Category: Thankful For

Cookie Exchange 2011

Tis the season for get togethers in all shapes and forms. Last weekend I had a relaxing, fun time with my Mom, Sister, Aunts and Cousins, Sister in Law and her Mom and Daughter too. What a nice time we had, it was our annual Christmas Cookie Exchange.

We each made a 6 dozen cookies and other goodies to share, see my recent article at Social Moms on how to host a Cookie Exchange.

My cousin made enchiladas while my Mom whipped up chips, delicious salsa, and the best guacamole. We had conversation, yummy food and door prizes! I won a really nice apron, I was so happy – I never win anything!

Extended list of goodies:

Carmelitas

Homemade Twinkies

Buck Eye Balls

Black and White Cookies

Peanut Butter bars with Chocolate Granache

White Chocolate Cherry Shortbread Cookies

Chocolate Pretzels

Pizzelles

Blondies

Chocolate Cookies

Homemade Fudge

Peanut Butter Blossoms

Matzo Toffee

No Bake Cookies

Rocky Road Bars

I highly recommended doing this with the ladies in your life! It is the perfect break from all the hustle and bustle.

All the beautiful women who participated, love you ladies!

December 16, 2011
Giving Thanks

Thanksgiving – Giving thanks to the Creator, our Lord. Happy Thanksgiving!

¹ Give praise to the LORD, proclaim his name;
make known among the nations what he has done.
² Sing to him, sing praise to him;
tell of all his wonderful acts.
³ Glory in his holy name;
let the hearts of those who seek the LORD rejoice.
⁴ Look to the LORD and his strength;
seek his face always.

⁵ Remember the wonders he has done,
his miracles, and the judgments he pronounced,
⁶ you his servants, the descendants of Abraham,
his chosen ones, the children of Jacob.
⁷ He is the LORD our God;
his judgments are in all the earth.

⁸ He remembers his covenant forever,
the promise he made, for a thousand generations,
⁹ the covenant he made with Abraham,
the oath he swore to Isaac.
¹⁰ He confirmed it to Jacob as a decree,
to Israel as an everlasting covenant:
¹¹ “To you I will give the land of Canaan
as the portion you will inherit.”

November 24, 2011
First Time Family Pictures

We finally did it! Thanks to Facebook, I recently saw some gorgeous photos of families I know. I just had to get ours done too. We have never had professional pictures done, now I couldn’t resist. I wanted some nice pics of the whole family. So we did it!

I contacted the photographer who took the pictures of the other families, her name is Lisa with LiLo Photography. She set us up to meet at a local Museum that has a working farm, great place to snap pics.

Can I just tell you that I LOVE the pictures? I was so nervous because honestly I didn’t know if my boys would cooperate. My 2 little ones did not cooperate after about 15 minutes, lol. I was unsure if they gave her any good shots.

Well folks that is what Professionals are for! Of course she captured perfect pics of them. So thankful!!

If you are in the Denver area, I highly recommend her. She has an amazing portfolio that you can view online at Facebook (please “Like” her, you will love the pics she posts) or on her website.

She made us feel comfortable right away. She introduced herself to the boys and made them feel special, thank you for that Lisa!

November 8, 2011
And Now for Some Music

This is my 200th post! Thought I would share some tunes with you! After all, who doesn’t love music?

I love listening to music. I usually listen to my own playlist on YouTube or KLove, which has really good contemporary worship and praise music. Some of my current favorite songs:

Fall Apart, Josh Wilson

I’m With You, Amy Grant and Nichole Nordeman
This is a beautiful song written from Ruth and Naomi’s point of view, love this…

Jesus Saves, Jeremy Camp
This video makes me cry every time! So thrilling to see all the testimonies to God’s unfailing love, grace and mercy!

October 24, 2011
Wordless Wednesday

October 12, 2011
Brothers

Having 3 boys, I really love this quote, it is true you know!

October 6, 2011
Our Classroom for a Perfect Autumn Day

A couple of Fridays ago we took class outdoors, what a breath of fresh air! It was amazing, fantastic, refreshing and down right FUN!

We love going to Hudson Gardens, several acres of God’s beautiful creation! We searched for leaves, watched ducks and geese, chased butterflies and bugs, tumbled in the grass and climbed a rock cave, we even did some bird watching.

Since we are now into to the Fall, we were thrilled to see the …

Hay Maze!

and…

Pumpkin Patch!

We also checked out a Leaf Explorer Pack from the Office, we learned all about leaves and trees. There were a ton of fun activities and surprises in the pack.

We also took along this, (thanks Scribbit!):

Thank you God for the Best classroom we could ever ask for!

October 2, 2011
Turning 8

My oldest turned 8 this past week and we did things a little different this year. Usually we do the whole party thing, but I thought it was time for some more meaningful time with people he loves. I asked him if he wanted to have each Grandma take him on a date and then we would let him choose a friend to take to our local amusement center.

He loved the idea and so I let our families know the scoop, they were game!

The night before his birthday my Mom picked him up and they headed straight for the “toy aisle”. Preston picked out his favorite toy – building bricks. He picked out a Star Wars set and a Transformer set. Then they headed to his favorite restaurant of all time, Country Buffet. My boy loves steak, potatoes and salad, he is in heaven there. Next they headed to the shoe store for some new tennies and for one more special treat, they went to her house and built one of his new sets together. He had a fantastic time!

The following morning was his birthday so I made him smiley face pancakes complete with M & M eyes.

After breakfast we headed to his favorite playground for some serious fun.

That evening we had Bible Study and so we took tie-dye cupcakes to share with friends.

Happy 8th Birthday My Dear Boy!

August 22, 2011
Stopping to Smell the Roses, Literally!

I love flowers, I love gardening. Before I had kids, most of my time was spent gardening. I researched, planned, plotted and planted. Fast forward 8 years and I have no time to garden, I figure I will be able to do it again once my kids are a little older.

Until then, I get my flower fix at my local public garden, called Hudson Gardens. 30 acres of God’s beauty in nature. It’s almost heaven!

I wandered through the Rose Garden and snapped some shots of my favorites.

Other Flowers:

Hope you enjoyed!

August 12, 2011
4th of July Parade

The 4th of July is one of my favorite holidays. Not only because of all the fun and food involved, but because of the significance of celebrating what America was founded on, the principles, the ideas.

I am thankful to God that we have the freedom that some do not. I am thankful that we can openly worship Him, that we can read the Bible, that we can attend church without persecution from government. This is one major principle America is built on, inspired by God. So we celebrate!

The 4th has become a day of traditions for American families. Hot dogs, watermelon, lemonade, BBQ, ice cream, fireworks, pancake breakfasts and parades.

One tradition that I love is the 4th of July parade. All across America kids get to decorate their bikes and wagons and parade around the neighborhood. It is usually made complete with flag waving adults and shiny, bright Fire Engines.

We participated in one this year again and it was a blast! After the parade the neighborhood gathers with the Firefighters and everyone enjoys ice cream and conversation.

Happy Birthday America! God Bless You!

July 18, 2011