Dec. 8: Today's the Day

I've been saying this all week, but I really mean it: today is the day we are getting out the Christmas decorations. I've been doing it in dribs and drabs all week, but now I'm ready to really delve in. I just haven't felt ready yet. It is difficult for me to get into the Christmas spirit sometimes living in the South, when the skies are blue and sunny and the roses still linger on the bushes. (Granted, after a cold spell this week, the roses are frozen on the bushes and quickly turning brown, but still...) A flake or two of snow would certainly help. The kids are certainly ready, though. Duncan's been playing with the Playmobil nativity set this morning, and Laurel created this amazing gingerbread house at a birthday party last week:

I'm going to get down the big box of decorations now; I really am... (and yes, that is a black eye that Laurel is sporting in the photo. Little girl + spinning on kitchen floor + corner of counter=BAM!)

Dec. 7, 2006: On Christmas Programs and Shell Shedding

I love to see a whole sanctuary filled with homeschooling families. Our support group had its annual Christmas program on Monday. Laurel performed with her Hebrew dance class (below). I missed the colorful costumes they have always worn in the past, but it was still beautiful.

(Photo by Lynn Freeny)

Her second performance was in a play put on by her drama class. She had a long passage from Luke to speak, which she did in her angelic little voice. Here's the cast at the end, singing "Joy to the World."

(Photo by Lynn Freeny)

It's amazing to see my daughter--who was once so shy that she literally hid behind me--who couldn't even raise her eyes to say "hello" to people--stand calmly in front of over 100 people and confidently recite her piece. Although this isn't the first time she's done this--even two years ago we recited as a family at church and at the Christmas program--it still delights me to see her tossing away her shell and stretching.

December 5, 2006: Sharing Childhood

I love the part of parenthood that allows one to re-live certain childhood favorites. For Laurel and me this past week, it's been reading the book and then watching that long-ago perennial favorite, The House Without a Christmas Tree. This was probably my favorite Christmas special, although I did love the tragedy of The Little Match Girl. It's probably been close to 30 years since I last saw this story of determined and fiesty Addie Mills and her struggle to get a Christmas tree and understand her father , but I remembered it clearly. I was also amazed that the movie--scenes and dialogue--follows the book verbatim almost 100% of the time. We borrowed this movie from our library, but I think we might have to add it to our collection of Christmas movies. Next, I'm hoping to re-read Elvira Woodruff's The Christmas Doll to Laurel. There's nothing like a good orphans-turn-happy story to get one in the Christmas spirit!

Dec. 4, 2006: Monday Memory: Our First Dog

This isn't a very old memory today. One year ago I read on Gena's blog that she had a bunch of pig-like puppies that she needed to get rid of, and this just happened to coincide with Christmas and with us being finally ready for a dog of our own. Daisy was too young to actually have on Christmas Day, so we gave a picture of her to the kids. We brought her home the second week in January. In the picture above, Duncan is holding her that first day. Back then, the cat looked huge compared to her. Now she is somewhere around 50 lbs. (That's Daisy and Laurel today in the photos below.) She is an incredibly sweet dog, although she does have a piercing bark at times. I'm very glad that we took the plunge. Seems like our family menagerie is complete now, with three kids, a dog, a cat, a hamster, and a tarantula. Too bad we lost Goth, the-fish-who-just-wouldn't-die, sometime this past year... (and no, Sarah K., we do not need a snake!)

How Many Events Can We Cram into the Next 24 Days?

December 1, 2006

This is just a small selection out of the tremendous number of events that are presented in the Knoxville/Blount County area in the month before Christmas. My mom and I love Christmas events. She and my Dad are probably doing all of these things with us plus more, because they have to factor in my brother and his kids and their various performances, as well. We're missing a couple of my favorite events this year: The Festival of Joy at Johnson Bible College and....Dollywood. For the first time in a few years, we don't have season passes. I don't mind a year without freezing feet, though! We've already done the first two events, and the rest are yet to come. Throw in a few birthday parties (including our Christmas Boy's!), a couple of dinners, the excursion to the Christmas tree farm and ensuing decorating, and three Boy Scout events, and our December is looking pleasantly celebratory. Dr. H. is probably feeling twinges of stress as he reads this. He would prefer to sit at home and drink wassail, but he's almost always a good sport when it comes right down to it... • The Nutcracker. We went for the somewhat abbreviated version in Oak Ridge this year. The cast was loaded with homeschoolers, including some good friends. Very enjoyable and not as long as the Appalachian Ballet Company’s performance. • Pioneer Christmas at the Thompson-Brown House. Dec. 1, 11-2. This was an open house at this 200-year old log house. Lots of food and nice old-fashioned decorations. We were inspired to decorate with strings of popcorn/cranberry/sliced oranges. FREE. • Maryville Christmas Parade. Dec. 2, 11 a.m. This is probably the kids’ favorite because of all the candy that parade participants toss at the bystanders. They end up with sacks of candy. Is this a Southern thing? We never got candy at parades in New York. We particularly enjoy the Shriners in their midget cars. FREE. • Christmas at Ft. Loudoun. This is a "Living History/Garrison Weekend" featuring an authentic 18th Century Christmas. We’ve been meaning to go to this for six years. Saturday evening is highlighted with a candlelight tour of the Fort (weather permitting) and concludes with a night firing of the cannon. Saturday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m. and 6 p.m. - 7 p.m.( for candlelight tour) and Sunday 10 a.m. - 2 p.m. Fort Loudoun State Historic Area. FREE. • Live Nativity at Maryville Greenbelt Pavilion, presented by First Baptist Church. December 2 & 3 at Presentation starts every 30 minutes from 6:00 pm-8:30pm (lasts approx. 20-minutes). Refreshments served. FREE. • BHEA Christmas Program, Dec. 4, 7 p.m. Laurel will be performing in a play and with her Hebrew dance class. • Happy Birthday Jesus party at church, 10 a.m. Duncan’s the only one left who is in the right age group for this, and I think this is his last year... • The Best Christmas Pageant Ever at Pellissippi State’s Performing Arts Center. Dec. 8, 9, 10, 7:30 p.m. If only I could figure out just how to get tickets for this. The number in the paper appears to be wrong… • The Living Christmas Tree at Thompson-Boling Arena, presented by Sevier Heights Baptist Church, the Dad2Three family, and the BrownSugar family. This is Saturday, Sunday and Monday (Dec. 9, 10, and 11), but we’re going on Sunday afternoon. FREE. (And am I ever going to be glad when my friends are done with all those durn rehearsals!! They are really cutting into our social time!) • American Heritage Girls Fall Awards Ceremony, Tuesday, Dec. 12. • AHG Mother/Daugther/Grandmother Christmas Tea, Thursday, Dec. 14. • BHEA Christmas ornament/cookie exchange, Thursday. Dec. 21. Hopefully Dad2Three will resist coming in drag. We know how much he enjoys such events. Today we put up our new advent countdown. I'd post a picture but SOMEONE used up all the battery power in the digital camera. So, we bought 25 little stockings and mittens from the Dollar Store (they were 50 cents each), and strung them up. They will be filled with a Scripture reading as well as a little treat for each child. The kids get to take turns taking down the stocking, reading the verse, and distributing the treat. And now I must return to my baking. The day is still bright and sunny, but yesterday's winds blew in the cold weather, so I'm baking batch #2 of Christmas cookies.

Your Christmas is Most Like: A Very Brady Christmas

Happy Dave Ramsey Anniversary to Us!

It’s been one year since we began actively implementing Dave Ramsey’s Total Money Makeover program. In this past year we have completely and radically changed how we handle money. The result: in one year we have paid off a whopping $11,113. We have a long way to go (7 years of student loans will do that to you), but we are one year closer to calling Dave and yelling, “WE’RE DEBT FREE!” That is going to be one awesome day in SmallWorld.


So what have we done? First of all, we both read Total Money Makeover. Then we began with Baby Step #1:
• $1,000 to start an Emergency Fund.
And during this past year, we have used that emergency fund for car repairs (twice), a new dryer when the old one finally bit the dust, a new dishwasher (ditto), and oven repair. For all of those things, we paid CASH (which means that we had to replenish the Emergency Fund on several occasions).

Next, we began tracking all of our expenses and created a budget a la Dave Ramsey. After tracking our expenses for a few months, we began using the envelope system for everything except for those bills we pay by mail. This has helped us with Baby Step #2:
• Pay off all debt using the Debt Snowball.
Dave’s system is to pay off the smallest debts first so that you feel successful. It really does work. We paid off several small debts and our van. We have two more debts slated to be paid off in the next few months, and then we can tackle the Biggie (AKA, the student loan). It may be a long time until we get to the next several steps (although we do have some college funding going for the kids):
• Three to six months of expenses in savings
• Invest 15% of household income into Roth IRAs and pre-tax retirement
• College funding for children
• Pay off home early
• Build wealth and give!

So while we still have a long way to go, we have absolutely gotten a taste of the financial freedom—and it so, so delicious. We are about to celebrate our second CASH ONLY Christmas. We have not put anything on a credit card in a year. We planned and budgeted for all of our travels this past year. Randy taught a class this past summer to earn extra money, and, besides my regular teaching at our support group’s enrichment classes, I have been blessed with a regular proofreading job (thanks, Ang!) that satisfies my yearning for a little something extra every now and then. We did not squander away our income tax refund or Randy’s summer salary. Most of all, we have not accumulated any new debt. We changed our behavior, and the fruit has been abundant. I am looking forward to this time next year, when we are even closer to knocking out that nasty debt.

The Clock and the Calendar

November 29, 2006

“We must not allow the clock and the calendar to blind us to the fact that each moment of life is a miracle and mystery.”
—H. G. Wells (1866–1946), English author

I love this quote. I wish I could make it one of my life mantras. I'm a pretty laid-back person, but I certainly can't deny that sometimes (OK, frequently) I hurry through certain activities to get to the next activity. I don't take enough time to just sit--with my younger two, especially--and just breathe. As December approaches, our calendar actually slows down as normal activities take a break. I'm looking forward to the next several weeks, taking time to revel in the small moments.

Monday Memory: Milligan College

I spent four years at Milligan College, but it seemed like a lifetime. How can so much life happen in just a few years? Why is it that I can remember all kinds of details about events or just daily life from my college years, but I can't even remember how we spent New Year's just last year? Why can I remember an outfit that some random person wore in the cafeteria in 1987, but I couldn't even tell you what my kids are wearing today or what I wore to church yesterday? Why can I remember exact conversations in the lobby of our dorm but can't remember if I told Randy about what's coming up this weekend?

It's as if those college years were in slow motion and in brilliantly colored, intricate detail. I loved my college years. I loved my college--a small, liberal arts college nestled in the hills of Upper East Tennessee (now known as Northeast Tennessee). People always wonder how I ended up in Tennessee, having been raised in upstate New York. Milligan brought me here. It is one of the largest colleges that is supported by the our particular church, and one of the few that is specifically a liberal arts college rather than just a Bible college. Three of my four brothers attended Milligan, and for me it was basically a matter of attending Milligan or attending Cornell University, where my Dad was a professor. Because I wanted out of New York State, Milligan was the obvious choice.

Many of the best things in my life happened at Milligan. I met a group of incredible friends, and we shared countless adventures and growing experiences. We are still all close friends today, although we see each other rarely. I had amazing professors, who showed me a much bigger world. I fell in love with Tennessee and the mountains. I discovered that God is much bigger than one-dimension. And, most of all, I met the love of my life.

Would I send my kids there? In a heartbeat. If they could take away from their college years nothing but solid, lifetime relationships, then I'd consider that four years well spent.

November 21, 2006: Family Season Begins

Friends, take heed. When you call me, you'll be answered with a deep, gruff, "This is Jim." The holiday season has officially started: my parents have arrived from New York. Dinner conversation tonight is only a foretaste of things to come: we talked of New Zealand, apartheid, scarab beetle tie clasps, cryogenics, germplasm maintenance, 60s ties, and noninstrumental churches. Forget the kids reporting on various daily events. When my parents are here, dinner conversations take surprising twists, and it's not unusual for Randy and my father--both scientists by trade--to spend a solid hour at the dinner table discussing history or all of us listening to my father's stories. With 81 years behind him, he has a lot of stories.

I am unspeakably blessed in so many ways to have my parents live in here 5 months of each year. Not only are my children growing up with their grandparents right next door, but I get to spend precious time with my parents. And how many spouses would delight in their in-laws living next door, sharing the supper table, for half the year? I love my husband even more for his utter generousity of spirit. He simply loves having them here. Funny how the similarities between Randy and my father grow stronger every year...

And so the family season begins. Tomorrow we bake pies, roll out noodles, and thaw a turkey. My brothers and their families, who live less than an hour away but whom we rarely see during the "off season," will start popping in. My kids will be reminded that they have cousins. There will be evening card games and trips to Dollywood, lots of raking and yard maintenance, and my mother's fabulous side dishes.

Nov. 20, 2006: Monday Memory: First House, First Car

Randy and I were married at the end of March. In February, I was living at home in NY with my parents, and he was living with a friend in Johnson City, TN, where we would be married. In that month before our wedding, he was charged with finding us a place to live. This is what he found: a 3-bedroom house on Johnson City's Tree Streets (we would never have looked anywhere else) for a whopping $175/month. The oven didn't work, the pipes burst, the back porch was falling off, it needed paint everywhere, and the roof leaked, but we loved it. It had definite potential. He was very nervous about showing this house to my parents, imagining that they would be appalled that their daughter would be living in such squalor. But my parents were undaunted and in fact were all smiles, remembering their own first house, not unlike this one.

We used to fantasize about what we could do with that house if we had money and if we were owners rather than renters. We'd shine up the hardwood floors, knock out a couple of walls, and fix the fireplaces. The best part of the house was its huge front porch, which was a gathering place for all sorts of people. The Tree Streets were the place to live back then: six streets of old family houses with big front porches interspersed with fraternities and apartment houses, just a few blocks away from the university where Randy was finishing his bachelor's degree. All our friends either lived there on the Tree Streets or were still in college 5 miles away at Milligan, so our house was always hopping. We never knew who we might find in our living room when we came home from work or school, and that's how we liked it.

But when our 6-month lease was up, we moved a few blocks down Poplar Street to a nicer apartment. Six months is long enough to use a toaster-over for baking, and we longed for showers instead of baths. The house remained unrented, though not vacant. A year or so later, it suffered fire damage when a homeless person tried to use the fireplace. A couple of years after that, that house and its twin sister next door sold and have been renovated. We drive past every time we go to Johnson City. Maybe someday we'll work up the courage to ask if we can see the inside.

The car was given to us by Randy's grandfather. I used to drive that giant Impala to work every day, fearing for my life and feeling like a midget in a submarine. Like the house, the car had a leaky roof and a broken heater.

I'm not sure I ever imagined the day would come when we'd have a van and our own house, but starting from scratch sure does make today's treasures sweeter.