Cookie Baking Night 12/07/15

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance this evening: Carissa, Rylar, and Alli. Tonight was Rylar's birthday choice (he turned 4 years old just a few days ago). As is our tradition here at Cookie Baking Nights, the birthday person gets to choose what we have for supper and what we make for our "cookie". For supper, Rylar chose macaroni and cheese, bananas, grapes, and chocolate milk (and I threw in a few chicken nuggets for good measure). For his cookie, he was having a hard time articulating his choice. "Hot Chocolate Cookie" was mentioned several times. If you're wondering what that is, so am I. I finally suggested the treat that seemed to be his favorite this year, and he readily agreed to it. So, in the end, Rylar chose to make chocolate dipped marshmallows on a stick. 

First, there's the work of putting all the marshmallows on sticks. Tedious work, but fun work. 

Next, we start dipping. We chose chocolate and white chocolate and sprinkled with colored sugar and chocolate sprinkles (ahhh, nothing like a big lump of sugar, dipped in sugar, and sprinkled with sugar--and then you send them home with the children). 

The finished products. (Here's a tip: The best carrier/transporter I've found for this treat is a block of florist foam wrapped in aluminum foil--works nicely). 

We also read from Leading Little Ones to God by Marian Schoolland. Tonight we read lesson 19 titled "How Sin Came Into the World", which took us back to Genesis 3:1-6 in the Garden of Eden with Adam and Eve. We talked about what sin is, who Satan is, and who God is. We had a lively discussion around this subject, and the children were eager to engage in the conversation. 

Tonight was our last Cookie Baking Night for 2015. We'll take a break for a few weeks and resume again in the new year. 

As usual, a fun time was had by all. 

Niece and Nephew Christmas Party 2015

Today was our 12th annual Niece and Nephew Christmas Party.We lost the teenagers this year to a scheduling conflict, but the party did go on, and a fun time it was. In attendance this year: Ethan, Carissa, Alli, and Rylar. This year, we kept the party all in-house.

We started by decorating a few Christmas ornaments. 

Even Clara and Greg got in on the act. 

And don't forget our annual gingerbread house cookie decorating event. As usual, our personalities came out in our individual decorating styles.

                                                 

                                                                                                     

And it is part of our tradition to play the dice game for small prizes. The kids love this part. 

We also took some time during our party to talk about why we celebrate Christmas and what it is really about. Since Leading Little Ones to God has been our book of choice for our Bible lessons, I used it to tell the Christmas story as well. We read the lesson titled "Jesus Came From Heaven". It was fun to talk through with the children just what it could have meant for Jesus to give up all the riches of heaven and all the glory he is worthy of receiving and come to earth and be born as a baby. They engaged with the lesson from beginning to end, from smallest to largest. My favorite part was when we came to the suggested Bible reading to accompany the lesson. It's often a large passage of Scripture, but this time it was just two verses. John 3:16-17. My mom and dad were in the room listening to the story with us and I knew that my mom had memorized these two verses when she was a child. I asked her to recite them, and she did. 

John 3:16-17

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeith in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved. 

Another Niece and Nephew Christmas party has come and gone, and as usual, it held great meaning for us, both in the opportunity we have to be in the lives of our young nieces and nephews and in the joy of sharing the knowledge of who Jesus Christ is with them. 

Cookie Baking Night Nov 30 2015

Tonight was Cookie Baking Night. In attendance: Alli and Rylar. The bummer here was that it was supposed to be Emily's birthday choice but we had a snowstorm today and neither Emily or Ethan and Carissa made it because of the road conditions. So, for supper we had Emily's requested lasagna choice, but we saved her cookie choice (Oreo stuffed chocolate chip cookies) for another time and made Nut Goodie Bars instead. 

Alli and Rylar loved being the only two cookie bakers in the house tonight and enjoyed every minute of it. 

We read lesson 18 from "Leading Little Ones to God" by Marian Schoolland, titled "God Always Does What Is Best" We read how God preserved the life of Moses when he was a baby and how he used Moses to lead the Israelites out of Egypt when he was a grown man. We talked about how God can always be trusted. 

It was a smaller crowd than usual tonight and not quite the night we originally had planned but even so, as usual, a fun time was had by all. 

A Day With the Nieces (Birthdays 2015)

Today I spent the day with my nieces, Kylie and Emily, for their birthdays. Next week, Kylie will turn 16 and Emily will turn 15 years old (their actual birthdays are a day apart). For the last several years now, we've spent a day together doing various things in celbration of their birthdays. I usually keep the agenda a surprise until we're in the middle of the activities. Today was no exception.

This year we started our day out at a pizza place in Robbinsdale called "Pig Ate My Pizza" It was one of those chef-driven restaurants with fancy pizza and a fun atmosphere, maybe not quite the speed of picky teenage eaters, but they humored me. 

Next, it was off to get our nails done.

The girls chose fancy polish that turned colors with the temperature of your hands. 

Our final destination was my favorite local chocolate shop (now also their favorite), The Droolin Moose. 

It was a fun day together. I am so grateful to God for the opportunity to share in the lives of these young ladies.