And Heaven and Nature Sing

When the South Carolina Gamecocks came to Knoxville in the beginning of November, some of my favorite college girls headed into town too!  Although there were a few missing faces, it was nice to share some time with these beauties!

I consider myself very fortunate to have shared lots of shenanigans with these gals and still know that regardless of the distance (either in mileage or space between visits) we always have a blast!  Also, I have no idea who the fantastic photo bomber is.  Speaking of shenanigans..."Leave" it up to Jeff and John Thomas to figure out how to create extreme leaf pile jumping.    

                           

You must first make sure the pile is sufficient to support an elevated fall.

Swing into action.

Then free "fall" into Autumn bliss.

We decided to up our decorating game this year.  While I was safely making wreaths for the windows, Sparky, I mean Jeff, was dangling from the roof tacking lights to the gutters.  He is pretty much fearless and awesome and so much fun to share life with!

Do you see any resemblance?  

Isn't she a beaut!  Warms my heart every time she lights up!

Elfie has made his annual appearance at the Kimmel household as well.  I have learned some valuable strategies over the past couple of years.  1. Pace yourself…elves can't go all crazy in week one because it's all downhill from there.  2. It was imperative for us to discuss Jesus's birthday and the real reason for Christmas.  I realized this after John Thomas was being especially sweet to me and then 30 seconds later asked if I thought Elfie would tell Santa and he'd get more presents?!  Umm…No.

We've gotten into the holiday spirit at work with Festive Fridays!  Last week, my department even composed our version of the 12 days of Christmas!  I am a lucky gal to share the halls and my friendship with this lovable group!

Finally, my girlfriends and I had our Christmas party this weekend.  They are simply the best and I am truly a better person because of our friendships.   

As this next three weeks promises to be filled with busy days squeezing everything in, know that it is the time, energy, and affection we share that makes all the difference.  I am grateful the season of Advent is here and that we are all challenged to remember that the reason for our celebration is more than great recipes, stellar gifts, and holiday cheer.  It is the greatest gift the world has ever known--Emanuel.  My favorite Christmas concert, Behold the Lamb of God, always reminds me of this truth.  Merry Christmas dear friends. 

Hubba Bubba

It has been pretty quiet since the last update.  I guess no news is good news!  John Thomas met his first and (hopefully his only) imaginary friend!  If you look very closely, you will notice "Indy-visible".  Indy is, in many ways, the opposite of John Thomas…mostly because he likes to break rules! Indy spent the better part of his short stint at the lake in time out for hitting and being an all-around stinker!  

Thanks to the McAffry family adoption fundraiser, there aren't too many people who have to wonder what to wear for the UT games!  Thanks Mrs. Tia and Mr. Wes for always being so sweet to John Thomas!

But the biggest news of all is that this little fella taught himself how to blow a bubble!  He was determined to do it before he turned six!  Now if we could just get him riding a bike and tying his shoes, he'd be ready for first grade!

Step one:  Chew and prep gum.

 Step two: Focus and blow!

 …and blow!

 Step three: Grin, celebrate and repeat!

 Our nature boy also found this cool critter!  Honestly, I prefer nearly any critter to Indy!

The obligatory pumpkin gut picture.  Despite the fact that he loves to dig and isn't afraid to get dirty, he is not a fan of gooey pumpkin guts.  

Last year John Thomas was a hammerhead shark.  This year he wanted to be a whale.  Lord only knows what ocean critter he'll scheme up for next year!

Thank you to the Stooksbury's for having us over for Halloween!  It was a haunting good time :).

Good Ole Rocky Top

Fall Break was mostly amazing!  A few guilt-free days off work never hurt anyone, right?  Not to mention that East Tennessee in the Fall has to be one of the best places on the planet!  Jeff and John Thomas took a little time to go sniffing around the woods for something to put in our freezer.  They sure are hard to spot when they're all decked out in their camo. :)      

Jeff and I also took advantage of the extra time together to go on a 14 mile hike to Rocky Top!  Part of me was hoping that the Pride of the Southland Band would be serenading us when we got to the summit.  Instead, it was an amazing panoramic view of God's creation!  

You know how a picture never does the real thing justice?  This is definitely the case here.  Also, my bear cub, Jeff, insisted on climbing to the top of the highest tree to get the best vantage point for this pic.      He is such a "go-getter" and I am definitely one lucky lady!

Love this man and getting some extra time by his side.  I also love that he carried all the water and food for the entire trip because my lil pups were "dog" tired by the time we got back to the car!

This is within the first mile of the hike.  Notice the smiles that seem full of energy :).

We hiked up to over 5000 feet, so we got to see all the stages of Fall in a matter of hours.  

This was taken at mile 13.  Notice the absence of energy.  I can't even raise my lip enough to show my teeth.  We were both exhausted but had an amazing day and will do it all over again the next time we get the chance!

Kindergarten field day was also this week!  I played hooky on Friday to spend the day rooting on all the little Brickey Bears, especially this little cutie!  (Apparently, I am fond of this UT hat.)

After watching John Thomas run sprints, relays, and soccer dribbling drills --it has confirmed my belief that he is much better at precision events.  He and his class won first place in the egg relay!  He didn't drop the egg once!  Granted he was walking so slow that turtles and snails were using him for analogies.  But as they say, "slow and steady wins the race!"  

 He pretty much wore this smile all day as did most of the kiddos!

An update from the last blog about Monday Manies, there were THREE EXTRA VOLUNTEERS!  The five of us pampered and loved on lots of ladies at KARM!  Thanks Kim, Sue and Savannah for all your help!!  Next Monday Manies will be on November 2nd and I would love to serve by your side if you are interested!

Bah Bah Baaah (Thanks Neil Diamond)

There are many things that are "just like riding a bike," and for me, blogging is not one of them.  It took me 10 tries just to get that first sentence down!  But there is no better time than now and no better place than here to get started.  When I felt led to blog, I didn't realize that it was almost exactly two years ago when I updated my last blog! I guess I should fill you in...

(...look at the night. And it don't seem so lonely.  We fill it up with only two.)

 Jeff and I celebrated our one year anniversary this summer!  I love sharing life with him.  Between work schedules, family schedules, and life's curve balls we somehow seem to find time to laugh, love and grow.  It's not perfect and it's not always easy, but it is ALWAYS worth it.  I admire him, lean on him, and learn from him everyday.

(How can I hurt when holding you?)

This big fella here started kindergarten this year!  He loves it mostly because he has an awesome teacher and his best friend, Charlotte, is in his class.  He comes home from school with all sorts of new songs and stories!

(Good times never seemed so good, so good, so good!)

If you were ever curious about life inside the walls of the Kimmel house, it looks a lot like this.  Underwear on the head, dog hair on the floor, laughter in the air, and love in our hearts.  Sure, there are "timeouts"and challenges, but most of the time grace and gratitude eventually win out.  

(Hands, touching hands.  Reaching out…)

The main reason I felt led to blog today is because I need your help.  Just over three years ago, God called me to serve the homeless women at KARM.  I grappled with this for months, not understanding why He wanted me to give manicures to the women there.  If you have ever seen my nails, you know that I would not be anyone's first candidate to give manicures.  One restless night I asked God, "what am I supposed to tell these women who realize that I can't paint nails very well?"  He told me (not audibly, but in my heart) that I was supposed to tell them that He loved them.  And so it began.  On the first Monday of every month, a small group of women and myself have spent a couple hours with the women at KARM loving them and bringing them a little bit of dignity.  I have learned that this ministry has nothing to do with manicures at all.  It's about conversations, sharing, caring and trust.

For the past several months, our small group has dwindled down to myself and a very faithful and beautiful friend, Angela.  There are so many women (sometimes close to 70) that we cannot serve them all.  So if you are interested in joining us for an evening of girl time, please just let me know.  It is always on the first Monday of every month.  We start at 6:30 and you'll be home by 9.  You don't have to go every time, just once would be awesome!