Merry Christmas 2009

A Midnight Message

posted by Heavenly Hosts

And the angel

said to them,

"Do not be afraid,

FOR BEHOLD

I bring you good tidings

of GREAT JOY

which will be to all people. For there is born to you this day in the city of David

a SAVIOR, who is Christ the Lord." Luke 2:10-11

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FOR TO US A CHiLD iS BORN, TO US A SON iS GIVEN, AND THE GOVERNMENT

will be on his shoulders.

& HE WILL BE CALLED

Wonderful Counselor

MiGHTY GOD

EVERLASTING

F A T H E R

Prince of Peace

Isaiah 9:6

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Signed, Sealed, Delivered

Dear Santa: For Christmas this year, I would like to be a princess, preferably Snow White or Tinker Bell (though I change my mind daily). A few weeks ago, I was ecstatic to visit you in person with my friend, Addie, and inform you of my Christmas wishes, however, I am completely awestruck by your presence and become utterly speechless upon approaching you. Therefore, I have since informed your scout elf, whom I have lovingly named "Elfvis" (The Elf on the Shelf), of my preferences. I have also made it a priority to take great care of Elfvis during his stay in my home and careful not to touch him as requested in fear of him losing his "Christmas magic." Each morning I search the house and enthusiastically announce his return and *new* hiding place.

Words cannot express how excited I am for Christmas this year. I thoroughly enjoy helping Mommy wrap gifts, appointing myself as the bow and under-the-tree placement person and have specifically requested that we make Christmas cookies for you. Everyday I ask my Daddy at least three(3) times "How many more minutes 'til Christmas?" As well as, "Will it be snowy for Christmas? Just like Charlie and Lola, so I can do this..." while laying on the floor and mimicking the making of a snow angel. As of this morning, it looks like I'll be getting my wish with the incoming snowstorm...

Good luck tonight, Santa(s) on your Christmas Eve deliveries (wrapping, assembling, etc) and thank you for all of your hard work and generosity. Don't forget to enjoy the Christmas cheer and spread the [real] reason for the season!

Blessings,

Kinsey Lorén

p.s. I'll look forward to Elfvis' return next holiday season as well ;)

T.G.I.Friday :: Foto & Favorites

A supplement to The Steele Dossier, each edition composed of a candid photo, caption, and five(5) personal favorites selected at random. Enjoy!

• Autumn colors

• TAZO Teas

• Fall Festivals

• Putnam City West Homemade Apple Pies

• OKC First Church of the Nazarene's "Bible Walk"

Miss Bee Havin'

T R I C K - OR - T R E A T !!!

The Steeles

T.G.I.Friday :: Foto & Favorites

A supplement to The Steele Dossier, each edition composed of a candid photo, caption, and five(5) personal favorites selected at random. Enjoy!

• Backyard Parties

• First Day of Summer

• Newborn clothes. They're sooo tiny!

• Miami Vices, Pina Colada/Strawberry Daiquiri

• Fellowship and communion (a.k.a. boxed wine and finger foods) with friends

Steeling Kisses

H A P P Y [belated] F A T H E R S' D A Y !!!

The Steeles

Can't Keep a Good Man Down

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. While they were wondering about this, suddenly two men in clothes that gleamed like lightning stood beside them. In their fright the women bowed down with their faces to the ground, but the men said to them,

"Why do you look for the living among the dead?

He is not here; he has risen!"

Luke 24:1-6

H A P P Y  E A S T E R

The Steeles

Merry Christmas 2008

10 Lords a-Singing

Hello, my name is Angela... (you say "Hello Angela") and I'm a Typoholic. It's no secret, the Designer in me LOVES anything involving typography: phrases, quotes, verses, titles, words, names, fonts, letters... you get the idea. And, as you may have noticed, I enjoy those subtle, creative twists applied to a previously conceived notion, especially when it involves a play on words. If you're a cynic thinking "Whatever, Plagiarist" then here's a different perspective. It's not copying. It's RECYCLING. However, this way there's no need to sort everything in a blue, plastic bin. Who knew, I'm a true recyclist at heart!!! It's a successful way to immediately connect with one's audience or catch the eye of a consumer. Think about it... not only does a person recognize the original idea and appreciate the cleverness behind it's evolution, but he/she also subconsciously relates to the product or conception because of the familiarity associated with it. How GENIUS is that!?!? But, I digress... so, let's start over.

Hello, my name is Angela... ("Hello Angela") and from Thanksgiving to Christmas [and sometimes 'til New Year's Eve] I listen to ONLY holiday music. Now, for those of you that groaned (and yes, eye-rolling counts) upon reading this, please feel free to join my husband in Scroogeville, where everything is COLD, DORMANT and STALE without firesides, hot cocoa, and twinkling lights. Or, be forced to drink the "eggnog" and remain rosy-cheeked and cheery for the remainder of the season ;) I mean REALLY, who doesn't like twinkling lights?!?! Even saying it "t W I N K l i n g l i g h t s" should force a smile upon one's face. If there was a safe, animal-test free approach, then our dog would be adorned in them as well. Ooooh... great pic' idea... "Sutton! Here boy!"

As I mentioned in the previous post, without a unique or tradition-defying moment, one may find it difficult to differentiate one Christmas season from the next. However, my holiday music addiction has aided in this dilemma with each year gifting a new favorite tune. For example, last year's find was by one of my all-time favorite groups, Barenaked Ladies with Sarah McLachlan and their version of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen" found in the playlist below. If you haven't already stumbled across this year's gem, then this play on verses should bring any ol' Scrooge out of his/her holiday funk. Otherwise, drink the eggnog before viewing... after all, you WILL enjoy it damn it!

Straight No Chaser "12 Days of Christmas"

Before viewing...

Scroll down to the bottom of the blog page and pause [||] the playlist. Enjoy!

Also, I highly recommend that you check out other renditions of songs by SNC.

Visit here "This is How We Do It" and here "Don't Stop Believin'"

A Christmas Story... with a Side of Beans

My dear husband can and (if lovingly encouraged by our committed readers) may speak for himself. As for Kinsey, Sutton and myself, we [HEART] the Holidays! Unfortunately, as they grow in number, each one blends seamlessly with the next. There are those few, unique years that have successfully managed to stand out. I believe they're referred to as memories. Ha! Such as, my 11th Christmas when my immediate and extended family decided to spend the holiday skiing in New Mexico.

It was the evening of our departure, and the bags were packed (including the one cradling the baked beans) on top of our GMC Astro mini-van, secured tightly to the luggage rack. We were ready to leave, when it dawned on our "wise men" that backing out of the garage might present to be an issue. Hmm... Instead of removing the items, backing out and then re-securing them to the rack, the clever and obviously safe solution was to round up a few of the adults and "bounce" on the back bumper while in reverse. Yes, I know. It sounds like a scene straight out of National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation and should have been our very own Star of BethleMAYHEM, beckoning us to rethink this crackerjack (oops, I mean) inventive strategy. Surprisingly and to the dismay of our cringing mothers, it worked! So, we're off. With the "shepherds" on navigational duty, cruising down the highway around midnight, and the rest of us trying to get some shuteye while it's still dark on our 10+ hour drive to Angel Fire Resort. It was an hour or so into the trip when we heard a small, random "click" and temporarily pulling over to check it out seemed like the right thing to do. Dad opens the door to take a peek at the luggage rack. "Oh crap." He reappears and in a disheartening tone says "It's all gone." "YOU ARE KIDDING ME!!!" gasps my cousin. What, no luggage??? No clean clothes. No presents. The thoughts are running wild through my 10-year-old brain. They decide to turn around to see if we can visually locate our luggage in the dark. Fortunately, my other aunt and uncle were following in a car close behind and had front row seats to this disastrous debacle. Majority of it lay stranded along the side of the road with only a few pieces getting sideswiped in the middle of the highway. With broken luggage ropes, our only option was to squeeze ALL of the luggage into the van with us. Ok, sounds a little uncomfortable, but at least it's not a total loss, right? However, our Christmas story would not be complete without a serving of gold, frank-in-BEANSCENT and myrrh. You guessed it. The baked beans had managed to grace their presence (and aroma) all over the luggage for us to inhale throughout the remainder of the trip. Undoubtedly, none of us will ever be able to fully enjoy baked beans again.

A multitude of other family outings with similar circumstances are remembered as well. However, I'll be saving those to post at a later date(s). One would think that with such havoc encircling my childhood memories, my holiday spirit would permanently be scarred. I also believe experiences like this one fostered that annoying perfectionist in me. But... it's those humorous moments that differentiate one holiday from the next and bring laughter to the point of tears while reminiscing with family. So, I encourage you to not only consider straying somewhat from your traditional holiday fare, but also share to with those of us on the blog-o-sphere those occasions that so lovingly made you (or your family) who you are today ;)

LibertyFest 2008

LibertyFest, a week long celebration of our nation's birthday and named as one of the Top 10 places to be in America on July 4th by CNN & USA Today, deserved a brief visit to kick-off our Fourth of July festivities. The celebration consists of 11 unique events including a car show, synchronized and lighted kite fanfare, food festival, road rally, a family chalk contest, Fourth of July Parade, patriotic concert, beauty pageant, family celebration in the park and a spectacular fireworks display.

Unfortunately, we only attended the parade the morning of the fourth but look forward to experiencing some of the preceding activities earlier in the week next year. Due to an average audience of over 50,000, we needed to arrive bright and early in order to meet up with our friends who saved us a few front row seats on the corner of Broadway and Ayers. Thanks to a few friends!!! Despite the intense heat, Kinsey enjoyed attending her first parade with the exception of the sirens and clowns when she would desperately throw herself at Daddy and cling to him for dear life.

Our evening wrapped up with a festive pool party and cookout hosted by the Howards, a few sparklers, and a fireworks spectacle easily viewed from the comfort of our lawn chairs strategically placed in the [middle of the] street.