this is home

i'm home! back in huntsvegas until classes start in january(not even sure of the exact date of that either...) on my way into town i stopped in birmingham at aunt genie's house for a little family christmas gathering. mom and dad, aunt genie and george, babs, bucky and connie, granmomma joyce and bill were all there. it's been a while since i've seen dad's side of the family so it was good to catch up and everyone seems like they're doing pretty well. after the reminiscing, kisses on cheeks, and a little too much of grandmother's cheese dip, we headed home to huntsville.

much to my surprise, mom and dad have wrapped a bunch of presents and already have them under the tree. i think last year the presents made it under the tree on christmas eve so we're improving! we went a little overboard with the tree this year, its about 11ft high....no big :)

i usually have a bout of grouchiness every year about this time, so pray for my little heart to be humble. christmas is about the birth of Jesus, not about presents. He lived and died for you and me, w-o-w. even if you were the only person in the world, he still would have died that day just for you. He has more love for us than we could ever imagine, and christmas is about just that, CHRIST. for some reason i need reminding of that every now and then, but God and His infinite love and friendship is always patient with my brattyness. He is so GOOD!

i'm going to nashville tuesday to see erin and scott! i'm pretty excited to hang with them for a couple of days before they head up to maine. wedding on may 30th! woo!!! i can't freaking wait.

if you're wondering about the title of this post--it's the name of a song by switchfoot that i absolutely love: "this is home". it's actually on the prince caspian movie soundtrack, that's how i found it. it's about how earth is temporary, but the Kingdom of God is everlasting. check it out.

I've got my memories
They're always inside of me
But I can't go back
Back to how it was
I believe it now
I've seen too much
But I can't go back
Back to how it was
Created for a Place I've never known

This is Home
Now I'm finally where I belong
Where I belong
Yeah, this is Home
I've been searching for a place of my own
Now I've found it,
Yeah this is Home
Yeah, this is Home

Belief over misery
I've seen the enemy
And I won't go back
Back to how it was
And I've got my heart set on what happens next
I've got my eyes wide and it's not over yet
We are miracles
And we're not alone

And now after all my searching
After all my questions
I'm gonna call it Home
I've got a brand new mindset
I can finally see the sunset
I'm gonna call it Home