Top Ten Madhoue Memories of 2010

Happy New Year's Eve! Since I'm much better at reflecting than I am at keeping resolutions, I thought I would celebrate the upcoming turn of the year with a reflection on the amazing things of 2010. Of course, there are a lot more - God has been so good to us this year in so many areas! But these are some of my favorites...

Honorable Mention: Meeting Jessi
I couldn't resist! She suggested this as one of the Top Ten on Facebook; who am I to disagree?:)



10. December snowman We had early snow in Kentucky this year, so we took advantage of it by making a snowman in the front yard - complete with M&M smile & Iowa State scarf (Garrett was obviously at work)!!



9. The Madhouse Derby Party We decided to become official Kentuckians this year by throwing a Kentucky Derby Party. I'd never paid much attention to horse racing, so it took quite a bit of research. In the end, we decorated hats, played derby games, and sang 'My Old Kentucky Home."



8. Garrett's 30th Birthday Party (especially the cake) I threw Garrett a gaming party for his 30th! We had a lot of fun playing a variety of games. I have to say, though - I was especially proud of the Settlers of Catan themed cake I made for him!



7. Taking Tiffany to the Clayton County Fair In August, while Garrett and Hunter were in Washington, D.C. for Boy Scouts, I packed up the rest of the kids and took them and my friend, Tiffany, to Iowa. Tiffany, very much a city girl, had never been to Iowa. We went to the Lamont Day's parade, saw Big Bud (the world's largest tractor), and went to the Clayton County Fair. Never seeing cows up close, she wanted to know if she could "pet" one - I advised against it! ;)


At the parade

6. Completing my first 5K I decided this spring that I was going to run a 5K this year. I've never been a runner, but figured it wouldn't be so bad. After fighting through foot pain and my 30 years of laziness, I completed the RJ Corman 5K in October!! I came in 3rd in my age division!!!

5. Garrett's Graduation Garrett officially completed his Bachelor's degree last December, but in July he participated in his graduation ceremony in Louisville. We were super proud of him!!



4. Grandma Betty drinking moonshine at Thanksgiving I couldn't resist! This memory was too good not to make the Top Ten! At the Sheffert Christmas celebration we had a drink exchange. Garrett & I thought we'd be true Kentuckians and take moonshine (he works with some sketchy fellows - that's all I'll say about that). When my brother-in-law won the battle and ended up with it, he opened it up to investigate. My grandma took a spoonful and drank it!! Priceless!!!

3. The Madhouse takes over the Louisville Zoo For the past several years we have been celebrating Mantor Day in June. This year we took a family outing! Earlier this year, I had an argument with Andrea about if giraffe's had tails or not. I determined that my kids desperately needed a trip to the zoo!! We had an amazing time (despite Leigha's face in the picture below). There is a full album of pictures on my Facebook page!


2. Seeing Toy Story 3 in the theater TWICE (and getting the DVD) I know, it sounds like a dumb second place, but it's true. I LOVED Toy Story 3! I laughed, I cried, I watched it again and again. The most fun has been quoting lines from the movie with the kids. Leigha does an amazing Bonnie impersonation and Hunter is working on his Spanish Buzz. I decided I'm going to find Garrett's 'Spanish Mode!!'

1. Participating in 'Being Christmas' Far and away the best Madhouse memory for 2010 was participating in 'Being Christmas' at church. In early December, our church launched a series about not just talking about Christmas, but showing our neighbors what Christmas looked like! We collectively did that in 3 ways - donating toys to the Catholic Action Center's Toy Drive, Donating Food to the Salvation Army's Food Pantry, and a year end offering that would continue and expand our ministries at church. In the process, we as a church were learning what generosity looked like! Our family decided to dive in! We condensed our grocery budget every week and bought extra food. We saved every penny we could for toys (the kids even chose to put in some of their money). We partnered with our Life Groups and stretched every penny. Garrett was blessed with a lot of overtime in December, so we divided the extra between the three. In the end, what was most amazing for me was how generosity really was released in us! The kid's were less about themselves and always talking about what toys they would buy for other kids. Leigha (3 yrs old) even walked through Toys R Us putting her favorite toys in the cart - never once asking for one for herself!!! AMAZING!!!


The Toys & Food we bought

And finally, I do have to mention one more....
Too Amazing to Compete: Hunter giving his life to Christ It wasn't fair to compare this one to the others. For most of this year Hunter has been processing where he sat with Jesus. He's said a prayer several times in his life, but his life still wasn't marked with joy or peace or love. He realized that the other times he prayed it was because everyone else was doing it or out of anger. This fall he finally realized during a message at church that he had sin in his heart and that it was a problem. For the first time ever he chose to talk to someone about it instead of pretending it didn't exist! After a few more months of sorting it all out, on November 7 he gave his life to Christ on his own will!! Instantly we saw his heart soften - and it continues to as he learns what it means to walk with Jesus! On December 15th, he was baptized which included sharing his story. He had such clarity! The last several months have really unleashed Hunter's heart for great things!

If only 2011 is this amazing!!!

Happy New Year!!