Christmas Celebration at Encino Park

Wow...what a day! Christmas at Encino Park Elementary School was a major production! The staff went all out to make it a special day for the kids...beginning first thing in the morning when Chris Meyers met them as they entered the door, dressed in one of his many costumes.
We had a shortened schedule during the day, leaving time right after lunch for the good stuff! They started with an all school assembly, which with over a thousand children is a huge group. The teachers presented "The Twelve Days at Encino Park" set to the tune of "The Twelve Days of Christmas". We each had a part to play and the kids got a kick out of it! Then we had an old fashion sing-a-long...I had volunteered to lead it, not knowing they sang Hanukah songs as well as songs in Spanish!

After the sing-a-long, the parties began. It was fun seeing the kinders as well as the fifth graders having a great time. I can't wait until next year!

Busy Sunday...

Sunday started out clear and sunny but much colder than we've seen it so far. Larry started serving in "Host Ministries" where he drives a twelve passenger cart out to the far reaches of the parking lot to shuttle families into the church. He loves doing it, but this was the first time since we've lived here that I've seen him complain about the cold...it was actually only 32 degrees, but it did seem much colder...maybe our blood is starting to thin out. We'll find out next week when we go back to Illinois for Christmas.



In my Sunday School class, we celebrated Jesus' birthday with a birthday party, complete with cupcakes that symbolized the message of salvation. Although I've done it for years, it was new to these families, so it was a special time for the kids. We also had a mini live nativity and drama for the younger children...what a special time that was!



In the evening we had our life group over for our Christmas Party. Like "real" San Antonio people, we served tacos and tamales with all the trimmings! We had invited the family that we had chosen to shop for this Christmas, and gave them their gifts. Then we ended with a white elephant gift exchange for the rest of us...it was a lot of fun!

Awesome Evening...

Tonight we had another Christmas Party for our Sunday School Class (which takes place on Saturday after church...does that make it "Saturday School"?). Anyway, it was after the 5pm service and held at Dennis and Cindy Mean's home. They have a beautiful home, but it had been transformed into a "Winter Wonderland"! Cindy is an artist and her work can be seen throughout the house. The yard is gorgeous with a pool and outdoor patio, complete with a fireplace. It was too cold outside for most folks, but Larry and I along with some other transplanted midwesterners ate our wonderful BBQ pork roast and trimmings outside on the veranda. In spite of the fact that I'm missing home, God is blessing me with unique memories of our first Christmas in Texas!

Amazing Sight!

We were invited to dinner tonight by our good friends the Raymers. We had a wonderful time talking and sharing during our meal at a Cajun restaraunt and then went for a drive to see some of San Antonio at Christmas time. We had planned on going down to the Riverwalk and taking a carriage ride around to see the tree at the Alamo, but because of the rain, we changed our plans. Instead, Tom took us to see the live Nativity put on at one of the local churches...it was quite a sight! When you enter the gate, they give you a CD which brings it all to life, complete with dialog from the characters. You get to see Gabriel appearing to Mary as a young girl, as well as King Herod with the setting just as it was in Bible Times. There are people in costumes wandering the streets, as well as Roman soldiers on horseback. The soldiers even approach your car and check out your passengers. You are given a gold coin, which you must pay to the guard at the gate before you enter the city. You get to see village people selling their wares on the street as well as the three wise men travelling to see the newborn King. At the very end, you see the stable complete with Mary, Joseph and the Baby as well as angels rejoicing up in the sky! The entire ride takes about a half hour and all characters are real...complete with live animals of every kind. The skies even cleared during dinner so we could see the event as it was meant to be seen. It was truly an amazing production and I wish I had taken my camera with me!

T'was Three Weeks Before Christmas...

Well, except for the weather, it's beginning to feel a lot like Christmas! Until today, it's been in the 80's, but everyone still seems in the Spirit. I guess those who reside in San Antonio are used to this weather during the holidays. Today a cold front came through and it was cold enough for coats...that made me happy!

This weekend was the Christmas Party for HEB. Since they hadn't had one for several years, Larry decided to have it at our house. It was a lot of work getting ready for it, but it was also a lot of fun. We had over thirty people and served various finger foods. Larry grilled Shrimp Kabobs, Bacon Wrapped Scallops and Beef Tenderloin, while I prepared the other appetizers in the kitchen. I think people enjoyed getting together to celebrate the holidays.















Sunday night we were invited by our favorite new neighbors to the Christmas program at their church. Wow...were we in for a big surprise! It's a really old Baptist Church just a few blocks from the Alamo downtown and was a gorgeous building! The decorations were fabulous and the music set the tone for a celebration worthy of our Saviour! It will be one of my favorite Christmas memories of this first Christmas in San Antonio, I'm sure!

Another Cold Day...

Stacey didn't have to leave until the afternoon, so we decided to go out to breakfast at The Guenther House downtown. There was a long wait this morning and they were short handed, but it still is a very impressive restaurant. It's the original grounds for the Pioneer Flour Mills (which is still in operation), and the restaurant is the original home built in the 1800's. In one of the rooms they had displayed this years Christmas Gingerbread House. It is an exact replica of the house and the details were incredible, as well as "edible"! There was furniture inside and the whole house was decorated for the holidays, down to the food on the table...all things made with Pioneer Baking mixes!


After breakfast, Larry took Stacey to see the HEB Corporate Headquarters. It's located at the old Arsenal down the street from the Alamo and has been completely restored. Everytime I go there I see something new...this time he showed us the arsenal "magazine," where all the ammunition was kept during the Civil War. Mr. Butt (the owner of HEB) lives in a restored house right down the street and has an underground walkway to the arsenal. The history here is incredible!

Christmas Kick-off...

We had a fabulous last day with Stacey today! We started out the day at Krispy Kreme Donuts and did a little Christmas shopping, then headed up north to a little town in the hill country. It was surprisingly cold today...in the 40's, but it at least it seemed more like the holidays to me. We shopped for a while in Fredricksburg and decided to have lunch there and while we were waiting for our table, I looked up and saw somebody I recognized! It was one of our old pastors from Hope, Eric Hoehn and his wife, Caren. They moved to Austin earlier this year and we were so surprised to see them. Caren's folks were with them and we know them too...Diane was our realtor in Illinois, so it was really fun to see them all.


Later in the afternoon, we were headed home and decided to stop in a little town called Boerne. They have a Dickens Christmas celebration each weekend now until December 25th. It was so much fun...Christmas shopping, carolers, street venders, horse drawn carriages and of course, St. Nicholas! They even had snow making machines...it was the perfect "Christmas Kick-off" Day!

Happy Thanksgiving...Texas style!

We had a fabulous Thanksgiving Day, in spite of being so far away from family and old friends. We spent the day with some very special friends in their beautiful home, where they shared not only their hospitality, but also their wonderful family! Becky had prepared the most wonderful dinner and the house was decorated to look like a layout for a Thanksgiving magazine.

Randy's brother, who is a doctor, had just returned from a missions trip to India and brought pictures on his laptop. Wow, that was a totally eye opening experience...really makes you thankful for our country and our culture!


One really nice surprise was that the temperature dropped overnight and today was really cold...for San Antonio, anyway. I think God knew I needed this weather to make me feel less homesick.

We also enjoyed having a two year old for the day...Madison was SO good and kept us entertained with her delightful giggle! It was fun sharing the day with a child close to Lydia's age...makes me anxious for Christmas!
The men spent the afternoon watching football...the Dallas Cowboys, of course! We had some other good friends from our Life Group join us for dessert...it made me realize how thankful I am for the rich friendships God has blessed us with here. His Love and Faithfullness are never ending!

Stacey's Week in San Antonio

We started out our week by visiting a little town called Gruene (pronounced "Green"), which is an OLD Texas western town. They have the oldest dance hall around which is still in use. People like Hank Williams got their start there along with many others who have their pictures posted on the walls of the building. They still use it today and many movies are filmed there. They also have lots of little shops for the many tourists that visit.

On Tuesday, Stacey and I went to San Marcus, which is a shoppers "Paradise"! They have miles and miles of outlet type shops and restaurants. We did our share of shopping and had lunch at a restaurant which had a stray kitten that waited for food as people came out the door. We, of course, shared the remainder of my tuna from my tuna melt.

Wednesday, we went to visit Larry's plant, where we got to wear lovely gowns and hairnets and tasted chips hot off the line!

On Thanksgiving Eve we visited the River Walk and walked down to the River City Mall. San Antonio is a beautiful city and the people don't seem like "city" people...more like small town folks.

Early Christmas Present!

Today my Christmas officially begins! I know Thanksgiving is not even here yet, but Stacey arrived today so I wanted the whole house decorated for her! She arrived late due to problems with her connecting flight which caused her to be two and a half hours later than expected. She was starving after her delayed flight, so Larry barbequed steak and we had her favorite meal...yummm! Tomorrow we start showing her around San Antonio right after church. I've been looking so forward to this week, and now it's finally here...

Food and Friends "Extraordinaire"!

We had an unbelievable evening tonight when we joined all our friends from our Life Group at the beautiful home of Dan and Joan Beasley for a six course meal prepared by "Chef Dan"! Dan's daily job is with the military, but tonight he impressed everyone with his culinary skills. We enjoyed such fine delicacies as "Scallop Provencial, Autumn Pumpkin Butternut Squash Soup, Stuffed Roasted Salmon in a Croissant and Profiteroles" among other delights!





Not only was the food a delight, but the atmosphere as we ate out by the pool was incredible. Joan collects dishes, most of which she has purchased in Germany during their travels. The tables were set beautifully and the weather cooperated by being better than we had anticipated.

Joan and Dan were outstanding hosts for the evening and all of us were so blessed to be included in this celebration of all God's gifts that He grants to us!

Trick or Treat Day

Well, I didn't really know what to expect this year on Halloween because of all the changes this past year. I knew it was going to be different being away from my kids and being in a new school. Actually, it was a pretty good day, in spite of some things that were VERY different! This district doesn't celebrate Halloween because of complaints of families who oppose it. For another thing, Texas doesn't allow candy to be given to students in public schools at all. Tonight we were watching the national news and there was a segment which focused on this very thing. They were discussing the controversy this is creating among parents. It did make it difficult considering all the teachers brought candy and gifts for each other!


Trick or Treating in our neighborhood took place all evening, rather than just for a couple of hours like in Illinois. The kids started coming about 6:30 and we just had a few more at a little before 9pm. It's been fun though because I know all the kids who come to our house from school.

The one thing that was the same was our traditional dinner of Halloween stew and biscuits...at least Larry was happy about that!