My favorite memories of 2009

I was going through my photos reminiscing about 2009 and I wanted to share with you all some of my favorite memories of 2009 before coming overseas. Hope you enjoy!

Mom and Dad's 60th Birthday Party

I really enjoyed seeing my family all dressed up as movie characters.

Here are the Characters from "There's Something about Mary"

and

Can you guess who Dom and Brenda are?

Jenni and Forrest Gump

Meeting Lucy for the first time!

Adventures with my husband. Ventura Harbor.

Hiking in the Santa Monica Mountains

and going to Mammoth in the Winter!

Sharing my Birthday with JJ!

My cousin Kimmy got married!

Reunited with Dave!

Dirk's 50th!

Finding my soul sister! I love you Laura!

Spending time with my wonderful sisters!

Banana pancakes for Curt's 25th Birthday

Reuniting with my friend from pre-school Arianna and her mom Lujuana.

Meeting some of the greatest people in the world, Mary-Lou, Dirk & Ryan

(and discovering my Birthday Twin JJ!)

My wonderful Digital Photography Class!

Celebrating Cole's Wedding with Good Friends!

Hiking with our Bble study Buddies

Kevy's Birthday

The wonderful Jenn! Can you believe this girl had a garage sale to earn money to help us with our trip! This was probably the most touching moment of 2009 for me! I love you Jenn!

Fun times with Curt's Fam

Meeting Gabreilla

(and falling in love with her instantly)

T**choverseas Training 2009

It feels like Christmas

Last night we were watching “A Muppet Christmas Carol” and it really touched me and reminded me of some important things. 

It is true that the greatest gift that Gd gave us is s*lv*tion, but if you truly think about it He was driven by love to give us s*lv*tion, that gift would have been impossible without love. 

Love is the universal language, everybody needs love, everybody wants love and love is really the feeling that we cherish about Christmas. 

I was thinking about all the times it has felt like Christmas here and those have been times of love. When we were with our friends up North, at our teammates home for dinner, with our fellowship on Sunday. 

Sunday when we were at our meeting, one of the girls said “It just doesn’t feel like Christmas.” But I was thinking, “What is she talking about? Right now it feels more like Christmas than ever.” And I realized that it is because I love that group of people. 

In the song “It Feels Like Christmas” from “A Muppet Christmas Carol” it says “It’s true wherever you find love, it feels like Christmas.”

It is true and that is why I am thankful that I have found love here already in so many of the people that I know. 

Here are the lyrics to the song for your enjoyment:

It's in the singing of a street corner choir

It's going home and getting warm by the fire

It's true wherever you find love

It feels like Christmas

A cup of kindness that we share with another

A sweet reunion with a friend or a brother

In all the places you find love

It feels like Christmas

It is the season of the heart

A special time of caring

The ways of love made clear

It is the season of the sprit

The message if we hear it

Is make it last all year

It's in the giving of a gift to another

A pair of mittens that were made by your mother

It's all the ways that we show love

That feel like Christmas

A part of childhood we'll always remember

It is the summer of the soul in December

Yes, when you do your best for love

It feels like Christmas

It's the most wonderful time of the year!

I can't believe the Christmas Season is already upon us! The time we have spent here so far has gone by so quickly. We are almost halfway through our school year, the first term will end in January.

As with all firsts, I have learned a lot this first semester of teaching. I am beginning to realize now that there are so many more things I still want to teach for Conversational Fluency and I have so little time left. Looking back I realize that some of the lessons that I already taught were kind of silly and there are other things I would rather teach now after struggling through conversations about the weather and being sick (since so many people here are sick lately), I realize those are some things that my students need to learn about. I am overwhelmed by the amount of things that I could teach them. But I am also excited about how much better I will hopefully do next year if we decide to come back. I remember feeling the same way when I taught at CCS. It was hard the first year to look back and think, "I wish I could have taught those students more, but at least with the knowledge I have now, I can teach the next group of students better!"

Just a little bit about teaching, that has been one of my main focuses lately. I have been spending a lot of time lesson planning. I have also been spending a lot of time wishing that I were in my old hometown, so that it would "feel" more like Christmas. But what a selfish thing to wish... And what does it really take to "feel" like Christmas. For me I guess it is just the old familiar things that have always taken place at Christmastime, watching Christmas movies, listening to Christmas music, Baking, Christmas shopping, Decorating a Table for The Women's Brunch at New Life etc. But most of those things have nothing to do with the true meaning of the holiday.

We have plenty of those things here, but sometimes it doesn't "feel" like Christmas. I don't think that those things are bad either, they are wonderful, Gd gave us those things to enjoy. But when we put them before Him and before the celebration of His Son's Birth, they become id*ls. I don't want to put id*ls before my Savi*r this year. I truly want to celebrate the coming of my King while enjoying the bl*ssings that He gave me.

That is my hope this season and my hope for all of you. That together with your loved ones you can celebrate the coming of our King. Oh what a bl*ssing it is that he has given us s*lvation! No one deserves it. That is why I am here, but I am hoping that others like me, undeserving s*nners, will accept it and share in the bl*ssed gift of that first Christmas.