The End's Not Near, It's Here

This past week has been a blur. First was Christmas Eve service at Westminster. I have to admit that I was kind of dreading this service. I was more interested in leaving early and getting to Louisville earlier. But going to this service is a tradition that Kevin has had for several years, and it his one of his favorite parts of the holiday...so we stayed and sang. Halfway through "Masters in this Hall," the opening song we sing each year, I realized how happy I was to be there. The service went so quickly this year. All of the songs went better than rehearsal and the sermon was interesting and uplifting. I feel truly blessed to be a part of this church and I am happy Kevin convinced me to stay for it.

The original plan was to drive after the service (around 11:30pm) to Louisville so we could wake up there on Christmas morning. However, Kevin was extremely tired and I didn't want to make the drive with him asleep, so we went to Middletown and slept and drove the next morning. If you've never driven early on Christmas morning, you really should sometime. There were only a few cars on the road. The morning was beautiful. It was just peaceful...being in the car with Kevin and Oscar, driving along. It was really nice.

We arrived for breakfast with the Bratcher's around 9am. It was really great to be with the family. We had breakfast, opened gifts (I got a new Kate Spade!), went to see the new Jim Carrey movie (the only one we could all agree on :) ) and then Derek made us dinner. It is always nice to be home in Louisville for Christmas. The home I grew up in, the home I hope to someday take my kids to. I am thankful for my family and the time we get to spend together.

Tonight Kevin and I are going to see a movie and have dinner with Mark. It will be a nice, relaxing evening...we might even go to bed before midnight! I guess we're getting old...hahaha. Tomorrow morning I am setting off for a little social trip. First I am going to Chicago for a few days to see my good friend Jordan. We are planning some shopping, some sushi and some catchup time. Then on Saturday I am going to make a stop in Indy to see Marci, Leah and Lauren. It will be a nice weekend and hopefully will get traveling out of my system for a little while.

As I look forward to the beginning of 2009, I wanted to look back on my favorite moments in 2008. Kevin finding out that his residency would be with the Air Force was definitely one. Not only were we excited that he got placed, but we were also happy that he got his first choice. We had no idea at the time that 6 months later the economy would take a swift downturn that would have made it difficult for him to get a job at the end of his residency year. His four-year commitment to the Air Force ensures that he has a job for the next four years...Something that felt so up to chance has truly been a blessing in our lives.

Another great moment was when Lauren told me she was pregnant. I know Lauren has wanted kids for some time now and I feel so happy for her and Andrew and the addition they will soon be making to their family. Even though the baby won't actually come until 2009, I think her getting pregnant was a 2008 highlight. And I can't wait to be an Aunt!

While this might sound corny, I think the best part of 2008 was spending another year with Kevin. I have a hard time leaving him for extended periods of time, and my favorite part of the day is when we're home together. I keep waiting for that feeling to go away, but it hasn't faded yet in 2.5 years. I guess the hope is that it never does.

I hope you have a wonderful New Year's Eve, and a Happy New Year. See you in 2009!

Christmas Part 1

This past weekend was the Hurley portion of the Holiday week. When Kevin and I got engaged, we set up a yearly way of splitting up the holidays. We spend Thanksgiving and Christmas Eve with one of our families and Christmas Day with the other. This back and forth system has worked pretty well in the past, until this year. This year it is the Bratcher's year to have us on Christmas Day and the Hurley's year to have us on Christmas Even. But because of Kevin's crazy "days of leave" it made more sense for us to spend Monday and Tuesday at the Hurleys. Kevin's brother, Mark, came into town on Saturday and the Hurley extended family Christmas party was that same night, so Kevin and I decided to spend Saturday thru Tuesday with his family.

Saturday evenings Hurley Christmas party was similar to past years...we weren't sure who was coming, there were some interesting presents in the gift exchange, and I lost at poker due to frustration. Let me explain...first the gift exchange. The Hurley's do a gift exchange similar to many people. Each person draws a number 1 - however many people are there. The first person opens a present from under the tree. Then the second person can either steal the first person's present or pick another one from under the tree. This goes on until everyone has a present. The difference between a normal gift exchange and the one at the Hurley's is that the Hurleys have some strange rules. Strange rule number one is that the person that draws #1 gets to be the last person to steal a present...I have never seen this done in any other circle. The other rule that is non-existant is that a gift can be stolen several times in one round.

So, here is the situation. There were two presents where lottery tickets were involved. Mark, Kevin's cousin-in-law Nikki and Kevin's cousin McKayla all wanted lottery tickets. Mark and Nikki both had lottery ticket gifts, and McKayla stole Mark's gift, so Mark stole Nikki's, so Nikki stole McKayla. This circle went round and round about four times before Nikki finally decided to steal something else. It was the most entertaining part of the evening.

The other funny part of the gift exchange was the gifts themselves. Steve, my father-in-law, brought tow-ropes (which he wanted for himself), then chose his own gift when his number came around. Kevin ended up with a coffeemaker that was the gift his Aunt Donna had won in last year's gift exchange. And Mark brought what he called a "party in a bag," which turned out to be a 24 oz Budweiser and some lottery tickets. It made for a hilarious evening. All in all it was an interesting evening.

Sunday was a nice dinner at Mark Manley's house. Kevin had hoped that he would cook for his family while they were all in town, and Mark kindly agreed. It was an extremely relaxing evening filled with good food, great conversation and wonderful company. Definitely one of the highlights of the evening.

We spent Monday and Tuesday playing the wii, having a nice "Christmas" dinner, opening presents, watching movies, hanging out and laughing at the hilarious things Mark Hurley tends to say. These past few days have just made it more clear that Kevin and I would love to live closer to his brother -- we simply do not see him enough.

Tomorrow Kevin is going to work, yes, on Christmas Eve. We will have dinner with Mark Manley and his family, sing in the Westminster Christmas Eve service, then head down to the Bratcher's for Christmas day. I am extremely excited to see my family and I am hoping it is a relaxing and fun weekend. I hope that you have a very Merry Christmas and special time with the ones that you love. I feel truly blessed to have two families, the Bratchers and the Hurleys, that I love very much. Merry Christmas!

Brit Signs Off

While I know many of you might not care, this evening was Brit Hume's last evening anchoring the Fox News program "Special Report with Brit Hume". Brit has been with the Fox News Channel for over 10 years and his program is the highest rated political program on cable television. Why am I dedicating a post to this? Because Brit has become a part of mine and Kevin's daily life. Each night we sit down after dinner or during and watch Brit talk about the national news. This is something we've done consistantly since we got married 2.5 years ago.

Brit will definitely be missed. Kevin and I hope that his replacement, Bret Baier, will be as consistant, entertaining and balanced as Brit always has been. Scoff if you want, but for a Fox News reporter, I feel that Brit has always managed to lead a discussion that shows two points of view - something severely lacking from many news programs. While Brit is not leaving Fox News altogether, we will not see him as regulary, and he will be missed.

The Reason for the Season

With Christmas a little more than a week away, I have been busy preparing the house with decorations, wrapping Christmas gifts and trying to wrap things up at work before my holiday break. With two families to shop for it is easy to get overwhelmed with Christmas shopping. I've managed to plan pretty well this year and get as much shopping done early as possible. Last week I spent an evening wrapping gifts, which always puts me in a good mood. I even managed to make some packages look like Linda Bratcher wrapped them, which to me feels impressive (I know, it's the littlest things, isn't it).

Santa's workshop

One of the wrapped presents I'm so proud of. impressed, aren't you?

This past Friday, Lauren and I met for lunch halfway between Indianapolis and Middletown. I had not seen Lauren since August when she first found out she was pregnant. Now that she is 4.5 months pregnant, she is beginning to get the cutest little baby bump. She found out right before Thanksgiving that she is having a boy, and I am so excited for her. I am not ready to be a mom, but I can't wait to be an Aunt :)

As Lauren and I were leaving lunch, we saw this older gentleman walking up to Chili's carrying a life size cross. He had it over his shoulder, using his other hand to hold his cane that he needed to walk. He set the cross down outside of Chili's and walked in as we were walking out. As we passed him in the entry way, he said to us "Jesus is the reason for the season. We shouldn't wait all year to adore Him, he should be adored all year."

It struck me that I get so wrapped up in the busyness of Christmas that I forget to remember the real reason we celebrate. It was nice to have this simple (and large) reminder.

"She will give birth to a son, and you are to give him the name Jesus, because he will save his people from their sins"

Matthew 1:21

December Already

This year has truly flown by. Kevin has already been with the Air Force 5 months, I've been at HRTC 3 months, and we are only a few months from finding out where we will be living next year. In January we will get the list of all of the bases with available openings in Kevin's field. We will rank them 1 - however many there are and then we wait. Again. Hopefully by the end of March we will know what's what and can begin making plans.

While Dayton is a possibility, Kevin and I are having fun picturing the other places we might live next year. I have to admit that Arizona, Phoenix more specifically, is very tempting. Kevin's brother lives there and it would be great to finally live closer to him. He also has an aunt and uncle and some cousins there, all of whom we love to be around. I also have an in for a job there with the development director at the Opera in Arizona. It's not a sure thing, but I think Lisa would try to help me out as best she could, either at her organization or maybe somewhere else. It is a Southwest Airlines city, so both of our families could travel there easily as well as us visit them. It isn't far from San Diego and Vegas. The sunny weather and beautiful scenary would just be the icing on the cake.

Of course, there are other closer, more realistic choices as well. Boston is very tempting to me, or Charleston. Anywhere in Florida looks good to Kevin. And while there are a lot of exciting places we could end up, there are also some that would be lackluster...Texas...Oklahoma...there are of course places I do not want to live. But Kevin and I have decided that no matter where we get placed, it will be a new adventure. Something exciting. Somewhere we've never been. This makes the future feel very exciting.

A little over a month ago was the wonderful wedding of Emma Kuhl (one of my oldest and dearest friends) and her now-husband Shanon Pitts. The ceremony and reception were gorgeous. It was held at the Henry Clay, a remodeled building in downtown Louisville. Emma’s older brother Karl performed the ceremony. It was light, funny and he preached the gospel…it was really great. But the best part of the wedding was watching Emma. I have known Emma for many many years, and I guarantee I have never seen her that happy. Now, I know that sounds cliché, a happy bride – but it was more than that. The way she continuously giggled, threw her head back during her laughter and smiled more widely then I have ever seen...her happiness was infectious. I smiled and cried throughout the entire ceremony. Congratulations Emma and Shanon. I know you both will be so happy. (photo by Eric Graf)

The Christmas festivities are officially in full swing. This Saturday is Kevin's work party, Monday is my work's holiday luncheon...then it will be family Christmas parties, spending time with the Manleys, Christmas Eve service at Westminster and time with our families. I love this time of year...not for the gifts, but for the opportunity to enjoy those you love. Before we know it, it will be 2009. It is amazing how quickly the time passes us by.