I ordered his online- no wrapping, no sitting together and opening up gifts with a big surprise. So, when the Christmas season began, I really felt sad and there were moments throughout the season where I was faced with disappointment because of my incredibly high expecations. But, what I ended up finding was the Lord meeting me right where I was. I remember Him sweetly whispering to me, "Kalese, will you remember me this Christmas?" Oh, how tenderly God speaks. And from there, God began to help me see that while the tree, decorations and presents are great, the season can still be exciting without those things because of the gift of Christ. While I hope that Ryan and I will be able to start our own Christmas traditions and decorate for Christmas in the future, I am content and thankful for our first Christmas being exactly the way it was- I would not want it any other way. God has been so incredibly kind to me this Christmas season and I have been so thankful for the ways He has met with me. The true meaning of Christmas has been so much more real to me. I have been enamored with Christ and His gift of life- that Christ would humble Himself and come as a baby, growing up to sacrifice His life in order that I may know God personally. What an incredible gift God has given us and I am thankful for this reminder this season- I pray that we all always remember the true meaning of Christmas. Oh, come let us adore Him; Christ, the Lord.
Our few Christmas decorations. I love our stockings!

Well, we went back to my parents for Christmas. Normally we alternate holidays with my family and Ryan's family- if one gets Thanksgiving, then the other gets Christmas. This year was Ryan's family's turn for Christmas, but they were spending Christmas in Washington D.C. because Ryan's dad is on a temporary assignment there. Since we were unable to go to Washington D.C., we spent Christmas with my family and had tons of fun!

My brother Kalen is ready to brave the cold. We went to the Christmas Eve service at our church and it was beautiful. I love singing Christmas worship songs- it brought tears to my eyes to again think about Christ's gift to us.

After the Christmas Eve service, we went to look at Christmas lights. We had tons of fun, but thought this sign was incredibly funny. So weird!Ryan and I on Christmas day. One of my favorite family traditions on Christmas day is reading the story of Jesus' birth in Luke 2 in The Bible. When my brothers got older, they began to play the guitar and lead us in a few Christmas worship songs. I love that time together.The family got a Wii for Christmas. Here are my parents boxing...my Mom was serious about beating my dad :) It was very funny!!

We headed back to McAllen after Christmas and then we spent New Year's with Ryan's parents. It was so nice to see them since we had not seen them for Christmas or since the end of September.Ryan and I on New Year's EveRyan and I with his parents and their dog Misty. Poor Misty had a cold, but she was a great snuggle buddy on the couch. Ryan and I look forward to when we have a dog someday.
Happy New Year!!! We had delicious cranberry apple champagne!
I am so thankful I got to spend New Year's Day with my wonderful husband and his family.

Well, I know this has been an incredibly long update. One of my goals for 2010 is to be a more consistent blogger. I think that may be my goal- consistency. But, I will leave that for another post. Thank you dear friends for reading my ramblings.