My Mizzou Girls

Our girls paricipate in competition dance and they recently had their first performance. This picture is from their dance "Stray Cat Strut".

Failure

M-I-Z BEAT-K-U

WAHOOOOOOOOOOOO! Go Tigers! I have been a Tigers fan since I was ten years old and I can't remember near as much excitement in Tiger history in quite some time. For those of you who don't follow the MU Football team, last night was a HUGE game. Not only did we play KU, our biggest rival, but we were also playing to move onto the Big 12 Championship game and to most likely be ranked number 1 in the country. I still can't get used to saying Mizzou and number 1 in the country in the same sentence. It is so exciting! The fam. is still in Colorado and last night we were all around the TVs in pure anticipation and nervousness. We had goose bumps, high fives, screaming, yelling, cheering, running around the room, falling to the floor, and everything else you can imagine. Cheering on the Tigers is a family tradition. I can still remember back to the Bob Stull days, a former coach, when the football team was pretty much horrible. A-B, my sis, and I would go to the games and make forts with our blankets under the bleacher seats because there was no excitement in the game. What a long way the Tigers have come! Cheers to Coach Pinkel, the staff, and the talented players!

First Turkey Dinner

We are currently in Colorado with my family celebrating Thanksgiving and enjoying the slopes! Beings that my parents aren't big on cooking, my sister's boyfriend and I took on the task. This is the first ever Thanksgiving dinner I have been a main contributor of! TW cleaned the turkey the night before and then BL prepped the turkey following a recipe that we have found on the Food Network's website. Thanksgiving morning we relaxed and some of us did some skiing. Our goal was to have the turkey in the oven by 2 so we could eat at 6:30pm. Well, 6:30 turned to 7:00 and then 7:00 turned to 7:30 and well you get the idea. We didn't end up eating until 8:30pm, but it was delicious. It was the most moist turkey I have ever had! The problem was that the door to the oven was not shutting all of the way causing the turkey to cook slower. All is well that ends well, and that was exactly what happened. It was tasty! I have some pretty funny pictures of the meal prep that I will have to post when we get home. I hope you each had a wonderful Thanksgiving!

Crappy Situation

So, I haven't blogged in over a week and not two in one day. Whew!

This child never ceases to amaze me. I walk in to Bubby's room to get him up this morning and what do I find? Poop. I find a pile of poop. Smack dab in the middle of his crib. He took his diaper off and then proceeded to drop a load in the middle of his bed. That's not it. Then I look up to notice he has smeared some of the poop onto the wall. I now pause and ask myself, like the hundredth time, would the girls have ever done this...NO, NO, NO, HECK NO is what I tell myself. After cleaning him up I roll the crib out to wipe it down and realize that he has also peed all over the wall. Now, do I think he did this just to make me mad? NO. Does it still gross me out and make me nauseous? YES! Yet another reason why boys and girls are different. Hope your morning isn't as crappy as mine. :)

The Kids and I Were Bored...

So, we put together the following for your enjoyment!

http://www.elfyourself.com/?id=9551793558

When I Say "I am a Christian"

Today our pastor read this poem by Carole Wimmer and I so connected with it. There are times in our society today when Christians get misread because of their faith. For me being a Christian is about saying I can't do this life on my own. I can't face the challenges of my day without God! It is never about pride or self-righteousness, it is about laying my life before him to give me the strength I need. I hope each one of you connects or learns something from this poem. It gave me a whole new perspective.

When I say, “I am a Christian”
When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not shouting “I've been saved!” I’m whispering, “I get lost! That's why I chose this way”

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I don’t speak with human pride, I’m confessing that I stumble - needing God to be my guide

When I say, “I am a Christian” I’m not trying to be strong I’m professing that I’m weak and pray for strength to carry on

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not bragging of success I’m admitting that I've failed and cannot ever pay the debt

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I don't think I know it all I submit to my confusion asking humbly to be taught

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I’m not claiming to be perfect My flaws are far too visible but God believes I’m worth it

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I still feel the sting of pain I have my share of heartache which is why I seek His name

When I say, “I am a Christian,” I do not wish to judge I have no authority -- I only know I’m loved

Family Movie Nights

We have a new tradition we have started with our family. Every Sunday night we have "movie night" where we all cuddle up on the living room floor and watch a movie together. It has been something we look forward to every week. TW has been finding us some great movies that are values based. The first one he just kind of fell upon at the movie store. "Facing the Giants" was our first family movie night premiere. Great movie! A movie about a football coach and what he has to overcome to turn the team around. The next week we watched "The Sin Eater." AK had fallen asleep early, thankfully, and AA made it through. Another good movie, but scary for younger kids. It ends up being good and warm, but has scary parts. Then we started the Love series based on the books by Janette Oke. It is a series of four movies and we just found out that the fifth one comes out in December...YES! "Love Comes Softly", "Loves Enduring Promise", "Loves Long Journey", "Loves Abiding Joy". The new one that is released on Dec. 4th is "Loves Unending Legacy." We are patiently awaiting its release. :) Most of these movies are through Fox Faith, christian and family movies everyone can enjoy. Last night we watched one of my favorites thus far..."The Ultimate Gift." WOW! Great movie! It really puts life in perspective. The soundtrack is awesome as well. Check out the website http://www.theultimategift.com/ I hope you check out one, a couple, or all of these movies. They have sparked great conversation for us and the kids. It is so nice to know that there are still appropriate movies that promote the goodness of life out there in this ever increasing negative world.

November...already?

I can't believe it is already November. September through the end of December is my favorite time of the year. In fact after Christmas I kind of go through this slight funk knowing that the time I cherish has just ended and now life goes on for nine more months before I get that season again. For me to realize that it is already November makes me want to stop and live every moment. Slow down! I keep thinking to myself. Aren't the trees so beautiful? Here in our town they are just gorgeous right now. What a great gift from God...the beauty of his creation. I try to take in every color of every tree knowing that in a couple of weeks those leaves will be gone. The bright red is my favorite...what is yours? I will leave you with some pictures of my adorable, I'm not biased at all, kiddos last night for Halloween! AA was a Queen, AK was Dorothy, and JD was a Pirate...and no we didn't prompt him to make that face...and yes his nose and forehead are scraped up. He fell in the driveway while we were playing outside. He is all boy! Never a dull moment!