Tuesday, November 30, 2010
Check Your 'Naughty' or 'Nice' Rating This Christmas!
'Tis the season of the holidays and Christmas and all through the neighborhood, everybody wonders to themselves, "Oh crap, was I good?" Ha, ha. Santa will be visiting all the neighborhoods, delivering presents or not. And, some of us will get Christmas treats from Santa and some of us may get Christmas coal. Who knows, but either way, it's fun to get in the spirit of the "Naughty" or "Nice" theme around the holidays and what better way than a fun t-shirt. I found this little goodie at Target for only $5.00 - I love it, what a fun message for the holidays and at a steal of a price too! So, Santa Claus, if I wasn't good this year, I will be next year...!
Thanksgiving 2010
Thanksgiving is a time for reflecting on all your blessings from the past year, getting together with your family (yes, even if they are crazy, which whose family isn't?), and of course, eating a big 'ole turkey until you feel stuffed yourself. Many of us have Thanksgiving traditions that revolve around food. Whether it's baking a turkey, making green bean casserole with those crunchy fried onions, or rolling out the best sweet potato casserole (more on that sweet potatoe casserole at our house in a moment), there is often more to Thanksgiving than just a good looking bird with all the fixings.
This year, my mom, dad, older brother and his wife and kids joined us for Thanksgiving. I enjoyed our time together. It was great to have Paige and Taylor's little cousins here with us as well. There were even some Norman Rockwell-esque moments when we sat around the dinner table together as a family...granted that didn't last too too long because after all, Thanksgiving Day was also when the Dallas Cowboys game against the New Orleans Saints played. And, we've got serious Cowboys fans in this family, so dinner ceased when the 'Are You Ready For Some Football?' shout-out rang out over the television airways. And, that was just right too...scattering from the table to the family room to enjoy a game of football together!
With all this reflection upon Thanksgiving this year at our house, I'd be remiss if I didn't take a moment to reflect upon the fact that the holidays can be a tough time of year for many people and families. In fact, the holidays can be far from ideal for those friends and families who have had a death in the family this year, or if someone is in the military serving abroad, and so on. You can't turn those holidays into fantasies, but hopefully, even in spite of the difficult circumstances many are facing this year and during this holiday season, blessings can still be counted and found no matter what the circumstances of life may bring...and, may God bless us all.
Below are a few pictures taken from our Thanksgiving this year. Enjoy!
This year, my mom, dad, older brother and his wife and kids joined us for Thanksgiving. I enjoyed our time together. It was great to have Paige and Taylor's little cousins here with us as well. There were even some Norman Rockwell-esque moments when we sat around the dinner table together as a family...granted that didn't last too too long because after all, Thanksgiving Day was also when the Dallas Cowboys game against the New Orleans Saints played. And, we've got serious Cowboys fans in this family, so dinner ceased when the 'Are You Ready For Some Football?' shout-out rang out over the television airways. And, that was just right too...scattering from the table to the family room to enjoy a game of football together!
With all this reflection upon Thanksgiving this year at our house, I'd be remiss if I didn't take a moment to reflect upon the fact that the holidays can be a tough time of year for many people and families. In fact, the holidays can be far from ideal for those friends and families who have had a death in the family this year, or if someone is in the military serving abroad, and so on. You can't turn those holidays into fantasies, but hopefully, even in spite of the difficult circumstances many are facing this year and during this holiday season, blessings can still be counted and found no matter what the circumstances of life may bring...and, may God bless us all.
Below are a few pictures taken from our Thanksgiving this year. Enjoy!
The night before Thanksgiving, Paige and Taylor play "Thanksgiving" with their stuffed animals.
Left to right: Paige, Courtney, Brandon, Taylor
Momo and Poppa from VA with Paige and Taylor
The 4 of Us - Thanksgiving Day
My Sweet Girls
Aunt Kim with Paige and Taylor
With My Mom and Sister-in-Law Kim
Take One: Sweet Potatoe Casserole - Yes, I Burned the Marshmallow Topping! I've Made This Recipe for Years, And This Is A First. That's What I Get For Talking Too Much, and Forgetting All About What I'm Doing...
Take Two: Sweet Success! Thank Goodness for Do-Overs! And, The 2nd Time Around, I Did Less Talking and More Watching of The Sweet Potatoe Casserole. Ha, ha!
Dinner at The 'Big People' Table for Thanksigiving
The Post-Dinner Crash and Food Coma on the Couch & !!YES!! Some Cowboys Football
Post-Thanksiving Dinner Soccer Matches for The Kids with Mike
Sunday, November 7, 2010
Do You Road Trip? We Do, And We Did!
While most of us are used to winging from coast to coast in a few hours by plane, in my opinion, there's still something romantic and carefree about a cross-country road trip. You get to stop and see the sights along the way, and take the charming byways - rather than the highways - and once in a while you can experience America's small towns and back roads.
Two weeks ago, I made a long - correction, very long - road trip with Paige and Taylor (and their grandma from VA) from the West Coast to the East Coast. On a fine Saturday morning, we loaded up the car and began our departure from California. Six days later, we arrived in Virgnia. It was a vacation. It was a mission. It was an adventure. It was memory-making. It was the first mommy-and-me excursion cross-country with the twins, and I loved every minute of it. Well, almost every minute of it. The days were long, averaging 10-12 hours per day in the car, and by the end of each day, my back was pretty sore as was my moms who occasionally alternated driving with me to allow me a quick nap as we rode along mile after mile.
Some of my friends had given me such a hard time, teasing me, telling me I was crazy to want to travel across the country with toddlers. Maybe so. But we were doing it. And, I'm so glad that we did. We saw so many spectacular sights and attractions along the way, and the drive especially through California, Nevada, Arizona as well as Kentucky and West Virginia were especially beautiful!
And, the girls? Well, they were nothing short of AMAZING travelers! They'd watch movies on their DVD player in the backseat, and when they were not watching movies, we'd all play the "I Spy Something _____" game as we rode along. We'd talk about the large semi-trucks driving down the roads, and would imagine where they were going and what they were delivering. We'd talk about the adventures of our vacation each day - our visit to the Grand Canyon, our tour of the city lights of Vegas at night, our afternoon at a Texas Roadhouse where the girls told me they wanted cowgirl hats, our trek through the St. Louis Riverfront and the tour of the St. Louis Arch and so much more. And, lastly, a backpack filled with small toys, books and puzzles made the trip go more quickly for the kids too. I also purchased some "surprises" to hand out at set places in our trip to give the girls a little something to look forward to as we drove from state to state.
And, while I'd be lying to say that there weren't times when the days were extremely long and tiring, I will always cherish that cross-country road trip with the twins. We travelled more than 3,000 miles over the course of 6 days and we made some pretty fantastic memories along the way! I might even be brave enough (or crazy enough) to want to do it again someday...
P.S. Be sure to check out the slide show above for a few of the pictures taken during our road trip.
Two weeks ago, I made a long - correction, very long - road trip with Paige and Taylor (and their grandma from VA) from the West Coast to the East Coast. On a fine Saturday morning, we loaded up the car and began our departure from California. Six days later, we arrived in Virgnia. It was a vacation. It was a mission. It was an adventure. It was memory-making. It was the first mommy-and-me excursion cross-country with the twins, and I loved every minute of it. Well, almost every minute of it. The days were long, averaging 10-12 hours per day in the car, and by the end of each day, my back was pretty sore as was my moms who occasionally alternated driving with me to allow me a quick nap as we rode along mile after mile.
Some of my friends had given me such a hard time, teasing me, telling me I was crazy to want to travel across the country with toddlers. Maybe so. But we were doing it. And, I'm so glad that we did. We saw so many spectacular sights and attractions along the way, and the drive especially through California, Nevada, Arizona as well as Kentucky and West Virginia were especially beautiful!
And, the girls? Well, they were nothing short of AMAZING travelers! They'd watch movies on their DVD player in the backseat, and when they were not watching movies, we'd all play the "I Spy Something _____" game as we rode along. We'd talk about the large semi-trucks driving down the roads, and would imagine where they were going and what they were delivering. We'd talk about the adventures of our vacation each day - our visit to the Grand Canyon, our tour of the city lights of Vegas at night, our afternoon at a Texas Roadhouse where the girls told me they wanted cowgirl hats, our trek through the St. Louis Riverfront and the tour of the St. Louis Arch and so much more. And, lastly, a backpack filled with small toys, books and puzzles made the trip go more quickly for the kids too. I also purchased some "surprises" to hand out at set places in our trip to give the girls a little something to look forward to as we drove from state to state.
And, while I'd be lying to say that there weren't times when the days were extremely long and tiring, I will always cherish that cross-country road trip with the twins. We travelled more than 3,000 miles over the course of 6 days and we made some pretty fantastic memories along the way! I might even be brave enough (or crazy enough) to want to do it again someday...
P.S. Be sure to check out the slide show above for a few of the pictures taken during our road trip.
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