My Cup Runs Over...

That's how I feel. Any time I reflect on the hundreds of thousands of reasons to be thankful, I always think of Psalms 23...

The Lord is my shepherd. He gives me everything I need.
He lets me lie down in fields of green grass.
He leads me beside quiet waters.
He gives me new strength.
He guides me in the right paths for the honor of his name.
Even though I walk through the darkest valley, I will not be afraid.
You are with me.
Your shepherd's rod and staff comfort me.
You prepare a feast for me right in front of my enemies.
You pour oil on my head.
My cup runs over.
I am sure that your goodness and love will follow me all the days of my life.
And I will live in the house of the Lord forever.

I'm thankful for two little picture takin' fools, who are constant reminders that laughter should be a vital part of our lives!I'm thankful for my grandparents. My grandaddy had to have some skin cancer removed from his forehead last week. It took a lot out of him physically, but he still has fun. His smile could light up a room!I'm thankful for homemade centerpieces and I'm thankful for the kid's table. Although at times, I feel like a waitress, I love seeing these two young men develop their indepedence!
I'm thankful for our little pink princess, Sophie girl. Our lives would be a smidge duller without Itty Bitty bossing us around....... and a little more predictable, too! I mean, imagine my surprise when I found her pacifier in my glass. I still have no idea how or when she got it in there!This ones a two-fer.
1- I'm thankful for little boys who scheme all day to 'trick' us into coming into the garage to see their 'surprise!' I'm also thankful for silly moments of laughter!

2- I'm thankful for parents who let my kids 'surprise' them! Dad even comes up with a few ways to 'surprise' people, himself.... Mr. Put-A-Rubber-Band-Around-The-Sprayer-To-See-Who-Gets-Wet-When-They-Wash-Their-Hands!I'n thankful for all the Aunts and Uncles in our lives... the aunt who helps pick up kids when I'm taking others to the doctor... The aunt who loves unconditionally and innocently... The uncle who loves watching my boys be boys and buys them toys he would have wanted as a kid, even if they are annoying and the batteries never seem to die... My aunt who moved back a couple of years ago and made me wish she had lived here my whole life... The aunt who sends packages of stuff to my kids, just because she can... The aunt who prays for my family constantly. I'm so thankful. I'm thankful for the security of family and people that I can be at rest with... completely comfortable and 100% myself. My 'fields of green grass,' so to speak (refer to Psalm 23 above).{I think Hank is gonna kill me for posting this picture of him... but note to self: Take more pictures of your husband!!} I'm thankful for my partner in this life... my best friend. I'm thankful that you love me and you want me. I'm thankful that you love our kids so fully. I'm thankful that you love to make sure our kids are happy no matter the cost. Working Thanksgiving and Christmas... taking overtime when you would rather not... and turning it down when our family needs you. I'm thankful that you trust me in all aspects... and I'm thankful for that foot in bed at night that finds mine almost every time! I love you.

Yes, my cup runs over and over and over and over.

Christmas Gift

A couple of years ago, Hank and I got some luggage as a Christmas gift. I really, really wanted something that stood out and was really cute, but that didn't happen. Instead we got practical, low price luggage that will do, but doesn't make any statements. Maybe in a few years when this has worn out, we can invest in something sturdy and cute like some Delsey luggage. They have fun colors and cool designs. Nothing funky or anything, more classic and solid!

Maybe when Hank and I go on our ten year anniversary trip to wherever we want, we will travel with some great luggage in tow!

I would like a cruise or maybe a trip back to Colorado! I loved that place.

Bryant's Day

So yesterday, Bryant declared the 'worst day evah!' We got to the doctor around 2 and my little brown eyed cutie fell asleep waiting on the doctor. I took a picture of him on my cell and sent it to daddy. He was awake one minute and asleep the next. We found out officially (cause I already knew) that he had a severe double ear infection. He has an appointment with an ENT in the morning to schedule tubes.

His ears were literally pouring and draining all day yesterday. It was nasty. He had to get a shot. I was so sad for him when he realized what was coming. He kept saying, 'Will the pointy thing go all the way in my knee?" All the while crying and saying he didn't want it. But about halfway home, he seemed to get his personality back and by that night was just grouchy from lack of sleep.

It was an early night, and thankfully, everyone slept peacefully. Here he is this morning as we prepared to head to his Thanksgiving Musical program. Notice the cotton in either ear. He couldn't hear all that well, but he did so good! I was super proud of him. He got up there and did all of his motions and sang all of the songs with a big smile on his face! This was my personal favorite... just a little warning for the turkey!

Bryant is on the second row from the bottom.
You should have seen all of us Mom's doing the motions in the audience! Funny stuff! Sophie thought it was great seeing her brother up on stage. But up until she saw him, nothing would distract her. She wanted down and she wanted to walk around!!Here's Miss Priss waving to Bry-Bry!Our very own Pilgrim.

After the show, we got to have some pie and visit with his teacher and some of his little friends.Bryant's teacher, Miss Mandy, is the best. She's so sweet and kind!

A New Hairdo!

Oh, the cuteness of it all! I just had to try a ponytail for Sophie this morning. She sat very still while I did it and has left it in all day. I mean, she's so cute with her little curly pony that I teared up!
She wore it like this to her brother's Thanksgiving Musical program. All those women went crazy over her!

Want - To - Sleep...

So here I sit at 6:40 afraid that if I close my eyes, I won't get Tres to school on time, and will fall asleep and miss grabbing the phone at 8 am and instantly calling the doctor to make Bryant an appointment.

The weekend was good. We started it off on Friday pretty good. Hank got off at 2:30 which is unheard of. He switched shifts with one of the other guys. So we did some family oriented stuff like decorating the front of the house a little... it's still now done and it needs a lot of tweaking. Some lights twinkle and some don't, and I like consistency, but I'm not so annoyed that I have to fix it!

Then Friday night, we went and introduced our friends Chad and Mandy to our favorite Mexican restaurant, Del Toro. They loved it, too! I don't think we've ever taken someone there and they didn't like it. Then we came back to my messy house and played games and cards until nearly midnight when we finally noticed all the kids passing out around us! ha! I forgot to take pictures cause we were laughing so hard at Chad trying to be a part of Mad Gad. I REALLY wish I had my camera out for that.

Saturday morning we had a good, slow morning. Then Hankie had to get ready to go to the shift he switched for and we went over to my parent's house. They suggested we go to Jim 'n Nicks, and I was so all about it!I forgot Sophie's bib, so the napkin had to do! She looked like a little bandit! I gotta say, since she got through cutting those molars (which put her count up to 12 teeth now), she's been so happy and fun!The boys got to go spend some special time with grandaddy after we ate. I wish I could have got my camera out in the parking lot cause I have this mental image of Grandaddy holding Tres's hand and Tres holding Bryant's hand... I just couldn't manage to jungle Sophie to the other hip and get the camera out before they got into the car. I went and tried to help Mom do some Christmas shopping, but Sophie girl was DUN with the car seat and stores, so after Belk and JC Pennies, we called it a night!

I should mention that Bryant's left ear had started draining and he was up and down a little on Friday night. We treated it with Tylenol and pain numbing drops. He slept through on Saturday night, and since we knew what was wrong, and we HATE afterhours, we decided to try and make it to today.

Anyway, Sunday we headed to church where the boys apparently found something to do during praise and worship.

Hmmm... I guess we need to talk again about what praise and worship is for! :)

After church, we grabbed a quick lunch and had a quick volleyball meeting. Then we decided to take the kids to see Bolt. Tonnie and Brett met us with Luke and Sierra. It was a funny movie!! And the kids thought they were big stuff cause we let them sit at the top of the theatre without us.

Then we came home and everyone seemed normal... well, normal for us anyway.

But this is what we have this morning... a little boy who has such a bad earache that he can't sleep lying down because of the pressure!

Now I just have to juggle a Toys for Tots Promotions shoot, Tres's Thanksgiving Banquet (which I promised to be at since I haven't made it to any others), and a doctor's appointment. All of these are about 30 miles apart. Deep breath... I'm going in...

Picture Game

Simple and fun!

I tag Crystal, Melanie (we'll see if she's still alive and kickin'!), Rebecca, Eric, and Sarah!

Go to your picture file, 4th folder, 4th photo and post it.

This picture was taken on January 19, 2008. It is Bryant protesting the single piece of brocolli on his plate! Not unusual.

Leave me a comment if you play so I can see who you tag and what picture you post!

Tour Our Tree

Here are a few ornaments that make our tree unique to our little family!


This one is a family ornament. We got it on one our trips to Disney. For some reason, this year, this ornament is cause for controversy! Tres wants it in his ornament box... Bryant wants it in his. I want it to remain a family ornament.

This one was handmade by our friend, Ms. Vickie, for Miss Sophie-girl when she was an itty bitty last year. It has been added to her very own ornament box and to our tree this year.

Every year, my Mom gives Hankie a new Lenox Alabama ornament for his birthday and we add it to our tree. This is the 2008 one. Isn't it pretty? We have 6 of these now.
This was the ornament that we got last year to commemorate our first year in our new home.

The Boys and Their Birdhouse

Hank and the boys (mostly Hank) built a birdhouse last weekend. They had so much fun doing it and they were so very proud of the finished product! It is now hung in a tree and we will be putting some bird seed out next week. The boys love that there are different animals that live in our backyard and are looking forward to being able to watch birds live in a house they built.

Way Past Curfew!

My friend Mandy introduced me to the Twilight books a few months ago. I'm an avid reader and dove right in! I was hooked. Not only is it a sweet love story, and a great plot line... but I am just addicted to these characters and to the whole interesting way the author portrays vampires and werewolves and whatnot. I know... I know... it sounds weird. But it's a good read. The books are juvenile novels and as such are clean. No profanity or dirty stuff! Just a good storyline and amazingly developed characters.

Well, Mandy and I decided that when it came to theatres we were going! I got some tickets online for the midnight showing on Thursday night/Friday morning! So all day Thursday, I was looking forward to my date with Mandy! Ha! I got the family fed, the kids bathed and in bed... then I got ready and headed out.

I met Mandy at Wal-Mart around 10:30 and we just wandered in there for a little bit, then we decided to head on over. I'm glad we did, cause they had already filled one theatre full, and were working on two more!! I would say that about 85% of the viewers were 13-17 year old girls. The guys were there with girls and then there were a few brave.. uh-um... older women like myself and Mandy.

The movie got underway and I was unprepared for the reaction of the mostly teenage audience and their uncontrollable hormones! When Edward (the main male character) had his first scene.... they screamed. When Edward and Bella (the main female character) were about to kiss, they giggled and screamed. When the audio went out towards the end of the movie for about 3 minutes, they almost revolted... I captured a little of it on my camera.

Do you hear the girl crying?? And you can't see it, but people were standing up and demanding refunds and yelling... seriously. Get a grip people... these are fictional characters, and if you were there at midnight to see it, you probably read the books and you know what's happening! I definitely enjoyed the movie. It wasn't exactly like the book, but I think they did a good job of keeping the characters in tact, and the story line was good. I know it will probably be another good year before the next one comes out at the theatres, but I'll probably be there at midnight again!

Go Team Jacob!

It Came!! It Came!!

My FAVOURITE THINGS PACKAGE made its way to my house today!! It came from Canada (note the spelling of 'favorite!') and Sarah's house!

Take a look at what I got! I had so much fun opening this! It was like an early Christmas present! I took it upstairs and sat on the floor by the tree and laid out all my stuff.Sarah got so creative! She sent me one of her favorite recipes for Apple Strudel Muffins.. which I plan to post on The Recipe Place soon along with a couple of others I have collected lately!

She also sent me a mix of her favorite music right now. Too bad the CD was cracked... but thankfully, Sarah included a playlist for me and Hankie is looking all of it up and making me another one! I can't wait to listen to it! I love music also, Sarah! It plays a huge roll in my life.

Sarah has a sweet tooth and sent me some of her favorite treats. My new favorite is the Nestle Coffe Crisp Bar. I ate some and gave some to my kids. I still have half and plan to wait till no little ones are around so that I can savour this treat! She also sent me some gummy candies and some Nibs.

She shared with me that she loves hot beverages and sent me a variety of them to try! Hot teas, hot apple cidar, and Starbucks coffee. Good stuff!

She also sent me a candle... but it's not what you think. The candle is called Aqua. She loves water and swimming and thought this would represent it without the weight of a bottle of water in the package! It smells really clean and nice!

She also included some Chapstick Smoothies and a Scrapbooking Card that she made.

Thank you so much, Sarah! This was so fun, and I feel like I have a new friend!

What a Pickle!

"Pickle ornaments were considered a special decoration by many families in Germany, where the fir tree was decorated on Christmas Eve. It was always the last ornament to be hung on the Christams tree, with the parents hiding it in the green boughs among ornaments. When the children were allowed to view the tree they would begin gleefully searching for the pickle ornament. The children knew that whoever first found that special ornament would receive an extra little gift from St. Nicholas for the most observant child!"

The above picture is the pickle ornament camouflaged among the branches on our very own tree. The boys haven't found it yet, but that's probably because they forget about things for days at a time and didn't even realize that we hung our new ornament on the tree after we got it in Epcot!

What kind of treat should Santa leave for the most observant child?

Okay, already, Jamie!

I'm so sorry I've been so bad about posting! I have pics and post ideas, and I plan to get back into the swing of it this weekend!

I got to chill with Staci and her kids for a while yesterday... pics coming!

Tonight, I have a date with my friend Mandy to go and see Twilight at midnight! If you know me... you know I don't stay up late, so I'm off to nap. I plan to take pictures tonight.

We are also busy decorating our yard for the Holidays!

I'm still on the look out for my favorite things package... and as soon as I get mine, I'll post what Sarah got too! :)

My family is good!

Tres is reading by himself!

Bryant has sight words and comes home with new knowledge every day!

Sophie is obsessed with shoes and is talking more and more... even if we don't understand her! Ha!

Hank and I are going to be coaching volleyball together starting in January... good time together and extra money... who can beat that?

Okay, more later!

Red Tags, please

If you shop like I do... then you are constantly having to check prices. In any given store, you will see me make a bee line for the clearance racks. I know what aisles are designated clearance aisles in Wal-Mart. I know that the endcaps at Target are generally clearance. I love, love, love a good deal. Even at my beloved CVS, I get price checks on several things before I check out. When I did that one time, the manager handed me one of their barcode scanners... the portable kind, and told me to bring it back when I was done. It was the kind you use when you get to register for wedding and baby showers! It was fun.

I know when I say that I shop clearance, most people think I'm cheap... and I'll admit, I am. But I like to make sure that I am getting good gifts and clothes for minimal out of pocket expense!

A Matter of Time

A while back... I guess like a three months ago, the clasp broke on my watch. It is a really, really nice watch. It's primarily silver with gold accents. It's a medium to small size. It goes with everything and I was so used to wearing it that even now, after three months, I still find myself checking my empty wrist for the time!

I'm not sure if the clasp is repairable. Hank has looked at it, but hasn't told me yet. So I started an online search for a new watch! I found some different watches online... like Citizen, Buluva, and Oceanus watches but nothing quite like I had. This was the closest one I found.

The funny thing is that in my house... you can't enter most rooms without seeing one or two clocks.

Christmas Gone Wild!

When we decided to put up our tree early, we didn't realize that it would cause our children to just about explode with excitement! They were so thrilled to be doing it that they apparently turned off their ears and decided to do things their own way!

The boys found some really old ornaments that actually used to hang on my Mom and Dad's tree growing up. They were brass instruments. I don't use them, but the boys took a little music break when they found them!

Despite the moments of absolute chaos, it was a blast! We weren't really sure just when we would have another night when everything was semi-normal anytime near Thanksgiving, so I'm glad we took advantage of it. I think we are gonna get the yard decorated this weekend if the weather cooperates.

Here is a finished shot of the tree (minus the bow on top which I still need to make). Thanks to Hank who helped rearrange the big blobs of ornaments to some semblance of normalcy.

Seriously

I downloaded pics yesterday and they are nowhere to be found... and I deleted them off of my camera. Ugh! I lost the pics of Sarah's favorite things package! I am bummed about that. Maybe she'll take some when she gets it. I sent it last week, but seeing as she lives in Canada (I think it's cool that I have a new friend in Canada!), she may not get the end of this week or so.

I also lost pics of the kids decorating the tree. Although, I think Hank might have taken some on our video camera. Not sure. I hope I find them floating around the computer somewhere soon.

**UPDATE: My super handy husband found them for me!**

I have been super down lately. Not really sure why. I feel tired a lot and weary. I think it's just the rush to get all the Holiday stuff up and done before surgery time. I've also been having more pain lately than I'd care to admit. Thank you, Lord for an understanding husband!

I went to CVS the other day and did really good! No pic, though... remember... pictures are floating somewhere in computerville.

I need help making a new bow topper for my tree. Any volunteers?? Or maybe you guys know a good website I can visit?

We've had some major 'character building moments' with Tres and Bryant lately. Huge discussions, reinforcements, and punishments coupled with a lot of love to hopefully help us avoid stuff like this in the future. I mean, it's no fun helping Tres write this letter: Then he delivered it and apologized... not fun for any of us, but necessary.

Well, I thought I would leave you with a little bit of fun around our house! Under strict supervision, pizza box coasting down the front yard has become a favorite pasttime!

Guess What??

My tree is up! All the ornaments are clumped in areas where little boys could reach! I'll post pics later! I gotta go get ready for my public speaking class.

Date Night

Well, I took my camera with us, but still forgot to take pictures of me and Hankie on our date night!

My WONDERFUL friend Mandy, volunteered to babysit our kids for us last night so that Hank and I could go on a much needed date. Well, actually all of our kids ended up spending the night with her!! Can you believe it!! Even Sophie-girl!

I digress... so Hankie and I headed out after the Alabama game (ROLL TIDE!!), and went looking for something to eat. We saw smoke coming out of the chimney at the new Jim 'n Nicks and thought we would see if it was open for business yet. We got there and saw people going in, so we asked if they were open. The lady at the front tells us that they are training and it's friends and family night... so if we wanted to sit at the bar, we could eat there... FOR FREE!! We got an appetizer, we each got an entree, and then we got a piece of pie to go. We were so full when we left there!! And I tried a new sandwich that I'd never had before, but want to get again! I got the J&N Club Sandwich... it was so, so, so, so good! A hot sandwich with chunky smoked turkey and ham with bacon and 2 kinds of cheese! Hank liked mine more than his.

After our FREE meal, we drove over to Kohl's, since they stayed open late, and did some Christmas shopping and then went to Wal-Mart for more of the same. I found some clearance Halloween stuff that would work as stocking stuffers... a Hanah Montana bracelet for $.32 for Sophie girl... she loves jewelry.

Then we came home, I did some laundry, and Hank and I got a full nights rest with no little warm, wiggly bodies sneaking in our bed at night!

We got up and just got ourselves ready for church... oh the luxery of time! I got to shave my legs, curl my hair... even, wait for it... eat breakfast!

I don't think I could say Thank You to Chad and Mandy loud enough or often enough for them to know how much that meant to us!

These Are Just A Few...

I'm so excited! I finished my package for the Favorite Things swap and got it all mailed and stuff! I want very badly to share the pics and tell you guys what I sent, but I don't want to badly enough to spoil the surprise for Sarah! I had so much fun doing this... and I learned that I have A LOT of favorite things!

Here are just a few that I couldn't put in a package:

~rainy Saturdays
~sleeping in
~baby kisses
~baby laughter
~the smell of a freshly washed child
~fresh baked cookies... hot off the pan, please!
~the excitement of the holidays!
~putting away my swimsuit till next year... Yeah!!
~dressing up

Okay, I think I could go on and on, but I gotta go get Bry!

Disney Recommendation

In the last five years or so, we've have taken our fair share of Disney vacations. I mean, Hank and I consider ourselves more knowledgeable than most people about it. We've been in the summer, we've been in the fall, and we've been in the winter. We've been with one kid and we've been with all our kids. We've gone in the rain, we've gone in the sun. We've been for a marathon... we've eaten at character meals, food courts and really overpriced restaurants. We've stayed on the Disney grounds nearly every time and have figured out which way we prefer to get to the parks. We've ridden trains, monorails, buses, shuttles, and trams! We've waited in lines for tens of hours and we've spent more money on souvenirs than I'd care to admit... but we always have fun! Our kids believe in the magical and extraordinary and what better place to feed their imaginations than Disney?

Next Vacation, Please!

My sister-in-law, Betsy, used to live in North Carolina. When she did, Hank and I were both working and had two baby boys to take care of. We never quite made it up to see them, but the pictures we saw of their house, the scenary and everything else about it, we knew it was a beautiful place! I really wish they had lived their longer just so I could have made it up there!

After spending so much time and money on certain vacation experiences, I am ready for some other options. So I thought I would check out some options in the Carolinas. I logged onto Outer Banks rentals to see what all there was to offer, and was pleasantly surprised at how much there was to do! I think we could have a wonderful vacation there!

Here's An Idea!

Okay, so my big issue with having a television in a fancier room, like our 'formal' living room upstairs, is that I feel like it's this big out-of-place machine sitting with our nicer stuff. Well, I found this site for pop up tv, and I really, really want one!!! The tv comes up right from the cabinet! How perfect is that?

I love having that room to sit and visit with friends when they come over, but other times, I think Hank and I would both like to have a television there for convenience... so we didn't have to come all the way downstairs to watch something if I'm trying to get the baby down for a nap or something.

Trick or Treat!

Well, our little princess was just that for her second Halloween in a row!That's right! This is the same costume she wore last year! It fit her much better a year later, but I was still shocked that it fit! It was labeled a 0-3 month, but was much bigger than that!

Tres went as... Indiana Jones. He was so funny... all night he would do slides in the grass and rolls down hills. He said they were his stunts! Very into his character! Bryant went as Optimus Prime, but wouldn't leave his mask on cause he said it hurt him! In this shot, he was yelling, "Candy!" at the top of his lungs! We always start out our trick or treating with a stop at GiGi and Pawpaw's house (my mom's parents).
Governer Palin was out campaigning!She was shaking hands and kissing babies!She seemed determined to win Shelby County one house at a time! :)Of course, we had a blast and the kids have enough candy to last through till next Halloween! :)