My favorite week!

The week before Christmas is by far my favorite week of the year. Even though things are always extremely busy and rushed, the time with my family and friends makes it all worth it.

I had the best weekend. Saturday night Hubs and I had our Sunday School party which is always fun. I love playing Dirty Santa with this group. It's cut-throat and we're not afraid to steal~ No Mr./Mrs. Nice Guy in this group. It's good to laugh so much your stomach hurts!

Yesterday after Church we headed over to my Mama and Daddy's for a Christmas lunch and presents with our immediate family. I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE this day. Mama made 3 different types of soup and cooked a ham and turkey for sandwiches. I made hot baked spinach dip and Oreo balls and Mama Hen made a homemade blackberry cobbler. We ate ourselves silly before opening gifts.

(I didn't get good pictures of the kids opening their gifts because I was the hander-outer.)

We always spend the afternoon hoppin' the kids up on as much sugar as we can and then send them home with Mama Hen. I firmly believe this is my role as self-proclaimed BEST AUNT EVER and of course, we all know that's what grandparents do.

Abbie and James were our cookie decorators.

Someone was pretty proud of his creation.

Tyler is getting too big and needs to stop growing PRONTO!

Apparently, Matt was being too mischievous for a good shot because I couldn't find one on my camera.

After that, I stopped by a friends for her Christmas Open House and had some apple cider that made me smile. And if that wasn't good enough, I passed a live nativity with a real camel on the way home. It was a wonderful reminder of the real reason for the season. Thank You God for Your precious Son.

Today I'm linking up with Carissa for Miscellany Monday.

This doesn't deserve a title

I cannot tell you how happy I am to finally be home. December has been treating me like I'm a social butterfly and dropping more festivities in my homebody lap than I know what to do with. I decided to come home straight from work instead of going to Church because I didn't think I could "turn it on" till 8:30. You know what I mean - all the smiling and talking. Oh I kid, I was just really tired.

I did make one little detour through the Taco Bell drive-thru. I never thought I'd go back there since we broke up after the stomach revolt of 2009 after eating a Nachos Supreme. I think that may have been when I first realized my stomach had officially entered adulthood.

Thinking back, Taco Bell hasn't been my friend for a long time. I met my one and only stalker there the summer before my Senior year of high school. We used to hang out there on Sunday nights after Church and I met a real cutie. Unfortunately, things didn't go so well and I ended up dodging him for months. The last straw was when he showed up at my dorm my Freshmen year of college wearing a doo rag.

Needless to say, I didn't go for the food. About 3:00 today I started craving one of their Strawberry Frutistas and I made a commitment in my heart to move heaven and earth to get one. Only in Alabama does it make more sense to get a frozen drink in the middle of December rather than hot chocolate. It was a sweet 61 degrees as I sat in the drive thru with the window down at 5:30.

I'll go ahead and apologize now for writing a post about my trials and tribulations with Taco Bell. It says a lot about the excitement in my life. So I'll go now. I plan on spending the rest of my night snuggled up on the couch under my electric blanket watching TV with Hubs.

The day where nothing really happened

Surprising, huh? I knew my day was going to be less than spectactular early this morning when I tried to fix my hair and it ended up looking like a big pile of poo. It has fully entered an "in-between" stage and is undeniably dreadful.

Somehow me and my hair managed to make it through the 8 to 5 grind without any of my coworkers running away in horror. I will say that the day did go by fairly quickly and before I knew it, me and my hair were off to the gym. The nice thing about the gym is that I can wear my cap and therefore, devote that hour and 10 minutes to counting down each and every one until it's over.

Hubs and I got home about the same time and promptly popped corn dogs in the oven because we have high food standards. We had a lovely time discussing our day as we stood in the kitchen and anxiously watched the timer countdown for the longest 20 minutes ever. And then, we enjoyed our corn dogs on paper plates while we watched recorded episodes of Judge Judy.

Yes, I know - the excitement is almost more than I can take too. Here's hoping to a good hair day tomorrow. It makes all the difference.

Normally, I'm not real fond of cold weather, but I have to admit - it's kind of put a smile on my face this week. Especially, when my mom showed up at work yesterday with a Caramel Apple Spice. So, so good. A gift of love....

What was not a gift of love was what McDonald's gave me today. About once a month I feel like I just have to have a Quarter Pounder with Cheese and today was that day. What I thought would be a reunion with an old friend turned out to be a brutal betrayal. Apparently, the QPw/C decided it didn't want to be my friend anymore and made war with my stomach. I have decided to breakup with McDonald's. It is now dead to me. It was that bad.

Thankfully, I was feeling much better by the time I got to Church. I'm doing Beth Moore's "Here and Now... There and Then" study on Revelation. Each week I am amazed that I get to see a small glimpse of Heaven. It is humbling and exciting all at the same time.

Now I'm home and all toasty because Hubs has a fire going. I think I'll keep him. He makes my heart smile.





It's gettin' cold up in here!

It's officially winter here in Alabama! We've had some below freezing weather and you know what that means.... massive amounts of people flocking to the grocery store to stock up on milk and bread. Thankfully, we have milk and bread at our house and more importantly - grape Fanta.

I made our first pot of winter chili and it did not disappoint. I love it when it's so spicy that my nose runs. I just can't decide if I'd rather have chili or taco soup. Love, love, love them both.

On another note, Hubs got an Airzooka. If you're super geeky like us, you might have a lot of fun with it! I apologize in advance for the horse laugh you'll here at the end.

11-28-11 Airzooka from Jill Sharpe on Vimeo.

My Pants Feel a Little Tighter

So, I decided to wear a skirt today. That's how I'm dealing with my big, bloated belly full of turkey, ham, dressing, apple pie, etc.

I have LOVED this long weekend. After I got off work Wednesday night I got my hair done, convinced Hubs to go to the grocery store with me and then came home and made a chicken cheese ball. (I refused to go to the in-laws with just ice.)

We had a great time with Hub's family Thanksgiving Day. It was my newest nephew's first holiday and we loved having a baby in the house! It was so sweet to look over and see Hubs with his niece and 2 nephews on his side of the family all on the couch together.

Friday was absolutely wonderful. I spent the entire day in my pajamas napping, reading, and watching TV. I did get online early that morning and did about 95% of my Christmas shopping. Total score for not having to battle the crowds (or get out of my pajamas)!

Saturday, Hubs and I ran a few errands before he went to watch the game with friends. (If you're from Alabama you know exactly which game I'm talking about.) Sunday, I woke up to the most beautiful sound - RAIN - and it hasn't stopped all day. I know it's not ideal to most, but I absolutely love it.

Can't wait to see what this week holds!

Ice Ice Baby

We're spending Thanksgiving Day with Hub's family this year. I called my sweet mother-in-law last night on the way home from work and asked what I can bring. She told me all the things she and my sister-and-laws will be making. And then told me to bring ice.

ICE

Should I pull a Phoebe?

Phoebe: Yeah well, that's 'cause I'm in charge of cups and ice, and Monica is gonna rue the day that she put me in charge of cups and ice.