Happy New Year!

May all of your hopes shine through this New Year!
I am so excited for a New Year & new dreams to come true!
Happy New Year's Eve!!!

3 Bags O' Blood, 2 Happy kids, and 1 day till New Year's Eve!

So my sister had to be in the hospital yesterday for 3 bags of blood, it literally took all day & night, so she just spent the night. Josh left for work @ 4:30 this morning & I texted Jill & she was up, so we just talked on the phone! I want to be there with her so badly! But, I know she needs rest, my parents are there to help, so all I need to do is pray for her to get well soon. My mom said her cheeks are nice & rosey after the blood, so I'm glad she has some color now. They are doing a sonogram on her female parts in 5 days & then in 10 days, she goes back to the Dr. for all results & to see what they best step is next. I'm praying it's as simple as a hysterectomy, her blood will continue to rise up & she will finally feel GREAT! Please keep praying with me & I will keep you posted.
The kiddies & I have played outside this morning (it looks like rain is heading this way) & it was just nice to be outside & spend time with the little loves of my life.
Barkley has been so layed back & such a good boy lately, he spends a lot of time on his little pallet inside. I wash it every other day, just for it to get dirty again. :) He smells like a goat, but he's just so cute. He wanted to see how tiny his 91 pound body could scruntch up. :) He's the perfect little pooch for our family & I'm thankful for him. We have talked about our bloodhound, Max, lately & miss him. Kenlee even cried the other night for Max.  I just don't know if Barkley would be so content inside with Max around. God always has a plan for a family, and I'm just thankful for both dogs.

 I had to take some pictures of my two legged kids, too.

 Kenlee is BIG into reading to her class. She has about 3 or 4 books memorized. I think she could be a teacher because she likes to be large & in charge of all things! HA! She has asked everyday if she is going to school because she loves it so much! I'm so happy because our girl is happy!

Biggy finally feels so much better & is having fun going places & running errands with me. Our boy is happy as long as there is some sort of agenda to his day! He was happy to ride bikes this morning & get some fresh air...but he has also enjoyed trading out a few games at GameStop & battling out with his Dad. :)

Just 2 days until 2011! I'm not making resolutions, just positive goals for myself & our family. I'm not cooking "traditional" New Year's food because we just enjoy other things besides black eyed peas & greens :) All I know is that I'm putting my best foot forward, enjoying life, and I'm planning on laughing a whole lot in 2011! Do you have any goals for New Years?

Explanation of SNOW in ALABAMA

So I didn't do great with snow pictures...my Mother (Bon Bon) however, did an excellent job. They mostly got snow on Christmas day I think, and we got more on the 26th. Anywho, here is their house covered in white! Oh, I love it!!!

 Logan's favorite part was the footprints on the driveway :)
Here is my lousy version! HA! BELOW ~

Someone dear to me is turning 12 years old on Sunday.
12 years ago I was in the delivery room with this girl's Mother - laughing because the Crocodile Hunter was on TV & it was driving my sister nuts to hear his voice! I was also summoned (is that how to spell that?) to hold up one of her legs while she pushed & I accidentally dropped her leg & she didn't even feel it due to the epidural. We laughed & laughed (Thank the Lord she didn't feel that!) Then I quickly took my birth control pill because it was a bit much for this 21 year old. Little did I know, my sister would be in the delivery room holding my leg up just a year & 1/2 later with our Biggy boy!

Happy Birthday early, Myrtle! Your MIMI loves you more than you know!!

 My sister, Jill ~ you are helping me lift her up in prayer and I am very grateful. My parents are dashing to Gulf Shores right now for my Mom to go to her Dr's appt with her. PRAYING hard that God will give us good news on an easy remedy for her anemia. So if you see a cream colored Avalon on two wheels, watch out! HA!

 Going thru pictures, I found this of my sister & Shang's old house on Montvue in Anniston. 1001, as a matter of fact. (Where Katie was brought home to.) We all miss that house :) It is Full of personality & neat characteristics. Sometimes I wish we all still lived there together & could meet for lunch at least once a week. :) Los Mexicanos, Ruby Tuesdays, Dad's BBQ, Western Sizzlin, Pizza Hut in Oxford...we were all regulars but most of all, Betty's BBQ. I woudn't change my life, God had all of that planned out for me, and I love all of those fun times & look forward to more. One day...I pray that Jill, Mom & I will live within a short distance of each other & can meet more for lunches of eating too much & laughing a lot.
So I am on week 4 of no softdrinks & barely any bread. Makes me want a Western Sizzlin roll right now :) But I know my sugar will thank me later for not indulging now.

So here's to past memories and future fun. I'm thankful, that's for sure.
I hope you are having a good last week of December!

Christmas 2010!!!

First, an update on my sis...She now has bronchitis. I called & told my neice to tell her Daddy to take Jill to the ER (LIKE NOW!!) and thankfully, he did. She got a shot & some antibiotics...she goes for some iron infusions this week & my parents will be there to go with her. I'm thankful for that. I'm just praying her blood is rising past a 6. Her oxygen is at 99 or 100 each time it is checked, so I think what we thought was asthma, was really a low blood oxygen level having to do with her lungs. Please keep praying this is an issue that can be easily remedied! She is also scheduling an appt with an OBGYN to see if it's "womanly" related. She is the first to take care of others & the last to take care of herself, but my prayer is that she see's how IMPORTANT it is to be taking care of herself first. I'm sure she loves me blasting this on a blog, but I believe in the power of prayer & I know she can get better!

CHRISTMAS 2010!!
So much fun!! Logan woke up at 5:37, Kenlee @ 8:30. It was kind of neat though, because they each got to have their own time soaking it all up. I'm sure as she gets older, she will want her Biggy waking her up, too.
To top it off, it snowed here on the 25th & more so on the 26th! What a blessing! We 4 were really cozy all weekend together & I loved it so much. Yesterday our heat wasn't acting right as we were putting together Logan's new basketball goal, so I left with the kids to get warm in the car & take them out for a while & Josh stayed here, tweeked it for a bit & got it working again. He got a promotion @ work & will be closer to the school he was attending for HVAC training so this gives us more of a possibility for him to return & finish up. His schedule this semester @ work just didn't allow it. Last night we were both thankful for what he has learned so far! Will this create a move for us?! Maybe so! Time will tell....

Now, onto pictures! I'll narrate as I go!

 The big gift, from Nana & Papa ~ lots of work putting together, but I know will be worth it.

 A doughnut maker for Biggy! Guess what we made Santa?!

 He is one lucky guy! Biggy's creations.
This year we had my parents & Josh's mom over & I made chicken & beef tacos ~ I think it will be a new way to do things, it made so much, it was really good & there were leftovers for nachos for the next day!

 Stirring his doughnut mix, above. :)

 Our little star got a microphone, let me tell you... this girl worked the room!!! She has been dancing & singing ever since she got it & is a little performer if I do say so myself!

 Puppies, Puppies everywhere! Santa brought Kenlee a whole vet clinic I think. Our dog, Barkley, doesn't bark - I don't know how we got to be so lucky, but these dogs make more noise than a pet motel!

 Logan got a flat screen, The Toothfairy movie, an Ipod stereo, some games...he must have been really good this year. :)

 Biggy is so helpful with Kenlee & enjoys showing her how her stuff works & getting it out of the package for her! He is like his Daddy & loves to put stuff together.

 Just a couple of the puppies here - do you see her nametag on her shirt? Dr. Kenlee.

 LOVED his stereo. It even charges his Ipod. Notice I painted behind him in the foyer! Chocolate Satin ~ I love it! I thought it would make this space smaller, but it doesn't with the crown molding. Makes me happy!

 We love some Olivia around here. She already has Fancy Nancy as her Mother. :) Just kidding.

Watching it snow! I didn't get pic's on the 26th when it REALLY snowed, but it was wonderful & how often do we get to see snow in AL? Not often enough!!!!
Hope you all had a Merry Christmas & looking SO FORWARD to 2011!!!
Thank you for praying for Jill ~ please keep her on your list & I will keep you updated.

2 Days!

We've been busy little bee's around here! Kenlee's Christmas party @ school was a fun time & Logan is happy to be out of school, play a little Wii, get to open presents & hunt.

I love wrapping presents ~ I wish I could have a present wrapping store. But ~ I don't do bows, I would need to hire someone for bows. I LOVE wrapping things though. Hobby Lobby had the cutest wrapping paper this year. I bought ours last year on sale, so I didn't splurge, but after Christmas, I'm there - I'm going to get ours for next year.

 All smiles @ the class Christmas party! She got so many goodies & books & fun things! Tattoo's for Christmas, tiny notebooks to take everyone's order like she loves to do at night :), and pencils, pens & candy!

 This is how excited Biggy is about presents!

Pizza Party! I love her little class! Her teacher is so sweet, when she hugged Kenlee, she told her "If you miss me too much like I'll miss you, just have your Mommy call me & I'll talk to you on the phone!" Isn't that precious!?

PRAYER WARRIORS!!!!
My sister would probably think I'm over reacting, but she needs prayers! Her hemoglobin level was a 6 yesterday & had to go for an iron infusion. She's been anemic for a while, but her breathing has been compromised lately & she isn't feeling well. She had bloodwork done at a checkup & yesterday they called her & told her she had to go straight to the hospital. Normal level is 12 or above I think & anything under 8 is life threatening. PLEASE PRAY with me!! I am praying for no underlying issues - that if it's female related, that she can get her blood levels up & have a hysterectomy (but I want her to come to Bham, not Gulf Shores!!!) I just love her so much & I pray for her to be well. She is the most giving, loving, unselfish person I know & would take care of everyone before she takes care of herself. My neice is about to be 12 & her mom does everything in the world for her & I just pray for Jill to be well!!! Thank you from my heart!

Celebration with Family #1!

We went to my Father-In-Law's on Saturday evening & a good time was had by all! No matter when we go, we always have a low-key, relaxing & fun time. Lori & Chad (Josh's sis & hubby) got Logan a set of Nerf guns & I don't know who had more fun, Josh, Logan or our neice, Katie. (we have two neices named Katie!! - from my sis & his sis!) Kenlee got all sorts of baby doll things & loved it all so much. We are going to have to get a bigger house one day so she can have a room for all of her dolls & stuffed dogs. :) I don't think she has much more room in her bed due to the amount of babies & dogs that line up on each side with her pillow in between & we have to tuck them all in right before we tuck her in & say prayers.

 Present time!!

 Our brother-in-law, Chad, Katie, Lori, me & Logan & in back: Josh's Dad (Eddie), Darren (nephew), Kenlee & her Daddy :) My head is large & covered my husband up, or he was hiding from the camera. :)

 PawPaw & Kenlee. He is so sweet with our kiddies!

 Logan, Kenlee & PawPaw. And ABC nightly news. :)

 Josh's sister, Lori, Eddie & Josh.

PawPaw & the grandkids!
It's always a stress free time @ his house & lots o' fun!

Gingerbread Houses!

A little tradition of ours & so many others is decorating gingerbread houses. It keeps them creative for at least an hour & I always love the finished product. My mother-in-law always bakes with them & she created these little houses with their help ~
Biggy has had a fever over the weekend & he is flu negative but had a fever this morning & I took him to get adjusted & it broke right after that! I am amazed! He's at least playing a little Wii, so I know he's feeling better. Thankful he doesn't have school & he can sleep in & rest while he's a little puney. It's amazing how our bodies react to a vertebrae that is right where it needs to be! Call me crazy!! :)

I hope you & your families are doing some fun traditions this week!
More posts & pic's coming soon!

Let the FUN begin!

These two loves of mine are so PUMPED!!! No school for a few weeks! YIPEEEE!
It's amazing how their bodies can change over a few years ~ Thank God for Christmas's past & thank God for Christmas's future...without Him we wouldn't have anything to celebrate!!

Dirty Santa....

The kids played Dirty Santa over @ the Lott's the other night & they were all nice. ~ The object is to draw #'s & pick a gift or steal someone else's...I think everyone pretty much got what they wanted though!
Don't you love when you get together with friends & all of the kids get along? That's how it was for us there & it makes life so much easier!!
Carter had moved to TN, but is back now & he is so cute, he needs to be a Baby Gap model. I guess I should say "toddler Gap!!"
Here are a few pictures from our gathering!
The three handsome boys playing in Jackson's cool room!

 You know, Kenlee asks Allie all the time if she can "BORROW" her guinea pigs. Look at how BIG they are!! They are like little rat terriers! HA!

 Having a good time @ the table!

 Happy with all of their loot. Jackson, Carter, Kenlee, Logan & Allie. Thankful to God for these HAPPY & HEALTHY kids!

 Don't you want to squeeze him in that precious sweater!?

 Mrs. Cheryl had them guess how many M & M's were in the jar & Carter won! He was sweet to share with Kenlee! Logan doesn't like chocolate (at all) so he didn't guess :)

 Cuteness!!!

 Look how sweet!!! Kenlee's fancy tutu is what she won in dirty Santa! Right up her ALLIE! I mean, alley!

This last picture is a beaut! Brienne is preggo & due in February ~ drinking heavy liquer ... no, just kidding, she is drinking sparkling cider! Carter will have a baby brother! Don't you think his middle name should be Valentine?! He's going to be cute, just like his brother!

Happy Holidays to good friends all around!

Party time!

I made some bacon bites that are easy. And yummy. I wanted to share how to do them in pic's ~ mainly to send to my sister via text message, but I will also share on here!

 Lay regular crescent dough flat to make a square & push perforations together.  Spread regular cream cheese all over raw dough & then sprinkle bacon crumbled up on top of the cream cheese. Roll up like a log. :) Simple so far, right?

 Next cut in little 1/2 inch pieces & lay flat on aluminum foil. Like this....

 Bake @ 350 until crescent roll looks darker & done. That is what I say when I color my hair, darker & done. :)

 Ta Da! These are best warm, but you will still eat them when they aren't warm.

 Somehow I saved the picture above & it shrunk.???? Don't know how I do what I do, but I just do.
Cheryl, Brienne & me ~ having a good time @ Cheryl's unbelievably decorated house that looks so fantastic.

This will be our 16th Christmas together! We look a little different than we did back then, but we love stronger now!!!

Next post, kiddies having fun @ the Christmas party!
Stay tuned! I'm baking for Logan's class party tomorrow!