Christmas Cutie!

Getting the Good Shot...here's how it works...bribe 'em with Goldfish! Thanks to Rebekah for taking these shots of Jenae on Sunday.

Merry Christmas!

We hope all of you have a very Merry Christmas celebrating
with friends and family.

I'll try to post as the festivities occur, but if not, we'll see you next year!

"I Don't Know"

We still aren't sure where exactly Jenae learned her newest trick, but we sure are enjoying it. This is the expression we got when, in her lift-the-flap book, we asked, "Where did the ball go?"
In this part of the story there is a duck hiding behind the bush and he will rescue the ball for his dog friend. "Jenae, who is behind the bush?"
It was a surprise to us when this was also her reaction to our home phone ringing. I guess she wasn't sure who it was that was calling. Feel free to call us anytime. We love these priceless moments!

Trimming the Tree

Jenae is such a great age to start enjoying all the fun of the holidays! She is just in awe of the twinkling lights and loves the decorations she sees everywhere we go. I was worried about her wanting to destroy the tree, but she has done so well. We let her put this snowman ornament on the tree, then explained that we don't touch the tree we just look at it. And, that is what she's done! I'm so proud of her.

We still need to make a trip to the mall to see Santa. There's no doubt her name is on the good list this year. Maybe this weekend we can do that.

Living in a small town there are some fun holiday happening that take place. We have always been able to go to many of them; we'll see if Jenae is up for it this year. If so, know you'll get to read about it here first!

It is time for our playgroup, so we better get going. The pies turned out great last night. I'll post a link to the church's photo page once they are online. Have a great day!

Look out, Pillsbury!

I think I'm an official homemaker now. That is me with a homemade apple pie and two other homemade pie crusts just waiting to be filled with pumpkin. Who really needs a Pillsbury frozen pie crust anyway?

Now, before you think I've gone off the deep end or if your sitting there thinking it appears I have too much free time for someone raising an one-year-old, let me explain. First of all, it is 11:34 pm and the apple pie is just now baking in the oven. So, forget about all that free time. Second of all, it is Christmas Blessing time at our church and that means all the Middle School girls get to learn how to make homemade pies. (Much more about the Blessing in the next couple of days.) Since I head up the teaching team this year, that puts me in charge of this project. Did I mention I've never made a pie from scratch before? Yeah, now tell me if this isn't the blind leading the blind. Thankfully, as with many things, if you just follow the directions it isn't too difficult. Or so I think. The real test will come tomorrow night when the ladies who know how to make pies have to eat mine! Now, that scares me. (Quick affirmation: Jordan just walked in the kitchen to tell me it's really beginning to smell yummy in here!!)

So, if you have time Wednesday night, just say a prayer for me, the 20+ middle school girls, and all my volunteers who will be making pies at church.

Thank You, Ameriscapes!

Look, you can see our house again! We finally broke down and asked for help. Our front landscaping was done by our builder and was not done well. They didn't put up dividers and the things they planted were way too large for our small home. Some friends of ours at church own a landscape and irrigation business and they did a major overhaul for us! I am so pleased with what they did. I think it really opens up the front of our home and makes it look a bit larger, if that's possible. So, if you live around here and ever need help with your yard, you need to call Chris or Quinton at Ameriscapes. They will make your neighbors jealous!

Here are the before and after shots:

More Cuteness

Thanksgiving

This year we spent Thanksgiving with Jordan's family in Abilene. It's always fun to get together with the whole clan. Jenae loves being with her cousins and getting to play with Reyna Belle. Of course, there's no doubt she also loves her Ya-Ya (Sha Sha) and Mama-me (Mimommie). We all ate too much, especially those pies that kept disappearing. We all got to share something we were thankful for spelling out THANKSGIVING. I had the letter "T" and am thankful for the task/thrill of raising up little Jenae.

Friday morning I got to go shopping all by myself! It was amazing how much I could get done without my little helper. I didn't have to stop for naps or mess with carseats. It was fabulous. I got almost all of our Christmas bought on this one day!

The cousins also made their annual Gingerbread Houses. Jenae has to wait 2 more years before she gets to make one...but she still gets to be in the picture!

Oh yes, big news...Jordan would be upset if I forgot to mention the LARGE table that we ALL got to sit at this year. The Hubbard family has continued to grow over the years, yet the dining room table hadn't. We would all try to fit, but it was just a bit too close...if you can imagine 12 people squeezing around a table designed for 6 or 8. We love our family, but... So, this year Jordan got his wish...a bigger table!! And we all fit! It was very nice!

Catching Up

At least I warned you. Weeks have now passed with no new entries. We have been super busy and we don't have many signs of slowing down. But, Jenae is taking a nap and I've already mapped out our afternoon of errands, so let me catch you up.

The weekend before Thanksgiving Jordan had a retreat to speak at, so Jenae and I packed up and headed down to Houston to visit our friends the Duncans. Our other friend, Homie, was going to spend the week of Thanksgiving with them, so this way we all got to be together for a few days.

It was such great fun! Times with old friends where you can just hang out, laugh and share life are the best!! We've all been friends for over 12 years. Homie and I were on a campaign to Brazil when Anna Beth was just days old. Now AB is in Junior High helping me take care of my own girl!

We did lots of eating out which was great since there aren't so many restaurant choices here in B-town. Here we are at Piccomolo enjoying our icecream cones. This may be Emma's fav hangout since she asked to go there every night!We also enjoyed eating at Beck's Burgers. The best part here was the setting. The have two humongous trees out back with patio dining. Seriously, check out those trees! All those branches from two tree trunks. The weather was perfect to be outside.










Xtreme Pizza might have been the most extreme food I've consumed in a long time! Emma did a great job handling hers.


The Duncs were great hosts. Thanks for the great weekend! We'll be coming back and we might even let Jordan come :o)
P.S. Homie, there are no pictures of you because of the threats I received. Sorry. But, I hear you make an awesome Sweet Potato Pie!

OK, I just found this one...

Baby, It's Cold Outside

Lesson Learned

Okay, so I revived this blog with great expectations to keep it up-to-date and give all 4 of you who read this something new to look at each day. HA! What I've discovered in my attempt to do that, is that when I have time to blog I have lots of time and end up doing multiple entries at once (like today) and...when I don't have time, I don't have any time to blog (like this past week.) So, no promises from here on out. Just enjoy what I can share when I get a few moments.

And, because I know you all are really looking for pictures of Jenae and could care less about my commentary, here are a few to keep you going:

In the Dust of the Rabbi

This past weekend Jordan and I had the opportunity to travel to San Antonio to attend a conference presented by Dr. Ray Van der Laan. It was amazing on so many different levels.

It was nice to travel with our church and not be the adults in charge. It's hard to recall the last time that occurred. We love our students, but it was a blessing to be able to go and be filled and not have to worry about all the little details.

RVL's teachings have been scattered through our church but I had never taken the time to listen to them. Many at our church just LOVE this man and his tapes. For some reason the way I heard others speak about him and things he said, made me a bit skeptical. So, heading to San Antonio I didn't really know what was before me.

Now, I understand!

RVL is passionate! His love for the Lord just overflows. Sometimes that can come across as a fake veneer, but his love for the Lord also runs deep. His teachings are so insightful. He has spent his life studying about the Jewish people and their customs. He clearly explains important differences between Eastern and Western thought and the implications those have on how we approach Scripture.

I wish I could share all my thoughts here, but there is much I am still processing. What I gained from this trip is a renewed desire to truly search the Scriptures. RVL seemed to make the Old Testament jump off the page. He showed us how so many texts parallel the ministry of Jesus. It must have been amazing for Jesus' disciples.

The title of this post comes from one of RVL's teachings about the rabbinic schools and how one truly advanced to the level of being a disciple of a rabbi. The blessing says, "May you be covered in the dust of your rabbi." In other words, may you be following so closely, that the dust he kicks up as he walks covers you.

"Whoever claims to live in him must walk as Jesus walked." I John 2.6

Trick or Treat

Jenae was definitely the 'treat' at everyone's door this Halloween. We went trick or treating to just a few homes of friends this year, just to see how Jenae would do. Needless to say, the girl figured it out pretty quickly. We had a great time visiting with several friends that evening and caught a few special moments with the camera.

Pirtle Pines Ranch

Monday and Tuesday our family went out to Pirtle Pines Ranch for our first Family Retreat. This was such a blessing. We were able to enjoy each other, time with God and being out in the country. It was a great time of renewal for each of us, especially during this busy time of ministry. We left refreshed and rested and have already commented that this is something we should have done sooner and need to do more often. It was more than a "vacation" as it was time dedicated to God. It was being able to just sit and "be still and know that He is God."

It was also a first for Jenae to really be out in nature and for her mom, me, not to worry about getting dirty and all the junk that would go in her mouth. She loved picking up sticks, stomping on crunchy leaves, petting the horses and throwing rocks. I love watching her learn about this world. It's good to get back to the simple things...things without batteries and lights and music. Good old fashioned rain puddles and acorns!

On the go!

Test post

Just learning the ropes tonight