It's the most wonderful time of the year!

It's that time of the year again. Now that Thanksgiving has past, it's time to start getting in the Christmas spirit. Friday morning the Christmas cds came out, along with the Christmas tree and decorations. Since we're still waiting for the baby to come, we figured we might as well take advantage of this time and get our house ready for Christmas.



We also got in the holiday spirit, by taking a trip downtown with our dear friends to enjoy the Christmas lights. Chicago really is a beautiful city, especially this time of year. Thank goodness it wasn't too cold out, as we walked around the Christmas market that's set up downtown. After warming up with some yummy soup, we took in the lights on Michigan Avenue, from the comfort of the car! Ah the memories!

Happy Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving! We hope you had a wonderful holiday and enjoyed whatever you did to celebrate. Julio and I stayed at home this year and decided to make it as simple as possible. So, we ordered the full turkey dinner from the local grocery store, which only required heating up the turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes and gravy. So, we enjoyed lots of food, without the fuss. Our friend and her son joined us for dinner and then other friends from our small group joined us for dessert. It was a very enjoyable day...it was even kind of fun to experience the first snow flurries of the year. Here are some pictures to commemorate the day!

Anticipation

This morning I was reading some verses from the Psalms, which have been extremely meaningful during this season of my life. Psalm 139: 13-16 says,

"13 You made all the delicate, inner parts of my body
and knit me together in my mother’s womb.
14 Thank you for making me so wonderfully complex!
Your workmanship is marvelous—how well I know it.
15 You watched me as I was being formed in utter seclusion,
as I was woven together in the dark of the womb.
16 You saw me before I was born.
Every day of my life was recorded in your book..."

It is amazing to think about the fact that life is being created inside me. And, it's not a result of my efforts or my hard work. I'm evermore aware of how precious life is and thankful for the love that God has for each one of us!

As the time comes closer for the baby to be born, Julio and I both wait with such anticipation. We have been so blessed by the generosity of friends and family. who have showered us with gifts for the little one. Last night we enjoyed putting on the crib bedding and setting up some of the fun toys we've received. Here are some pictures of Julio showing off the wonderful gifts we've received.

A Fall Evening

I love fall. I love the crispness in the air, the changing color of the leaves, the crunching of leaves under my feet as I walk down the sidewalk, etc. For awhile I was afraid that fall wouldn't come, as it continued to be in the 90s in October. But, finally, it arrived and we are finding many ways to enjoy it, before winter comes and takes it's place.

So, with our friends from small group we enjoyed a beautiful evening outside around a bonfire.


Telling stories and roasting marshmallows.


Making s'mores and drinking apple cider.

It was the perfect way to spend a fall evening!