Mason, Shelby, and Abby at Cheekwood before I realized you're not supposed to take pictures in there. OPPS!

Wow! It's been over a week since I posted! How slack is that??

We have had a pretty busy week. All our activities are back in full swing so we were hopping this week.

Shelby started piano lessons on Tuesday so now we are going to W O Smith three times a week.

Let's see Thursday the 14th we went to Cheekwood with our buddies. It was really cool and the art exhibits were interesting to the kids. Abby's favorite was the Faberge exhibit. Shelby's favorite was the DICHOS: WORDS TO LIVE, LOVE, AND LAUGH BY IN LATIN AMERICA exhibit.

It was a beautiful day to be out and the kids got to have a snowball fight with the leftovers from the week before.

Monday we went down to CFA~Smyrna and then went to the Y to swim. It was nice to have Mike home and able to go with us since it was a holiday.

Oh, and confession time~I forgot to take Abby to her Musical Beginnings class last Thursday. We were having such a good time and all (see above:) that I just plain forgot. It was the first class after the Christmas break so I was out of my routine. That's my story and I'm stickin' to it.

I hate it when I do that though. It makes me feel old.

I'm excited about the week starting and glad to be having friends over on Tuesday.

Hope Monday is kind to y'all.

Peace out.

I'm tired.

I cooked today for supper at church tonight and now I'm tired.

Just so we keep it real around here:
~our Christmas tree is still sitting on our patio in the stand. If I wasn't so tired I'd take a picture. It's kind of comical.

~we have had to plunge our kitchen sink for the past few days because it hates to drain now.


Going on a field trip tomorrow.

Woot-woot and Nite-nite!!

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Yesterday was a pretty typical Monday.

School, catching up on house work, and other stuff.

Before I took Shelby to practice for Select Singers, we went by The Krogers and picked up some Primroses and took them to an older couple in our church.

He has been battling prostate cancer and has been ill from the effects of chemo since Wednesday. He is feeling much better than he was and we are thankful for that.

We went to try and bring a little sunshine to their day but we came away brightened ourselves. They gave the girls candy and let them pick up a grocery bag full of pine cones.

The girls and I didn't get home from practice til almost 7. Thankfully, I had already put a roast in the crock pot and set the table before we left because we were all starving when we walked in the door

You know it's cold when Miss Kitty camps out by the heater ALL day long.

Today was tutorial day for the girls. Mike and I had our date at the thrift stores and we got 4 more CDs. This time they were 50 cent!! We picked up this one and a few others. We have listened to this before but it is so good. It is a story about Beethoven and has lots of good information on it. We also found a Casting Crowns Christmas CD~brand new.

Abby decided to eat some blackberries and make a science project in the process. She got two bowls and mushed up the berries in both. Then, she out sugar in one and salt in the other. She conducted taste tests and believe it on not the one with salt wasn't bad at all. In fact, it tasted like salad dressing~kinda like a vinaigrette.

We had tilapia for supper and I tried my hand at mashed cauliflower. It turned out pretty good and 2 of my kids gobbled it up. The only thing I think I'll change is the recipe said you could throw a couple spoonfuls of instant potatoes in them for texture. I'd like to see how they would turn out and taste using them.

The weather forecast says it's supposed to be near 40 tomorrow and Thursday it's may get to 50. I think we may plan some outside time if it gets that warm.

Church today. Taught the 4 & 5 yr olds with Mike.

Lunch at Blue Coast Burrito. Yummy!

This has been the most relaxing weekend in a long time.

Loved it. Tomorrow back to reality.

The Great Smokey Mtns. in Oct.

This is morning I got up to blowing snow. It was a beautiful backdrop to my quiet time.

It is cold here so we have been staying in. We have had a nice, relaxing day.

I have gotten all the laundry done. Wonderful.

Mike and I will be teaching the Preschool Class tomorrow at church. They always crack me up.

It's going to be 11 degrees tonight but will feel like 0.

Stay warm, my friends.

Grocery shopping today.

Morning date with my sweet husband:)

Go to the Y then breakfast then 4 different stores for groceries.

Doesn't sound very exciting, does it?

With my husband it was fun.

Any routine thing is better when I have him with me.

I am thankful he likes to be with me too.

Even when we just shop for groceries.

Have a great weekend.

Today we were supposed to get snow. We got so little it was immeasurable.

Stink. I wanted at least a few inches.

Anyway, we hung out at home because even though we weren't "snowed in" we didn't need to go anywhere. The girls and I made a cake. They made the cake part and I made the icing.

Trevor was off work today so we got to spend time with him. He did run to the library for a couple of books I had on hold. Have I ever mentioned how nice it is to have a kid that drives:)

We did some learning and some reading, listened to music, played some games, cleaned a bedroom, vacuumed, did laundry, did dishes, got on the computer, played in the smidgen of snow, filled out job applications, cooked, ate, laughed, talked on the phone, watched some TV, took showers, took a nap.(These are not in order by the way;)

GOSH!! I didn't realize we had done so much until I started writing it out! No wonder I'm tired:)
Goodnight!

Jessie and Kaiya when they were out here for Trevor's graduation.

Not a whole lot going on here. Just a lot of talk about snow. If you want to read a funny post about it go here. She cracks me up!

My friend Eric posted something worth watching on his blog here. It is worth watching.

The girls and I did a full day of school and I got a lot of cleaning done. It feels so good to get things back in order.

The kids and I went to church tonight and wouldn't you know the meal was pork roast:) At least we didn't have the same sides as last night. They made mashed potatoes and green beans. It was so delish!

Trevor worked all day and got home just in time to leave for praise band practice.

I am really hoping we get some snow but I will believe it when I see it.

Trevor and his last bass teacher, Jerry at Music Camp

The girls went back to their enrichment class today. They were excited about going to see their friends but WERE NOT excited to get out of their warm beds on this frigid morning.

Mike and I went to breakfast at Chickfila. After a small altercation that involved tears on my part and an I'm sorry on both our parts we had a good morning. We went to Goodwill where someone had gotten rid of some of their homeschool books. SCORE! I love to find things like that.

Then, we went to a new thrift store and they had CD's for a $1. SCORE AGAIN!
We got two Disney CD'sand Mercy Me Coming Up To Breathe (still in the wrapper!)

So three CD's for $3.00. Not bad!

My sister came over this afternoon and we visited for a little while. I made Pork Roast and Cheesy Pasta Salad with Veggies for supper. Just hanging out at home again tonight trying to stay warm.

It may snow here tomorrow or Thursday and I say BRING IT!!!! (I just tought of something~if it snows I have to change my menu again AND I will have to cook tomorrow night~Dang!) BUT STILL~BRING IT!!!!!!!!!

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We had a little visitor today and it was fun. His Mommy and Daddy had to work today and his babysitter needed the day off so we got to watch him. He was a hoot.

Him and Abby raced Barbie cars down the hall. Then, they played with our Little People arsenal:) Abby tired him out so much he took a 2 hour nap on the couch and then we took him back to his Daddy.

We only did a little bit of school since we had a little man to entertain. Math is always on the agenda.

At the end of yesterday's post I wrote out a menu for the week and I have already deviated from the list! Instead of Pork Roast and Veggies we are having Tortilla Soup and grilled cheeses. It has just been a soup kind of day. So tomorrow we will have the Pork Roast if I don't change my mind again.

We are staying in tonight and playing a couple of games we got for Christmas. I love nights like these.

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My parents came out on Christmas Day and we got to spend some
fun times together. We went to the movies and I sat between Mike and my Mom. It's been a long time since I have been to the movies with my parents:)

Church today and it was COLD!

Mike and I were greeters and we stayed all bundled up until we went up for Sunday School.

We also had the 4 & 5 yr olds for Children's Church. They are such a hoot. We had them building houses with blocks and playing like they were asleep when their parents came to get them.

They will tell you anything and everything. One of the little boys said that they went to see the new Chipmunk movie. He said that his Dad's favorite part is where Alvin passed gas on someone's head. He told us that and just laughed and laughed. Funny stuff!! Although I shudder to think what my kids told others at this age:)

We went to lunch with friends at our favorite chicken tender place.
We came home got into our pjs (this is our Sunday afternoon ritual) and I took a great nap. Well, except when I was fussing at Mike and the kids to be more quiet. They were watching Stargate Atlantis. I don't really like the show but they do so when they watch it I take a nap. In fact, the girls like it so much that Mike got them t-shirts for Christmas.
Trevor got home this evening and we have spent time catching up with him.

I'm not looking forward to doing laundry this week because the garage is so cold it makes me loose my breath. Maybe I could declare it "Official No Laundry Week".

Anyone else game?

One thing I want to add to my blog is Menu Planning. This is a challenge for me and I am hoping to get it going again.

Mon- Pork Roast and veggies
Tues- Spaghetti and fresh bread
Wed- eat at church(the kids and I) beans and greens for Mike
Thurs-Chicken and Rice
Fri- Homemade Pizza
Sat-Sliders and Potatoes
Sun- Eat out

Hope you have a great Monday!

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This was right before midnight when everyone was rushing to get outside.

New Year's Eve we went over to our friends Marvin and Sonia's house. This is our 3rd annual NYE party over at their house. Last year and the year before were great but they just keep getting better and better.

Everyone was outside making some noise.
(These two pics were the only ones I got before my camera battery died)

We got there about 7pm on NYE and we didn't leave until last night around 9:30.

We played Apples to Apples a bazillion times and it was soooo much fun. I have to say it is now my favorite game.

We all went straight to bed last night when we got home. We were exhausted from partying.

Today we got up late and breakfast~it's Pancake Saturday, of course:)

It is really, really cold here so other than a trip to the grocery store for some necessities (read~toilet paper:) We have been hunkered down at home cleaning, eating, and watching movies.

Trevor has been in Gatlinburg for the last three days with a friend's church youth group and he is having a great time. He comes back tomorrow.

This year I have decided that this will be more like my journal. Feel free to read or not:) I just want to have a record of our lives and this blog serves that purpose.