A good day in "The City"

Imagine this... 5 days or more of wonderful, warm weather. The sun shining and the temperatures picnic perfect... then you say good night and wake up to FREEZING COLD! Now you would think this would put the normal southerner out of sorts, but nope, even though I personally don't like windy cold weather the day was very good. Part of that is because Matt is home from a 4 day excursion and I got to sleep late, but most of that has to do with out outing. We went to a big market to look for a doll house - which there are none of - and other goodies for Christmas. Everyone was in such a good mood. I think it has something to do with the weather... which is the irony of it all. I'd say 99% of the folks in this city did not enjoy our warm streak. It is against their nature to take off layers of clothes to be comfortable... so they just sweated through the beautiful weather and I think it made most of them miserable. But today, it was a lot colder and they were finally comfortable for the first time in a week so they were happy. The streets were crowded for a Monday and so was the market, but everyone was in a good mood. You just gotta love it.

The other really great thing that happened today was that I found a fleece, a hooded sweatshirt, and a sweater that fit my big ole pregnant self. There is this one shop that has pieces of clothing from a factory someplace... most of the items are things going to Wal-Mart or some cheap clothing store, but every once in a while you find something special. Today, it wasn't anything special, but it was exactly what I needed. So I got the above mentioned articles of clothing, Matt got a fleece and 2 shirts and Gracie got a zip up fleece too. All for the amazing price of about $35. Now I won't freeze : ) Oh, and this is about the only shop, or at least the only one we have found, that sells clothes that fit us. Guess that is because they jumped ship on their way to America and landed in a Chinese five and dime.

I spent the rest of the afternoon with Tina, my very pregnant Chinese girlfriend. She helped me order some food for Thanksgiving off the Chinese ebay (Taobao). Poor Tina, She has enjoyed Thanksgiving dinner with us before and was lamenting that she won't be able to this year, that is unless her little one hangs out a week + late. When I left her house I rode the bus home across town... usually a 30-40 minute ride, but tonight there was a big accident and traffic jam in the major intersection just before our district... so it took me about 1 hour and 20 minutes to get home. That was ok. The lady next to me was nice and we chatted. I would have gotten off the bus with the rest of the folks and walked except that it had started raining and I was still a good 2 miles from home. You know, now that I think about it, not one person complained about the traffic or the wait. That is a first! Yep, definitely the weather change. Cold, windy and rainy made for a great day in the Chang.

This City

Wow, couldn't ask for better weather these days. I didn't even check the temperature today, but it was so warm that not one person asked if we were cold in our 1-layer, skin baring, outfits. That says a lot in NC in November. We've had some cold spells, so everyone has changed their attire to long johns, sweaters, and coats. I must have seen 10 kids today bundled for a snow fight in 70 degree weather. Poor things. We had planned to play a game and count how many times people asked if we were cold, were scared of the cold, or just made some comment about our lack of clothing... we all made our bids before leaving the house. Gracie guessed 6 times, I guessed 13, Tracy guessed 10 and Lola who now likes to count everything to 4 guessed 4. Poo - not one person made a comment. I figured they were all so miserably hot today they couldn't muster the word cold from their vocabulary.

So, no one harassed us about out clothes today, but plenty of folks wanted to touch Gracie and Lola's face and hair. I mean really, like they are animals in a zoo for sport. Gracie did really well though, she didn't even notice people touching her hair, but several A-yis got the grumble and stomp reaction when they went for the touch. Lola is still mostly kind to everyone and shines her smile and invites more attention. I, however, am quick to ask them not to touch her face. Besides the fact that it is just rude, most of these people have probably used the bathroom, blown a few snot rockets, handled raw meat, and no telling what else without washing their hands. Filthy!

Wal-Marts bathroom.... oh my. I mean public restrooms have a reputation to uphold, I understand, but when you multiply the yuck with squatty potties - which means you have to get a little closer to the yuck.... anyway, I felt like disease was jumping on me like bedbugs on an Indian sleeper train. Gross!

The elevator... in plane view of the escalator, was crowded with young people and able bodied men for the most part. Several times (yes, we had to make several trips up and down today) people rushed on in front of us because there is no line system here... just the cattle call. After this had happened several times and the elevator was full of many people who could have easily taken the escalator I just had to ask them... why can't you take the escalator and let the pregnant woman with a huge double stroller use the lift? RUDE! This is not uncommon, even in HK, but at least in HK there are all these little signs reminding people to be considerate of the old, the weak, the pregnant and those with small children, buggies or luggage. Being considerate was left out of the Chinese cotillion classes...it just never occurs to them to look around and think about others before themselves. Considerate is our word of the month - Gracie is improving.

Noise - oh my. I wanted to take a nap today but the music shop behind our apartment building must have purchased a new CD because it was blaring. I am really thankful that they mostly play their flutes and play them quite nicely, but it does get loud at times and their is no volume control or insulation to shield us. Then there are the firecrackers, which I am also happy to say do not freak my kids out as bad as they used to, but tonight about 20 minutes after Gracie went to bed I hear her screaming for me. I was working in the living room and hadn't even heard the firecrackers... but they woke her up. "Mommy, why are they firing them off so late?" Well it was only 8:15, not so late! I think the biggest noise nuisance at the moment is the sound of horns. There are the skreeching ones that make the hair stand up on your arms, the bull horn type that make you jump out of your skin, and then the plane old honk, honk type... the problem with all of them are that people use them way too much. Some people are honk happy - honking their horn every few seconds, others just wait until they get right next to you and then bllllll! Arg - my ears are under attack.

So the weather is nice here in NC, but the air is terrible - can't breath in some areas because of the heavy amounts of coal that are being burned. My eyes are red and poofy - just from the pollution. But the weather is nice. Thank you Lord for the warm weather. I'll take it! Please let it last.

That's my rant for the day. Maybe tomorrow will be extremely positive. I hope so.

Girls, girls, girls... and a boy!

I went to Shanghai for my 20 week check-up yesterday. It was some day. I missed my plane, which was mostly my fault but also my driver's fault. I got confused about the time of my to Shanghai time and my return to Nanchang time and unfortunately I was about 20 minutes too late to catch my flight. It was partly my driver's fault because I asked him to come at 8:00 and he didn't show until 8:30, which means if he had come on time I would have probably made my flight by the skin of my teeth. But it's all good - I was able to get another ticket and arrived an hour after my original flight... but it cost me about $75 : (

Anyway, I got a taxi right off the airport bus and my driver actually knew where to go... miracle! I didn't get to eat lunch, but I made my appointment on time! I saw a midwife at Shanghai United and then a skilled ultrasound tech. To my very great surprise she informed me that our little Rachel is a boy. It was a little bit overwhelming. I was so excited to call and tell Matt. I lost some of my umf because my credit card wouldn't work so I had to first call Matt to call the credit card company... first thing he asked? "Well, did you find out for sure?" I put him off! Got the credit card working and then called him back. He just giggled with delight! It was awesome. As soon as he told Gracie I could hear howling in the background because she has "only wanted a boy" this whole time.

We have never been able to agree on a name for a boy, but after we knew little bit was definitely a boy it was like we all knew right away. Gracie has been calling the baby Peter for some time and I didn't really like it, but honestly all the other choices I had liked before just didn't sit well with me once I knew I was going to have a son. All of a sudden Peter James sounded like the name we should choose. I texted it to Matt a few minutes after we hung up and he called right back to say that was the very name he and Gracie had just chosen. So Peter James it is... at least for now. But I like it. Peter - the great apostle and James - the one Jesus loved. James was also my Dad's name. I am thinking I like the ring of PJ for a little boy too!

So, exciting times in the Owen's house. We are going to have a boy.

Noise Makers...

It really isn't the neighbors fault, I know that. I could blame it on the poor construction of our apartment building since there is not a thread of insulation in the place, but compared to other buildings ours is well made... so I best not complain about that either. I guess I am just once again suffering from my spoiled American upbringing. We never lived in an apartment building, we never had loud neighbors, our home was well insulated and we could barely hear what was going on right outside our own bedroom door. No one shot off firecrackers randomly at 5 am or 9 pm and they didn't stand outside our window and shout into their cell phone either. But that is case in point - I grew up in America and this ain't America.

Why am I rambling you wonder? Because tonight Lola, who does not go to bed well anyway, was just about to sleep when our upstairs neighbors dropped what sounded like a bowling ball on the floor above our heads. She was almost there again and a chair was dragged across the floor. Then they started jump-roping, later they were arguing... it really isn't their fault we can hear everything they do and say as though they are in our room, but really - could they just not make so much noise between 7:30 - 8? I just have to explain the insulation-less problem. Our building, like all the others here in China, is made of brick and cement. We live in a cement shell. The inside has the appearance of something else because they whitewash the wall, put tile or hardwood type floors down and decorate accordingly. But it is just cement and sound carries. At this point, I wish I had gone to loud concerts as a teenager, or walked around with those ear buds in listening to high decibel music every day. My ears were protected to my detriment. As I type, a group of people are walking home from some place - it is 9:05 pm and I can hear every word they are saying as if they were in my room. Actually if they were I would ask them to speak little more softly because it is loud even with space and walls between us.

Lord knows I love em, but I sure do live in a country full of noise makers!

Lola's 2...

Lola had a birthday muffin on her birthday because that was on a Thursday. Her party was Saturday and she blew out the candles one more time. Happy Birthday Lola!


Time really does seem to fly, especially when you are talking about your kids growing up. Lola had her 2nd birthday on September 9th and I can hardly believe it. She has grown up so much. Over the summer she got weaned, potty trained and began to chatter away. Her favorite songs are Qing Qing Ting - a Chinese worship song and Ring Around the Rosies. She loves Barney, the Wiggles, and Yang Yang (a Chinese cartoon). She dances and sings and smiles all the time. She is such a joy! And she spreads that joy everywhere she goes. She is more than happy to greet the young ladies and gentlemen with a friendly Ayi Hao or Shu Shu Hao (hello auntie, hello uncle) and the grandmas and grandpas with a friendly Nai Nai Hao or YeYe Hao (Hello Grandma, Hello Grandpa). Everyone loves to hear her speak Chinese, and I have to admit it is very standard. She actually speaks Chinese much clearer than English - I think it is because a lot of English words have too many syllables. It is so much fun though to watch her develop.
Mimi sent Lola a Cinderella dress.

This past week we went out to walk and think about our neighborhood. When we came upon a group of children with their mommas hanging out in the shade Lola decided it was time to get out of the stroller and break out the bubbles. All the other children were delighted. They all chased bubbles as Lola blew them into the wind. After a while she decided it was time to teach one of the little boys about her age how to blow bubbles. It was really cute. She would say "tui, tui" (Blow, blow) as she held the wand to her lips. Then she would dip it in again and hold it to his lips and repeat the command for him. He had obviously never blown bubbles before and was a little scared of the wand in his face, but after a while he gave it a try. Too cute.


Now that Gracie is going to Chinese school half days I get to spend some time with Lola one on one. This has been a sweet time, especially since there will be another little one come February. I am so thankful to be able to have some time alone with my little sweet pea. She is just that!

Noah's Ark

We had a great time seeing Hong Kong's replica of Noah's Ark this week. It really was remarkable. To think Noah built a boat that size without modern tools blows my mind. There was a great video that re-enacted the flood, it was pretty awesome and completely contextualized, Noah was Chinese. The park didn't stop with Noah, they gave people reason to repent today and told stories of our Lord. There was one exhibit with a replica ark of the covenant, lampstand, and other articles from the Tabernacle. They were all gold - fascinating! It was really a neat place! If ever in HK go have a look : )
Click on this panoramic to get the whole shot... Gracie's over there making faces!

Wo Bu Kai Che!

I don't drive a car!

This is a no-brainer in my city. Here is a great example... just today I failed to go to the market early. Problem is that when 5 o'clock rolls around it is really too late to go to the market... it just takes so long. But Matt had been on a little guy retreat earlier this week and returned today so I wanted to welcome him home with fajitas... so I had to go. My friend and her child had just arrived so I just tried to politely leave and run to the store... then my friend announced that she would take me in her new car. OK. Sounded like a good idea. Not! It was good for bonding anyway, but it took twice as long. First problem was that she just learned to drive, like last month. She is 36.... uh-huh. Very slow and calculated. We almost got hit by a bus, several cars and numerous bikes. She got honked at a lot. She was not a bad driver though, just slow. When we finally got to the market she wasn't sure where to park, then I think it was a matter of knowing how to get in the space, so she just went around the corner. Glory, I just wanted to run in and grab some chicken, peppers, and onions. I finally told her to just wait for me and I ran in... when I came out I saw her car a little ways up the road so I walked down, but she wasn't in it. Arg. I forgot my cell phone. I walked back to the market. Then I saw her and met up and walked back to the car. Of course then we couldn't go back the way we had come so we ended up going all the way around in heavy traffic which took another 20 minutes. We did make it home, and I put everyone to work when I walked in the door. Should have ridden the electric bike, but I didn't. Instead I got another reason for why I don't need a car and grew a little bit closer to my new friend. The fajitas were good : )

"No you don't"

I had almost completely forgotten about the segment of this population that likes to tell you what you need and how you feel. Lest I forget, we had a taxi driver tonight who reminded us. Conversation went something like this: "Please don't pass cars, drive slower, safety first!" Him: "It doesn't matter" Me: "Yes, it matters because my children are in this car and I am a little scared." Him: "Oh, you're not scared" as he proceeds to speed around another car with oncoming traffic not far away. Me: "Slowly, slowly" Him: "It doesn't matter"

Uh huh, frustrating. Thankfully our lives are in Lord's hands. Speedy liked passing cars and he also liked to stop abruptly at the last minute. Poor Lola bumped her head on the back of his seat about 5 times. No seat belts + no road rules = insanity!

3rd go around!

We are extremely happy to say that we will be having yet another little sweetie joining our family sometime next February! We were hoping to get pregnant this summer and to our complete surprise here we are - with a bun in the oven. Or a bean - that's what I like to call our little one. He/she is yet unknown to the world, even unknown to us, but the Lord already knows and has plans for this precious life. We don't know what the future holds, but we are so blessed to know the One who does. He holds our lives in His hands. He has perfect timing. He knows best and works all things for good for those who love Him and are called according to his purpose.

It is hard to contain my excitement.

Good bye sugar, hello big belly! I will embrace it all with gladness!

PTL!!! For He is good!

A week in Hong Kong

And we are tired! Well I guess we are over being tired now, but Hong Kong wore us out. For starters you must do a lot of walking in HK. We usually take the MTR to major locations then taxi if we must. The problem with HK is that they did not think about people with strollers when they built the MTR and the whole country is a mountain so it is up and down stairs or up and down hills all day long. But Hong Kong is a wonderful place. It is the perfect mix of East meets West. It's clean and no one spits in the buses or on the sidewalk and certainly not on the floor in a restaurant. You don't see little ones poppin a squat in the street or the grocery store. And bathrooms don't have that ever so distinct odor of "STINK". For these reasons along it is a nice getaway, but being able to get good Western food is nice too and seeing doctors that speak English and do things the way we think they aught to be done is a bonus too!

This go around we took the kids to Disney World. It was our first time as a family. Matt and I both went as children and teenagers, but it has been at least 20 years since I last rode "It's a Small World". It was every bit as good as I remembered, but HK Disney is a bit small than Orlando Disney. But our kids didn't know the difference do it was all good. Gracie got a pretty little Belle dress and Lola picked out a Minnie Mouse umbrella. All I got was a magnet and a sunburn! LOL - it was hot. I think the biggest hit of the day was playing in the water. They had a great water-play area. I was grateful that I thought to bring a change of clothes. The girls had so much fun.

I am just hoping that the next time we go to Hong Kong it is a planned trip and not a "Oh my! Lola just got stabbed in the ear with a Q-tip" kind of trip. At any rate, we love Hong Kong!

China Mis-Adventure

So today I went to get our school calendar laminated. Easy enough, right? But the thing is is nothing is easy in China. Unless you want to get some stinky doufu... that's a little joke. Seems where ever I go stinky doufu is there to greet me. Phew-wee!
So anyway, I went to get my stuff laminated and it was kkkkrazy! First of all the lamination isn't what you think of in America. They had these huge rolls of laminate, but no heated element to squeeze all the stuff through... the rolls were basically just there and they cut hunks off to match the size of whatever you want laminated. Then they stick it on. You have to specify is you want the front and back laminated or they will only laminate the front. They do actually have a roller of sorts that they use, but don't use well.
I was in a hurry today seeing how I had guest arriving this evening, no food in the house, and still plenty of tidying up to do. My calendar has been taking a beating and I knew if I didn't get it laminated today then I wouldn't have the chance again until next week. So I went off to take care of business. I arrived at the shop around 2:30.
At first everything seemed to be going quite well. Then they wanted to take everything to the back and stick it in the roller. This seemed reasonable to me. I thought it was a heated deal that would seal it up better - not so. What actually happened was the paper on the back of the laminate got stuck on the edge of the laminate from the other side then sealed into the two pieces. It partially covered some of our numbers and caused great huge wrinkles in other areas. When they brought it down and asked if it was ok I just cried. Yes, I literally cried. I had a hard day today and this was just the pin-prick that let the air out of my balloon. I worked hard to bring the needed items from America for our school room and now in a matter of 20 minutes I felt defeated. I know it is only a calendar, but it is the focal point of our morning.
We carefully peeled the laminate off the front of the messy numbers and they re-did each one. They hand laminated the rest. It took 3 hours.... 3 hours!!! Then they tried to charge me $40 US which is highway robbery. I only had 100 yuan on me so that is what I gave them. That is about $15. I just cannot believe how hard it is to get something done here. Done well anyway. I got a meter of laminate from them (10 yuan = $1.50) so that I can just do the job myself next time.
Sweet ladies invited me for dinner. Bless their hearts - they wanted to satisfy their customer. I enjoyed visiting with them anyway. I guess overall they did a good job.... after all, it was made in China.

The Teacher and The Patient

We have returned home and with us lugged a 50 pound box of books and Kindergarten curriculum. For the past week we have been trying to figure out where to put all the stuff that did occupy "the office" so that we can transform it into our "school room". Gracie is very excited about all this... she loves doing school, or at least she has loved the idea of it. The other day we were talking about our school room and she asked if I would be the teacher. I said yes and she replied,"And will I be the patient?" Oh child, I guess you will be.

So, we will begin Kindergarten next week, just in time to see St. Patrick's Day on the calendar and talk about our Irish heritage and why folks decided to give this St. Patrick such an honor. Gracie turned 4 in December, but we just can't wait til Fall to learn to read. I am wondering how much Kindergarten we'll be able to accomplish and if 1st grade will be in our sites for next year? For now - one day at a time. I am so looking forward to teaching my baby to read! And she is so ready!

More to come...

Don't Knock It Till You've Tried It....

Ha! Ha! So how do you know when you have reentered our lovely city here in China? When you see small children squatting and taking a poo on the sidewalk. Only this time it was my small chile. Yes, Gracie christened the airport sidewalk out by the taxi stand on our return to Wave City last weekend. She kept telling us she had to go, but since she had actually gone a few hours earlier we didn't think it was an emergency and she agreed she could hold it. Our driver, who we told to bring 2 cars, which means vans - because as far as we knew that was all he had, and we told him we had 16 pieced of luggage, brought a van and a small car. So we waited about 30 minutes while the men arranged and rearranged the luggage to fit in the one van. Gracie had had enough of waiting and announced that she had pooed in her pants. Oh no!

Well, at least it was 2 am and there was noone about so I just went ahead and stripped her down, but before I could get her jeans back up she made it known that she was not finished! There was no where to go, so she just squatted right there on the sidewalk and pooed til her little heart was content, then Mommy poopy scooped it all up with a wipe and threw it away. She was so sweet, apologizing profusely. "So sorry Mommy" I told her it was ok and that I was just thankful we were in China where she could just go on the sidewalk. With a sigh of relief she agreed, "Me too!"

X-Ray Crazy

I have so many interesting things to blog about after spending almost 9 months in America, but today I just had to vent my frustration over the seemingly craze over X-rays. What is the deal?
I have had many x-ray related conversations with my doctor, the chiropractor, the pediatrician, friends and today the dentist. So here is what it went like today.

Hygenist: What are we doing for you today?
Me: Just a cleaning.
Hygenist: Well, let's get your x-ray and then we'll get started.
Me: I don't want to have an x-ray.
Hygenist: Well, the dentist won't even look at your teeth without an x-ray. We can't even clean them or anything without an x-ray.
Me: That's silly. You need an x-ray to clean my teeth?
Hygenist: Yes.
Me: Is this your policy for children as well?
Hygenist: Yes, for everyone.
Me: Well, I'll be leaving now and I'll be canceling my daughter's appointment too.

What is it with x-rays. I know dentist like to x-ray so they can see cavities inside or between the teeth or whatever, but for goodness sake, I don't have the right to say I don't want an x-ray and still get my teeth cleaned? That is crazy!

So I called Matt and told him about all this craziness and he agreed to call and see if he could find another dentist that would clean our teeth without x-rays. Everyone of them he called said they needed x-rays and one office worker even told him it was the law. He wanted to ask her which law, but decided not to harass her. He's so nice. I mean really people - does no one else see the breakdown of our freedoms in this country? I don't seriously think it is a law that you must have an x-ray when you go to the dentist. Matt says maybe it is homeland security that has decided every American needs an x-ray at the dentist so that they will have dental records for everyone. Ha!Ha! If so, BIG Gov't - get out of my mouth!!! The pharmacist at CVS heard me talking with Matt about it and said he thinks it is a ploy to get more money since x-rays are so expensive. He suggested finding one of those orthodontist that give free consultations and then take the x- ray over to the dentist. Great idea, if it were the $ that concerned me. It is the point of the whole thing. I should be able to get my teeth cleaned without having a stinkin x-ray. Period!

One more thought on x-rays. Just something to chew on. Why won't they give you an x-ray when you're pregnant? Yet, when you raise a red flag about the safety of x-rays in general they tell you that you get more radiation from the sun walking to your car from their office than you get from the x-ray. This makes no sense to me? I mean pregnant women rarely have deformed children due to the radiation they received from walking across a parking lot- even though pregnant women walk across many, many parking lots throughout their pregnancy. Hum??? Am I ignorant here??? Is there something I don't know? OK - well that's my story for the day.

Christmas Memories 2009

Christmas Eve

We had a spectacular Christmas this year in the U.S. That alone made it special! We got to enjoy Christmas lights, Christmas pageants, Christmas parties, yummy food, Christmas Eve service, and a very special Christmas Day with my Dad. He went to be with the Lord 4 days later.

Some of the fun little things we enjoyed this year included Gracie making a Gingerbread House with her Mims. We decided the store bought construction materials were lacking... but Gracie completely enjoyed eating her creation one gum drop at a time.

We had a Christmas party at my mom's house and played a really cheesy gift exchange game. It was fun to be with everyone though! Gracie and Lola had a ball with William (their 2nd cousin). He got a remote control car that Gracie loved driving and Lola loved chasing! Gracie about to enjoy a homemade chocolate covered cherry.

She shared it with her cousin Luke.

We went out and got a real tree. That was fun. We took a hay ride out to the back tree lot and chose carefully. Gracie helped her Daddy cut it down! Getting it decorated was another challenge. All our ornaments were left in China so we made some originals. We strung popcorn and created penguins, reindeer, and manger scenes. We also hung candy canes that had cute little covers that gave them character.Lola on the hay ride!

We spent Christmas Eve in Griffin and ate Mexican for lunch. Then we went to church where we celebrated the birth of our Savior through song, prayer, candle light and the Lord's Supper. It was really special. My Dad was sitting next to me belting out those hymns like only he could do. What a precious memory.

Christmas Day was great! The kids woke up late then discovered their gifts out on the covered patio where we put the tree. My parents arrived a few moments later and we enjoyed watching the girls and started off our time together with a pancake breakfast. We stacked some together and covered them with whip cream and called it Jesus' birthday cake. We stuffed ourselves! Then we opened presents! My niece Chelsea made us this delicious fudge that I ate the majority of... Mom gave me a keepsake locket that my grandmother Martin had given her. Matt got his comic book fix, and of course the kids loaded up.

We had a relaxing morning and Mom and I cooked several dishes. Mims made her famous Cranberry Relish and we enjoyed an awesome Christmas dinner of roast, potatoes, carrots & mushrooms, broccoli salad, green beans, sweet potato souffle, and pumpkin pie. I think there were some more things - but I can't recall... My Daddy ate so much food I wondered where he out it. He weighed about 130 lbs and had just recovered from pneumonia - but he was feeling so good on Christmas Day. I fully enjoyed watching him eat and enjoy his dinner so much. I will hold on to that memory forever.

After dinner we played games - Matt, Mims, Paul & Chelsea played settlers of Catan. Daddy and Marty played Wii. Gracie and Christi played Hungry, Hungry Hippos, Wii, and the Leapster. My sweet sister in law, Wanda helped wash dishes and everything was just as close to perfect as it could be.

I am so thankful for such a wonderful Christmas with the people I love. God has been good to us. His mercies endure forever!Gracie liked to pretend she was Mary and she loved wrapping up her baby Jesus.