I am going to miss this.....

2011 was a great year.  It flew by and I learned a lot about myself.  It truly was a blessing.

This Christmas break, I have really enjoyed staying at home with the kids and just being a mom.  I so wish I could be a stay-at-home mom.  When I go back, I am going to miss the silly moments.  I am going to miss going to the grocery store at 9am, when it is basically empty.  I am going to miss my kids laughing through the grocery store b/c they know that today is a special day and Mommy isn't as stressed as usual.  I am going to miss making breakfast.  I am going to miss eating breakfast, lunch, and dinner with my babies.  I am going to miss sleeping in and staying in our jammies all day.  I am going to miss nap-time.  I am going to miss a clean house.  I am going to miss being a full-time mom.  This is a HUGE struggle for me.  I can't even begin to put it into words, but I know all you working moms understand.

Being a working mom, I am going to miss silly moments like this when eating oranges can crack you up!

And when I peek in on my sweet daughter watching Shirley Temple.  It makes my heart swell!

Or when I peek in on my sleeping baby boy.  He's so sweet when he's asleep!

One other thing I miss- my Grandma.  Laying down in the recliner today, I look down at the quilt she made me and it made me sad.  I miss her more than words can say.  But, I rest in the fact that I KNOW she is walking with Jesus and she is healthy.  She was one lovely woman. (blacked out our b-days.  We were born on the same day!)

Although I am going to miss these moments, I also need to see the positive side of things.  God has surely blessed me.  I have a wonderful job, that I honestly love.  I have great co-workers and a great boss.  I am thankful for this.  Would I give it all up to be a stay-at-home-mom, sure, who wouldn't?  But, I am very blessed by Jesus Christ!

Christmas Blessings

What an amazing Christmas we had!  I truly enjoyed myself!  It's amazing how quickly it all goes by though!!!!  I am so thankful I am off for 2 weeks.  I seriously don't think I could handle going back to work today.  My prayers go out to those that are.  I can only imagine how stressed out and exhausted they are.

Friday night, we celebrated with Randall's sister, mom, brother-in-law, and niece.  We celebrated here, which was hard b/c I had to clean my house, but I actually like it better b/c we don't have to pack up and drive back home.  I had a great time with them.  We had some great conversations and the kids loved playing!!!

Week: 51

Saturday morning, we celebrated with my parents and siblings.  We had some crazy gifts and laughed a lot.  It's so much fun getting together like we used to.  Makes me miss being little....almost!  There were 21 of us, is what my mom said.  There is one more along the way!!!  My brother is having another baby and we found out Sunday morning it's going to be a BOY!!!!!  They had the ultrasound tech put the information in the envelope and they opened it on Christmas morning.  I was beside myself waiting for the call!  I am so excited for them!

Sunday, we had a nice quiet morning with just Randall, the kids, and I.  The kids opened their gifts.  They loved everything they received.  It's amazing how easy they were to shop for this year!  We read the birth of Jesus out of the Bible and Randy sang "Happy Birthday to Jesus" all day....in fact, he is still singing it!  As soon as we finished opening gifts, we quickly got ready for church.  It was such a blessing to attend church on Christmas morning.  Bro. Troy delivered a great message and the church was packed!  I loved seeing that!  Randall had to go to work after church, so that was kind of a bummer, but I was thankful they let him off until 1:00.

Week 52:

Sunday evening, we went over to our friends house and just had a nice dinner and some good laughs and conversations.  It was fun getting together with them.  We hadn't been over there in what seemed like forever!  I missed it!  We stayed there until late and just truly enjoyed ourselves!
Just a snap of precious baby Caleb!

This Christmas was such a blessing all around.  It went by fast, so that's the only sad part.  But, we need to celebrate Jesus EVERY.SINGLE.DAY.  Not just one day a year.  I pray that the world can open their eyes and see the true meaning of Christmas.

Here is week 50 for my P52, which is OVER!  I don't know if I am happy or sad!!!!

Week 50:

Precious Words from a 5 Year Old

We had to make a pit stop at Dollar General today to pick up a few things.  Here in our large town, (actually teeny-tiny) it's all we have.  We are walking the aisles b/c we don't have much to do.  Ruthie tells me she wants to buy a birthday card for Jesus.  How in the world could I say no to that!?  So, we walk down the card aisle and I read a few to her.  This is the one she picks out:

On the ride home, she tells me, "Mommy after I ate lunch I prayed a prayer and I told God that I will do what He tells me to do and I know that He is always with me.  I kissed my bracelet and said "thank You for walking with me!"  (Her bracelet says "Walking with Jesus")

This touched my heart.  She is at the young age of 5 and she already knows and understands God more than I could ever imagine.  She blesses my heart and soul.  I pray that she always remembers this and continues to love God and grow with Him.  

Lord, thank you so much for the precious daughter you have allowed me to raise.  I pray that Randall and I can continue to raise her in your Word and follow Your will for her life.  She is a gift from You and we are so blessed to have her.  Thank You for Your kind words, and always being with her.  I pray that she grows to know You more and more.  Thank You God.  Happy Birthday sweet Jesus!  

Life Lately

It's been hectic around here lately.  I know I am not alone in this!  I am reading blog after blog of everyone's holiday busy-ness.

I have been signing up for classes (FINALLY going back to college), shopping, wrapping, praying, reading, cleaning, decorating, working, clicking (my camera!), and all sorts of stuff.  We are almost finished with Christmas shopping.  I know we are with the kids except for their gift for each other.  We also have our parents to buy for.  That's not too hard though!  I am cleaning b/c we are having Randall's Christmas here at our house.  Have to clean for that right?!?! AND decorate!  I have completed one photoshoot this December and I have a wedding to shoot Friday night!  Yes, you read that right- a wedding.....  I am NOT a professional and she is totally aware of it.  She said if I didn't do it, they would just take some photos themselves, so I agreed.  I am so nervous, but super excited!

I wanted to post on Christmas traditions.  Growing up, our Christmas traditions included tip-toeing down the stairs in the middle of the night (my brothers and sisters and I) and looking through the tissue paper (Santa wraps in tissue paper at my parent's house) and seeing what we got, and then tip-toeing back up to bed so excited!  That was basically it.  I am not complaining! I have great memories of this!

I wanted to start some traditions at my home too.  We do the whole new jammies thing and they open it on Christmas Eve.  I mainly do this b/c I want their jammies to be cute for Christmas pics! (True photographer huh?!)  I am thinking of getting them a new Christmas book and letting them open this on Christmas Eve as well.  My other thought is an advent type thing.  I have seen MANY ideas on Pinterest, but I don't know what I want to do!

My favorite tradition has got to be the one that Emily Anderson does.  Here is a link to her blog.  Santa puts a little scrap of wrapping paper in each child's stocking (wayyyyy in the bottom) and that style of wrapping paper, is what their gifts are wrapped in.  I just LOVE this idea!  She has way more kids ( and patience) than I, but I still think it would be fun!

The other tradition I have read a few times about is getting the child only THREE gifts.  Yes, you read this right- three gifts.  This represents the three gifts the wise-men brought to Jesus.  One they NEED, one they WANT, and one that's a surprise!  I think this is the right way to go seeing that it's so easy to fall into the trap of materialism during Christmas.  I know I have posted on it before, but it bugs me that I feel as though I have to buy tons of stuff for my kids and I fall for it.every.year.  It frustrates me to no end.  I realize we can't start this year, b/c the presents are already bought, but I am seriously gonna give this some thought and some SERIOUS prayer for next year.

What are your traditions you carry on for your family?!?!


Speaking of materialism- this was on FB the other day, and well, I wanted to share again.

49/52 almost finished!

Wow....I can't believe my P52 is almost over!  I have had a blast doing this.  Sometimes it was a pain, but it's really neat to look back at all the photos!  I only skipped 2 weeks, which is pretty good!

Here is week 49. We went to Randall's work's Christmas party last night.  Ruthie is always nervous around Santa, but the photo that I capture this year, was perfect.  Such a sweet moment.  Love the look of wonder and joy in her eyes!

Catching up on P52

I am behind on posting my P52, so I am getting caught up on three weeks here!  I have been a bit busy with all the holiday stuff going on.  

46/52

I know I already shared this photo, but I couldn't help but share it again.  Just love this little guy.

47/52

Another Randy pic.  I did a quick twinkle light set up and this is just one I loved.  There is little light in his eyes, but I still adore it.

 48/52

This little girl has turned into a pog MASTER!  She kicks our butts!  Randall kept his pogs from Jr. High and passed them down to Ruthie who is loving them.  In fact, we all are!

Decorating for Christmas

I try to wait until the day after Thanksgiving to start decorating.  I won't say that Christmas music and movies aren't on before then, but decorations are not out until the day after.  Today, while having nothing to do, I got down a few boxes, and put some stuff up.  I have been scanning Pinterest to find some banners, and I found a few I liked.  I made it my own, with Ruthie's help, and I love the way it turned out!  It's not "Christmasy" but I like the fact that it can work year round, and it's a good motto to live by.  We shouldn't just praise Him during Christmas, but all year.

Here are a few photos of my decorating for the day!

I like to put what we are thankful for on my scrabble tiles.  For some reason I didn't get a pic of Randy's.  His says "food." This is mine-

 This is Ruthie's. 

 This is Randall's.  (No, I didn't tell him to put that!)

I am looking forward to getting our tree on Tuesday and decorating it together as a family!

You can see my previous post on my scrabble tiles here and here.

I'm back! (photo post)

We had one amazing Christmas break. I was NOT ready to come back to work, but it's life and I had to. I do love my job, I just love my children more!

Let's see.....we celebrated with Randall's side of the family the weekend after Christmas break. We had so much fun! Ruthie received a DS- which was the main thing she wanted. Her Nana & Papaw got it for her. Funny thing was, she wasn't sure what it was. We made her read the letters "DS" to figure it out! She's so silly. In the photos below, you can see how excited she was to receive it!

Ruthie had her Christmas play and she was an angel. Randy was supposed to be in it, but he freaked at the last minute! Ruthie did sooooo good. I was amazed at how well she did. I was worried. She's super shy and I wasn't sure if she would go through with it, but she did. They sang "Away in a Manger" and they did sign language with it. What a beautiful song with the hand motions!

We celebrated with my side of the family on Christmas Eve day. We had pancakes (my favorite food) and other breakfast foods. We had a lot of fun. It was one of the first years that I can remember where it wasn't rushed. We just laughed and had a good time! I really truly enjoy getting together with my brothers and sisters. It's a rare occasion for us to all get together, without anyone missing.

Randall was supposed to work Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. Turns out, b/c he had to work overtime the three days before as a fill-in, they let him off! Isn't that amazing! God is AWESOME! They didn't want to pay him the overtime for working his shift, so they just let him off. It's crazy how things work out. It's a gift from God!

We opened presents with the kids Christmas morn. It was so much fun to see our kids both get into it this year. Randy was allllllll about tearing open the presents. Randall and I got the kids a F150 power wheels truck. It was wrapped and sitting in the dining room for about the whole month of Decemeber. When Christmas morning came, they were both ready to tear into it! There's a photo below of Randy tearing the paper off. He had NO idea what was inside. You can also see in the pictures just how much fun, and how many smiles it provided. I laugh so hard watching Ruthie drive. She's not the best, but we all get a laugh out of it. Randy just sits and enjoys the ride!!!

New Year's Eve was a blast as well. We celebrated with our friends Joyce, Kristen, and Steven. They came over with their family and we played the Wii and laughed our heads off! We are so blessed to have such amazing friends! Oh, and Christmas morning we got a big suprise!!! Joyce is pregnant!!! I am so excited for her. I am a bit jealous, but I know that it's not my time, and we might even be finished having children....so I am going to live through her!

My photos are out of order, so please excuse me when it comes to that....

Hope everyone had an amazing Christmas and a happy new year!

Santa love!

Just thought I would leave you with a giggle for Thursday! Ruthie LOVED Santa this year. Randay....ah, not so much! Too cute though right!?





I will be out until Jan 3rd due to Christmas Break! I am sooooo ready to stay at home with my kiddos and enjoy our time together. I hope everyone has an AMAZING CHRISTMAS!

Finding the perfect tree!

We head to my aunt & uncle's tree farm to pick out our tree this year. Turns out, Ruthie's best friend is there picking out her tree as well! So, they played on the see-saw while we waiting for my uncle.

Ruthie: "I don't want to pick out a tree! I want to stay here and play!"


We set out to find the perfect one.
Randy: " Ahodjao hogjdfsoahg!"
Translation: "I found it mom!"


While Randall and I set out looking for it, Randy and Ruthie are off playing around. I try to get them to come with us, and as you can tell, Ruthie was THRILLED!


So, we found our perfect tree, although we don't have our family picture taken by it yet. While we were there, I thought it would be a perfect opportunity for some photos of my kids together. Key word there- **thought** Ruthie wanted nothing to do with my camera that day. She just wanted to play. She wasn't happy with me.


While we were out there, Randy apparently thought sitting on the onion plants were fun. Why in the world he wanted to sit on them, I will never know! Look at how silly he looks out there with all the trees. He matches!


We had a great time searching for the perfect tree. The tree farm had a lot of trees to choose from! We usually go big b/c our ceilings are high enough, but this year we went smaller, and I am so glad! We had tons of fun decorating it. I take a pic each year of Ruthie putting the star on. I guess next year Randall will have to hold both kids while they put it on! Excuse the grainy photo. I had my settings set to where I didn't have to use my flash.

Updates and lots of photos!

Okay, I know, I know. I am failing miserably at blogging. We decided to start saving the money that we spend on the internet and turn it off at home. I can get on it at work, but not on blogger. We don't really need the internet at home. It's just a pleasure item. Since we don't need it, we plan on turning it off. I haven't yet, but we are planning on it. So, unless I get over to my sisters often, I won't be blogging often....sorry.

But, I will update you all on what's going on.

Christmas was sad, but we all made it through. We enjoyed family time. We have family this year, that we haven't had in a long, long time, so that was a major plus. I tried to find comfort and peace in that. Ruthie had a ball opening up gifts. She's so sweet and innocent. We have tried to explain to her, the best that you can to a 2-year old, that Christmas wasn't just about Santa and gifts, but it was about the birth of Jesus. We LOVED seeing all the manger scenes with baby Jesus. She would talk about how it was His birthday on Christmas, and then it would be her's. She would sing, "Away in a manger." Nothing is sweeter than knowing your precious little girl is understanding how awesome our Lord is! Our preacher had all the kids come up front on the sermon before Christmas and he told them the story of the birth of Jesus. Ruthie apparently listened closely b/c we were talking about it on the way home, and we asked her what Jesus was born in and she replied, "a manger!" We both looked at each other shocked b/c that was the first time she answered it correctly. We asked her how she learned that, and she told us, "Bro. Troy said so!" It's so amazing watching her soak it all in!

On Christmas morning, told Jesus Happy Birthday. She crawled in bed with us, and we told her that Santa had come to visit. We asked her if she wanted to open presents and she said no! She thought he was still in the house! She's not too fond of that old man! We convinced her he was back at the North Pole. She opened her gifts and got all that she wanted and more. I am sharing pics, but some will be sideways. My computer takes way too long to rotate them, and I am too lazy....sorry.












We also got a dog. He's so beautiful. He's very, very big. He's a Great Pyrenees. I can't believe how big he is, and he's only getting bigger. We adopted him from the humane society. He's been really good and we are in love with him. He's so gently and calm for his age and size. His name is Hondo. We also got a cat. Ruthie is in love with her. She's really gentle with Ruthie, and I am very surprised! Her name is Jazz. Here are a few photos of them! Okay, I can't get them to pop up right....sorry again. I don't know why it cuts off half the photos.

We are thrilled to announce that we are having a.....

BOY!

That's right! Ruthie is going to have a baby brother! I am sorry it took me so long to update. I've just been horrible at blogging lately. Ruthie was a bit upset at first. She kept saying, "that's my baby sister" in the u/s room. Randall told her it's a baby brother and she said, "why?" So we told her that God wanted her to have a baby brother, and that's what we are going to have. She seems to be adjusting better now. She still thinks there is a baby brother AND a baby sister, but there is no chance of that! She tells everyone, "I'm gonna have a baby brother, and his name will be Randall Dale!" Randall wants this baby to be a III. So, his name will be Randall Dale. I don't know if the world is ready for 3 Randall's. Randall's dad goes by Randy, Randall goes by Randy, Randall, and JR, and this baby, well.....I don't know yet. Part of me wants to just call him Dale to make it easier. Randall isn't too sure what he wants to do. So, we know his name, but we don't know what we are going to call him. I couldn't be any more excited though! I thought for sure he was going to be a girl, up until the morning of the u/s. I woke up thinking, it's going to be a boy. It didn't matter to me, b/c I know we will try again.

Well, I think I have most of my shopping finished for Christmas! I am making a lot of homemade gifts this year, and I need to get on the ball with those. I think I will probably wait until the last minute, like always. My sister bought the Cricut Expression, so we can make bigger projects. I can't wait to make some!

Ruthie got to see Santa Claus today! She was excited, even though she wasn't feeling 100%. She wouldn't sit in his lap, or beside him, so I held her and sat beside him. (No, I didn't take any pics, but the plant did.) She did talk to him though, which was a shock to me. She told him she wanted a flashlight. Why in the world does she want a flashlight? Seriously, out of all the things she could want! Well, I guess it's easier on me right?!

I am just so ready for Christmas vacation. Starting December 19th through January 4th, I am out of school!! YIPEE! I can't wait!

Editing this to add a photo of Lil Randy! I didn't get any "boy parts" pics, but this is a pic of his face.

Chrismas is near!

I love Christmas time. I love the smell of the Christmas tree. I even love the smell of our wood burning stove. Yes, the same stove I was mad about in another post. I L.O.V.E. hot chocolate and the smell of anything baking in our stove. I love shopping for others. I love this time of year!

This picture was taken the other day. We were getting ready to go somewhere and her little chair was sitting by the tree and she sat in it and I had to take a few pics! This was one of the better ones. She's a mess. She makes me laugh all the time though. She is learning more about herself. She cracks me up with the faces she makes.

I have been exhausted the last few days b/c I have been sick with allergies. They are kicking me in the BUTT this year. It hasn't been this bad since I lived with Mom & Dad. I am taking Zyrtec daily and my inhaler most days. I hate to, but I have to.

We are heading up to Randall's dad's tomorrow. We are leaving as soon as Randall gets off work, 7:30 or so, and it'll take us about 2 hours to get there. We are staying the night and spending that day there. I am sure we will have a great time. Ruthie needs to bond with her Granny & Pop's. Plus, Grandad will be with us and we already know she adores him!

Tara challenged everyone who read her blog to post 8 random things about ourselves, so here they are!

1) I have webbed feet. It's only two toes, but they are truly webbed.

2) I am totally in love with Garth Brooks. Not just in love, TOTALLY in love. I get all giddy when I see in in concert or even on tv.

3) I met Randall at my boyfriend's (at the time) little sister's b-day party. He asked me to go hang out with him b/c I was upset at my boyfriend. I didn't take him up on his offer that night, but I did the next night. Well, you see where that got us!

4) Growing up I despised my sister Sharie. Now, I couldn't love her anymore than I do now. I have two sister and they are truly my best friends.

5) Someday I will go to Spain. I have always wanted to go there....someday!

6) When I was little, I hated my middle name- Ruth. One of my friend's mom told me the name sounded like dog barking. I got over it to name my daughter Georgia Ruth. After all- it's about my Grandma b/c it's her middle name as well.

7) I have a dimple when I smile. My brother's and sister's used to sing the song- "Sadie's in the middle, let me see your dimple!" OMG I hated that!

8) I clean house like my mom. Everything is cluttered. In order for my house to look nice, I just stack that clutter neatly!

There we go. Eight random things about good ole' Sadie! Oh, and I challenge anyone who reads my blog to do the same and post eight random things about themselves!