Thanksgiving and Thankfulness

We had a wonderful time in Arkansas for Thanksgiving. Being with family is always a great way to spend the holidays. My niece and nephew got to spend a couple of days with us. Malachi absolutely loves them. Thanksgiving day we went to my grandparents. All of my mom's family gets together and has Thanksgiving lunch. I'm so blessed that I still have my granny and grandpa. I'm sooo thankful that they were able to meet Lawson and see Malachi again. It was good to see everyone again. I wish it was more than once a year. We had lots of fun watching Malachi play with Jordan and Addison. I would just love for them to live close together. Since Addison and Jordan won't be able to come to Malachi's birthday party, they decided to have a little party at my mom and dad's. Addison decorated Malachi's cake all by herself. :) Friday we watched the Arkansas/LSU game. Boo. Boo. Boo. That's all I can say. It was a great Thanksgiving break. We loved having Nick home with us all week. We are so looking forward to these next 3 weeks passing quickly so he can be on Christmas break.

I'm so thankful for my family and that we have each other. On 60 minutes tonight they were interviewing homeless children. Two kids lived with their dad in a truck. Their mom passed away and the dad was a carpenter doing what he could to make it. Listening to this 15 year old girl and 13 year boy talk you would think they lived in a home. They were so mature and so thankful for what they did have. The girl said that she would see other homeless people and want to help them. Amazing. The kids were simply amazing. And they made me realize once again, that even though we are not rich, we have a roof over our head, warm food to eat, and a warm place to sleep. Thank you Lord.

On the way to Arkansas the Lord really showed us that he hasn't forgot us. On three different accounts he showed his faithfulness to us. One was our gas that we got. Nick used our debit card and got gas. He couldn't remember if he paid for it so he decided to go in and get a receipt just to make sure. When he looked at the receipt it showed paid but with a MasterCard. Still didn't think anything about it. Someone else had paid for our gas. Coincidence? Maybe. A mess up by that person? Possibly. But with the other two things that had taken place we knew it was God. Our tank had been filled and we didn't have to pay. Not a lot of money at the end of this month so driving to Arkansas was like a wing and a prayer. But once again, God showed himself to us. He wanted us to be reminded that we can trust him with EVERYTHING. I hope this Thanksgiving that there was something to remind you that God is for you. He hasn't forgot about you. Just keep trusting him. Pastor Bear and the worship team sang a song this morning and this is the part that burns so deep in my heart and mind. "And right now, in the good times and bad. You are on your throne. You are God alone."

My Sweet Grandparents

The Holidays Have Begun.......

Friday Nick had a half day at school and he is out this entire week. We are so thankful and happy that we have him with us ALL week long. Therefore.....the holidays have begun. Thanksgiving is Nick's favorite holiday. When I asked him why, this was his response. "First because there are a lot of football games and food. Second because there is a lot of hanging out with family time without the expectation of giving or receiving a gift." So true. Thanksgiving is just a time we can hang out and be thankful that we have each other.

Everyday on facebook (I try too everyday at least) I post a different reason that I am thankful. Besides Jesus (because I am always so very thankful for him), I am most thankful for my family. I've said it a million times before but I will say it again and again because I don't ever want there to be a doubt in their mind about the way I feel about them. I have the most amazing husband and sons. They fill my heart with such joy and happiness. One of my greatest fears is having to face life without them. I am thankful for the love we have for each other. I am thankful for the good times and even the bad times that we have. Lord knows we have our moments but in those times we pull closer to each other. I'm also thankful for both sides of our families. I believe we have the greatest families ever! In-Laws that I adore and parents I love dearly. We will be heading to Arkansas tomorrow after Nick's basketball game. I can't wait to see my family that I haven't seen in a couple of years. They haven't seen Malachi since he was 1 and it will be their first time to meet Lawson.

And of course before I go I must mention my lovely's a little bit more. Nick is doing an incredible job at school as the 7th and 8th grade computer teacher. His basketball team is of course doing great. So far they are 2-0. Last year he was 10-0 so we are hoping for a winning season again. ;) He's also one of the Varsity Assistant coaches. Needless to say, we are busy busy busy this time of year. With games on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Fridays and then he has practice on Wednesdays and Thursdays until late, by the time the weekend gets here we are sooo ready to just do NOTHING. This vacation is much needed and we are so ready to spend time together.

Malachi is about to turn 3. I just can't believe. He is talking more and more in full sentences. Saying things that I just can't believe he's old enough to say. He's loving school and everyday he comes home singing some song that they have learned. I'm so proud of him and the little boy he is. My BIG boy I should say. :) For a while now, he has known his colors, counts to 20, shapes, ABCs, recognizes all of his letters and numbers, counts backwards. He's no exception but we think he's EXCEPTIONAL.

Lawson just turned three months on Friday. My my my....where has the time gone?? Lawson is such a little delight. He's smiling and laughing, cooing and gooing. He LOVES to talk and to be talked too. He's already putting his hands together. He follows noises and objects really well. He recognizes us as soon as we say something to him. Lawson LOVES when Malachi talks to him. He loves his big brother and big brother loves him. These two have my heart.

It's Been Awhile...

It seems like forever since I last posted anything. It has been forever actually. We just now got our internet back. Thank goodness. October was a great month. We ended it by trick-or-treating in our neighborhood for the first time with the boys. Last year, Malachi was just not in to it so we just hung out with friends as their dad scared people. Might I say, I love watching him scare the older kids. It.is.so.funny!! Malachi seemed to enjoy himself until we got to the house at the end of the street. The lady giving out the candy had those "teeth" in and "blood" all over her. He wasn't to convinced that this was fun. (neither was I) Funny how when you grow up and have your own kids you get a new perspective of what's fun and what's not. I don't judge or dislike anyone for doing scary happenings on Halloween, I just don't want Malachi to encounter it right now. We will never do scary costumes, devils, witches, anything like that but if you want too, do it. It's alright with me. A lot of people don't do Halloween. There are many fall fests and trunk or treats which I love. I grew up trick or treating and we never viewed it as worshiping the devil or bad omens or anything like that. We did it for fun. I loved when my mom would take us trick or treating. It was something fun we did as a family. Well, my dad always stayed behind and handed out candy. Anyway, don't judge me for taking my kids trick or treating..that's all I'm saying. :) Here are a few pictures of my doctor and yo gabba gabba friend.

We are now into November, a month of Thanksgiving. There is so much that I am thankful for and I will be sharing some of those through out the month. I also really like to change my page to get the feel of the season. :) So yes, it will be changing to a Thanksgiving scene I'm sure.

2 Months Old.........

This week Lawson turned 2 months old. I cannot believe how fast time is going. It seriously seems like yesterday that we were in the hospital waiting for his arrival. He had his 2 month shots this week. Sad. Sad. Sad. He screamed his little heart out. Soon after, once I picked him up, he calmed down. Different than Malachi, about 3 hours after his shots he was not in a good mood. I guess his poor little legs were hurting. Thankfully though, he never had fever.

He's definitely a growing boy. He weighed 13lbs 6oz. and was 24 in. long!! Looks like he's going to take after his brother who was 14 lbs at 2 months. We just can't figure how we "grow" such big boys. lol Well, however it is, I love it!!! I love having big healthy boys.

Last night, Lawson slept through the night. He didn't wake up until 5:30 which is perfect because that's when we have to get up during the week anyway. I'm hoping that this will continue. ;)

Pumpkin Patch Time...

This Saturday we went to the Pumpkin Patch. I love the pumpkin patch as I have mentioned before. I just love getting to pick one out especially with my kiddos. This year it was extra special because my mom was able to go with us. She and my aunt came to visit for the weekend so we decided to make this the weekend we went. I'm glad she was able to go because there are so many things that our families miss because we live so far away from both of them. If you live close to your parents and they get to see their grandkids often....be thankful. Be ever so thankful.

We went to the same place as we did last year...Country Critters Farm. There are some animals to pet, ponies to ride, hayride, and the number one all time favorite...bounce houses. Yes, Malachi didn't want to do anything else but the bounce house. I was able to snap a few pictures of them but not a lot. I'm just thankful for the great weekend we had. ;)

Fall.Is.Upon.Us

Fall is finally here. I'm pretty much a summer kind of person. I.HATE.COLD.WEATHER. Hate it probably isn't even a strong enough phrase to describe it. However, the weather this summer was just unbearable most of the time, especially since I was pregnant. 110 degree weather is not my cup of tea. It completely ruins the summertime. I'm good with the weather being in the 80s. So with that said, I'm actually really looking forward to the fall.

I love fall, everything about it. I love the changing of the trees. I love the crisp in the air. (just enough for a light-weight long sleeve shirt) I love the smells of fall. I love going to pumpkin patches and getting a pumpkin. I do love this time for football. Curled up on the couch with my family while we are all curled up in a blanket. I love boots. (I need some new ones.) I love fall colors....oranges, deep yellows, browns. And in the late fall, the smell of smoke from someones house burning wood in the stove (or fireplace). Last, CARMEL.APPLES.ARE.IN.STORES. Those are just some of my favorite things about fall.

October is actually a pretty fun month. Two things: State fair and pumpkin patches. I can't wait to go to the pumpkin patch and take pictures of my lil' pumpkins. We also get to pick a pumpkin at the patch and for some reason the kid in me comes out. (It's one of my favorite things.) This week I'm going to get Malachi and Lawson a pumpkin the can decorate. We will probably go to the state fair next weekend. As always, we will be hitting the dollar hotdog stand. :) Of course we will let Malachi ride a few rides. It's so expensive but I remember when I was little and my parents taking us to the fair and riding rides. It was such a fun memory that I still have and I want to make those memories with my kiddos.

What to be for Halloween??? I.have.no.idea. They have a Veggie Tales costume at the Family Christian bookstore for Malachi so he may be Bob or Larry. Lawson..probably won't spend money on something he can't wear again unless it's like $5 or less. lol He'll probably just be in a pumpkin sleeper and may have a pumpkin hat. Who knows.

On another note, our good friend scored us tickets to last night playoff game...Rays vs. Rangers. It was a lot of fun and the weather was perfect!

It's Hard to Believe...

It's hard to believe that it's been a month since I gave birth to our second addition. I don't know why it's so hard to believe, it all went just as fast with Malachi. I mean, he's about to turn 3. What?!?! Lawson is growing and growing and growing. He's definitely gaining weight just fine. He's out of all his newborn clothes. And, like his brother and mother, pants that fit in the waist, are to short in length. Boo! He's still a pretty good sleeper, at night that is. Which is good because we can sleep at night as close to normal as you can with a one month old. He normally goes to bed anywhere from 8:30-9:30 and sleeps until 2am. Then he is up again at 5. Nick has been doing the first feeding and I do the second. It is going much smoother the second time around. We're not about to completely die this time. ;) Lawson just recently started smiling at me when I talk to him. He follows us in the room if we are moving. He's very attentive and alert.

We watched the new show, "Up All Night," and well, that's pretty much what it's like with a first newborn. Why are they stronger than we are? lol (I hope the rest of the episodes are just as funny.)

Malachi is doing great at daycare. He loves his friends. (even though he got bit today) >( He's getting so big and really using his sentences these days. I can't believe he's about to be 3!!! I wanted to do a Cars themed birthday party since he really likes Lightning McQueen. But I decided to give him the choice because he also reallllly likes Veggie Tales. So I have asked him multiple times, mostly trying to persuade him, and it's the same answer every time. Malachi, do you want your birthday party to be Cars and Lightning McQueen or Veggie Tales? Veggie Tales!! He's says excitedly. It's hard to find Veggie Tales decor. There.Is.None. Plates, Napkins, and cups, that's all there is. Boo. I need decor. I guess I'm just gonna have to be thankful that those even exist.

Here are the boys.

One Month.

Just being his silly wonderful self.

SN: It's almost pumpkin patch time!!!!