Aside from missing our families and the general sense of sadness that comes from that, I can honestly say that celebration, thankfulness and the true spirt of Christams overwhelmed us this year above all else. Thank you Jesus, what a tremendous Gift. This Christmas Season was afresh in our hearts with the truth and significance of the reason for the season! Whether through the the carol service at Kirstenboche gardens all aglow with candlelight as the gospel message rang clear, the children acting out the nativity scene before us, or spending Christmas eve in Stellenboche vineyards watching The nativity movie in the evening {excellent} from our beautiful boutique hotel room, Daniel and I were truly moved by God's spirit reminding us of WHY we love this time of year so much! We wanted badly this year to celebrate Jesus's birthday the way we thought he would want to party! Last Christmas was nice, but we felt unfulfilled as we chose to stay far from the townships! But not this year, we felt compelled and excited to not only indulge ourselves
{which we did that too}
but firstly to 'indulge' our Savior by celebrating how we felt he would have. So, Christmas eve we spent the evening in Redhill Township handing out banana bread that I had made to those we've been with a lot this year. We sat in our favorite shack with our favorite girls while Dan gave a short but meaningful account of the Savior's birth. The next afternoon we went for 'round two' into Massiphumelele Township and did something similar for the boys Dan hangs out with. Our heart's were full.
We played Tennis just Dan and I this Christmas morning, on a court right beside the ocean, close enough where we were able to quickly grab our things and run down to the sand for a a refreshing swim... the day was scorching. Hot, and perfectly summer, just the way I like it! Again, thank you jESUS!
The evening completed beautifully with a feast at a friend's home where 16 of us gathered together and had a nice gift exchange.
{we won some beautiful wine glasses and some unique flavored organic pesto and preserves. YUMM}
here are just a few pics to peek at of our happy celebrations....
Love you and Merry Christmas
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| carols by candlelight. lets be honest, The lighting on our faces is a little scary. |
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| This is in fact, an art installation. Odd... I thought I simply had an 'eye'. |
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| chocolate &; wine pairing |
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| Our favorite Tuscany inspied vineyard. Thought of you Grandma... |
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| yes, ice cream &; wine pairing... Thought of YOU Grandpa... |
...on Christmas day in the morning
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| and yes thats my tongue. |
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| I LOVE SANTA CLAUSE! |
and they all lived happily ever after.
1 comment:
loved all these pictures. What a memorable Christmas you both had!
xo
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