My Favorite Things

My favorite things about Christmas Break

*TIME with family. It's so nice to have down time. No worries about homework, running here and running there.

*GAMES* Playing games like Chutes and Ladders, Scum, and our new favorite Guitar Hero World Tour for the Wii.

*FOOD* Chocolate, Pie, Cake, Chocolate, Cookies, Did I say Chocolate? Hopefully exercise will be a favorite in January.

*MOVIES* These movies have become a Christmas Break tradition. Anne of Green Gables Series, White Christmas, Polar Express.

FUN with Christmas Decorations

Our house in Cumming, Georgia

Picture frames with a message. Peace, Joy, Hope and Love. What this season is all about! "Perserved" ornaments as our dining room centerpeice & what is left of our gingerbread houses.

The tree that fits perfectly to the right of our mantel and can be seen from our front door.

Christmas picture books that we have collected through the years and through our travels. We try to read one each night.

Nutcracker Collection

When I, Steph, was a little girl my Grandma Miller took me to see the Nutcracker ballet on Christmas Eve. I LOVED it!! That same Grandma had a Nutcracker she sat on her coffee table each Christmas. I was fascinated by being able to pull up on the wooden coattails in the back and the mouth would open in the front. Many times I'd stick my finger in the Nutcracker's mouth and shut it to see how much it would hurt to be smashed. I even tried smashing some of my brothers and sisters fingers too.

From these dear childhood memories I have developed a foundness for nutcrackers and began a collection 5 years ago. Fred has bought me one each year for my birthday. He gives it to me early, when I bring out the Christmas decor, so we can enjoy them that season rather than waiting to use it next year.

Here are this year's additions.

A cute little sushi chef. Both Fred and I were missionaries in Japan. We enjoy ALL Japanese food.

An oldfashioned Santa with a bag full of blocks in his left hand and a Christmas Tree in his right. The Nutcracker on the rocking horse in the foreground is one that Ammon and I bought when we attended the Nutcracker Ballet with his kindergarten class in 2006.

Anniversary #15!

It's difficult to believe it has been 15 years since the day Fred and I were married. It seems like just yesterday he picked me up early in the morning. It had snowed during the night and we carefully made our way to the Salt Lake Temple. I can honestly say that was the best day of my life.

I love you Fredrick, My Love! This is the BEAUTIFUL arrangement he sent me for our special day.

Lake Lanier Holiday Nights of Lights!

It's an hour ride filled with lights, a live nativity and people shouting from their open car windows "Merry Christmas"! This is our 3rd year to experience this FUN event. As we drive we open up the moon roof of the van and Haleigh, Caleb and Ammon poke their heads out.

We listen to the Polar Express soundtrack. We time it just right so that track #14, the finale, plays as we drive through the snowflake flashing arches.

The live nativity was beautiful. Not only live people but live animals as well!

A donkey, a cow, two goats and three sheep.

Gingerbread House Building

This has been a Lewis Family tradition for 12 years now! On a Monday night, for family night, we invite at least 2 other families to join us for Gingerbread House Building FUN! Each family brings something of their choice to help decorate the houses. We get more creativity that way. This year we had the Taylor and Jenkins families join us. It was GREAT fun!!!

Random pictures

The first 3 pictures are from a scout hike where Caleb was learning to read a compass. I'm not sure whether Steph or Haleigh took the last picture but was taken as they entered our subdivision on a cold morning. I think it's a great shot.

November Mantel

Lewis Kid's Nerf Dart Game

The Lewis kids have invented their own game of darts with a nerf gun. It is played in the front entry of our house.
The person "it" stands at the front door with the nerf gun and shoots the dart up in the air.

Those not "it" lay on the floor and CAN NOT move. The dart falls to the ground and either hits those laying on the floor Or gets really close.


FUN TIMES with lots of squealing and laughing!

Our October Mantel - Will you Trick or Treat?

Our focus for the month of October is - Will you Trick or Treat.
When looking at relationships and interactions with others, will you TRICK them into doing what you want or will you TREAT them as the Savior would, with truth?


The TRICK side has Psalms 32:2 as a reference. "Blessed is the man... in whose spirit there is no guile." Guile is deceit, impure motives, hidden true intent. Guile in our lives is like the sludge at the bottom of a pond. It is stagnant, stinks and can not promote growth - so we have a pot of slime, green, blue and black (it really is gross - after sitting there all month there is actual mold growing on it.) and dead plants.



The TREAT side has the reference John 13:34 "A new commandment I give unto you, That ye love one another as I have loved you, that ye also love one another." TREAT others with LOVE, honor and respect. Be honest in your dealings with your fellow men. "TREATS" should not be so sugary that they are difficult to swallow. They should be sincere and genuine. Our "labor with all your might" bulbs continue to grow on this side.



May our month of October be filled with TREATS rather than TRICKS!

Our September Mantel

Each month I change the mantel in our Family Room. The theme of the mantel is our focus for the month and usually has something to do with the month's holiday. Our Family Home Evening lessons revolve around the theme and having the month's motto posted right below the TV reminds us of our focus often.
Labor Day is the September's holiday. In August we focused on "Know what it takes" and September we focus in "DO what it takes. LABOR with all your might." The pictures on the mantel represent examples of DOING what it takes.
Beginning at the far left:
A picture of the Savior healing the blind man. The Savior not only taught what is good, He DID what was good.
- A picture "Necessary for salvation". A hole is chopped out of the ice of a lake so a woman can be baptized. Though it was a huge sacrifice, all knew what was necessary for salvation and they did what it took for the woman to receive that sacred ordinance.
Small oval frame with James 2:20 - "Faith without works is dead."
Long rectangle shaped frame with 1 Nephi 3:7 - "I will go and do the things which the Lord hath commanded..."
The Salt Lake Temple picture - where Fred and I were married. We were willing to "Do what it takes" and live our lives so we could be married there.
The resurrected Savior - The Savior DID all that was required, and He did it for us.
The Glass Containers - have forced bulbs growing in them so we can watch the roots grow, "Labor with all their might" and finally bloom.

Keeping this updated

OK! So now that Haleigh has her own blog spot it now becomes my job to keep our family's blog updated. I will try my best.
-STEPH

Millers Come to Visit!

Andrew Jackson's Mansion with Grandma & Grandpa Lewis

Andrew Jackson's Mansion

Nashville, Tennessee with Grandma & Grandpa Lewis

Ruby Falls in Nashville, Tennessee!