Thanksgiving

We have had a busy Thanksgiving holiday. Yesterday morning we drove to Graham to spend Thanksgiving with Brians' grandparents. Hudson slept most of the way there, but was ready to get out by the time we arrived. We spent some time with cousin Sarah (who Reed LOVES) and then it was off to the other set of grandparents. We ate lunch and Reed played outside in the obscene amount of leaves in the yard- This was around Hudson's normal nap time, but he was being such a trooper with his daddy.

DadDad was feeding him some cornbread, but evidently not quick enough, so Hudson decided to feed himself. It went well...Grandmommie was certainly going to have to break out her vacuum cleaner!By the end of the day, we were all very tired. Reed watched WALL-E as long as he could in the car on the way home, but he quickly passed out along with his brother. It was a sweet sight (this time the matching shirts weren't intentional).

Today we went and spent the day at my parents and had brunch for Thanksgiving. Brandon was in town, so the boys got to spend some time with him. This evening was Gammy's birthday so we all went to dinner together. The boys and I picked up Brian at the shop and Reed found a sticky hand in Brian's office. On the way to the restaurant, Reed had his sticky hand and he bent the middle finger down and said "Mom, this hand is saying 'rock and roll'!" When I turned around to look, this is the picture I saw.
He's a funny kid.

Let the holiday baking begin!

So this is what I've been doing this morning...

If you've never had the scrumptious little things, let me clue you in...they are GOOD. What you'll need - chocolate almond bark, peanut butter and Ritz crackers. Make little sandwiches with the crackers and peanut butter, then dip them in the melted chocolate and let harden on wax paper. (You can use the mini Ritz peanut butter sandwich crackers that are already assembled, but I like the ratio of chocolate to peanut butter to cracker on the big ones.) I made these and a pie to take to Brians' grandparents tomorrow. Holiday baking...I love it!

So sweet...

It's coming...FAST!

I can't believe it's already the week of Thanksgiving. Right about the time I get used to writing '08 on my checks, it's time to start '09 (yes, I do still write checks - leave me alone...I get enough flack about it as is)! I know that in previous posts, I have said how much I love fall. I think the truth of the matter is that I love fall because I know Christmas is not too far behind. Christmas season brings so many things I love...

• Sweaters and scarves
• Peppermint Mocha from Starbucks
• Fires in the fireplace
• Twinkly Christmas tree lights
• Christmas music on the radio
• Baking for friends and family
• Fun wrapping paper
• Making cookies for Santa
• Shopping for the boys
• Driving around looking at Christmas lights
• Decorating the tree

Enjoy your Christmas season!

Luke 2:1-20

Mom & Reed Day

Yesterday Reed and I went to Chuck E. Cheese for some Mom & Reed time - it was an absolute blast!  I told him that before we could do any games, he had to eat 1/2 his pizza. With NO grumbling or complaining, he did just that and I was so proud of him (the way he acted at Target just minutes before was not so nice, but I choose to brag on my child in this post!). It took a while to eat - the chewing went very slowly because he just stared at all the games knowing what was to come. After we finished, we went crazy! I won't tell you how much I spent on tokens - it's a little embarrassing - but we played and played. There were some games that were really fun and I realized that I should NOT go to Vegas as I caught myself saying "Oh, just one more token and I'll win....just one more..." After we cashed in tickets - a little over 700 - he came home with a football, a basketball, 2 plastic spiders, 2 plastic dinosaurs and some candy. He told me more than once that he wished he could live at Chuck E. Cheese. He's already put in a request to have his birthday party there and I have to admit, that would be pretty fun. If only they had one in Granbury!!! There was a simulator that he rode that was just a little too big for him. He could barely reach the pedals, but it was pretty funny to watch. I can't get the video to load, so here's a pic...he really had a great day!

My boys

When I was pregnant with Hudson and we found out that we were having another boy, Brian was ecstatic. He would have been tickled with a little girl, but he was super pumped it was a boy. I can imagine all of the mental pictures going through his head - him on the tractor with the two boys, them riding four wheelers, and so on. So, this picture is one of my favorites because of the story behind it. We were watching TV one night after dinner and all three of them were sitting together. Brian looked over at me and said "See, this is how I thought it would be." I knew exactly what he meant when he said it and it brought tears to my eyes. There's so many reasons that this picture makes me thankful...I have a hard working husband who comes home to me and our boys each night, loves to play and be with them and is a great daddy. Two boys that are healthy, funny, smart and full of energy (which can be a bit of a pain at times). I love the family that God has given me.

So thankful...

Today I am thankful for...

1. Reed staying in his bed ALL NIGHT last night! Yesterday my mom and I went to Fort Worth and we could have possibly worn him out, but he didn't get out of bed until 6:30! Yay! (Backstory - Reed has been getting up in the middle of the night and sleeping on the couch. I know - not really a big deal in the whole scheme of things, but not a habit that I want him to keep up. I put a calendar on the fridge and told him that each day he slept in his own bed, he would get a sticker on the next day. Now we have one bright, shiny yellow smiley face...Woo-hoo!)

2. My car wouldn't start. Well, that's not what I'm thankful for, but where I was when it happened. I went to Brian's parents to pick up the boys and we all got in the car to leave and.....NOTHING. The engine wouldn't even turn over. (Brian came and fixed the problem. The battery cables were corroded or something - I don't know 'cause I don't speak "Car"). Anyway, we had just taken my car to Tyler a few weeks back and it could've happened there or any other number of places that I wouldn't have wanted to be stuck! I'm very thankful it happened at Gammy & DadDad's house!

3. Target's dollar section. I LOVE IT!

4. Chocolate Cupcakes - we made some tonight and they rock!

5. Thursday Stay at Home Mom Bible Study - I poured my heart out this morning and got some great advice...thanks girls!

Uh Oh...

I never thought I'd see the day...Hudson has gotten sucked in to the "saggy pants" trend. Look out - my son is lady killer!

At the Car Wash

Brian surprised me with my car when Hudson was a couple of weeks old. I had been wanting an Expedition for quite some time and one day, he just drove up in the driveway with it (another reason my husband is awesome) and I absolutely love it. Since it's black, I have to wash it a lot. There's a neat car wash in town that you drive up to, put your car in neutral and it pulls you through without you ever having to get out (that is certainly a plus when you have kids to drag in and out)! Anyway, for Mother's Day this last year, Mike & Susan got me an annual pass! It means that I can take my car to the car wash and get it washed EVERY DAY if I want to. For FREE! Awesome. I usually try to go through at least 3 to 4 times a week. Why am I telling all you all of this you ask? Well...Hudson hates the car wash - he cries and screams the whole time. I keep thinking that if I take him through it often enough, he'll get used to it, but it hasn't happened yet. Reed just sits back there like a trooper and takes it, the poor kid. I finally thought to take a picture when we went through yesterday...

Good times, people...good times.

A little morning update on my boys

This morning while making pancakes, Hudson got stuck under the dining room chair. Again. On his defense, we have new dining room chairs, so maybe he felt the need to test them out. By the time I got the camera and took the picture, he was none too pleased which made it even more hilarious.I got him laughing and you could easily see his newest development. His left front tooth is coming in and I think the other one is not far behind.

Now a little about Reed. In the last year or so, he has has a problem with always wanting to win - regardless if we were running a "race" outside or if he was playing a video game. If he didn't win, he would pout and cry telling whomever was playing against him that they shouldn't win, he should. Brian and I have been trying to stress to him the importance of having fun and that winning isn't everything. He really had gotten better about it and so I hadn't thought much about his "sore loser issues" over the last couple of months. Last week he spent the day with my parents and came home with this sign:

Yep...that's about right.

I am Thankful!!

I love this time of year. Fall to Thanksgiving to winter...it's just feels so cozy (except for the extreme commercialization of Christmas, but that is another post!) I decided I needed to start a tradition to mark the start of the holidays. So, I totally stole this idea from Amy, but it's a really good idea, so I think it's okay. :) Anyway, she's doing what she calls Thankful Thursdays. We have a stay at home mom bible study on Thursday mornings and our assignment lately has been to write down 5 things we are thankful for everyday. I have done a really bad job of it so far...well, not just bad, pitiful. To do it everyday...well, frankly, I just plain forget. So from now on, not just until Thanksgiving but forever, I will be doing my Thankful Thursdays. I will start today (yes, it is Saturday, but we'll just have to pretend, won't we?)

What I am thankful for:

• My healthy kids. Nobody's puking, nobody has a fever and nobody is hospitalized.
• Disposable diapers. Especially thankful this morning - if I would've had to dump that nasty mess out into the potty...well, somebody in the house (namely me) would've have been puking.
• My husband. Not only does he work hard - day in, day out, rain or shine, sick or not - but he is the best father to our kids and an awesome husband. He would do anything for us and I love him for that.
• Grandparents. Oh man. I can't even imagine what my life would be like without them. Mimi & Gammy provide breaks for me that I am SOOOO thankful for.
• Wal-Mart and the ability to buy fresh food. I can buy produce, dairy items, meat...and it's all clean and sanitary. If I need toilet paper...they have it. If I need medicine for my children...it's there. Not only do they have all the things I need, but there are more than one choice. Not only are we a blessed nation, we are a spoiled nation. (If you're wondering where this is coming from, Penny was telling us of when she lived in Russia as a missionary and the many disgusting things they had to deal with on a daily basis. I am so thankful I live in the United States of America!)
• A car that will start and that I can drive where ever and when ever I want. A place to put my groceries, a warm haven when it's cold outside and vice versa, a safe place for my children to ride and the ability to get to church, the gym or where ever I need to go.
• My dishwasher. I hate washing dishes. Nuff said.

Spend a little time today looking at the little things and being thankful for the many, many blessing we have in life!

May the Force Be With You

Tonight was our class costume party. The theme was "The 80's" and Brian and I went as Princess Leia and Han Solo. Here we are in all our galactic glory-

I went on a search for costumes a couple of weekends ago and the junky costumes that you buy for $50 each - I just couldn't bring myself to do it. So with the help of my mom, we went to Jo-Ann's and I bought everything I needed to make BOTH of them for $50! My mom did most of the work and I think they turned out GREAT! She's not so pleased, but I couldn't get her to understand that they were costumes that we were planning on wearing ONE TIME - it wasn't a fashion show! Anyhow, we had a fun night and had a great time seeing what everyone else had chosen as their costumes. There was a lot of great 80's outfits such as the following...

The Dawsons

The Garners

The McCalls

The Tindalls

The Hamricks

The Walters

The Willmeths

Totally Awesome!!