what it all boils down to

it's 68 degrees outside. i wish it was scarf and sweater weather,
but i shall choose to be thankful ;)


the holidays always get me thinking about how we do things around here. what do we want our traditions to be? what do we want our kids to remember...

i remember eating really hot stuffing right from the oven in a pyrex dish because i stole the idea from my sister, getting out the lovely china and setting out all the pretty place settings to commemorate the importance of the day, watching the parade on tv, pretending to play football outside after dinner, and watching white christmas or whatever movie was on that night.
what will my kids remember? what do i WANT them to remember....

and what it all comes down to for us is Christ.

sure we are blessed beyond measure that my husband has a job, we are healthy for the most part, we have a home that we can afford to pay for heating and cooling, we have a family that is growing by leaps and bounds, but the most important part is Christ.





we have been so richly blessed by His grace and His mercy. by His forgiveness and His redemption.

i am so thankful that the all-knowing, all-powerful, creator of the heavens and the earth chose to create a way for myself and Him to have a relationship together. i'm thankful that God, in His infinite power and wisdom, sent Christ to die for my sins so that by accepting Him, God no longer sees my iniquities but Christ's perfection.

so while i love turkey and dressing and family time and a warm home and yummy candles and kids all bundled up ready to play, even if there were none of that, i would still be blessed. i hope my children can look back at our holiday traditions and see that through all of it was the underlying concept that God is worthy to be praised --in every season. whether we can see the blessings or not, He is worthy.

thank You, God, for providing us with everything we need through Christ.

top 10

well hello ladies and gentlemen...
how goes it?

fall is in full swing tonight at our house... candles lit, windows slightly open, snuggly pajamas on...and oh yeah, i'm sick.
but we are blessed, nonetheless, and i thought i'd do a quick top 10 to update on all the happenings.
1. halloween went great. the kids loved their costumes and looked super cute in them.

ironman

hate to break it to you, but gabe is the real ironman. i know. i blew his cover.

elijah was superman

2. z-diddy, elijah, and gabe are all in this new phase of pretending to be puppies. they pretend grapes are treats and they crawl around on all fours. it's pretty entertaining.

3. the Christmas gift list is made and i shall be purchasing these lovely trinkets in the near future. i'm trying to get the bulk of it done before thanksgiving. we'll see...
4. we have been having lots of showings on the house lately. this is very exciting.
5. colalicious has started walking. i know, i know. you're all astounded at his genius-ness.
6. we finalized the options on our next house. everyone will have their own room...except me. i have a roommate. he's cute. the hubs...he's a keeper. we should be moving in march.
7. pandora radio has a lovely Christmas station that makes me very excited. the other night we put it on and danced in the kitchen. "rockin' around the Christmas tree" and "i'm dreaming of a white christmas" (--the fun, upbeat version) always remind me of home alone, my all-time FAVE Christmas movie.
8. no news is good news with the whole colalicious and z-diddy adoption situation. our 90 days of waiting for extended family to come forward is over sometime around january 3. we are excited to see that date come and go with no hint of news.
9. colalicious has been sick this week and has NOT gotten worse or ended up in the hospital. this is a BIG deal in our house!
10. the church plant that we're helping with is coming along nicely. we are excited to see how God will use us when we live in the same city as the church plant. i can't wait to bake brownies for neighbors, hold bible studies, and share Christ with our community.
check us out!
www.hopeforboerne.org

hopefully i'll be more on the ball and blog a bit more in the near future. i know...you're on pins and needles. ;)

eating brownies

it's been a rough couple of weeks. don't get me wrong, it's been delightful to have two cute official sons and two cute unofficial additions.

but we've had so much going on lately and i just can't seem to catch my breath.

the adoption, family coming in, planning a shower for my dear friend, "tia," keeping the house ready for the showings we've been having, and all the day to day stuff like keeping Rxs for the baby up to date and filled, paperwork done, etc.

the climax of all of this came when one kid is screaming, none of them can get along, i realized i was terribly late sending my neice a birthday present, and i paid WAY too much for some wonderful cupcakes that i'm sure in the long run will be worth it. not too exciting of a climax, right?

whew.

needless to say, there is no routine. there is no "laundry day" or "deep cleaning day" or "chore day" or any other form of measurable productivity. at the end of the day the beds are unmade, the floor is dirty, the dishes need to be washed, the clothes need to be folded, and i just have nothing left.

now, i get the whole "when they're 18 you won't look back and think about all the dishes you didn't do...you'll wish you spent more time the kids" idea. i'd love for those people to come do my dishes for me so i could play a game or read a book to my kids.

anyways, tonight the hubs is out and about, the kids are tucked in, and i'm eating turtle brownies and watching 27 dresses in the hopes that tomorrow i will breathe in this fresh fall loveliness and not feel so far behind.

here we go...