What I Want for Christmas

Since most of us have already started our Christmas shopping, here are a few things on my list this year:


The Original Necklace by Lisa Leonard with Brady's name on it, of course!

27 Dresses DVD - Rumor has it this will be $5 at Target on Friday

Sex and the City DVD – I think this is on sale at Target, too


Giada de Laurentiss – Everyday Favorites cookbook – Love her shows and her cookbooks.



I’m not sure what else. After last year’s big gift of my pink Kitchen-Aid mixer, there’s nothing major on my list.

I'd also love gift cards to my favorite stores, Ann Taylor Loft and Swoozies.

Turkey Cupcakes and Black Friday

I forgot to tell y’all that I made these cupcakes for my 2 and 3 year olds in Sunday School this past week. They turned out so cute and the kids loved them. And some adults, too!

Right now I’m planning out my Black Friday shopping trip. I’m not the kind of person who gets up at 5am to wait in the freezing cold to rush into the mall. Nope, not me. But I will head out around 7am or so and hit a few select stores. On my list this year?
- Target (super cheap movies)
- Old Navy (I’ve heard they’re doing 50% off the entire store)
- Gymboree. But going to Gymboree would involve going to the mall. We’ll see. It might be easier to order online for them.
- Maybe Swoozies. I’m not sure on that one yet.

Are you planning any Black Friday shopping?

Monday, Monday

Good morning! I hope everyone had a great weekend. Ours was okay.......... Brady had a virus. I don't think I've ever talked about diarrhea as much as I have this weekend! But, he seems to be almost back to normal now.

I did order this great dress from Ann Taylor Loft as an early Christmas present! It looks green in the picture, but it's just black and white. I tried it on in the store and it's so cute! I had a 30% off code, so I ordered it online.

We have a busy week ahead with Thanksgiving coming up. Have a great day!

Things I'm Loving These Days

Here are a few things I’m loving these days:

Taylor Swift’s new album. She may be ten years younger than me, but I’m just loving her new cd. Part of it makes me feel like I’m in high school again, but that’s a good thing. You need that some days! It’s a really emotional album, though. I highly recommend it!

A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving. I’ve been watching this every year at Thanksgiving as long as I can remember and now Brady loves it, too.

A new hair cut. I got my hair cut yesterday and it’s amazing how good a new do can make you feel.

My Gobble Gobble tee from Old Navy. McMommy got this shirt first and then I went out and bought it. It’s so cute, but not “Christmas sweater obnoxious.” Thanks, McMommy, for telling us about it!

Good News and Bad News

First, the good news -

BRADY IS POOPING IN THE POTTY!!!!! He's been fine with peeing, but pooping was still an issue. Then over this past weekend, he just started doing it. I'm so excited!

The bad news -

My beloved Cottage Living magazine has just published it's last issue. Apparently, it's fallen victim to the rough economic times, too. I love this magazine! Heather Chadduck and her brillant decorating ideas are no more!

What day is it?

Well, it’s been quite a weekend and start to the week. Let’s do a little review:

My grandmother had a stroke a week ago Saturday. She was doing fairly well and we were throwing around the idea of driving up to Kentucky to see her, but we haven’t decided for sure.

Friday we went up to Asheville to see Playhouse Disney with Viv and her family. The drive there and back was fun, but honestly, I’d skip the concert and just go straight to Disney World. That’s just my opinion. The kids did have a great time, though. That’s what matters.

Then we get the call that my grandfather never showed up at the hospital to see my grandmother. A neighbor went to check on him and found him passed out on the sofa. They called an ambulance and took him to the hospital, where they found out he had pneumonia in both lungs. So he was in the same hospital as my grandmother, same floor.

We would have driven up that day, but we already had tickets to the Wiggles and I didn’t want Brady (or myself!) to miss out. If you remember, I have quite the crush on the Blue Wiggle.

It was a fantastic show and Brady absolutely loved it. We’ll definitely be seeing the Wiggles again in the future.

So Sunday morning we drove up to Kentucky to see my family. It was an exhausting weekend, just emotionally draining all the way around. We got home Tuesday evening about 6pm. They’re doing better and I think my grandmother is being discharged tomorrow and my grandfather in the next few days. My uncle is taking them to his house for a while.

So it’s been busy, fun and not so fun at the same time. I’ll have pictures from our events tomorrow or Friday.

A good day to stay home

I borrowed this from Vintage Mommy. It seemed perfect for a cold, rainy day like today.

Aren't these cute!!!!!

Too bad you can't hear throught the screen, because you would hear me squealing right now! Aren't these pancake molds from Williams-Sonoma the cutest things ever? Brady would love them!

The winner is.......

An option I didn't even give you! To be honest, I just found this one and thought it worked best with the picture I decided to use. The picture was taken by my friend, Ashley, during Brady's Sunday School class last week. It's perfect. It perfectly captures Brady, his smile and his joy and his sense of humor. I love it. The card will be tweaked a little, but this is basically it. I'm so excited!

Dh's birthday party went so well! I have just three pictures to download because I was too busy to take a lot. We had about 12 people and everyone had a great time, including a vicious version of Battle of the Sexes. It was a great time and DH had a very memorable birthday.

Happy Monday!

Help me choose our Christmas card!

Two posts in one day! I need your help choosing our family Christmas card. These are all from Tiny Prints and I love them all! We're taking pictures this weekend and hopefully we'll get a good one. Just leave me a comment with the number of the card you like. Thanks!




#1

#2

#3

#4

#5

#6

Party Day and Triple Coupons!

It’s party day! The chili and the stew are both made, the cake is frosted, the tea is made, the house is clean and everyone’s ready to go. Today I just have to pick up the cornbread/biscuits at Cracker Barrel (I’m cheating!) and some balloons.

I was out the door at 6:45am this morning to hit Bloom and take advantage of their Triple Coupon Sale this weekend. If you had told me even 2 years ago that I would be addicted to coupons and BOGO sales, I never would have believed you. But it’s fun! I’m saving a ton of money and being the best home economist that I can be. Here are a few deals I scored this morning-

Betty Crocker Scalloped Potatoes $0.51
Betty Crocker Muffin Mix $0.80
Carnation Evaporated Milk $0.53
Knorr Pasta Sides Free!
Campbell’s Healthy Harvest Soup Free!
Betty Crocker Cake Frosting $0.13


Have a great weekend!

Birthday Preparations

What’s happening this sunny Thursday?

We’re busy with the final preparations for DH’s birthday party tomorrow night. We’re having about 10 of our friends over to celebrate. We’re really looking forward to a fun evening. Here’s the menu:

Chili with toppings
Chicken Vegetable Stew
Cornbread/Biscuits
Carrot Cake and Ice Cream

I’m thinking I need a dip of some sort. Maybe this Corn Dip I got from my friend, Shannon.


Corn Dip
· 2 cans of drained corn (I prefer the Niblets)
· 16 oz. sour cream
· 1 cup of mayo
· chopped green chilies
· jalepeno peppers (I chopped them in my mini chopper)
· Tony Chachere seasoning (or some other Cajun seasoning blend)
· Fajita seasoning
· Shredded Mexican Cheese to taste and consistency you like...a large handful or two.
Mix it all up! Add seasoning to taste.
The dip is usually better if you make it in advance, at least a few hours or so.
Serve with Frito's.

We're going to have everyone bring games. It's going to be such fun evening. We have the best friends and we're so looking forward to spending the evening with them.

Vote!

I waited in line for an hour to vote this morning before work and I'm so glad I did! Do your part! Vote!

Then go get your free Chick-Fil-A sandwich and free Starbucks coffee while wearing your "I voted" sticker!

We had a fabulous time at Trunk or Treat. There were about 26 cars, so the kids had tons of choices. And we had a great turnout, too, a lot more kids than last year. It’s so nice to go and your child knows everyone and they know your child and you know they’re safe. Brady and Vivian had a ball running around, going on the hayride, and sitting in the back of our car eating candy.

Here are some pictures from our big night………



Brady (Peter Pan), Jayce (Bat Girl), and Vivian (Curious George)

The Red Queen (me) and Walker Texas Ranger (Micah)

Mary Poppins and the Chimneysweep (Practically Perfect in Every Way! Truly!)

Darth Vadar, Queen Amadala and Yoda (our pastor and his family)

Glenda (Michelle) and the Red Queen (me)

Hanging out in the back of the car, eating candy