4 Reasons Why Family Is a Blessing

Hey guys, its Kate!

The Holidays have been sooooooooo busy! Some family came, others went away, and lots of great times were had! I recently learned how to make caramel rolls and am looking forward to attempting them on my own once I obtain a bread machine!

Oh, and if you're wondering what I'm doing posting at 11 pm, its defINITELY nOT  because I slept in until 10 am this morning, I can tell you that. (Did you like my display of sarcasm through text? I mean seriously!) I'm the early-to-bed-early-to-wake kind of person. I just feel more productive that way.

As I was laying in bed a few minutes ago, I was inspired to write this post.

Noah, Kate, and Julia having a grand old time (2004)

1. Family Members are Built-in Best Friends
 Assuming you have Family your age....
Cousins and siblings can be built-in best friends if they're at least close to your age.
Cousin Emma and I have been besties from day 1- actually, before that.
We've been best friends since I was in the womb!
One day we had a three hour long phone call and decided "Hey! We should do this more often. Seriously." so we set Thursday as our Bible Study/Chat time and eventually we started calling each other whenever anything remotely exciting happened. We've gone for weeks at a time calling each other every day.

Julia, Kate, Bailey, and Emma pampering themselves (2007)

2. Family NEVER Judges
Unless its really wacky...
Your family (extended or otherwise) will be with you through thick and thin because- like it or not- you're related and in a best case scenario, you'll be forced to see a whole lot of each other.
Your family sees you at your best:

Bailey and Julia, Very Confused (2004)

• Birthdays
• Weddings
• Family Gatherings
• Vacations
• Performances
• Parties
• Church
• Pictures on Facebook

But they also see you at your worst:

• Bad Hair Days
• Embarrassing Parents
• Singing at the Top of Your Lungs
• Dancing
• Bad Breath
• When You Wake Up
• Re-watching High School Musical for the 100th Time
• Crying Because You're So Mad/Hormonal/Hangry/Heartbroken/Tired
• Acne/Braces/Greasy Hair/Chunky 12-year-old You
• Other Embarrassing Phases.

But they never judge you- okay, sometimes they do.

Emma and Carter, Being Cute (2004)

3. Family Stretches Your Limits
Have you ever gone on a high ropes course? Or a zip line? Or on a really scary roller coaster? Or jumped off of a 15-foot cliff into water?

Lily, Looking Adorable (2014)

Several people in my family have- including me- and, I'll be honest, it wasn't my idea. Family challenges you to do things you've never done before. You usually do it because you want to be tough, but you're usually so scared that you almost pee your pants when the time comes to do it. My dad had to bribe me with ice cream to get me to go on Splash Mountain in Disney World the first time, and I has so much fun I almost forgot about the ice cream! Almost.
Family also stretches you in other ways- they make you see how many hours- or days- you can
survive in Disney World without hitting a wall or wanting to go back to the hotel early.
They make you see how many hours in a row you can spend with your family before you fall asleep on the couch.
They test your patience.
They test how many days you can survive without a shower.
They test the size of your bladder.
They bring you to your breaking point, but when it comes down to it, there's no one you'd rather spend time with than them.

Julia, Lily, Sophie, and Will, Making Cookies! (2014)

4. Your Family Loves You
No strings attached.

Sophie and Lily as Anna and Elsa (2014)

My Frozen Alternate Universe Theory

Hey guys! It's Julia. I've decided to share an idea inspired by the Disney film Frozen that I came up with some time ago.
Wait for it . . .

What if Hans was just a figment of Anna's imagination!

It would make sense. As a result of feeling abandoned and lonely for years, Anna involuntarily imagined a friend. He was quirky and cute, he knew what it was like to feel invisible, and he was always there when Anna was feeling blue. He was perfect. But maybe too perfect.

She started getting confused between her imagination and reality. He proposed to her! And she accepted.

When Anna approaches Elsa about the marriage, Elsa realizes that Anna will not believe that Hans is, in fact, not real. she decides to take a different approach; just telling her she can't marry a man she just met. As a result, Elsa reveals her powers, starting off this whole adventure.

As she is on her journey, Anna meets Kristoff and inevitably falls in love with him. Only one problem, Hans!

Although they both know they love the other, Kristoff believes that Hans is real so to save Anna, he brings her back to Hans.

In order to be with Kristoff, Anna, or Anna's mind, has to get rid of Hans. So she comes up with this whole thing where he doesn't love her, but was, indeed, using her.

To add to everything, Anna thinks that Hans is going to kill Elsa. So she "sacrifices" herself for Elsa. Even though Hans was just her imagination so Elsa technically wasn't in real danger, Anna thought she was so the act of true love still sort of counts.

In the end she made up his punishment. She punched him and sent him home to his twelve brothers and let them take care of him.

And Anna & Kristoff (and Elsa) lived happily ever after

The End

Now before you go judging me, I know I can't explain everything, I just thought that in an alternate Frozen universe, that would be really cool.

See ya real soon!

 

Posting Change!

Hi everyone, Kate here!

These past few weeks have been full of crazy times. We visited the Cassadys last week, and in the process nearly everyone got sick! Monday night, the day before we left, Violet caught the day flu, and by today nearly everyone had caught it. Thankfully Emma and I were spared, but Julia and Bailey were not so lucky. Almost everyone is better now, and we're crossing our fingers that no one else catches it.

On a separate note, while visiting together we had a bit of a "discussion". The bad news is, Bailey's posts will be fewer and less often. The good news is, our rigid schedule of who is posting when has been offed! We can post when ever we feel like it- and hopefully that means more often!

Personally, I'm aiming to post at least every week- probably more! That way your guys can keep up with my life and I can try my hand at writing more stuff :)

So this is a short post, but I have something in mind to post tomorrow, so don't worry!

Lots of love,

Kate (or Katie G)

Christmas time is here!

I just can't wait for Christmas day! Let's get in the spirit of things, and listen to what I have to say;
What I love about this jolly holiday and what I anticipate each and every day:

Our Christmas tree, 2013

Snowy weather, crisp air. Sweaters and boots everywhere!
Christmas crafts and Christmas cards. lights and decorations, illuminating the yards!
Wish list building, Christmas trees, shopping and candles and trying not to freeze!

Our backyard in Illinois, 2013

Jingle bells! Let it snow!
Peppermint and pinecones!

The Osborn Spectacle of Dancing Lights, 2013
 (Hollywood Studios, Disney world)

Wrapping presents! Tacky sweaters!
Writing Santa lots of letters!

Fort Wilderness, 2013

Setting up the Christmas tree, decorating it with glee!
Christmas eve service, sing a Christmas song!
It feels great to hear everyone sing along.

The Christmas bow I made, 2014

Eating Christmas eve dinner of sweet potato soufflé and ham,
Or maybe even rolls with jam!

Snuggling up in blankets warm,
we watch Nativity Story, telling us the story of when Jesus was born

My favorite Christmas cookies

Christmas morning we wake up one by one, and down the stairs we happily run!
No cookies or milk to be found, but presents are left all around!
We open gifts in our shifts and let out lots of happy sounds!

We eat mom's famous egg dish for our breakfast,
and thank whoever gave us these presents!

And remember that Christmas is about receiving AND giving
And that it's all about Jesus living!

God bless us, everyone!