Really?

I was a little humored and yet completely disgusted by this item when I saw it in the store. Really? Do we need the visual of Santa naked in the tub? Tis the season? Yikes! Are we that desperate for something - anything - to try and show the Christmas spirit? I'm very neutral over the subject of Santa himself. Some people "do" him, some people don't. Whatever, to each their own. But Santa, mostly naked, except the few discreet bubbles? Realistically I would not go sit & watch an old wrinkly overweight man sing in the tub. Neither would I allow my children to do such a notion.

Siiiiiiigh....

Let's remember the real reason for the season. The birth of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.

Yummmmmm

Baby Carmen is such a stinker at times. Don't let that cute adorable face fool you too much. We usually know something is up when it's really quiet. Then someone says "where is Carmen?" My first thought is, what is she into?!?!?!? It don't take her long to find something to indulge herself in.

Case in point, the dinner table. Obviously this was one of those nights where I set all the food out and it's a free for all, get it yourself, throw your plate away when you are done night. (No, sorry, we are not the Waltons where we gather every night or every meal for a big broo-haha around the dining room table.) I'm pretty sure this was a friday night, not everyone was even home at the time, but we weren't waiting. Dinner was served. Of course I always fix Carmen & Andrew's plate, they are too young to properly help themselves. In fact, in the bottom corner of the first picture IS Carmen's plate already fixed up. Apparently though, eating the spaghetti out of the container is much tastier than eating it off the plate. The bigger kids had obviously inhaled their food & had scadattled into another room. I'm not sure where I was. (You mean I'm suppose to grab a plate and actually sit down during dinner time?). But I remember having that....why is it so quiet and where is Carmen moment.

It was awfully cute to find her dipping her hands into the large bucket of spaghetti. I snapped MANY pictures. It is better than finding her in the bathroom, climbed up on the counter and toothpaste squirted out all over the place. (Yep, it's happened MANY times).

So no worries.....kids around here are not starving. Don't be shaking your head & judging either, not all of our meals are served in this fashion. Ma & Pa Walton do gather the chillins' around the table from time to time to share in good ole family time. But sometimes......well, it's a zoo!

Abingdon Turkey Trot

I traveled to the great metropolis of Abingdon, IL to participate in their Turkey Trot. John went along with & unofficially ran, as well. (Meaning we did not register him, but when the gun went off he ran along the course for a long as he could. He could not finish the whole distance, but did a great job trying!)


It was an unusually warm Sunday afternoon in November. I look like I'm ready to race in the summer. Although enjoyable, in some ways, it made things worse. The temperature was also a little deceiving because once we got out onto the course there was a strong wind that made it a little difficult to push through.

I still had a good run and captured the overall women's title. Actually, I would argue that I had a really crappy run, but I'm sure many would argue when in the end I'm standing with the trophy in my hand. I take my victories for what they are at the moment. Another race with the same performance could yield a different result. For now, though, I am the Abingdon Turkey Trot champion.

Girls Night Out

Enjoyed a night out with some girlfriends. It's one of my secrets to my sanity. Getting out from time to time. We talked & laughed so much that night. Just having fun & being girly! I have been blessed with such great friends!

H1N1?!??!

ACK! Grab the face masks!!!! Stop eating pork (haha, ok that is Jim's joke)!!!! Run for the hills!!!! Ok, ok, let's not be drastic. We did start off the month with plenty of sickness. There was a small bug that passed through all of the kids that kept them out of school & in the dr.'s office for awhile. Then things settled down for a week or so & it started all over again. Besides the little unknown bug we also dealt with ear infections, strep throat and some mouth virus. Hmmm, tis the season, I guess. Doesn't bother me too much. More days to stay home and dote on my children.

All flu tests came back negative. We've dodged that bullet for now. No, we are not vaccinated and we won't be either. We'll take our chances and deal with all the other stuff for now. I hope you are all surviving the sickie season so far.

Halloween

I KNOW, that halloween was almost 6 weeks ago. Better late than never, huh? Don't stop me though, I'm going to attempt to go on a blogging spree for the next hour or so. I've it all planned out and ready to go.

I was a little sad about this years happenings. Only because I was not able to capture ALL of my kids at one time in a photo. I have many group pictures, but there is always someone missing. Just a sign of my kids growing up and being here, there & everywhere.

Other than that is was your typical fun dressing up & getting a lot of candy kind of day. As you see below we had Mandy as a cat, Brianna as a box, John as an Army man, Andrew as Buzz Lightyear & baby Carmen as a bumblebee (side note about that, all 4 girls wore that costume. It was so worn I threw it away).


Then we have Angel who was dressed up as a dude. She named herself Brock. When she went to the school dance many didn't realize who was under the costume.


I got creative myself this year & dressed up as an 80's prom girl. It was so much fun. I got some weird looks from the younger crowd, but my peers knew exactly where I was coming from. I even heard a few comments of "yep....I did look just like that at my prom".

Everyone loves a good sale, Right? We'll let me tell you about a great one:

It’s a Hearts at Home
Black Friday after Black Friday Sale Dec. 7-11

Did you sleep in on Black Friday? Did you drag yourself out of bed, but still miss out on some awesome deals because you were standing in line too long at one store? Do you still have shopping to do, but dread the crowds, traffic, and cost? Let Hearts at Home help!

Their Black Friday sale has been extended to the week of December 7-11. Shop in the convenience of your own home and receive an unprecedented 25% off all of Hearts books and merchandise. They have great gifts for everyone in your family.

Find gifts for friends, teachers, bible study leaders, bus drivers, and everyone else on your list. You may even find something for yourself. This is a great time to stock up on all those Hearts at Home books you’ve been wanting to read.

Let your family know how much you would love a Hearts at Home gift certificate so you can use it for your Hearts at Home conference registration and/or Mom’s Night Out tickets.

Go to Heartshoppe.com, choose your gifts, and enter code “HEARTGIFT” upon checkout. You will receive 25% off your total purchase (before tax and shipping).

I also want to fill you in on a couple of other great opportunities!

Be sure to check out Jill Savage's blog this month (she is the founder and CEO of Hearts at Home). She is doing one giveaway A DAY through Christmas.

And, if you stop by the Hearts at Home blog December 8 - 11, you will have an opportunity to win a Heart's at Home prayer journal. The prayer journal is a brand new resource from Hearts at Home.

Merry Christmas from Hearts at Home!