A Light in the House

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

John 5: 14 & 15

Christmas was good part II

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.
Norman Vincent Peale

Christmas was good

Christmas was so good this year. I don't know where to start.

We started off the holiday season by going to Boone, NC to get our Christmas tree, and found a winter wonderland! There was a fresh layer of snow! That really got us in the holiday mood. We picked out a 10 foot tree, and brought it home. The family tree is where we showcase. Whenever we go on a trip, or an adventure we try to pick up an ornament to remember it by. So this year we added alot of favorites! We added a jellybean from the jellybelly factory, a trolley car from San Fransico, a tomahawk from the Cherokee mountains, the statue of liberty, a redwood tree, and a sealoin! We all have our favorite ornament! We are going to need a really big tree if we keep going on all of these adventures!

We were also blessed to have Judy spend the holiday season with us. We have kept her very busy, shuffling her to school parties, horse lessons, church, and a shopping marathon.

Dave and I both had Christmas Eve off this year, which was a blessing. We started out that morning by making a peppermint cake Emma found a recipee for. She was reading a Christmas cookbook, and picked it out all by herself, so we made it for her. It was a big project. We sifted, measured, whipped, baked and iced for about 3 hours. Well worth the holiday memory. Later that night she said she didn't really like it, it was just too pepperminty. Oh well.

Then as tradition would have it we go to my moms. We all get together. It is a night of excitement and huge anticipation. Before we open presents though, we read the nativity from a book I bought Dave when we were dating. We try to take a few minutes out of the hustle and bustle to refocus on the true meaning of Christmas.

Then the mayhem begins. . . This year was fun for me, because Robbie and Angie and I got to go in and buy my mom a laptop! Robbie had fun picking out the specs and customizing it just for mom. It was such a treat to watch her.

After the craziness we come back home. The girls sprinkled reindeer food out on the yard, put Santa's cookies out, and got to unwrap a new pair of jammies. This year, those girls could not go to sleep!

But. . . Christmas morning was worth the wait! Maggi found a stable, horses, and lots of treats. Emma found a DSI, games, and more treats. Then Judy sent them on a treasure hunt for their American Girl Dolls. Amazing.

This year, Judy even got an American Girl Doll. This year was about indulging in our "wishes" not being practical.

Then we were blessed to be able to go to my dad's for Christmas Day. It is fun to find out who went to bed the latest and got up the earliest. And to find out what all Santa brought.

I haven't had a chance to upload all my Christmas pictures, but these are a few of my favorite.















I don't know where we will be next year for Christmas, but I know that whever we are, or how is beside us, my family will always be in my heart. Thank you all for making my Christmas so wonderful!

Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor... Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.
Mother Teresa

"The Lord your God is with you,He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing."

Zephaniah 3:17

"You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your might. These words, which I am commanding you today, shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your sons (and daughters) and shall talk of them when you sit in your house and when you walk by the way and when you lie down and when you rise up." - Deuteronomy 6:5-7

Handle with Care

Seasons are changing, and I don't mean the weather. Our family is in the process of answering God's call on our lives and setting out on a whole new adventure. This isn't a small change, and not one that we thought of just yesterday, but rather the culmunation of a lifetime of God's hand in our lives and tugging on our hearts.

If you know us at all, you know David and I are passionate about missions. We both felt we were called to be missionaries from a very early age. We even met on foreign soil (a story for another blog). We have some exciting, LONG awaited news. We officially put our application in on Monday, November 2, 2009, to the Assemblies of God World Missions Department to be full time missionaries. . .

We as a familiy applied to be full time missionaries. The application process, is a long process, and it could even be a year before we are approved. But we know God's timing is perfect, so we begin the process of wating. .

God placed the call to missions on both our lives when we were both children. At differnet places, David in Northern California, and Amy in South Carolina at a summer camp. We even met each other in Europe working out God's call, listening to God's leading and direction.

We have known since the day we started dating that this was where we wanted to head eventually. God's timing and method have always been the great unknowns. About 6 months ago, David and I started talking about spending next summer studying Spanish, in Costa Rica with some Missionary friends (Jay and Nancy). In just a matter of weeks God expanded that small step and vision to reveal this as His timing for us to make this giant step in our lives. It has all happened just like He promises when we listen to His call and wait on Him, He accomplishes that which He has started in us. Not to say there haven't already been minor struggles and there are many more hurdles to overcome and patiently waiting experiences to be had. We have a long approval process to go through and aren't assured of acceptance, but this whole experience feels like the hand of God so there is much less apprehension and uncertainty than if we were trying to maker this happen on our own.

So we put the completed 200 page application in our hands, each prayed, and then placed it in the Lord's hands (via the US post office). We hope you join with us in prayer. Pray that as this process begins to unfold the Lord"S plan is revealed, in His time, in His way. We are standing in His word,

"Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding; in all your ways acknowledge him, and he will make your paths straight."

Thank you for sharing this dream with us, thank you for standing in prayer with us.

The Cartwrights.