worship wednesday - noel

Christmas. 
is. 
8. 
weeks. 
and. 
2. 
days. 
away. 

I am so ready. Recap of our Christmas holidays since we've been married. 
2010 - Newlywed bliss. I lie. Newlywed- not sure if being newly married to me resulted in bliss for Chris. 
2011 - Pregnant. 
2012 - Brand new city. Boxes everywhere. Not how I envisioned Hutton's 1st Christmas. 
2013 - Miscarriage. Yep, I'm a downer. 
2014 - New job for Chris. Baby at home. Not how I envisioned Mills' 1st Christmas.

Goals for this year:
Be done shopping the week of
Try to enjoy every moment
Do fun crafts with the boys
Watch lots of Christmas movies 
Throw away the expectations and realize that some of the above things may not happen. What's most important:

Enjoy my family and help them to make room for Jesus in their lives this Christmas. 

Now - to the point. 

This song. Yall. Just enjoy the magnitude of how awesome it is. Come. Listen. Be prepared this Christmas to truly come and see and soak in what God has done. His son. Here. For. Us. O come let us adore Him. 

Thank you Lauren Daigle and Chris Tomlin for making this song my 2016 Christmas anthem. And for people like my friend Hannah who are just as obsessed and don't think I'm crazy when I've listened to the song 10,000 times. 

Love incarnate, love divine
Star and angels gave the sign
Bow to babe on bended knee
The Savior of humanity
Unto us a Child is born
He shall reign forevermore

Noel, Noel
Come and see what God has done
Noel, Noel
The story of amazing love!
The light of the world, given for us
Noel

Son of God and Son of man
There before the world began
Born to suffer, born to save
Born to raise us from the grave
Christ the everlasting Lord 
He shall reign forevermore

Noel, Noel
Come and see what God has done
Noel, Noel
The story of amazing love!
The light of the world, given for us
Noel

 

Worship Wednesdays

  Well it is officially Christmas! With only 11 days to go I felt that I just had to share a Christmas song with you this Worship Wednesday. Over the last few years this has become one of my favorite Christmas songs and I'm sure if you haven't heard it yet once you listen you will find it as beautiful as I do.

Could've come like a mighty storm
With all the strength of a hurricane
You could've come like a forest fire
With the power of heaven in Your flame

But You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

You could've swept in like a tidal wave
Or an ocean to ravish our hearts
You could have come through like a roaring flood
To wipe away the things we've scarred

But You came like a winter snow
(Yes, You did)
You were quiet
You were soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Oh, no, Your voice wasn't in a bush burning
No, Your voice wasn't in a rushing wind
It was still
It was small
It was hidden

You came like a winter snow
Quiet and soft and slow
Falling from the sky in the night
To the earth below

Falling
(Oh, yeah)
To the earth below
You came falling
From the sky in the night
To the earth below

Ten things on Thursdays

I'm going to be completely honest. This has been a VERY hard week! No, it shouldn't be. I had an amazing weekend with one of my best friends spending the night with me two nights and a baby shower on Sunday and capped it off with Small Group Christmas party Sunday night. But, Monday came and the weather got a little crazy and I got SiCk! I've come down with some sinus/cold ick and it has worn me down. I'm so exhausted as if I wasn't already tired enough! Enough with that though, even though I don't feel well there are too many things to be joyful about and thankful for.

1~ I was truly ShOwErEd with love and adorable gifts for Hutton last Saturday! I am so blessed with such loving, supportive, and generous friends and family.

2~ Tomorrow is Friday and Friday equals the weekend which is going to equal rest for me this weekend.

3~ This Sunday continues the Advent season. I have found this special this year as we celebrate the anticipation and coming of Christ and I anticipate the coming of our sweet boy.

4~ I have almost finished my Christmas shopping. We thought very differently this year for Christmas and I'm excited about what we're giving everyone.

5~ My sweet amazing husband is cooking me dinner tonight since I don't feel well.

6~ We have had an event every night of the week for over a week so tonight is the first night in a week we will just be at home relaxing together. Can you say food, fire, tv, and our sweet pup!

7~ I'm 29 weeks pregnant. Wow! I found out I was pregnant at 4 weeks. Hard to believe that hot summer day when I found out we were expecting a surprise blessing was 25 weeks ago!

8~ We're spending NYE in Atlanta with Chris' family to go to Auburn's bowl game! I haven't been to an Auburn game yet this year so I'm pretty pumped about it!

9~ This Sunday I'm spending the day with two of the best friends a girl could have to celebrate Christmas so we're going to be shopping, baking, listening to Christmas tunes and just enjoying being together!

10~ Through the sickness, I was fairly productive at work today!

That's all for today folks! Say a prayer that I'll feel better and have a little more energy tomorrow!

Time for a Christmas game?

  I wanted to share a fun game with you that I created for our Small Group Christmas Party on Sunday and they seemed to enjoy it! Let me know if you need the answers!

Christmas Music Trivia

1. What do the treetops do in a white Christmas?

2. What is Rudolph going to go down in?

3. What kind of fire do chestnuts roast on?

4. What did your true love send you on the fifth day of Christmas?

5. What can we build in the meadow?

6. What two things are all you want for Christmas?

7. Where will our troubles be if we have a Merry Little Christmas?

8. What do bells on bob tails do?

9. Even though the weather outside is frightful, what is the fire? 10. What type of gifts do we bring to lay before the King?

11. Where did Mommy tickle Santa Claus?

12. Outside when the snow is falling what are friends calling? 13. What kind of nose did Frosty the Snowman have?

14. What do shepherds quake at?

15. What color Christmas will I have without you?

16. What do the angels sing?

17. What does the weary world do on this Holy night?

18. What type of joy do we repeat?

19. Jesus was born on Christmas Day to save us from whose power?

20. What are the three kings bearing gifts following?

21. The angel brought glad tidings of what?

22. What did they go tell it on the mountain?

23. Good King Wencelas looked out on the feast of who?

24. What was the little Lord Jesus asleep on?

25. What will you hear on every street corner?

26. How many times is Santa checking his list?

It's beginning to look a lot like...

  CHRISTMAS

Okay, I can't help it- I'm one of those! If Chris would let me, we would be pulling the boxes down from the attic tonight. Now, considering we're also in the middle of painting and installing beadboard in the nursery the timing would not be perfect. I love it though, I'm currently listening to Brenda Lee on Pandora sing me Rockin Around the Christmas Tree. I was in a shopping center last week and saw them putting the lights on the trees and it made my heart skip a beat. I love walking into crowded stores with a scarf around my neck and Christmas music playing as I'm surrounded by red and green everywhere.

I love Christmas for a multitude of reasons, number one being that that is when we celebrate God's gift of His son being born to save us! However, I do still love the commercial part of Christmas. I love that Christmas has sounds, smells, colors, and everything else that make me know that it is Christmas time!! So with my love of the commercial Christmas, this little note from Nordstroms makes me sad.

Don't get me wrong- I totally understand it. Our society does try to make Christmas a 3 month long event. We shouldn't ever complain about a shortage of Holidays in the Fall... Halloween consumes the shelves in October, Thanksgiving gourds and fall colors are everywhere in November, and we all know what December is like.  So Nordstrom, I get your point, but I'm still sad! It makes me wonder though what it would be like if we celebrated Jesus' birth all over the place everywhere in the same ways we celebrate Santa and the other hype that surrounds us November and December. My goal this year is that as long as I'm listening to Christmas music and enjoying the red and green that surrounds me, I'm going to celebrate Jesus being born all of November and December as well!