Gathering 'Round the Tree

Cole's favorite Christmas symbol thus far has to be the tree. He spots them wherever we go and admires each ornament and light. We've always had a fake tree (love the real tree smell but not the hassle) and getting the boxes down from the attic is always a special treat announcing that Christmas has arrived. Decorating together is cherished as we gently open each ornament and reminisce its origin. Whether they are from our travels (we collect one everywhere we go), handmade, or mark special occasions, each one is unique and sparks chatter of memories and days gone by.

A few favorite ornaments:

Honeymoon in St. John/St. Thomas

First Christmas together

Cole's first Christmas

Gatlinburg where my family has vacationed and spent Thanksgiving for the past 30+ years

Cade Elias is coming soon! :)

We've begun a tradition for Cole where he gets a special ornament each year marking a name of Christ. I keep a journal and record each year, the ornament given, the name of Christ it represents, and a Scripture verse. When he marries, these will be a special gift for his new home - I pray he cherishes them as much as I do.

2007 - Where it all began - King of Kings

2008 - Crystal pear - "Fruit of the Spirit"

2009 - Glass grapes - "I am the Vine, ye are the branches"

2010 - Lit Lantern - Light of the world

My favorite keepsake ornaments are the ones handmade by my grandmother. She's made a set for my mom, myself, and my sis-in-law, Laura. There are 20+ symbols of Christ that she has stitched and written the meaning on the back. Along with the delicate crosses, it makes for a beautiful and meaningful tree. As we trim these branches, we are always reminded of the TRUE meaning of Christmas.

The first three letters for Jesus in Greek

The crown of thorns and three nails representing his suffering on the cross

The cross used by the early Christians to declare their faith when having to be discreet.

Beautiful crosses add that special touch

We pray you are enjoying the beauty that surrounds us this Christmas and rejoice daily in God's perfect, precious gift. . . Jesus Christ.

Lights!

One of our favorite family traditions is hopping in the car on cold evenings and heading out to spot great light displays around the city.  Add pajamas, hot chocolate (or Starbucks for mom and dad) and it's the perfect evening.  

Included among our neighborhood tours is always a visit to Chad's Wonderland on Hwy 109 towards Lebanon.  I highly encourage it. . . fascinating for both young and old alike.  Not only are the lights beautiful, but the kiddos get to chat with Santa and Frosty puts on a show :)

This year, we also ventured towards Opryland to check out the new light display sponsored by Fox and 98 WSIX at Jellystone Campground.  Although the price was steep, we had a BLAST!  All the lights are synchronized to music - four songs which play on a radio station as you drive through.  It's amazing!!  At the end, you can park and enjoy hot chocolate, cider, visit Santa, and cook smores on an open bonfire.  Pack up a carload and venture out. . . you won't be disappointed!

Trying to get a picture of the lights. . . they kept changing so fast.

Cole would rather sit with this Santa :)

Smores!

Birthdays are a BLAST!

It's so hard to believe I now have a FOUR year old. That number sounds so BIG! At three, you could still consider Cole a 'preschooler', but now it's all big boy this and big kid that. . . how the time has flown!

This year, we went with an outer space theme for Cole's friend party. He LOVES learning about the planets - all sparked from a picture in a book about the story of God's creation. His love for space has caused Michael and I to truly marvel at the awesomeness of our God as we read facts about our universe. What an amazing Creator!

The planning began with the creation of the b'day invites. I've handmade them every year and hope to continue that tradition with both boys in the future. I must say, these were my favorites so far!

I used a rocketship template I found online to create the shape. Adding a little fun with colored paper, markers, and a picture of astronaut Cole made the perfect front cover.

I then attached two other 'pages' by a star brad at the top of the rocket.

The second page read:

Message From Misson Command:

4,3,2,1. . . It's Time For FUN!

Space Cadet Cole will soon complete phase three of his training and embark on phase four.

You have been selected as part of his launch crew for a celebratory mission to outer space.

We hope you can join us for an OUT OF THIS WORLD party!!

Third page contained all the party info.

Launch Date: Saturday, November 20

Command Center: Space Station Johnson

Coordinates: (our address)

Lift-off: 10:30 a.m.

Return to Earth: 12:30 p.m.

Communicate with Adrian at Mission Control to confirm your flight readiness by Monday, Nov.15 (with email and number attached)

Here are a few pics from Cole's special day. . . (believe it or not, there were people at this party :) I was just so busy with the festivities, that Kyle took most of the candid shots on his camera).

We transformed the dining room by hanging planets around a giant sun and letting the table scape represent all things space. The kids (and adults) LOVED it!

Each child had a special seat complete with star blower, space cadet badge, and rocketship craft which we made during the party. They turned out so cute and the kiddos loved soaring them around the house.

Treat bags I made for each guest - filled with Pop Rock candy, Milky Way bars, glow-in-the dark party silly bands and stars, a light up astroball, solar system sticker chart, and astronaut erasers (LOVE Oriental Trading!)

Cole's cute cake made by my dear friend, Rebecca. She also made the sweet star cupcakes for our gender reveal party.

Our yummy lunch :) Complete with star sandwiches for the kiddos.

Watching Cole grow from 1-4 yrs. Amazing how he's changed!

Time for presents!His own camera! The favorite gift by far. . .

CAKE!! He couldn't wait to blow out his candle :)

After the friend party that morning, we took a quick breather and prepared to host family that evening for more birthday fun and the awaited baby gender reveal.

Cole amazed us all by reading his own birthday cards this year. Such a smart boy!

Oh. . .my. . .word. . .

And Christmas is just around the corner!

Cole, we LOVE you so much - our precious gift from above. We treasure your presence in our family and can't wait to see all the wonderful things the Lord has in store for your life. His light and love already shine through your spirit. . . we pray it never fades.

Introducing. . .

Cade Elias Johnson

Michael and I are thrilled that the Lord has given us another son to humbly raise into a man of God. We feel blessed beyond measure and can't wait to meet this new little boy!

Check out that sweet smile :)

A little about his name. . .

Michael and I always joked that we would have a hard time naming another boy since we thought long and hard about Cole's name. That joking turned out to be so true :) Although we didn't have a name for some time, we knew that God had the perfect one already chosen for our newest son. . . we just had to seek and trust Him to reveal it.

In our own quiet times with the Lord, Michael has been in 1 and 2 Timothy reading about Paul's commission to this young man to 'fight the good fight' and finish well. In concordinance, I had been reading in Ephesisans 6 about wearing the full armor of God to "resist the enemy whenever he attacks, and when it is all over, you will still be standing" (Eph. 6:13). With these thoughts weighing heavy in our lives, the Lord brought me the name Cade meaning "battler". We then chose Elias as his middle name meaning "My God is the Lord". How beautiful!

We pray that as Cade grows, he will wage war against Satan and all the principalities of the air and below forever proclaiming that HIS God is the Lord. May he also do battle for those around him through prayer and encouragement as he proclaims the Good News - pressing others to ever increasing faith as he fights the good fight and, Lord willing, finishes well.

We also loved the way Cade's name correlates with Cole's which means "shepherd". How wonderful that our boys' proclaim the very nature and awesomeness of our God. Not only is Jesus our Good Shepherd - leading, protecting, and guiding, but he is also our great defender - fighting for us, laying our petitions before the father, and giving us the power we need to prevail against evil and temptation.

As we continue to praise the Lord for his goodness in our lives, here is a glimpse of our FUN gender reveal with family. . .

Ultrasound picture in the envelope and little outfit in the bag - what will Baby J be??

(oh the suspense!)

The family casted their votes for boy or girl by choosing their colored plates.

We let Cole have the honor of opening the gift. . . it's. . .

a. . .

BOY!!!

Although Cole has mentioned a sister from Day 1, he was excited to know he was going to have a little brother. He talks about his love for Cade constantly, kisses my belly, and even got to feel Cade kick a little yesterday evening. I LOVE watching his wonder as our family travels this blessed path. He is going to be such a FaBuLoUs BIG brother!