Happy Thanksgiving!

Happy Thanksgiving to you all! I hope your day was as wonderful as mine. I'm off to bed to rest up for my Black Friday shopping, see you all at the stores!

Devotions for Kids

At night, before Aaron goes to bed, he and Dave do devotions together. Tonight I found a devotional book I bought a few months ago and gave it to Dave to use. We have Dave's nephew, Kyle, staying with us for the night so he was sitting on the couch too. Well, Dave opens the book and starts the devotional. It begins with having you read Genesis 4:1-7 to the kids. Dave turned to that passage in Aaron's New Living Translation Bible and begins to read;

"Now Adam had sexual relations with his wife, Eve..."

Thankfully he had the idea to read ahead a little and omitted the word "sexual". :)

After the boys were in bed he came into the kitchen where I was washing dishes and said, "What kind of a childrens bible is this!!??" He told me what happened and I couldn't help but laugh! He said he just kept hoping that Aaron and Kyle didn't ask what "relations" were. :)

Hahahahahaha! I only wish I'd been there to see the look on his face! I can't wait till he gets to the passage where the woman couldn't leave the tent because she had her period... :p

My Silly Little Girl

What??!! Two posts in one day??!! I know, I know, you all should be so proud of me! :) I was sitting here on the computer while the kids played near the bookshelf. After a few minutes Belle must have been slightly tired because she laid on her belly, put her head down on the floor and started to suck her thumb. Now, as I am getting ready to tell her to get her thumb out of her mouth, Aaron goes over and put his hands on her hiney and started pushing her forward. It was funny but I told him to stop because I didn't want her little cheeks to have rug burn on them. Well, Belle looks at me, gets up on all fours and begins to crawl. After moving a few inches, she put her head down as it had been before and went across the rest of the living room with her head pushed down into the carpet! It was hysterical! I only wish I'd had a video camera close by to tape it!

Thankfulness Part 3

Next, in this riveting series, I will talk about my sister, Sara. There are so many things to say about her, hmmmm, where do I want to start??!! :p

I love my sister. She is creative, funny, smart and can even be wise every once in a while. (I can't be too generous or her head will swell :)). Sara is a wonderful mother and wife. She loves her girls equally but realizes that they are different and treats them according to their own needs. She works hard to identify how to relate to each one in a way that best shows them how much she loves them. Sara has worked very hard at teaching them how to love each other. Dani and Rach love each other and are so very kind to each other, much more so than Sara and I were to each other while we were growing up. They are not perfect, but they do get along very well. They share and do kind and thoughtful things for each other. I remember when Rachel was smaller and if they were in a restaurant when Rachel had to go to the bathroom Sara would tell dani to take her and dani would say yes and go without complaint. Wow! I don't think I would have ever been that nice! :) I think the way Sara disciplines her girls is one thing I admire most about her.

Also, Sara is funny and tons of fun! I love having inside jokes with her! Ever since we were little we have had them and I doubt that that will ever change! When we were little we re-wrote the words to the song "Oh, Victory in Jesus" and still laugh about it now. In fact, the first time she sang that song in her new church she sent me a text during the service and I about laughed out loud during church! I love meeting her at Starbucks for a nice relaxing way to start a Saturday morning. I have to get up super early to do it and since I am not a morning person, that is hard for me to do, but Sara is worth it :). We sit and laugh, talk about whatever is going on in our lives and of course, our mother :).

Sara is also a fun Aunt to my kids and my nieces as well. She has them over every once in a while and they always have a great time. Aaron is always asking to go to Aunt Sara's for a visit. I'm not sure if it to see her or play with Dani's Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer train set, but either way, he loves it there. Sara is one of a few people that I know will love my children and take care of them as I would. She is particular on what foods her girls eat and I really appreciate that. She set a great example of that for me starting with Dani and it has carried over to my children. We are very different but so very alike at times. We can be a good balance for each other, my compassion and her cold-heartedness :) (Just for you, Sara!) Her sensibility when I get a little whacky. :p

I love my sister and am very thankful that God blessed me by giving her to me. We had a fun childhood while growing up together and I am thankful for all the wonderful memories we have. Here are a few of my favorites:

~Hiding my Dad's special and ugly popintsettia bulb at Christmas time
~Poppop knocking over the Ranch dressing and us hearing him cuss about it! (I still giggle!)
~Wrapping Dad's dirty underwear and socks up as a Christmas Gift
~Playing "Timber" in bed while rolling our tongues
~One word, Sara. Cheerios.
~Sneaking in the basement to watch 90210 and then getting caught
~Watching All My Children together
~"Falling asleep" to Twila Paris blasting
~Mom puotting tape over our mouths because we talked too much at bedtime one night
~Working up enough spit to loosen the tape and then talkking more :)
~Actually having to scrub the kitchen floor one night because we were talking too much (Notice a pattern?)
~Pranking the teen staff boys at camp, one of which I married :)
~Buying make up that Sara influenced me to buy and then getting to keep it because I was honest but Sara got punished :)
~"Chip" from Busch Gardens
~Throwing cups of water off the balcony onto the cars ar Myrtle Beach

I could go on and on but Belle is crying and pulling on me now. Sara, I am very thankful for you and love you dearly. Thank you for all the laughter, prayers and for just being an awesome sister. I love you!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

It was so nice!

I had such a nice day today. We went to church and heard an awesome sermon, (as always) and then the plan was for Dave and I to feed the kids lunch and then take them to my parents while we went to the gym and then grocery shopping. While driving home I was thinking that I'd really rather just cuddle with Dave and watch the game since it's been a while since we've had any real quality time together. He apparently had the same thought so we decided to stay home and enjoy the afternoon. We put Belle to bed and then took Aaron to visit my parents for a while. We had already told him he was going to Grandi and Pop's for a while and knew he would be quite upset if we changed the plans on him. So, off he went, and we had a wonderful afternoon! I love my hubby and am so thankful for the time I have to spend with him. He works so hard during the week and then our weekends fill up so fast that we don't really see each other sometimes. Today was so relaxing! After the game we took the kids grocery shopping and then stopped at Starbucks for donuts (Belle fussed so much for Aarons that we ended up buying her her own to eat. Push overs- I know!!!!!), coffee and hot chocolate. We ran into an old friend of Daves and then had a great time as a family. God has blessed me with such a wonderful family. I love that we can take our kids out and have a good time with them. I hope you all had a nice and relaxing Sunday too!

And Go Ravens!!! :)

The Mystery of the Peach Cobbler

Today at church we had our annual meeting, and since we are a church that love to eat together, we had a luncheon first. I was standing in line for a drink when a lady, Sandy, came over and was talking about the desserts on the table next to the drinks. She and a few others were raving about this awesome peach cobbler that someone made last weekend during our Missions Conference. They were all disappointed that it wasn't there again today and then one of the ladies asked "Who made it?". No one knew the answer and I just kept thinking, "Peach cobbler? I never saw that". I got my food and then sat down with Dave and some friends to eat when I over heard a few ladies at the table next to me talking about this cobbler! I figured this must have been some cobbler for all these people to be talking about it a week later. They kept asking who made it and when one of them asked me, I replied that I never even saw a peach cobbler. I just sat and enjoyed one of the triple layer brownies that I made (they were AWESOME as always!) and forgot all about the mysterious cobbler. As the meeting got under wasy, there was a point where there was a kind of lull in the beginning and the Pastor asked if any one had a question, when Sandy raises her hand and said, "I have a question that is not related to the meeting, but who made the peach cobbler last week!" Everyone laughed at the randomness of the question and then looked around to see who was going to claim the dessert but no one said anything and just looked at each other. Then Dave asks Sandy from across the room, "Was it more of a cake or pie?" and she said yes, then Dave goes, "Katie made it, it's Peaches and Cream Pie". Haha! All this ruckus and it was for MY dessert! It never entered my mind that it was my dessert since it is a cake and is very different from a cobbler! Everyone laughed at me and I have now been told to bring in several copies of the recipe for everyone. How funny! Dave just looked at me and shook his head as he does so very often. :)

Sweetness

Last night I climbed into bed, pulled up the covers up and was reading my bible and praying when I fell asleep. The funny thing is, I was not tired at all when I started, I just pulled up the covers because there was a draft coming from the window and I was cold. Anyway, I woke up a little later, the light was out, my bible and notebook were gone and I was tucked in nice and cozy. Dave had come in a found me sleeping so he moved my stuff out of the way and covered me up. He's so sweet. I woke up and my first thought was how I felt so loved by such a simple but sweet gesture. I love Davey. He is full of sweetness!!!

Thankfulness Part 2

The next thing I want to write about my thankfulness for is my hubby, Dave. (Or Davey, Davey Gravy, etc...) He is wonderful and I think you all should know it! :)

Dave is one of those guys who never calls out of work because he has an awesome work ethic, plus he knows that our family depends on him to provide for us financially. Dave not only works his normal Mon-Fri job but does side work also to provide for us. When we were dating we both agreed that he would work and I would be a stay at home mom. Not only was it my desire from the time I was a little girl but Dave remembered what it felt like for him when his mom went back to work when he was a teenager and didn't want our kids to go through the same thing he did. He is all for homesechooling Aaron and Belle when it is time and even has some ideas as to how he can be an active part of their education. I love that about him! He is quite creative some times! Dave and I are very much a like in many ways. We are both procrastinators and don't really plan ahead much, when we have an awesome gift for the other it is hard for us to keep it a secret, and there are more ways, but I can't think of them right now since it is so late.

We are very different in many ways, also. Dave remembers things that I swear I never heard before. (Like that the government some times pays farmers not to grow corn?? I never knew that and thought that Dave was pulling my leg!) He is grounded and practical when I need him to be and he keeps me from just going out and doing something that I half-thought out that might end up in disaster. There are so many times he'll look at me and say something like, "What about such-in-such..." and I'm like, "Uh, I don't know" . What would I do without him? He is sweet and funny, kind and loving. Dave is such a great daddy to our kids. He spends time with them because he wants to, and makes a point to include them as much as possible (mostly Aaron for now since Belle is so little, but I guarantee when she is old enough she'll be out there in the driveway handing tools to Dave as he changes the oil or something). He takes Aaron to the Mens Breakfast each month at our church and to band practice Sunday am before the service starts. Dave sets such a great example of what a father, husband and man of God should be to our kids. There was a time when I didn't want to go to church each week and my dearest hubby was right there each week reminding me that I had to go. I was pregnant and he woke the "sleeping giant" each week! Now that takes guts!!! :)

One thing I really appreciate most about Dave is how he puts up with me and all my crap. I know I can be a nag, crazy, moody and just plain difficult, but he loves me anyway. My mom told me today that I am the only woman she knows who has ever called her husband to come home from work because she was sick. (actually, the truth in that is I asked him to take a long lunch those days. I figure if I have a nursing baby and I am too weak to even hold her, he needs to be home :)). Anyway... he comes home and I instantly feel better as soon as he walks through the door. The truth is, when I am sick or don't feel good I only want Dave around. He is the most important person to me (God and children aside) and he is the only one who can truly make me feel better. He will sit and rub my head, feet or back and all is well. I am so blessed to have him as my husband, best friend, companion and lover. Woot! ;) I just cannot imagine my life with anyone else! Sorry, ladies! You might disagree, but I have the best husband EVER!

Just for You (You know who you are)

Here is the latest update. I am too busy to update right now. There is nothing so pressing that I must ignore my children to update my blog so that certain parties have something to read when they are bored. If you are in such desperate need of somthing to read, go buy a book. If you cannot afford one, go borrow one from the library. Now I must go clean the house, do laundry, play wih my children, go buy groceries so I can make desserts for dessert night, make desserts for dessert night, decorate for dessert night and clean up all the leaves in the yard.

I love you, you little (BIG!) nag :)

xoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

Thankful

I decided I want to write about some of the things for which I am thankful. I figure since it is the Thanksgiving Season it would be most appropriate, plus I was just reminded on Saturday of how thankful I am for the life that God has given me.

The weather on Saturday was beautiful so it was quite easy to wake up and start the day. Dave was home and doing some work on our "lovely" car (for which I am thankful even though it is ugly!), Belle was sitting in her chair eating cheerios and being adorable as always, I was washing dishes while listening to the radio and Aaron was playing in the backyard. I looked out the window and thought of how thankful I am for this house! Here's why:

1) We have bedrooms for everyone, no more children rooming with us!
2) Dave can do side work at home in the driveway while Aaron either plays or "helps"
3) I can work in the house and let Aaron go outside and play. Having a yard and a partialy fenced in yard is wonderful!!!!!!!
4) There is a swing on the front porch that we love to sit in whenever possible and watch the cars go by (or watch neighbors get arrested, take your pick)
5) In the Spring there are beautiful flowers that bloom
6) Aaron loves watching the kids at school next door while they are outside for recess
7) We have a playroom to throw all the toys in an attempt at keeping the house somewhat neat
8) It is a home, with food to eat, clothes to wear, heat for winter, a/c for summer and a place to be safe and spend time making lasting memories with my husband and children. Like last night when I was stripping my bed, I looked up and realized how Aaron has recently gotten tall enough to wash his hands at the bathroom sink without using a stool. Or again, last night, when Belle took her first two steps towards Dave in the living room. Aaron's 4th birthday party was held in our own home this year because there was room, letting a friends bridal party get ready for a wedding because her house was too small, or being able to spend my first mothers day in 4 years at my own house because there was room for my family to come visit me!

I am so undeserving, but God has chosen to bless me anyway. There are times I just sit and marvel at His amazing love for me. I am so very blessed and thankful for all that God has given me.

Speaking of things for which I am thankful, Dave is asleep on the couch and it is getting late. I guess I'll wake him up and tuck him in. :) He's pretty cute all curled up in his "A man and his truck: it's a beautiful thing" t-shirt and Ravens pj pants, mouth partly open as he softly snores and "watches" Monday Night Football. In reality the tv is watching him :)