You too?

I blinked, turned around twice, and it was gone!  When I was young, it seemed the four weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas stretched into the longest 4 weeks of the whole year.  Now that I am one of Santa's many helpers, those 4 weeks fly by faster than you can sing the Twelve Days of Christmas.  Despite all of our attempts to be organized, wrapped, & ready, Elf Tony & I only managed 2 and a half hours of sleep on Christmas Eve.  To make matters even funnier, in a sleep-deprived fog I deleated all my cute Christmas Eve pics.  Yes, worse than getting coal Christmas morning, is a mother without record of her labor.  Christmas morning, I threw in the towel.  Besides who really wants their picture taken in their pjs with bed hair?  I consoled (kidded) myself that I was living in the moment and not taking pictures of the moment.  Do you buy that?  I don't either.  But it sure sounded good Christmas morning....I hope you had a very merry time and a lot more sleep!

Becky Kelley - Where's the Line to See Jesus - OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO

I am so proud of myself - not because I had anything to do witb this video, but because I got it on my blog!  Whoo-hoo!  We worship with Becky and her extended family.  We love them all but especially her mom and dad.  Her mom teaches the twos and threes with her sister (We love Nancy too!).  These ladies have been teaching that class FOREVER.  Now we know the twos and threes make us laugh and remind us of why Jesus said, "Let the little children come to me....For the kingdom of God belongs to such as these."  Nevertheless, after teaching King's Kids for four years, I confess there are some Sundays, I long for the peace of worship,  But then I think of Ann and Nancy who have taught these kiddos FOREVER and I just shut that inner voice up!  I tell myself - serve like these ladies serve: quietly, without recoginition, and joyfully.  We love Mr. Steve for a lot of different reasons.  One being how he has become a part of Parker's story.  Parker looks for Mr. Steve every Sunday for his magic trick.  Bless Mr. Steve because he preforms every Sunday with a smile on his face.  It's a little thing.  But has such a huge effect. By making time for Parker and all the other kids who also love the magic trick, he tells them this is what it means to be a part of God's family.  The family always has time for you and is happy to see you.  I know that Mr. Steve will be a part of Parker's faith story.  We also love that next to Santa, Mr. Steve is the star of our Breakfast with Santa.  We can always count on him to be the life of the party with his keyboard!  He wrote this song!  He is just amazingly talented!  Finally, we love the little star at the end of the video. :)  We look forward to her reply to the Question of the Day.  She always says something precious.  When we review our Sunday morning on the way home from church, we listen to Parker's version, try to guess Macy's, and always remember the little star's answer and smile.  Parker gets a kick out of it too.  Anyway, this is my very little part to bless Becky on this road she is on.  Now, do your part and pass it on! :)

Falling Behind....

I have been writing this blog in my head for weeks now, but could never find the time to sit and type.  What have we been up to?  Our favorite fall things of course....

We enjoyed a visit with Steve Marvin, our first friend as a married couple.  I know it's hard to believe but Steve has put up with us for 14 years!  Whenever we're together, it's a good time.  We took Steve to Eckert's and he managed to skip out of every picture but one...

Then there was lots of Halloween tricks and treats!  Macy was a cupcake because she is so sweet (most of the time). Truthfully, I haven't been able to let go of the cupcake craze.  I really don't care if the cupcake was listed in the top 10 food fads that were over.  Cupcakes are timeless!

I had to put this one in so you could see what I mean about the not so sweet moments.  This was in reaction to being told no more suckers after she had raided Christy's candy bucket on multiple trips.  We did have a serious candy addiction starting at Trunk-or-Treat until a couple weeks after Halloween.  I was wondering if Macy would be allowed to attend the Celebrate Recovery class at church.  It was getting to be that serious of a problem.  But thankfully, as with most things that involve children, this too shall pass.

Some things don't seem to be passing as fast.  For instance, Parker's love for Star Wars.  Parker was the young Obi-Won Kenobi.  Since Tony had to dress up for Parker's Pack Meeting, he didn't hesitate to cross over to the dark side as Darth Vader.  Both of my boys had a blast!
We also carved a pumpkin and made Halloween cupcakes.

 

We all were thrilled when the Coles were able to stop on their way back from Iowa so the kids could trick or treat together and have our ceremonial first bowl of chili with us.
Macy got her first haircut in preparation for her big 2nd birthday.  But the pictures are on Tony's phone.  He is snoozing on the couch, and I don't have the heart to bother him.  You'll just get to see the finished product.  To celebrate her birthday, we took a family trip to Build-A-Bear for Macy's first creation.  She picks the scruffiest looking dog.  I was rooting for Rudolph, but she completely ignored the red-nosed reindeer.

At age 6, Parker appreciates his mom's need for a theme and picks Bumble the Abominal Snowman.  I didn't even prompt him!  We were blessed to celebrate two times - once with friends and with family.

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving with my family, but I am horrible about deleting pictures!  The card was full so I missed all the turkey pictures - and I am not talking about you, Dad! :)  After my family headed back to KC, we got the tree up and lit.  I love this time of year! 

Was that a ghost?

Yes friends, I was that mom.  I saw Macy opening the refrigerator and didn't stop her.  I had the dishwasher three-fourths full and instantly weighed the pros & cons. Pros: whatever she was after in the frig would keep her occupied until I finished the dishes, no unnecessary stress on my ears.  Cons: While I am cleaning up one mess, she would be creating another. Question: Is this a pivotal point in establishing parental boundaries?  Quick prayer: Please Lord let this not be the moment of my parental demise. I chose the dishwasher.  All my women friends realize this conversation happened in less than 10 seconds in my brain.  With the dishwasher humming, I went to investigate.  She is truly flesh of my flesh.  Cookie dough before bed...

After church and getting the kids in bed, Tony & I made the snack for tonight's den meeting.  They were a big hit!  But then again, kids will eat anything!

Is it really October?

Parker on the first day of school!  Last year, he didn't want a new backpack which really surprised his school supply loving mom.  He did need a new one this year though! I figured this may be my one and only year to get his backpack personalized.  You know, second graders may just not recognize the coolness of it all.



Macy didn't quite understand what all the excitement was about on the first day of school, but she was happy to pose in her nightshirt aka Parker's old VBS shirt.  She has really missed being with Parker during the day. I have to give honor where honor is due...Tony is balancing working from home and taking care of Macy.  If you need a laugh, ask him about Adventures in Daddy Daycare!

 Parker with his teacher, Miss Moses.  Was I this young once?

 We had a list of summer fun we wanted to do with the kids and we hadn't quite made it through before school started.  But why should school starting stop all the fun?  We talked the Coles into joining us for Tony's, Parker's, and Macy's first trip to the Arch. Yes, after 12 years in St. Louis, we finally made it.  When we first moved here, we wanted to go but we thought for sure we would be taking a million trips with all our friends and family who visited us.  Has anyone wanted to go? Nope!  But now our whole family can say with pride that we survived the ride!

 Are my two favorite first graders tired of posing?  Imagine that!

Whenever Parker and Macy fall asleep in the car, they always sleep with their heads together.  I love it!

 Before you start worrying, Macy is drinking root beer!  But this just goes right along with her personality.  She is just like her Daddy...drinking problem and all!

Parker has been dieing to join Boy Scouts and even took Tony to a meeting last year.  He didn't realize that you had to be in first grade.  Parker has a steel trap memory so I have to be careful about what I say.  He'll hold me to it.  Nevertheless, he had not forgotten that this was the year that he could join.  Tony walked into the second meeting as a den assistant and walked out as the den leader.  He said the church could learn from their recruitment skills.  The mums were a surprise from my sweet husband on the first day of fall.  He knows I am all about seasonal decorating.

We are so excited that Jillian is one of our prayer buddies this year!  We went to her soccer game a couple of Saturdays ago.  She played goalie for a little while and did an awesome job!  If I was the coach, I would make her the team goalie!  She was that good!

Tony and I are still teaching King's Kids on Sunday mornings.  We laugh every Sunday.  Macy though doesn't always find the situation so funny.

Happy Birthday, Jillian!

Seven years ago, I listened to a very happy pregnant lady thanking everyone for coming to her baby shower.  I was just 2 months pregnant at the time and I only knew this lady in passing.  Little did I know that baby she was carrying would become my baby's "first friend".  Whenever someone questions his friendship with Jillian (the neighborhood boys are astounded that he is friends with a girl), Parker always tells the story that Jillian was the first baby to visit him in the hospital.  Poor Christy gets left out of the story everytime.  I wonder if he thinks Jillian came on her own.  Nevertheless, Parker is convinced of first friend power and lays claim to it every chance he gets.  As I was watching all the church friends at Jillian's party, I was having flashbacks to all the birthdays they have celebrated together and couldn't believe how time was passing by no matter how tight the grip I keep.  Every stage brings its own delights and horrors, but I could comfortably stay at this stage for a while.....Time, are you listening?  I didn't think so.

Favorite Pastimes

Since we have moved, we can't keep Parker inside (which is the total opposite at our old home)!  The new, smooth sidewalks call to Parker everyday.  If he isn't on his bike, then he is on his scooter.  All of the other boys are able to ride without training wheels.  Every now and then, I hear one of them ask Parker if he is ready to take off his training wheels.  Parker then always answers "Not yet."  Maybe next summer....

Macy's newest thing is getting on the laptop.  She saw everyone using it but her and that was not going to fly!  No, she is not checking her email after church on Sunday.  She is on her favorite website -  sprout online!  Using the laptop is teaching her alot about taking turns!  Macy was quite excited to take her baby doll to church in a matching dress.  She showed off her baby doll to anyone who would look her way. 

Summer....Slip sliding away

The school building opens tomorrow so teachers can come unpack the rooms. Although the first contracted day back is not till the 10th, the opening of the building signals that the end is near.  After the unpacking blitz and trip to Hot Springs, we tried to squeeze in some fun!  Here is what we have been up to that makes summer days so sweet!

Pancake Breakfast with the Haynes and even some blackberry picking

Grant's Farm (where Macy insisted on riding the tram like a big girl)

Magic House fun with Jillian

Celebrated Grandmaw's Birthday

Girls' Lunch Out while Mr. John hosted cupcake decorating with Parker and Macy

Multiple trips to the subdivision pool ~ Parker is getting to be more like a fish and Macy loves adult swim aka snack time

Martha West!

Martha,
When we switched to our laptop, I lost your blog address!  I've searched the world wide web over and cannot find you!  I hope you are still checking in because I miss keeping up with the West family!  We miss you much!
Love,
Jennifer

Hot Springs, AR

We just returned from visiting Tony's side of the family in Hot Springs.  On the long way down, we were excited to stop and see our "adopted son", Steve.  Knowing us like he does, he knew we are all about the food and suggested a great BBQ joint in Memphis.

One of the highlights of the trip was seeing Uncle Van and Aunt Carla's dream home.  They had bought the land shortly after Tony and I were married.  The dream house is almost completed and absolutely the most beautiful home I have ever been in.  I am not just saying that!  Uncle Van owns his own cabinetry business and is using the home as a showroom for his business.  I took a ton of pictures, but am having to honor his request and not publish them.  But if your in the market for custom cabinetry, I'll hook you up!  Parker would say one of his highlights was lots of rides on the six wheeler.  That was a picture of our grand tour.

Uncle Van and Aunt Carla have 3 dogs, 3 cats, and 2 horses on their property.  While Parker and I enjoyed meeting Callie and Doc from the 6 wheeler, Macy wanted an upclose introduction!  Aunt Carla hosted a lunch for the whole family Saturday afternoon - 50+ and not everyone was there!  I was so busy keeping track of Macy and Parker between visiting that I didn't get any pictures taken.  What was I thinking? 

On Sunday, we did a little sightseeing in Hot Springs.  But first we stopped by Great Grandmother's to see her new digs and meet Aunt Voneta's dog, Yogi.  We always love visiting with Great Grandmother and Yogi was very cute! 

Gamma and Uncle Richard acted as our tour guides.  Gamma grew up in Hot Springs and shared some of her memories.  We went to the top of the mountain where her daddy used to bring all the kids (eight of them) for a watermelon picnic on a hot evening.  The view was incredible!  Thanks to all the Hot Springs clan for a great visit!