Mr Rogers was the BEST!
Snappy cardigans, slippers, puppets, imagination and manners
Who wouldn't love to be his neighbor?

It was a beautiful day in the neighborhood
A beautiful day for a neighbor
But when we stepped into our little house with the red door no one asked us if we would be theirs
Our only welcome, the incessant barking of our next door neighbors pet
Who ten years later still barks at us

I hadn't given any thought to what kind of neighbor I wanted, or to what kind I would be
But the longer I'm here, the more I realize
Being a neighbor is hard
And I'm not sure how good of one I am

Here's what I hate most about my neighbors...

1. I hate that her husband left

2. I hate that his leaving left her empty and angry

3. I hate that I can hear her cry and yell

4. I hate that her son is growing up without a dad and stuck with a Mom who's emotionally overdrawn and running on empty

5. I hate that it's easier to take over baked goods and dinner than to sit and talk

6. I hate that I can't fix her broken life

7. I hate that I have baked more than I've listened


If baking was a love language everyone understood - I speak it
Someone dies, and my first thought is I think I'll make cookies
Some one's sick, remedy = cookies
People are coming over - I can make chocolate chippers in 16 min
My neighbor is sad and angry and empty and I don't know what to do...cookies
But cookies don't fix divorce or anger or empty
Thing is I know who does
But I'm realizing while a life lived consistently within grace beside someone may show them you've found something different to build your life on, without words it doesn't offer them anything more than empty calories
Jesus repaired my broken relationship
He has given me peace, and the opportunity to be content
He listens to me, intercedes for me, holds me up and fills me up

So the next time I bake her cookies - I'll be praying over the flour, and for the opportunity to listen and speak about who my life is built on because cookies without Jesus don't fix broken
But I think cookies with Jesus might turn me into the kind of neighbor I want to be
The kind of neighbor He wants me to be

Bad Attitude Christmas

Santa came, he wears a brown suit and drives a UPS truck

Sounds of popping bubble wrap is the percussion to our daily song

And our room looks like Amazon vomited smiles all over it

It's Christmas time and I love everything about it

I love that it pairs well with baking, and cinnamon everything

I love the smells, the lights, the music

I love how people seem like they care a little bit more about people 

And I love the excuse to get caught up in the little things, like cutting snow flakes, and sticky fingers and sipping hot chocolate 

Making time to remember and to make memories

Today we cut down our tree

But the memory of how I felt on the inside looks something like this...

Aren't we pretty?

Oh don't worry there were about 17 other photos of us trying not to look irritated as well as a 24 second slow-motion video of us smiling - taken by our exceptionally sour (except for when he was trying to be funny) nine year old.

He didn't like the tree

EVERY tree he liked was still in the growing stage not marked for sale, or it was 18 ft tall 

Everything was taking to long, and yet he complained there wasn't enough time

He thought today was going to be "different" 

Well, SO DID I

And I just kept thinking how he was missing it

And ruining it for me...

Because I LOVE this stuff

And you only get Christmas once a year

So we took our compromise tree home 

And settled on this...

"Buddy, we're disappointed that you chose to see what was lacking instead of what we got to share.  We wish you would tell us what's going on inside of your brain.  We love that we had today and no matter how today went, we love you.  We love you because you're ours.  And there's no good you can do to make us love you more, nor could any bad attitude, rebellion, or failure ever make us love you less." 

And as we read our Advent verse that told us of the coming of Christ it sank in deep

He loves me

Patient, Powerful Creator, God loves me

Not because I'm kind, or good, or worth it

And in spite of me being short tempered, selfish, stubborn and broken

He loves me because I'm His

And He came because I needed Him

No good I can do to make Him love me more

No bad attitude or rebellion or failure could ever make Him love me less

Because I am Him - He loves me

And He loves you too