Merry Christmas to Me!

So, we aren't the typical Black Friday shoppers, but we got a great deal today. My husband was nice enough to get up at 4:00 a.m. to wait in line at Sears for our brand new washer and dryer. That is right. I am pretty excited that I will be washing loads and loads of dirty clothes in my brand new washing machine.

I Love These Guys...

...even though they don't like to get their picture taken.

Best Buds

2006

2007 Virginia Beach in March.
2007 Colorado

2007 Matt's hair is cut off.
2008

Memories Of Warmer Weather

Here Is The New Hair

Here is the new dark brown hair. It is fresh, just had it done today. Thank you lovely Lindsey, for making me look like a new woman.

Paper Hats, A Princess And A Pirate

Here is Matt's paper hat that he made at Pre-K. He was so proud of his hat and he wanted me to wear it right out of the school building after I picked him up. It kept sliding off of my big hair, so I asked him if he would like to wear it as we picked up Seth. In the van jumped Seth and immediately the words came out, "You're a princess." Originally the hat came equipped with long streamers from the point at the top. Matt quickly said, "No I'm not, I'm a pirate." Seth tried to rationalize his theory by adding that the streamers were very girlish. Needless to say, the streamers have completely disappeared. It is now a very cool pirate hat.

Speaking of pirates, we walked in the entrance of Menard's with a man who was wearing an eye patch. Matt saw the man and immediately blurted out, "Hey, you're a pirate!" The guy just smiled.

An Award Worth Documenting

Seth received the "Principal Recognition Award" in recognition of excellent reading skills. At the assembly today he got to choose how he wanted to be recognized by his peers, he chose a round of applause. We are so proud of you Seth.

This reward came at the perfect time. Because on Monday, Seth missed a question on his reading quiz and asked to bring the same book home again. He took the same quiz again on Tuesday and didn't miss any questions. We are really emphasizing that it is alright to miss some of the questions. I should have never asked him what questions he had missed on a previous quiz. I have learned my lesson, love you Seth.

I Guess I Asked For It

The week before Mother's Day, Samuel called me Ma for the first time. Well, I hadn't heard it since, but I have been requesting it for months. I finally got my wish. Last night at 3:00 a.m., Samuel rolled off of his bed. It startled him enough that he woke up crying. I went into his room to put him back in bed and to comfort him a little. He was wide awake within minutes. I tried to sneak out of his room, but he would begin to cry. So, I would open the door again to see him climbing off the side of his bed to walk toward the door. I would say, "No Sam, nite-nite." He would quickly climb back into his bed and put his head on his squeaky bear rug. We did this about ten times. Finally, I grabbed my pillow and blanket and laid down in bed with him. I was hoping that he would go to sleep, but then he began to bounce on his knees with his hands on me saying, "Mom, mom, ma, ma, ma." Then my heart just melted and I began to talk to him and cuddle with him, remembering that he won't always be my little baby. At 4:30 a.m. I wanted to go back to my own bed, since I couldn't sleep in his room. As I began to make the escape, he shifted and cried wanting me to stay with him. I didn't stay in his room any longer. I will always remember that special night that has left me very tired today.

I Never Would Have Guessed...

I never would have guessed that after a Kleenex with lotion went through the washer and dryer it would still be in one piece and reusable. Just ask Justin!

...that I could hurt my back cutting Justin's hair last night. It is still bothering me today after taking IBP.

...that Matt would like to wear the preppy clothes that Seth won't, unless I make him. Matt has been wearing sweaters and polos to school all week.

Resembling Who?

I still want you all to decide my hair color for me, but I just had to post this picture. Today I took Samuel for a little walk around the yard, because he just loves it. I grabbed my camera in attempt to snap a few pictures of him close to our new Colorado Blue Spruce trees. I wanted to get a height comparison for each year of growth. I guess by now you all know that Samuel doesn't appreciate having his picture taken. I chased him around to look for any angle or opportunity to snap one, but as soon as he spots the camera he turns away. He was headed down to the pond, so I ran under some of the pine trees to get in front of him. Here is a picture of him trying to walk under a few branches to get around me. This picture and the one on the sidebar are the only two that I could get. Little Stinker!

Tonight at the dinner table our conversation turned to who Seth and Matt look like. The results are in. Seth has Justin's hair texture (possibly color), and his nose. Seth has my eye color and hair color. Matt has Justin's hair color and eye color. And Matt has my nose. In other words, they are both a good mix of both of us, but they are completely opposite. Interesting! We are still trying to figure out Samuel. We know that he has my eye color, hair color and we aren't sure about the nose.

Brown Or Blonde?

It is time for me to make a decision. I have to get my hair done soon, so that we can get our family pictures taken. I have been going back and forth between blonde and brown. Someone please help me make a decision. Do you like it brown or do you like it blonde? And don't say both, just give me your favorite.

Rice and Chicken Wraps

This is one of our family favorites. It makes a good lite meal.

8 boneless, chicken tenderloins (or 3 to 4 breasts)
2 Cups of water
1 box Uncle Ben's Fast Cooking Recipe Long Grain & Wild Rice
1/2 Cup of Ranch salad dressing
Shredded Lettuce
Shredded Cheese
Flour Tortillas

1. Cut up chicken and cook it until it is slightly brown on the sides. Add water, rice and contents of seasoning packet. Bring to a boil. Cover; reduce heat and simmer 10 minutes or until liquid is absorbed. Stir in salad dressing.

2. Eat it like a taco. Justin and I like to put Frank's Hot Sauce on ours. The boys always want a little extra salad dressing on theirs.

Simple & Yummy Suggestions

I am looking for some easy meals that kids will eat. Any suggestions or recipes? I was so frustrated after dinner tonight-- I told Justin that I was going to start buying Hamburger Helper. I don't like putting a lot of time into cooking, since eating ends up being an hour long event.

Weekend Recap

The weekend was off to a great start with Seth throwing up at 1:30 am early Friday morning. I didn't get a whole lot of sleep that night since Justin's alarm went off at 5:00 am. He left early to take Andy to Kansas City to get his car. When Seth woke up his stomach still hurt, I decided that he should stay home from school. By 10:00 he was so bored and wanted to go to school.

We went to Mattoon to visit my family Friday night and stayed most of Saturday. Samuel got his first Dairy Queen ice cream cone and ate the entire thing, cone and all. After his first little taste of the ice cream he had the biggest grin on his face.

By the time we got home last night I wasn't feeling real great, but we watched Legally Blonde on television and drifted off to sleep by 9:00. I woke up without a voice. It is pretty hard to get your children to listen to you when you have to whisper to talk. I have been taking it easy today, sorry that we cancelled our weekly dinner tonight. For anyone who has been wondering how Justin is doing, he has pneumonia. He started antibiotics tonight, so he should recover soon.

Good night. I took a Tylenol PM, so I should be in for a restful night of sleep.

Sad Samuel

Samuel doesn't really like to have his picture taken. He loves to play outside and was irritated that I kept interrupting him with the camera. I never did get a good picture.

The Position

"Here we go." The last words that I heard Justin say before we fell asleep last night. It is true that I have reservations about Obama, but I respect his position. The role of the President of the United States is a huge one. The position deserves much respect. It saddens me to see so many people ridicule our past Presidents. No one is perfect and I am sure that Obama will make mistakes too. Ultimately, he is our next president and our leader, so we must offer him the respect that he deserves. Not necessarily respect for all of the choices that he makes or the things that he may do, but for the position that he holds.

P.S. I will be watching you closely Mr. President.

Who is Rocka Bama?

Tonight at dinner we told the boys that we were going over to the Cress' house to watch the results of the election. We haven't talked to the boys about the election at all. We thought that they are just too young to understand or care about it anyway. Justin went on to explain that we voted today for the president of our country. Seth quickly said, "Rocka Bama?" Justin and I were surprised that he had heard the name, recognized it and put it together with the presidential race. "What do you know about him?" I asked. He said, "I voted for him today at school. He is going to be the next President." We told him how the process works and he asked us who we voted for. Suddenly, it became a competition between "Mom and Dad's team & Seth and Matt's team.

Who Is The Owner?

A couple of things were left at our house on Sunday night. We are looking for the owners. If you recognize either item and think that you know who the owner might be, then please let him or her know that we have it. Or you can leave me a comment with the owners first name so that I can return it.

Old Navy hoodie, size XL

Diaper bag

We had another fun evening with all of you, hope to see you all again this coming Sunday.

Justin's Political Sermon

Justin gave a great sermon yesterday on the Kingdom of God in relation to politics. It was a lot shorter than most and worth the effort to listen to it during this political season. Click here for a link to the downloaded sermon from LSC website. Don't forget to vote tomorrow.

The End Of An Era--The 70's

In the spring Justin and I began changing the look of our 70's style house. We love the location and the neighborhood. Instead of moving, we are slowly changing our house to suit our style. Here is a picture of our house in the spring.

We spent all summer working on this project. We did all of the work without having to hire someone. We are thankful that my dad and brother came to help with the framing and the roof. And we are thankful to Justin's mom and dad, who helped us work on the stone porch and corners of the house a few days toward the end of the project when we were really, really tired.


We are currently done for the season, but we have a lot of little things to tie up. In the spring we will begin the beautification project; the sidewalk, landscaping, wood rail, shutters, etc. Meanwhile, we are just enjoying what is finished.