Merry Christmas to all....

....and to all a good night!

My favorite church service of the year is the 10:30 pm traditional candle light service at my church every Christmas Eve.  We close the service with the lights dimmed, four Christmas trees along the walls of the alter strung with glowing white lights and an alter adorned with a plethora of lit candles.

As the service comes to a close, like many churches, we sing Silent Night.  As a connection to the founders of our church (German settlers who founded the church I attend over 160 years ago) we sing the first verse of Silent Night in German with the remaining verses sung in either German or English depending on each individual's preference.  While we are now a congregation of a wide variety of ethnic backgrounds there's something comforting about going back to our roots and German church founders.

In addition, there's something comforting about the fact that this tradition reminds me of Christmases of years gone by when we'd visit my paternal grandparents for Christmas.  My home church reminds me often of my paternal grandparent's home church an hour and a half south of me that was also founded by German farmers.  Simple, hardworking folk that have taught me well the importance of stopping for a moment to remember that which is important.

Bears Repeating

I posted this quote several months ago but it's been on my mind again lately so I thought that it bears repeating.  Especially during the holidays, it's worth remembering that those who appear the strongest may be putting up a front as they protect those around them.  They may really desire someone to be strong for them and protect them as they do the same for those around them.

Those who appear to be really strong,

really are the most sensitive.

Those who spend all their time protecting others,

sometimes really need someone to protect them.

~~ Author Unknown ~~

Pilot Boy

I've previously mentioned the guy I refer to as "pilot boy".  The one who has raised so many flags that I should be running (quickly) away from him.

We had tentative plans to finally meet in person this past Monday.  He was scheduled for training in Chicago and we'd be able to meet after he was done with training and after I got off work.  We'd catch up over Chicago-style pizza and enjoy getting to talk in-person.  And then he texted me at lunch time to let me know that he had gotten things mixed up and was actually flying from New York City to the west coast and not in fact in training in Chicago.  He had "gotten the dates mixed up" and had just realized the night before that he'd be flying instead of in training.

Yet another red flag on why this guy is just bad news.  Add that to the fact that I did a bit of a searching recently and discovered that he's not in fact a pilot but is instead a flight attendant.  Don't get me wrong, I have the utmost respect for flight attendants, but a flight attendant is a bit different from the pilot that he made himself out to be.

He may be a fly boy but he needs to straighten up and fly right!

Bye-bye Baby Bye-bye

Exciting news...I'm going to be an aunt again!  My sister-in-law let me know today that she's pregnant with her and my brother's third child which is great.  My four-year-old niece and two-year-old nephew will be great older siblings to this newest addition to the family.

That is provided that my niece doesn't do the same thing that she did when my nephew was born.  While Caroline understood that she was getting a new baby brother or sister, she was young enough to not quite understand the full specifics of that concept.  When it was time for Sammy to come home from the hospital,  her response was "bye-bye baby bye-bye".  She wasn't so sure about having to share mom and dad (along with dog Nala) with this new baby.  Thankfully she is now a loving big sister who gets along with her younger brother quite well so I'm confident that this newest addition will be an easier fit.