Deck the halls!

We spent Saturday putting away our fall decorations, setting up the tree, putting out Christmas decor, and getting ready to decorate the Christmas tree.  We prepared some of our favorite snacks for munching on while we decorated the tree.

It's always fun to watch them put their decorations up.

The evening was not without it's mishaps, but that's to be expected.

Some of us were just fine watching and enjoying the food.

She was so cute putting the star up.  She had to adjust it to make sure it was just right.

Happy Thanksgiving!

What a week we've had celebrating and giving thanks!  God is so good to us!

On Monday we went into Daddy's office for a feast.  It's always fun to head in there to say "hi."

That evening we also managed to get the snow tires on the van; before the next storm came through.

On Tuesday the neighbor kids were going to come over for a Charlie Brown style feast, but they got sick.  We missed them, but the kids had a good time watching the Charlie Brown Thanksgiving shows while eating their popcorn and jelly beans (among other things).

Wednesday was full of baking and sledding.

On Thursday we were blessed to be able to join two other families to share a Thanksgiving meal together.  It was so nice to get to know these sweet families a bit better.  We also learned a couple of fun parlor games.  We were thankful that the storm that came through did not dump much snow, it just made everything white and extra pretty.

The kids enjoyed opening gifts (books) from grandparents.

Black Friday brought a quick trip out for a couple of items AND another Thanksgiving feast!  I always cook the full meal, even when we go to someone else's house....so we took the opportunity to invite friends over.  Mmmm....more yummy food, fellowship and lots of sledding for some of the kids and friends.

She was sure this should come home with her.

Now we're looking forward to a quiet day eating leftovers, playing games, putting away fall decor, and pulling out Christmas!  I'm sure there will be sledding involved as well.  The boys are thankful that mommy voted for 2 sleds instead of just 1. 

Blizzard!

I knew snow was in the forecast, but was surprised when I looked closer to find that we were expecting a blizzard.  We were out all day and arrived home just as the snow started.  We settled in to the clean and cozy house with candles lit for dinner and reading Little House in the Big Woods while we waited for daddy to get home.  It took him a couple of hours to make his way home, that snow had started accumulating quickly!

The kids were so excited in the morning.  Out the front of the house the storm was still looking quite impressive.  The drifts were at least a couple of feet high in many places.  We prepared a fun breakfast of waffles, sausage and eggs while daddy prepared to get into work (only delayed for 2 hours).  After working for over an hour to get out of here (with the help of his boys) it was determined that he would not be getting out.  The 4WD truck was stuck about 20 feet from where it had started.

We were needing to pack our Operation Christmas Child boxes so we got that done in the morning.

*She thinks she helped.  In reality she just had a couple of  extra dum-dums

Boys headed out to play in the snow for about an hour before lunch, and then right back out again after.  Miss J joined them in the afternoon once the snow and wind stopped.  Miss A was sure she should be out there too, but we managed to distract her.

*This is where the truck got stuck.  Right in front of the house.  Our neighbor made it a bit further; his car is abandoned halfway down his driveway.

*Yes, they tunneled through the snow drift.  The one at our front step.

Happy on my neigh!

Miss A often sings the sweetest little song while rocking on her horse.  "Happy on my neigh" over and over again is the basic song.  "Neigh" is her word for horse.

Baby bump and November Stitch Fix

I'm signed up to receive a Stitch Fix once a quarter.  I timed this one to match up with the cooling weather and my expanding waist line.  I had fun trying on the other 3 items, but they were not quite right.  I put on the pants and fell in love.  I think they are the most comfortable maternity pants I've ever owned (and I've owned MANY).  I have to admit that when I saw the stripes in the box my first thought was "what were they thinking?  stripes for a pregnant woman?"  but once I got it on I loved it.  Miss J and Miss E gave their full approval to the top as well.

I'm at 24 weeks and baby is growing nicely.  Incase you are wondering...No, we do not know the gender.  No, we are not planning on finding out.  We all thought it would be sort of fun to be surprised this time.  We're even at 4 and 4.  A quick look in the newborn bin told me that baby would not go naked in the first week or 2 no matter the gender.  I think this choice is saving us some money; I can't really shop for any baby things right now since I really like to dress my babies in gender specific clothes.

If you are interested in using Stitch Fix I'd love it if you would use my referral link.  I'll get a credit if you sign up AND receive a Fix.  HTTPS://www.stitchfix.com/referral/5186414

First snow

We've started the tradition of celebrating the first snow with homemade doughnuts and hot chocolate.  There must be enough snow to shovel and/or play in to count.  A couple of weeks ago we saw a quick little flurry or two, but nothing even turned white.  The kids have been watching and waiting, knowing the day was coming.

Today was the day!  Miss A was so excited.  When she began to hear talk of going outside she ran to get her hat and sandals (while still in PJ's) so she could go too.  We got her appropriately bundled and she had a great time outside with the others.

*The first snow is always a time of scrambling and figuring out if we really do have enough snow pants, boots, mittens, hats etc.  It looks like last year we must have had extras because everyone was all set this time.  Yay!

The wind was really blowing out there.  Miss J didn't stray far from the house or roll in the snow.  It just blew all over her.

Miss E was more than happy to stay inside and make the doughnuts.  A couple of observant sisters got to sample the fruits of her labors (and some leftovers) a bit early.

*When we know we're getting close to the first snow I pick up the needed items to make sure we have them on hand.  Some kids have been eyeing the cans of frosting for a while.  This is the only time we get the stuff.  They all liked the simple glazed ones the best though.

The afternoon play time in the snow was much better for this guy.  The wind had died down and he was able to enjoy the time with the big kids.

After the first snow it really has to be a doozy of a snow to give us another snow day.  Any other snowy day simply calls for cuddling together, reading a good book out loud, and warm drinks.  I LOVE those days.

a-a-and....they're off!

His braces came off las week!  Months early too!

A couple of months ago Mr. R started asking me when I thought they'd come off.  Thinking that it would be GREAT if we could reduce the amount of regular appointments we have before baby comes, I asked.

Our wonderful orthodontist was very understanding of our reasons to want them to come off sooner than later and took a close look.  He projected they'd be off before Christmas.  Then set a date for late in November.   Last week we got a call.  Could Mr. R come in the next day?  To get them off?  We made the necessary adjustments to our schedule and the boy got them off!  Yippee!

He got to celebrate with some candy and  junk foods he had not been able to eat all year.  It ended up making him sick for 2 days.  Bummer!

Road Trip!

We have not been doing as many road trips these last 2 years or so.  It's hard now that daddy is on a school schedule that is very restrictive.  The National Religious Liberties Conference came up on a week-end that Rob could actually get Friday off.  We decided to go for it.  Our older kids were very interested in this conference and so were we.  An extra bonus was knowing many of the people organizing it.

The kids always enjoy hotel breakfast.  The variety of choices in foods and fun drinks are always exciting.

The little ones did very well at the conference.  I had packed plenty of little activity sets for them.  Because Miss C's birthday was that week-end I let her pick out some special snacks and filled a thermal with them (and some extra treats) that she could pass around to siblings and even friends there.  She loved getting to haul that thermal around all day and being able to bless everyone when they were in need of a snack.  The rest of us really enjoyed the encouraging talks, history lessons and even speeches by Presidential candidates.

We took (what we thought would be) a short break from the conference in the evening to go out for dinner.  We had some tired kids, so after dinner I dropped off almost everyone at the hotel and took Miss E and Mr M back.  They were really wanting to get back to the conference and I was glad to take them.  By the time I got back Miss J's mild cold/cough she seemed to be recovering from had suddenly taken a turn.  By morning it was obvious she needed to see a doctor right away.  While the doctor agreed that whatever it was was acting like pneumonia; x-rays showed that it was not.  Breathing treatments helped quite a bit.  Rob and I agreed that we needed to skip the last day of the conference and get Miss J home to rest and recover.  We are thankful we already had a nebulizer as more breathing treatments have been very helpful since arriving back at home.  She is recovering nicely and feeling much better now.

Happy Birthday Miss C!

Miss C turned 6 this past week.  Since we were going to be out of town for her birthday we celebrated early with gifts before church and a cake at church nearly a week before her birthday.  She was thrilled with the idea of getting a big cake and getting to share it with her friends and their families at church.

Look at that HUGE piece!  She wanted the corner with all of the roses.  I think 3 other people helped her with it and it still was not finished.  She had fun though!

Miss C loves to learn and we enjoy helping her.  She amazes us with the things she is able to memorize.  Her nurturing spirit is a wonderful gift, though her "baby" sister is not always so sure it's a blessing....the cats are coming around though.  ;)  Miss C helps me to remember to slow down and enjoy the little things in life.  We are thankful that God has given her to us for a time and we look forward to seeing the plans He has for her life.