Thanksgiving 2010

We went to Silver Dollar City for Thanksgiving again this year. It's become something we look forward to for months.

This time we went the day before Thanksgiving, stayed Thanksgiving day and drove home late that night.

We stopped to visit Granddad Berbert for a bit on the way there. He was of course wonderfully cheery and even had presents for the kids.





The weather the day before Thanksgiving was amazing. We didn't have to wear jackets at all, even that night. It was one of the more beautiful days I can remember, and SDC was not crowded at all - meaning no lines.



Once Oz is able to stand by Sable this picture will be complete. They'll all be taller then though and that will make me sad. But oh how lovely and wonderful they are all growing to be.




I must have told a lie cause my nose seems to have grown like Pinocchio's in this picture.









For a late lunch that day we ate in an outdoor, but covered, food area. Our table was right next to a Christmas tree, music played and there was a wonderful breeze. Jeff and I shared sandwiches and ate soup. It was one of those times that we don't have a picture of, but we'll never forget. A certain type of magic was there, as what is more than likely our whole family ate. For whatever reason, it brought an immense amount of happiness to both me and Jeff.
Later, we saw the Saloon Show, rode rides and even wrote letters to Santa.


On Thanksgiving day - we feasted. All you can eat without the preparation and clean-up. Now THAT'S something to be thankful for.



I told the kids that at Thanksgiving dinner we'd all say what we were thankful for. They all gave it a lot of advance thought, especially Rome. He had a list of things, some were ones that both Jeff and I were impressed to hear. One stuck out to me, he said he was thankful for his room. That gave me such a good feeling, to know that he had a place of his own he loved.








Oz's first Thanksgiving mashed potatoes. He wasn't a huge fan. . .yet. The way this kid eats, he'll be packing them away very soon. I've got it in my head that he'll be the tallest member of our family. The tallest and the biggest.





The weather decided that Thanksgiving Day is a day for freezing rain, snow and temperatures to match. But we had all the cold weather gear we needed and planned on spending most of the day inside anyway. We got to see the Living Nativity show and our VERY favorite Silver Dollar City show of all - A Christmas Carol. They do SUCH a wonderful production. Even Oz loved it, he watched about half before falling asleep again.

We drove home late Thanksgiving night. I couldn't help but think about all I have. It's a LOT. I've always been so blessed in my life. I've never wanted, never hungered, never been hurt or alone. I don't know exactly why I've been so blessed, but I have to assume that it's so that I can offer service and help to others. So far in my life I don't feel like I've been able to do that very much. But I know I can and try hard to serve my family, my husband, my children. I thank the Lord for that opportunity.



Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends and family, we love you more than we can say.

Free Is Good

Shutterfly is giving away 50 free Christmas cards to bloggers who, well, blog about about the promotion. I'm not one to shy away from freeness so here we go.

I took a look at the Christmas Cards they are offering and I have to say it's gonna be a tough choice. There are HUNDREDS to choose from, and I tend to be indecisive.

I'm luving:

I'm also luving:

Your Christmas letter is printed right on the card, handy dandy I think. Except that means I've got to get it together enough to actually write a letter, but I think it's pretty cool nonetheless.

As part of the promotion we're supposed to check out Shutterfly's other products, those too are MANY. A couple years ago my Mom made and sent us all a Shutterfly calendar, it turned out great. Every month we got to gaze upon family pictures instead of some random absurdly lovely place, dangling kittens, or Justin Bieber.

No, we've never owned a Justin Bieber calendar - but we did see one at Walmart the other day and I'll just say - it was rough.

Next July, when my baby turns one - YIKES, that's gonna kill me - I just might have to pop over to Shutterfly's site and have some invitations printed up. They'd surely beat the E-vites I've shamefully sent out several times.

They've got lots of other neat-o stuff too. Pretty much if you can put a picture on it, they've got it. So check em out, any company that offers such a great freebie for a simple blog post - well they're aces in my book.

Mama and Two Littles. . .

wonder where fall is, but don't mind the extra warmth.

Stories From the Street: X-Man

A little while back, Jeff had a "sit on" call at the hospital. This is where an officer stays at the hospital with someone who is under arrest but has to been seen medically before they are taken to the station. There is a special locked room in the ER for persons under arrest and also those with mental issues. Jeff was waiting around when a woman in the "mental" category, specifically the "mental prostitute" category called out to him.

Mental Prostitute: Hey Wolverine!

Jeff: nothing

Mental Prostitute: Wolverine!

Jeff: You talkin' to me?

Mental Prostitue: Yeah.

Jeff: Cool!

Later the same woman called out to another officer.

Mental Prostitute: Hey Cocoa Puffs!



When Jeff told me this story after he got home, he said:

Jeff: I got the GOOD name.

Me: Yeah you did! Why'd she call the other officer "Cocoa Puffs"?

Jeff: I don't know, but the thing is, he kind of did look like Cocoa Puffs!

Once Upon a Time. . .

There was a beautiful princess named Snow White.



She wished for a handsome prince to love.



But a wicked Queen was jealous of Snow White and had her cast out of the kingdom.



In the forest Snow White met some friendly dwarfs.




They became fast friends.




The Queen wanted to get rid of Snow White forever so she used a magic spell to make a poison apple.



Then the Queen tricked Snow White into eating the apple.





Snow White fell into a deep sleep. Luckily the Prince found Snow White and kissed her. She awoke and they fell in love.



After all the drama Snow White and the dwarfs went begging for some candy.





The Queen and her apple tagged along. Don't worry, the Prince was there to make sure the Queen didn't try any more shenanigans.

He even got them all pizza when they were done.



They all returned to the humble cottage to gorge on candy.





And they all lived happily ever after.



The End.

The Cast:

Snow White - Sable
The Prince - Jeff
The Queen - Aby
Doc - Capri
Dopey - Rome
Poison Apple - Oz

Study this picture.

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!