Welcome to December

December came in with a bang! Chris started working part time at the Buckle in stock. The boys both have some wicked chapped lips. Hope the aloe works on that. My student teacher leaves next week. Oh, what to do to celebrate??? I'll think of something for sure. Mom is working everyday, so our schedules are crazy, and all the holiday parties start this Friday.

I need to finish Christmas shopping. Still have several people to buy for. But I do get a shopping afternoon tomorrow and a day off on Monday to get it done! Surely I can handle all my holiday shopping needs in a few hours, right?

Ok, so the rambling needs to stop. I guess it's too much caffeine.

November, in pictures

Ryan's birthday kicked off the month. He got to take some friends to see Madagascar 2 at the theater. Best kid party ever! Meet at the theater, go sit in the dark for 90 minutes. Parents pick up. Everyone is thrilled. Who needs streamers and screaming??





Not sure where the fork came from, but I'm sure Josh has a story for it!


The Poetry Feast is a big deal in 2nd grade. Every child memorizes a poem and presents it to the class with parents and all there. Ryan did a great job! If you ask him, he'll even share the poem with strangers.



And a big hug for a job well done!


And Thanksgiving.. We have so much to be thankful for...

Football



Music.. of sorts


Wonderful food lovingly prepared. Thank you MiMi and Papaw for sharing with us. Just look at those rolls!


Family traditions and characters. This is cousin Tommy, Uncle Layne, and Papa.. more personality than one couch can handle.


Yum-O desserts.. Papaw, make sure that you stay 3 feet away from the chocolate pie.


And new life.. "Ok Averi, I'll tell you how all this works, but you can't tell anyone, cuz it's a secret. OK? I'm really just glad I'm not the youngest around here anymore, but you're gonna have to like light sabers and legos."


So much to be thankful for.

Where has the time gone?

So, almost a month has passed. In that time, Ryan turned 8. Chris still doesn't have a job. We have Thanksgiving tomorrow. My dad turns 62 tomorrow as well. School has been a roller coaster of events and relational issues. But I did get the kitchen table cleaned off. We had several wonderfully relaxing weekends. I got to take Josh on his first "date". I even started buying Christmas gifts. We have our holiday plans mostly settled. And everyone is mostly healthy.

We have so much to be thankful for this Thanksgiving season. People who know our circumstances shudder and offer sympathy. But we are learning to be content in our lives of lower financial status. The fact that we still have means to eat, sleep in warmth or cool at our discrestion, play video games, have cable, use cell phones, and still love others means we are rich beyond measure.

I don't know what the future brings, but as our study of Revelation in Sunday School shows, the future is set and the present is just temporary. Christ reigns supremely over the hearts of those who follow him. And God the Father is in charge. There is a lot of comfort in that.

I'm ready for celebrating. I choose to live in the joy of Christ and his security. I will continue to serve him and my family humbly and in love. I am thankful for all I know to be eternal truth. I am thankful for my family. I am thankful for my stuff. I am thankful for my job. I am thankful for coffee. I am thankful for kindnesses given to me and my family by friends. I am thankful that I live in a place where I am not persecuted for my faith or lifestyle.

A Happy Halloween

It was a fun day. Crazy school day, kids were bouncing off the walls. Home was pretty serene. Chris took the boys trick or treating while I handed out candy and caught up with my Rachael Ray episodes on the DVR. Here are some pictures of the day.
This was the 2nd grade team dressed as Fancy Nancy for the storybook parade.


Here I am with Ryan at school



Here is the compulsory pre trick or treating pose.


And this is the post candy bash. Josh is covered in sugar goo. Who knew you could liquify a Kit Kat just by holding it in your fist??

Coming home

After 5 days traveling Texas, we finally got to come home. There was little damage. The rug took a hit from the mold, the entertainment center got messed up, but otherwise, we were fine. How good it felt to be back home. I even got the thoroughly clean the refrigerator and deep freeze. Goodness knows they needed it.

I'll try to upload the rest of the pics later.

But for now, it's time to celebrate Chris's birthday!

Photos from the hurricane part 3

After a good few days, we moved south to my mom and dad's house.

The boys made a haul with happy meal toys from our hours on the road.


Opa was giving out chess lessons.


The cousins came to visit.


There was some down time.


And then there were dogs. Not sure if you can see them all, but I think we had 7 dogs running the property at one point in time.

Photos from the hurricane part 2

When we got to Dallas, our hotel was across the freeway from Texas Stadium. Lucky us, but the Cowboys were playing their Monday night football game that week. Yippee!

Brett spent about 2 hours grilling out freezer meat. Guess who stocked the freezer the week before the hurricane came??


So, we took a little trip to the park one night. Ponds, friends, ducks, future Jedi's, and a gorgeous sunset, who could ask for more?

Photos from the hurricane

After a little too long, here are some photos from the hurricane.

We started by distracting the boys with a cupcake contest.




Here's some damage from our street.



We decided to head north after news of the power outage came in. Here is part of the convoy of electical help we passe on I-45. What a glorious sight!