Long, long ago there was a boy who worked at an inn. We know not his name; but we will tell you a story about him. He was the boy-of-all-work. It was his task to look after the cattle, and to do odd jobs at the inn. There came a time when thee was a great stir at this inn, for the little town was full of pilgrims, and the inn was overcrowded. A number of folk wanted lodgings, and they sought for them, and found them not. Amongst these was a tired woman and a man with a troubled look. The stable boy heard them pleading with the landlord. The landlord was kind but firm, and said, "I should like to take you into the inn, but it is quite impossible. I have already turned many away." The man and the woman pleaded, but to no avail. The lad of the inn heard the eager request and the firm refusal, and his heart was strangely stirred. He slipped away from them and said to himself, "They will find their way to the stable. I will make it sweet and clean for them." So he ran speedily and made everything as tidy as possible, and put clean, fresh, sweet-smelling hay in the manger, and then went back to the inn, for there was much work for him to do there.

   Some time after he slipped out of hte inn and beheld a strange light in the wind-swept shed. There he saw the two tired pilgrims, and, O wonder of wonders, a babe ~ lying in a manger in the warm, fresh, sweet-smelling hay. All was clean, tidy and homely, and the man and the woman and the child looked so happy. The boy was so merry and said, "I put the hay there on which the baby sleeps. No one knows; it is better when nobody knows." Back again he ran to his work, and whistled for sheer joy as he bustled about, answering the quick calls of the many people at the inn. Night fell ~ a clear night, full of stars. The boy slipped out of the inn and ran to the stable. He said, "I should just like one more peep before I go to sleep." Amazement fell upon him. There were, O wonder of wonders, shepherds kneeling, and they were all gazing with joyous astonishment at the babe lying in the manger. They spoke of the heavenly light, of the song of angels, of tidings of great joy to all people. No one noticed the boy of he inn, for he hid himself in the darkness. But he saw all, and as he lay down to rest he said, "I placed the hay there for the wonderful child. No one knows; it is better when nobody knows."

   The next day the boy of the inn was busy ~ all the world seemed calling for him, for the inn was crowded, and the pilgrims needed so many things. He had no time during the day to go to the manger, but as he ran to and fro on his errand he saw the vision of a babe, lying on clean, fresh, sweet-smelling hay. He was so glad that he had brought the hay, that he had placed it in the manger, and that the child slept sweetly in this soft bed. He longed to see the babe again, but not until night was he able. Then swiftly he ran, and, O wonder of wonders, he saw kingly pilgrims, swarthy of face, kneeling in lowly adoration before the manger. They talked of a star they had seen in the East, of long journeys over burning sands, and of the wondrous joy which was theirs in worshipping the babe. They brought forth beautiful gifts ~ gold, frankincense and myrrh ~ and these, they said, were gifts for the babe. The strange light in the stable made the precious jewels flash with heavenly splendour. The little boy kneeled in the shadows, and worshipped and rejoiced, and said, "What beautiful gifts!...but mine was first, for I came before the shepherds and the distant travellers, and tidied the stable, and brought the present of clean, fresh, sweet-smelling hay. I am glad that I was the first to bring a gift, and that love led me to make a warm bed for the kingly babe. No one knows, it is better when nobody knows." And no man or woman or child would ever have known had not an angel told me this Christmas-tide the story; but even he did not mention the name of hte dear boy, but always called him "the boy without a name."

I pray you enjoy this as much as we have over the years:)

Would that I would strive to be a "boy without a name".:)

God be with thee!

Sister Lori

        " Rejoice Evermore"   -  1 Thessalonians 4:14

After our  "more than challenging" week we have been thru...... I had a good cry on Jesus' shoulder..... isn't He wonderful? He is always available to us 24/7!!!  After placing all my cares and woes at HIS feet, I realized that the enemy was fast at work trying to "steal" our JOY in the Lord -- especially at this time of year when we are celebrating the birth of our beloved Jesus!  When I realized that I became resolved to not allow the enemy to steal the JOY of Jesus or to steal away our joy in this most joyous of seasons! So last night we prayed, bound the enemy ( yes you can bind him in Jesus name!) and bundled up to go Christmas caroling and deliver some fruit baskets to our dear friends.  Oh what JOY!  I was so overcome with emotion and just JOY as we sang :  Joy to the World,  Angels from the Realm of Glory,  O Come all Ye Faithful & We wish you a merry Christmas!  We have been practicing for weeks now and the kids really sang out last night!  We stopped at the home of the wonderful pastor and his wife who head up the prison ministry that I am involved with each week. Oh what a wonderful visit we had! It did us all a world of good! They had us come in and served cocoa and cookies and we just had a wonderful time of fellowship!  Before we left, Pastor Mark prayed over us and it was just a precious expierence!  We came out feeling so buyoed!

Today we have been busy baking delicious cookies for our Church's christmas service and pageant...... the kids are all excited!  Our church host's our town's anual Christmas Eve service and we have been busy baking cookies to serve afterwards! We are just about done. :)  Ginersnaps, chocolate sugar cookies and jam thumbprints..... mmmm..........

We are looking forward to our Christmas service tonight -- time to sing and praise our Lord for HIS humble birth, His amazing life, His painful death and His glorious resurrection!

Friends, I realized this week that the enemy was out with an attack to steal our family's JOY ..... when the Lord showed me that we prayed, bound the enemy and chose, purposefully *chose* to expierence JOY in Jesus -- for HE IS THE REASON for this season!

I want to thank you sweet friends who publically and privately have prayed for us during this challenging week! Thank you dear ones! You are all precious to me! Your love, faith and prayers mean the world!

I pray that each of you will enjoy a blessed and JOY filled Christmas -- remembering my dear readers that we are celebrating the birth of our King and Lord!

Praising His name!

~ gloria ~

Dear friends & readers,

I am really in need of prayers!

This past week we have had:

1. the furnace break down in sub zero weather......

2. the plumbing in our old house give out.........

3. the electrical power box is overloaded - so half of the house lost power.......

4.  my husband's truck won't start........

I am exhausted, worn out and just plum tired.........

Please pray for me......

Thank you,

gloria

Well praise God, we are mostly over the flu or so I hope & pray!! :)  The weekend has brought us very very cold weather...... near zero with lots of wind...... the kind of cold that when you step outside your breathe is taken away, kwim? Oh my..... this girl from the Pacific NW, just isn't used to these bitter cold midwest winters...... this is our 3rd winter, and I still don't feel I am acclimated to the winters......... maybe someday?  Can't wait for that woodstove to get installed.....it's coming......it's coming.......

Meanwhile, we continue to deal with furnace woes! Can you believe our furnace goes out in the coldest week we have had all year long? I woke up last night to use the restroom and as soon as I stepped out of bed I *knew* the furnace had gone out completely......... sure enough by morning, the house was down to the mid fifties. Dru was able to get it running, but again it's not running at full capacity...... just enough to keep us somewhat warm.....about 62 so I can't complain.....I have some space heaters we have plugged into the parlor and bedrooms and that helps immensely. 

We also are dealing with plumbing woes! I tell you when it rains it pours!  Dru is replumbing our upstairs bathroom as I type........ oh the joys of old homes! You know I love love old homes for their charm and history....... but oh one does need lots of love and TLC when working with one of these old homes. :)

I am crossing my fingers that we can get our plumbing problems under control!

Oh yeah, I am almost forgot -- my husband's truck broke down as well..... like I said when it rains it pours! : )  I am not worried about things -- God is in charge and He is more than able to take care of things.... but oh the timing! Oh well. I guess we'll really appreciate when that stove gets installed and working up a wonderfully warm heat!!

Meanwhile, I stayed home today and enjoyed a quiet day at home........ put on a good pot of lentil & italian sausage soup & made 2 loaves of wheat bread......... we enjoyed some Christmas flicks , including a new one that we absolutely loved: An Avonlea Christmas. We are BIG fans of Avonlea and we absolutely loved this movie!! It was wonderful!

I also made another family favorite & holiday tradition.  My camera is broken so new pictures to share with you all. :(    This is a fabulous recipe, and is wonderful good served with warm sauce & a cup of tea.

                                            Gingerbread & Lemon Sauce

2 cups white flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp ginger

1/2 tsp nutmeg

1/2 cup butter softened

1 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup molasses

2/3 cup boiling water

1 tsp baking soda

2 well beaten eggs

1. stir together flour, salt, baking powder, nutmeg, cinnamon and ginger. Set aside.

2. Cream butter and sugar together, add molasses and eggs. Set aside

3. In a seperate bowl, pour boiling water over soda. Add other ingredients.

4. Beat well.

5. Pour into a well battered  9x9 pan and bake at 325 for 40 min. or until done.

                                           Lemon Sauce

1/2 cup granulated sugar

2 TBS cornstarch  + 1 tsp cornstarch

pinch of salt

1 tsp grated lemon rind

1  1/2 cups water

1 TBS  butter

1/4 cup lemon juice

1. In a med saucepan stir together sugar, cornstarch, salt and lemon rind

2. Gradually add water and stir continually and cook until mix thickens.

3. Cover and cook on low for about 8 min. Stir occasionally.

4. Remove from heat and add butter & lemon juice.

Serve warm 

                ______________________________________________

Here's hoping each one of you enjoy a warm evening ~ this is a special week as we look forward with anticipation to the day we celebrate our Lord and Savior's birth! I have many things planned for this week and I am committed to not letting these problems with things at home breaking down get "me down" or rob us of the JOY that truly is in Jesus this time of year!

I pray each one of you finds your greatest JOY and strength in our precious Lord ~~~ He truly is worthy of our Praise!

Blessed be His name,

~ gloria ~

   One day a husband and wife have an argument. 

   Frank came home from work, tired and frustrated.

   "I'm home!" shouted Frank as he walked in the door shaking the last of the rain from his hat before hanging it up on the hall tree. 

   "I'm so glad you're home dear." said Helen. "I want to show you what I bought!"

   She takes his hand and pulls him into the parlor. There on the settee in all it's fine array is a beautiful dress with matching shoes, a hat and a display of jewelry to match. 

   "Isn't this lovely? It was on sale, I just couldn't resist. And since I didn't have the right kind of jewelry to go with it, I bought these...aren't they cute? And they are just perfect with the shoes!"

   Not able to hide his irritation, Frank asks, "What did you buy that for? Don't you have enough nice things to wear? You bought a new outfit just last week!" 

   Helen, looking disappointed and hurt begins to pout. It always worked before so this seemed like a good time to try it. He always caves in when she pouts and then things will be fine. He'll get over it quickly.

   Frank begins to feel an anger rise up in him he has not felt in a very long time. Struggling to keep his cool and make his point he begins to bring up all the other times she was a complete spendthrift. How disappointed he is in her use of the money he works so hard to earn for them. This all comes to a head with Frank shouting and Helen weeping. Finally he says, "Helen, you must return these things immediately. We simply don't have the money to spend on such frivolous things. We have bills to pay, obligations...we can't throw money away on things that we don't need. Times are hard and getting worse, there just isn't money to burn."

   Helen's feelings are hurt. She gathers these things up and puts them back in their bags. She carries them to the car, and drives away. Alone and crying, she begins to rant unkind things about her husband. How cruel he was to say the things he said, how unfair that she has to stay home all day and clean and cook and slave away while he gets away from it all by going to work. She works herself up into a heated attitude and vows to never be bullied again!

   At home, Frank is kicking himself for saying such unkind things. He wonders if he could have put it differently to make it sound less accusatory. Afterall, he had been known to buy something that he didn't really need. She was taking these things back and he was glad for that because they truly didn't have the money to buy those things, but she was so disappointed and hurt. 

   Helen finally comes back home after returning all the items to the stores. She hands him the money and turns to go to bed without saying a word. He stops her and gives her a hug. He tells her that she did the right thing and he would make it up to her. She isn't moved. She is still hurt and angry. He still feels like an ogre. They hug and say a few kind words hiding their own pain and go through the motions of their normal evening routine with supper, a little television and eventually bed where they turn their own ways and fall to sleep. 

   Who won? Did Frank win the argument because he got her to take the things back? Did Helen win because she took them back and made him feel guilty and he has now promised to make it up to her? Who won?

   The answer? No one! Frank DID get what he wanted. And Helen DID get him to promise to make it up to her...this is how she gets what she wants by making him feel guilty. Yet neither one of them won the argument.

   The truth is NO ONE can possible win an argument. You can be RIGHT but you can't win. Why? Because no matter what an argument is about, everyone involved will come away with hurt feelings, anger and resentment. That's not winning!

   You can argue with your teenager. You know you are right and even though your teen gives in or doesn't get what they want, it doesn't mean you won. It simply means you were right and nothing more.

   Remember that the next time you begin to argue with someone, it's easier to stop it immediately and let them know that no matter who is right or wrong, no one will win. Both of you will come away with a negative experience.

   I know this is a jumble of information but I'm pretty sure you get it. We've ALL had arguments at some time in our lives. And even though we might have been right...we didn't win. But with God's help, we can avoid those hurt feelings by learning to talk about things and understanding each others viewpoint. Learning by talking is so much easier than resenting each other:)

   Have a very blessed day!

God be with thee!

Sister Lori

We have been battling the stomach flu here this past week...... today it was "my turn"..... it wasn't too bad, but I can't eat and I am just drinking lots of water.  Fortunately this is a 24 hour bug -- so I really can't complain......... I am hoping that it was have gone thru the family before Christmas next week.  I have 10 children, so you can imagine how long it takes for the flu to work it's way thru the family....... get the idea?

Honestly this has been a challening week on many fronts -- starting with our furnace breaking down, last Sunday night ... and this being one of the coldest weeks ( in the teens) ....... and then kids getting sick......

But I am trying to not be anxious for anythings, as Paul writes....... but in all things giving thanks to God. ( Ephesians 5:20) ..... the furnace worked enough to make sure the house didn't get so cold, and our pipes didn't burst! Praise God for that! Plus God answered my prayer of finally putting a fire under my husband to order that much needed stove pipe. It was supposed to be here today -- but didn't arrive, so hopefully tomorrow. Meanwhile dru is busy building the hearth for the stove to sit on......so in the midst of the challenges, good things are happening too!

We spent the afternoon watching some really cute Christmas videos ...... and just resting....... you may have noticed that I changed my template.....I really really love sepia photos ...... so I took one of tthe shots I had taken of the kids this week and played around with it...... hope you like it. :)

God is good -- faithful & our ever present help in time of trouble --ever much so when this mama of ten is sick......

Hope you are all staying warm & healthy,

~ gloria ~

Blessings!

   Another beautiful day the Lord has made! We awoke to a fresh blanket of snow this morning. It feels like such a lazy day since we only had to run to the barn to feed and break out the water troughs for the animals. Then inside to do some cleaning and chatting and getting some handwork done. Lazy lazy lazy:P

   Chains are required to go out on the highway until tomorrow at least. Probably until Monday, or so they say:P In Oregon we live by a 10/10 rule...if you don't like the weather wait 10 minutes or drive 10 miles:P This seems true no matter what time of year or what weather we are having at any particular moment:P

   I really need to do some banking but just don't want to deal with that today. I don't want to have to put chains on the car or drive on the roads with the rest of humanity. I want to stay put, in a nice warm house, baking and sipping coffee and putting the finishing touches on those horrible bedrooms:P

   Our Miss Mary-Ann is still with her brother and his wife helping to take care of her niece. We had planned on trading the girls out and letting Miss Sarah take her place until Sunday but due to the terrible road conditions we are just going to wait it out and pick Miss Mary-Ann up on Sunday instead.

   Brother Craig's surgery has been postponed pending further blood tests as his last tests came back showing a bleeding issue. Well, he's been on low dose aspirin for his blood pressure for the last two years. The doctor told us that wouldn't make a difference, yet here we are with a clotting issue? ugh! I don't know, maybe it's just me, but if it didn't make a difference then  what would be the point of taking it to thin the blood for high blood pressure?:s

   Anyway, it's been postponed for now. He just had his new bloodwork done this morning after not taking the low dose aspirin for the last few days so we'll see if that changes things. If it doesn't then he'll be seeing a blood specialist to get things fixed so surgery can happen. Instead of Monday surgery we will see the surgeon on Tuesday to reset the dates. We are praying that it can happen before the first of the year so we avoid the new deductibles for the insurance:P Ya'll know how that is...right now it would be paid 100% vs. 70%. Yep...Before the first of the year would be perfect:)

   I wonder that the Lord didn't change things for us so that we would have a nice Christmas together before the surgery instead of Christmas in the hospital? He works so many things for our good, perhaps this was one more blessing He decided we could have:) If things show well on the new tests they will try to schedule surgery for the day after Christmas, or the Monday following. We'll see!:)

   Well, I'm going to go enjoy the warm fire and a cup of coffee with my sweet husband and Miss Sarah while we watch it snow, snow, snow:) Yep, still coming down! This one is supposed to give us at least another 4 inches today. Who knows...maybe we WILL have a white Christmas after all:)

   Have a very blessed and warm day in the Lord!

God be with thee!

Sister Lori

Shsh........ I picked up this lovely book for my daughter Hannah for her Christmas book this year.........

Hannah is a big fan of the famed Elsie Dinsmore books...... they are wonderful Christian stories written by Christian author, Martha Finley.  We also enjoy the other Life of faith books..... these are wonderful books for girls. You can learn more about them at www.elsiedinsmore.com

We picked up this book used for less than $2 thru amazon.com ...... it's in perfect condition.

She will be so excited!

~ gloria ~

We awoke to some more snow this morning and some beautiful blue skies..... so I decided to take some photos of the children for our Christmas cards..........

Here are my girls......

And my boys..........

And here is all of the "gang".......

And the one we actually chose for our card........

The snow we got was so powdery and not the usual "wet stuff" we get here in Missouri, that I gave the kids the day  "off" from school and let them play outside.  Hannah went to a friend's from church and made & decorated Christmas cookies.  I was able to get the photos printed off and notes written inside. I decided to individually write a personal note in each Christmas card this year.  I really miss this tradition. Doesn't seem like many write personal notes in their cards anymore -- the trend seems to be the " Christmas letter" instead of individual cards. When I was a girl growing up,  my mom would put up in the entry way a felt banner where we would hang the Christmas cards on display.  We would get scads and scads of cards...... this was before computers and printers and digital cameras. No one would put photos on their cards and such.  It was always sooo exciting to go to the mail and get a christmas card! I would race home and show mom and we would read the inscribed message and personal note.  After the holiday season was over, mom would let me take down those cards and I could cut out the pictures on them and make collages and art work. It was something I really enjoyed doing.

It seems we have "lost" the art of Christmas cards. It's gone out of "style" in many ways.  So this year I decided to get forgo the  generic Christmas letter and write a personal inscription to each family.  I used a lovely gold pen and took time to write it out carefuly and neatly. No computer print out this time.

The kids enjoyed a full day.... and we had a late dinner.... so I am off to bed..... but wanted to share these photos with you my readers here on my blog. :)

Goodnight,

~ gloria ~