Dylan & Lilly's 2nd Birthday

10 days til christmas

Really?  Wow!  Seriously, where has the month gone?  I had all these plans for being ahead of the curve so as not to be stressed, but that doesn't seem to be happening!  I think I am just about finished shopping but have not a single thing wrapped...I need to at least get a book wrapped for Zach's class party tomorrow and then for kids gift exchange on Saturday but it sure would be nice to have it all done too!

I did some shopping at Barnes & noble today and they have a good buy 2 get the 3rd one free promo going on right now.  I happened to be buying 2 toys and the nice checker told me I was eligible for a 3rd toy free "if i wanted".  Ummm, I am not really sure who would say no to that or why but it saved me a trip to TRU for another gift and for that I was thankful!  I really liked some of the toys there too, different than some you would find a tru or target.

So, next up....teacher/neighbor/tipping for Christmas.  I went with $15 to starbucks.  I had plans for making something but that just didn't happen.  I think $15 is acceptable, I sure hope it is cause that's what I got!  Next up is our nanny, who we do dearly love.  I saw last week on Today show that acceptable was a week's worth pay?  Wow, really?  That seems like a lot!  Or am I being cheap?  I have NO idea on that one and any words of advice would be appreciated.....  Who else do you buy gifts or tip?  Your mail and newspaper carrier?  Neighbors?  Friends?

Anyway, have a very busy weekend coming up.  We have our annual book club kids gift exchange on Saturday morning, the Bloch twins birthday party on Sunday, church, neighborhood Christmas festival, and oh yeah, I am on call AGAIN.  Fun and busy busy times!

How are your holidays coming along?  Are you finished shopping?  All those cookies baked? Presents wrapped? Card sent??

MIA

Not sure where I have been but life has been busy, guess that is just the holiday season!  Since thanksgiving, I have had PEO meeting, craft night, company Christmas party, and Christmas book club, WHEW!  I am tired! Adding in work, having to find a dress for said party and ornaments for said meetings....time has been scarce!

Anyhoo....in the meantime, we started decorating for Christmas as soon as we got back from Thanksgiving.  It has been quite a Griswald-esque experience!  The prelit tree was not ALL prelit when it plugged in, the lights outside the house keep blowing out, countless things have broken but it all finally got finished and we are all enjoying the holiday decor.  We also have "Batman", our Elf on the Shelf, who is visiting us.  Yes, Zachary named him Batman.  I am not writing it down in the books in hopes that he gets a better name next year! :)  Batman does serve as good bribery though and it is funny to hear the commentary about him.  Tonight Mark was crying when he was getting dressed after his bath b/c he didn't want to get out.  Zach comes in and just hands him a toy, totally unprompted!  I told him how nice and what a good brother he was...to which he replies that he  wants Batman to tell Santa what a good boy he has been being, HA!  Funny kid!

So 15 days till Christmas....I think I am almost done, what about you??

Tis the Season

Another holiday down....and another to go!  Thanksgiving has quickly come and gone and now we are into full fledged Christmas spirit!  It's not even December 1st just yet but I already feel behind and that Christmas will be here before we know it!

We had a wonderful time in Mathis with Matt and his family.  The boys of course were a big hit and they equally loved all of the attention :)  Aunt Debbie lives on a lake so Zach especially loved going out on the pier to see all of the fishies and such.  Travelling makes for an interesting time now...potty stops for Z and screaming for mark ;-)  The younger of the 2 is not a very good traveller, i guess he doesn't like to be constrained?  The random screaming and lack of snoozing in the car made him a less than desirable travel partner, but we grinned and bared it and just had to laugh at the chaos we call life these days!  And also decided we were done travelling at least through the end of the year now! :)

We didn't hit any black Friday sales, but Wal-mart was having an additional sale on Saturday that Matt was out the door early for.  They had a 37" flat screen on sale and that is just the size we need for the armoire we currently have.  I know, our TVs are so out of date (even though they are only like 6 years old),  but we aren't ready to buy new furniture yet so we got one that would fit what we have.  The first walmart Matt went to started their sale early and they were all gone before the sale even started!  He headed to another one and got the 4th to last TV!  Woohoo!  We still need a HD cable box but the TV looks pretty cool already!  we are slowly catching up with the technology! HA!

And my only Cyber Monday purchase was a Christmas present for myself...a Silhouette!!  it is this awesome craft cutter and I cannot wait to get it and start using it!  My craftiness is just about to get kicked up another notch! woohoo!

My plan to be finished with Christmas early is not quite complete so I really  need to get busy this next week and finish shopping.  I would LOVE to have that totally done so not have to worry about it anymore and relax some.  I do have some crafting I need to complete too...some presents as well as some decorations that I would like to have completed soon.  Just not enough hours in the day.

Anyway, I hope you all had a wonderful Thanksgiving and enjoying the start of this blessed holiday season!!

Gobble Gobble!

Happy Thanksgiving, friends!  I hope you are all ready for family, friends, and lots of yummy food!

We are headed to visit Matt's dad's side of the family tomorrow for our Thanksgiving meal.  I am looking forward to seeing everyone and for Mark to meet his Grandma Sally and the rest of the aunts and uncles.  The boys are in for lots of hugs and kisses!

I am also thinking today of my own cousins and aunt today.  One year ago today, my cousin Courtney went to be with our Heavenly Father after a life long battle with Cystic Fibrosis.  I am happy to know that Court is breathing easy now and free of pain...she is surely missed....

And today 2 of my friends' little ones turned 1!  Happy birthday to Evan and Charlotte!

Several friends whose wee ones are celebrating their 1st Thanksgiving tomorrow....Caleb, Nick & Alex, Madeline, Henry, and Teddy...we are so thankful for your precious lives too!

For Matt having a job this year, we have much to be thankful for....

And just for Matt, I am so blessed to have him by my side as husband and my best friend!

For 2 healthy boys, my wonderful blessings...

For FABULOUS  grandparents who help Matt and I out more than they even know and are so loved by their grandsons....

For my girlfriends who are really more like sisters, what fun would life be without you all?!

For Maria, our wonderful nanny, she has been such an immense help to our family and feels more like family every day!

And for so many other things....we have so much to be thankful for....

I pray you are all well and able to spend tomorrow with loved ones and remember to count your blessings!  Happy Thanksgiving...Gobble Gobble! :)

Thanksgiving 2009

November 2010

Cousins

This weekend we made the long trek to Abilene to see Grammy-Gram and Nonna.  Matt's sister, Julie, came down with her family from Lubbock to visit us too.  We had a fun weekend playing....went to Children's Museum, played with lots of cars and blocks, in Nonna's giant backyard, and at the neighborhood elementary school!  Fun was had by all!

The 6 hour road trip was a little bit much on the way there, so we decided to make an impromptu stop in Austin Sunday night to break up the trip.  Pawpaw and Mawmaw Manda were very pleased to see us for our short visit too.  They have some new critters in their yard....chickens!  The boys had a great time chasing them around and hunting for eggs! ;-)

All in all it was a great weekend and it was wonderful to catch up with all the fam!  And now a few pictures for your viewing pleasure!!

Blessing Board

Sunday night I made one my favorite crafts yet!  I stumbled upon this blog, Less then Perfect Life of Bliss.  She made the neatest board to write on daily the things you are thankful for or feeling blessed by...perfect for this thanksgiving season.  All you need is an old frame, some letters, and burlap and fabric and you are good to go!  Julie's was so cute, I pretty much just made it just like hers and I love it!  I have it hanging by my front door but thinking of moving it to somewhere where I can see it more often.  Here are a couple pics before I wrote on it and hung it up!  Go make one too, and be blesssed!!

Crock Pot Mexican Chicken

Somethings I really love about fb, like posting a question and getting like 20 responses!  On Monday I wanted to try a new recipe using 2 things....chicken breasts and my crock pot.  Anything else I was open to!  I honestly have used my crock pot for only 2 things....pot roast and queso and was ready to venture out with something else!

Ashley D. sent me the easiest and tastiest recipe....
*chicken breasts
*can of black beans (drained)
*can of corn (drained)
*can of Rotel or can of diced tomatoes/can of green chilies
*Spices....I added cumin, cayenne pepper, onion and garlic powder/salt
Put all of that into the ole crock and let it go.  I put mine on the 10hr low setting.  About and hour before you are ready to serve, drop a block of reduced fat or ff cream cheese.

OMG, it was so good!  I didn't even have to use a knife on the chicken.  It actually would have been really tasty to shred and put on tortillas (which hubs did for his 2nd serving).  We served ours with a side of Spanish rice and topped with a little fresh avocado.  Delish!! :)

I am totally ready to bust out the crock pot and try some new things.  There were several others that people sent that sounded totally delish too!  Do you have any great crock pot recipes to share?

Countdown to....Christmas??

Oh yes, we are only 4 days past Halloween and now Christmas has EXPLODED everywhere already! Our big shopping centers in town have been sporting the Christmas lights and giant bows and wreaths since like the first of October, but now all the stores are in full out holiday display too! Yesterday when I pulled into the driveway the guys who hung our outdoor Christmas lights last year were making their way around the neighborhood to set up appointments for this year! I personally still want to enjoy the fall some so day after Halloween I pulled everything down and busted out my fall stuff. I love me some more pumpkins and leaves and gourds and TURKEYS of course! I do have a couple of fall projects I want to complete so I better get on it so I can actually enjoy them before it is time to take them down. Seems the boys keep getting to bed later and later and mommy is more and more tired! yawwwwn......not enough time for crafting!!

But anyway, I am still on my quest to have a less stressful and less expensive Christmas. Been trying to shop the sales and use my coupons. I have a couple of gifts for the boys already, something for my mom in the works in my head. Really should make myself a calendar to have completion dates and see if that would help. I actually read a holiday checklist on my RealSimple email this week and thinking maybe I should print it out and try to keep up! So far I am not TOO behind but I think times are going to start going by fast, especially since we have plans I think every weekend until Christmas! :-0

Has anyone else gotten a head start on Christmas and any tips or advice to achieve that all coveted less stressful more enjoyable Christmas?? :)

Halloween 2010

I didnt get a very good picture of the boys together in costume, Zachary was too ready to go get his candy!! Note to self, take pictures BEFORE it is time to go trick or treating! ;-) We had a good time walking around the section of our neighborhood and Zachary got WAY too much candy for a little boy. People must have been heavy handed passing out candy because we didn't go to that many houses! Markey was definitely a favorite and looked adorable in his pea pod costume, especially toddling down the street after brother. Even Esther got to come with us on our walk in her halloween collar. Grammy came with us to help with the crew and it was much appreciated! Now...on to preparing for Thanksgiving and Christmas! :)