Three Christmases, Two Birthdays, and an "A" in Professional Nursing...

Hey Y'all! So things have been quite busy around here these past few weeks...or maybe its been months!  Here is a recap of what's been going on:

• Celebrated Thanksgiving by driving an hour and 45 minutes to the closest Cracker Barrel to get a good 'ole southern style Thanksgiving meal.  Yummy!!  We truly felt so blessed and so thankful for the amazing blessings that God has constantly poured out on us.

• One of Jason's co-worker's had us come eat Thanksgiving with her and her family on the Sunday after the holiday.  We have really come to value spending out holidays with each other, but it sure is nice to be a part of a family sometimes.  Thank you, Lori!
• Out came our "travel tree", stockings, and lots of Christmas music!  I look forward to making our "forever home" feel festive, but for now I am happy to light Christmas-scented candles and plug-ins and look at our sweet little Christmas tree.  At first, I was bummed out that we were spending another Christmas on the road, but then God showed me that I am so blessed to not be burdened down with lots of decorating and places to be and people to host and food to cook.  For now, I am enjoying the simplicity of our holidays together and I find that it is much easier to focus on Jesus when I'm not running around and feeling overwhelmed.

• We took part in the annual Wausau Christmas Parade (by attending) and bailed out before the end because my toes felt like they were about to break off from being so frozen.  We ducked into a cute diner to warm up and get some dinner...there's nothing like warm chili on a winter night in Wisconsin!  
• I attended "The Nutcracker" here in Wausau which was performed at The Grand Theater in downtown.  The theater is quite beautiful and reminds me of the Alabama Theater.  My honey was on-call so I went by myself (he was quite happy to have an excuse not to go:) which I really enjoyed.  The performance was very good and I purchased a sparkly nutcracker ornament for our little Christmas tree.

• Next, we went to a farm out in the country to take part in "An Old-Fashioned Christmas" that included not at all what we expected.  Basically, you could pay to participate in making different crafts or you could pay to listen to a band singing carols while eating dinner.  Reports of sleigh rides were greatly exaggerated!  We didn't have any cash so we just walked around a bit and looked at the different crafts, heard a little Christmas music and ate a Christmas cookie with milk.  Even though this event was not as advertised, the setting was so picturesque and serene with the snow falling (which made driving very scary) and a beautiful nativity scene.
• Here in Wisconsin everyone is a die-hard Packers fan...so, naturally we are too as long as we're here!  A co-worker of mine and Jason's, named Molly, invited us to her house to enjoy a Packers Party with her family and friends.  It was great to be included and to eat some yummy tailgating fare!
• On the day before we left for our time in Birmingham, we attended a dinner theater performance called "The Christmas Carol Murders".  It was a lot of fun and was one of those interactive dinner theater programs where you are trying to solve the mystery of who committed the murders.  We had a great time and I enjoyed a yummy margarita!
• Saturday, December 10th, we flew from Wausau to home sweet home Birmingham, Alabama, to spend a week with our family and friends.  Our sweet friend Molly and her daughter watched Winston and P while we were away.  Our time at home was crazy busy and full of appointments and parties!  We stayed with my honey's brother Jeff and his wife Lindley and they were amazing hosts...and what a great new house!  Not only did we celebrate Christmas three times (in-laws, my mom, my dad) we also celebrated my honey's birthday two times!  The second time was a surprise party that was loads of fun with wonderful old friends.   I was able to visit Children's Hospital ER (where I used to work) and see a lot of my  old co-workers/friends!  The trip ended with me getting a horrible migraine that didn't go away until we had arrived back in Wausau.  Otherwise, it was a wonderful trip and I am so glad that we were able to see our loved ones during this holiday season.

Check out Jason and their kitty Snapper, he's supposedly tough!

• During our week in Birmingham, I finished up my first session of school and came out with an "A" in both classes...thank You, Lord!  I wasn't sure if this "old dog" could learn new tricks and become a student again, but with God all things are possible.
• We thought we had found a permanent job in Nashville and became quite excited about it.  Alas, it was not the right job and God "shut the door" on that opportunity.  We are so grateful for His guidance as we seek His will for our lives.  We will continue to travel until God shows us where we are to settle permanently.  It truly is a blessing that my honey is very well thought of and because of that there seems to always be a place for us to go and people who want us to stay.

And for anyone who was worried about us leaving the kitties for a week...this is them getting close and cozy the other night!  Clearly not worse for the wear.

Well, that wraps up the update.  Will keep in touch with you all again soon.
Love, Mandi