A Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night

O come, all ye faithful, Joyful and triumphant,

O Come ye, O come ye, to Bethlehem.

Come and behold Him, Born the King of angels;

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

O come, let us adore Him,

Christ the Lord.

God of God, Light of Light,

Lo! he abhors not the Virgin’s womb;

Very God, Begotten not created.

Sing, choirs of angels, Sing in exultation;

Sing, all ye citizens of heaven above!

Glory to God, In the highest.

Yea, Lord, we greet Thee, Born this happy morning;

Jesu, to Thee be glory given;

Word of the Father, Now in flesh appearing.

--John Francis Wade

On life and hobbits

Christmas break is finally here. I'm reveling in doing absolutely nothing in the coming weeks.
Well, nothing as in, no homework to work, no papers to write, no tests to take, no lectures to listen to, and no Latin quizzes to grade! I do have a few projects I'd like to complete and books I'd like to read. But it makes all the difference in  the world simply because I want to and no is telling me to do it.
Isn't it funny how that makes a difference? We're stubborn creatures. Or at least I am.

Within the last couple of weeks, I've successfully taken the ACT (and am still anxiously awaiting my score), turned in my first college application (and barely made the early deadline), and completed my last midterm (my very last ever big test for that class). Sleep is a sweet, sweet thing, friends.

Although he's been my brother from the moment he stepped through that door, Jeremiah's adoption was officially finalized on Friday! And despite a "minor" incident that sent Jamie to the ER - he stepped on a pitchfork while playing hide-and-seek outside in the dark . . . barefoot - all is well at the Crampton house.  The whole family - all nine of us! - are finally under one roof. Joseph got in around 3:00 AM last night. The house is loud full again.

My house is filled to the brim with people, laughter, homemade goodies, and Christmas everything! There are so many reasons to be thankful.

As you hear/sing carols this Christmas season, it's easy to simply skip and skim over the words. Don't. There's a reason these old hymns are still being sung. Read the last verse of Hark the Herald Angels Sing:

Hail the heav'n-born Prince of Peace!
Hail the Son of Righteousness!
Light and life to all He brings
Ris'n with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that man no more may die
Born to raise the sons of earth
Born to give them second birth
Hark! The herald angels sing
"Glory to the newborn King!"

And on an entirely different note, The Hobbit comes out in December of next year and they just released the trailer!!! This makes me one excited fan girl.