O Christmas Tree

Ok, Ok.....I know we've posted a lot this weekend, but what can we say? It's a busy December!!! One tradition that has been part of the Francis Family for almost 10 years is the Christmas Tree Decorating Extravaganza ( as we have come to call it!) We prepare finger foods, fondue and some Christmas goodies to munch on while we pull out each ornament, talk about its history and put it on the tree. Dan and I have many ornaments from our childhood trees and the kids always like to hear about where they came from each time we pull them out. Several of our ornaments were handmade by my (JJ's) grandmother. Now that she has passed away they hold even more value.

In this post are also pictures of our Christmas lights. As many of you know, Dan's dream is that our house would have lights similar to that of the Griswald's house on "National Lampoons: Christmas Vacation." So, each year we seem to inch our way closer to that goal (that's right....start up the John Deere and bring it right up onto the lawn!) Have a blessed week!











Our house at night.









Big Dan showing little Dan the ropes!









Savannah being silly!

The Good News Christmas Cruise

It's the Good News Christmas Cruise! This past weekend the girl's school performed their annual Christmas Musical. Savannah was thrilled to play one of the lead parts and McKayla was so excited to shake her maracas and sing!! Here are a few pictures from the girl's big night! We also thought you may enjoy seeing the kids pose in front of our giant Frosty the Snowman, as well as with our neighbor's inflatable Shrek (he, of course, is a huge hit with the neighborhood kids!) We pray that your Christmas season continues to be blessed. Love to you all.









McKayla sings as one of the passengers on the "Good News Cruise."












Savannah sings her heart out as "Kimmy" the ship's activity director.











Waiting patiently for her line!











A sweet angel in the 2nd act.














Waiting in the wings!!!














Frosty and Friends in Traceside!














Shrek and the little ones.

Gingerbread Geranimo!

Tis the season for holiday baking! What would this season be without Christmas cookies and gingerbread houses? The other night, after the kids helped Dan put up the lights and our inflatable Frosty (thanks mom) we decided to make our own gingerbread house. Quaint, you say? Perhaps, however attempting to balance 6 pieces of gingerbread upright with only runny, white icing, while appeasing the growing uprising over the fact that there is only one piping bag is another task entirely! After carefully "gluing" together the sides of the gingerbread abode we had to quickly shift it to the freezer because 2 year olds really can't wait the recommended 30 minutes in order for everything to solidify. After several minutes in the freezer we returned the house to the table in preparation for the roof....a moment we had all been waiting for. Although somewhat lopsided, Savannah managed to ice the roof together and then place it on the sides of the house. We all stood back and beamed at the completion of the home awaiting it's candy decorations. Yet, ever so slowly the left side of the roof began to slide down one side while the opposite side started to cave in. We watched as our masterpiece oozed icing from every side and collapsed into a broken heap. There was a very long moment of silence before, what I thought were going to be tears, but turned out to be hysterical laughter. The kids thought it was the funniest thing they had ever seen! (whew!) So, instead of a gingerbread house, each of them picked a side, iced and decorated it as one giant gingerbread cookie. I guess when life hands you lemons, you make lemonade! Hope you enjoy!!! Blessings to you.

Team Titan and other news!

Go Titans!!! This afternoon Dan and Savannah headed out to watch the Titans play the Chargers! Savannah has become a true Tennessee Titans fan, following in her daddy's footsteps! Our wintery weather has (momentarily) turned into what feels like a spring afternoon. So, I guess the saying of the south holds true...If you don't like the weather, just wait 5 minutes. Fortunately for those at the game, they won't be run out by bad weather. =)

Some other family news.....last week JJ finished her Master's degree in Education. It has been a little over two years in the making but it's finally done! We are so grateful for our amazing family and friends who have been so supportive and encouraging. Also for the gracious staff at Our Savior Lutheran Academy who was a huge part of JJ's experience and training. Most of all, though, we are grateful for the Lord who was more faithful than we could have imagined! He put the seemingly impossible before us, a number of times, and through Him made it all possible! "Because of the Lord's great love, we are not consumed. For His compassions never fail they are new every morning, great is Your faithfulness!" Lamentations 3:22-23.

Finally, we are excited to share that we will be out in California for the holidays! We are thrilled to be able to spend time with our family and friends. So be on the lookout for new pictures in the next couple of weeks.
We pray that you are blessed this Christmas season and that you are all able to spend time with your loved ones. Most of all, we pray that you remember the gift of love that was given to you over 2000 years ago, Jesus the King! Love to you all.
----The Francis 5

NEW ADDITION!!!

This morning in San Diego, CA. our family welcomed a new addition. Makenna Rae Stelzner was born to Dan's oldest sister and her husband, making their total score Girls: 4 Boys: 1....sorry Mike, it looks like you're out numbered! Makenna joins sisters Elissa and Kira and is the 8th grandchild for Dan's parents. She weighed in at 8lbs. 14 oz and has a beautiful head of dark brown hair. Mommy and baby are doing well, other than being a little tired =) Stelzner family, we love you and we are so excited to meet our new, precious niece!

"Children are a reward from the Lord" Psalm 127:3

Thanksgiving in Nashville

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

It was a quiet Thanksgiving Day, with just the 5 of us, but we had a great time! Due to a major dip in our temperatures, the morning started off with Hot Chocolate and the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Around 10:00am the cooking began! Everyone helped to make homemade apple pie, turkey, potatoes, veggies and (a Francis Family Tradition) Sweet Potatoes with Pecans. Dan and Daniel did some serious male bonding while watching the football games and Savannah created beautiful name cards for everyone at the table. McKayla, in the spirit of Rachel Ray (her favorite), spent most of the day with J cooking in the kitchen. (Her uncle Chef Ben would be proud!) We missed all of you in California but one of the joys of being a young family is beginning our own traditions! Here are a few photos of our festive celebration ( Yes, even one of Diego, the wonder dog, who thoroughly enjoyed the post-Thanksgiving scraps!). We hope your day was blessed!

Celebrations of Thanksgiving!

"Give Thanks to the Lord for He is good, His love endures Forever!" Psalm 136:1

What an awesome blessing we have this week to celebrate all of the gifts for which we are thankful. No matter what situation we find ourselves in, we all have something for which to be thankful. Perhaps it is family or friends, a great job, wonderful weather, our children or grandchildren and, of course, an awesome God who loves us eternally! Many are blessed enough to give thanks for all of these things. Something our family is thankful for is all of you, we are so grateful for your influence in our lives. Each of you plays a significant role and we pray that God blesses you beyond all measure this Thanksgiving! We love you.

Here are a few pictures of the girls' Thanksgiving celebrations at school this morning. For Savannah's class today was all about Native Americans and tomorrow will be all about Pilgrims! McKayla's class dressed up and performed some holiday songs, then enjoyed a feast with the Moms and Dads. It was such a fun time with both girls!
Hope you enjoy the photos.

Happy Birthday McKayla!

Today I'm 4!!
Thank you for all of your calls, emails, text messages and birthday wishes. You all made the day very special for me.

We started the day at church with all of my Sunday School friends. Then my family and I opened presents (including a really cool "Webkinz" from my big sister!). There are a couple other pictures of me with my new roller skates and my Hot Pink ATV from Meemaw.....awesome!!!

After naptime, our family went to Chuck E Cheese's where we played games and ate birthday cake. It was really fun. Hope you all enjoy the pictures from my special day....I wish you all could have been here. I love you....hugs and kisses, McKayla.

Fall Greetings!

Happy Fall from Savannah, McKayla and Daniel.

Happy Harvest!

Tonight is a night that most kids wait for all year! For those of you who are parents, you have been hearing about what your child wants to be for Halloween since January. Perhaps, you have visited a dozen or more stores searching for just the right costume! Whatever your journey has been like to get here, it's finally over. Just like that! Halloween 2007 has come and gone. Now the count-down to next Halloween begins! =)
The kids had a great day! Savannah's teacher planned a special day for the class to learn about the Autumn Harvest and Reformation Day (which is on October 31st, after all!) The little ones had some Autumn Harvest goodies in their classes as well. However, they could hardly wait to get into their costumes, as you can see from the pictures Savannah was a cheetah, Daniel was a dragon and McKayla was Cinderella (a last minute change from the originally-planned Butterfly costume). By 6pm our neighborhood was buzzing with pirates, princesses and baseball players. Although there were a few creepy critters who arrived at our door as well...when they did, McKayla would hide and Daniel would run into the kitchen yelling "Oooooo scary guys!" Finally we got out into the neighborhood. McKayla, somewhat traumatized by the "scary guys," warmed up to the idea of trick-or-treating, especially when she realized she received candy at each house. It was an evening of good memories, what a sweet blessing!

The Oktoberfest....

Last weekend the kids' school put on their annual "Oktoberfest." Although this German tradition has become quite "Americanized," it couldn't have been more fun! You may recognize the design on the shirts. They were designed by, none other than, our own Savannah! She won the T-shirt design contest and so each student donned her artistic masterpiece during the Oktoberfest Celebration.
The kids bounced in the bouncy house, had their faces painted and scored big at the "Spiderman" bean bag toss. In fact, Daniel showed everyone that he has quite an arm! Future pitcher? We'll see!

Sneak Peak...

Yes, that's right we had pictures of the kids taken a couple weekends ago. In this post are just a few from that shoot to give you a foretaste of the feast to come! The actual picture-taking was interesting, to say the least =). Savannah did beautifully, smiling and posing any way she was asked to. McKayla, at first, would only smile if I sat right next to her (so the photographer had to try to keep me out of the shot =) However, after about three pictures she was smiling, twirling and insisting that the other two get out of her shot. (Oy Vey! In about 10 years, I think we'll be in trouble!) Daniel thought the whole thing was hilarious, especially after the photographer gave him a red, rubber ball. Two year old boy; red, rubber ball; expensive camera...danger was eminent. Fortunately, we were able to get several cute pictures of him without any major damage. Although by the end, we were making complete fools of ourselves trying to get everyone to look forward and Smile! In fact, I think I recall there may have been some bribery with candy corns that occured, but we're not admitting to anything! Anyway, enjoy! Love and blessings to all.

PS
For all of you affected by the San Diego fires in one way or another, please know that we are praying for you daily. We are so grateful to hear that the homes of Dan's mom and sisters were spared. God is so good!

A Southern Autumn

Fall has officially arrived here in the south. If you have never experienced a southern autumn, you'll have to add it to your "To Do in Life" list. The weather cools down to about 70 degrees and the leaves change from a vibrant green to a fiery orange. Porches are adorned with pumpkins and scarecrows and mums spring up throughout every neighborhood. It's the perfect time of year to get out and about.

As evidenced by our pictures here we spent part of our weekend at the Zoo! The most exciting part was that we were able to share it with Grandma Susu, what a blessing! Hope you enjoy this smattering of photos, most of which are from the zoo. The rest are just some fall pictures of the kids! Also, there is a great one of Dan....enjoying the Meerkat preserve with all of the kids! Love to all. Hope your weekend is beautiful and blessed!

Rock-Skipping

Oct. 15, 2007

"This is the day the Lord has made, let us rejoice and be glad in it." Psalm 118:24