Christmas Pictures

Here are some pictures from our fun family time on Capitva Island at Christmas!

New Year, New Resolutions

2008. A new year. Fresh possibilities.

I usually make New Year's Resolutions. Yes, I'm aware that statistics prove the unlikeliness of me actually keeping my resolution, but that doesn't deter me from taking advantage of the opportunity to reflect on the previous year of my life and finding areas that need improvement.

One of the resolutions I made this year was to be more serious and disciplined in my bible memorization. I own the "fighter verses" set from Bethlehem Baptist Church (strategically chosen verses that equip believers for the fight of faith) but somewhere along the way got out of the habit of using them. So I was thrilled to discover a free email-based bible memorization tool at http://www.biblememory.us/ that offers the "fighter verses"! This is a great tool. It sends me an email every morning with my memory verse. The first day, it gives you the whole verse. The second day it gives you the verse with one word removed that you must fill in. The third day, another word is removed...and so on. You can use one of the many pre-set programs, or you can set up a program with your own verses. It even allows you to choose your preferred version of the bible. I LOVE IT!

The verse I'm currently memorizing is Deuteronomy 7:9, "Know therefore that the LORD your God is God; he is the faithful God, keeping his covenant of love to a thousand generations of those who love him and keep his commands."

Try it. If you're an email junkie, its a great way to stay accountable on hiding the Word of God in your heart.

First Day of School!

Yesterday was Tim's first day of school! He is attending the Florida Academy of Massage and Skin Care. In just 17 short weeks he will be a nationally licensed Massage Therapist! I can't wait until he needs to start practicing :)

Please keep him in your prayers during this time. The program is short, but very rigorous. He has class all day M-F and already had a few hours of homework last night! In addition, he has to complete a high number of clinical hours prior to graduating. His schedule went from casual to intense overnight (literally!).

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!

How lucky we are! This year definitely ranks up there as one of the most enjoyable Christmas times EVER!

The entire Hauser family traveled down to Southwest Florida for the week of Christmas. Ten of us (Jim, Judy, Troy, Jessica, Annika, Sammy Pants, Andrew, Andrea, Tim, and I) shared a 4-bedroom house on Captiva Island for the week.

The dogs had to rough it at "The Dog Resort" (not really roughing it...they had so much fun it took them two days of sleeping to recover!).

We spent our days sunbathing, gathering shells, long walks on the beach, relaxing in the pool, watching cartoons with Annika, and trying to hold baby Sammy (although he definitely favors the arms of his mother above anyone else). Each evening we had a home-cooked meal together with each couple taking a different night to provide the meal. After dinner we usually struck up a highly competitve card game or a relaxing movie (or both, which created much contention over noise levels).

We ate out at our three favorite island spots: The Bubble Room, The Mucky Duck, and Cheeburger Cheeburger (not all in the same day, of course).

And on our last day...after dreaming about it all week...Dad finally rented the Hobie Cat and allowed us to share in the fun! The wind wasn't strong enough to whisk us along the water with great speed...but we still had a fun time.

Even though Tim and I didn't travel far from home, it definitely felt like a vacation. Relaxing, fun, over too soon.

Merry Christmas & Happy New Year!