Happy Thanksgiving!

Hope everyone had a great day! We enjoyed our day with Big Daddy's family. We had lunch at his Aunt and Uncle's beautiful lake home. The view was breathtaking from their deck which we spent a lot of time on due to the 60 degree day we had! PERFECTION! And the food....oh the food! It was DEEE-licious! I just took a break from the ads to post a little blog. I can't wait for my shopping adventure tomorrow with Ashley. Nothing kicks off the holiday season like a crowd full of crazy shoppers at Target! I am very excited about shopping with her tomorrow! So, I must get to bed for some much needed rest....Starbucks can only do so much!

Mom, I miss you but am SO happy that you got to spend this holiday with your momma! Grammy, I love you and hope you are enjoying time with my momma and dad!

Lock me up Buttercup.

Cohen locked himself in the truck with the only set of keys. After I lost patience and began to panic, Big Daddy stepped in and saved the day. (While I took pictures....is that bad?) Here's what happened.

"Hi Dada! Lock?"

Big Daddy: "Push the button."

Cohen: "Dis button?"

Big Daddy: "NO. Well...yes....same button, just push it this way."

Cohen: "Dis button?"

Big Daddy: "Yes, that button....just....oh sheesh. Never mind. Cohen, grab the keys out of the ignition."

Big Daddy: "Now push the buttons....WAIT! Not THAT button!"

Whew! Luckily he didn't press the panic button. Talk about adding some stress to the situation!

"YEAH! HE DID IT!"

Thank goodness because I know from experience that our County Sheriffs department won't open your car for you EVEN IF you inadvertently locked a NEWBORN and a toddler in your car on a 80 degree afternoon. (The worst part...they weren't even my kids!) The dispatcher told me that they would just come out and break a window. Gee thanks....it wasn't my car either! Come to think of it....it really wasn't even my fault. Just ask Handy Nanny.

Oh, and yes, we will be getting a spare key made.

I'm Thankful for...

1. My church and everything that comes with it. I have been blessed with a wonderful group of ladies in my Bible study. As I have said before, it is a study that has changed my life. We have also been blessed with a Lifegroup full of great people. I love that we all come from different places and have such different life stories, but we all have one thing in common. Our love for the Lord. It's been a great experience and I can't wait to see what God has in store for all of us.

2. My husband. There isn't a post in the world that is long enough to list all the reasons I love this man. His love for me and our children shines for all to see, and I couldn't be more proud. We have been talking about moving recently and have our eye on a house that would be a great investment. It's in a community that he has dreamed of moving to for years. We were talking last night about it and he told me that he actually really likes our home and doesn't know if he really wants to leave. He stole my heart all over again. What a huge compliment. My goal is to make this a place he loves to come home to.....mission accomplished. I'm forever thankful for him.

3. My children. Again, no post long enough. I still stand amazed that God has entrusted me with these two perfect little creatures. Amazed.

4. My family. By family I mean everyone. Not only the family that I was born into, but also my family by marriage and the friends that we have adopted as family. (You know who you are!) I couldn't ask for a better support system.

5. My home. I never take for granted the fact that I have a roof over my head. Our home is my favorite place to be. I love the way I feel when I'm here.

6. Saltwater taffy.

7. My health. I am surrounded by people who are sick and hurting. It makes my heart ache. I cannot say what is in my future, but I KNOW that each day I am able to get out of bed and take care of my family is a blessing. When I start to get grumpy about everyday chores that continue to pile up, I stop and count my blessings that TODAY I GET to do these mundane chores.

8. Digital cameras. What on earth did we do before digital photography?

9. Internet shopping. Honestly, I could never leave my house and have everything (including groceries) delivered to my doorstep. But then, what would I blog about?

10. Last but not least, I am thankful for another Thanksgiving that I get to spend with the ones I love....well not all of them, but you get the point.

What are you thankful for?

Better late...

than never. Here is a slideshow of pictures I meant to post a LONG time ago. Some are from Halloween and a visit with Papa Bill and Grandma Millie. The others with the horses and hay maze are from a fun night at Dan and Shelly's house. The song I picked is dedicated to my Coco and his super awesome Halloween costume.

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Thanks for the Memories.

I finished this apron on Sunday and by the next day it was on its way to my favorite aunt in the world. Someone who ALWAYS makes holidays so special. For years we spent Thanksgiving with them until, as I have mentioned before, we started multiplying at an astonishing rate. I never truly realized how much goes into making a holiday meal until I had Easter at my home. The only difference, I had people bring dishes! She and my mom always did it all! She always had pies waiting when we got there the day before. She was always the first one up checking the turkey and getting ready before any of us even thought of getting up. Everything always ran so smoothly. My cousin and I had the cherished job of stuffing the celery (only after aforementioned "favorite Aunt" had peeled off all the strings!) and trying desperately to get it finished before the manly men came in from hunting to steal half of it off our tray! With the sounds of the Macy's parade in the background and the smell of turkey, stuffing, sweet potatoes and pumpkin pie in the air....it was flawless. I remember one year when Mom and Favorite Aunt decided that they would take a year off. We had lunch at Furr's which is a buffet style restaurant.....terrible. While we appreciated that it was much easier on our mothers, we were very sad at the thought of leaving without leftovers. Not that we wanted to relive that experience. We never did that again!

So here's to you my favorite Aunt! Please know that I'm thinking of you and I appreciate all you did to make Thanksgiving so special all those years. May your Thanksgiving be full of laughter, love and plenty of good parking spaces the day after!

I did it!

I did something last night that I have never done. This may sound really odd to some of you. It may be something that is so natural to you that you can't imagine blogging about it. Some of you will think it's strange because you DON'T do it and may wonder why I did. What did I do?

I raised my hands in church.

No, I didn't have a question. Besides, in a church the size of ours, that's not how you get your questions answered! I think there is a small chain of command you must go through! I did it because I am so thankful for the love that the Lord has shown me and I want to praise him in everything I do.

I was not raised in church. Strange though, I have always felt very close to God. I didn't belong to a youth group and go on the trips with them. (Which is probably the reason why I was one of the last one of my friends to kiss a boy!) When I did go to church, it was a Baptist church. Please know that I did not take those visits lightly. Pastor Scott (the pastor who married us) is one of the greatest men I know. I loved going to his church. That is where I was saved and where my daughter was dedicated. (on the same day!) But it is VERY different from an AG church. So I am with Pastor John when he talked about the first time he attended an AG church. I thought, "Are these people for real? Get me outta here!"

Last night was a first for JRA and they had a worship night that was amazing. Claire did not share in my enthusiasm as she slept through the entire thing! Cohen clapped and danced the whole time. I looked over to see him raising his hands like everyone else. It stirred something in my heart. The brief message from Pastor John was the "how, why and where of praise." He went through some Psalms about praising God. The dude KNOWS his Bible and it is always a treat to hear him preach. When he finished, there was more music and I was "feelin' it!" I watched my son just clapping away without a care in the world. I kept going back to

Psalms 134:2 "Lift up your hands in the sanctuary and bless the Lord."

Who can argue with that?

So I just did it. And you know what? I liked it.