I Can't Stop Blogging!

I don't know what has gotten into me tonight! I promise this is it for the night. Actually, I have been meaning to post the pics below of Em goofing off since Thanksgiving. I figure a 1 month hiatus from blogging was more than unacceptable so I felt the need to play catch-up.

Below you will find multiple posts that show Emily being her typical self...completely goofy and hilarious! I also updated the photo album.

But most importantly, the Kramer's finally had some professional photography done and let me just say that it was so worth the wait! I have to give huge props to Lauren Gill, an amazing photographer out of Franklin. She is so talented and wonderful to work with. If anyone reading this needs photos taken professionally, you really should contact her. Even if you don't know me personally, I would love to fill you in on her work. She has taken photos of at least 5 families that I personally know and they are all incredible...so enough rambling, you can see them for yourself. Lauren absolutely captured Emily's personality in these photos...so priceless!

Check them out at http://www.laurengillphotography.com/ Once on the homepage, Enter Site and then click on Clients. The code to enter is K120807

Lauren also took our family photos at the end of October so there is a separate code for that. I believe it is K102707. If you are family, you might be getting these as gifts so if you have a favorite, let me know!:) Enjoy...hope you like them!!

What Can I Say?

I just don't even have words for this one! It makes me laugh every time I see it!

Daddy's Girl...

Words just can't express how much I love that Emily is her Daddy's girl! Derek loves her so much and they are just too sweet together. On a funny note, I emailed Derek at work today to tell him this cute story. We had been at the grocery store and had just gotten home when I went to get Ems out of her car seat. About the time I picked her up, the neighbor turned on his lawnmower (yeah, I know its December) and Em's eyes shot open so huge. She started saying Daddy, Daddy. So sweet...she thought Derek was home and mowing the grass. Poor baby has no concept that today is Monday. When I told her that it was our neighbor and not Daddy and then showed her the neighbor, she looked so sad. I definitely burst her bubble! It took her a few minutes to get over it. How wonderful to have a Godly husband and father that loves us so faithfully! We truly are blessed beyond measure. Thank you Lord for my sweet Derek!

My Silly Girl!

She really cracks me up...I don't know where she gets her energy and crazy antics! Hehe! These were taken over Thanksgiving and she was too funny!

What in the World????

Okay so I don't know that I have ever blogged about cultural or social topics before, but this moment I feel compelled.

So I was just changing our sheets while my sweet hubby was outside washing my gross car and I decide to flip on the television in our bedroom for some background noise, bad habit:( I turn to my favorite HGTV, nothing. Then I check out Fox News, again nothing, so I make the bad choice of channel surfing when I come across VH1. I notice that it is a concert, don't know who is singing at this point, but see that there is a big Christmas house in the background..."awww a Christmas Concert" is what my naive mind imagines. AND then I realize who and what I'm watching, and just what a complete atrocity, sickening display, gag-me, revolting display of shredding to pieces Christmas and the WHOLE point it exists truly is. I know that I am making so little sense as I vomit out my disgust!

I actually watched the rest of this spectacle to try and actually hear the words that Kid Rock was spewing out and it was appalling to say the least. I don't normally consider myself to be very naive, but I was shocked at the lyrics to the song he sang (if you can call it singing). I have no idea what the name of the song is...the lyrics contain lines such as, "I'm your rock-n-roll Jesus," "sex, drugs, rock-n-roll," "testify"! Okay so you get the point, and yes I very purposefully listened to the words to be sure that I wasn't misconstruing what he said.

So picture it...Kid Rock all dressed in white surrounded by girls with silver "band-aids" across their butts and chests dancing on poles and back-up dancers wearing pretty much the same, drummers and guitarists wearing cross necklaces, a huge house for the backdrop with Christmas lights glowing like crazy, and of course thousands of fans screaming for Kid Rock! And all I could think was "what in the world????" Then the best...they cut to commercial and they show the name of the concert "Larry the Cable Guy's Christmas Concert"....WHAT??? Are you kidding me?

And then I just became sad as I thought back to this morning and what I experienced at our church. 40 plus Christian men, women, and children that have fled their home country of Burma because Christians, including their own families and themselves, have experienced and endured things that my mind cannot even fathom. People that have watched their loved ones, their husbands, their children be raped, murdered, and tortured for their faith in God. Our God that sent His own son to die for us, to experience torture and pain like none of us will ever know...that same Son is the only reason that "Christmas" came about in the first place.

Why do so many people use Christmas as their opportunity to make money? Maybe I am taking this to heart way too hard...maybe I am just being my usual passionate self, but I think God wants us to be angry about things like this. I think it should stir something deep inside of us that screams how wrong it is! I just know that it solidifies even more my longing to "do Christmas" very, very different this year. I want to be radical for the God that came to save me in human form and suffered dearly for my sin. I want to celebrate Jesus Christ, the one that sets us free and loves us graciously and pardons all our sins!

The good that came from this is an increase in prayer for those that don't know Him, those that openly mock Him, and those that are today laying down their lives for Him in places where worshipping Him is not a freedom. I pray that those of us, including myself, that do know Christ as King will take seriously what we celebrate at Christmas and start walking in reckless abandonment for the One that saved our souls. May our God in heaven be lifted up by the worship of His people!!