November 14, 2013

Six Weeks of Quiet ~ Merry Christmas!

Precious Friends ~ I am thankful for each one of you.
Your friendship and kindness to our family is such a blessing.
In the last number of months we have felt loved and encouraged.
Thank you all so very much.

This is a wrap-up post for the year.

Yes, for the year!  I cannot believe how quickly time passes.
I am taking six weeks of quiet in this space ~ I trust you will understand.

May the Lord bless you with His peace and presence
throughout the Christmas season and in the coming year.
May you know His loving hand upon you leading and guiding in all you do.
May you know Him as your Saviour and follow Him wherever He leads.

May He be your Everything!

Christmas has always been a very special time of year for us.
We have many family traditions tied into this season.
It's not all about the gifts ~ it's about The Gift!
We have sought, over the years, to teach our children
that our Saviour really is the best Gift of all.

~ Thomas Kinkade Christmas Card ~

We love to celebrate Advent and refresh our minds
with all the wonders revealed about our Saviour in God's Word.
We have always enjoyed going to Burnaby Village Museum
and taking a walk around Stanley Park ~ together.

We delight in secretly making plans and wrapping and giving.
We gather with friends and family
We eat yummy things and visit by the fire.

Our Christmas Eve celebration always includes a special dinner

made up of appetizers and Devon cream tea.
We eat on that night in the living room and linger around the glowing fireplace.
Christmas Carols are sung while we gather by the tree. 

We have so many happy memories of Christmases past.

This photo is one of the last we have together as a family ~
It was taken last Christmas shortly after Austin's pacemaker surgery.
We've included it in our family's Christmas letter this year.



We do plan on returning to all our usual traditions in the future.

This year, however, we are switching things up a bit and 
making some changes.  It's a year of transition.
A year of firsts.  We are making new memories.

Without our precious Austin.  


We still plan to celebrate our Saviour's birth.

We plan to gather with family and friends.
We plan to give gifts and send cards.
We are not abandoning tradition altogether, but, 
we must have a year of transition.

Everything is still a little too fresh.

Since Austin was taken Home to Heaven, things have not been the same.
Christmas will never be the same.  We will never be the same.
As we ease ourselves into life here without our precious son,
we seek to remember that He is with the Lord.

Our Austin is celebrating his first Christmas in Heaven ~
with our Saviour!!  What a thought!

He is perfectly content and joyful.

He is praising the Lord constantly in perfect peace.
One day, we will be there too.
It truly is precious to consider these things.

By God's great grace, we will honour the Lord in the days to come.
We will remember Him and praise Him and worship Him.
Because He is worthy.  And, He truly is the best Gift of all!

My plan is to be absent from this space for the next six weeks.

Please do not be alarmed at the fact that any comments you 
may choose to leave will initially disappear, and then will take time to publish.
(Please do let me know you were here...it's always a blessing to hear from you).

I do not plan to check in at all until the end of December.


This includes publishing comments and visiting with you in your space.

It's just what I must do.  Thank you for always extending grace.
Please know that I value your friendship and do
hope to reconnect after this time of internet quietness.
May the Lord bless you as you seek Him.  Now and always.

Merry Christmas from our home to yours!


"For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given:

and the government shall be upon his shoulder:
and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor,
The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace."
~ Isaiah 9:6 ~

Much Love,
Camille

22 comments:

Dianna said...

While I can't understand perfectly your exact situation, my friend, I certainly respect this need you have for time alone with your family...free to go through this year of transition together.

As much as I will miss you, I will be here when you get back. :)

TRUTH SHARER said...

Camille~

May your family be blessed in this season of transition and grace. The 'holy' days that we celebrate are often hardest when our loved one is missing from the scenes of our present reality. The story is far from over though... God indeed has a glorious unfolding taking place on every page He writes in His-story!

Because of His Birth, Cross and glorious resurrection - we are given the privilege to praticipate in something beyond our imaginations.

Austin got a head start on us all!

When you resume after your six weeks of respite - may I be the first to bring JOY to your heart and put a smile on your face!

Only Jesus Christ, the king of Kings and lord of Lords makes it possible for two strangers to meet electronically and be related but His love is beyond understanding. I praise Him for you, my sister, whose testimony of GRACE continues to unfold even through the deepest pain.

"Trials are not enemies of faith, but rather opportunities to prove God's faithfulness!" ~unknown

May He prove Himself again and again to you and yours!

Choosing JOY, Stephanie
Psalm 126

Stephanie said...

I completely understand, dear Camille. May you and your precious family have a blessed Christmas. It will be hard without your sweet Austin and I will be praying for all of you. May our Lord give your strength and peace.

I look forward to your return! Blessings and hugs to you.

OurCrazyFarm said...

Know that you will be in my prayers often this Christmas season, Camille. Enjoy your rest, love on your family, and most of all give yourself much grace to do this holiday however you feel led. Grief is a long, long walk. Keep your eyes on the end goal as Jesus did. Yes, what a thought, that Austin is celebrating with the King this year. One day, before we know it, we will be there with our sons celebrating, too. Can't wait!

Grandmabeckyl.blogspot said...

Hope and pray for your time away a blessed one with family and continual faith in our God. It's gonna be hard on you all this Christmas. There are the memories of Christmas past that will linger and remember the good times, Austin's love, laughter, music. He'd want you to be happy. It's ok to miss him. He's gonna be in your hearts always til you see him again on the other shore, in the sweet by and by! The Savior is waiting for us as well. We just need to keep on working and worshiping Him til he comes. Hugs and blessings and thanks for leaving comments on my blog, much appreciated, my friend. Merry Christmas, Happy 2014! WOW!

Angela said...

May God be with you and your family, bless you and keep you in His care. I pray that this Christmas will be special in it's own way. May God help you all.

Cinnamon said...

The picture is so precious Camille.

Enjoy your time away. Drink in all that goodness the Lord has for your dear family.

Thank you for sharing your Christmas plans. It does encourage me to do some planning of my own.

Praying for you~

hugs~Cinnamon

little sis said...

Oh I will miss you but understand. Have a wonderful Christmas season and I pray that this transition is not too hard.

Love,

Leanna

Lisa said...

Oh, Camille, what a beautiful post. I definitely understand your need to take a break right now. We are praying for you in this hard time and SO look forward to seeing you soon, my sweet friend :)
Much love!

Maryann said...

Will be keeping you in prayer sweet friend.

Patrinas Pencil said...

What a Glorious celebration - Austin's first Christmas with Jesus!

Covering the family in prayer over the span of these weeks. Enjoy making your own 'firsts' as you walk through the mixture of celebration and sorrow.

God is with you, yes He is!
Austin is with you, clearly he is!

hugs and blessings for the holidays

patrina

Sarah said...

I hope this Christmas provides you a season of peace and the hope that it stands for. Merry Christmas!

Heather said...

Love you, Friend. Praying your Christmas is joy-filled in ways you didn't expect. See you in the New Year. xo

Patty said...

Wishing you the very best Thanksgiving!

Janet said...

I understand.Our 25 yr.old son was killed in a motorcycle accident on our anniversary...8/22/13. We are doing the same as your family. May God surround you with His presence in the coming new year.

Linda said...

Dear Sweet Friend,
You are always in my thoughts and prayers.
Glad I visited you here today. You as always are so inspirational and you touch my heart.
Praying that the Lord will continue to comfort and give you and your family peace.
Will reconnect in the New Year.
Much love and hugs,
Linda.

Jill said...

Camille,

Thinking of you and your family and wishing you a wonderful holiday season. Many blessings to you all!!

Hugs,
Jill

Farmgirl said...

I pray you will have a very blessed and special Christmas my friend.

Christa said...

Hi Camille, I am praying for you and your family during this time. I know it must be so hard yet I know the Lord has given you the faith you need to persevere and to remember His promise that He will not leave you or forsake you.
I watched Austin's Memorial service tonight with tears of joy to see your family give all glory to the Lord. What a great testimony.

Together in Christ...

Christa

Hopes Handcrafts said...

Just want to let you know you are on my heart and in my prayers Camille {{hugs}} Thinking of you and Howie, Calvin Fraser and Emma XX

Isaiah 40: 28-31

American Home said...

You are in my thoughts and prayers dear friend.

Camille said...

Dear Dianna ~ Thank you my sweet friend...thank you! :)

Dear Stephanie (Truth Sharer) ~ Thank you for your kind and thoughtful words...I appreciate you! Yes, the Lord is Faithful, and He is Good! Blessings to you. :)

Dear Stephanie ~ Thank you so much for lifting us up in prayer. How precious it is to belong to the Family of our Great God. Hugs to you. :)

Dear Terri ~ I know you understand most tangibly my friend...thank you for your encouragement and your prayers. The Lord has blessed my heart through you. May He continue to be your strength and Rock. Blessings to you! :)

Dear Becky ~ Thank you for your faithful friendship...I appreciate you. May the Lord bless you and yours in 2014. He is Good! :)

Dear Angela ~ Thank you SO much! The Lord truly is Gracious and Good. Blessings to you! :)

Dear Cinnamon ~ The plans were necessary this year...more so than ever. I trust you were blessed in your home as you celebrated Him! Hugs to you. :)

Dear Leanna ~ Thank you, sweet friend. I appreciate you. Hugs. :)

Dear Lisa ~ I am thankful for YOU! You all blessed us more than you may ever know. Hugs to you all. :)

Dear Maryann ~ Thank you so very, very much! May the Lord bless you and your family this coming year. He is Good. :)

Dear Patrina ~ Thank you for your sweet words of encouragement. How precious it is to walk this path with our Great God. He is worthy of all praise. Hugs. :)

Dear Sarah ~ May the Lord bless you and your sweet family now and always. Blessings to you all! :)

Dear Heather ~ How precious it is to belong to our Lord's Family. Thank you for being a sweet friend...I appreciate you. :)

Dear Patty ~ Thank you my friend. Thank you! :)

Dear Janet ~ SO sorry for your loss. May the Lord comfort your heart as only He can! Hugs to you. :)

Dear Linda ~ Thank you for your kind friendship...I appreciate you! Hugs across the miles! :)

Dear Jill ~ Thank you my friend. Many blessings to you all! :)

Dear Heather ~ The Lord bless you and yours always my friend...He is Good! Thank you for your encouraging words and kind friendship. Hugs. :)

Dear Clotee ~ Welcome. May the Lord bless you! :)

Dear Christa ~ Thank you for being a sweet friend...I appreciate you! Hugs across the miles. :)

Dear Julia ~ Thank you SO much! You bless my heart. May the Lord bless you and your family in the coming year. He is Good! :)

Dear Donna ~ Thank you my friend...I SO appreciate your sweet friendship. May the Lord bless you all richly with His peace and presence. Hugs to you! :)

With Much Love,
Camille