Twenty -Ten ;)

Happy New Year!

It is hard to believe that it is 2010 already (in 47 minutes, actually). Last year flew by and was a great year of growth, joy, and thankfulness as we watched in awe how God provided for all our needs, even though Big T was unemployed for 1/2 of 2009. I can't wait to see what 2010 brings!

My sister and her family are here celebrating with us and we somehow managed to get 7 kiddos tucked in for a movie upstairs and we are partying hard downstairs!

 

You just never know how Welch's Sparkling Cider will effect you ;)

pre-2010 post

I love our church! Our preschool has this cool character named Kiki that helps teach the kids a Bible story each week. We have several great volunteers that rotate teaching the lesson and whatever poor schmuck they grab gets to be Kiki for the week. Here are a couple of pictures from today...

Kiki and Princess P dancing (she was in jeans b/c of the nasty weather...she usually looks nicer for church, I promise!):

And C.W. with "Kiki" after the kids went back to class:

52/52!!!!!

Wow! I made it. I am so glad I did this blog. It is fun to look back through the year at the things we did and see that I was there too ;) I was looking through Christmas pics last night and realized that I wasn't in even one picture yesterday. But that's ok...the kids will still know they had a mom thanks to this fun project. I have started the book already and can't wait to get it printed.

I just can't quit this now...I love it. I like that it is something I can do and it is done, if that makes sense. I can clean the house, wash dishes or laundry (quit laughing, honey, I said I CAN not that I do) and it all has to be redone the next day. But this blog...I can do it and hit publish and it is done. I like that sense of accomplishment. So I am keeping it up but changing it up a little in the new year.

So for the last picture of 2009....this sums up my life and year:

We hope you all have a great ending to 2009 and remember to have some fun in 2010!

Oh and I got my haircut again....what do you think?

51/52

Today, Tricky T turned seven!!! (ten would have made a better alliteration but I am not going to rush the time!) We had a great day celebrating with our family and friends. He invited his best friend to go bowling and out to lunch (a fine lunch of McD's...had the best play area though, and really all he cared about was playing with his buddy). Tonight, he wanted "eggs at Cracker Barrel" for dinner - if only he would always be this easy to please. He said it was a GREAT day and that is what matters to us. I had Big T take a picture of us right before Tricky T went to bed for the night. As I've mentioned before, he isn't my cuddler but he does tolerate it when it gets his bedtime stalled a little bit ;) I can't imagine our lives without T in them...he definitely brings more joy to our family than we ever imagined possible. I love you, buddy, and pray you have an awesome year as a 7 year old!

50/52

50 of 52??? Just doesn't seem possible, does it ?!?

We spent the better part of "family fun day" today chopping, splitting, and stacking wood. The kids all pitched in (some more than others but they did all help) and we got it all done. We had a fireplace insert installed yesterday and are planning to use it to heat the house all winter so wanted to make sure our wood pile was in order.
We continued with the gift giving tonight and the kids got Toy Story Mania for the Wii. We loved that ride at Disney World last year and thought it would be a fun, family game. And it is :o) We also gave them the makings for s'mores:


Yum!

I was going to crop this in closer since the living room looks trashed in this picture but I wanted to be able to remember how the kids decorated for Christmas this year. There are about 50 coffee filter snowflakes taped all around the house and a few beautiful paper chains too. So ignore the gifts/wrapping that we opened today and the 2 nativity sets, Lego game T was playing, and the Wii remotes on the table and enjoy the view ;)

49/52

After talking with a friend that spreads out their Christmas celebration all month, we decided to do a variation on that this year. The kids and I did a fun Nativity book that we do each year on Thursday and we are giving the kids one gift each Saturday until Christmas. We chose gifts that we could enjoy together as a family and that, if received on Christmas Day amidst the Legos, Barbies, etc, etc, etc, might get over looked for a while.

Tonight, we made homemade pizza and then gave the kids Disney Scene It 2 and a new pack of Christmas Silly Banz (thanks, KJ, for the timely package!!). I had bought some chocolate popcorn from the Boy Scouts last month that we hadn't opened and Big T picked up a 2 liter of Root Beer and we were set for a night of fun. Big T and Captain C smoked me and the little guys the first game so we split them up and made it parents versus kids in game two....and it was CLOSE. We were both on the "all play to win" and luckily we pulled it out. Phew! We had such a great time tonight. I am so glad we didn't give this to them Christmas morning and it sit on there waiting to be played. I can't wait for next Saturday :)

And as a Christmas bonus...here we are after the kids' CC Christmas Program last night. They did such a great job - we are so proud of all the hard work they put into learning their songs and memory work. It is such an awesome group of families and we are so blessed to be part of this group.3 more weeks to go....

48/52

Yesterday, after 6 hours of Black Friday shopping, I came home to Big T putting the Christmas lights up outside (and the boys cleaning out the gutters, but that is another post all together!). Today we put the tree and indoor decorations up (after watching OU's victory!!). I can't believe that it is already Christmas time again...the fact that it was 71* today doesn't help get you in the mood but the lines and crowds everywhere are a good reminder. The kids love helping to decorate the tree and seeing all the fun ornaments that we only see for a few weeks a year. Tricky T got to put the star on top of the tree this year and then everyone helped decorate it while Christmas CDs played in the background.


And I had to add this one. We met someone on Thanksgiving, that after about 30 minutes of knowing us, pointed to T and said, "That one looks ornery." This picture made me think of that statement.


I hope everyone has a wonderful Christmas season and takes time out to remember the gift God sent in Jesus.... that is, after all, the true reason we celebrate this season.

47/52

Today is a very special day and not just because I am posting before Saturday at 11pm! Today is Captain C's 10th birthday. WOW...I can't even remember a time without him and yet I don't feel old enough to have a 10 year old. He is such an incredible kid too - we are so blessed that God chose us for his parents. I love you so much, C, and am enjoying watching you grow into a Godly young man. Happy Birthday, baby - sorry, even at 10, you are my baby! See...you still fit in my arms :o)

So excited!

I decided what to do for my blog next year.

R U Curious?

Check back the first week in January.

I can't wait!

:)

46/52

This time of year is insane for photographers. I can barely keep up, but am so grateful for the work and really do love what I do. Tonight, I didn't really have "spare time" but Big Daddy had surprised us by bringing home "Up" for us to watch and I can't resist some snuggle time with my least snuggly kiddo. I got Tricky T to snuggle the entire movie and loved every minute of it. He is so anti lovey-dovey and hates kisses...so, when the movie was over, I had Big T snap some pics of us before I let him go off the couch. I so love these kids!!!
Ok, not sure if that is going to show up...might have to click on it to actually see how much he is LOVING the mommy kisses ;)

Needing ideas....

I can't believe we only have 7 weeks left of 2009! And I equally can't believe I stuck with this project all year. Thanks so much for all the comments...your accountability kept me going!!

So...the plan is...I am going to print this year's blog up and give each of the kids a book of it and keep a book for myself. I have had several sweet people want to do this for me as a gift but I really want to do this myself as a gift to the kids. I worked hard on this all year and quite frankly, want to see it through to print ;) But thank you for offering - I do appreciate the offer!!

However, I still do need your help...I am trying to figure out how to change this up a little for next year. I know I only committed for the year but I don't think I can just let it go as easily as I thought I could. I am so glad I didn't commit to a picture a day...I am in awe of those that have done that!!...but the once a week thing is totally doable for me. So, I need some ideas on how to change it up.

I have thought of going through the alphabet and doing pics for each letter...but that could be stressful when I get to X and no one breaks anything and needs x-rays ;) Or doing pictures of JUST the kids (c=week one, T=week 2, P=week 3) and me and/or Big Daddy in the last week of the month). Then I don't have to try to be IN each picture but will still get in there occasionally. or.....(fill in your clever ideas here).

Thanks for the encouragement, guys!!

45/52

We are having some BEAUTIFUL weather here in OK this week. YAY! Big Daddy is out planting some plants and the kids are riding bike and scooters. I got Princess P to stop for a minute to take a picture with me. It is so sunny, warm, and windy...love it!


PS. Loving my new full frame camera so I can get more than just our faces in with a handheld shot. I actually cropped this in a little ;)

44/52

Happy Halloween!!

Our church threw a great fall festival tonight that was so much fun. I had planned the kids costumes for weeks but decided about 30 minutes before we left that Big T and I should dress up too. So here we are at church:


It would appear that not everyone has seen Napoleon Dynamite so big T felt kinda silly being Rex but I thought it was hilarious...and that is all that really matters. Tricky T has decided that he will be a bag of Cheetos every year as he was a hit at every house we trick or treated. Captain C is rethinking the "I can't sit down" outfits that I keep making for him - lol - but was a big hit too. Princess P was a beautiful mermaid that our neighbor had given her...she loved getting to wear makeup and look like Ariel. She also loved bugging the boys by singing Little Mermaid songs all day.

It was a great FAMILY evening. Just hanging out together...and the Sooners winning made it that much sweeter! Speaking of sweeter...I better "check" the kids candy while they sleep. Night!

43/52

I am so excited to have a good picture of the family finally. My friend, CW, hosted a portrait party for me today and I scheduled a session for our family. woohoo :o) We got some looks for lugging a couch out to the site but it was worth it.

Happy fall!

holding off on my weekly pic...

because....I booked a spot at my own Portrait Party this Saturday for MY family!! I can't wait :) Hopefully we will get some good shots and I will give you guys a sneak peek.

Patience...

42/52

Wow - this means there are only 10 weeks left in the year. Crazy.

Ok, it seems I have another hat picture ;) We with with all of Big Daddy's family to the Haunted Castle Halloween Festival last night and it was cold and windy and I didn't want to mess with my hair blowing in my face so threw the hat back on on the way there. I just realized that I also had it on at the fair last week...keeps the bangs out of my face that are not quite long enough to put behind my ears ;) Anyway, the kids had a fun time seeing their cousins and being scared...just a little bit. I kept the younger ones out of anything scary but Captain C got to go in one of them with everyone else...and loved it. This picture was taking in the Enchanted Boardwalk where over 150 inflatable Halloween decorations were hanging out. It was so dark (we were there until almost midnight) so you can't even see them behind us here but they are there :)


And this was while we were waiting for the big people to be scared ;) I took the kids for a giant pretzel (the best one I have ever had) and a drink. After we snacked, they were playing in bubbles and P climbed under my coat and my nephew snapped a picture for me. It kinda made me chuckle.

41/52

We love the Tulsa State Fair and today was even better with a free Mercy Me concert while we were there. It was cool and sprinkled a little but we toughed it out and had a great night.

40/52

Today I took the kids to see Charlotte's Web at the Tulsa PAC. It was a lot of fun. We were just a block or so from the Center of the Universe and the kiddos like going there so we walked over to visit (our friends with us had never been). They had fun echoing and then watching the trains go under us. We topped the morning off with lunch at Mexicalli's....which I LOVE but we never go downtown to eat anymore so it was a nice treat. Here we are at the Center of the Universe...it was rainy and VERY windy today so I didn't straighten my hair and it was crazy ;)

39/52

Oh yeah....our time has come. Captain C is our official lawn boy and we are LOVING it! Big Daddy-O still does the edging and weed eating but C is the mower of the family now. He does such a great job....and we are enjoying the break ;)

38/52

Poor Tricky T got some kind of freak tummy bug and spent the majority of last night puking his guts out. He is feeling ok today but still laying low and I kept him home from church tonight even though he really wanted to go. He loves to watch Phineas and Ferb on youtube (sick days would be nice days to actually have cable!) and wanted me to watch an episode with him while it was just the two of us. He is not very snuggly any more so I had to snap a picture while he was sitting on my lap watching (high school style as I didn't want to move to get my real camera) and then play around with it to hide all the business clutter in the background - lol - my office is not the most organized room in the world!

37/52

Every night, P makes sure I lay in her bed with her and we sing "Sweet Jesus" together and pray before she goes to sleep. Since I forgot to get my picture done earlier in the week (or even earlier in the day!), I figured it would be nice to document this sweet time with my Princess. I learned this song when I was just a kid and we were visiting my Aunt and Uncle in VT. There were a group of Jamaican workers up there picking apples and I remember hearing this song. We have sung it ever since. So simple...yet so good.

Sweet Jesus, Sweet Jesus what a wonder you are,

You are brighter than the Morning Star

You are fairer much fairer than the lily that grows by the wayside

You are precious more precious than gold.

36/52

We took the kids to Home Depot this morning to make the freebie craft (if you don't do this, you totally should - so fun and did I mention it is free?!?). Princess P asked if it was "mom and dad wear a hat day"...guess it is. Or rather, "mom and dad just got up and left the house and didn't take time to get ready so threw on a hat day". But whatever she wants to call it is fine ;)
Tricky T took today's picture with my little camera. He and Princess P are taking a photography class with our homeschool community so we let him practice. He cut Big T completely out of most of them and when we asked him, he said, "Well, I was mostly focusing on you"....aka "I meant to do that" ;)

35/52

I give up. Captain C has a serious case of PCS (Photographer's Child Syndrome). He just can NOT smile without looking like the cat got his tongue....and his lips. It is the craziest thing. So I quit trying to get him to do it on his own and took matters into my own hands tonight!

Smile, C.....

34/52

As I said yesterday, I was out of town visiting my family last week. My younger sister had her first baby and I was so thankful to be able to make the trip to meet her. After driving all day to get to AL, I got to run up to the hospital to meet her for the first time that night (she was 2 days old.) Here was my first time holding her:I brought Princess P up the next day to meet her too. I am pretty sure she is smiling at me here:

...or possibly filling her tiny diaper ;)

So, sorry this post was late but these were taken last week...just not by me, so I was waiting until they were put online so I could snag them to use here.

And just in case anyone was worried about my 33/52 post...my haircut is scheduled for tomorrow morning. P is off the hook for now!

coming soon....

I was out of town all last week visiting my family in AL and just drove home....11 hours by myself...well, with my 3 kids. I am POOPED so my photo is going to be a little delayed as I hit the hay.

33/52

I kept waiting to do this week's pic just in case I managed to sneak a hair cut in there. No dice :( My hair dresser went out of town and I will be out of town next week so we said we will hook up the next week - ugh.

I am *almost* to this:

Nah! I will wait it out...but she is definitely willing if I change my mind! Have a great week. My little sister had her first baby yesterday so I am heading to Alabama tomorrow morning for a visit - I can't wait!

32/52

OK, I a) didn't get my hair cut yet and b)forgot to take my picture this week. So....these are from last Saturday that a friend took and I took off her facebook page ;) We had a great time at the lake with great friends. It isn't right to let the kids have all the fun so we had to try their "toys" out too....so much fun!




We started school this week too - one week down - woohoo! Summer went so fast, but I guess the whole year has so what did I expect. It is nice to get back in a routine and I am looking forward to a great school year!

31/52

OK, so no haircut yet but it has just been a day so cut me some slack ;) Big Daddy-O is playing indoor soccer and was at a game this afternoon so the kids and I were playing around with the remote again. We ended up getting this one cute picture so I figured I might as well use it for my #31.And then how could I leave out this sequence? So consider this a bonus...

PS...notice the mohawk is gone....we shaved it off this week. It was fun but nice to not get the stares anymore when we are out ;)

30/52

Captain C has started mowing the yard for us. It is AWESOME! Today, he even got to go mow his grandparents yard for them. He is saving up for a Nintendo DSI so is thrilled to get to do double yards for a couple of weeks. Tonight, Big Daddy was grilling and the kids were playing out back so I thought I would try to get a picture that included the freshly cut grass (we don't let him weed eat so that still needs to be done but he did a great job on the yard!). We had so much fun trying to jump at the same time and then C had some ideas for pics...that didn't work quite as well with a 5'8" person and they did with the 4' and under crowd but we had fun trying.


Oh and I found out today that our neighbor across the street cuts hair so hopefully I will have a new 'do for next week's pic. It is long overdue!

29/52

Summer has been so busy but fun. We started out day at Lowes getting a huge piece of tile board to make a giant wipe-off board in the school room. LOVE IT!! Then Princess P had a birthday party for a little girl from church and while she and I were there, big Daddy took the boys to The Gun Museum. They all had a great time and we came home to play some games. The boys are learning how to play Chess (or "Chest", as Tricky T calls it) and Princess P is sticking with Uno. We are still working on the Chess rules (Big T and I don't even remember them all!) as evident by Tricky T calling "checkmate" on me yesterday...while we were playing Checkers ;)

I am loving my new remote that an awesome friend surprised me with. The kids were passing it around while we were playing the games and I am not sure who actually snapped the top pic ;) I must say that the piles of blue boxes are math curriculum that was given to me to pick through and is waiting to be passed on to another homeschool family to pick what they can use. And the goodie bag was from P's party ;) Big T surprised me with flowers this week for no reason (that I know of - lol) and notice how Wondermutt never leaves my side?

28/52

Please ignore the quality of today's picture. As they say, it is what it is. Trenton took it with the PowerShot after putting his finger ON the lens and with his finger through part of the frame...which you can see the part I didn't crop out in the top left corner. But never fear! My new remote shipped today from B&H - woohoo! A dear friend took pity on me after reading my whining in my posts and got it for me....I am sooooo excited and appreciative!!

Anyway, today's picture shows one of my least favorite parts of summer parenting...but one of the most important. Sunscreen. I hate the stuff. The kids hate having it put on. But it is a must have and so we all tolerate it the best we can. Today we went to the Nienhuis Park Aquatic Facility with some friends from our homeschool co-op so here we are, lathering up before we head out the door.

27/52 - Independence Day :)

This week has been c-r-a-z-y. I went to a homeschool practicum Mon-Wed from 9-4 and learned a lot but it seems like the week was gone as soon as it started. I started getting sick Wed but pressed on for a few days, working until 1:30am on Thursday hanging pictures at a friend's Frozen Custard shop. By Friday, I was done. I didn't even wake up until 9:45 and then was back in bed by 11 for most of the day. It was rough - I haven't been that sick in a long time. I was shooting a wedding tonight so HAD to be better. After a rocky start this morning (thanks to some meds knocking me on my keester!), I was much better this afternoon and ready for some fun.

All that to say....I forgot about my blog again until today :( Soooo, I had Captain C snap a picture with my point and shoot of me and Big Daddy-O as we were walking out the door to the wedding. Hey, at least I got it in before midnight...barely ;)

26/52 - 1/2 way baby!

WooHoo! 1/2 way through this project...which means that we are also 1/2 way through 2009. WOW! Time is just flying!

Today, a friend and I took our kiddos to pick blueberries. It was SO HOT but totally worth it to have all these delicious (and nutritious...shhhh...don't tell the kids!) berries frozen and ready to enjoy all summer. I make the kids smoothies several times a week and can't wait to start throwing a few in each one :) When we started picking, my friend thought to take a picture of me and the kids for the blog. It is better that we did it at the beginning as we were sweaty hot after an hour of picking! Thanks for inviting us and for the picture, C!!

25/52

If I'm being honest, I will admit that I completely forgot about this weeks picture until I went back to get ready for bed tonight. Oops! The kids are in bed. Hubby is gone. My only companions were WonderMutt and my timer...PS. I have GOT to get a remote ASAP!!

WonderMutt is my shadow. She follows me room to room and sleeps at my feet. She spent 8 weeks in prison being trained and loved on by inmates and I am not sure if I remind her of one of them or she just thinks I can protect her from Princess P putting dresses and makeup on her but she sticks very close to me at all times. She sheds, she licks and she eats Legos on a daily basis...but other than that, she is a great dog and we love her for who she is ;)

I took about 25 pictures, pushing the button and running back into the picture and got maybe 3 in focus. It didn't leave me much to choose from so here ya go. Picture 25 of 52. She loves to have her belly scratched ;)

Phew - 1 hour until next week....I made it!

24/52

So....Tricky T has been wanting a mohawk for MONTHS. There is a guy in C's karate school that has one that T thinks is so cool. I was lining the kids up for haircut day on Saturday and he asked again so I obliged. It is summertime, right? I had to add in the bonus pic b/c seriously, he is the sweetest kid and honestly, not a "tough guy" (no offense, sweetie) so this cracks me up!


Oh and for a certain few that will appreciate this...the second was with OCF -yippee. I was playing out back the other night to see what I can do. It was still light out but with closing it down to f/22 and using the flash, it looks like a studio shot. Sweet! I am going to love learning this...and might need a little direction - lol!

23/52

I can't believe that we are 23 weeks into 2009 already. And I really can't believe that I have not missed a week of this project yet! Woohoo. The last few pics have just been taken with my Canon Powershot and not my work cameras but it is so much easier carry this little guy around when we are out and about instead of lugging the big guns out. I will get some nice pics someday, but for the purpose of this, I am just trying to get pictures taken.

We are enjoying the nice weather before it gets unbearably hot here in OK. We went to a small park yesterday to play and today we met some friends at a bigger park a couple of towns over. Here we are all loaded up and ready to go play. [Disclaimer: We took one of the seats out of the van when we went to the lake last week so we could put the dog's crate in there and haven't put it back yet.]

22/52

We had a great week this week seeing Night at the Museum 2, camping, and just enjoying being together before Big Daddy starts back to work on Monday after being home for the past 7 months. Today we hit Grandma's pool one more time this week and got this silly pic that will have to do for the weekly picture. Tricky T was hanging on so tight that Big Daddy couldn't open his eyes.

Happy Summer, everyone!!

21/52

I am getting the hang of this early posting now. Next thing you know, I will be posting twice a week...or maybe not ;)

We finished up our second year of homeschooling on Friday and took the kids on a short road trip to Seminole, OK to the Jasmine Moran Children's Museum. They had a great time. It was packed for the first few hours we were there, as several public schools had the same idea as us but with a few more than 3 students. Luckily they all headed back to school shortly after lunch and we were able to play in peace. There was a 16 feet tall climbing maze that the kids talked me into joining them on. A couple of places were tight but I made it to the top. Big Daddy stayed on the ground and took a couple of pictures.
Next to me on the second picture is the slide that I didn't go down. Captain C didn't think it would hold me...thanks, honey!

20/52

No, this isn't the shortest week ever....I just happened to get a picture of me with the kids today for Mother's Day and decided to post it today instead of trying to get another one later this week :)


Happy Mother's Day to all the Moms that read this (including my mom who doesn't comment but gives me grief when I am late with my weekly post so I know she reads here - love you, Mom!). I love being a mom so much and can't imagine any better life for me!

19/52

To make up for my last minute entry last week, I am posting early this week (it evens out, right?).

My wonderful hubby and kids got this super cool necklace for me for Mother's Day and it came today. It has all 3 kids' names on the circle and is just perfect! I love it!!