handsful

Going on, that is. And, we’re having a blast.

The BIG Testify choir performed their last Christmas concert last weekend…

The church ended up being standing-room-only and they did an awesome job!

Abbey in the dance, near the middle.

The kids have less than a month break…the spring season for Testify starts in January! They will again go on tour, this year to Atlanta (with the North Meck group) and Ohio (with the Mooresville).

What’s this, you ask? The middle and high school at church held a Christmas Talent Show. There was a “hit squad”, led by Luke, the middle school pastor. Ahhh!! They grabbed Randy!

What will they DO with him?!?

Oooh, this looks bad…

Yep, that’s what I thought would happen.

They nabbed two other kids too, but they got presents. No fair! It was fun watching the kids think they were gonna get pies in the face, though.

Quick shot of our tree. This years is especially pretty, I think.

Last night, we joined friends of ours and went to Carolina Christmas, a light show held at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The first part involves driving around a track across the street, and then driving on the actual racetrack. Randy tempted fate, and drove up on the track bank….we all leaned WAY right, so we wouldn’t tip over! There were lights everywhere, and tons of lighted displays. The kids were wide-eyed, especially the littles. I thought back to a year ago, when we came here right before we left for China. Dylan, still in an orphanage. Not this year…

After we parked, there were tons of things to do…we visited a Bethlehem village complete with baby Jesus, and then went over to see the animals. Pony rides first…

Dylan couldn’t stop smiling, the boy loves horses. He was thrilled that he did it all by himself, no one walked beside him!

This is Lainey’s “I’m having fun but don’t want anyone to know” expression.

There were lots of animals to see and feed…goats, lambs, cows, ducks, turkeys, and deer.

Our friend Lisa loved this goat at first sight, thought he was just gorgeous. She didn’t like feeding him, however.

I was a little grossed out myself. I’m not meant to own farm animals.

Can you tell who’s feeding this duck??

The littles were happy as clams, not bothered by goat spit in the least.

The deer were gorgeous, I think it’s the first time I’ve touched one, they’re pretty soft.

With freshly washed hands, we headed into a building that had food, shops, and Santa.

This booth was here last year, and we loved it. We bought a burner last year, so we added to our incense collection. They have their own perfumed oil called Moon, which I got last year. Smells so good! They have an online site, in case you’re interested.

Picture time. What ARE the boys doing?

Josh joined us, too. Abbey was okay with it.

Marley and her friend, Kayla.

The boys…that’s Kayla’s younger brother, Noah. I love that they’re posing with the BoJ tree…yep, we’re in the South.

You have no idea what a big deal this picture is. This is Lainey’s FIRST time with Santa…she’s been too petrified to sit with Santa till now, but being with all her sibs helped. Dylan ran right up, even before he was supposed to! Aren’t they cute? And, what a good Santa, too. The littles know that Santa is just a man dressed in a suit, he doesn’t visit our house. We don’t “do” Santa, but it’s fun to pose with the guy in the big red suit.

After the shopping, eating, and Santa, we headed outside. It was raining, but we went anyway. Dylan rode the train, and the others headed for the swings.

I had a wet head, and the kids all had wet butts…so, it was time to go.

Tonight is Christmas eve eve. Randy will read the advent book (we’re behind, so there will be LOTS of reading). I’ll cook a turkey breast, and finish wrapping presents. Tomorrow, my parents come to spend Christmas eve with us, and we’ll exchange presents. Candlelight Christmas eve service tomorrow night, and then…well, then it’ll be CHRISTMAS!