copy and paste

i think i could probably copy and paste this post from one i wrote a week ago. feel like i'm saying the same things again....need to work on some serious attitude/behavior issues over here...AGAIN. Trying to reign some things in...AGAIN. Feeling behind in almost every area right now...AGAIN.

It's Beginning to Look Alot Like Christmas!

On Saturday morning, we said a sad goodbye to Mom, Kristen, and Chris. We had a wonderful time together, but all good things must come to an end I suppose!! We were so glad they were able to make the trip this year!

We started pulling out our Christmas stuff later that afternoon...

I am STILL having such a dilemna about my stockings. I am in need of TWO more stockings. The four on the left all match. I have a fake one for Callie, and now need one for Caleb too. I have tried looking EVERYWHERE for stockings to match the other four. Anyone have any ideas? Seen any? I'll offer a BIG reward for anyone that can help steer me in the right direction! HELP!! I'm almost at the point to throw them all out and start over - we all have to MATCH!!!

The boys helped decorate the tree that night...and they had so much fun...remembering all the ornaments...looking at the ones they've made over the years with their pictures on it...what fun!

Josiah got to do the angel this year! :)

And the present wrapping begins! We're doing our "3" presents again this year (physical, emotional, spiritual), but are doing a CODE on the tags. (meaning no names on the tags - it will be a code). My parents did this every year for us, and we LOVED trying to crack the code every year! the kids are finally old enough this year to start this tradition! :) I'm almost done shopping too!! Yippee!

Happy 7th Birthday Josiah!

We decided to celebrate Josiah's birthday on Friday, even though his REAL birthday wasn't until Saturday (the 28th). We wanted to be sure to celebrate when everyone was still here, so Friday was his "fake" birthday, as he called it! :) After Kristen, David, and I finished our Black Friday shopping, we picked up some Krispy Kreme donuts and were home shortly after 6 am!! :)
In response to the question I get ALL the time, "YES - he IS this happy all the time!" :)

This little outfit is adorable. It's got this little math robot on it, and it says QT 3.14 (the mathematic formula for pi....but I can't type the pi symbol...)

Josiah and Jacob working on some "paint your own banks" that Josiah got for his birthday. Gotta love these projects!

He decided that he wanted to go bowling for his birthday, so off we went! We had a blast (I did too - even though my score was TERRIBLE! Next time I'm bowling on the kids' lane with bumpers!)

Kristen and Chris - see the glare off her BEAUTIFUL ring? :)

He just hung out in the stroller and watched - what a guy!

Kristen, Mom, and me

Chris - who knew he was such a good bowler!

Josiah (who was very serious about wanting to do it "right" - not the granny bowling style...)

Jacob

Mom (she's going to kill me for posting this picture)

Callie

A tired little boy who didn't get to have his last nap because we were bowling! :)

Josiah had requested a star wars cake...big surprise...

...so Jacob helped me round up most of their little star wars guys to put on top.

Happy 7th Birthday Josiah! I am SO proud of you and SO thankful that God picked ME to be your mom!! I love you!

Happy Thanksgiving!

We had a GREAT Thanksgiving day. We have truly so much to be thankful for this year. We had a great time sharing around the table and thinking back over how much God has blessed us this year. Our meal was delicious - we did a turkey (which was brined - a new thing for me) and a honey baked ham (ALWAYS so good!). I think Mom counted 9 different side dishes - talk about yummy!!!

Sorry about the glare - here's a picture of our completed "thankfulness" turkey. The original intent was to have a feather for every day in November, but we started late because of my trip to California. Josiah ended up being the scribe, so sometimes more than one thing was written on each feather. We had a LOT of fun with this - this tradition is definitely a keeper!

Chris "carving" the honey baked ham...

David carving the turkey...

We played a game of pictionary with the kids after lunch - lots of fun! :)

Everybody's Here!

Kristen and Chris arrived on Tuesday night, and Mom got here shortly after lunch on Wednesday. It was SO good to have everyone here (well, everyone that was planned anyways. Of course we missed Kim & Kelli and their families!! :(

David and Chris would have been happy to hide out here the whole weekend!! My dad had just brought down 4 boxes of books last weekend - lots of old commentaries and biblical study aids from my grandfather and GREAT-grandfather. Can you see the drool practically hanging off of David's lips? He LOVES this stuff! :)
Caleb was SO happy to see Tutu again!

Poor Kristen - I probably am going to have to pay for a manicure for her...she spent an awful lot of time washing dishes this week!!! :)

My little boys were so excited for Chris to arrive so they could ALL play the video game together!!!

Caleb and Aunt Kristen

Lunch with Josiah

The kids and I all headed up to school today to have lunch with Josiah. David had gone a few weeks back, but this was my first time - it was so fun!! We ALL loved it (although Callie didn't understand why Josiah wasn't coming HOME with us) and can't wait to do it again.

Since Josiah's birthday is Saturday and is during Thanksgiving vacation, he brought in "light sabres" (pretzel rods dipped in white chocolate and sprinkles) to share with his friends at school. They were a big hit as always!!

I love this guy. He is such a sweet son and I am SO thankful for him! We are so thankful for his teacher and his school and for what a blessing it has already been to US this year! (and I was SHOCKED at how well behaved the lunchroom was - my own kitchen sometimes is more chaotic!!)

Titans Win Monday Night Football Game!!!

...and it's all because of this cutie pie! :)

Gramps!

My dad passed through here on Saturday on his way to Hilton Head. He was able to watch both boys play their last football game and then come and have lunch with us at home before heading back on the road. He lives in Chicago, and we don't get to see him nearly as much as we'd like to. It was his first time meeting both Callie and Caleb and they LOVED seeing him! We're looking forward to seeing him again next weekend in Florida for the sisters' marathon relay! :)

Look what Jacob found in the backyard...

ewww...good thing david was home...

The Judds are back in town!

The Judd's came through on their way up north and we were SO glad we could serve as a pit stop! It was too quick, but GREAT to visit with Heather and the boys again. Now I've got to figure out when we can head to Atlanta for a few days to get a real visit in! :)

I realized I needed a picture of Heather with Caleb RIGHT as I was getting ready to put him to bed...hence his expression. Oh well!
Callie and Carter had a GREAT time on the tire swing! :)

And the Jedis resumed their training...as if they had never missed a beat!! :)

Isn't it funny that all 3 of them were in red shirts? It is Anderson's favorite color after all!

MUCH better!

a much better afternoon was had by all over here. It's been a rough start to the week with some behavior issues. after doing some reining in and pulling WAY back to focus on a few things, this afternoon was finally a better one!! Sigh of relief! Now to look forward to a few very special visitors over the next few days, and then Thanksgiving next week!!! I am SO thankful - remembering what a challenging time was last year and seeing just how much God has blessed us with over the last year. God is SO good!

whew!

anyone else feel like they need to resurface and catch their breath? it's been a tough couple of days with the kids, but i'm hanging in there!!! i have much to be thankful for though, and am SO thankful for them...even when they are testing me so much!!!! more later on this week...with some happier hearts and faces to report hopefully!

just here

it was a crazy week here. not because we had a million things going on, but because i felt like i was two steps behind all week long. trying to get caught up after being gone for 4 days, trying to catch up on sleep from the jetlag/time change (catching up on sleep just doesn't happen as a mom. sad.). i came home from CA only to find that david and the other kids all had a cold. david spent much of his day off (which means MY day off) in bed on friday sleeping it off (and he's much better now thankfully). i missed out on a couple of INCREDIBLE deals on Friday because i can't just up and GO anytime i want....the price you pay for 4 kids. i did get caleb's 3 month pictures made on friday and was pleased with the outcome at least. waiting for david to come back from his run so that i can go out on mine. my sisters and i are doing a marathon relay in a month (YIKES!), so we're getting serious now! plus david & i are training for the half in feburary... it rained for 3 days here (cats & dogs!), but the sun is out - hooray hooray! (and my yard isn't flooded like all my old friends in VA!). but perhaps the best night is that david and i are getting to go out on a date night tonight. have no idea what we're going to do, but VERY much looking forward to it. it doesn't happen often enough, for many reasons, so we're both VERY excited. we needed it. badly. so here's to a great night with JUST my man!!! (and praying the 4 kids are good for our friends who are keeping them!)

Just chillin'

After a long day, everyone had to unwind a bit. This is what Caleb chose! :)