~Our last day in Argentina & our Merry Christmas~

I'm still among the livin'...
Just have been BUSY...buying and wrapping up Christmas for our family, trying to organize, UNPACKING 23 SUITCASES and several boxes, taking care of our sick kiddies, feeding the family, etc.

We are SLOWLY but surely getting organized...I'm sure it will take awhile before I FEEL Organized, but God is helping us. :-)

Here's a couple pics of some of our MESS we have been working on. :-)
Photo #1: Abigail's nursery became the "stash-it-room."  :-)
I loaned out her changing table while I was gone...so now that I have it, I'll start organizing in there.

Photo #2: The mess on the 3rd floor.
A bed that was donated to us while we were gone, plus some of the 23 SUITCASES (and several boxes) that we have to unpack...WE'RE NOT sitting around being BORED!  :-) ~

~Before we left Argentina our girl's DEAR piano teacher Mrs. Elsa made us some delicious Alfajores (typical Argentine cookies) to take with us. :-) ~

~Delicious~

~Kimberly's certificate from her one month of Chinese classes she took back in June. (I never got a pic posted of it, so threw it in here. :-) ~

~Elijah and Abigail being silly while we finished packing and cleaning in Argentina.~

~There was a STRIKE in the MIDDLE OF THE ROAD right before we got to the airport in Argentina, so we sat in traffic for awhile trying to get there. :-(
Noah, Bubu (Jonathan) and Elijah with the sweet gifts that Bubu gave the boys.
(Our boys left their beloved ripsticks for Bubu and Valen, and eventually we'll get them more.)~


~Bubu is quite the artist and painted this NEAT pic of Noah on his ripstick (like a skateboard with wheels that wiggle!~


~With our DEAR Friends saying goodbye at the Argentine airport.~

~Kimberly, Phillip, and Abigail in the airplane.

God was good and gave us an extra seat for baby Abigail to stretch out and rest 

since we flew all night.~

~Mommy and Mary.~

~Kimberly was a DEAR and rocked Abigail to sleep and kept her all night long, 

so I could get some sleep~

~Around midnight on the airplane they served us a yummy supper.~

~We held the camera around the chair and snapped this pic of Elijah, Noah, and Sarah.~

~Then when we landed in Miami...we saw JUAN VALDEZ COFFEE SHOP FROM OUR BELOVED COLOMBIA!!
Since Kimberly had babysat Abigail all night, and she LOVES Juan Valdez, I decided to get 3 treats to share with the fam, to THANK HER.~

~Kimberly and Sarah were HAPPY with their coffee.~

~It was a HIT with Abigail too...she didn't want to let go of the straw!!!~


~We missed our connecting flight (due to our plane being late) so I snapped a few pics of  Abigail and the kiddos while waiting to catch the next flight.~








~"Heavenly Cotton balls"...in the sky.~

~Landing in Washington D.C.~




~Our first glimpse of the Washington monument.~




~Abigail, on Kimberly's lap.. leaning over getting tired...
while playing peek-a-boo with a stranger. :-) ~



~In the distance...you can see our BELOVED CINCINNATI!!!  YAY!!!  We're Home!~


~There's our shadow...landing in Cincinnati.~


~Abigail ... in the airport getting ready to see our family and friends.~





~Abigail "Re-meets Gram" (my Moma) for the first time since she was 4 months old.~





~Gramp trying to "win Abigail over", so he could hold her. :-) ~

~Abigail playing shy.~



~Kimberly and Sarah with their cousins and friend.~


~and the same pic...with UNCLE DARYL being a Photo Bomb! :-) ~


~Sarah, Gram, and Kimberly!~


~Pretty Christmas decor at the Cinci airport.~

~LOTS of suitcases in our Living Room...waiting to be unpacked!~


~Our Dear nephew Bryan hung Christmas lights on our porch. THANK YOU, BRYAN!~


~Visiting in our dinning room while A. Laura and Moma served their yummy snack they made to welcome us.~




~Gram made homemade bread, and Laura made homemade Russian Borscht soup and homemade chili.~

~Abigail Re-meets Pastor!!~


~Enjoying the yummy welcome snack.~

~Laura made this tray of yummy snacks for us.~

~Moma made 2 blackberry pies using Daddy's blackberries.  YUM!~



~The pretty poinsettia that I gave to Moma last year, and she replanted and gave back to me. :-) ~

~And a cute little pumpkin and watermelon Daddy grew in his garden and Moma saved for us. :-) ~




~OUR HECTIC CHRISTMAS SUNDAY!!!!
Besides trying to FIND EVERYTHING...shoes, socks, hairbrush, etc....
I snapped this picture of Sarah and Abigail playing the piano right before we went out the door....TO CHURCH...WE THOUGHT!  
We got in the van, drove down the hill, and poor baby Abigail lost her breakfast all over her new off-white dress!:-(
She had never thrown up in her life, so she had no clue what was happening! :-(
She must have caught the flu bug on the plane. :-( ~


~So, we turned around and Phillip stayed home with sick baby Abigail and I took the rest of the kids to church LATE, but hey, at least we got there.
Kimberly (holding Reagan), their good friend RaeQuelle, and Sarah.~

~Mary and her friends.~


~Zack and Noah.~


~RaeQuelle gave us some yummy sugar cookies she had made.
It was a nice snack for our long trip home.  :-) ~

~My Sweetheart and I.~





~A Christmas snuggle...who needs Mistletoe?! :-) ~


~Abigail is enjoying being home and finding all kinds of "new toys" to play with.~


~Poor baby...she was so sick! :-( ~

Since we couldn't go anywhere on Christmas eve...like the girls wanted to, Daddy surprised the kids and brought home some yummy Chick-fil-a to eat!!:-)

~Some people gave our family Christmas money ...so we got some nice gifts.
One of them was this...my gift from my sweetheart!!~


~Almost ready to open gifts on Christmas day!~








~The stockings were hung with care...
Knowing Daddy and Mommy would soon be there. :-) ~


~All filled.
Phillip got me yummy sparkling juices (2 jugos sin vino), dark chocolates, and teas.~


~We got the girls matching Raggedy Ann dolls.  And since our kids needed winter clothes, I got them new warm gloves...in case it snows soon. :-)
(We're praying FOR SNOW! :-) ~


~When Sarah saw this doll...it reminded her of her dear Argentine friend VALEN!!~


~Mary got the stomach flu the worst.  The little girl could not keep ANYTHING DOWN!!! She would literally take a drink and then lose it. :-(
So, on Christmas day, we were contemplating taking her to the ER...when we sent out a prayer request to our church prayer chain to PLEASE Pray that God would touch little Mary.
GOD CREATED A CHRISTMAS MIRACLE...and she quit throwing up and started smiling and acting more like our little Mary.
THANK YOU, DEAR JESUS!~


~Sarah reading her a Christmas story.~

~I found this little blouse for Abigail that says,
"On the Nice list!"~



~A Christmas Us-ie!~

~Little Mary...still not feeling the best...seeing her Christmas gift from Sarah...while lying on the couch.~


~Sarah came up with the idea that we should DRAW NAMES among the children, so that each of them didn't get 6 gifts they might not need (or want ;-) but ONE NICE GIFT FROM THEIR SIBBLING!
Elijah had baby Abigail's name and he got her this Fisherprice lamp that sings....
AND SHE LOVES IT!~


~Phillip made us some yummy Colombian coffee on Christmas day, and served it to me in one of the little cups we bought from the restaurant up on Monserrate in our Bogota, Colombia. :-) ~


~ A cute "Let there be Peace on Earth" cup Phillip picked up for the family~


~Sarah got me this scarf...and crazy Phillip put it on his head like a rabbit skin hat.~


~We didn't buy little gifts for K and S this year, we bought them each a nice metal geared sewing machine.  They were happy and surprised.~





~And my sweetheart got us a steamer.
With 6 children, I don't have a lot of time to IRON, but a quick steam can make us not look like we just crawled out of the suitcases. ;-) ~

~With us having the stomach flu bug in our house, I didn't know if we'd be having Chicken Noodle soup for Christmas dinner or not.
But in case any of us felt like eating...on Tuesday, I picked up a ham, Delicious BOB EVANS Ready-to-eat Mashed potatoes (yes, BOB EVANS...You can THANK ME, for that free advertisement!! :-),
green beans, canned cranberry sauce, and some salad for a simple but Delish Christmas dinner.~


~Phillip got me this pretty casual glass pitcher.  I enjoyed using it for our water with cranberries.~


~Our Christmas ham! Delicious!~


~Kimberly made us a yummy salad, and I served Cottage cheese, and cranberry sauce too.~


~Christmas night, we were delighted to have our dear Mission Director Bro. Becker and his sweet wife come over!
They gave us a nice gift!~


~Phillip being crazy with the bow.  :-)
Their gift was the FUN Spot-it game that they introduced to us when they came to see us in Argentina in October.  :-) ~

~Bro. Becker and Phillip~

~I just set out some simple snacks to munch on with the Beckers.
Sis. Becker brought the yummy caramel/choc. covered popcorn in the green bowl.
My sweetheart got me the cute red and white candy dish that says,
"Jesus is the sweetest name I know!"







~The next Sunday morning, found out visiting some Dear friends...(more pics from that visit in another post!)
So we asked them to take this picture of our family!
NOTICE MARY IS IN HER HELLO KITTY NIGHTGOWN!
She had gotten all ready to go to church, but then wasn't feeling the best, so stayed home with my dear friend.~

We trust that each of you had a Very Merry Christmas!  

I'll try to post as often as I can, while still trying to get organized. :-)

~HEATHER~