The Truth will set you free!

Many of my friends remember this story. I have since had to remove the original post due to unwanted guests. That is another story. All I will say is Site Meter can give you more information than just how many visitors you have. It can tell you what posts are being visited and with a little investigation (when something doesn't seem right) you can find out if your visitors are friendly or hateful people. I digress. Onto the point of the story. My sweet little JB was accused of the following crime: Unlawful use of a Marker!


We assumed he did it. He was holding the marker when we discovered the offense and therefore we concluded he was guilty. Our court was closed. End of story. Or so we thought! Today, JB pulled out Buzz to play and brought a wipe to me. He said "Mom, can you help me cwean Buzz off?" HC was standing there and said "I did that Mom." She said it so softly and as though it was finally confession time. She said, "I told a lie. JB didn't do it. I did." I asked, "Did you color the wall, sofa and buzz and JB or did JB do some too?" She said, "I did all of it. JB didn't do it."

I sent her to her room to think about what she did AND so I could gather my thoughts. When she returned, from her room, she looked at me with her puppy dog eyes and asked what would happen. I told her she needed to take all of her coins in her piggy bank and buy JB a new Buzz AND a Woody too! The Buzz would replace the one she ruined and the Woody was because she lied. She cried because she loves putting money in her piggy bank and wants her money to grow. I told her that she needed to do the right thing and replace it since she damaged his toy.

Can you believe??? I mean we were CONVINCED that JB did this!! No doubt whatsoever. I feel awful. He didn't get into trouble but we did fuss at him for the mess and made a big deal (in a this is wrong way not mean way) so he would not do this again!! She sat and watched that unfold with no remorse or anything. I guess we have the truth now but I am still shocked!! Oh well. That is finally over and done.

Cookies and Friends and Fun

We had a fun adventure this Wednesday. We made cookies and had a fun party with a few friends. HC is all about cooking and baking!! She had a ton of fun working on her little masterpieces.
Focus, focus!!
You see it right?? Reindeer??? :) Take my word for it! haha
The kids had just as much fun eating them as they had making them. Of course, JB was there too. He just had NO interest in baking. He was too busy investigating all the toys in the play room. That doesn't mean he wasn't up for eating a cookie or two!! Thanks Olivia!! We had fun creating with you!!
Did I mention that I just LOVE Christmas??? :) And this is only the beginning of all the celebrating. I love it! I love it!! I love it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

December 1st

Thanksgiving. Check. December 1st. Check. Purchase Christmas Tree. Check. Unpack Christmas Decorations. Check Check Check!! YIPEEEEE!!! PARTY TIME!!! Happy Happy Joy Joy! This year our holidays are proving to be HUGE celebrations. I am sooo loving it!! I am ALL about the holidays. I so wanted to share each one with my kids from day one. But as you know, an infant just doesn't get it like you want them to! (smile)

Our (Hubby and me) first 5 or so Thanksgivings together ended with the thrill of buying our Christmas tree first thing the next morning! We soon realized our tree remained prettier if we waited until December 1st to purchase our tree. So our tradition now is tree hunting on December 1st. Here is our tree, we found a couple cute elves while we were out and we HAD to have them! :)
Here are our elves helping Daddy unload the tree and bring it inside. Notice the tippie toes.
After unloading the tree, the elves needed a nap. While they napped, Mommy and Daddy were busy decorating for this precious holiday. The kids woke, they ate dinner, took a bath and the fun was in revealing the contents of each and every box. The animated characters are always a hit!
The kids loved hearing the Nativity Globe play Away in a Manger. They listened intently over and over and over again.
I finally finished decorating our tree. This is the biggest tree we've ever had!! It was 9 feet tall. Good G0lly Miss M0lly!!! I almost used every ornament I owned on this one. :) I didn't decorate the back. I usually do but not this time!!! So here is our decorated tree. I would love to learn more about photography. I never capture a true picture of how our tree looks. With a flash it looks so drab and without a flash all you see are little white lights. My tree is much more beautiful in person.
Last year I took HC to a preschool breakfast and they gave us a handout with the Christmas Story (Luke 2). I put it in a frame next to our nativity scene. I want to be sure Santa isn't the sole focus of our Christmas celebration.And finally the stockings were hung by the chimney with care. In hopes that St. Nicholas.....Something tells me this will be a year to remember!!!!!!!!!!! The kids are already drinking it all in. I cannot wait!

MorningSong

Wednesday Hero

This Week's Hero Was Suggested By Mark Bell

Marty and Sue Horn



Born in Philadelphia, Marty Horn spent 20 years in the Army as a Military Policeman, retiring in 1993 and going to work in Internet technologies. In 2003, his son Brian Horn deployed to Iraq. Trying to support their son’s unit, Marty and his wife Sue, who also served as in the Military Police, put together the concept of Any Soldier. In essence, Any Soldier is an effort to provide support and encouragement to those who are in harm’s way. Due to overwhelming requests for ready-made care packages on the AnySoldier.com site, Sue Horn started TreatAnySoldier.com.

Using his background in Internet technologies, Marty built and maintains the web site. The Any Soldier program slowly expanded to include other Army units. In 2004, the program opened up to include all service branches.. In 2005, the websites for AnyMarine.com., AnySailor.com, AnyAirman.com, and AnyCoastguardsman.com were launched.

In the words of the Any Soldier web site: "The success of Any Soldier has far exceeded expectations and continues to grow with the invaluable help and guidance of our supporters, board members and Support Team."

In the words of Marty Horn: "It is the supporters who deserve the credit."

Thanks to the efforts of Marty and Sue, their son Brian, and a dedicated staff, over 950,000 servicemen and women received support and encouragement they would never have been able to get through the Any Soldier program.

These brave men and women sacrifice so much in their lives so that others may enjoy the freedoms we get to enjoy everyday. For that, I am proud to call them Hero.
We Should Not Only Mourn These Men And Women Who Died, We Should Also Thank God That Such People Lived

This post is part of the Wednesday Hero Blogroll. For more information about Wednesday Hero, or if you would like to post it on your blog, you can go here.

Our 1st Family Movie

Twas the Friday before Thanksgiving, when all through the house, Not a creature was stirring - because.... we were at the movies!!! It was our first family movie and it was AWESOME!!! Last year( I think) I took HC to see a movie with a friend. I don't even remember the name of it. It was a fun time but a forgettable movie. This was a special treat!!!! We had soooo much fun and the movie was great!

Tickets please!!!
Movie snacks!!! Watching a few previews.
The best thing about a matinee on a Friday is - you have the theatre to yourself!!!!
Here are the guys, happy for sure! The best part of all is that Daddy took his lunch to see this movie with us!!
We were ready for them to roll tape! HC became a little concerned that it may be dark outside when the lights were dimmed for the previews. It was quite a distraction for her, for about 30 minutes. I could not convince her that it was only dark inside, and the sun was still bright and shining outside, until we went outside again! :)
And the snack cups for the kids were Bee cups!! What a great reminder of a fun time! Needless to say these cups are the new favorites!!! We had so much fun and I cannot wait for the movie to come out on DVD. I am sure it will be a while but HC and JB mention the movie often. HC called it the puppet show at first. So fun!

MorningSong

Tiny Talk Tuesday

Mary at Not Before 7 is hosting Tiny Talk Tuesday. You should visit her blog for more details on the contest she is hosting as well!! She is giving away a kids Christmas music CD to one lucky participant!!!

I asked HC, my 4 year old daughter, the following questions. I really enjoyed hearing her answers!!

1. Why do we celebrate Christmas?
(Thoughtfully) Cuz, Christmas. O, I don't want to tell you. I will tell you tomorrow.
2. What is your favorite food/treat to eat at Christmas time?
Gingerbread Cookies
3. What would you like for Christmas?
I would like purple stickers and purple cupcakes and a purple teddy bear. That's all I want and a purple cookie and purple cereal. That's what I want for Christmas.
4. What is your favorite Christmas decoration in our house?
The Christmas Tree, I like the trumpet decorations, I like my Christmas tree in my room and JB's Christmas tree in his room.
5. Why do we give presents?
Cuz it's Christmas (with hands up in the air as if that's how it works)

Thanks for sharing these fun questions with us Mary!! I had a blast finding out what HC thought of them. Her answers were so precious. I am glad I have these memories recorded now.

MorningSong

Blanket. Done!

I brought the kids on an errand to Hancock's a few weeks ago. My mission was to find the finishing pieces for a few dresses. As we were seeking out good finds something caught JB's eye. All of a sudden I hear him squeal and chant "Wook, WOOK Mom!!! It's Coos Coos. It's Coos Coos!!!!!!!!" First of all I tried to quiet him down, he NEVER behaves this way and it startled me. Then I realized what caught his eye. It was this Blue's Clues Fabric.

I rarely make anything for JB these days. I learned to sew after he was too big for the jumpers. He's all about the t-shirts and shorts now. Too big for the baby jumpers - sigh. (I wish I learned sooner.) I had to buy the Coos Coos fabric of course and I found a blue satin fabric to make him this blanket.

The reverse is all satin. My corners are not perfect - I wish I knew how to make square corners. Is there a secret to it?? If you know, let me know! JB LOVES his 'Coos Coos' Blanket! I am thrilled to make him anything, especially if he loves it.
I finished the evening by making HC yet another pillowcase dress. It frustrates me a little tiny bit (if I let it), that HC will only wear specific types of dresses. I have patterns for other cute dresses and patterns for awesome ruffle pants/shorts and she refuses to wear them. She is all about dresses and they must not be fitted. She likes the freedom of flowing dresses. That isn't so bad really, the dresses I make her ARE cute - they are just one style. I want to try other patterns. Anyway, HC is more than thankful when I make dresses for her. I can't complain really. So I won't! (smile)

Here is the latest dress. I took this picture after returning from church. HC was tired and NOT in the mood to be photographed.
I am thankful I finally learned to sew. Sewing was one of those things I always wished I learned. My next goal is to learn how to make a quilt. It is a long term goal. You won't be seeing any quilts I've made for a while I think. But when I do make one - you will be the first to know!

My Apologies

I have not been visiting your blogs lately. I apologize for that. I am trying to come up with a better plan for my computer time. I try to post several posts at one time, so the posts are ready before I need them. This keeps me from constantly being on the computer while my kids say "Mom, Mom, Mom - do you hear me Mom?". I hate that!! I will try to work on a better visiting plan this week. I just want to make my time with the kids fun and I want them to have my full attention. My goal is to not be on the computer while they are awake. So excuse me while I work on my computer schedule. Blessings to you all!! I will make my way to your blogs asap. I enjoy my time in your world too and I do plan on finding a way to bring that fun back into my world. Thanks for your patience with me.

What a year!

I have not watched SportsCenter and ESPN and OTHER teams play football more than I have this year. I am exhausted and completely drained. I cannot believe this football season!!!! My Tigers actually have a go at the BCS Championship Game!! I feel like I held my breath more as the season came to a close and I am more than relieved for the month my team has to rest and re-cooperate! I can mentally prepare myself too!!

I am sure I have learned tons this football season! I have always been a faithful fan but this year has really informed me beyond my desire to know! haha We are headed for THE Championship Game and this year has been crazy to say the least! So I cannot go without saying once again...

GEAUX TIGERS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We will see Ohio State on January 7th in New Orleans!! I am truly amazed!!!!!!