New Fuzzy Robe and Other Home Happenings!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas! We enjoyed time with family and lots of time with each other. We have stayed up really late playing a gazillion games!! The girls received several new ones for Christmas. Blokus is an awesome, strategy game that we all really enjoy! Apples to Apples Jr. has been a really fun one as well. For the younger group, we have enjoyed Caribou (Kalli lllooovvesss this one :). Lots of snuggles, hot chocolate, movies and games have characterized our holiday!!

I got a new fuzzy robe that I can't seem to find the strength to get out of!! I am looking forward to another hermit weekend!

Happy almost New Years!!

Snuggle Time!

Just wanted to wish everyone a Merry Christmas!!

We have gone into hermit mode :) This is the time of year we snuggle in tight with our little family!!

God bless each one of you and remember to use your EASY button over the next week :)

What A Day!!

Well, no scorched faces today :) We were blessed to be able to go to a concert/sing-a-long for Brianna's woodwinds class. She has come so far in just a few months! It was really fun to listen to the Christmas carols that they played.



I am still amazed at people that play instruments! It is like a sport. Bri's teacher was warning her that she needed to make sure and practice over the Christmas break because she did not want to lose the muscle work that she has done!!




I love Christmas cards!! We all race to the mailbox to see if there are any in there. Today we had 4!!! It was soooo fun to open them and look! At the end of the season, we wrap the cards in ribbon and put them out the following year. The girls and I made ours this year and we had a great time doing them!





Tori and Emi played at the park for a bit while we waited for Bri's thing to start. Kalli had fallen asleep in the car so they had to play right by me, but they had fun.




I had the most wonderful omelet today!! You are going to think I am crazy when I tell you how I made it, I thought the same thing. A friend gave me the recipe and frankly I was doubtful. With four kids asking what was for lunch and supplies running low, I agreed when Brianna asked if we could try out the recipe. We gathered supplies..

Two large eggs
ziploc baggies
mixins (we used cheese, bacon and broccoli)

Then..into a quart-sized Ziploc freezer bag, crack open two large eggs. Shake the bag to break up & scramble the eggs.
Add whatever ingredients you'd like to the Ziploc bag:
cheese
onion
chives
bell pepper
olives
ham
bacon
chicken
You get the idea.
Add your extra ingredients to the eggs and shake to mix.
Try to get as much air out of the bag as possible, and zip it up. You don't want air in the bag to expand while cooking because it may cause the bag to burst.
To cook, place the bags into boiling water for 12-15 minutes. Depending on the size of your pot, you can cook several (6-8) omelets at a time.

I know it sounds crazy, but these were honestly the best omelets I have ever had. All four girls devoured theirs as well.





So if you like omelets at all, you MUST try this!!

I also did a little shopping today. The girls stayed home and I went out for a couple of hours and picked up a few things. Then I swung by Little Ceasers and picked up a pizza for dinner. William had to work late, so we had a girls night!

After pizza we baked some chocolate chip and pecan cookie bars and watched the best Christmas movie ever in the history of Christmas movies...It's a Wonderful Life!! Awesome, awesome show!! After we finished that the girls and I rode around for a little bit and looked at Christmas lights. All in all, we had a terrific day!!

Hope you did as well :)

Anniversary and Fried Chicken...Human

Okay, I had planned on writing a sweet romantic post about my wonderful husband tonight to celebrate our 14th anniversary! Well, it is still our anniversary and he is still sweet and all, but OH MY GOODNESS, I must tell you what happened today!!

First I must share a dirty little secret...I get those nasty little hairs that grow on my face. I hate it. Big pain in the neck :) I decided a few weeks ago, after doing what I thought was good research, that I was going to have laser hair removal. I went to the consultation, liked the clinic, paid, and showed up today ready to be beautified!! Well, a couple of hours before the appointment, I thought, "hey, this might hurt a bit. What if they burn and disfigure my face."

Let me tell you, that is not a good way to start an appointment! I called and asked if maybe they could zap my hand before my face so I could see what it would feel like, no problem! Well, when I got there they told me that it would not be a good idea because the hand and face are so different and the face would hurt worse than the hand.

Okay, now I am about to throw up I am so nervous and thinking I must be crazy. I go in and lay down on the chairy deal. Then they decide to tell me that I have to wear these metal goggles. No problem...except for the fact that I can see nothing with them on!! I nearly had a panic attack. I suggested maybe I should reschedule. But no...then we began.

The first zap I thought it felt cold. The second zap I thought it was a weird cold because I thought I smelled something burning. Third zap I figured out it was me burning!! Total freak out now!! The smell was horrible as I slowly realized my hair was burning away.

I asked the girl to hold up a minute as I was really thinking twice about this. I suggested getting the numbing cream and coming back at a later date. We decided to go on.

The last zap I thought maybe my face was on fire! I did feel her pat it so I am not entirely convinced that it was not! I let her know that I was done for the day. I wanted to try the cream in a week or two.

I came home and cried all afternoon. This is not a cheap thing to have done and I did not want to lose the money, but I was/am really scared to have it done. I want to do it, I think I will be very happy with it, but I am terrified!!

After talking to William and the clinic again, I have decided to try it again next week and use the numbing cream. William is going to go with me as well since I think a lot of my problem is just my nerves.

So..if anyone is interested in sticking your face in a metal torture device that allows you to see nothing while a nice lady sticks fire rods in your hair follicles, let me know. We can make a date of it :)

The Magic of Christmas

Well folks, the end is near. Tonight after watching Polar Express, Emaleigh asked me if Santa really came down the chimney. I went through my standard come-back of asking her if she really wants to know and she said "No, I already know. He does not because there is no such thing as magic, except that magic God puts in our hearts. God is the only one that could come down our chimney if He wanted to." Good answer! She then asked if Santa was real and we told her to sleep on it and ask again in the morning if she really wanted to know (at this point I detected a stalling of bedtime).

Though the magic of Santa may be leaving another one of my babies lives, there is plenty of magic to be found. It is the magic that Emaleigh spoke of that God puts on our hearts. It is the gifts He has given us.

The magical look in a child's face as they watch a Christmas movie.



The fact that children like to snuggle more this time of year!



The excitement of office Christmas parties!!




The way a child looks lying in bed snuggled up in warm pj's as you add yet another quilt over them.

The way hot chocolate tastes on the first, warm sip!

The way that Christmas lights reflect on the walls and windows!

The anticipation!

The appreciation!

The example of a loving parent who asked His royal son to step off of His throne and leave His servants to go among the "commoners" and become a servant.

The example of obedience by that Son.

The gift that came from that sacrifice.

The simplicity of accepting the gift.

Yep, Emi is right, the only magic comes from Him and it is way better than Santa!!

Birthday's, Ice and More!!

Thought you might want to see some pictures from Emi's birthday. We decided to forgo a party this year, but we had several family celebrations!







Today, after dropping Bri off for her math and science classes, I took Emi, Tori and Kalli to the Galleria to ice skate. We had a wonderful time. Of course it just would not be a normal day for us without some blood and drama! So...Emi fell and somehow ran over her own hand and cut it. The cut was pretty deep, but not too long. The ice brigade carried her off and of course she was hysterical at all the blood. She lived and even calmed down when I pointed out the fact that she had another hand. I suggested that she try to skate on the ice, not on her hand. She thought that was a swell idea and our day went on!

Fresh on the ice!


Sisterly Love!! (or holding on for dear life :)



While the cat's are away (or skating), the mice will play (or scream impatiently)!


AAAWWWWW!!!





Clean-up Time!!



BFF!!!!



Family friends!!!



Go Girl!!

I Give Up :)

I am looking for a litter box. It needs to be a bit larger than normal and we prefer the color purple. We also need a bag of natural cat litter as her skin is very sensitive. We don't need the self cleaning kind as she can clean it out herself.

Confused???

So was I when I walked in the girls room upon hearing sounds of great distress (screaming) to find Kalli standing next to a pile of pooh! She proceeded to tell us that she was going to be like Girly Girl, our cat!

I'm not sure which should go...

the cat....



or the kid!

The Purpose of Christmas

I have been big lately on making sure that I know the purpose for things I do. With so much to do and so little time, I have found that knowing the purpose helps me to make sure that I keep my priorities straight. I need to know exactly what I am working towards so I can place it into the proper priority placement. No great organizer thing here, just survival with four kids!!

Anyway, I have been trying to nail down the purpose for Christmas. I know that when we ask someone what is the meaning of Christmas, the standard "good" answer is to say to celebrate the birth of Christ. But I also think we all agree that we should do that throughout the year anyways. Family is always a big part of Christmas, but again, it is all the time.

I wanted to know what makes Christmas different for me. I love the season. I totally love all of the traditions with my family. I love our Jesus birthday cake, nativity activities, parties, baking and fun activities. I just wanted to put words to the purpose.

While listening to the kids sing Sunday morning, I realized what it is! It is a time during the year where I can easily be different. It is kinda like the EASY button that you see on the tv commercial for Staples.



I can show people very easily during the holidays who Christ is!

How?? There are soooo many ways! I can demonstrate that it is possible to be in the world and not of it! Things are just better received during the holidays. You can bring cookies to neighbors that you have never talked to and open a door there. Giving is easier.

Have you ever thought about how easy it is during the holidays to make someones day better. Standing in line at the store where everyone is rushed, I can be different. I can let the person behind me who looks in a rush go first. I can stand out by enjoying my family during this time. I can show Christ by putting others before myself, by smiling while I shopped in a packed store, by being different.

People will see it more during this time of year because a majority of Americans are all involved in the same thing and they are stressed! They are really stressed! I can do something small to help them and it will make a bigger impact than at almost any other time of year.

The purpose of Christmas for me is to use my EASY button as often as possible and teach my children to as well!

Happy Birthday to You!

One day, six years ago, I got ready for bed in a similar fashion as to how I did tonight. Then I told Grandma goodnight, tucked in Brianna and Tori and heading off for a night of sleep! Except, I did not get that good nights sleep. I spent the night thinking about what was going to happen the next morning. I was so excited that I only slept about 2 hours the whole entire night!!

I got up at 4am the next morning and got dressed for a busy day. Daddy and I snuck out of the house around 4:45 a.m. leaving Grandma home with your sisters. We were heading to a very important meeting! On the way, we were blessed to see not one, but 2 shooting stars!!

We had spent a lot of time preparing for this important meeting. We had our paperwork in order. We had made all of the necessary arrangements and plans. We had spent many hours in conference with our boss asking for advice and guidance on how to conduct this meeting and the huge amount of follow-up work that would need to be done. We were ready!

We arrived at the meeting location and got all set-up, and then we waited. We waited a bit longer. We soon found out that the person we were privileged to meet was being held up a little longer. That's okay though, it will be worth the wait, we knew.

There were a few complications that made our wait even longer than expected! But then it happened, our guest was coming!! The excitement was overwhelming.

All of a sudden, into the meeting you burst! You and your beautiful blond head and blue eyes! You screamed very loudly to make sure that we knew you were here, and we did! We had waited and waited for you and we were oh so happy to meet you.

Daddy placed you in my arms and you looked up at me with your beautiful little face, snuggled in and went to sleep. Do you know why? You had just left God's loving, gentle hands and were placed for a time into ours. Don't worry, His hand is holding our hand, but for a time, we are allowed to meet with you.

Now, six years later, you are about to wake up tomorrow and be a 6 year old! Boy has that time gone by fast. Daddy and I have watched God transform you from a wrinkly little gift from Him, into a kind, compassionate gift to the world.

You walk into a room and smile and the room glows! Sitting here typing, I can close my eyes and feel your hugs...they last that long!

Six years have gone by so very fast! I know that the next six will go by even faster.

I want you to know something, God is still holding our hands as we hold you here on earth. There will be a time in your life when it will be time to let go. At this time you will go out to important life meetings without us. But you must always remember that God's hands will ALWAYS be there holding you. There may be a time in your life where He gives you a tiny, wrinkly gift and places her in your hands. Make sure He is still holding yours. Those tiny gifts are very important!

Until this time comes, know that Mommy and Daddy will hold you with every ounce of our being. We will hold you tight. We will hold you hard. We will hold you gentle. We will hold you steady.

He will hold you forever.

Emi, I love you so much and not a day goes by that we do not consider ourselves blessed that the God that knows everything and can move mountains, made the decision to allow us to hold you.

Happy birthday sweet baby.

I Survived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Well, this morning I opened my sleepy eyes, looked around and realized...I survived :) This weekend was just crazy full of stuff.

The Care Kids performance went great. I was really nervous about the fact that it was so simplified this year. In years past there were outstanding sets and props, it was longer and the music more difficult. I was worried that people would be bothered by the fact that it was so much less this year. I was worried about many little things that were really unimportant! I realized that after all the hugs I received and the excitement of the kids saying they could not wait until next year to do it again. It's not about what people think. Nor is it about whether or not I look like a dork on-stage. It is about the kids having fun and experiencing a new way to praise God together that without Care Kids they may not be able to do. It is about letting them know that they are important and they are capable of giving people a message. An important message! And this year, this was the only way I could provide that for them. Maybe in the future I will become more capable at it, but this was what it was!

I must say that I have no earthly idea how in the world Brad and Genell ever did as much as they did! Pulling off what they did in the amount of time they did, to me, is closing in on the walking on water category!!

Emaleigh looked so cute yesterday for the performance! We rolled her hair in sponge rollers the night before and she wore her little Santa dress!! Adorable :) (I'm not partial at all :)





Now to gymnastics! Tori had her first meet of the year. Her team had to compete in it, but it was a practice for them. She has 9 meets this year over four months. We are going to have a busy spring! She did outstanding with two blues and two reds. She was able to use her glasses on vault and that turned out to be her best event (usually it is her hardest until we realized that she could not see the spring board when she started her run!). She had a great time!!


This is Tori with her coach.



It was a long day for all of us! I did have an ah ha moment about the meaning of Christmas which I will share tomorrow!!! I know you can't wait!!!

Emi is heading back to the doctor today, so say a little prayer for her!!

Have a fun day :)

So Long Good Friends!

Well, this is probably going to be my last day functioning on the earth as a sane, normal (debatable) human being. Yes, tomorrow I have to stand in front of grown-ups at my church and speak. You heard me, big people, grown-ups, you know...ADULTS!! I will sing in front of thousands, talk and teach to kids all day...but adults, no way! When I signed up to do Care Kids, I never thought about the fact that I would have to stand and speak!! If you are going to be there, don't sit in the front few rows, because I will probably either puke or pass out and I don't want to hurt anyone!!

Today marks the beginning of a crazy weekend. The kids have their performance (which is going to be awesome since they are all awesome kids!), we are working at two gymnastics meets and Tori has her first meet tomorrow evening!

How crazy is this weather??!! Today record highs, tomorrow freezing! Just in case you were wondering, I was sick yesterday. Like high fever, puke my guts out sick. Not great timing since it is the before-mentioned beginning of crazy weekend, but it worked out. I feel much better today!

Emi will probably have to go back in on Monday because her tummy is still hurting and the meds they started her on seem to be helping some, but not enough.

Organized people make me want to pull my hair out. I am so envious!! I have several friends that are so organized that it is freaky and they try so much to make me more so, but it does not work. I think I am destined to be a last minute person. I am my most creative in a crunch!!

I was trying to figure out why I am just rambling on and now I know!! I am putting off the fact that I need to get programs done for tomorrow!! Since I have procrastinated that until today, I am sure it will be ultra creative tomorrow!!

SEE YOU TOMORROW!!

Time After Time :)

****SPOILER ALERT: PROFOUND THOUGHTS CAN BE FOUND AT THE END***

Good morning!! It is a beautiful morning with crisp cool air and hey, it's Thursday, my favorite day of the week. On Thursday the weekend is close enough to smell, but it has not started yet so you can anticipate it!!

Emaleigh is doing a bit better! Not as good as what I would like to see, but probably good enough to continue to watch and wait. I am still uneasy as to why this happened in the first place. She has a very high fiber diet, always has, and has never had any problems in the past. I just find it odd that it would go from no problem to bigger problem so fast, but hey, what do I know!!

A friend I have wrote in her blog about time. She talked about the fact that when we say we don't have time, that really is not true as God gives us the perfect amount of time to do what we need to do. A better answer would be that we can't do something because we have chosen to screw up our time with tv, computer, laziness, etc. OUCH!!

When I look at my day and see all the areas in which I choose to waste time, it really is amazing! We don't do tv so that really is not a problem. William and I will watch a few shows online during the weekend together sometimes, but it is not something that I would say eats our time. I do think that I am reading on the computer too much. I am doing good things on it, but I think that is just an excuse.

Looking at my priorities I need to see if my time reflects my priorities. Even just a quick glance reveals that it does not. I say I don't have time to exercise, yet I do. I say I don't have time for longer prayer times, yet I do. There are many times that I feel like I don't have time to do basic cleaning on the house, but I really do!

Today I am going to make a point to watch for my time wasters. What are some of yours??

When Your Up, Your Up and When Your Down, Your Down!

What a great, tiring, stressful, hard day!! Anyone confused??

Tori has worked so hard the past few months to learn a back handspring for her gymnastics competetion and tonight she was successful! Her meet is this weekend, so she pulled through!! Hooray Tori :)

I was able to meet two friends of mine tonight and enjoy 2 hours of visiting and Starbucks!! We had a great time. I am so happy to have new friends :)

Emi has had a hard day. I mentioned last week how she complained of a tummy ache and then ran a fever. She also had a touch of diarrhea. This has gone on for a week. Nothing big, I just figured she was fighting a tummy bug, but could tell that she did not feel great. Last night she seemed worse and this morning her diarrhea was worse. We decided to give her something for the diarrhea and I put a call in to the doctor to find out what to give and how much. They called back and wanted to see her. Her normal doctor was not in, so she saw the PA that works there (we have an awesome peds doctor and the PA is equally as awesome!!). He did some tapping on her tummy and sent us across the street to the hospital for some tests :(

The xray showed she had blockage in her intestine. I did not see how that could be since she had diarrhea, but apparently I was wrong! They did blood work and now we are home waiting to find out what to do. It is a pretty misserable feeling to know that your child feels yucky and to know why, but not know what to do about it! By the time we left the hospital, the doctor's office was closed so we don't know what to do except to wait until tomorrow. She has complained a lot lately of tummy aches, but never any poopy problems!! Anyway, we will see what happens, poor baby!!

So this has been an excitingly, awful day!!

Cookie Party :)

Yup, today was Cookie Party day!! I think this is my 8th cookie party. We started having this while we were living in Richardson in a tiny two bedroom apartment and the only girlies I had were Bri and Tori. I remember that we squeezed 6 people into the apartment for an awesome time!

This year we had 10! What we do is if we have 10 people, everyone brings 10 dozen of the same type of cookie, packaged by the dozen. We show up, do a fun Christmas craft, share lunch together, visit, have an ornament exchange and leave with 10 dozen different types of cookies. There is a contest to see who has the most creative packaging and boy do some of the gals that come get creative!!

I usually get my first email asking how many I plan on having or someone turning in their recipe in July!! We really have a fun time and it has become a really enjoyable tradition.


Craft tables! This year we made bottled hot chocolate mixes and albums to keep the recipes that we accumulate year after year of Christmas Cookies!!




Food Table! This year we enjoyed a cheese potato soup and rolls (yummy:).



We had a roaring fire in the fireplace (of course, I set the air conditioner on 65* so at least it would feel like winter in the house!!



And last, but not least...COOKIES!!



Have a blessed first day of Advent tomorrow!!