The joy of Christmas

Dear W & G,

It was my honest intent to do this on Christmas Eve, but by the time Santa had arrived, I was just too pooped out. The year has been one of my best Christmases ever. The time I have spent with you two has been priceless. We've been a part of countless Christmas parties, sung Christmas songs again and again, rode the Santa Express, visited Zoolight Safari and even had a few visits from Santa.

W, my darling boy, this is the first year you truly get Christmas. You've spent countless hours pouring over the Toys R Us catalog, eyeing a Zoo set with "all dose animals" and wondering if Santa is going to bring you. You've also been worrying about if mommy and daddy can take away your new toys if you misbehave and the unfortunate answer to that is yes. But, you are a wonderful boy, and even if you do lose them for a day or two, I promise we will give them back. It's also been a season of "Why?", because that is your favorite question these days. You're very inquisitive and want to understand why things are done. More importantly, we've spoken of how Christmas is baby Jesus's birthday and that He is the reason we give presents at Christmas. It makes me so happy to share that with you and that you are beginning to learn about our faith. I love you so much and pray that you continue to grow strong in the Lord and know the peace that only He brings.

G, my little imp, you are so precious to me. This year you understand that Santa says "Ho Ho" and you are perhaps understanding that with Ho Ho comes gifts. You are mischievous and it is that little giggle and infectious smile which gets you out of trouble most days. You are naturally curious and have broken no less than 10 ornaments this year, which is ok by me because I'd live with 10,000 broken ornaments to have you in my life. The thing you loved most during this Christmas season is the Advent calendar, not necessarily because you understand what it was about, but rather you understood it's contents...chocolate. You will beg incessantly for it because you, my sweet baby, love sweets. This year your big gift was a Little Tikes Cozy Coupe. You practically hyperventilate when you see one so Santa thought you deserved one of your own. You enter it a la Dukes of Hazard style and ride around it while going "beep, beep." You...are...simply...adorable.

While this season brings us great joy, there is always a little sadness. This year marks my second Christmas without my mother, your "Gigi" and your daddy's 3rd Christmas without his mother, your "Grandma." It breaks our hearts that you didn't get to have them longer. They loved you both so very much and I firmly believe that they are your special angels from above, keeping a watchful eye over you. Your daddy and I are very grateful though for your grandfathers who love you both dearly. It is our sincerest hope that you have them for a long time and have great relationships with Papa and Grandpa.

As Christmas comes to a close, we pray that you both feel the fullness of our love and the fullness of our Father in Heaven's love. Because, W and G, you are our joy of Christmas and are so precious to us. Merry Christmas, sweet babies.

Love,

Mama

Leaving cookies, Christmas pretzels and milk for Santa

plus a few carrots for the reindeer.

Our tree

W's loot

G's loot

Can we open dis? Can we open it?

Can we open dis?!! PLEEEEASE!

Whatcha doin, Daddy? Can we help?

i love my vacuum cleaner. I love my hat.

I love my vacuum cleaner and hat.

Playing with our new garage.

Not really a 2-seater.

Alright, I'll push you.

a southern christmas meal

This is the first year that we aren't doing a big extended family Christmas dinner. Growing up, I had several Christmas dinners so to speak. We always got together with my mother's family (a grandmother "Granny", 5 sisters, 1 brother, their spouses and all the children) the weekend before Christmas. Then, we did the big Christmas dinner on Christmas Eve with my father's family (1 grandmother, 1 grandfather, 3 sisters, 1 brother, their spouses and again a whole passel of children).

Neither of the get-togethers were fancy. It was strictly potluck, but we had more food than you could ever imagine - turkey, ham, chicken, dressing, appetizers, casseroles galore, desserts. Every female had a new dish plus the one they had perfected throughout the years that they wanted to showcase, so to speak. No one, male or female, made a fuss over who was carving the turkey, but Southern women do stake a claim whose makes the dressing.

You see, whether you know it or not, there is a difference between stuffing and dressing. Stuffing is good, but dressing, well good dressing, is like a piece of Heaven. My mother, for years, was the queen bee when it came to dressing. In fact, I was well into my 30s before she would even share her recipe with me and even then, it was pinch of this and pinch of that until it reaches a trick, soupy consistency. No genuine recipe, for sure. But, with much guidance and trial, I think my dressing is really close to my mother's. When my mother passed, I thought I might be able to make her dressing and bring it to the family gatherings. I soon learned otherwise as the next one on the matriarchal list quickly let me know that she had the dressing covered.

Back to the Christmas dinners, by the time Christmas day actually arrived, my mother was quite tired of Christmas/holiday food so she instituted the big Christmas breakfast and light lunch/dinner for the other meal.

After I got married, the holidays became much more stressful with the addition of my husband's family. It's the juggling of family time that makes the holidays so hard. The first few years of marriage, we nearly killed ourselves trying to split the day with each of our families and finally we came up with a system. One family will get Thanksgiving day and the other family will get Christmas day and the next year we flip. It seems to be working for now.

This year, we will have my dad, his friend and my niece over at our house on Christmas eve and then my dad is planning on coming over on Christmas day for a bit. That is, if weather allows. You see, they are predicting measurable snow in Alabama on Christmas day. If it happens, it would be the first time ever recorded and it means that my dad probably won't make it to the house since we live up on a mountain and the roads won't be driveable. So, it may just be me and the boys on Christmas day.

In any case, it's a little surreal for me to think that all of Christmas dinner is up to me, but I'm getting a little handle on it and have been having some fun planning it out. So, without a further ado, I bring you this Southern woman's menu:

Christmas Eve

Apply Cider Vinaigrette Salad with dried cranberries, walnuts, and feta

Shish Kabobs

Roasted Asparagus

Baked potatoes

Rosemary bread

Chocolate Turtle Cheesecake

Christmas Day

Smoked turkey breasts

Honey glazed ham

Stuffed celery

Mama's cornbread dressing

Sweet potato casserole

Green beans

Cranberry orange relish

Rolls

Egg custard pie

Perhaps, with it potentially being a Christmas without the the extended family, I could take a less ambitious approach to the food, but what's the fun of that? So if you're in the area, and you feel like dropping by, come on over! We may still be in our pj's but the the food will be divine.

The Christmas Story Through a Mother's Eyes

This was posted on my mom's Bible study blog. It's a really nice article that I thought was worthy of reposting...

"The Christmas story holds new meaning for me this year as a mother. Whether you believe as a Christian or simply know the story, it's an incredible one.

Mary of Nazareth was no more than 15 years old when the angel Gabriel came to her and said she would bear the Son of God, that she would carry -- through the power of the Holy Spirit -- the Savior of the world. She was engaged to an older man, a carpenter named Joseph. Though she was scared and had no idea if her husband-to-be would believe this divine event had really occurred, she simply said, "Let it happen as God so chooses."

And then there's Joseph. Imagine finding out that your bride-to-be is pregnant before your wedding day -- before you've even had "relations" -- and she tells you a story about being the one chosen to carry the fruit of the Holy Spirit. Joseph believed and supported her.

When Mary was nine months pregnant, they were forced to travel well over 70 miles (by donkey!) to the town of Bethlehem, where they were to take part in the census. While there, it came time for Mary to give birth. With all the people in town for the census, there was not an inn or house that had room for them. So they settled in a stable, the only shelter available -- even for a mother about to give birth. Jesus was born in a manger, amongst common barn animals. No doctor. No drugs. No privacy. No family but Joseph and the shepherds looking on.

While this story took place more than 2,000 years ago, it holds some amazing truths for families like mine and yours, no matter what holidays you celebrate. It's a story of incredible faith, of ultimate sacrifice and love, of believing in what you cannot see -- all things that in today's time seem so far-fetched. To endure a lifetime with a child, knowing that he would be taken from you too soon ... how many of us would do that today?

As a Catholic, I have always considered Mary to be the ultimate symbol of what a mother should be. And now that I have my own child, I recognize her strength that much more. To give both physically and emotionally without thinking comes with the territory for us mothers. And in this season, the story is a constant reminder of the sacrifices we make each day for our children. "

written by: Christina Montoya Fiedler resides in Los Angeles, Calif., with husband Andy and son Joseph. She juggles baby and work from home as a freelance publicist and attributes her strong love for life and sense of humor to her loving familia.

From www.momlogic.com

A couple of cute pics...

I have such a hard time getting pics of the boys interacting. Most of the time, by the time I find my camera, the moment has past and someone is left in tears. But, today I caught 2 really precious pictures and thought I would share.

Breakfast is so much better

when you have a brother to share it with.

Lil'G loves story time by big brother

W says..

I thought it would be cute to do a post along the lines of "kids say the darnedest things." As an almost 3-1/2 yo, W comes up with some pretty funny stuff sometimes. So here are a few:

* "Mama, when you grow up you're going to be a new mommy." Mmmm, alright?

* "When Honey (our almost 10yo Boxer) grows up, he's gonna be a new puppy." If it were only that simple.

* W: "Knock, knock."

Me: "Who's there?"

W: "Elephant"

Me: "Elephant who?"

W: "Elephant eats carrots. Hahahaha! Dat's funny."

* "Daddy, you're a real boy." As opposed to a fake one...

* "We can't go to the Zoo at night. The animals are sweeping. Maybe, next summer."

* "Greysie, you can't go out of Honey's door. It's for dogs. You're a boy, ok? Maybe, next December."

Kendall Boggs Contest

This is from http://kendallboggsfineart.blogspot.com/ Go for your chance to win a new painting for your home!

From Kendall:

Time for a Christmas GIVEAWAY! I'm doing this one a little different this time! I'm gonna let YOU chose which of these two paintings you want (once you win) I'm also gonna change up the rules a bit.

Okeey Dokey

You can have a chance to post 3 times!

For one post....tell me your favorite Christmas memory

To post twice? sign up to follow my blog (or if you're already a follower, tell a friend!)

To post THREE times???? Tell everyone about my contest on YOUR blog or cut and paste on your facebook page!!! (be sure and post your blog site in your post)

These are the two paintings:

"Father, Son, and The Holy Spirit"

15 x 30 mixed media on gallery wrapped canvas - unframed

550.00

"Four Dripping Trees"

15 x 30 mixed media on gallery wrapped canvas - unframed

550.00

Contest ends Tuesday, December 14th at 6 p.m. CST

My trusty random number generator will pick!

Good luck everyone!!!

and

Merry Christmas!

To my surprise...

S and I were watching the news this morning and what to my wandering eyes should appear is my "niece" who is really my cousin's child should appear. They were doing a feature on a woman who become an artist after working with the kids at Camp Smile-A-Mile which is a camp primarily for children with cancer or in remission for cancer. When my sweet niece was 2-1/2 she was diagnosed with leukemia. It was such devastating news, but through the grace of God she has been in remission for 8 or so years now. God is so good.

This wonderful, adorable, smart and sassy girl can be found at 1:15. I love you, sweet girl!

W's 1st Christmas program

It was one for the memory books for sure, because it turned out nothing like I expected. Where to begin? From little G singing along to Jingle Bells "HEY!" to him yelling "Bubby, BUUUUUBBBEEEE!" upon spotting W, he was quite the handful. Thankfully, S is a great guy and took care of the screamin'demon. Besides that, it was my baby's first Christmas program and I couldn't wait to hear him sing his little heart out. I knew it was going to be so special. That is, until I saw him marching in, and I knew from the moment I spotted him that he had a little problem that he was fixated on. For your viewing pleasure, I bring you "W's first Christmas program."

my song

I thought I'd share something cute. W is totally into Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer this year. He loves to sing both songs. In fact, he has started calling Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer "my song". As in, "Mama, sing my song." Or "Mama, I'm going to see my song." Too stinking cute. I finally got him to let me record it.

As cute at that video is, I tried get him to sing it again and get better footage, but he staunchly refused and then stated he'd sing Frosty instead. Did you know Frosty has a gumpin nose, not a button nose? LOL! As you can see, he doesn't quite have it down pat yet. In any case, I'm sure that by December 25th he will know it word for word.

Blue Monday

This week has been way too depressing. Last week, a teacher at the boys school lost her 3yo son quite unexpectedly. On Friday, I found out that a cousin had been out hunting, shot a buck, brought it back to the truck and apparently had a massive heart attack and passed away while waiting to meet up with his hunting buddies. The thing that is so shocking about this is that he was in great physical shape and only 39. He leaves behind a 10 yo son and a 4 yo daughter. Today, I hear of a child from my hometown who tried to commit suicide. When his family found him, he was already brain dead and despite the best medical efforts, he passed today. He was in middle school. Life can be so hard sometimes. All I want to do is hold tight to my precious babies, thank God for his mercy, and pray for peace to those who are hurting so badly right now.

God's grace is so good and he is waiting to pour out his love on those who ask. When a believing person prays, great things can happen. So tonight I am praying. May peace find all who desperately need it.

santa express plus christmas parade equals tons of fun

We have been having the best weekend. Last night we celebrated S's birthday with a great group of friends. I was a little nervous because we were bringing a couple of different circles of friends together and you never quite know how that will go, but it went really well. However, I think the best part was that it was an adults only party and my awesome aunt kept the boys for the night so we wouldn't have to worry about picking them up late at night.

It was surprisingly eery this morning though when we woke up, because there was no sounds of little children in the house and everything was in the same place we put it the night before. You know we've really adapted to having kids when the quiet and neatness gets to us. Ha! In any case, I really missed my stinkers and couldn't wait to pick them up, because...

We had tickets to the Santa Express! W and G are really into trains and they got to go on an hour long train ride with a certain man in red making an appearance. Making the whole experience even better was having my aunt and her granddaughter (my cousin's child) come with us. W and his cousin, T, are 6 months apart in age and always have a fantastic time together.

Checking it out with daddy

Mommy says don't forget about me!

Trains are cool.

Hi!

Cousins at play

Auntie S, T and W

All aboard!

Are we ready yet?

The choo-choo goes "WOO-WOO."

Scolding Santa's Elf for sneaking the train without a ticket.

I got to say that the conductor was pretty cool.

Visiting with the big guy, Mr. Ho Ho Ho himself.

The plan was to go home after the train ride but as luck would have it, the town I grew up in was having their Christmas parade so we decided to stay and enjoy it.

In front of my grandmother's house

which is now owned by my aunt.

Enjoying his view of the parade

No matter how old you are,

everyone loves parade candy.

Thanksgiving at school

I'm trying to get caught up so there are a couple of posts here. :P

Will's school puts on an AMAZING Thanksgiving feast for its students and their families and this year was no different. Here's a couple of pictures of my little Indian.

Thanksgiving at the farm

When it comes to the holidays, each year we alternate Thanksgiving between the families. This year we spent Turkey Day with my FIL, SIL and her family. S went up on Monday; the boys and I went up on Tuesday. One of goals while there was to spend some time at the family farm, and in particular, I wanted to attempt to have our Christmas card photo taken there. As anyone who has had small children or has small kids knows, trying to get that perfect picture is often an exercise in futility. Here's a peak at one such attempt:

Despite it all, we did have a lot of fun. After our pictures were taken, we changed into comfy clothes (read: clothes that I wouldn't stroke out if something happened to them) and all went for a ride in the Gator. As luck would have it, we spotted 6 or 7 turkeys and a couple of deer. A bit later, we put G down for a nap and left W to have some fun with Grandpa as S and I went for a more "exciting" John Deere Gator ride (going up and down some very steep hills).

Boys goofing off in the shed.

Back into my picture outfit after Grandpa let me go

for an accidental swim in the pond.

late pumpkin patch pics

We went together to the pumpkin patch back on October 16th, but we forgot to put the memory card in our camera which wouldn't be so bad since our camera will hold a certain number of photos without the card. Ok, no problem, except we had misplaced our USB to camera cord and had been just using the card reader. Well, praise be! I found our camera cord today and downloaded the pics. And, you know, the world was completely missing our on seeing our Pumpkin Patch pics, right?

Riding my wagon and taking it all in.

Fun in the trailer filled with "cah-tin!"

Made it to the top!

Ready to get down.

Giddy-up!

Can you boys sit here for a picture for mama?

Okay, look at mommy.

Ok, guess not. I give up.

Let's go pick pumpkins.

Dis one.

Cooling it with the pumpkins.

"Ah" see horsey.

Hey, who goooooeess there?

We love farm animules.