Happy New Year!!!

It is officially the new year. It's not midnight where I live but since "the evening and the morning was the first day" I ushered in the New Year at sunset. Every year we have communion service on New Years Eve. Tonight's service was powerful. I can't remember the last time that I sang like I did tonight. There is Power in the Blood!!

I was taking pictures of the Elder's ordination at the beginning of the service and wound up getting my picture taken. How funny is that. I am rarely ever in pictures since I am always the one doing the picture taking.

Well, I've already had my glass of bubbly (apple cider) and am off to bed. Goodnight and Happy New Year!!!

Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father which is in heaven. Matthew 5:16

Let your light shine in 2009!!

Catching Up

Wow, can you believe another year is coming to a close?? I thank God for being able to see it. My camera has been acting a bit strange lately and so I haven't been posting much. I think I'm going to have to buy a new one. :)

Christopher lost another tooth. I love how cute kids look when they lose their teeth.

We had a great Christmas. It was low stress and I was able to get some much needed rest. For dinner, I made a Nut Loaf (I"ll post the recipe), Garlic Mashed Potatoes, Mixed Vegetables, Rolls and Double Layer Pumpkin Cheesecake (I substituted Sweet Potato this time) and Ice Cream for dessert.

We made gingerbread men and used them as the decoration for the tree.

I am not one to make resolutions for the New Year, but I do set goals. This year I the children and I have set a goal to memorize 300 scriptures. It sounds like a lot, but when you think of it as less than one a day, it's not so bad.

Another goal is to get our house in order, have a place for everything and keep everything in it's place. Right now I'm working on decluttering the garage so there will actually be room for the things that should be there. :)

One very important goal of mine is to be obedient to the promptings of the Holy Spirit. I hear God speaking, but I struggle with doing what He is saying!! So I pray that as He knits my heart to His, I will be more inclined to obey. :)

How was your Christmas? Do you have any goals o resolutions for the New Year?

Basic Knit Hat

I am really getting into knitting the baby hats and actually prefer knitting over crocheting. I like both, but knitting is my favorite. I tried the pattern for this basic knit hat. After making it successfully trying the pattern exactly, I decided to modify it a bit to use double pointed needles. I am pleased with the results. I like the dpns because I don't have to sew up a seam when I am done.

So far over 150 hats have been turned in towards our goal of 520. Not too shabby!!

Field Trip to Whole Food and Ice Skating

Today we took a trip to Whole Foods with the homeschool group. One of the first things we saw was these gorgeous apples. We made our way through the seafood department,And even got to see a man making fresh sausage. The store was festively decorated. This gingerbread house was one of our favorites. Another thing the kids enjoyed was this lady dipping items in chocolate. It takes $500 worth of chocolate to operate the machine she was using.

When we got to the deli section, we saw a woman making sushi rolls. We each got to sample one.
After the tour came the best part-Ice skating on the roof! The kids had a blast.

And I held on for dear life!

I did manage to come off of the while for a bit and actually enjoy the feeling of the ice skating. We had a fabulous time. Ice skating is something I plan to add to our list of activities. I look forward to it when it is over 100 degrees outside!

It's Beginning To Look a Lot Like Christmas!

Yesterday the weather was a bit gloomy. It looked like it was going to rain. We got precipitation after all-snow flurries. Nothing major like up North, but exciting nonetheless for Texans who rarely see any white precipitation. When I woke up this morning, my rug had blown off the deck and had ice on it. My daughter gathered enough snow and ice from the back yard to make a little ball. My son gathered pieces of snow and ice until his little hands got so cold that he abandoned his glove on the deck and went inside:

Our Christmas tree is up and ready to be decorated. Yes it's real. I love the smell of fresh pine and I don't mind vacuuming up the needles. It makes the vacuum smell good! I bought some reefs and added bows to them to go on the outside windows. I have yet to put them up as you can see. Hopefully I will get to it by the end of this week. For some reason my picture keeps rotating, sorry you may have to tilt your head to see them.

Next on my list is finding a pattern for bags for this year. Last year I made bags for the kids and they were a real hit. This year I would like to make a different kind of bag. I found a really cute purse pattern here that I would love to make for my daughter. It's the bag that's hanging on the knob. Isn't that cute?? I was thinking of making one of those drawstring backpacks for my son. I found some free tutorials for those on the web. I better pick soon as time is running out!

I talked to the kids today about thinking of ways to help other families for the holiday season. I love to do things for my kids, but I want them to know that it is not about them but about Christ and when we truly love Christ it will show in how we treat others.

What plans do you have for the holidays? Do you have any special traditions? Any great recipes?? :-)

Thanksgiving Weekend

Our original plan was to be in the stores by 4am to catch all the great deals and Freebies, but a late night on Thursday helped to alter that plan. We were in the stores by 8 and still found some excellent deals. Old Navy had shirts for $5 and jeans for $10. Children's place had gloves, scarves and purses for $5 each!

My cousin works in the Ladie's shoe department in Dillard's and so we headed over there to see what they had and my Dad met me at the mall and gave me $200 to spend on the kids! Feels like Christmas already!!

Friday night we went to my Dad's house for fish. This is the one time of the year that I stray away from my Vegan diet. It's so weird, because each year, it tastes a little stranger. I probably won't be able to eat it much longer.

Saturday, instead of going to church, we went to the beach. My kids had never been to the beach in Pensacola and what a great way to connect with God through Nature. The weather was a bit temperamental, but we had a lovely time anyway. There were even people surfing! I guess they love a high tide.

Here is a picture of my Mom, me and my sister in-law Anika holding Addyson. My hair is all drawn up and curly except for the permed part on the ends which is straight. How funny. I need to go ahead and get the perm cut out.

A picture of my brother Justin with his family:

My brother Jason And a picture of the kids having a blast:Saturday night we continued our tradition of family bowling and had a blast.We left early Sunday morning to return to Texas. It took us 14 hours to get back with all of the holiday traffic, but by God's grace we made it back safely and with no incidences! God is Good!!

Thanksgiving Travels

Praise God for a safe trip to and from Pensacola, Florida. The travel was long, but well worth it to spend time with my lovely family. It's trips like this that make me want to be closer to them.

We left Wednesday morning around 5am and arrived around 4:30pm. The kids traveled well, only stopping for gas and restroom breaks. These are separate breaks because I just cannot do gas station bathrooms. We normally stop at a hotel or fast food restaurant for that.

When we arrived in Pensacola, my brothers were already there. It was our first time meeting Addyson. Isn't she cute??

We loved on her the whole time and can't wait to see her again.

On Thursday, we made the rounds to visit the family. My Dad and Stepmom spent the day at her sister's house and so our first stop was there. My cousin Dawn lives just across the street, so we were able to kill two birds with one stone. Here is a picture of my Dad holding my nephew Jaylen, my Stepmom holding my niece Addyson and my Stepmom's nephew Darnell holding his sister. It's the day after my Dad's birthday and so that's why he has money pinned on his shirt. :)

After a nice visit with my Dad and Stepmom and family we go to visit my Great Aunt Cornelia, affectionately known as Neeli (knee-lee). She has been sick and is on Dialysis so we took a plate to her from the other house we visited. This was the first Thanksgiving that she didn't cook, so she was very happy to have the company and meet Addyson.

Next we were off to my Grandmother's house for the big visit. This is where most of my family (on my Mom's side) congregates for Thanksgiving. This year was a bit lighter as my cousin Angela and her family did not make it down from Virginia. My cousin Edward (Angela's brother) and his family did not make it down. He just moved the Los Angeles and my cousin James and Alexis did not make it either. So the house was a bit lighter, but still full nonetheless.

I got to meet my cousin Aaron's baby, Micah. He is a ham! He is teething and nearly tried to gum my face to death. LOL He is definitely a cutie:

We ate and talked and had a great time as always. I love Thanksgiving. It's my absolute favorite holiday and I have many things to be thankful for.