Just Chillin'

     So, I'm leading two Bible studies, wrangling two boys and trying to keep our house from staying in a constant state of disarray, which doesn't leave much time for blogging. But these boys are just so cute that I have to share a few pics and funnies.

 Giving Ace a pull

"You can't catch me!"

    Ace is walking really well now. He still stops, drops and crawls when he wants to get somewhere quick, but it's nice to see him toddling across the room to me.

 Peekaboo!! A favorite for both boys

     The weather has been nice and we've been outside a lot. Last weekend Dalton and Cooper worked on the garden and we all took turns riding horses. Cooper was full of funny quotes that day:

     When asked if he wanted to stop shoveling and ride Dandy, he responded, "No Mom, I've got a lot of work to do." And he just kept on shoveling.

    He watched Dalton work with Alice in the round pen and apparently sat in some cactus. Dalton took him to the house to work on what he called the cactus situation. Cooper came in and said, "Momma, I have a cactus situation."

    It was a dirty job, scooping chicken and horse poo to put in the garden. While the worker bees were working, Cooper looked at Dalton and said "I love poop." Hmmmm, maybe he meant he loved his job?

    And then there are the ever present reminders of what I say all the time. Dalton says that Cooper talks just like me. I'm sure you never hear me say…

"I love ______!"

"Amazing!!"

"Come on guys."

"Well that was fun." This one is particularly cute because any time we get in the car after visiting someone or doing something he sits back, buckles in and says that.

     Ace is a little climber. He climbs the slide outside now and basically leaps off of it into my arms. It's a little scary, but he loves it. He's also learned to climb up the back steps, not so great. But I've been working on teaching him how to climb down and amazingly he is picking that up really well. He's not ready to handle them solo, but I am a little less fearful about it.

 Tee pee and fort under the dining table

This weekend is the stock show in Ft Worth and next Thursday we leave for California, so I'm sure I'll have lots to share!!

"How can I repay the Lord for all His acts of kindness to me? I will celebrate my deliverance, and call on the name of the Lord." Psalm 116:12-13

Have Croup, Will Travel

     This past weekend we went to visit Garrett so that we could see his new house. Thursday night, before we were to leave Friday, Cooper came to our bed with a fever. The next morning he still had the fever and a cough, so I thought we'd have to cancel the trip. As the day went on, he seemed to be feeling better and by the afternoon was riding his tractor outside. "Ok, guess this means we should go," I thought. Plus, Garrett had gotten off work Saturday, so it seemed like it was meant to be.
     We loaded the boys and our gear up and headed out about 4. Now, for some reason Cooper didn't take a nap that afternoon, so I figured he'd sleep all the way. Not the case….both boys were awake as we drove through Stephenville, Hico and Hamilton. And they were taking turns coughing the whole time…Dalton and I kept looking at each other with "What are we doing?" looks. Finally I got in the back with them to try and entertain. Everything was going ok until we heard a weird pshshshhhhhh sound, followed by a louder sound which meant only one thing. We had a flat tire.
      Dalton pulled over and told us to watch the fastest manual tire change ever. I started to crack up because this was the last thing we needed, and yet it seemed so fitting. He changed the tire as cars whizzed past us, while the boys and I looked on. Then it was back on the road. Roughly 5 minutes later Cooper started coughing a lot and…you guessed it….threw up! Great. We pulled over once again and Dalton got him out of the seat and stripped him down. I threw him fresh clothes and we regrouped to head off again. At this point we were beginning to realize that it was probably not the best idea that we were going, but we weren't going to turn back now.
     In Lampassas we stopped for gas and a burger. Cooper wanted a corn dog and Dalton joked that he hoped we wouldn't see it again. He shouldn't have said that. After leaving that town Cooper coughed and said "my corn dog!" and then fell to sleep, then coughed and said that again. I knew it was coming so I grabbed a paper bag that the burgers came in and put it under his chin. Just as we were pulling through another town, he threw up again, but I caught it all in the bag.
     Dalton misunderstood me when I caught it in the bag; he took that to mean we didn't need to stop…he was wrong. After clearing that up with a firm "Pull over!" we ended up in a neighborhood parked in front of a house. I quickly held the full paper bag out my window while Dalton, once again, cleaned up Cooper. Then we face the dilemma of what to do with the bag. He started driving as I held it out the window and he told me to throw it in an upcoming trash dumpster….I chickened out because it was in front of a well lit house and the lid was closed. I'm embarrassed to say the bag wound up being dropped in a ditch as we pulled onto the main road. It was paper though…all biodegradable.
      Finally both boys fell asleep and we finished the trip without incident. We pulled up to Garrett's house and unloaded the, now obviously sick, boys. Cooper perked up for a bit and then started to crash. They didn't go to sleep easily and wound up being awake when Papa and GG got there. Then Cooper went to sleep and Ace, the maniac, stayed awake until 1! Don't get me wrong, I tried to put him down several times, but it was one of those weird nights/situations. That night was rough…no other way to put it. Ace woke up several times screaming and didn't quiet easily, and Cooper slept horribly due to the, now higher, fever.
    The next morning I kept going back and forth between feeling like the worst parent ever and thinking, oh well, it's a part of life better make the most of it. We got the boys ready and gave them some medicine and headed out to the farmer's market. We were almost there when Ace started coughing and then…threw up and projectile vomited onto Garrett and Dad in the front seat. I was in the back with Cooper, so I missed the event, but I saw the aftermath. It was everywhere! We pulled into a Walgreens and Mom went inside to get paper towels. Dalton cleaned up the boy (are you noticing that I've been in the right place each time so I didn't have to clean him up) and Garrett disgustedly removed his soaked pullover and wiped off his jeans. You have to understand that Garrett is grossed out by sonograms, even the least bit of spit up and diapers, so to have this happen was awful…but so funny. Thankfully he laughed too.

     We made it to the farmer's market and it was really neat; I bought some flavor infused whole wheat noodles and a couple of sweet lemons. Then we walked around downtown a little bit and wound up in a bakery. GG got Cooper a cookie and Dalton and I shared a creme puff.

    Then we loaded up and headed to Cabela's. Cooper was looking a little rough and we hoped he would sleep on the way…which he did. At Cabela's we saw the stuffed animals…so neat and looked at the fish. Then, had some lunch in the cafe. At that point both boys were past happy and healthy. Ace was wiping snot everywhere and coughing and spitting up. Cooper wouldn't eat anything or drink anything, which was not encouraging. After lunch Cooper practiced his shooting and then we made our way to the exit.

    By the time we made it back to Garrett's Cooper was in rough shape. He got into bed and slept the rest of the afternoon, and I started to get worried about him. With the flu going around I was worried that he might have that. So after taking a poll of all present and calling urgent care to see how expensive that would be, we decided to take him in. So at 7 pm, Dalt, Garrett, Coop, Ace and I pulled into Urgent Care. We were the only ones there, so it didn't take long. The doctor diagnosed Cooper with the Croup (which I didn't realize was an actual illness) and after hearing Ace cough said he probably had the same thing. The Ace spit/threw up and we tried to listen to the Dr.'s instructions as we wiped up the floor. The nurse gave Cooper some nausea meds, which he promptly threw up, and we left with prescriptions in hand.
     That night went much better and both boys slept relatively well. The next morning I really wanted to go to Garrett's church, so Mom and Dad offered to stay with the boys while we went. Church was great. It's a big church, so there were lots of people and pretty much a full band for worship. They sang my favorite songs and the message was good too. I left feeling a little jealous that Garrett has such a great, vibrant church home.
     We went back to the house, picked up the boys and GG and Papa and headed to Gruene for lunch. We ate at the Gristmill, and our eyes were bigger than our stomachs when we ordered the large onion rings. They were delicious, but we didn't eat them all. After we ate we walked around Gruene a little bit and headed back to pack up.

     On the way home we stopped by my friend's house for a quick visit. Of course it wouldn't have been a visit by us without messes. Ace spit up all over her kitchen floor, and Cooper had quite a bowl movement in the bathroom that required backup. Laughing through the embarrassment, we got ourselves together and headed out.
     We'd almost made it to Hico when Ace started getting really upset. I tried to console him but no go. He wound up throwing up a little, so I took him out and stripped him. We stopped in Hico to reassess….and tensions were rising at this point. I took over driving and let Dalton take over with Ace. Unfortunately he let him cry a little too much and he threw up again. We limped into Stephenville and cleaned up the seat and the boy. Then we faced the seat forward and put on a movie, in hopes that we could make it home. It worked! Whew.
    What an exhausting trip! Thankfully Cooper has recovered and Ace is on his way. Moral of the story? Not sure….even though it was probably not the wisest decision to go, I'm really glad that we did because we had such a great time, in spite of the sickness. Plus, it was nice having extra helpers around.

"The Lord sustains him on his sickbed; in his illness you restore him to full health." Psalm 41:3

In the Last Thirty Minutes….

 

    It's Monday, too cold to play outside and has been for a while. This is a recipe for wildness and the other side affects of cooped up syndrome. In the last thirty minutes…

Cooper has bounced like an energizer bunny from the table to the door saying goodbye to Popsey. I didn't know anyone could hop that fast and that many times…Popsey was a little afraid as he tried to outrun him.

Ace has put several leaves and sticks in his mouth from the plants that have to be inside to save them from freezing….so I've fished these things out of his mouth which isn't as easy as it sounds, he clamps down hard on the finger.

Cooper has gotten empty water jugs and thrown them around the kitchen. He was going for full water bottles but Dalton stopped him before they left his hand. (after this, with amazed eyes, Dalt started gathering his stuff and preparing to leave the madness)

Ace has repeatedly tried to dig into the dirt of the aforementioned plants…we finally put the plant onto the freezer.

Cooper ran out onto the front porch and tee tee right off of it…at least he was taking initiative to go on his own.

Ace pulled out most of the plastic cups from the lower cabinet and slobbered on them.

Cooper piled up foam tiles beside a chair in the kitchen and jumped from the chair onto the pile, landing on his bottom. He cried, Dalt and I looked at him with wonder and a little confusion. (for the record this was not a sanctioned jump)

Ace pulled the dirty clothes out of the washer about as fast as I could get them into the washer, putting each piece into his mouth if I couldn't grab it fast enough.

And as I was re-inserting clothes into the washer Cooper appeared with a cantaloupe in hand saying he wanted to eat it. Dalt hadn't quite made it out the door yet, so with a chuckle, he took the cantaloupe back to the counter.

Whew!! Just had to share. Being a momma is the best. In what other lifestyle could I get to experience so much imagination, determination, perseverance and general fun. Seriously, it's these moments that make me smile the most because they are so real and kid-ish.

Now if you'll excuse me I have to get Cooper out of one of the cabinets and put these wild things down for a nap.

"The Lord is my strength and my shield; my heart trusts in him and I am helped. My heart leaps for joy and I will give thanks to Him in song!" Psalm 28:7

Connecting the Dots

"I seek you with all my heart; do not let me stray from your commands." Psalm 119:10    

     As I've mentioned before I love it when God brings the same scriptures or ideas to me more than once. It not only brings the scriptures to life more, but also leads me to learn and apply the verses. It's like God helps me connect the dots between scripture, sermons and life. Recently this has happened several times, bringing a few thing to mind for me to meditate on.

    The first is the idea of the cost of the Gospel and our response. I listened to a sermon by David Platt over Matthew 10, in which Jesus instructs the disciples before he sends them out. It's not the most encouraging text because it talks of the trials and hard times that await disciples of Jesus. We, as today's disciples, should expect to pay the cost of following Jesus also, which is to be hated by the world and an outcast. One thing that keeps being brought to me is the fact that the world is at odds with Jesus and so we should be at odds with the world. If we are friends of it then we are in trouble. I feel like I have to daily remind myself of that and assess my heart to make sure I'm not going along, getting along and leaving the Gospel at home in my Bible and at church in the pew. That doesn't mean I need to go around picking fights over Jesus, but I must share Jesus and His truth and love, without compromising for a second.

"All men will hate you because of me, but he who stands firm to the end will be saved." vs 22

      Then the chapter gives hope with Jesus telling them and us not to be afraid of the trials three times…when the Bible says something three times we should listen. Rather we should be afraid of God, who can punish us eternally. Any harm that we encounter here for His name is nothing compared to what will happen if we deny Him.

"Do not be afraid of those who kill the body but cannot kill the soul. Rather, be afraid of the One who can destroy both soul and body in hell." vs 28

    It's hard to read that verse and not feel a little offended, until we remind ourselves of how holy and righteous our God is, and how we would not even have a chance to get to heaven if not for Jesus. When I look at that and remember the characteristics of God, then I tremble in fear that I am not doing enough to share God and make Him known. The moment we lose fear of our great God is the moment we cease to understand the God we are involved with. He is love and He is mercy, but He is also holy and completely righteous in ALL His ways.

     The chapter concludes with Jesus saying he came to bring a sword and not peace, and that we will be turned against all those we love if necessary in order to live for the Gospel. He even says that we should love God more than our family. And that is something that is hard for our earthbound minds to get. We see our family, we are physically present with our family and so sometimes it is hard to love an unseen God. But that is where constant prayer and study comes in, and worship, I might add. The more we seek to know Him, the more He reveals Himself and the more we fall in love with Him. Personally, good worship music turned up loud is another way that I can really tap into the adoration more. And I just feel that He is up there smiling as we praise Him.

    Anyway, so after reading that text and hearing the sermon, which was so good, I prepared to go to bed and read my nightly devotional. When I opened it up, and let me add that it was originally written in the 1800s, the scripture that met me was "I have not come to bring peace, but a sword." Matthew 10:34. And here is some of the commentary (it was really hard not to write the entire entry!).

"The Christian will be sure to make enemies. It will be one of his objects to make none; but if doing what is right and believing what is true should cause him to lose every earthly friend, he will regard it as a small loss, since his great Friend in heaven will be even more friendly and will reveal Himself to him more graciously than ever…..Where truth is, the lie must feel; or if it remains, there must be a stern conflict, for the truth cannot and will not lower its standard, and the lie must be trampled underfoot……He who has the friendship of the world is an enemy to God; but if you are true and faithful to the Most High, men will resent your uncompromising commitment, since it is a testimony against their iniquities. You must do right and not fear the consequences…..Better a brief warfare and eternal rest than false peace and everlasting torment." Charles H. Spurgeon

   Isn't that powerful? And isn't it amazing that God showed me that twice in the same day? I'll admit it's a little scary because it means I need to get out there and share! I need to not be the world's friend and I need to take up my cross. Most importantly I must never forget that I cannot do it…at all…unless the Spirit is working in me. God can do it through me.

     Then a couple of days later I listened to another Platt sermon (I'm addicted I know) and it was about John the Baptist being greater than any other man born of woman Matthew 11:11. This verse has always confused me, but Dr. Platt really helped me understand it. What Jesus is saying is that John the Baptist is the greatest and has the most privilege because he was the prophet who was able to see Jesus and announce that He was HERE. He was the one to baptize Him and usher in the kingdom of Jesus. Ohhhhh, I realized. What an honor. And you know the most mind-boggling and convicting part? We are even more privileged than John the Baptist (Matt 11:11) because we get to proclaim the good news that the kingdom has come..no more waiting, Jesus has came, died and RISEN for us!! Even as I write this I'm thinking how I should be shouting it out and sharing it all. God gave US the privilege to help Him bring people to Him. He doesn't need us, doesn't have to have us help, but He does. And yet I'm so quick to hush up and not say anything because I'm fearful or unsure?? Sounds pathetic doesn't it?

     Once again I turned to my nightly devotional and bam, it hit me again. "The voice of one crying in the wilderness: prepare the way of the Lord, make His paths straight." Luke 3:4 The commentary talked of how we need to prepare the way in our own lives for Christ.

"Every valley must be exalted - low thoughts of God must be given up….every mountain and hill shall be laid low - proud creature-sufficiency and boastful self-righteousness but be leveled to make a highway for the King of Kings…..The crooked shall be made straight-the wavering heart must have a straight path of decision for God and holiness marked out for it…..the rough places shall be made smooth -stumbling blocks of sin must be removed, and thorns and briers of rebellion must be uprooted."   Spurgeon

     And lastly, as I was thinking about things of life and getting weighed down by the future and what will become of our lives and our country I was tempted to get a little depressed. I was thinking of all that could go wrong and then picked up my Jesus Calling and read that day's entry.

"Refresh yourself in the Peace of My Presence….Because I am your constant Companion, there should be a lightness to your step that is observable to others. Do not be weighed down with problems and unresolved issues, for I am your burden-bearer."

    What a great God we serve, that even though He is in charge of the cosmos and the big things of this world, He still takes time to connect the dots for me.

"I love those who love Me and those who seek Me find Me." Proverbs 8:17

"The lions may grow weak and hungry, but those who seek the Lord lack no good thing." Psalm 34:10

Sweet Blessing of Family

    What a relaxing weekend we had. It seems like it's been a long time since we just hung out and enjoyed our blessings.

    Saturday we went Breckenridge so Dalton could get a new scope for his gun…his Christmas gift cards were burning a hole in his pocket. We treated ourselves to a Sonic drink and then stopped at the Breckenridge park for a little playtime. It was a bit colder than we thought it would be, so Dalt and Ace went back to the car pretty quick. It stuck it out with Cooper and played with him…I even went down a few slides. It was really fun and my new camera captured it wonderfully. It was nice to enjoy the simple pleasure of playing at the park. We appreciate it so much more since we don't have one too close.

 Wheeeee!!

He had to concentrate very hard to get across, 

and he was very proud when he made it.

 Watch out, here comes Daddy!

     That afternoon, while the boys slept, I went for a long ride on Dandy. It was great! Very relaxing, refreshing and addicting. I really want to ride more often. I'm always amazed at how beautiful the area we live in is. I told Dalt this morning that everything is more beautiful horseback too. Then I helped Coop haul some old cabbage plants to the chicken pens. He loved driving his tractor out of the yard and into the chicken pen, dumping the goods and backing out. He can really maneuver that thing well.

     We finished the evening with steak and sweet potato french fries, and Dalt and I watched Hunger Games after the kids went to bed. I had a few flashbacks of labor while we watched.
      Then the best part of the day happened…both boys slept all night in their beds until 7:30!! Unheard of in this household. I woke up this morning thinking this parenting thing is easy when they sleep all night; what a difference it makes.
     Today we went to church and then to Weatherford for more gun stuff. We ate lunch at CiCi's; a perfect place for families like us. It's loud enough to cover our noise and has pizza for everyone! As a bonus we went to Target so the boys could spend their Christmas gift cards from Aunt Rita. Cooper got a drum with lots of other noisemakers included. He walked around the store drumming and saying "March, march march march," and got lots of encouragement from other shoppers. Ace got diapers and baby food and he was very excited about it. The best part of the trip was that both boys did great the entire time. It may go down as the smoothest trip we've ever had.
     Thank you Lord for a wonderful weekend of family time. What a blessing it is to just enjoy the little things and the free things in our lives!

"Peace I live with you, my peace I give you. I do not give to you as the world gives. Do not let your heart be troubled and do not be afraid." John 14:27
(memory verse for this week)

Authentic Momma

    "Charm is deceptive and beauty is fleeting; but a woman who fears the Lord is to be praised." Proverbs 31:30

      I had to go to town yesterday morning, with the kids, to run a few errands. It was cold. I don't do well in the cold. I'm a bit reptilian in the sense that when it gets cold I stop moving as much as possible. Then again maybe I'm more bear-like because I tend to put on those winter pounds for hibernation, except that I don't hibernate. Anyway, back to the trip to town.

     Let me paint you a picture: I'm feeling a little fluffy these days, not sure why. I'm sure it's not because of the many desserts I partook of this Christmas season, and it can't be the fact that I like to cook with real butter and grease. In any case, the fluff and the cold prompted me to dress extra warm and comfy. I had on jeans, warm, but not so cute boots, a college sweatshirt and a ball cap to cover my frizzy hair; frizzy because I washed it the night before and didn't dry it….poof, a chia pet on my head. Remember that look as I tell the story. 

     I loaded up the kids and myself and headed to town. One look in my visor mirror told me that I wasn't going to win any beauty contests that day, my face was blotchy and I have a few visitors of the bumpy kind camped out on my chin. Oh well, I'm just going to the library and Walmart. I ran a few errands feeling pretty good about my efficiency and then we pulled into the library parking lot. I saw the car of a friend of mine, with the friend in it. Now this friend is one that always looks perfectly dressed, never has a blemish, and is thin to boot. Great, I thought. So I unloaded the boys, one of which had a minor accident, but we didn't have time to dwell so headed inside. I waved as she looked up to see us, but she didn't get out. "Whew, don't have to feel inadequate," ran through my mind. Library was a success, now onto Walmart. 

     Shopped in record time but still managed to spend $90…and I even stuck to my list. I'm a little depressed about the speed at which my money is leaving my hands, but that's another story. I exited Walmart and unloaded the groceries, wondering how I could have spent less. Then I put Cooper in the car and grabbed Ace out of the basket. He promptly spit up all over my hand and as I looked around, who walked up to chat but my perfectly dressed friend. 

     I smiled and said hello, while holding the spit up best I could and keeping an eye on the one in the car that could tee tee at any moment. Of course she didn't have any kids with her…preschool…so she was relaxed and ready to chat. As she talked about doing her Bible study in the car at the library I kept wondering if she saw the spit up in my hand and was ignoring it, or had I done a good job of hiding it? I tried to make conversation while Ace wriggled in my arms, thinking how spastic I must look, but smiling the whole time. 

     Then she tossed her perfectly styled hair over the shoulder of her very stylish and probably size XS coat and all I could think was "Is my frizz ball visible?" and "Why did I wear this bulky sweater?" We chatted for a moment more and then she walked away, confident and calm. 

    Not having time to dwell (good thing), I found something to wipe off the spit up, put the boys in their carseats and headed home. As I prepared to back away I took a quick peek in the visor mirror, just in case I had miraculously transformed into a put together diva in 5 minutes. No such luck…my wrinkled, blotchy face stared back at me, and the frizz ball appeared around my shoulders. I remembered that God is teaching me humility this season and laughed it off. 

     When I got home Dalton met me at the car door. I recounted the story, adding some humorous faces and "Arrr harr harrs" for emphasis. He started laughing really loud, which made me feel good. At least I have humor on my side.

    And then he said "That makes you an authentic Momma." And I thought "Hmmm, I think I like that."   

"Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes. Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit which is of great worth in God's sight." 1 Peter 3:3-4
(So I still need to work on the quiet spirit part!)

Moore Fun on New Year's

   
     I know that you are tired of reading about Christmas, that distant past holiday, so I decided to put a tricky title to draw you in; and technically it was closer to New Year's when we celebrated. I won't go through an agenda of how the visit went and what we did, I'll just hit the high points and funny parts.

     Sunday morning, as we were getting ready for church I heard a knock on the door. I ran to open it, not sure who it could be, and it was my brother Garrett!! He'd left at 3:30 am to get to our house early so he could spend the entire day with us, instead of coming that afternoon. It made my heart swell with happiness and love that he would do that for us. I quickly put him to work watching the boys while I finished getting ready.

     After church we met Mere Mere, Popsey and Mern for lunch to celebrate Mere Mere's birthday. Ace fell asleep almost instantly, thank goodness because he was a pill in church! Cooper was his usual entertaining self and kept breaking chips into little pieces and saying 'Chips for everyone!' The birthday meal wouldn't have been complete without singing watistaff and as a bonus Mere Mere got to wear a big sombrero. As uncomfortable as she was, she handled it all with much grace.

     When we left, we drove around and showed Mom, Dad and Garrett a couple of pieces of land we'd seen that were for sale. I wanted their expertise on land, real estate, etc. and it was fun to look and imagine, even if realistically we probably can't afford anything right now….darn diapers are breaking us. They gave us some good info and Garrett even called the realtor to ask the questions we didn't even know to ask. At least now we're more informed.

 Discussing real estate

Showing off his new trucks..the blue mouth is from a dum dum

     Then it was time to go home and get in the warm house…it was a chilly day! Mom and Dad couldn't wait long to show Cooper his Christmas surprise, and we were excited to see it too. Dad and Garrett made sure it was ready to go, then Cooper walked outside and right past it, because it was covered with a blanket. Once we got him turned around he found it, pulled the blanket off and revealed a John Deere tractor!!!!

 The look is priceless!

     Instantly he was on it and driving around the yard. It didn't take long for him to figure out how to go forward, backward and dump out dirt. He was thrilled and told Papa it was the "Best surprise!"

 Loading up 

I see a little brother in that wagon before too long….

Thank you for my 'best surprise' GG!

     Later that night it was time to exchange gifts. Now at Thanksgiving we'd decided not to do any gifts, only to make donations somewhere if we wanted, but no gifts. Well, we figured out that Mom and Dad were not going to follow that policy, so we had time to prepare some meager gifts to them.

Cooper was camping out on the big present

    Garrett was really funny and Santa-like. First he told Mom and Dad he felt "real stupid" after learning that they'd bought him presents; you had to hear the way he said it, funny. Then he brought in his bag of unwrapped gifts and started handing out the gifts. He bought the boys little foldable chairs in theme with camping (heard I got Dalt a tent) and they were excited. Ace especially likes his.

 Trying out their new chairs

     Then for Dalt and I he pulled out a new game…Minute to Win It! Good choice. He handed out Mom and Dad's gifts and sat down.

Housewarming and Christmas from Gma

 The boys got a couple of classics from Brian and Amanda..can't wait to read them!

     Next Mom and Dad passed out a few gifts from their family and then we opened our gifts from them. They got us sleeping bags that can be a full size bag or individual bags…we are ready to camp now. I just hope I can get Dalt to wait until the weather is a little warmer!! Garrett got a recliner for his new house. Thanks Mom and Dad!!

I think I've perfected the super excited look…

 Garrett and his recliner

 Metal construction equipment ornaments from Gma…decorative and fun

Ace is over the gifts…he's ready for milk

     After the gifts were opened we played a little minute to win it. It was pretty comical. Dalton had to tie a bean bag banana to his belt with it grazing the floor and then spin around fast enough to knock some balls off the table. I confess I didn't think he could do it, but he did. Dad attempted to pick up marbles with pencils and Mom and I blew feather across the room. Then Dad and Garrett attempted to use their bellies to hold a pencil and ball and let it drop in a box. It was pretty entertaining to watch.

 If you look closely you can see the banana in mid air in front of the horse.

The balls are on the table. 

Oh, and Dalt got new jeans for Christmas..he's trying them out

 Belly to belly…

 Almost there….they did make it!

Lets just say that Dad won't be eating Chinese for with chopsticks soon

     Then it was bed time. The next day we rested, ate our New Year's meal, shared resolutions a little early and watched Cooper ride his tractor. That afternoon we played another game that was loud and harder than you'd expect. You had to shout out words that fit a certain category and started with a chosen letter. Sounds easy, but not so much. Mom was the funniest because she would shout out a word, then someone else would say another one and she'd shout out the same one again…..just in case we didn't hear her the first time. Later the boys went to Carter Bend, Mom and I cleaned up the house and we all met at Possum Hollow for dinner. Ace was in rare form and really wreaked havoc. He was screaming because he could, wouldn't sit still, and then managed to grab his pouch of baby food and squirt it all over. He settled down a little by the end of the evening. Cooper headed to the man playing a guitar after dinner and danced around to the music. Another little boy was dancing right in front of the entertainer and so Dalton told Cooper he could go down there too. Well, Cooper must have mistunderstood because he headed straight past the boy and under the rail to the man playing. Dalt had to quickly go get him….the poor man was playing his banjo, singing and looking at Cooper hoping he didn't get any closer.

     Everyone was tired once we got home but I was determined to play another game…I have to take advantage of game players when I have them. By the time we got both boys to bed, another boy was sleeping too……

Too much New Year's fun

    But I wasn't going to give up. I talked loud enough and pretended like I was going to pour water on him and he opened one eye. I knew I was risking creating a grumpy person that wouldn't play anyway but it was worth the risk. And…..yeah he played!

Hmmm…what would I be doing right now if no one was looking?

Gathering and reviewing the answers

     We played Loaded Questions. The premise is that a question is asked and all but the roller writes down their hypothetical answer. Then the roller guesses who's answered matched who. There were some pretty funny moments….

First question of the night: If no one was looking, what would you do?
Answers: 1. sleep  2. doze off  3. go to sleep  4. eat 3 cookies
Not the best answers to hear when you are the one who wanted everyone to play….if you haven't guessed my answer was eat 3 cookies. I resisted the urge to be offended that everyone else would rather be asleep and moved on.

Q: What's something valuable that you disposed of unintentionally?
A: Chicken strips.  I laughed and laughed because this was Dalt's answer. Why? Because I had overreacted the other day when he threw away some leftover chicken strips from Chicken E. (I was really upset about something else and it leaked over into the chicken situation)

Q: What were you teased about in school?
A: My sister. Garrett's answer, oh how he loved to make the game funny and interesting. : )

Q: If you went to psychologist, what syndrome would you be diagnosed with?
A: Goofy wife syndrome. Guess who's answer that was? And he's probably right

Q: If you could be legal counsel for a company, which company would it be?
A: Moore Hunting Enterprises.  Garrett has always been a big dreamer and positive thinker

Q: If you could perform one heroic act, what would it be?
A: Save a Life, End government corruption, Impeach Obama, Kill the devil
That's right…someone answered kill the devil. Guess who? Garrett. Just when I think I'm doing good spiritually and thinking Heavenly Kingdom minded, then this happens. He was the only one that answered spiritually…go Garrett!

Q: If you could be responsible for one world changing event what would it be? (This was a reversal so only one person answered and we guessed what they'd say)
Our guesses: Reformation, Writing Constitution, etc.
Mom's Answer: creating Facebook (her defense to the shallow answer was that she wrote down the first thing that came to mind and that she was tired)

    So those are a few of the funny answers we got that night. The answers, mixed with sleepiness and a sugar high from dessert made for a silly but fun game….Dad won if you were wondering.

The next morning, New Year's Day, we sent them all home with best wishes and leftover Apple Pie. What a great weekend!

Look at those big front teeth!!

"A happy heart makes the face cheerful, but heartache crushes the spirit." Proverbs 15:13

"What is impossible with man is possible with God." Luke 18:27 (Our first memory verse of the year)