We had a really special and fun Christmas this year. Not only did we get to enjoy lots of quality time with the Teele family, but we also had some time to enjoy our first Christmas as a married couple. So thankful for the memories we have made this week that we can treasure for a lifetime!

A beautiful present from my husband

Presents at Christmas time are so much fun, especially giving them. I find so much joy in watching others open the gifts I've given them. I think that's what God must feel when He gives us blessings in life... It truly is more blessed to give than to receive.

Our first tree and presents

Clint and I loved opening the gifts from each other on Christmas morning, and we also got to open gifts that my family sent from back East. It almost made it feel like we got to celebrate with them too! By the way, Mom, Dutch Blitz was the perfect gift... it's already gotten used like five times! :)

Christmas celebrations

Christmas celebrations with the Teele family included a name exchange where we drew names and bought a gift (or several) for that person. It was so much fun getting to open those gifts on Christmas morning with all the family. 9 of the 12 Teele siblings were there, as well as 5 grandchildren, so it made for a full, chaotic, and very fun celebration!

New puppies at the Teele farm

There's always new life at the Teele farm, and some puppies arrived just in time for Christmas! Their eyes are almost open, and they are super cute!

Enjoying some Dutch Blitz

Almost any Teele gathering is incomplete without at least one game of something, whether it's invented on the spot or an actual card or board game.

Paintball with slingshots (photo from my mother-in-law)

Yesterday, we had a really fun game of paintball using slingshots. I can't resist a good, sportsy game, so I added a bit of extra padding around my middle and joined in! We had tons of fun, got plenty dirty, and loved every second of it! One nice thing about playing sports with the Teeles: if you get a group of them together, you automatically have large teams! :)

I hope your Christmas season has been a wonderful one, and even if you weren't able to celebrate with family this year, I hope that this time of celebrating the greatest Gift of all was special!

It's a Wonderful (and Busy) Life

We have been busy the last few weeks, something I'm actually very grateful for. Most of the busyness has been related to Christmas events, and it's been so much fun to get together with fellow believers to celebrate Christ's birth.

The ladies at our church here picked a wonderful theme for their Christmas party this year. They invited a speaker who works with an organization that helps free women from the sex trafficking industry in Nepal and provide them with jobs as well as teach them about Christ. After listening to her explain about the organization, we were then able to buy various handmade goods that these women had crafted as their means of support. What an incredible way to be a part of freeing the oppressed, which is exactly what Christ came to do 2,000 years ago.

Clint has kept busy cutting and selling firewood. I'm so grateful for my hardworking husband who has a desire to provide for me and care for me! It's been a huge blessing to have a bit of extra cash, and we're also able to save half of what we make to put towards our future home in Papua New Guinea!

Our baby has been busy growing and moving. I definitely look pregnant now, and I guess that's a good thing since I am! :) Just over 16 weeks to go!

We're really looking forward to the next few weeks with all of the holiday celebrations. A bunch of Clint's siblings are coming home this week, so it will be fun to spend time with them! And then on New Year's Eve, we're planning to head back East for one of my cousin's weddings, and we'll get to spend a few weeks in Georgia with my family as well!

Annndd... just for kicks, here's a picture of us, since we haven't posted one in a while. :)

Christmas is Coming!

Anyone else feel like Christmas is coming waaayyy too fast? Ok, glad I'm not the only one.

Our First Christmas Tree!

That being said, I also have to say, I absolutely LOVE Christmas time. I know in many circles there's an air of commercialism. A spirit of killing the Baby and promoting the Stuff. I know in other circles there's a debate about whether we should even celebrate Christmas since it was originally a day to worship the sun, not Christ. But honestly, I think the idea of having a special time to celebrate the birth of Christ is a precious one. Of course, the gifts are fun. The decorations are beautiful. The traditions are special. But a Baby born in Bethlehem is the most beautiful and special gift of all!

With my own baby on the way, I've had a lot of time to envision what things must have been like for Mary. When she felt her baby kick, she must have been in awe over the fact that the Son of God who had created her was so small, so helpless, and so dependent on her for life. When she dealt with morning sickness, she must have wondered why God had chosen her to bear the Messiah. She must have marveled over the miracle of life, but even more so, over the miracle of God becoming a man. What an incredible experience that must have been for her!

I hope that you are enjoying your Christmas season, and may we all think often on the Christ of Christmas... the miracle Baby who came to save us all.

For to us a child is born, to us a son is given, and the government will be on his shoulders. And He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace. - Isaiah 9:6