Thanksgiving 2010

We're blessed to have family only 2 hours away. This year we were so glad to be able to spend Thanksgiving with Waylon's cousin Amber (and Zach and Bella), in Louisville. The kids were looking forward to it for a while. I don't want to forget the random questions that Ryan asked about Amber before we went to her house....
- Can Amber talk?
- Does her cat talk?
- Does Amber have a dinosaur potty?
- What color is she?
We stayed up way too late Wednesday night playing Apples to Apples. I woke up to the smell of the meat cooking outside in the smoker. Waylon and the kids were all up, and I feel back asleep, and slept in late for the first time in years. We cooked some awesome food - a little different from the traditional Thanksgiving meal at Granny's house - but it was really good. I've discovered that weight watchers has some awesome recipes that don't taste like cardboard after all....I'm gonna try to add some of them to our menus now.
After all the fun, we left, going the back home a way that Waylon had his heart set on. He was wanting to take the backroads all the way back to Cincinnati - but a storm ruined our plans and we headed for the interstate as soon as we could.
So that was our Thanksgiving - fun times, fellowship, and some great food! I'm so enjoying this relaxing 4 day weekend!!

Breaking In

The other night was cold and rainy. We had just gotten home. In my usual frenzied state of mind, I hurried to get the kids out of the car, and Waylon handed me the keys while he grabbed the groceries. I threw them down in Ryan's car seat, locked the door, and we headed toward the house. When we got to the door, Waylon said..."Where are the keys?" "You have them." I answered.

I walked back to the car with a horrible gut feeling...and yes...I realized that I had locked the keys in the car. What do you do late at night with no keys to your apartment? Fortunately, we didn't have to call anyone or have to stay outside all night. We thought we'd give the balcony door a try. I had forgotten to lock the balcony (do you notice a trend here?), so Waylon lifted me up over his head, I grabbed onto the bars and somehow was able to climb over the balcony.

So I'm glad we got locked out. Waylon and I had a great laugh, and made a fun memory.

Some cute quotes

Ryan and I were sitting in the van waiting on Waylon and Nathan to come out of a store. Someone in the parking lot was yelling loudly. I asked "Who is that?!" Ryan answered me..."I think its a tee-ager."

Nathan was picking out a coloring book last night at the dollar store. He picked one out and said "Look! This one has super heroes, and superman...this book is SUPER-COOL!"

Nathan's Biggest Interest

Nathan is getting to be pretty vehicle and heavy machinery savvy. He loves riding down the road and going for walks in Cincinnati, because there is always something to see that is out of the ordinary. We were watching a video that had bulldozers and stuff like that in it, and I asked him about one of them..."Is that a bulldozer?" "No, Mommy. It's a front-end loader!" Well duh, what was I thinking!? :) I learned something new from my 3 year old. I'm still not sure what an excavator is....But he loves those too.

My Tenderhearted Little Guy

Ryan is so sweet. He cares about how people feel, even at such a young age. If Nathan gets hurt, he give him a hug, or if Nathan is upset, Ryan asks, "Happened, Nathan?" The other day, Ryan was sitting in my lap, and we were watching cartoons. Something sad happened to a little girl on there, and she was crying while she told her friends her sad story. I looked down at his face, and he was watching intently with tears in his eyes. It was funny, but I've never seen someone as young as two be so empathetic! Nathan and Ryan are such blessings! Our family needs the sweetness of Ryan and the enthusiasm of Nathan. The Lord never ceases to amaze me.

Happy Father's Day!!!

My husband is not only a wonderful husband. He is an amazing father. He loves his children, and is bringing them up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. He is loving, kind, patient, and wise. No matter how busy he is, he makes time for them....playing with them, teaching and training them, and just being there, to give a hug whenever they need to be held.

I have a hubby who loves me, and is a great leader of our home. I've seen him stay faithful to the Lord, even when circumstances were very hard. Just observing his faithfulness to the Lord encourages me, and I know it will make a difference is our children's lives!

I'm very thankful for my Dad. He's been my Dad since I was five years old, and I've been blessed. He always patiently answered the million questions I've had. When I worked with him at his Texaco station, I saw him tell many people about the Lord. He never hesitated or seemed nervous...it was just an overflow of joy in his heart that had to come out. He always treated my mom with love and kindness, and was a great dad to my brother and me. I don't remember hearing him raise his voice one time. I'll never forget the influence he had on me when I was growing up.

I can't leave out my father-in-law! Before I was married, I heard tons of in-law jokes, but they're so not true! ;) I love being around my in-laws! We always look forward to visits down south, and for one of his Dad's trucks breaking down in Cincinnati.  (kidding, kidding! We've enjoyed the visits though!) Anyone who knows him, knows he is crazy about his children and grandchildren.  He's the type of person who is very caring, and if you need something, will do everything he can to help you. He's been a blessing to us so many times. We all love him and appreciate him.

 Happy Father's Day!

The Lord's Provision

I'm so amazed how the Lord has provided for us, I just have to share it. Due to some unexpected expenses this year, money has been really tight.....the past two months especially. Vehicle repairs, car payments, and trip after trip to MS/TN had wiped out all of our savings, plus some. Last week I was worried about having money to buy any food the next couple of weeks.

Well, I rarely get to do diaper studies for P&G...maybe once every 3 or 4 months, but last week I had emails for two studies this week. I went to one Wednesday, but didn't get chosen. They still gave me a $30 gift card for showing up. Today I went for my second study. When I went to pick up my diapers the lady said my name wasn't on the list, there was a mistake. Next week is when I am supposed to do one. She paid me the full amount anyway! And I have another study next week for pull-ups...for both boys! :) That's 4 studies in 2 weeks!

Last night I told Waylon that I didn't have any lunch for him tomorrow. I could have made something for him from scratch, but he said he wanted to just go without anything and pray for his food today, and he'd call me at 3 and tell me what he ate. I don't think I would have done that, but he called at 3 and told me he had LaRosa's for lunch. Some ladies he worked with had ordered from there, and had some leftovers and asked him if he wanted them. There were plenty of leftovers too. LaRosa's is much better than my turkey sandwiches or hotdogs! That was so neat see.

Waylon applied for an office job within the company he's working for a few weeks ago. We've been praying he would get it, since it's a 40/hr week job instead of 50/hr a week, and today we found out that he did! He said that would have to make $xx an hour to make the equivalent of what he is making now with 50 hours, and we found out that he will, plus a little extra!

Something else....MCA's homecoming was at the same time as RU tonight. After RU, Waylon went over to the fellowship hall to tell the leader of the teen department that one of the teens that had been out of church for a few months was at RU tonight. While he was there, Bro. Chad asked him if he wanted any leftover spaghetti. He gave Waylon a big tub of spaghetti sauce and meatballs, noodles, bread sticks, salad, and cookies. I couldn't believe it. It's enough for three or four meals for the four of us.

It was amazing to see the Lord do all of that today, and work out the details so we knew it was from him. It was like he was waiting until this day to remind us, I love you...Just trust me.