I wish you all a very "MERRY CHRISTMAS"!!!!

"THE REASON I CELEBRATE THIS SEASON!"

About two thousand years ago, in the town of Nazareth, there lived a young woman named Mary. She was engaged to be married to Joseph, a carpenter. One day an angel appeared before her and told her she had been chosen to have a special baby. The baby would be God's son and she must call him Jesus.
Soon after the angel's visit, Mary and Joseph were married. Mary was due to have her baby when they were told they had to go on a long journey to Bethlehem, which was where Joseph came from.This was because they had to pay a special tax. Mary had to ride on a donkey for a few days over the hills of Gallilee.
At last Mary and Joseph arrived in Bethlehem. It was crowded with other people who needed to pay their taxes. Mary was very tired and needed a place to stay. At each inn, the story was the same. There was no room for them. Eventually, one kind innkeeper said he had a stable where he kept his animals. They were welcome to stay there.
And so it was that a few hours later, Mary gave birth to her son in that stable. She wrapped Jesus in strips of cloth and laid Him in a manger full of hay.
At the same time, on a hillside overlooking Bethlehem, some shepherds were watching over their sheep. A bright light appeared in the sky. They were very afraid. It was an angel sent by God. The angel told them not to be afraid, because he had some good news. He said the Son of God had been born and they would find Him in Bethlehem.
The shepherds wanted to go and see the baby. When they arrived at the stable, they were filled with joy at seeing Jesus lying in the manger. They knelt down and worshipped Him. They told Mary and Joseph how the angel had appeared in the sky and told them that Jesus was to be the Saviour of the world.
Far away in the East, Wise Men saw a new star shining high in the sky. These men studied the stars and they knew this was a very special star. They studied their scrolls where it said that whenever a bright new star appeared it meant that a great ruler had been born.
The Wise Men decided to find this new ruler. They went to Jerusalem to see King Herod, as they thought the baby would be in the palace. They asked to see the child that would be King of the Jews. The king was troubled. He thought this new king may take away his throne. He told them to return when they had found the baby so that he could worship the child himself.
The Wise Men set off to find the baby. They were guided by the star to the stable in Bethlehem. Here they knelt down and worshipped Jesus. They gave him gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. That night, the men had the same dream where an angel warned them that King Herod wanted to kill Jesus and told them not to go back to his palace.
The Wise Men went back to their own country without calling to see Herod. Soon after Joseph had a dream where an angel told him to take Mary and Jesus to Egypt as King Herod had ordered that Jesus be killed. They left Bethlehem right away. When the wise men did not return, Herod ordered that baby boys in Bethlehem be killed. They did not find Jesus as he was safe.

Where's Crystal?

Crystal decided she liked the tree so well that she would dress like it!! This was probably Christmas of 1991.

"HAPPY BIG '30' CRYSTAL DAWN"!!!!!

"The True Meaning of the Candy Cane"

A candy maker in Indiana wanted to make a candy that would be witness for Jesus, so he made the Christmas Candy Cane. He incorporated several symbols for the birth, ministry and death of Jesus Christ. He began with a stick of pure white hard candy. White to symbolize the Virgin Birth and sinless nature of Jesus. Hard to symbolize the Solid Rock, the foundation of the Church and firmness of the promises of God. The candy maker made this candy in the form of a "J" to represent this precious name of Jesus, who came to earth as our Savior. It also represents the staff of the "Good Sheperd" with which he reaches down into the ditches of the world to lift out the fallen lambs who, like all sheep, have gone astray. Thinking that the candy was somewhat plain, the candy maker stained it with red stripes. He used three small stripes to show the stripes of scourging Jesus received by which we are healed. The large red stripe was for the blood shed by Christ at the cross so we could have the promise of eternal life. Sadly, the candy bacame known only as "the candy cane" and its original meaning has been lost.

My Christmas Village and a few of my most favorite ornaments.

My Tree Topper

I LOVE the ole' timey, Country Santa.

Crystal's thumb print ornament from 1984. She was 8 years old.

One of my MANY mice ornaments!

I finally decorated!!

Danny, Crystal and I got up this morning, got all bundled up for Alabaster's Christmas Parade. We left here about 9:00 am and swung by McDonalds for a biscuit then drove down and found us a place to park so we could get us a good place to stand to see the parade. Mercy and Lindy were riding on the Corky Belle float. It started off pretty cold, but it turned out to be a beautiful day. Danny got hit in the head with a piece of candy and I came home with a pocket full. I also got two strands of beads and I didn't even have to flash for them.

After we got home I got out all my Christmas decorations, moved a few pieces of furniture around and Crystal came over and we got my tree up. Actually, Crystal got the tree up and decorated and she did a awesome job. THANKS Crystal Dawn!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
While Crystal was working on the tree, I put together my first little Christmas Village. There are some pieces that I have had for several years, some I just bought and a few that have been passed down. This is something that I want to add to every year and make it bigger and better. I would like to add a train and some people to it as well. Hope you enjoy the pictures.

OH WELL!! Blogger won't let me upload any more pics right now, GGGRRRRRRR!! I'll post them as soon as it will let me.