Come Emmanuel

Come and speak to us
Come and renew us
Come and live through us, Emmanuel

Grace to implore us
Ever before us
Come and restore us, Emmanuel

Come Emmanuel, Come Emmanuel
Come Emmanuel, Come Emmanuel

Once mercy found us
Still You astound us
Hold and surround us, Emmanuel

Living inside us
Faithful to guide us
Cover and hide us, Emmanuel

Come Emmanuel, Come Emmanuel
Come Emmanuel, Come Emmanuel

Love that begins us
Pardons and wins us
Come and reign in us, Emmanuel

Come and speak to us
Fill and renew us
Come and live through us, Emmanuel

Emmanuel, Emmanuel

                - T. Paris

All the Pretty Christmas Lights

There is a particular street in our town that hosts a Christmas event every year, called the "Vine Street Showcase." We thought we'd drive down it the night before and check out the lights. Here are some of the homes we saw. (Click on the photo for a larger view)

It's been raining here, so it was a treat to be able to go out and look at these beautiful homes on a dry evening. Hope you are seeing lovely displays of lights where you live, if not in your own front yard!

What Makes Us (Almost) Late to School, Part 1

It's not breakfast without a book!

What?

It's my second bowl!

The Lazy Baker's Dream Cookies

I have a confession: I am a lazy baker. Maybe it's because I am not a huge fan of cakes and pies, or maybe it is because I detest doing all the clean up afterward, but my poor family rarely reaps the rewards of my measly baking skills. I also suspect I am just too impatient to get through all the steps required of baking (I like to guesstimate rather than follow exact measurements) to make it to the payoff. Oh, and did I mention what a stinker all the clean up is?

So when I stumbled across this recipe for Pumpkin Cookies on Sumo's blog www.sumossweetstuff.blogspot.com I knew she was speaking my language. Three ingredients, no measuring, one bowl...can it get any easier? I know we're into the Christmas season now, but I had to share this easy yumminess with you, so here you go!

Pumpkin Cookies

Gather your ingredients:

1 box Spice Cake Mix

1 small can (15 oz.) Pure Pumpkin

1 bag Chocolate Chips

Mix pumpkin and cake mix until well blended.

Stir in your chocolate chips.

Drop by spoonfuls onto your cookie sheet.

Bake in a preheated 350* oven for 16-20 minutes.

Just try to keep them in your cookie jar!

(I ate three before they even went in there...shhh!)

Enjoy!