Gingerbread House

I'm sitting here waiting for the kiddos to fall asleep so "Santa" can come so I thought I'd share or fun project we did today! Last night, I had to run to Target to pick up a few things and I saw a gingerbread house kit. "Cool!" I though, this will be something fun to do with the kids!! So today, we all got up and started in on it. It was really easy and really fun. I put the house together, Jason took pics, and the boys decorated with all the candy it came with. Even Sawyer sat up on the table and helped decorate! It turned out pretty cute our first try at a gingerbread house. Later in the day, I was showering and Jason was watching the boys. He noticed that Sawyer had slipped out of the bedroom and he found him in the kitchen.... on the table... eating the gingerbread house!! The candy was all GONE, the side of the house was caved in, and the poor little gingerbread man had no legs. SO funny!!! I'm glad I took pics before hand. It is just a funny thing that happened that will turn into a funny family story we can talk about for years to come! I think the gingerbread house will surely be a new Christmas tradition in our house. 

Snow Day!!

What a fun day we've had! We woke up this morning to school being canceled. We have been in our jammies all day watching movies. Matter of fact, it's after 2 and we are STILL in our jammies! We had some soup for lunch and I'm going to make chicken and noodles for dinner. My house is a wreck since we have been home all day and the boys have been playing, but I don't even care! We've had such a fun day!

The Great Bed Switcheroo!

This past weekend we had a big time bed switcheroo. We are just trying to prepare for the baby which will be here in about 12 weeks and also make the most efficient use of our small space. So, we moved Sawyer from his crib/pack 'n play into a toddler bed. He is doing pretty well! That first night I had to pick him up and put him back in bed about 10-15 times before he got the hint that ti was bedtime and this is where he was sleeping. Once he went down though, he stayed down for the night and looked like such a big boy! Tonight is night #3 in the toddler bed and he is snoozing away in there! Some friends of ours are letting us use one of their bunk beds as well. So we tore down Brodie's twin bed and the other toddler bed and moved the bunks in. It has a twin on top and a full on bottom. So, Brodie is sleeping on top and Deacon and Truman are sleeping on bottom. They LOVE it! Right now it's a toy and a bed for them! Overall the bed switcheroo went very well and all the boys are happy!

We're done!

Having kids that is. Yes, I know....I know, I've said it before. And, yes, this is coming from the person who canceled her tubal at the last minute after Deacon and Truman were born and after Sawyer was born but it feels different this time. For the first time I feel like I am ready to be done being pregnant, done giving birth and ready to move on with just raising my family. As scared and freaked out as I am about having a little girl, I feel like she is the perfect way to complete our family. 4 amazing sons and 1 beautiful daughter. It sounds perfect to me. And you know what, I'm not going to lie, kids cost a lot!! And the older they get the more they are going to cost. I'm ready to just enjoy my kids. I am ready to move on from child bearing to child rearing and I'm actually really excited about. I've cried a couple of times knowing this is the last time I'm going to have a baby growing inside of me, the last time I'm going to feel those kicks and those hiccups, the last time I'm going to experience the amazingness of birth but it's time....it's time for us to move on.

Thanksgiving!

Hard to believe we are less than a week away from Thanksgiving! I really love this holiday because it lets you take a look at your life and see all the blessings you have. Here are a few of mine:
Brodie: my sweet, first born,the one who first made me a mommy. 2nd in command after daddy.
Deacon: my little one who always has a song on his lips and a dance for anyone who care to watch
Truman: my biggins who goes against the stream & does his own thing (this will be a good thing!)
Sawyer: my littlest guy and the one who can put a smile on my face no matter what
My baby girl: God has finally given you to me
Jason: the man who has given me these blessing, puts up with my crap on a daily basis, can make me laugh all the time, and who has my heart.

This is just the very surface of a list that could go on and on. I'm going to take this next week to really think about how thankful I am....

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

This morning on my way home, it was flurrying (is that even a word?!?) and it really got me in the mood for Christmas! I LOVE this time of year! Not only are we celebrating the biggest event in the history of time but it is a time rich with family traditions that I love. Here are some of my favorite family Chistmas traditions:

*On Christmas Eve you get to open 1 gift and it is your new Christmas jammies to wear that night. My brother and I got to do this growing up and it is something we have done with our kids since Brodie's first Christmas.
*Breakfast on Christmas morning is always cinnamon rolls. Again, this is a tradition from my childhood that we have carried on with our sons.
*In your stocking you always get money and new underwear! Even on Brodie's first Christmas, we got him a little tiny pair of boxers for his stocking. My boys really look forward to this because they LOVE underwear for some weird reason.
*Sometime before Christmas, we go and drive through Krug Park to look at all the pretty lights.
*Anytime if would snow and my mom would see it before my brother and I she would leave a note on the table that said "look outside!" and we knew that meant it was snowing! Even today, she will still call or e-mail us to say "look outside!" when it is snowing.

I think a lot of people get really caught up in the material side of Christmas, they try to get the most gifts they can and spend the most money. We try very hard to NOT make Christmas about that in our home.

Marriage Retreat

This past weekend, Jason and I had a fun time at a marriage retreat with several other couples from our church. It was all day Friday, Saturday, and half a day on Sunday. It was nice to get away form the business of life and just be with each other. We got to go to several different workshops of different topics about marriage and family, I won't bore you with the details!! We just felt like we came back renewed and refreshed and more committed to our marriage and our family. We have some things we are working on with the boys and so far so good! Even Jason has said that it was a life changing experience and if you know my husband he hardly takes anything seriously (which is one of the things I truly love about him). the fact that he had a good time this weekend and really got some things out of it meant the world to me! We are already making plans to go back next year!