Some funny moments...

from Christmas that are worth remembering...that's really all my blogs about...remembering the everyday funnies that I know will be a distant memory soon! I didn't include these in the Christmas wrap-up because it was getting to long as it was.

1. Christmas Eve I visited GranGran and PopPop to pick up some Santa surprises. They commented that Susan and Rob both gave them a pair of socks. I told Dad, "You know you are getting old, when all you get for Christmas are socks." Flash forward to Christmas day...Chris gives me four pairs of socks! I couldn't be happier!!!

2. Daniel is unloading his stocking and pulls out a Star Wars figure...not in a box. "We already have this one," he says...guessing that Santa did not know that. What really happenend?

The boys were playing Santa Claus a few weeks back. They loaded each others stocking with toys already in the house. I guess Santa didn't get everything out!! Several days later, they still think that we have two Cal Rissian figures in the house.

3. The boys go get in the bathtub Christmas night. While Chris is bathing them, I remember that Santa forget two new sets of bathtub toys for William! I searched the house...not remembering where I placed them. I finally remembered they were in my closet. I took them to the bathroom and said, "Look William. You must not have emptied your stocking!" They were a hit!

Good times!

Fear Not...

For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, Christ the Lord!

Christmas Day was full of excitement. We slept in (hallelujah!) until 6:45. Daddy went down to start the coffee and fire while the big boys and I snuggled. We didn't have to wait long for Dee and William to wake up!

Finally, we were down the stairs to see what Santa had brought. The boys had a big time unloading their stockings!

Daniel got his Atlantis Legos...the only thing he asked for...he was thrilled. His Boba Fett helmet was a surprise and a big hit!

Philip loved his new bike and Lego Star Wars book. William loved his chocolate (and his new tricycle)!

We moved on to opening presents. By the time Philip and Daniel had seen a few Lego boxes, they were done with opening gifts. The tree was still full, but they asked repeatedly if they could go upstairs and build!

In case you are wondering, they accumulated 1291 Lego pieces throughout the day! They spent hours Christmas day upstairs building their new toys...airplanes, delivery trucks, Darth Vader's TIE fighter, race cars, Atlantis speedsters, castles, catapults, and more. Santa deliberately went light on the Legos, but family and friends pulled through for the little guys and they were in heaven!!

We did eventually finish opening gifts. The boys were a big help delivering each to their recipient!

The highlight was having Dee here with us for all the excitement. The boys are so fortunate to have all of their grandparents within a few blocks of them. However, they rarely get to experience the joy of waking up and having them here. It was such a treat for them. I think a new tradition has begun!

Eventually, the presents were opened and guests began arriving. Cameron and Heather and GranGran and PopPop visited and had brunch with us. We had a wide selection of casseroles, breads, fruits, and cheeses. Delicious!

After everyone left, it was naptime for William. Chris and I allowed the boys to bring some Legos downstairs and we all built by the fireplace.

The afternoon was quiet. The boys never got out of their pajamas! We enjoyed a slow, yet fun day with our extended family and then with our own little family!!

As I lay in bed Christmas night, I thought back to many Christmas' ago. I am not sure how old I was...elementary school, I suppose...but I remember lying in bed with my sister, Susan, and her new cocker spaniel puppy, Ginger. I remember being sad...maybe even crying...that Christmas had come and gone. I did not think Christmas could get better than it had been that day.

Many, many Christmas' later, I felt the same way. It was such a joy to watch the boys on Christmas morning. Wonderful to be surrounded by family. I was so sad to see the day come to an end. There is certainly a magic in the air this time of year that can't be duplicated. Here's to next year...four should be even more fun!!

Here's to the New and Old

Christmas Eve for us has always been a time to celebrate with Chris' family. There's always a fabulous meal at their home and church as a family. Of course, plans had to be rethought.


The day was literally spent in the kitchen. We started with Star Wars pancakes...many thanks to Father Matthew and his son for giving the boys the pancake molds. They loved eating their Yoda pancakes!





William loved playing with the Darth Vader spatula!




The boys ventured off to play upstairs while Chris and I began cooking Christmas Eve dinner. I made creamed spinach and a salad...Chris made twice baked potatoes. Aunt Susan cooked a beef tenderloin that was enough to share with us! Dottie brought her homemade rolls and Heather brought dessert. Not too much work!


We opted for the fabulous meal at our house. We ate early...before church so that little ones could still get to bed at a decent time.




We quickly got everyone dressed and headed to Trinity. It was great to have Dottie, Cameron, and Heather there with us. GranGran and PopPop chose to come worship with us also. The most precious moment of the ceremony was when William realized that PopPop was in the row behind us. The church was quiet until he said excitedly, "PopPop, PopPop!" Priceless!!


If you had seen the boys ten minutes before leaving for church (or ten minutes after returning home), you would have never believed how well they could behave. They went from this...





to sitting quietly and taking in the service. Even PopPop noted how Philip watched Father Matthew during the service!


After church we headed home for dessert. While Dee gathered her things to spend the night, the boys and I quickly made cookies for Santa.



Usually, we make our homemade cookies and cut out Christmas shapes, but time was of the essence here! Slice and bake did the job!!

Next we sang "Happy Birthday to Jesus" and ate Heather's delicious red velvet cake. I don't think I've eaten a better red velvet cake before!!



We said goodnight to Cameron and Heather...





set out our reindeer food...




and put out cookies for Santa.




Off to read stories. Can you see the excitement in these guys eyes??





I grabbed my Bible so I could read the boys the birth story from Luke. Philip moaned a little...commenting that he has heard it so many times! I said you can never hear it enough and began. "Let's start at Luke Chapter 2," I said. Philip replied..."verse 14...Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace." Quite impressive what he's learning at school!!


The big boys shared Philip's bed so Dee could have her own bed. With everyone in bed, it was back to the kitchen for Chris and me. We cleaned the Christmas Eve dishes and began cooking a egg-sausage-hashbrown casserole and almond tart for tomorrow's brunch.


All in all, a good day and yet a busy one. Looking forward to rejoicing in Christ's birth tomorrow!

A Must for Moms and Grandmothers too

I realize it is a little late for Christmas gifts, but if you are still looking for that perfect gift for a mother of any age, I encourage you to check this book out!


A friend recently gave it to me, and I have to say I could barely finish it without choking up. It is a sweet retelling of the Nativity from Mary's point of view. The tag line used throughout is "Tomorrow you will be King, but tonight you are my baby." Such a great read for moms and children alike!

You can find it at amazon.com here. Merry Christmas!!

Have you ever...

taken young children out to eat?

Chris and I rarely take the boys out to eat. If I don't feel like cooking, one of us picks something up and brings it home. Occasionally, very occasionally, we get brave and decide to go out as a family. When I say go out, it is Mexican, pizza, or a sandwich shop. Very quick...very loud places. We generally regret it before the food arrives and swear off eating out again.

Now, I do go out to eat once a week with children. My mom does not drive, and so we generally spend a day together running errands and having lunch. With Philip in school all week and Daniel in school three days, many of these lunches involve just William. Very doable.

Well today, GranGran decided it was time for a Cracker Barrel trip. After taking all three to the Dillard's china department (another adventure, trust me), we headed to the CB for pancakes. I relayed our trip to Chris who suggested it was great blog material.

Here's what we learned...

CB syrup bottles are glass and yes they will break when they hit the floor. Quite loud...quite messy.

Kid's cups will spill everywhere when held by the lid. The five year old did that one! (Reminds me of my brother telling me their rule when eating out several years ago...someone's drink will always hit the floor.)

Mama knows best. The waitress argued with me when I ordered 4 pancakes for 3 boys. She insisted that they could not eat it all. I assured her they could. She still only brought three pancakes. Before I couuld finished cutting up Daniel and William's pancakes, Philip had devoured his pancake and two pieces of GranGran's bacon. I still had to order that 4th pancake AND give Daniel one of mine! These boys can put down some CB pancakes!!

Between cleaning up spills, cutting up food, several trips to the bathroom, I barely had time to wolf down my food before the troops got restless. Eating out with three little boys is not for the weak!

And so, I leave you with a picture of three angelic little boys. Great at home...just don't take them out to eat!!

Christmas Memories

I'm going to be all over the place tonight...so please bear with me.

First on my mind are Christmas memories. As the boys and I sat watching Chris make waffles this morning, I asked Chris if he remembered any specific gifts he received at Christmas as a child. He could recall none...neither could I. I asked if he ever remembers being disappointed on Christmas morning. He could not...neither could I.

It made me wonder. I have spent a lot of time this month pondering the gifts that have been purchased for my children. I have asked myself and Chris over and over if each child's gift is equivalent, will they be equally happy, etc. But in reality, neither Chris nor I remember any of that from our childhood.

Naturally, I then asked him what are his Christmas memories. Christmas Eve with his grandparents at their churches...a large family gathering at his home on Christmas day. Mine were similar...church at All Saints on Christmas Eve followed by a party at the Pierces...spending Christmas Eve night in MD's bed with all three sisters...trying so hard to get my brother out of the bed Christmas morning to open presents...time with my grandparents on Christmas day.

Family...that's really all we remember.

This Christmas will be different. We're missing one...we're trying some new things out...maybe they'll become traditions...maybe not. One thing is for sure...we'll be together.

Chris and I will be giving our children the gift of family. They'll feel it Christmas Eve as we worship together at Trinity with all of their grandparents. They'll feel it later that evening over dinner with Dee, Uncle Cameron, and Aunt Heather. They'll feel it Christmas morning when they wake up with Dee here to open presents and later when GranGran and PopPop visit for brunch. I hope these are the memories that they will cherish...not the stuff that they receive.

Now on to our happenings. Speaking of Christmas gifts, Chris gave me a good one Saturday morning. I got two plus hours of peace and quiet while he and the boys went Christmas shopping!

Sunday evening brought Joyful Night, Trinity's annual Christmas pageant. I made each boy a costume and was hopeful all would participate. One out of three isn't too bad...

Philip and Daniel eagerly suited up in their horse costumes.

William would not let me even put on his sheep costume! When the time came for the parents to be seated, Daniel broke down. No problem I told him...come sit with me and Daddy. Philip was ready to go.

Turns out William did want to participate...just on his own terms. No costume...no walking with the group. As soon as the animals were seated up front, he decided to join them.

He made the trip back and forth several times! Father Matthew commented that he stole the show. I was just sorry that GranGran, PopPop, Susan, and Rob were seated on the back row and missed all of his antics!

It was a good night...good to be with many family and friends. Now, I am looking forward to a week of preparations with my boys. Today's project is homemade dog bones for the pups in our family!!

A Week's Worth of Fun

This week has been a busy one...one I have tried to be extremely organized for in order to accomplish everything.



On Sunday, Philip's class preform during the Sunday service at his school. I got the boys to Sunday School at Trinity and then we quickly turned around to make it to Westminister for the performance.



Philip did great...displayed such self control. Stood there with his hands behind his back and singing the whole time. No fidgeting at all!



(It's kind of like Where's Waldo, I know. I didn't bring my camera because I thought we wouldn't be able to take pictures in the sanctuary. Turns out we could, so I had Chris take one with his cell phone!)

The boys and I have been busy baking in the kitchen.

We made 8 chocolate pound cakes for teachers and friends. We also made 4 dozen sugar cookies for both Philip and Daniel's school Christmas parties. I have to admit that one afternoon I told Daniel and Philip that I was going to make some pound cakes and asked if they wanted to help. They looked at me and said, "no, we're going to play Legos." Happy that they play so well together and that they love their Legos, but I was a little heartbroken! (William did wake up from his nap early and so he sat "up high" with me and baked!)

On Wednesday, we joined several families from our church at Bellingrath to see the Christmas lights. Philip and Daniel were a little whiny...too close to bedtime...but we had fun walking around and spending time with friends.

Thursday brought Philip's last day of school and his Christmas party. His teacher assured me that it was alright to bring his brothers, so we all went to join in the fun. They ate lunch (and when a seat next to Philip remained open, Ms. Tara told Daniel to join in!)...

decorated the cookies we made, made reindeer food for Christmas Eve...

and exchanged gifts. It was a lot of fun to see Philip in his element and to see his love for his brothers shine through...even in front of his friends!




On Friday, Daniel had his Christmas party. Much more low key than Philip's...but still a good time had by all.



I loved watching William walk in the room...head for some toys...and then come to me with a big smile on his face. He points to Daniel sitting at the table eating lunch and says, "Mama, look." Kind of like, who knew he'd be here!


I am thrilled that the boys are out of school. I have a lot more baking and gift making planned for next week, so here's hoping they'll take a break from Legos and join me!

Purple's for Preparation

We have a song in the atrium that reminds the children which color goes with what season. So recently around here, we have been singing "purple's for preparation..." as we prepare for Christmas.

Over the weekend, we did a little preparing. Friday night was spent at the North Pole Stroll. We visited Whoville, sat in Santa's lap,

had refreshments...

listened to stories by Ms. Val and wrote letters to Santa.

It was a fun night out as a family!

On Saturday, we got our tree. The boys loved decorating it! We lost a few ornaments along the way, but overall it was another good family time!

As for our Advent preparations, we have been lighting our Advent wreath and talking lots about the "reason for the season." I love this time of the year in the atrium...our Advent lessons are some of the best. We spend a lot of time discussing the prophecies.

It is really interesting to see the children mature since we teach a group of 3-6 year olds. I have given the prophecy of light ("The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light.") to my preschool three year olds and they are yet to make the connection between Jesus and the light. As catechist, we never make the connection for them.

However, Philip (being in his second year) totally gets that the light is Christ. The other morning, he and Chris were snuggling in bed. Philip pointed out that the light was coming through the window (thus meaning he could get up!). Chris asked him what that light was...thinking he would respond with "the sun." Philip quickly said, "Jesus." Wow...

It is cold down here. As I write, my toes are freezing and I'm wearing wool socks. I think I may have to buck up and build my own fire in the fireplace before Chris gets home. This old house just won't warm up!

Girls Just Don't Understand

Philip, Daniel, and I are in the kitchen cooking. Philip is dressed; Daniel is wearing his now usual at home attire...his underwear only...the only reason that is on is because we demand that underwear be worn at all times.

Philip opens the door, steps on the threshold, pulls down his pants, and begins to pee on the back stoop. I remind him that it is 40 something degrees outside and that perhaps he should use one of those things we have in the house called a "toilet." He turns, looks at me, and replies, "Girls just don't understand."

He's so right on so many levels. All of the people in my house right now are at times so very different from me. They actually like Star Wars, wrestling with each other, and running around without clothes on. Even William these days demands that his diaper be removed so he can "tee-tee." I am convinced it is a ploy to run naked through the house.

For those of you boy mom's out there, you have to pick up a copy of How Do You Tuck in a Superhero? It is a book of short articles written by a mom of five boys. It is down right hilarious and such a good reminder of the wildness and yet love that little boys provide.

The picture above is of my three superheros tucked in the other night to watch "How the Grinch Stole Christmas." If I don't finish up their Christmas outfits this week, you may see the above on a Christmas card real soon!!

PawPaw would have been proud...

of his son and all of his boys...

On Saturday, the whole clan, along with Uncle Cameron, headed up to Uriah for an overnight trip to the hunting camp. I do not think that I have been to the camp in at least 4 or 5 years, and it was William's first trip! We almost cancelled due to the family being under the weather, but we woke up feeling a little bit better and decided it was a rare chance for us all to be up there together.

The boys had a blast! They love being outdoors and the camp provides a safe place for them to run around.

When we got there, we had a little time for football and baseball.

Then Chris, Cameron, and Daniel headed off to the rifle range to sight in their rifles. Daniel was up for the adventure...Philip was not. He does not like the sound of the gun going off, even though Chris was prepared with earphones to protect their ears. So Philip, William, and I stayed at the trailer.

When hunting time rolled around, the boys got dressed and ready to go.

Again, Philip was quite concerned that Chris was bringing his gun! A deal was made that only a really big deer would be considered. They ended up seeing six does during their time in the stand. Chris says that Daniel was very interested and continued to watch them long after Philip lost interest. Time will tell, but it appears Daniel may be Chris' hunting buddy!

Mom and William had hot chocolate waiting when everyone returned.

The boys warmed up and we grilled hamburgers on the porch while socializing with others.

In the morning, Chris and Cameron hunted while the boys and I stayed at the trailer. We went on our own adventure through the woods surrounding the camp. We tromped through a cotton field...

and even found our own trail leading to a green field! The boys loved this adventure! Then it was back to the trailer to wait for Daddy and Cameron to come fix us a big breakfast.

We had a great time together even if it was a short trip. I hope the boys grow up to love the outdoors as much as their father does.

PS - You may notice some interesting clothes in the above post. On Friday, my brother, Daniel, and his sons, Austin and Henry, joined us for the Iron Bowl. Karen sent with them several costumes that they had outgrown. Boba Fett and Spiderman are two of our new favorites...and of course they traveled with us to the hunting camp!