Tis the Season!

This Christmas will be special for sure...the kids are super hyped up! Jonathan insisted we put up more lights on our house than last year and was daddy's little helper for while when daddy scaled the shakey ladder. As soon as they went up, he said, "Mom, when it gets dark, Santa will be here!" Not quite yet little buddy!

The boys talk about Santa (or Ho Ho as Nick calls everything Christmas) and have their lists all made out. Kate is a little clueless, but oooooo's and ahhhhhh's over the Christmas lights around the house and around town.

When putting the tree up, the kids fought over the ornaments. Our tree isn't as fancy as it has been in the past...the ornaments are clumped in places and our color theme of gold and deep red has quickly become more colorful as the kids have added their own artistic flare. We wouldn't prefer it any other way now. :-)

(Thanksgiving pics to come soon!)

Happy Thanksgiving!

Thanksgiving is a time set aside to give thanks for all the good in our lives. It is during hard times that we are perhaps most in need of thanksgiving. It is easy to be thankful when everything is going well, yet ironically those are the times when we are most likely to forget to thank God. This month has been a great example of that. God has blessed our family in numerous ways and although we do thank Him, it's been easy to sometimes take credit ourselves when things are going well rather than credit God for all the blessings he has given.

Over the last several years of our marraige, God has taught Jason and I to consider His hand in everything. The recent loss of my job is no exception. We know that God has a plan for us, and that He will provide as he always does!

Some days it may seem that there is little to thank God for, but amazingly there is always something. There is always some glimmer of light in the darkness: a kind word that someone may have uttered, a moment of beauty in nature, a tender moment with one of our children, some form of an unexpected blessing. God has ways of letting us know that He is there, even when we are traveling on a difficult path.

And so, yes, especially in these hard times that many are facing, we need to take the time to thank God for the many blessings in our lives. We thank God for family and friends, and the food we do have to eat. We thank God for the gift of life and each new day. We thank God for our family and the blessings our own children bring us. We thank God for our church family, our neighbors, our friends. Most importantly, We thank God for the gift of His son and the hope of eternal life.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Wordless Wednesday

And while Jonathan is learning to read....

.....Nick and Kate are learning to DANCE!
We have to have a little fun before nap time...right? Ah...they make me laugh...little do they know what a quirky mamma they have.

I'm destined to be one of those moms...

He hears me say it all the time:

• "Jonathan, since when did you get so big!?!"
• "Jonathan....stop growing up on me!" (This works great when I tell him to stop eating so much...that I don't want him to continue to grow so fast. He cleans his plate to this reverse psychology trick)
• "Jonathan....you keep growing like this, you're going to be taller than both mommy and daddy very soon."
• "Jonathan...don't get so big I can't cuddle you anymore!"

Truth is...I really don't want him growing so quickly.

He grins every time I say these things and always tells me,

"...but mommy? I want to grow and be be big like you and daddy"

To which I respond, "Oh, okay. You can grow!" ...followed with a big smile and crushing hug.

I will be the mom who gets weepy at every major milestone in his life (and even the minor one's). This little guy surprises me every day. His new Montessori Preschool has been a huge blessing. His teacher, Ms. Josie, clearly works with him one-on-one quite often. She mentioned last week about getting him started with reading...and tonight, he came home with his first little scholastic reader....and actually read the whole thing to me....sounding out each word as he went. I was immediately misty and he noticed. He appeared concerned until I told him they were happy tears and I was really proud of him.

He responded with a big toothy grin. And said he deserved a cookie.

A Simple Pile of Leaves

We took a day trip to Clinton to visit Meme and Papa. Cousins Laci, Andy and Jacob were there too. Papa made a great big pile of leaves for the kids to frolic in.

Do you see the delight in their faces? Amazing what a simple pile of leaves can provide! It's been a disappointing week here, but wow...these children light up my life in the most disappointing of times. What a blessing they are!

I am often reminded of what simple joys God has placed in my life.

Here is a list of those things I find to be simple joys in life!

• Taking a warm bath with lavender-smelling bubble bath (Jason makes sure I have plenty)
• Having Jason scratch and/or massage my back
• Watching my three beautiful children playing together...they are finally at that age where they have a great time together
• A basket full of clean laundry
• A run early in the morning...with only the remaining moonlight lighting my way
• Quiet time with a good book
• The moment right before falling asleep
• Putting on a pair of soft pajamas
• Laughing so hard with a friend that you can hardly catch your breath
• When my babies fight over me for affection.
• Eating a bowl of chocolate ice cream, and feeling absolutely no guilt
• Taking off sweaty clothes after a long run and taking a cold shower
• Finding money I had completely forgotten about in my jeans or winter coat
• Freshly laundered sheets
• Listening to rain battering the windows
• Swinging in a swing
• Dancing in the kitchen with my kids
• Having a child fall asleep in my arms
• Getting in bed when it’s cold and creating a warm nest with several blankets
• Waking up with my two little boys cuddled next to me after they found their way to my bed sometime in the night

Wordless Wednesday

Halloween 2009

Little Nick was sooooo excited to go "Frick a Freating"

Blessed to have their Grandma (Gaga) and Grandpa with them!

Uncle Tommy and baby Kate

We were also so blessed to have Great Grandpa Mac with all his great grandchildren on Halloween!