It's the most wonderful time of the year!

I must say that this is my favorite time of the year! I love the weather, the fall smells and colors, Thanksgiving, decorating for Christmas, and Christmas time! It's the best! We had a great Thanksgiving this year. We began by celebrating with some of Joe's family and some family friends on the Wednesday before Thanksgiving. Joe's cousin, Dan, grilled some amazing steaks (his specialty : )), and I made some carrot souffle and some Not-Yo-Momma's banana pudding. Yum! (I will try and post the carrot recipe tomorrow...it is sooo good!). It was a lot of fun. The next day we headed over to Macon to eat Thanksgiving at my parent's house. I wish I would've taken a picture of all the food we had there. My word! It was enough for everyone to eat their fill, eat supper later that night, take plates home, and there was still some left. So much food! But I gotta say that it was incredible! My grandmother's dressing is the best stuff I've ever had. I've got to get that recipe. I was also able to do a little shopping with my sister that night (found some good deals at Michael's) and then my sister colored my hair for me (Yay!). We got back late that night and did a little Black Friday shopping. I love getting a good deal! I found some nice jewelry and used a great coupon at Bath and Body. That night Joe and I had a great, long date. Today was Christmas decorating day. I played Christmas music, put up the tree, decorated it, and put up the decorations. I'll have more pics of that, later. I just love being with my family, listening to Christmas music, and preparing for the fun-filled, busy month ahead . I'm so thankful for God's blessing on our lives and the way He provides for us.

May He be the center of our season! God bless!

A lasting legacy

What a crazy week. For those of you out there who don't know, Joe's dad unexpectedly passed away on Tuesday night. We had a good bit of family come in for the visitation and funeral. I just want to say to everyone that we were so blessed by the food, cards, flowers, and so many other expressions of love towards all of us. It was also a blessing to hear the story of how Joe's father became a Christian and the legacy that he has left behind. So that makes me think...what do I want my legacy to be? Joe and I talked about this before we got married. We talked about wanting to pray that our children and grandchildren and even great-grandchildren would know the Lord and serve Him. Joe's dad didn't grow up in a Christian home. In fact, he dropped out of school in the 8th grade and started working. He did some construction and electrical work, and one day started working for a holiness preacher. This preacher would share about Christ with Joe's dad, and one day was praying for him and asking God to turn him from his wicked ways. He didn't know Joe's dad could hear him. But hearing that prayer turned Joe's dad to the Lord and changed his life forever. Joe's uncle and others told of times when Joe's dad witnessed to people he came in contact with. It made me think about how I need to be more bold...and excited and fired up...about sharing what God has done for me. To do this, you must think ahead, be prepared, but also follow and obey the Lord's leading. You have to be proactive. If Joe and I do this, think of the legacy we will leave for our children. They will see how much their parents value sharing the Good News. What do I show my children now? If they looked at how I spent my time, what would they think was the most important thing in my life? I shudder to think of the answer to that question. Oh, how I want to leave them with a legacy of Christ...knowing Him, serving Him, and proclaiming His truth to others. At the graveside, the pastor used this song as a way to describe Joe's dad's life. It was recorded by Steve Green. It's entitled, "Find Us Faithful". The chorus says,

Oh may all who come behind us, find us faithful

May the fire of our devotion light their way

Let the footprints that we leave

Lead them to believe

That the lives we live, inspire them to obey

Oh may all who come behind us, find us faithful



Great song and a great challenge to me.

Ikea!

I'm not a big shopper, but I love Ikea! I only get around to going there about once a year, but when I do get to go, I spend half of my time there looking around saying, "I LOVE that! I LOVE this!" and wishing I could totally redo my house Ikea style. What a fun place! Well, last Tuesday I was able to go up with the kids and my mom and meet my best friend, Kim, who I haven't seen in over a year, and her son, Elijah. It was awesome just to get to see her. It was fun to be able to shop around together and get some neat things. It was like old times.

Here are some pictures of some of my favorite things that I got. I bought this green leaf canopy thing to go over Isaac's bed. He has a lot of windows in his room, so I thought this might block some of the light. He also doesn't have a mobile, so I though this would be something fun for him to look at. I also LOVE these mixing bowls. One is kind of small...just right for small amounts. The other oneis really big, which is great for cakes, etc. I wish I would've bought more, since they were only about $3.50 for both of them!! They also have a rubber bottom so they won't slip. The ones in this picture are white, but the ones I got are sky blue color. So...if you're ever in the mood to go to Ikea...just let me know :-).

Blessings!

Conversation with Sophie

Sophie is at such a fun age. I can sit and talk to her and have a conversation with her and she will say the funniest things! We were just sitting at the lunch table and she was talking about Swiper the fox. For those of you who are not familiar with Dora the Explorer, there is a "sneaky fox" named Swiper on the show who likes to take things from Dora and her friends. Back to the table...

Sophie: Swiper, where are you?! (loudly)

Me: Sophie, Swiper's not here. Where is he?

Sophie: He's at work.

Me: Oh, really? Where does he work?

Sophie: At the class.

Me: Ok, what kind of class?

Sophie: (Gives an answer I don't understand...then says..) Mom, Swiper LOVES Kristen (a girl at church in her class).

Me: He does?

Sophie: Yes, He LOVES Kristen. Swiper loves Annie, too. (another girl in her class)

Me: Does Swiper love you?

Sophie: No. (pause for a minute) Mom, I love Swiper. I want to call him.

Me: Ok. If you call him, what will you say?

Sophie: Buenos Dias (in the voice of the Sleepy Sloth on Dora...so cute!!)...

Me: (smiling) Sophie, that is so cute! You sound like the Sleepy Sloth!

Sophie: Yes, I sound like the Sleepy Slopth (she pronounces it with a "p" in there...makes it even cuter :))

At this point, I try to get the video camera to see if I can record her saying this stuff...but the battery didn't work! So I had to run in here and type it up before I forgot!

Sophie also loves to draw on her magna doodle. She was drawing all these lines. She said...Mom, I drew a snake! I said...wow, Sophie! That's a good snake. She said...it's a PRETTY snake :-). Then she drew some more lines...one that looked like a letter J. I said...that's a J Sophie! She said...it's a PRETTY J. :-)

I love these kiddos!

It's been a while!

Wow...it's been a while since I've blogged! I've missed getting on here, but we've been so busy! Last weekend, Joe and I finally got to get away for our anniversary, which was actually last month. It was so much fun! We headed over to Macon and spend the night at my parents. The next day we left the kids with my family and headed off to Braselton, where we went out to eat and spent the night. The next day we were able to go to the UGA vs Tennessee Tech game in Athens! We had a great time at the game! The time just seemed to fly by. It said that it was 68 degrees...but for those of us who were in the direct sunlight, it felt more like 78! After the game, Joe and I headed back home and went through Madison on our way. I love Madison! We had a great meal at the Chop House and I was able to get a chocolate/caramel dipped apple (awesome!!) at a candy shop there! Then we got to Macon and I stayed at my parents until today, which Joe got back from the Georgia Baptist Convention. I had a lot of fun with my family and friends in Macon, but I'm glad to be back in Eastman. Here are a few pics from our time at the game.

Hope you all are doing great! God bless!

Happy Reformation Day

We had a great time this past weekend! We got to eat with my family at Red Lobster for my mom's birthday. Sophie had a great time putting the biscuit basket on top of Mimi's head :-).
Later that night we were at Mimi and D's house and Uncle Carl put his Dawgs hat on Isaac. Go dawgs!


It's time to head back home. My little dinosaur is sound asleep....

Hope you had a great Reformation Day!