Who's 2?

A whole month off from blogging and what better time to jump back in than a special birthday boy turning TWO? We celebrated with a small, family-only party at home. Eli loves Elmo (and cars and Thomas the Train and plenty of other things....so I picked something and ran with it) so Elmo it was. I made the cupcakes from scratch and of course, all of our boys LOVE fruit, so I knew that was non-negotiable. :)

Joeie would try to light his candle, and as soon as he did, Eli would blow it out before we could sing to him. We tried about 5 times before he figured out to wait. His little face got so shy, which is TOTALLY not like him. :)

Eli was surrounded by those who love him the most -- grandparents, brothers, aunts & uncles.

His favorite gift was probably the simplest - a few Hot Wheel cars from Granny & Papaw

Joeie and I are truly blessed with such a loving family and healthy children. I praise God for the 24 months we've had with Eli and hope for many, many more.

Want to come back soon to do an in-depth update on all the boys are doing -- likes, dislikes, milestones, etc. :)

when you're too tired to blog with words...

you just post the cutest picture known to man...

january

Oh, hi, severely-abandoned blog. Let's see...what have we been up to?

a goose egg or few

mommy turned 30

jumped in a few rain puddles

dibble-dabbled in oodles of mischief (Eli, but of course)

we did a little flying

cut alotta fro

celebrated mi madre turning 53 - the 3 of us compiled a list of 53 reasons we love her!

spent a crazy amount of time intrigued by popcorn kernels

and succumbed to the ever-lurking asthma symptoms

So, there ya go, Blogger. An update on our lives through the lens of my iPhone. One day, I'll get better about dusting off the trusty ole Canon and taking more "real" pics. And maybe one day, I'll get back to blogging daily. {sigh}

2011 was good to me.

Here I sit, a week in to 2012, still blown away at the goodness and grace of Jesus Christ in 2011. It absolutely blew my mind! I established some of the most fantastic friendships in my team at work (and miss them to this day!). Cuttin' Corners was formed in the early part of the year and I began helping others learn how to save money. Truly loving the content of what I was teaching gave me a wonderful outlet to meet some fantastic ladies. My photography appointments kept coming and coming and coming this year. Our kids turned 9, 5 (Kindergarten!!), and 1 and continue to be happy and relatively healthy. I experienced an almost out-of-body worship experience with my favorite group, Hillsong. And to top it all off, God answered a 6-year prayer of mine: I was able to quit my job. As icing on the cake, Eli has not had to have one single breathing treatment since he's been home with me every day. Although there are a few days that are quite the opposite of a bed of roses, God's blessings are just way too monumental to focus on the thorns instead of the beautiful flowers. I stand with a mountaintop view with constant praise but my prayer is to be full of praise even when the storms come. The Bible promises that they will.

Quite honestly, I suck as a wife & mom some days. My family is loving and so forgiving - resilient despite my insufficiencies. I am abundantly thankful, hopeful for the 2012 horizon.

Christmas 2011

Our Christmas didn't include traveling or gobs of extended family. We stayed put and made the most of each other. Just the 5 of us. We enjoyed old traditions and made a couple of new ones. I'm always trying to find ways to make Christmas fresh & unique to our family. I am intentional about making memories that my children will reflect on with warm thoughts.

As we have for the past several years, we make it a huge point to keep the real reason in the forefront. Birthday cake for Our King is always part of the Christmas morning breakfast. Cake for breakfast, you say? Yep!

We started a new tradition of our boys all going shopping separately for one another and then doing all the wrapping independently. Christmas Eve is when they open gifts from one another. Nothing extravagant; just Dollar Tree for now. Perhaps when they get older and make their own money, they will branch out. The goal was to get their minds off themselves and thinking about how to serve their brothers through gifting.

Eli got both of his big brothers Silly Putty. Boo get Wesley a glow stick and Eli a wooden truck. Wesley got Boo a bag of Ring Pops and Eli some squeezable bath toys. It was a joy to watch our boys interact so enthusiastically with one another. So fun!

After the boys opened their gifts from one another, it was time to prepare for Santa's arrival and drift off into dreamland. We started the 3-gift rule a few years ago, and it has been one of the best decisions we've made in regards to the holidays. Not much stress and running around...not to mention, financially. Our boys have grown up with this and expect it. It is engrained in their minds -- Jesus got 3 gifts. YOU also get 3 gifts. (Not counting gifts from family, of course.)

{Clearly, matching Christmas PJs are not a priority for me. Oops.}

I think Wesley's favorite gift was the Diary of a Wimpy Kid paraphernalia.

Boo's was his iPod Touch!

And, well, Eli is easy to please. Thomas the Train plastic figures.

After our leisurely family morning, we headed to the Tate's home to spend the day with family and great eats.

Eli and I share the same sentiments about Christmas; sad that it's over.

an Instagram Christmas

a new tradition begins...

I've never been one to hop on the gingerbread-house-makin' wagon. Pumpkin and gingerbread are just two things that don't appeal to me, despite the widespread popularity. Instead, this year we began the tradition of decorating our own Christmas trees. The boys had a blast slinging sprinkles & Runts everywhere and somewhere along the way most of the Skittles ended up in bellies. That's ok, though. A fabulously fun time was had by all! Well, maybe not Eli...he got the short end of the deal & just walked around munching on plain waffle cones.

And finally, here are are creations...

Mom's Annual Brunch 2011

{my last post generated a big response. thank you so much for the encouragement, whether through blog or Facebook.}

One of my favorite traditions of the Christmas season is the brunch my mom always hosts. It is definitely a great time of spectacular food and magnificent laughter as we steal gifts from each other during Dirty Santa.

a few pictures of food & decorations

We enjoyed great eats...

We listened to that familiar yet awe-inspiring scripture...

We laughed...

And, of course, we took photos...

Merry Christmas to you and yours! I cannot wait to see the joy on my children's faces!!