Christmas Weekending

The march to Christmas day just hasn't slowed down one bit since Thanksgiving day came so late! I feel like I'm behind on just about everything. How is this possible? I ask myself this every day.

Friday night our church provided one last Parents' Night Out of the year which Mr. G and I took advantage of to complete our Christmas shopping. We have very little other time between now and next week with his work schedule plus other Christmas events. We're starting the tradition this year of our kids opening two gifts Christmas eve--one from us and one from their sibling. And we realized that we didn't have some things that really fit that bill, or maybe what we thought fit the bill was something we didn't want to deal with on Christmas Eve? Can anyone relate to this?

I promise we found something that will bring just as much joy, to be opened on Christmas eve. And with many pieces, just not one million. Or even one hundred.

I was moping through the aisles of TRU, lamenting the fact that I couldn't find a cute infant play toy that was undeniably pink and definitely for females and not remotely gender neutral when I randomly found this gem on a shelf. It was the last one, and I knew it was the one. Can we get more girly than this? (Oh yes, we can. With baby's first baby doll and doll stroller. Oh yes ma'am, we are.)


But lo, in a sea of gender neutral, the Fisher-Price Laugh & Learn Magical Musical Mirror stood alone amongst the infant playthings of Fort Worth Toys R Us some mere days before Christmas.

It was a successful evening for both of our kids.

Saturday I had time to sit down and address Christmas cards that had been delivered Friday evening. And hopefully today they'll get in a mailbox somewhere. Tick tock tick tock!

We had a wonderful day at church yesterday. It was good to be back after the weather we had last week shut us down. Our church Christmas concert has featured a special guest over the past several years, and this year it was the Katinas. It was Jack's first year to go with us, and he did awesome. He's growing up on me!

We're looking forward to a busy week on the march toward Christmas. I'm praying for additional focus that the Price of Peace would reign in my heart this week and that I would make time to slow down and enjoy these beautiful days of the season.

A very merry Christmas to you!

Beware of Walking in a Winter Wonderland

It's been over a week since I posted, and in that time, it's gone from over 80 degrees here in Fort Worth, to an icy, frozen Winter Wonderland! Although it finally got up above freezing temperatures for only a few hours Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday, thankfully it was just enough to make the roads passable, with some major help from TXDoT. Texans get such a bad rap about not being able to drive under winter conditions, but we don't get snow often. We only get ICE, which is so different. In my thirty-something years, I think this past weekend holds the record for the worst ice storm I've experienced. We could barely walk on our street, must less drive on it. Even our yard was too slick to walk on by Saturday.

(I found out the walking thing the hard way when I busted it right in front of my neighbors while attempting to say hi. Bruises included.)

We have spent a fabulous, cozy four days at home together. While I was certainly getting close to a brush with cabin fever, I had many moments of thankfulness for this season that my kids are in, and the warm home we are blessed to share with them. We made some great memories (or at least Mom and Dad did) while we were ice-locked.

On Friday, Jack and Mr. G built a tent in our bedroom. It was epic in my little guy's eyes, so I looked the other way as they pulled out nearly every quilt, sleeping bag, and pillow in the house to construct their temporary housing. And my broom got swept up in the action (see what I did there,) acting as the centerpole.


By Saturday morning, we needed a little something else to do, so I remembered that we had graham crackers in the pantry along with some Halloween candy that wasn't our favorite--that would be anything that wasn't chocolate--so a quick google of gingerbread house icing lead me to this super recipe for glue. I'll use it every year, except hopefully I will have fresher powdered sugar on hand so it will taste better.


Someone on Facebook asked how we did this so cleanly. I commandeered the glue, Jack placed the candy on, and by the time we were done, we tossed our candy-filled cupcake wrappers in the trash with one quick sweep of the table. In a flash, my DustBuster handled the rest, and we were done. Next time I won't pull out tiny sprinkles, but it was one of those "use anything you can find in the pantry" situations. Lesson learned on that one.

Sunday morning we treacherously trekked just across the street to our neighbors' to eat breakfast and spend time with them and 2 other families nearby. I think from the length of everyone's stay, it was evident that everyone was so glad to see other human life! It was a great visit and reminded me of how much I love the community I live in and that I need to slow down and take more time to enjoy it.

We were glad to see the ice melt while we were out of the house because we had big plans for Sunday evening. I'll have to post on that later, if I have time to jump back on here during naptime tomorrow. I hope you have a great week, and stay warm!

Back from the Thanksgiving

Annabelle's first Thanksgiving is over. We're back home and digging into our Christmas decorations. But not before we ate ourselves so full that I declared I wouldn't eat anything that wasn't a vegetable ever again (until later that night when I had leftovers of my Grannie's dressing.) Y'all, I made three pies, and that was in addition to all the other desserts we had. It was insane. It was wonderful.


On our way to Corsicana
One of my pies was a chocolate one, using the recipe from Homesick Texan, whose blog is a great resource for home cooking. My Meemaw (Dad's mom) who is known for her chocolate pies, but is now in a nursing home, joined us for Thanksgiving at my Grannie's (Mom's mom.) I hope I did her proud on the meringue! I also made no-pecan pie and a classic Tollhouse pie just in case of a dessert emergency which, of course, there was none. The no-pecan pie was because I don't like pecans.


It was a great visit. Lots of cousins, aunts, uncles, and kids running in and out. I knew Jack would be so excited to get outside and GO, so we made sure he was all fixed up for the muddy conditions. A new farm coat, which I highly recommend if you need something inexpensive, but warm that your little one might tear up, some new Carhartt overalls from his grandparents, and a good pair of mud boots, and that boy was out the door.


After a Friday of online shopping (me) and hunting (him), we headed back on Saturday around lunch time. It was just a good family weekend! I have so many things I'm thankful for this year. Although not without its challenges, 2013 has been a sweet one for us. I praise God for that!

Don't Leave Cash on the Table This Christmas

I couldn't let Black Friday pass us by without mentioning Ebates this year.

You've probably heard of Ebates. If you haven't or if you're a skeptic, let me tell you, somehow it's NOT too good to be true.


If you shop through Ebates you earn cash back at most of your favorite online destinations. They offer cash back at GAP, Old Navy, Banana Republic, Nordstrom, J. Crew, Wal-Mart, Tractor Supply (I know this because I was just shopping for Carhartt overalls, random), Kate Spade, Tory Burch, Dillard's, Carter's, Land's End, Neiman's, to name a few.

It's easy. You sign up, do a little search on their website for the retailer you want to shop for, then a new browser tab or window is launched for you to shop, along with a tracking ticket to keep a record of your purchase. This is where you will be skeptical until they notify you a few days later that you've earned $x amount from Ebates.


How it Works info graphic is straight from Ebates.
Once a quarter, you'll get a check in the mail with your total Ebates. It's that simple. You receive cash back in the form of a check for purchases that you were going to make anyway. I've endorsed the checks and cashed them myself. They are real.

They even have a friend referral program, so if you click here to sign up and then use the site to make a purchase, I'll actually get a little bonus cash in my next check!

When you receive your first check in the mail with money back on all those things you were going to buy anyway, you'll feel like a power shopper. Because you ARE a power shopper!

Sign up and start earning cash back!

Mama Monday: What a SAHM is Missing

I thought of something last night that I'm totally missing out on while being a stay at home mother.

(Hold on to your hats. It's clearly very serious and important.)

(Except I am kidding in case you've not yet begun to understand my sarcasm.)

We're missing FOOD DAY AT WORK, SAHMs.

It didn't even register to me that I no longer get to experience the smorgasbord that is food day at work until last night when I was putting together party sandwiches for my husband to take to his office for food day today. Food day is when I found some of my best recipes--sampling my Co-Workers' dishes. Food day is one of the very best days to be in the office. (The #1 best day to be in the office is pay day.)


I think I may organize the other moms in my neighborhood for a potluck, which will technically be my very own food day at work.

What's in my bag?

I don't think I've ever done one of these posts before, so let's dive right in!


Here's my bag. It's a mom bag. I'm good with that, although I swap out with my non-mom bags when I'm running kid-free errands. Don't let her white stripes fool you. She's a work horse.

(I really thought I had lost my mind when I bought an everyday bag with white stripes. It's okay if you do too.)


The usual suspects: indestructible mom sunglasses, a good neutral lipstick (MAC Modesty), face powder, Tylenol, my wallet. Diapers, wipes, and food.

Also, you're looking at 4 different kinds of wipes: Shout wipes, regular wipes, Kleenexes, and anti-bacterial wipes. No shortage of paper goods in this bag. There are also 2 sizes of diapers, which work to absorb many different kinds of liquids if you're ever in a jam.


Tiny shoes that a tiny girl kicked off at lunch yesterday. (Robeez Gracie.)
HEB Buddy points and a ticket from riding the train at the Zoo.
Two tubes of Desitin, two tubes of sunscreen. This might seem like overkill to some, but I can't say enough about applying diaper cream and sunscreen.

My favorite burpy bib along with a grab and go snack for the baby. I bag the spoon up with the baby food (I don't make my own) to keep it all together, plus it gives me a little throw away baggie if I need one while we're out. Puffs and the formula dispenser are back there too.

I carry enough food to feed both an infant and a preschooler at any given time. Not pictured are the Teddy Grahams and fruit snacks that I forgot to pull out of their hidey pocket.

There are so many pockets in the bag that all of this is actually quite organized, and I know where to grab any of it at any given moment. Except for the HEB Buddy points and train ticket--those were actually a surprise.

I've shared my anti-bacterial, sunscreen, and diaper ointment applying tendencies along with my need for a wipe for all occasions. Tell me, what's the strangest thing you're carrying around "in case of emergency?"

Weekending

I'm just a few days late with this one. This has been a busy week, with sick kids, meeting up with friends, and prepping for a Pinterest day at our church this Saturday where I'm leading a class. Busy!

Last weekend I dropped our babies off with my parents on Friday afternoon and headed back to Fort Worth after eating supper with them and my brother. We had gotten a call a couple of days earlier inviting us to take advantage of some Aggie football tickets our friends had been given. Everything totally aligned--childcare, tickets, and a mostly free weekend. YES!

The tickets were passed along by two gentlemen in our church who have had them for probably decades. Our parking pass was in the lot right in the shadow of Kyle Field, which really uncomplicated a lot of game day for us. So wonderful!


We caught one of our former high school students who is in the Corps during march-in, saw Luke Joeckel on his scooter with his hurt ankle, and managed to grab some Aggie stocking stuffers for the kids. After a ridiculous first quarter, the Aggies started to come alive. It was great to watch Johnny play even a little longer than we expected. We headed out in the fourth quarter since it was already late (kick-off was at 8 PM), and we all had to be back for Harvest Day, our new building dedication, and other responsibilities at church the next morning.


8 AM came pretty early the next morning, even with falling back an hour. It was Harvest Day at church, and we dedicated a new building with dining facilities, music suite, and education space for Senior Adults. It was a great day! After, we headed back to Corsicana to pick up my kids and visit with my family for a bit. It was a great weekend, and we were so grateful we got to make a trip to Aggieland this year to see our Fightin' Texas Aggies!