I love this time of year for many reasons, one of which is the war between the commercial and the soul. I watch in awe, stepping back and observing people consume items in hopes that all the perfect "things" will make their holiday what it should be. Sometimes, I watch in sadness as I catch myself doing the same thing.

I hope my friends and family have a peaceful, reflective end of the year. I hope that I can focus more on what Christ means in my own life, than on what I see and want next. My goal, in fact, for the new year is to avoid consumption as much as possible. Both food and "stuff." To focus more on what I have (mostly the intangible), than on what I want.

Merry Christmas! As a closing bit of joy, here's Adah looking like a big girl, Adah with papa, Adah with her buddy Ellie, and Adah with her buddy Madeleine (who really does like playing "nap time" on the floor).

Since Christopher is not working from our home office with his new job, I have been rather protective of our time at home. I will tell you, unabashedly, that I dislike phones. STRONGLY DISLIKE. I'm not good with phone conversations. My aversion may also stem from those conversations I had with family or friends that should have been had in person and result in one saying ugly things that would never have been said in person. In person I am more apt to keep my mouth shut until I can come up with useful, hopefully kind words.

I have a phone line at my house for my convenience and for emergencies. The only reason I have kept my phone line is for DSL and the prospect of needing to call 911. I do not feel the need to pick up the phone every time it rings. We have caller ID and an answering machine. If it is an emergency, leave a message. If not, leave me the option to call you, but don't expect me to do so. If you feel that it is time-sensitive or very important, there is always my cell phone.

Cell phones. I recently had to get one in order to be reached in regards to Adah. That is the only worth-while reason someone could have given me.

December is a busy time. I miss not having Christopher at home during the day. I feel like he misses out on all the cool things Adah is doing. I feel like I have to make a laundry list of items to tell him in order to maintain the flow of information. I'm forgetful and list don't often work, so this is hard for me. So, please forgive me if we're reclusive lately, or if I don't return your phone call. January will come, and so will February. There is a season for everything under the sun.

Adah is a big girl. She'll tell you so herself.

• Here's a picture from October/November with her two buddies.
• This is Adah with the signature grin.

I started a new job on November 1st with Creative Metrics. I'm not sure what my actual title is, but my job is essentially to develop the next generation of software for the company. It is quite challenging, and I don't expect that you will see much of me prior to March 1st.
I feel like the job is maturing my programming skills substantially. I'm entering areas that I have been interested in, but never had the professional motivation to explore.
The job has also allowed me to visit Minneapolis. Wonderful place.

I like the word "slacker," I closely identify with its definition. Photos will be up soon, Christmas decorations will not.