Mequon Update

I write to you from Mequon, WI. I am hanging out at my parent's house for the weekend! The Christmas celebration was great, with three meals of great food:

1. Breakfast in Oshkosh (eggs, bacon, hash browns and homemade waffles :) )
2. Lunch in Mequon (prime rib!)
3. Dinner in Sussex (ham, pot roast and lots of other food)

I did get some wonderful gifts (and many gift certificates). Christa and I are also proud of the gifts that we got for others.

My mom had an avulsion fracture on her foot. The swelling had gone down, but it is still pretty painful and she will have more tests to find out exactly what is going on. Prayers would be appreciated so that her recovery might be as quick as possible.

I have appreciated the time to relax, with some reading and video game playing sprinkled in. My Dad ran an internet cord into the guest room, so I am able to use XBox live while I am at home. That is pretty cool!

Cleaning Catch-Up

It amazes me how dirty your apartment can get when you let it go a few weeks without cleaning. What usually is a one afternoon project has turned into a much larger multi-day project. But, when completed the apartment should look nice for the two-week stretch run before the end of the semester.

Happy Birthday wishes go out to my mom who is celebrating today. We will look over how old she is :). I am hoping to stop down to Mequon on Friday evening for belated birthday wishes and an opportunity to visit home.

Happy Birthday Dinner

Christa and I will be heading out this afternoon to join my parents at The Porterhouse for dinner to celebrate my dad's birthday. It was actually on the 7th and they were going to go out last weekend, but that was the weekend of OPE. It will be nice to see my parents again, especially with Christa there.

After dinner, we will be heading to Sussex to hang out with Christa's parents before we begin the trek back to Oshkosh. We will be getting the rest of the addresses that we need for our wedding invitations. Plus we will both have the chance to catch up with our folks.

Before that, I continue to look at Community Advisor files, even on a Sunday. Such dedication. Then, it's time to finalize the AD&D adventure for tomorrow. I at least have some sense of priorities. ;)

Christmas

Another Christmas has come and gone. The feelings of the season continue, but the day has indeed passed. Of any year, this year's Christmas has the most relgious significance for me and has been the most meaningful. I suppose this requires some explanation.

As a kid growing up, Christmas was all about the presents; the attendance at church was an afterthought, almost a burden. I understood that we celebrated the birth of Jesus on this day, but I didn't necessarily understand the true significance of the holiday. I can remember the GI Joe headquarters & the yearly Lifesavers Book among other gifts really bringing a real energy to that particular season.

I joke with my parents and with others that the older you get, the more practical Santa gets. As I am now 30 and have a full-time job, I can play the role of Santa for myself. Perhaps it takes some of the fun out of purchasing gifts to me, but it allows other "Santas" to be practical with something that I may not think about, but might be useful for me. Overall, though, gift receiving is not as important to me.

My return to the Christian faith and my adoption of Methodism has generated in me a real reverence for Jesus Christ and his birth. The presents are fun, but I have more fun figuring out what I am going to get for others. Now more than ever I appreciate times like Thanksgiving and Christmas for the opportunities I have to be with my family.

I don't have a big family...when I go home, it's me, and my mom and dad. I suppose you can count the cats (Scully & Gizmo). But, as small as we are, those times together are veryimportant to me. I am not always the best in keeping in touch with my parents so I am sure they appreciate the time I am home as well. It is these feelings mixed with "the reason for the season" that bring me the most joy for Christmas.

As the new year approaches, it is again an opportunity to reflect on what is important to us. I feel as though my priorities in life continue to improve and this year has been an excellent step.

Greetings From Mequon!

My apologies for not posting over the last few days. I have been relaxing at my parent's house in Mequon, WI for the last few days. I will be coming back to Oshkosh, WI tonight since I will be liturgist and guest speaker for the 8:00 AM and 9:30 AM services tomorrow. I am excited to be talking about my Exploration Conference experience. Fear not, even though I have not posted about my thoughts on the conference, I will soon. Stay tuned.

The break has been wonderful. Thanksgiving involved the traditional Droste prime rib and football viewing. Later in the day, I drove to Christa's parent's house and stayed there for awhile. Friday was the traditional day of shopping, beginning the day with my parents and ending the day with Christa. Today, Nick and I will be going to the Bucks game...Nick got us some very good seats. I am excited.

That's all for now; expect more detailed posts upon my return to UWO on Sunday.