Now that Christmas is over, and the new year is in swing, I have had chance to get our photos together from Christmas.  Here they are.  Click the picture to see our Christmas photos.

- John

Our oldest daughter is “THE” teacher at the East Malt Hutterite Colony. We were invited to the colony before Christmas when we were picking up Heather to bring her home for the Christmas vacation.  We enjoyed a great Christmas performance by the kids, and met several Colony members.  We were treated like royalty and made some new friends.  Our children definitely want to go back and see their friends again.  Here are a couple of pictures.  Click one to see larger views.

- John

After the kids school Christmas program,  we were greeted by Father Christmas … The genuine one!

Carol was able to participate in the Christmas Choir at our church this past Christmas.  Alia was also able to be in part of it with the Missionettes from church.  They all did such an awesome job.  Now that our children are getting older, we have more time for this type of fun thing. Click a picture to see a larger view.

-John

We spent most of Christmas Day in the house watching the snow fall and enjoying our gifts that we received.  The kids took the opportunity to sled down the hill for a bit, but other than that, the snow just kept coming and coming.

Today, we spent a portion of the day digging out.  The plow on the truck was acting flaky so I took out a test meter and found that a solinoid was not working correctly.  I happened to have a spare, thank you Lord, so in no time, I replaced it and the plow worked better than it has in a long time.  That is a good thing because it really got to work today.

J.J. road in the truck with me while I was plowing, while the girls helped Carol shovel off the very heavy snow from the deck, and shovel the snow off the sidewalks.

The sun is doing it’s best to keep shining.  It is a very beautiful day.  Click a picture to see our wintery neighborhood.

John

We have not had snow on Christmas for quite a few years, and it has not snowed ON Christmas day for even more years than that.  Today, the temperature was in the mid twenties, and it snowed and snowed so gently.  What a beautiful day to go with the beautiful celebration of Jesus’ birth.

All of us at the McDougalls’ Home wish you the Very Merriest Christmas.  Embrace the free gift God has given us as we remember the time when God left His throne, stepped into time, and entered this world as a baby boy.  The Creator became like one of His created, so He could live the life we couldn’t, and suffer and die the death we deserved, all because He loved us so much.

“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.  John 3:16,17 (NIV)

Winter Wonderland Near Bonner, Montana where I had to travel for work.

The weather for the past couple of weeks has been bitterly cold and snowy, with temperatures much of the time being well below zero (F).  Today is a nice change.  The temperature is in the teens, the sun is shining, and the kids are outside enjoying the snow by sledding down the hill.  We live on the side of a mountain in Jefferson City, Montana, which makes driving difficult, and sledding easy.

Desire’ pointed out this morning that this is the first time in several years that we will be having a White Christmas.  The beauty is making up for all those cold and snowy days we have had for a while.  Unfortunately, our daughter Heather, and Carol’s mom were not able to make it here as planned because of the unpredictable weather we have been having.  None the less, we are very thankful for this beautiful day we have received. 

This evening we will be attending our Christmas Eve service at our church, then we will come home and open gifts.

The Perfect Christmas Eve!

Click on a picture to see larger views.

Click the picture to see photos from our Christmas program along with all of our Christmas pics.

Last Sunday, Neighborhood Assembly of God had it’s Christmas Program. All of the children were delightful.  There was a lot of music and worship.  The service ended with the “Praise Team” singing a very humorous but thoughtful song with the aide of hand puppets.  Ha!

Neighborhood Assembly of God Praise Team assisted by Hand Puppets