1 more time in 2009

well hello. i wasn't sure if i'd make it back here before the new year but since we aren't traveling, i thought i'd pop in and say hello. georgia has been sick so our plans have changed a bit, but no worries. she's fine now and family is traveling to see us instead which is nice. anyway, we have had a great holiday. my family was here for christmas eve and dinner was great {more on that later}. christmas day was nice too. we gave georgia a few gifts and just enjoyed being together. believe it or not, i didn't take one single picture. shame on me i know. was just too busy enjoying the company. and speaking of company, since we didn't make it to georgia after christmas too see other family, some have already come to see us...

this is harold's sister and her husband. we dont' get to see them much so it was nice to spend a little time with them. we're lobbying for them to move south when they finish school in oklahoma. i think georgia may be the deciding factor. she is in love with her uncle jeff and he's just as smitten. harold's parents are headed our way tomorrow so all we're missing is uncle tim who's already on a plane to arizona. guess we'll catch him next time.

anyway, since we've been holed up in the house all week i've tried to come up with some fun things to do like coloring...painting...crafts, etc. sounds good right? well. this is how it went...

me: georgia baby, you are supposed to color on the coloring book.

jojo: {silence} then 'o-tay'

me: but you didn't did you? what happened?

jojo: {silence again}

me: how did you get color on your face baby?

jojo: {silence and begins showing me how she got color on her face}

me: baby, that's yucky. let's not color on your face. put the markers up and we'll try again later.

jojo: {silence, then puts top on marker then says} 0-tay

she knew she was wrong for that. she's never that silent. so the next day we painted. by the time i reached for the camera it was already out of control...

she painted on every surface available...herself included. the paint said washable and it was. except out of fabric. so now she has a really 'decorated' sleeper. which is fine. and i have a really decorated washcloth. which is fine too.

and the funny thing is while i was taking pictures of her painting, harold was just looking at me like this...

this look means "are you really taking pictures of this? surely this isn't what you had in mind."
well, not much in life is what i had in mind my dear, but it sure is fun anyway. stains and all.

we have georgia's 18 month appointment this afternoon so more to come 'bout this big girl running around here.

hope you all had a very merry christmas. love from our very messy house :)

1 more time in 2009

well hello. i wasn't sure if i'd make it back here before the new year but since we aren't traveling, i thought i'd pop in and say hello. georgia has been sick so our plans have changed a bit, but no worries. she's fine now and family is traveling to see us instead which is nice. anyway, we have had a great holiday. my family was here for christmas eve and dinner was great {more on that later}. christmas day was nice too. we gave georgia a few gifts and just enjoyed being together. believe it or not, i didn't take one single picture. shame on me i know. was just too busy enjoying the company. and speaking of company, since we didn't make it to georgia after christmas too see other family, some have already come to see us...

this is harold's sister and her husband. we dont' get to see them much so it was nice to spend a little time with them. we're lobbying for them to move south when they finish school in oklahoma. i think georgia may be the deciding factor. she is in love with her uncle jeff and he's just as smitten. harold's parents are headed our way tomorrow so all we're missing is uncle tim who's already on a plane to arizona. guess we'll catch him next time.

anyway, since we've been holed up in the house all week i've tried to come up with some fun things to do like coloring...painting...crafts, etc. sounds good right? well. this is how it went...

me: georgia baby, you are supposed to color on the coloring book.

jojo: {silence} then 'o-tay'

me: but you didn't did you? what happened?

jojo: {silence again}

me: how did you get color on your face baby?

jojo: {silence and begins showing me how she got color on her face}

me: baby, that's yucky. let's not color on your face. put the markers up and we'll try again later.

jojo: {silence, then puts top on marker then says} 0-tay

she knew she was wrong for that. she's never that silent. so the next day we painted. by the time i reached for the camera it was already out of control...

she painted on every surface available...herself included. the paint said washable and it was. except out of fabric. so now she has a really 'decorated' sleeper. which is fine. and i have a really decorated washcloth. which is fine too.

and the funny thing is while i was taking pictures of her painting, harold was just looking at me like this...

this look means "are you really taking pictures of this? surely this isn't what you had in mind."
well, not much in life is what i had in mind my dear, but it sure is fun anyway. stains and all.

we have georgia's 18 month appointment this afternoon so more to come 'bout this big girl running around here.

hope you all had a very merry christmas. love from our very messy house :)

Merry Merry Happy Happy

I have just a spare minute and wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas. There is no better way to end a year than the celebration of the beginning of our Saviors life. No matter what is under any tree, the greatest gift has already been given. A child born unto us to save us all. And regardless of anything else, the blessings of the nativity never ever end.

Merry Christmas again my friends. See you next year.

"But you, O Bethlehem, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace"
Micah 5:2-5

Merry Merry Happy Happy

I have just a spare minute and wanted to wish you all a very merry Christmas. There is no better way to end a year than the celebration of the beginning of our Saviors life. No matter what is under any tree, the greatest gift has already been given. A child born unto us to save us all. And regardless of anything else, the blessings of the nativity never ever end.

Merry Christmas again my friends. See you next year.

"But you, O Bethlehem, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth;
then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. And he shall be their peace"
Micah 5:2-5

T minus 3 day and counting...

3 more days to go. lots of good stuff going on around here. and besides some of the traditions our family has prayerfully decided upon, one of the things i am most looking forward to this week is preparing the famous julia child's beef bourguignon recipe for our family christmas eve. i'll be sure to fill you in after it's all over.

and speaking of family...harold and i celebrated 6 years of marriage yesterday. we've had our share of 'growing pains' over those years, but we both can say with conviction that we love each other more today than yesterday. and that doesn't come easy all the time. but we've vowed to each other and before God that we would choose to love each other. for better or worse. and that is exactly what we do. we make that decision to honor and serve each other daily. and the lord has blessed that. no luck. no magic. no secrets. simple obedience to love and respect.


and now for some fun {i was beginning to get a little carried away up there so thought i needed to lighten up a bit. it's just harold and i see so many couples struggling un-necessarily when the answer is simple and biblical...lead your heart, don't follow it. the whole 'follow your heart' thing will get you into a world of trouble. just read jeremiah 17:9. okay okay i'll quit now}

back to the fun part...one of my other favorite things about this time of year is getting all the cards from friends and family. we tape them to our pantry door because i want to see them all the time....
georgia and i have started picking one and praying for those people that day. i'm amazed at how good her memory is. of course she knows this little booger, maggie...

and here is her teacher's {Mrs. Yee-sa....i.e. Lisa} kids, Lucas and Claire...

and these little kids she knows quite well ;) ....

do you love getting christmas cards that much? seriously, even if you're reading this and we are strangers, please let's be friends so i can get a card. the more the merrier. we'll pray for you too. can't turn that down right????

and before i leave you, here's a few pictures from georgia's class party on friday.

note to self: never ever send your child to school in a white shirt. no matter how festive or cute she may look. never.

i'm not sure if she had more on her face or plate...

and who in the world brings blackberries to toddlers??? sorry i just had to say it. but seriously, there is no match for a blackberry stain. none. if you know one, do tell. winn had stains too and when i told him that his outfit was getting dirty this is the response i got...

he really seemed to care can't you tell?? :)

so i hope you're enjoying your week. maybe i'll see you again before week's end......

T minus 3 day and counting...

3 more days to go. lots of good stuff going on around here. and besides some of the traditions our family has prayerfully decided upon, one of the things i am most looking forward to this week is preparing the famous julia child's beef bourguignon recipe for our family christmas eve. i'll be sure to fill you in after it's all over.

and speaking of family...harold and i celebrated 6 years of marriage yesterday. we've had our share of 'growing pains' over those years, but we both can say with conviction that we love each other more today than yesterday. and that doesn't come easy all the time. but we've vowed to each other and before God that we would choose to love each other. for better or worse. and that is exactly what we do. we make that decision to honor and serve each other daily. and the lord has blessed that. no luck. no magic. no secrets. simple obedience to love and respect.


and now for some fun {i was beginning to get a little carried away up there so thought i needed to lighten up a bit. it's just harold and i see so many couples struggling un-necessarily when the answer is simple and biblical...lead your heart, don't follow it. the whole 'follow your heart' thing will get you into a world of trouble. just read jeremiah 17:9. okay okay i'll quit now}

back to the fun part...one of my other favorite things about this time of year is getting all the cards from friends and family. we tape them to our pantry door because i want to see them all the time....
georgia and i have started picking one and praying for those people that day. i'm amazed at how good her memory is. of course she knows this little booger, maggie...

and here is her teacher's {Mrs. Yee-sa....i.e. Lisa} kids, Lucas and Claire...

and these little kids she knows quite well ;) ....

do you love getting christmas cards that much? seriously, even if you're reading this and we are strangers, please let's be friends so i can get a card. the more the merrier. we'll pray for you too. can't turn that down right????

and before i leave you, here's a few pictures from georgia's class party on friday.

note to self: never ever send your child to school in a white shirt. no matter how festive or cute she may look. never.

i'm not sure if she had more on her face or plate...

and who in the world brings blackberries to toddlers??? sorry i just had to say it. but seriously, there is no match for a blackberry stain. none. if you know one, do tell. winn had stains too and when i told him that his outfit was getting dirty this is the response i got...

he really seemed to care can't you tell?? :)

so i hope you're enjoying your week. maybe i'll see you again before week's end......

shame on me...

i know i know...georgia's not happy about my lack of posting either.

see...


she was lettin' me have it. obviously december didn't get november's message because it's moving along even faster. it's been lots of fun thus far though i must say. maybe too much fun because i haven't had time to blog about it. it's just that i usually blog when she's taking a nap or at night and lately there has been way too many projects & parties keeping me away from you guys. so forgive me. and be warned that it will probably continue till the new year. we'll still be friends though right?

if not i'll send miss highwater pants above to get you. and can i add that she's only 18 months and those pants are a 2T and well you can see for yourself how short they are. poor girl. we better get her some basket/volleyball training and fast!

so as much as i'd love to spend the whole hour she's napping catching you up on the last days, i gotta make this quick. got a few more christmas cards to get out and it would be nice to brush my teeth today before suppertime.

winn came over the other day and they ate an obscene amount of cheese balls. as have i. why did i think it was okay to buy this container of cheese balls? does any body really need this many cheese balls? anyway, winn winn and jojo loved them. {and fought over them}

and we got to see max again this week. and georgia again felt the need to show max how to lay down...sit up...etc. i mean if you need a 'helper' around, she's your girl. just know that i use the word helper loosely. very loosely.


and we've colored. on our paper. on our toys. on my walls. and in our mouth. but it's all good because we've both lived to tell about it.



and this picture isn't staged. she wanted to watch her 'moosie' so i put her on the couch and ran to get her a change of clothes. my hat & blanket were laying there and when i walked back into the room she was under the blanket with my hat on. pretty good huh.

and she had a date night with her aunt kristie & aunt ginger. they went to build-a-bear and i'm not sure who had more fun??? i had my camera on the wrong settings and unfortunately all the pictures turned out blurry from that night but they had fun.


and sarah avery came to play and we had meltdowns and time-outs {from my child} about taking turns on the slide.

which is an outdoor slide turned indoor slide but if you had any idea the climber i had on my hands you'd do the same. better a huge slide in the middle of our den than my toddler on top of my buffet.


and this sweet girl spent the afternoon with us too. it's my niece walker.


she used paint pens to paint her nails and toes which i am sure her mother is super duper trilled about.

we tried to get as close to christmas colors as possible so we're good right?????

and if you are still reading lucky for you because i saved the best for last. lot of my time these last days was spent making this yummy stuff i saw here....

dozens and dozens i've made of this butter and it still is every bit as good as the first time i tried it. if you don't ever try anything i've ever suggested or shown here, try this. seriously, it is divine. on biscuits. toast. english muffins. be warned though. it's that good. here's the recipe:

2 sticks salted butter {room temp}
1 cup honey
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

that's it. blend together and scoop into 4 oz. canning jars. i'll even email you the word document for the tags i made if you'd like.

okay i'm done. love you. be back soon but not saying how soon. you'll be back too right????

shame on me...

i know i know...georgia's not happy about my lack of posting either.

see...


she was lettin' me have it. obviously december didn't get november's message because it's moving along even faster. it's been lots of fun thus far though i must say. maybe too much fun because i haven't had time to blog about it. it's just that i usually blog when she's taking a nap or at night and lately there has been way too many projects & parties keeping me away from you guys. so forgive me. and be warned that it will probably continue till the new year. we'll still be friends though right?

if not i'll send miss highwater pants above to get you. and can i add that she's only 18 months and those pants are a 2T and well you can see for yourself how short they are. poor girl. we better get her some basket/volleyball training and fast!

so as much as i'd love to spend the whole hour she's napping catching you up on the last days, i gotta make this quick. got a few more christmas cards to get out and it would be nice to brush my teeth today before suppertime.

winn came over the other day and they ate an obscene amount of cheese balls. as have i. why did i think it was okay to buy this container of cheese balls? does any body really need this many cheese balls? anyway, winn winn and jojo loved them. {and fought over them}

and we got to see max again this week. and georgia again felt the need to show max how to lay down...sit up...etc. i mean if you need a 'helper' around, she's your girl. just know that i use the word helper loosely. very loosely.


and we've colored. on our paper. on our toys. on my walls. and in our mouth. but it's all good because we've both lived to tell about it.



and this picture isn't staged. she wanted to watch her 'moosie' so i put her on the couch and ran to get her a change of clothes. my hat & blanket were laying there and when i walked back into the room she was under the blanket with my hat on. pretty good huh.

and she had a date night with her aunt kristie & aunt ginger. they went to build-a-bear and i'm not sure who had more fun??? i had my camera on the wrong settings and unfortunately all the pictures turned out blurry from that night but they had fun.


and sarah avery came to play and we had meltdowns and time-outs {from my child} about taking turns on the slide.

which is an outdoor slide turned indoor slide but if you had any idea the climber i had on my hands you'd do the same. better a huge slide in the middle of our den than my toddler on top of my buffet.


and this sweet girl spent the afternoon with us too. it's my niece walker.


she used paint pens to paint her nails and toes which i am sure her mother is super duper trilled about.

we tried to get as close to christmas colors as possible so we're good right?????

and if you are still reading lucky for you because i saved the best for last. lot of my time these last days was spent making this yummy stuff i saw here....

dozens and dozens i've made of this butter and it still is every bit as good as the first time i tried it. if you don't ever try anything i've ever suggested or shown here, try this. seriously, it is divine. on biscuits. toast. english muffins. be warned though. it's that good. here's the recipe:

2 sticks salted butter {room temp}
1 cup honey
1 cup powdered sugar
2 teaspoons cinnamon

that's it. blend together and scoop into 4 oz. canning jars. i'll even email you the word document for the tags i made if you'd like.

okay i'm done. love you. be back soon but not saying how soon. you'll be back too right????