Welcome to Texas Y'all!

With the Holiday season quickly approaching; our family left The Netherlands to travel back to the States to be with the rest of our family. Stockings were hung, presents had been purchased and the tree was trimmed. We arrived in Dallas with our family already gathered and waiting. And while we always go to mass on Christmas Eve and open presents Christmas morning, there was one gift from my daughter and her boyfriend that we got to enjoy early. Christmas at Jerry’s house. That would be Jerry Jones.. owner of the Dallas Cowboys.

The Cowboy’s would be playing the New Orleans’s Saints and the game would start at noon. And in true classic football style, we decided to tailgate before the game. We arrived at the stadium at 9:30am.. broke out the cocktails and the  grill to make breakfast burritos with  grilled sausage, scrambled eggs and salsa.

Heading into the stadium, we were thrilled to run into our friends Karen and Ed. Hugs, laughter and catching up with each other…. Priceless.

The Dallas Cowboys are known as America’s team. They are as iconic as they come. Even the roof was open that glorious day so that God could watch his team. Tony Romo lead his team through a tough match and the Cowboy’s Cheerleaders delighted the crowd with cute little Santa outfits on.

The Saints came out on top that day after going into overtime. But the true gift of that day was the time spent with my family. It’s memories like this that make life so precious.

Flying into America and getting to watch one of the best football teams in America, the Dallas Cowboys…..Outstanding!

This Christmas

Christmas has always been special to me. As the baby of my family, my parents and sisters made sure each Christmas was warm, cozy and full of wonderful memories. For some reason, my mother got away with the fact that she could only cook a few things.. Chop Suey, Pork and Sauerkraut, and Meat Loaf. These were three things that really didn’t belong on the Christmas table. Luckily my grandma was a wonderful cook. She had cooked for an elementary school in my home town for most of her adult life. My Grandma Anne would always do all the cooking.. turkey, potatoes, pies, .. everything. And I happily never cooked anything till I got married.

As a teen, my friends and I would bundle up every year to go Christmas Caroling, tobogganing, and skating. We also did some pretty stupid things in the snow (now that I think about it). A donuts  this is where you drive your car, then swerve and slam on the brakes till you were circling and spinning like a donut. Shagging (yes, I know what that is in England J)… this is where someone is driving a car and the other idiots hang off the back bumper and slide on their boots along the snowy road. 

All of the dumb things we did were done out in the country with no other cars around. I would list names but they all know who they are…. just a bunch of  kids. They were my friends then and they still are today.

This Christmas, I sit by my fire in my living room in The Netherlands and I’m thinking about something my mother did inspire in me… my love to decorate the house at Christmas to create a magical feel for my children. One of my favorite memories of her is when she would have us wait at the top of the stairs on Christmas day while she went to turn on all the Christmas lights around the house before we were allowed to come down. It was truly beautiful. Well here, the trees are lit, halls are decked, cookies are baked and stockings are hung by the chimney with care. I thought I had a mouse stirring one night, but it turned out to be just a runaway pine cone from my tree.  I love to decorate my house and try to put a little something merry in each room.

 Thought I’d share ….

I usually pick up an ornament or two each year but I also love tearing apart old arrangements to put new ones together. This year I’ve been following a few very creative people on their blogs. And they’ve inspired me to make a few new things. Of course mine do not look as fabulous as theirs but I’m pretty happy with them.

My faux to fab wreath idea came from Beth at http://unskinnyboppy.com/2011/11/making-my-own-semi-natural-evergreen/. I used an old wreath and filled it with goodies from my yard. I couldn’t find burlap ribbon, so I cut up a Sinter Klaas bag to make the bow. I like my use of the bag more than what it’s supposed to be used for.

And I love the tree that I have in my bedroom. I have always decorated it with the hand crocheted ornaments that my grandma and my sister made for me.I add raffia bows to fill in the tree and offset the white. 

This year, I added little mason jars filled with tiny white goodies.. mini marshmallows, mini chocolate chips.. and so on. I love the way the lights sparkle through the glass jars. This idea came from Kelly at http://eclecticallyvintage.com/2011/11/snowy-mason-jar-candles-2/

My main tree is decorated with a mix of old and new ornaments collected over the years with some made by my children and even one made by me in Kindergarten. 

A precious juice lid with a Christmas card circle cut and glued onto it.

Some of my loved ones have now passed but making wonderful memories for my own family is what is most important to me now.  We won’t be spending This Christmas here in The Netherlands, but we have some friends staying with our beloved little Bear. So the house is ready for their stay.

 Even little Bear has a tree.

My mom and her best friend

Thank you, Mom, for instilling in me not only a love for the beauty that is all around at this time of year but for what is most important… faith and family. You are dearly missed.

So from my home to yours ~ Merry Christmas

A Broken Heart

On a cold autumn morning in The Netherlands, I entered the door to my place of worship, the Catholic Church, Heilig Hartkerk or Sacred Heart Church. Attending the morning mass would be different for my family that day. Since moving to The Netherlands, we have been attending mass on Sunday afternoons. This is when an English mass is offered. But we were at the Dutch morning mass for a reason. We were there to join the Sacred Heart community as one group, as a unity of prayer. We were there to join hands, to sing and to pray. We were there to say good bye.

As the somewhat new girl on the block, I’m still stunned at what is happening here in The Netherlands. I moved from Texas, which sits firmly in “The Bible Belt”. Most people not only attend church every Sunday without fail, a lot of people also attend church Wednesday evenings. There are also many activities that go on throughout the week so that people can have a chance to gather and form a closer community spirit. But, with a steep drop in attendance in The Netherlands, churches in the last several decades have been closing at what seems a shocking rate. Averages of two churches are closed each week. As our English speaking Catholic community has moved from church to church, I always thought it was sad but I truly never understood.

But there I sat in mass that cold day. It was cold outside of the church and cold inside of the church. The heat had long been turned off to save money. The church began to fill. I recognized some of the people from our English speaking masses and a lot of faces I’d never seen. We gathered in close trying to keep warm.

Then the music began, the choir began to sing and our beloved Priest made his slow entrance towards the alter.

Listening to Father Rene…. Has always taken my breath away. He is a very soft spoken and kind man of God. I sat there intently listening to him speak not only to me but to the people of the Sacred Heart parish. His message was about staying strong and staying together as a community. As one door would close another door would be open to a new beginning of prayer and worship.

I sat there listening to Father Rene speak to us and as his message echoed through the huge building a lump formed in my throat. Father Rene had to stop a few times to compose himself as his own tears misted his eyes. I looked around and other people were crying too. People who had been members of this church their whole lives sat there listening, searching their hearts to understand. These families had baptized their children, made their first communions, taken vows of marriage, made confessions and laid their family members to rest

The church is not a building itself. The church is the people with Jesus as the head of the church. But as I looked around, I couldn't imagine the people who put the work, care and love into building Sacred Heart or the other churches that are closing in The Netherlands would ever dream that one day it would be closed. Who would ever think that these historical splendors would one day be closed to remain dark? Precious artifacts would be sold or left to be later put into storage.

As mass ended and Father Rene gathered items from the alter, slowly collecting the chalice, the crucifix and other items before turning to blow out the candle.

 He slowly exited the church with his people following him. The doors were closed and we all left to pilgrimage to our new place of worship.

We’re told everything happens for a reason and when that is usually said it’s because something tragic has happened. The closing of so many beautiful churches in The Netherlands tragic? To this American Girl… yes.

All photos were taken by fellow parishioner Wilbert Maximus.

Thank you Wilbert for sharing your photos.

Winner Winner Chicken Dinner

Well,we have a winner! The winner of my beautiful homemade soap goes to my friend and neighbor from when I was a little girl growing up in Michigan. Bill! Congratulations!!

A big thank you to all my friends who played along and made my soap making so much fun!