Tober Family Christmas

Is the Christmas season really over already? We had a great time in Woodinville, WA celebrating with my family. A few highlights: attending the Children's Christmas Eve Service at our old church in Bellevue, eating my mom's Christmas cookies, Christmas morning, viewing the holiday lights at the Bellevue Botanical Garden, sunny winter weather (no rain), and attending the Nutcracker (a family tradition), where the flower girl from our wedding was in the cast.

Bundled up waiting to see Santa

The joy of Christmas

Let's EAT!

There is a mirror on this page of his book :-)

We braved the cold for the beautiful lights

Merry Christmas!

As Ilalia and I prepare to experience our first Christmas with Tyson, I wanted to share with you a simple but profound message we heard in a sermon last weekend. I have heard the Christmas story recounted many times over, but I had never stopped to look at it from the following perspective.

Jesus is God in the flesh. He humbled himself to be born in Bethlehem as a baby, God taking on flesh. God became a baby. Born through the normal birth process, wrapped in strips of cloth and placed in a manger. God, the one who spoke the universe into existence, couldn't even speak an intelligent word. God, the one who holds the stars in their places, couldn't even change his own diaper. God, the one who controls the Heavens, couldn't even control his own movements. God in a body; not just any body, but the body of a human baby.

God chose to enter this world in simple humility.

Imagine you were God and you were coming into this world:
- Would you choose a backwater area like Israel, or the gold and glitter of Rome, the most famous city in the world of its day in time?
- Would you choose a little, out of the way town like Bethlehem, or the capital city of Jerusalem?
- Would you choose a nobody carpenter to be your father, or a king to be your father?
- Would you choose a young, country girl or a well-bred and educated princess to be your mother?
- Would you choose a manger in a stall, in a shed behind an inn, or a lavishly equipped palace nursery?
- Would you announce it to a group of outcast sheppards on an obscure hillside outside of Bethlehem, or with a worldwide trumpet blast?

I will leave you with a sample of one of our favorite modern Christmas songs, "I Celebrate The Day", by Relient K (click on the link for the full song). We wish you and yours a very Merry Christmas and we pray that you will recognize and celebrate the true reason for the season, the birth of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

I'm Eight Months Old Today!

Tyson turns eight months old and the Christmas season is in full swing. We can't wait for his first Christmas!!!

Being a silly baby

Buddies

Eating his book during story time

Tyson loves: eating, sleeping, looking outside the car window, cuddling, putting his mouth on anything, and watching Mom and Dad sing and dance.

Tyson doesn't love: teething pain and when we take his thumb out of his mouth.

Tender moments: play time with Tyson and his toys.

Farewell Lindsay

Our sister Lindsay is relocating through her job to North Carolina this week. We are very excited for her and the many adventures she is sure to experience while living in Charlotte. Although we will really miss her, there is no doubt that she will do great things.