catching up

i've thought about writing this post all week, but every time i start to sit down, i remember something else that needs to be done.

so, finally, as i ignore whatever else needs to be done, here is a quick recap of our Thanksgiving:

we all gathered at my parent's house (where we always gather), and were there for most of the day.

we had a wonderful time, full of way too much yummy food, time with lots of family, football watching, football playing, cider drinking, game playing, and on, and on.....

oh yeah, there were also some naps going on.....

what is it about Thanksgiving and naps?

little man also took a long nap upstairs (which gave bobby and me some great grown-up time!), and then woke up happy as can be.....


we played "apple to apples" for the first time, and even though the guys pretend to not like playing games, we know that secretly, they had a blast.

uncle JaiSun won, so he was in a great mood, and decided he would tickle little man.....

.....which wore him out and made him ready for bed.

so, we came straight home, and to bed he went!

happy thanksgiving!

well, Caleb is back to his normal, happy, bubbly, all-over-the-place self.

after EIGHT days of a very fussy, unhappy little man, i find that i am even more grateful for my little guy's sweet spirit.

that's something else to add to my list of things to be thankful for!

in other news.....

i've been busy cooking today in preparation of turkey day. i made two sweet potato casseroles, two corn casseroles, and a fudge pie.

in my opinion, any vegetable can be delicious if you add some cheese to it and make it into a casserole.

yes, even squash.

however, i do not share the opinion that vegetables can be made delicious when made into a dessert.

no, i will not be eating pumpkin pie.

or pecan pie.

gross.

that is why i made a fudge pie.

you can't go wrong with chocolate.

(in my opinion.)

you also can't go wrong with cinnamon cookies.....

has anyone tried these? they are cinnabon cookies from pillsbury. the easy break-&-bake ones.

so yummy!

even little man thinks so.....

i am adding cinnabon cookies to my thankful list!

in all seriousness, i do have so much to be thankful for.

the scripture that's been posted at the bottom of this blog is one that i memorized in my bible study a while back, and it's just really stuck with me in this particular season of life i'm in.

"Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you."

1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

in ALL circumstances. that's something i find i need reminding of almost daily.

i hope that everyone has a wonderful, blessed, joyous day, and that you have much to be thankful for!

HAPPY THANKSGIVING!

sick boy

we woke up on sunday to a sick little boy.

he's still sick.

it's been a long week.

i've gotten to run a couple of quick errands while Bobby stayed home with him, but Caleb has not left the house in FIVE days. i think he is going a little stir crazy, because nothing is really making him happy. so, on top of not feeling good, he is just plain bored!

please pray for health!

pictures

a few weeks ago, we had some new family photos made, as well as Caleb's 18-month pictures. (did you notice the new header?)

i was going to wait to share these, because at least one of these will be our christmas card this year.

but, i'm not always very good at waiting.

yes, i do ask God to make me a more patient woman, a patient wife, and a patient mommy.

i suppose i'm a work in progress.

so, while God is working on me, here are a few pictures for your viewing pleasure.....

sweet little man.....

who already puts his foot in his mouth.....

*all photos by Jennifer Dunaway Photography*

groceries again

today i made visits to two grocery stores for triple-coupons.

yesterday, i spent about 2 hours making my list.

that's a long time.

that is why i take pictures and post about it, even though most people who read this blog (does anyone read this blog?) don't care.

next time i don't feel like doing it, i can look at this and remind myself why i do.....

this is a list of what i got for free:

disposable gloves - 2
parchment paper - 2
garlic toast - 2
frozen corn-on-the-cob - 2
frozen cut broccoli - 2
birds eye meals-for-two - 2
cookie dough - 2
chex mix - 1
butter - 2
mandarin oranges - 1
pineapple - 1
rice krispies - 1
rotel - 2
yeast - 1
chicken broth cartons - 2
wacky mac pasta - 2
tuna pouches - 4
pizzas - 2

and this was all really cheap or almost free:

beef broth cans - 3
brown sugar - 2
powdered sugar - 2
beech-nut cookies - 2
red wine vinegar - 1
sugar - 1
breakfast burrito - 1
bacon - 2
AA batteries - 1
cookie dough - 2
trix yogurt - 2
lean pockets - 2
fish sticks - 1
pie crusts - 2
canned veggies - 5
cooking soups - 4
mayo - 2

i spent about $25.00 for it all, and saved about $165.00!

i used this site and this site to make my list.

anyways, that's what i've been up to.

sorry for the unexciting post!

i'll get little man on here next time!

peek-a-booh!

a day at the patch

we spent yesterday morning at a local pumpkin patch.

i had never been before (if i went as a kid, i don't remember), and i was pleasantly surprised at all of the things there were to do. calling it a "pumpkin patch" is a pretty big understatement!

little man gets a little uneasy sometimes in different settings like this, so he was definitely not letting go of us. there was a little bit of this going on.....


but mostly, he was happy.....

and sometimes, he was really happy.....


and sometimes, he was hysterical.....

but then we saw one of these.....

and Caleb wasn't really sure what to think.....

"what in the world IS THAT?"

then he went through the maze with daddy.....

and then we made him pose for more pictures, because we just can't seem to get enough of him.....

our little ham man.....