Twas The Night Before Christmas...

And all through the house, were grateful hearts and cheerful smiles and fun with family and friends!

I love Christmas! I love that we celebrate Christ's birth. I love that we have little children so we are constantly sharing with them what Christmas is all about so they don't get wrapped up in the world's way of doing Christmas. And sharing with them over and over again about the true meaning of Christmas helps me so much as well. Many, many times over the last couple of weeks the girls have been asked "So, are you ready for Santa? Have you been a good girl this year?" and those questions have allowed us to have some great conversations, especially with Reagan. And every store we went in last week, Sydney showered everyone around us with many "Merry Christmases!" This Christmas was different for us. Over the last four years, we've started several traditions and this year those all kind of changed, but it was so good, too! Christmas Eve Steve worked until the afternoon and when he came home the girls were still napping, so we opened our gifts to one another. Then, when the girls got up and my mom got here we opened our PJs and stockings and then headed over to the Roberts' for dinner! We had a wonderful time with all the Roberts, my mom, Lael and Stephanie and Laz! Christmas morning we woke up and headed back over to the Roberts to open gifts. It was unbelievable seeing all the gifts and the girls had a blast. We came home early afternoon and spent the rest of the day (and weekend!) playing and resting. It was another wonderful Christmas! Steve is off all but Tuesday next week, so we are looking forward to spending some family time together and also some time with just the two of us! Next week he and I are heading to Atlanta for the weekend! Yay!!!

Christmas Eve Pictures:

Christmas Morning Pictures:

Christmas Lights!

Tuesday night my mom spent the night with us and after dinner we went to look at some Christmas decorations. There is one house in particular that we've gone to look at the past couple of years. It's unbelievable how many decorations these people have and this year it looked like the neighbors are beginning to join in! My little Reagan girl got sick while we were out...it was very strange - all of a sudden her head started hurting and she had a fever. Thankfully she recovered quickly!!

Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let it Snow...Florida Style!

Last Sunday we packed up the kids after their naps and headed out on a quest to find snow! Well, Florida snow that is - which is really soap! We met up with the Walleys down at Celebration, took all 6 children into the candy store so they could have a treat while we waited and then let them play in the fountains. It's crazy that they could play in the fountains - in sandals - just a couple of days before Christmas! The weather was beautiful and we had a blast! My husband even treated me to my favorite Peppermint Mocha Frappaccino from Starbucks! Then at 6, the "snow" began to fall. The girls had so much fun playing and jumping around with their friends and Jet and Jordyn enjoyed some stroller time with each other. It's amazing to think that when we went last year we had one child per parent (we went with the Walleys then, too!) and this year we were out numbered!! What wonderful gifts we've been given!!

Danny and Nikki are home for Christmas!

Danny and Nikki and baby Bentley have all been down this week for Christmas. We all met up at the Roberts' house on Saturday night to hang out and have dinner. It's been great getting to spend some time with them and to see Bentley crawling around and growling like little boys should! Last time we saw him was when he was in the NICU and it's amazing to see how the Lord has totally allowed this little guy to be healthy...and very cute, too!!

Uncle Jimmy, Aunt Nancy, AJ, and Alex made it for dinner as well and we always enjoy visiting with them. Reagan was quite disappointed Josh wasn't able to come, but quickly recovered after Steve let her sit by her big cousin AJ!! The girls were given a flashlight to play with while we finished up our dinner and they had a blast chasing each other and the dog with the flashlight!

Jordyn Update!

Our little peanut is getting so big! I can hardly believe she is already 7 months old! She is rolling around all over the place, jabbering, chewing on anything she can get to her mouth - including her toes, eating baby food, and enjoying life! She laughs when I throw her up in the air and laughs when the girls are playing with her. They can make her laugh harder than anyone else can! She enjoys her entertainer and still loves going to bed! She is normally happy for the whole day, except for about an hour to hour and a half a day. Lately she has wanted me when she sees me walk into a room, which can be really sweet until she starts crying!! She is the biggest cuddle-bug out of the three, and I love when I get a few minutes to hold her and snuggle with her!

Baking Day!

Last Saturday my mom, Sissy and I had our annual baking day! We spent hours baking 13 different kinds of cookies, fudge, toffees and mini pies. We all made several batches early so we could try to finish up and go out to dinner and shopping. Well, we ended up wrapping up around 7 PM, made it to the restaurant to eat and did a little shopping! It was a fun day and I was able to hand out almost all my goodies on Sunday! Reagan and Sydney helped me with the fudge and Christmas cookies the day before my mom and Sissy came over. They are getting so big and love when they get to be in the kitchen with me! Reagan wants to marry a farmer so they can grow their own food to cook!!

Steve's Work Party

Last Thursday evening we had a very enjoyable dinner with Steve's boss and coworkers at Ruth's Chris. It was delicious! We had steak and lobster and so many appetizers and side dishes. I tried the apple pie tart, too. It was fun getting all dressed up and going out with Steve for the night! And I figure that may be the only time we ever get to go there, so we enjoyed every bite!!

To Lowe's with Daddy!

Steve took the girls to Lowe's to build Gingerbread Houses! The girls had a blast and came home in their super cute Lowe's apron. They each got a patch to put on the apron, too. They offer these little classes for free twice a month, so hopefully this will become a regular event for Daddy and his little girls! He told Brian, one of the guys he works with, about the class and so he brought his two kids, too!

Gingerbread Trains!

Today we had our annual Gingerbread decorating day with the Walley's! It is a day we look forward to every year! This year we added two new little ones to the mix and they did great! Dena picked up Gingerbread trains for us to decorate this year, which I think was a lot easier than the houses. I think the girls may have eaten more candy than what made it on the trains! The girls all played for a while and then they exchanged gifts. Reagan and Sydney got a cool little aquarium - and I like it because the fish aren't real!! Then we decorated our trains and Dena made pizza for lunch! Oh, and of course then there was more playing and pictures! Our train even made it home without falling apart!

Quote on Giving

Steve sent me this excellent quote earlier this week...

"I do not believe one can settle how much we ought to give. I am afraid the only safe rule is to give more than we can spare. In other words, if our expenditure on comforts, luxuries, amusement, etc., is up to the standard common among those with the same income as our own,we are probably giving away too little. If our giving does not at all pinch or hamper us, I should say it is too small. There ought to be things we should like to do and cannot because our commitment to giving excludes them."

- C.S. Lewis

Thanksgiving Weekend!

We had a full Thanksgiving weekend! Thursday we spent the day at Sissy and Mark's and had a wonderful dinner. On Friday Sissy and I went out shopping early and then that afternoon Rodney made us two big pots of Gumbo for dinner and then we headed to the garage for a foosball tournament. Let's just say the young ones in the bunch didn't do so hot. (So, that means Mama, Mark, Rodney and Sissy won!!) I really think Sissy had been practicing up when no one else was around!! Saturday all 15 of us went to get a family picture made and then had Christmas together. Mama made a great steak dinner after we opened up our gifts from one another. Saturday night Telle, Rod, Curt and Harley headed home. We were so glad we were able to celebrate with everyone. What a memorable weekend!

For Daddy...

From Reagan:

I love you, Daddy. I hope you have a great day! I love that you take care of us. I love that you play with us. I love how you make us laugh. I like that you let us watch Jordyn's Einsteins. I like that you squirt me with your water gun. I like when you take us to 7-11 for Slurpees. I love when you play guitar so we can sing and dance and worship! I like when you hold me at church.

From Sydney:
I like talking to you on the phone and when you make dinner. (Hmmm...that means she really likes Pizza and Sonny's!!)

From Me:
I love you! Thank you for taking such good care of us. Thank you for providing for us, for leading us, for being responsible and for being goofy! You make us laugh! Thank you for pursuing growth. Thank you for being so patient with me and for planning some really meaningful date nights the last several months! I love you more than words can express! Hope you are having a wonderful day!

Disney

Tuesday night my sister, brother-in-law, nephew and niece came into town! On Wednesday Telle, Rodney, Harley, Reagan, Sydney and I went to Disney World. We had so much fun hanging out and even though there were more people than I've ever seen out there we did get to ride quite a few rides! Here are some pictures!

Crunchy Leaves!

Sweet Hannah Mendez comes over to help me with my girls so I can try to get a few extra things done around the house sometimes. My girls just love playing with her, too! A couple of weeks ago she raked up some of our big Sycamore leaves so our girls could jump in them...it's nice to have some sort of vision of Fall while looking outside! Notice that they are sweaty, in shorts and Hannah is barefoot. Oh well! Even if it was 85 degrees outside it was still fun to play in the crunchy leaves!!

Jordyn's Dedication

Two Sundays ago Jordyn was dedicated at our church. What a precious gift from God she is to us and how we desire that He capture her heart at a young age! We also acknowledge that we need help in training and guiding our little ones and we are so grateful for our family and our church and their prayers and care and help! After church our family came over for lunch (we missed you, Mark, Ainsley and Emma!!) to celebrate Jordyn's little life - although she slept through almost the entire "party"!

We also got her ears pierced the day before the dedication - check out her new bling! She let everyone in the store know she was there, but after a few minutes and some consolation from her Dad, she was fine!

Home Group Scavenger Hunt!

Wednesday night we met up with the Walley and Hartlief Home Groups and had a Scavenger Hunt at Crane's Roost Park (it was quite chilly I do have to say!). A few weeks ago we scoped out the place with Derek, Dena, Ryan and Amber and came up with some clues (well, mostly thanks to Dena we had lots of clues!). We had a great turn out and I think everyone had a good time. We had about an hour and 15 minutes to answer 40 clues. Our team came in 3rd out of 6! I do have to say Bob was our quick thinker!! Hopefully we'll be able to do this again!! It was pretty funny watching everyone running around and being goofy...I never thought I'd see Jud do a cartwheel!

This Week's Savings!

It was another good week of savings! This was my Publix and CVS run. The total should have been $112.61. I spent $43.20 out of pocket after coupons and a gift card I got from CVS for sending one of my prescriptions there! Also, I ended up with $11.69 in ECBs and I'm getting a rebate for $3. Pretty sweet!

OH, and I got a stainless steel and black 6 qt crock pot with a little dipper crock pot and serving spoon ($39.99!) and a tea kettle ($8!!) I've had my eye on! Both were on clearance this week! It pays to wait!

Kids and Politics

Today while I was feeding Jordyn her bottle Sydney walked up to me and said...

"I'M Joe the plumber!"

Needless to say I just about fell out of my chair laughing! I never know what's going to come out of her mouth!

Ahhh...Fall is in the Air!

This last week has been wonderful with the weather changing and all! The girls have played outside more this week than I think they did all summer. Sunday we went to a Pumpkin Patch after the girls woke up from their naps! Sydney really liked the white pumpkins and Reagan liked the big ones! She did find a little plastic one amidst the big ones and the nice lady let her keep it! We ended up with a good sized pumpkin and carved it out as soon as we got home! The girls thought that was pretty fun. This was the first time Steve ever carved a pumpkin. Reagan was adamant that the pumpkin have 5 teeth -that was her main request - oh, and a triangle nose. I roasted the seeds after we carved it and they were so good. I also bought a little pie pumpkin at Publix and made my first from scratch pumpkin pie. It was pretty easy and so yummy!! We also baked apples the other night - another Fall food favorite of mine! Here are some pumpkin pictures!

Reagan Loves Bugs!

Steve found this really cool caterpillar last Sunday in the backyard. We are pretty sure it is going to turn into a really big moth. Reagan thought it was so cool and has been on the hunt for it since then. Hopefully he has found his way to safety (away from curious little hands that is!). Also, they found a slug. Reagan let it crawl all over her. She came in and told me it had "snotted" all over her. GROSS! I'm glad she's not scared of them, though!!

Big Sis!

Reagan has been asking me for weeks if she could help me feed Jordyn. She's given her a couple of bottles now and she is so sweet with her! I can't believe how big she is getting.