A Honor Roll

Kellen went from the A-B Honor Roll (1st six weeks) to the A Honor Roll (2nd six weeks) and Matt and I wanted to do something special with him to celebrate.

He decided (with a little encouragement from Mommy and Daddy) that he wanted to go to Grand Station.  This worked out nicely for Mommy and Daddy, since Mommy had apparently been hoarding quite a few gift cards for Grand Station.  And he enjoys playing games - especially lazer tag with his Daddy, so things worked out really well!

We went to Grand Station and started off playing putt-putt.  But not just any putt-putt...glow in the dark putt putt!

Kellen was actually pretty good at it...Tatum, eh...not so much.  She ended up getting frustrated and just picking her ball up and dropping it in the hole.  I think all three of the 'actual' players ended up getting at least one hole in one, and Matt ended up beating me by one stroke, I believe.  But them again, he was keeping score, so......

So much fun!

We then played some games together.

Then Daddy and Kellen played lazer tag while Tatum and I played some games.  (And if you're wondering, she isn't actually playing this motorcycle game, but she certainly thought she was and felt like BIG STUFF doing the demo).

When the boys were through with lazer tag, we played some more games

Then we had snacks, left and drove through Central Park to look at Christmas lights, then called it a night.

It was a good celebration.

Memorizing scripture in 2011

I follow Beth Moore's blog, and she's doing a challenge to memorize 24 scripture verses in 2011...2 a month.

You know me, I like to set goals, so I'm accepting the challenge and am signing up (albeit a few days late).

For additional information, check out her blog post with instructions.

After I post my scripture on her blog, I'll *try* to post it here and link back to the relevant blog post on her site.

My God shall supply all your need according to His riches in glory in Christ Jesus. - Phillipians 4:19

Who's with me?

Sweet Jacey

Soft skin, tiny fingers, and a hand that grips so tight.

These are the things you hold so dear, in the middle of the night.

Rockbox

So I discussed the Rockbox in an earlier post about our anniversary weekend getaway, but I wanted to display some of our photos from that show.

Let me once again reiterate how incredibly fun that night was!

Still as goofy as ever!

 Roy Orbison...

Bette Midler...

ZZ Top...Santa style

The English Brothers (who were the guest performers for the night).  They sang Cowboy Christmas songs and we loved them so much that Matt ended up getting an early Christmas present...they were selling their CD's!

I'm so glad that we were able to go to this show!  Thank you, Matt's friend, for getting us the passes!!

Christmas Wreath

Now that Christmas is over and we're in the process of taking down decorations, I thought I would finally take the time to share the Christmas wreath that I made this year.

A co-worker of mine donated a large box of Christmas decorations to me and I had many wonderful ideas for things to do with them.  Their still great ideas, but for most of them, that's as far as they got.

I did; however, end up making some Christmas wreaths using materials currently existing in my Christmas decorations.

Take one wreath, one strand of ribbon (originally used in my wedding and now used in Christmas decorations), some gold nonbreakable Christmas ornaments, plus one adorable snowman ornament and viola'.........

You have your very own Christmas wreath!

10 Year Anniversary Weekend

Matt and I made use of some free hotel nights in the Hill Country on our anniversary weekend and went away to celebrate our 10 years together. Maw Maw and Paw Paw graciously watched all three kiddos while we were gone.

Did you catch that? All three kiddos. Yes, I went off and left Jacey for an entire weekend. Wow.

Anyway, we had a relaxing weekend and just enjoyed being together without having to wipe someone's nose or bootie, which is rare for us.

Here is a recap of our weekend, primarily in photos.  Most of them center around food...but the food was really good!  Unfortunately, I just realized that I didn't take any pictures of the picnics and sandwiches that sustained us for the majority of the weekend, but oh well!

Friday night we walked around Fredericksburg and window-shopped. We went to eat at Auslander and had the first meal of a weekend that included some really good German cuisine.

We went to the downtown area and admired all of the festive Christmas lights as well.

Saturday morning we made our way to breakfast at Save Inn in Kerrville.  We ate there on Sunday morning as well. Great breakfast, and you know it's good if it's packed with locals and cops (eating, not patrolling)...means good and quick service!

We went to the Pacific Museum on Saturday for a while, then walked around the town.

One stop we had to make was to the Rather Sweet Bakery. Here's a picture of the delectable goody Matt and I shared and a picture of the storefront.

Later on Saturday night, we ate at Der Lindenbaum and here is a picture of my fabulous meal and the storefront.

And a picture of our dessert....yummy goodness with icing so rich neither Matt nor I could eat it all. And that fact alone should tell you something!

We were blessed with passes to the Christmas show at Rockbox. I highly recommend it and if we're able to get passes again, it's worth it to plan a trip to the Hill Country around this show. Really. Good, clean, family friendly fun!

On Sunday after breakfast, we leisurely made our way to Fredericksburg, stopping to see a few sights on the way.

We have a few shots of this particular cross, which is the first of what appears to be a large prayer garden project. It was H-U-G-E, as if you can't tell from the tiny two people standing near the base of it.  I have some hilarious pictures of Matt running toward me to get this picture, as we had to have the camera on a timer and taking two - yes two - pictures to actually get the entire thing in frame.

This was just a cool (large) piece of art made from scraps (hence the license plate 'Scrappy') and it thought it was so neat that we pulled over on the side of the road to take pictures of it!

We then went to the Pacific Combat Zone guided tour, which I highly recommend.

I just love this phrase....very appropriate for wartime, don't you think?

Then we went around the town square again to get some pictures to commemorate the weekend.......

All in all, it was a wonderful anniversary celebration!

10 Years!

I'm thinking back to 10 years ago, when Dawson Skow, Laura Schrib (now Turner) and David (Pez) Lobban performed this song for Matt and I at our wedding.



For all the changes and craziness that the last 10 years have included, I'm glad that God designed Matt just for me. I know that God is going to do wonderful things with Matt and I in the next 10 years. I simply need to hang on tight, because life with Matt is never anything short of a wild ride!

Happy 10 Year Anniversary hon!

Merry Christmas

Rejoice Lord King Religious Christmas 5x7 folded card

Shop Shutterfly for elegant custom Christmas photo cards.

View the entire collection of cards.

Need a gift idea?

How about one that helps others?  How about several?

Our church distributed a Holiday Shopping Guide which included several gift options that would benefit various ministries.  I'll share them in case you're looking for that extra-special gift for someone (excerpts taken from the brochure).

Compassion
Gift of compassion (Any Amount)
Whether you donate towards renovation or sanitization of kitchen facilities or towards potential income generation through pig farming, Compassion will use your contribution to release children and families from poverty in Jesus' name.
Child Sponsorship ($38/month)
Connects your child with a loving, church-based child sponsorship program that provides: food and clean water, medical care, educational opportunities, and important life-skills training. Most important of all, your sponsored child will hear about Jesus Christ and be encouraged to develop a lifelong relationship with God.

Bite Back
One Treated Bed Net ($10/ea)
Malaria starts with a fever and is followed by headaches and vomiting.  If not treated quickly, malaria can overwhelm the body or even infect the brain and cause a coma. At this point, malaria becomes fatal. Children are hit the hardest by malaria, a disease that can keep them from school several weeks a year and weaken their bodies in the process. If untreated, malaria can spread to the brain and quickly kill a child.

Hani Coffee Co.
One pound of Hani Coffee ($16/ea)
Great coffee, changed lives. As a startup company, we're about more than just offering a premium product. We're about investing in people. The beans for our signature roast come from the terraced mountains of Southwest China. Working alongside of the Hani villagers who helped grow and harvest the beans so many enjoy, we partner to provide better medical, educational and clean water opportunities.

SHIP (Shelter the Homeless International Projects)
Orphanage Construction (Any Amount)
In San Salvador, El Salvador, thirty-three children, the Orphanage Director, and his wife live in an abandoned school building that is approximately 1,400 square feet. The building is kept as clean as possible, but the conditions are substandard, the children have little to no room for playing, and there are many safety concerns for this location and building.

Honor Our Troops
Soldier Care Package ($25/ea)
H.O.T. is an organization based out of the Midland/Odessa, Texas area. Our mission is to send care packages to as many service men and women as possible, on a weekly basis.

Missionary Care Packages
Care Packages (Any amount)
Central Baptist Church supports over 30 missionaries serving all over the world. Send a package as a family or with others from your fellowship group and let them know that we love and care about them! Contact the Missions Office at missions@cbcbryan.org for information on sending a care package.  [For those who attend a church other than CBC, contact your church for information on sponsored missionaries.]

Disclaimer: By no means is this an exhaustive list of gift ideas that would be of benefit to others around the globe. This list was compiled b the Missions Ministry of Central Baptist Church.

How are you sharing your Merry Christmas this year?

As for me, I've been all over the place the last few years....carefully written letters detailing highlights of the last year complete with pictures, photo cards, regular Christmas cards, and unfortunately the last couple of years...nothing.

Yes, nothing.

Zero. Zilch. Nada.

It's not because I didn't want to, or even for lack of effort.  In fact, I have one completely written letter that simply never made it to the pages of a printer. I don't lack the motivation, I simply stuggle on the implementation and follow-through.

*Sigh*

Well I'm determined NOT to let that happen again this year.  Although I've sent out birth announcements for Jacey (I do actually have a few stragglers still left to send out), I still want to highlight the events of this memorable year, 'cause hey, my kiddos are adorable (and let's face it...Jacey was born in July, so there's a whole half of a year waiting to be discussed)!

Which leads me to Shutterfly Christmas cards. Yup. I've spent countless hours over the last couple of weeks working on photo gifts from Shutterfly. Let's not discuss it wouldn't have taken me nearly as long if I was more consistent in actually uploading my pictures, but hey...I'm shaking that Mommy guilt right off my shoulders here.  I won't link specifically to my completed projects, simply because that would take the fun out of it for the various recipients, but I am happy to report that I've received two of my three packages already - my calendars and photos for 'old-school' scrapbooking!!  My next project was going to be Christmas cards.  Loe and behold, Shutterfly comes along with a deal for bloggers....all for touting their stuff, which I happen to love and adore anyway, so much so that my mommy guilt takes over when I think about what I haven't put into a photo book yet. Wait. Let me shake that off my shoulders again.

There we go.  Much better.

So I'm here to share the information about the awesomeness that is Shutterfly (in case you aren't already aware!) and in the process receive 50 free Christmas cards from them. 

Anyone want to WHOOP with me on that one?

WHOOP!

There it was....

Ok, so I'm liking the photo Christmas cards because, well, as I've already mentioned, I have some pretty cute kiddos (perhaps I'm a little biased on that one, though). 

Here are some options:

Rejoice Lord King Religious (which I already obviously like because I've already worked it up and have posted about it here)

Family Wall Red

Merry Plaid

Oh What Fun

Peppermint Bliss

Wrapped with Ribbon

My problem is that I have three kiddos, so I either need one good shot of all three of them, or enough spaces for individual pictures.  So whatcha' think?  Which of these formats do you like?

Just to give you some ideas about other photo gifts (in case you need them), we've also ordered coffee mugs in the past (and Matt still regularly drinks from one showing Kellen as a baby, as does his Paw Paw...).