We wish you a Merry CHRISTMAS!

Babes in Toyland

This is Milson Christmas 2008, the Mills & Larson girls. Oh and Will, who has on an apron in this picture. He insisted, I am sure it would make his Daddy proud to know I put this on here. To make him feel better, the truth is he walked around in it in cowboy boots carrying a football & baseball.

Elizabeth was quite dismayed at the mess Will made but proud of her creation!

Molly loved playing with all the girls!

These cut-out cookies were made from scratch but without germs by me & Karen.

Will got a hold of the camera & took this pic.

I won the giveaway on Jamie's blog! I am so excited, I never win a thing...until now! Thanks my old but very young friend! :)

And last but certainly not least, we got a puppy today. Meet Buster. Go ahead and call me crazy, I think I am.

Rockin' around the Christmas Tree

Faith's fave line lately is "I am going to rock that party" or rock that plan, etc.

I think she rocked at dance last week.

And I got some very rockin' pics of her with her legs up way high but none of them turned out due to lighting? I cannot figure out why except I guess I need a camera that cost about $500 more and a new video cam. For the 3rd time this week, I can not upload a video.

I know you are tired of hearing about that.

So, look at my long-legged beauty instead.

Glory to the Newborn King!

"Hark the Herald Angels Sing" is Will's favorite song. Every time we get in the car, he says "newborn King Mommy!" And, he will continue to say it if it is not on the entire time.

So, the other night I found it on the computer and he repeatedly watches it on video,Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Carrie Underwood or Amy Grant, he does not care. Travis Cottrell's Ring the Bells is what we have in the car, I need to upload it on to itunes.

Since I have listened to it 1000 times, I have let the words sink in.

I pray my children know these things in their hearts:

Born that man no more may die
born to save the sons of earth
born to give them 2nd birth

Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
hailed incarnate Deity
pleased as man with men to dwell
Jesus our Emmanuel

Hail the heaven-born Prince of Peace
Hail the Son of Righteousness
light & life to all He brings
risen with healing in His wings

Christ the Everlasting Lord
Come desire of nations come, fix in us thy humble home!

And of course, who wrote it? Charles Wesley, brother to John, in 1739.

There is more info here where discussion of lines & doctrine take place, if you care to read. That is my history lesson for the DBC.

It came upon the midnight clear

These may be the only Christmas cookies we make this year. Sadly, this is only play dough. I want to make cut out cookies with my three but it may not happen.

We are planning on an art/baking day with the Mills on Monday so we can bake some then.

However, I still like making Paula's cookies, it is a tradition I adore! (She went off and left me to do it myself and she refuses to take off work, drive 12 hours and come make cookies with me!)

So, anyway, I had to bring cookies to Claire's class that I planned on rolling & cutting . It did not happen, the dough was yuck (maybe the weather or the fact that it was store bought). It became clear, I needed plan B so I called Rao's, at 10:30 p.m. I thought they closed at 9?

They must not when you have an emergency. I picked up un-iced sugar cookies at 6:30 a.m. along with this plate. I think it fits me, God is soooo not finished with me yet!

These are a few of my favorite things

This is my private Christmas Tour of Homes. Or you can call it nothing to blog about other than "my house being turned upside down is driving me insane!" so, I snapped a few pics of my fave Christmas treasures.

I love this new snowman paper and to keep me sane, the presents wrapped in it are not for the immediate Larson 5.

This reindeer ornament is in honor of the deer that has yet (or will not) grace our freezer.

(for the 1st time - maybe ever!)

I am into snowmen since it snows here every 30 years or so!

Jesus is the reason for the season!

Deck the halls

Literally...new flooring is currently being installed in the hall and all 3 bedrooms. Not fast enough for me but I should not be complaining. Hurricanes can be blessings in disguise.


I could show a pic of everything we own piled into the den but you would think I was a "bonafide" nut. I think I am.

Faith, Will & I stayed at Donna's across the street last night. Her house decked out for Christmas so clean and neat was heartwarming and I slept great. Craig left before 6 so he stayed at our house on a mattress in the den. Oh, I have one more child...Claire? She stayed with Tim & Crystal. And boy did they have a ball!?!?

Do you hear what I hear?

No, you could not possibly hear it b/c I have worked on this flippin' post for 24 hours, or at least 12! I videoed and it would not download so I put it on you tube and try to embedded but blogger was acting up. Then, I lost it! So, imagine my sweet baby talking, it was adorable.


Oh, and there was a point to the basketball goal over his head.



Is my bitterness showing? I think it may be the disorganization/floors being ripped up/3 sick kids drama.

His mercies are new every morning, I need to go access them.

How lovely art thou branches

Head on over to Boo Mama's Tour of Homes. It is a real treat. I could browse all day but I can't, I am too busy.

Silent Night

Will my night be silent once the girls are in bunk beds? We shall see since I ordered them today. They promise they will be so perfect in them!!!

You're a mean one Mr. Grinch

How dare we show him the snow? He loved it until he realized it was cold. In a fit, he ditched the shoes & socks and let out a howl!

Go tell it on the mountain

This is a story worth shouting about! Take time to read this family's journey and the miracles God has and is still doing in their son. The young man prayed for a miracle and snow, he got both. God is so good . . .all the time!

Let it snow! Let it snow! Let it snow!

Look at all the snow!!! Finally, I got the girls up around 1:00 a.m. We had a blast! Then, they took a bath and after a tad bit of drama went back to sleep. Hopefully, Will can play in it in a few hours!

Though your nose gets a chilling

Donna and i just walked this morning and it is cold! It is 38 degrees but the wind was downright blustery! Only in SE Texas do we experience a 30 degrees drop in 12 hours. Wouldn't it be nice if we got snow instead of rain?

It's the most wonderful time of the year

It is Advent season, our annual tradition of making and sharing the Advent wreath. It is even more interesting than last year since Will is sharing in the weekly devotion and lighting of the candles. Technically, advent takes place each Sunday evening and on Christmas Eve leading up to the story of Jesus' birth but at our house...it happens on Monday. I really do not know why but it just has the past 2 Sundays.

The infamous metal stand is our "wreath" this year and instead of stealing greenery from Kroger, Craig took it from nature or some oil company or some big wig who owns his deer lease in Kountze. I am almost sure it is legal, we pay a yearly fee. (I say we loosely.)


Most likely, we will not stray from Advent on Mondays. I suppose Jesus does not care when we do it, it is about the celebration of Him which I hope we emphasize all year.

Hark the Herald Angels Sing

I know you all of heard me say that I am never taking my 2 year old to store again. I say that once a week because it is kinda hard to leave him home alone. Anyway, today I went with all 3 after church. Oh dear, the girls were fine but he was on fire!


We or he broke a glass, threw a fit to get in the basket and to get out then we ran into my favorite teacher ever, Kathie Duty. I was mortified as snot rolled down his face and he screamed no!


At least the girls looked cute in their matching smocked outfits. They minded their manners and engaged in intelligent conversation, unlike someone else! Maybe she thinks they are as darling as I was in the 4th grade?


Travis Cottrell and my 3 singing "Hark" saved all of us on the way home. I planned to leave you with a video of Will's new fave word.. "yeah." However, a certain angel was uncooperative. I won't name any names.

Steal of the day

Yesterday in my inbox, I got an old navy/gap/etc. email about saving 20% and free shipping on anything that day. About 10:00 last night, I got around to looking. I found a pair of yoga pants on sale for $15. I love yoga pants. I used a $10 reward card plus the 20% and free shipping promo. I never left the house and my pants were $2.17! Now, if I could just leave for the Wellness center this morning. :)

Btw, the email said on December 3rd, you can get 30% off all outerwear. A new coat sounds nice but probably just b/c it happens to not be 70 degrees today.

I was wondering if Jamie planned to issue this challenge again, at least it is easier!!

I can't tell time

We made it home this afternoon, despite a long lunch at Cracker Barrel in Texarkana. Everyone and their grandmother (no, really, they took their grandmother) was there to take a break from shopping.

To pass the time, I chased 3 kids, played checkers & bought ornaments 40% off. I stared at Adrienne's tree all week and I know she would have approved of my choices. If I was a really nice sister, I would share them with her & Mere. I have a Cracker Barrel here, I could get some more. . . or not. :)

Since we do not buy gifts anymore for one another, maybe we could buy an ornament for each other and mom? Geez, that is a darn good family tradition? What do you think? You 2 (and maybe 2.5 others) are the only ones who read this blog anyway.

Sorry, I ventured off in a fam discussion. I cannot tell time. We got home about 4:30 p.m. We began unpacking, starting laundry, putting up suitcases, cleaning 974 cheez-its out of the car, throwing away sucker sticks, etc. By 5:20, I put Will in the bath, fed him applesauce and cereal and he was ready for bed.

It was 5:38 p.m. I thought it was 6:38 p.m. and I could put him down by 7:00 after a little lovin' and story time. I was so disappointed that I messed up the time! So, we played cars and I kept scurrying around like a mad woman with no watch. He made it until 6:50, he was beat. He was so good in the car but he does not nap much, 25 minutes tops. Did I mention we left this morning at 5:20 a.m.? Yes, we are world traveling . . .fools!

You ask how I could put such a darlin' to bed early?

Easy . . .After I hauled a bag of animal crackers 727 miles, he dumped them on the floor and jumped in them!

However, after I downloaded the pics, maybe I should have kept them all up a little later? They are pretty sweet. :)

If I could climb a tree I would

but I did not try. The kids have had a ball riding horses and exploring the Arkansas terrain. Not to mention tearing up their aunt's homes. I am so thankful for family and their smiling faces.

The top 5

We made it to Arkansas today and brrr, it is cold. The kids were fantastic in the car, could not have asked for more cooperative children. Such precious darlings. Will lost it about Yellville, but it kinda makes you want to scream. So, he rode with me the last 20 minutes.

My goals this week:

5. eat
4. sleep
3. crack up at my precious Abby
2. mentally, emotionally & spiritually prepare Adrienne for children
1. no trips to Mtn Home ER, I still owe those people from our "Ike" drama.

Pruning

The definition of pruning (dictionary.com) is to cut off or remove dead or living parts or branches of (a plant, for example) to improve shape or growth. My trees were trimmed last week. The back yard looked like Ike & Rita hit all at once. I knew they need trimmed but the word pruned was more like it. I love our trees and all the shade. However, I do not like them on my house with water pouring into bedrooms. (maybe the bathrooms could get a hit, they need to be re-done!) I have had 2 roofs in 3 years so it is time to remove trees & limbs.

We had one tree cut down. It is not OUR tree nor is it in OUR yard but I do not need to say anymore.

As I watched the process taking place (and our $ flying out the window), I was reminded of

John 15 in which Jesus describes His pruning process. I remembered I did not like it either. However, I am continually being pruned and I would not change the work He is doing in me for anything. Nor would I change the fact that my trees will grow back more beautiful, faster and healthier than ever! Maybe, I am kinda "green?"

I leave you with this pic of Will, he was fascinated by the process.

Because I like to sleep like a sardine

My children were sleeping peacefully in my bed this morning. As a matter of fact, all 4 of us were. I cropped my hunk-of-burning-love out in order to keep my marriage intact. The space between the girls was mine and do I mean space.

With the annoying vertigo I have, I feel like I am on a lousy cruise ship (not that I have ever been) or sleeping in a washing machine. Once, I glanced at the clock and it was 2 so I just stayed put, knowing I only had 3 more hours of sleep was not worth the fight.

Normally, children in my bed make me very cranky. But, I am struggling with dealing with this issue b/c the issue is Faith, my great sleeper. She is scared and not just a little scared, but gripped with fear. At school, she heard about the recent home invasions in our area. I was going to talk to her & Claire anyway b/c it is a good reminder to never answer the door, talking to strangers, etc.

We have tried to link our daily devotion and bible story time to fear, prayed with her, bought a fancy night-light, talked about our alarm, etc. . . but she is still very upset. So, for today, I just let her sleep. At least they sat in their own bed until the wee hours of the a.m. I would prefer 5 not 2. :)

I hate that our children have to fear the world, it is such a burden on my heart. However, I know that it can be a real lesson to teach her to rely on God as her source of faith not fear. I plan to do an art activity with the girls today making a cross poster with scriptures.

Claire loves to sleep with us and we are always working with her, I am sure she has a root of fear in her issue too. But, I also think she just wants her mommy. And, I thought all my years of Babywise training would solve sleep issues forever (it did help, no babies just kids in my bed!). Silly mother. . .

Please pray for my girls. My worn out body thanks you!

Psalm 4:8
I will lie down and sleep in peace, for you alone, O LORD, make me dwell in safety.

2 Timothy 1:7
For God did not give us a spirit of fear, but a spirit of power, of love and a sound mind.

New news

A red truck is at my house, 2 in fact. The roofers are here! I would take a pic of the men on they roof but they don't like me. I can tell.

We had a slight problem problem yesterday. I noticed the brand name was not the same and I asked about it. They told me it was fine. A few minutes later, they noticed it did not match! So, they wondered what I wanted to do. I said I would call Craig.

I did.

He told me to tell them to change it.

They did and he came home.

I have stayed clear of them for now! I am working on floors, doors & ceilings.

In other news, Will's collarbone is healing! Yeah!

My Oh-So Gourmet Dinner

I had a great plan tonight. I decided I would try to copy a salad I enjoyed the other night at the Elegante. It contained couscous, grape tomatoes, cucumbers, some kind of vinagrette dressing, spices, etc. So...I went to the store & bought a box of Near East coucous and the other ingredients. I thought I could just throw it together. I was so proud I even had mint leaves in the backyard!

Ha!

I cooked the couscous. It is basically rice, little bitty bits of rice. That is not what I ate the other night, the menu said couscous. So, I called Nicole, since she was with me. She basically said for me to tell Craig it was good for him, just eat it. He did, even with the red wine vinaigrette dressing that stained it pink. He liked it! It was pink, tiny rice. I should have taken pics for the full effect but it was too embrassing!

I called Paula, because she has other foods in her house besides Dunkin Donut lattes, green peas and Tyson chicken.

She said I needed to do a search on the Food Network for Mediterranean Couscous Salad. I said ok. I planned on it but before I could I got and email from her & Colleen. They found it. It calls for Israeli couscous. I do not recall seeing that at Kroger and I doubt it would have recognized me either. I think this is really close to it but during my recipe browsing I remembered it also had shrimp. That is kind of a big thing for the-oh-so gourmet me to leave out! I think my head would fall of if it was not attached.

I am sticking to Paula's blog. Colleen posted one I plan to try tomorrow. It is a little more in my league, no more couscous-pasta for a while. My pride cannot take it.

This may actually be blogworthy . . .or not

I really have no answer to may lack of blogging.

I am busy.

I am way busy.

I am struggling to deal with being busy?

I really do not know. I have nothing exciting to report. We did take pics yesterday so maybe I can post them soon. Also, I am enjoying facebook so maybe after I reconnect there, I have nothing to blog about.

One thing I discovered yesterday, Jasam (cannot link it, way to elementary) may be back. I do not watch GH anymore but I caught a glimpse on a commercial of my couple coming back. Silly? Yes, but that is why I have not been blogging. Everything on my mind is either mush, silly or political. And trust me, I need not go there, my brain can't take it. Not to mention, I hate mud-slinging. "They" are still at it, mud-slinging that is, I guess it never stops. So, what can I say? Not much . . .

In other news, I am going out tonight with a bunch of girls to the Hope Center Annual Gala. William P. Young, author of The Shack is the speaker. I have not read the book so do not know how I will feel about him as the speaker, in my emotional wishy-washy state, it may not go so well. The oh-so fabulous Susan (who blogged for 2.5 minutes one time) shared a few articles of clothing with me so I will look fashionable. I am always cuter in the summer vs. Beaumont fall/winter/never know what the weather is doing.

Wow, I am way off. The night is not about fashion, it is about hope!

I really have no words

I could spill paragraphs but I do not have the energy. Welcome to East Texas people (Warren to be exact), it is deer season.

Pumpkin Prayer

Claire received this poem at school so we carved our largest pumpkins according to the story.

Then, we just made a happy face on the small one. Of course, the highlight was the light/dark contrast!

I do not know why I cannot get a good dark-lit-pumpkin pic? I have the same issue with the Christmas tree. A - what setting do you use on your camera? We have the same one. :)

Since we are discussing game

We only wear exotics, we don't eat them. But since we had a cold snap, we broke out the fur.And just for the sake of facts, these adorable clothes are all hand-me-downs or garage sale items minus Faith's shoes & jeans that Mimi bought. Faith was quite distressed with Claire's darling get-up so she had to choose an animal print as well. I believe Abby has the exact matching outfit. It is about to be passed down to Lila, the tights & shirt were snug.

Even Will, he is wearing all of Luke's clothes but I did manage to buy his diapers, we don't re-use them. :)

He has his game on

Craig received a new game camera for his b-day. It is the new toy of 2008, making hunters proud across the country. Actually, I think it is just new to us. Craig thinks it is almost as exciting as the "kill." But, whatever.

Anyway, the first day, it took pics of a raccoon, I guess that could be a small animal one might want to eat. Not us. It also took pics of the wind blowing but I made him erase all 148 of those. I do not have room on the memory card for wind.

Soon, he spotted the pic of a buck. The bucks looks as if he may have had a drink on his way home. I might too if I lived the life he did.

Craig says this is another buck. As far as I am concerned, it looks real similar to the first one but I am not the expert.

This is a doe, the same morning. Maybe it is buck2's girls. He may need to watch out for her because doe has better meat than an older buck. I would know that because I have been cooking deer meat for years now.

None of this matters until we get the game. (I use we very loosely b/c I just encourage him kindly and listen so ever intently as he tells me each skilled move he makes.) But at least we know they are out there eating our corn and smiling for the camera.

Maybe before long, you could shoot the deer from your own living room through some fancy, shmancy rig. Then again, maybe not. That could be dangerous and fall into the hands of a nut in America. Don't get me started on that. A hunting post by me is bad enough.