Our Christmas

It's so hard to believe that Christmas has once again come and gone. All the anticipation leading up to the big day is great. The decorating, the shopping, the gift wrapping, the time spent with our loved ones. It's a lot of fun. Then, in the blink of an eye the presents are torn open and all is back to normal. I'm a big picture taker but I have to admit, I do get kinda caught up in the moment and forget to click that little camera. I did, however, manage to get a few. These are my faves.

 Taya in awe of her highly anticipated paint desk.

 

 Ripping into her life size paint-able play house.

 

 Lovin' on the bear Ethan bought her.

 

 Hugging her new MP3 player.

 

 New headphones.

 

 Daddy making sure they work properly.

 

 Very first Under Armour shirt.

 

 Bubba Corbin taking a look.

 

Mounds of gifts!

 

 

 Taya bought each of the boys new Lego's.

 

 Hugs :-)

 

 Ethan's gift from Corbin. A new Cinch bag and a Ranger shirt.

 

 Check out that face.

 

 My heart.

 

 The other gift from Corbin.

 

Melts. My. Heart.

 

 

 Realizing he just got his VERY OWN cell phone.

 

 That face!!!

 

Taking it all in. I ADORE this pic. He had tears in his eyes.

 

After we opened our family gifts, my parents and brother came over to open even more loot. It was a bit rushed because we were off to the Great Wolf Lodge in Grapevine. It was so much fun. I recommend going to anyone...but be ware, you need LOTS of money!



 

 The view from our fifth floor room when we checked in.

 

 View from the same room when we checked out.

 

 That's the Gaylord Texan across the way.

 

Comfy, cozy room.

 

 

Check out the website.

http://www.greatwolf.com/grapevine/waterpark

 

 

Christmas was amazing. The gift getting and giving was great but the best part was being able to spend the entire day together...just the five of us. Swimming, laughing, soaring down water slides, chasing each other in the "silly" river. As we were walking down the hall in the hotel to the water park, Taya grabbed my hand, looked up at me and said "This is the best Christmas ever!". I'll never forget that. While we were playing in the water Ethan told me he was having $420 worth of fun. Corbin said "This place is awesome". I wanted to make awesome memories with our kids. We did just that.

 

We're already starting to plan where we're going next Christmas.

 

Happy Birthday, Baby Jesus! It's because of your love and sacrifice that we are able to celebrate!

Christmas Happenin's

With the holidays fast approaching we have been busy bee's around our house. Two weeks ago was Ethan's Christmas dance at school and last week were Corbin and Taya's Christmas programs at school. Well, this past Sunday was the church play. It was called "Christmas Idol". Corbin was a middle aged rapper named Andy and Taya was an angel(of course she was!). Ethan was part of the props team and in charge of the lighting. They play was so sweet.

 (My angel blinged out in her "boots with the fur")

 

 (Corbin was an awesome rapper!)

 

Saturday night my folks, brother and I took the kids to see "The Real Santa Clause" in Fairview, then to Raising Cane's for dinner and then to look at Christmas lights(Matt was working). We went to Allen in a division called "Deerfield". It was AMAZING! We had so many huge laughs(someone may or may not have fallen out of the car...totally sober. Totally almost pee'd my pants. Love you mom!) My abs still hurt from laughing so hard! We had such a good time the kids and I decided to take Matt back last night. Still as awesome the second time around. I HIGHLY recommend it to everyone. I promise, the drive is worth it!

 (This house was great! The radio station was in sync with the lights)

 

 (This Santa moved and was talking to us)

 

(Please notice Santa in the balcony!)

 

This video is pure greatness!

 

 

(These reindeer started on one side of the street and "flew" in mid air to the other side)

 

(Look closely-Santa is hanging on to the sleigh and the presents are flying out the back)

 

Love!

 

Corbin and Taya have a "Christmas store" at school so we gave them each way too much money and they bought us all stuff. I have to say my favorite thing was hands down the Santa hats Corbin bought me and Matt.

 

No Peeking!

 

 

It's feeling more and more like Christmas everyday...







Tragedy in CT

I have been thinking about kindergarten students all day. Five and six year-old kids….with no cares and with eyes on Santa Claus coming soon. I see kindergartners every day at our elementary school; you can always spot them, because of their book bags. They are small, innocent and love the world…and they give the BEST high fives, ever. They high five with love and eagerness….unaware of this nasty world we live in and the fact that monsters really do exist, in the form of killers, like the one who showed up at a school in Connecticut yesterday.

As I explained to all three of my kids what had happened, the boys asked a few questions and Taya just kept saying she didn't want to be killed. I assured them all they are safe and that particular bad man in gone now too.

As we talked I turned the TV on and we all watched and listened together. The compassion my boys had was so remarkable to me. This is them watching it all on the news.

 

I believe in Heaven. I believe in Hell. I also believe that everyone has the right to meet their maker and ask for forgiveness. I'm torn with this issue. I pray that this lost, broken soul will be forgiven and be given some peace, yet at the same time I see him only as the devil.

This tragedy hits a little too close to home for me. My niece, who is six, in the first grade and lives in CT, attends school just 10 minutes away from where this massacre happened. Not only that but I have 2 children who are in elementary school, one of which is a kindergartner. I can't even fathom dropping off my children for school and never seeing them alive again. The horror.

So….we had another mass killing at a school. Innocent children….angels…. gone. It is time to make our schools secure. There should be NO one in the building during the school day except for staff, students and police. Dedicate a secure room/vestibule near the entrance for conferences or meetings with parents. Set a perimeter of cameras and locked doors, so these kids can be safe….the teachers can be safe….and the building can function as a school and not a murder scene.

I've been talking to Matt a lot lately about our kids growing up. The thought of this terrifies me. It excites him. He loves to think about the people they will become. I want them to stay who they are now. The fact is, the world will continue to go on. The kids WILL grow up. This is inevitable. This bothers me. Or at least it did, until yesterday. As I was sitting there feeling sorry for myself and the fact that my babies are growing up, other parents thousands of miles away were  preparing for a life without their kids. Kids they will NEVER see grow up because their little lives were stolen from them. And from their families.

I think the thing that bothers me the most is that all the victims remain in the school, where they fell, alone, until the police department decides they can be moved. I heard that would be at least Sunday before that happened. How do you, as a parent, go to bed knowing your innocent child is laying in a cold, dark, mean place that they once found joy and happiness in. A place that was supposed to be safe.

As I watched, listened and cried, this little angel fell fast asleep in my arms.

Count your blessings everyday. Even if they seem so small. Never take one day for granted and never assume there will always be tomorrow.

Lord, I pray for peace and mercy for these families. I pray that these little children will now soar the skies as angels, watching over their moms, dads and siblings. When we look to the Christ child let us be reminded of our desperate need to embrace the hope of Christmas. Come, Lord Jesus, Come...

Christmas Spirit

Ok, so I know I've posted a months worth of posts over the weekend but had to share this last one.

In my last post I mentioned I wasn't too much in the spirit of the holidays yet. Well, having the three awesome kids I do we always have some sort of Disney channel show on in our house. One of the favorites is "Good Luck Charlie". I have to say a few of the shows the kids watch on a regular basis just seem to draw me in. This being one of them. Tonight the episode was called "A Duncan Christmas". In the show the oldest daughter and and her boyfriend sang a song. "My Song For You". Listening to this song my body felt warm and I got all tingly inside. Just what I needed to hear. I immediately hopped on youtube, and there it was.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fDI0HIhOg70

As Taya and I listened she began to sing along and by the third replay tears were in my eyes. I hope this song moves you all, too.

Innocence and Gratitude

Living in Texas, you never really know what kind of weather to expect around the holidays and for Christmas. Because of this, it sometimes takes me longer to get with that holiday spirit. Don't get me wrong, the tree is up, all adorned with lights and ornaments and as of today, a plethora of assorted candy canes. Along with many, many(many) presents. Even with the house decked out the spirit of Christmas is still trying to make it's way into my heart. I'm getting there.

Last Christmas the kids asked for, and got, way too many presents. Presents that after 2 days were broke, others that became boring after a month and some that were completely a memory by Easter. We talked about it and Matt and I decided that this year we would keep it simple. Simple as in a couple gifts each, totalling $50 a kiddo. With the extra money we would save we want to take them to the Great Wolf Lodge on Christmas day. To me, the memories we'll be making as a family are a hundred times greater than any amount of gifts. At first I was thinking the kids would have mixed emotions about this due to the fact that they love tearing open that wrapping paper and making my living room a trash dump. When I approached the kids with this new found idea of mine, they were, for a moment skeptical. With some compromising on the "each child budget" being a bit bigger(gotta love my Corbin) we came to an agreement. $100(have already way surpassed even that...and aren't done yet!).
When asked what they all want for Christmas this year, their lists are very minimal. Nothing extravagant. As a matter of fact the one who wants the most is Taya. She's five, this is normal. But the boys...they are growing. They are maturing. Their wants for cars, trucks, play dough, etc have now changed into MP3 players, cell phones and Under Armour anything. This saddens me but at the same time brings a sense of pride knowing they both are on the right path.

I'll never forget the day a couple weeks ago when we were driving down the road and I hadn't really gotten any answers out of Ethan as to what he wants under the tree for him this year. I asked. He replied. "Nothing really. I have all I ever really wanted." My heart melted. How mature. How grateful he is for the things he already has...most of which he didn't even ask for but received because he's a good kid.

Matt has a job that requires him to work nights. Twelve hour shifts. This puts a bit of a wrench in my Great Wolf plans since Matt has to work the day after Christmas. I told the kids we might have to hold off on our winter wonderland excursion to the lodge. They were all bummed. To my surprise, the boys said they were looking forward to the memories we will make as a family. Priceless. Really have to make this happen now.

The innocence of children is amazing to me. I look at the boys and I see my heart. I see the innocence of two handsome, cute, little guys. One of which I see turning into a young man faster than I want. The other, loving every aspect of being a little boy. I look at Taya and see the little girl I used to be. The little girl who didn't have a care in the world and thought her mom hung the moon(still do, mom). I see the innocence that I wish I still had. The innocence I hope they always keep.

Over the past couple days, my kids alone, have shown me the spirit of Christmas. For that I am grateful.