2009 Thoughts & Things That Make You Go Hmmmm...

A year ago today seems like yesterday. But here are a few reflections that remind me it's not.

Rocco went from size 2T to 4T.

Roman still loves to snug buggle his mommy & have me walk him to class.

Dallon loves God's Word & knows more of it than I realize.

Nick's one semester in to his Master's degree.

Rocco has a whole other life that he talks about regularly. "When I was a big man_____" or "When I was a little boy_______" CRACKS US UP!

Gammy is on oxygen.

There is a whole slew of people from my past I have no recollection of. (Facebook)

I believe God knows who will be saved & who won't. After all, He is omniscient.

Some disagreements with friends can not be overcome. And this makes me very sad.

We are selfish and we have to consciously overcome that.

Crock Pot Lasagna is the best!

You can survive without an oven 4 1/2 months as long as you have a stove top, microwave, grill & crock pot.

Seaworld is no fun on cold wet days.

There are black bears in Orlando, Florida.

Church attendance is important if you're serious about your relationship with God. Not just attendance but service too. It's Biblical.

I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me. (Thank you Lord)

Marriage is tough but rewarding all at the same time. Ditto for parenting.

St. John's Seafood has good fried mushrooms. Even if they are the canned ones..yum

A lot of women feel the same self conscious, paranoid thoughts of not fitting in that I feel.

There are friends waiting to be made.

Redbox will give you free codes if you ask for them.

HE Front loading washers & dryers are not all they're cracked up to be.

Not having a car payment feels really nice. And it even helps when I'm embarrassed to be driving a Lumina that looks like it was involved in a hit & run, because it was. Thank God for that Lumina.

My 5th grade teacher, Ms. Beckham, was right, I'm too sensitive.

Loved ones can be lost in an instant but worrying about that is sin. Knowing that God is in control is trust at it's best.

Six & Nine year olds can help with the laundry & scrubbing toilets.

Believers usually have two Spiritual gifts, sometimes more, never none. But it's not OK to write off being low in any of them.

There is a wealth of knowledge in the Godly, older women around me that isn't being utilized.

God wants us to pray boldly asking for what we want.

Spanx

Hamsters bite

Jellyfish stings can reactivate several days later and be a horrendous experience.

Quality hair products do make the difference.

Getting up a half hour earlier saves me from a lot of morning stress.

It's not my job to worry about what other people are doing but it is my job as a believer to encourage them in the right direction. Figuring out how to do the second part without the first part is the hard part. (I need to be encouraged to.)

Rocco likes to kiss me 'top & down' which means he starts with his mouth open & closes it just in time.

There are tons more that I'll think of as soon as I click 'Publish Post' but that's all I've got for now. Bring on 2010!

Dallon's Potion Maker & Rocco's Bendaroos

Dallon went on & on about wanting a potion maker from Santa. I was a little worried about Santa not knowing where to get one since I sure didn't! He pulled through & this is Dallon playing with it Christmas day. Rocco enjoying the bendaroos he got from Mommy & Daddy. I wish I had thought to take a picture of the seahorse Daddy made!

Winner!

In October I won tickets to the Southern Women's Show on my favorite radio station The Lighthouse 89.3fm. Then a few weeks after that I won cornfield tickets on the same radio station. Last week one day I won again! This time thanks to my hubby. As I was getting ready for work they had their morning trivia question, "What was the elderly mans name that was promised he would see the Savior before he died?" I have to admit that I didn't know the answer! I'm sure I could have found it but Nick overheard it and said, "That was in our Sunday School lesson." Only, I had been delivering Christmas cards to the classes with the children so I wasn't in class! Thank God Nick didn't make me look it up since I missed class! Simeon was the answer & these were the prizes! They arrived on Christmas Eve Eve, just in time!

Christmas Day

Luke 2:11 For unto you is born this day in the city of David a savior who is Christ the Lord.

Happy Birthday Jesus!!

Friday morning I awoke at 6:30am to Gammy saying, "Becky! I think the boys are moving around upstairs!" I jumped out of bed & started preparing the cameras. Every year we have had to wake the boys up but I had my suspicions this year that they would be coming down on their own. About 15 minutes later I realized that she must have been mistaken andd started preparing the Monkey Bread, it's a tradition that we have Monkey Bread on every major holiday & for Dallon's birthday parties. ( I'll post the recipe at the bottom.) Finally, at 7:30 the boys came down, sleepy eyed.

The cookies had been eaten & the milk was gone too! Each boy had a gift waiting from Santa! Roman got the Pokemon trading cards he asked Santa for! And surprisingly enough, he knew which ones to get, even though Roman didn't tell him!Dallon got the potion maker he asked Santa for! (Whew!! Glad he knew where to get one of those!)

Rocco wasn't sure what he wanted but Santa brought him a Storm Shadow (GI Joe) costume because he just knew he would love it!

Roman & Dallon received air pellet machine gun/pistol sets from us as their 'big' gifts. First they opened the safety goggles, then the BBs, very confused at this point. Then they understood it all when they opened the gun sets. Here is a picture of Roman wearing the goggles & Dallon looking at him like he's wondering what 'they do'. (Rocco's opening his Bendaroos.)

In this one they're wondering why they got BBs.

Then finally!

Rocco received a bike from us as his 'big' gift.The boys gave Daddy Gator shirts. We got a GREAT deal at JC Penney the day before! Two for $9.99! Thanks to my $10 off $10 purchase coupon. And who can resist taking a picture of these cuties? (Dallon's piglets)

Daddy bought Rocco a real tool set because he is Daddy's little helper! (We removed the razor knife.)

Dallon using his new Disney Flix Camera/Movie Maker.

The rest of the day we lounged around in our new PJs. (Gammy bought some for me.) Most of our family is far away so we relax, no running around for us. No make up, no hair fixing, etc. We did cook prime rib, mashed potatoes, green beans, croissants & apple pie. YUMMY!!!

Mirandos' Monkey Bread 2 cans of your favorite biscuits (I use Pillsbury Butter Flaky Grands) 2 sticks butter melted in a bowl 1c sugar with cinnamon powder stirred in until brown **Optional - 1/2c pecans or walnuts Preheat oven to 350, grease a bundt pan Cut biscuits in fourths. Dredge biscuits through butter then coat liberally in sugar/cinnamon mixture. Place pieces in bundt pan until all pieces are coated. Bake 35-45 minutes depending on your oven. When done the bread will be risen & darkened on the top. **If using nuts dredge them through the butter then place 1/4c in pan before bread then again midway through. Carefully turn out on to a cake plate & serve right away with milk.

Christmas Eve

We had invited Web, Darlene & Adrienne Brown over for an early dinner, before our Christmas Eve service at church. We were overdue for a get together with this sweet family & it's hard to get in their schedule because Web works out of town. They joined us for lasagna & salad, they brought brownies. (If you don't know already, Darlene makes really good brownies!) We enjoyed catching up & laughing until it was time to go. Adrienne fits right in with our boys, she's not intimidated at all! Here's a few pictures of the kids sprinkling their reindeer food (dry oats w/glitter to help them spot their landing pad) on the lawn where Santa & his reindeer are to land. Nick, Web & DarleneWeb & Darlene brought me a very thoughtful gift! Darlene must have read my blog! Thank you Web & Darlene!

After our candlelight service at church we brought home the poinsettia that Gammy purchased at church in honor of Grandpa & Grandma Cooper, her parents. Isn't it beautiful? It's called an 'Icecicle' poinsettia. We continued our tradition of the boys opening one gift on Christmas Eve. Always new PJs to sleep in!

Before bed the boys have to put out cookies for Santa. Since we had given away (and eaten) all of the Monster cookies we made, we had to use the peppermint Oreos in the cubbard. The CUTE plate was a gift from my pastor & his wife this year. Thanks Pastor Wayne & Michelle!!

After the boys went to bed I stuffed the stockings. In our house Santa brings one gift for each boy, everything else comes from Mommy, Daddy & Gammy. Saturday I found new stockings for the boys, which will make their debut next year.

I have to say that as I sat in church Thursday night I knew there was no other place I should be. What better place is there to be on Christmas Eve? Thank you Jesus

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Christmas Cards

I bought this angel stand (which you can't really see) in the beginning of our marriage. Each year I look forward to opening the cards & putting them in their place on the stand. Some are new friends, some are old friends, some are family, Roman even has two this year from friends. My favorites are the ones with pictures.

Here are just a few of the many special cards we received.

Clayton, Nita & Tyler Waugh

Clayton was our Youth Pastor at Calvary Hill Baptist Church. We didn't have a Pastor when we married (Nick was on the search committee) so Clayton, also our dear friend, married us. Later I was Tyler's babysitter from the time he was 3 months - 18 months old.

Jeff, Teri, Gabby & Adrianna (AKA B-Bop) Smith

Teri is one of Nick's baby sisters. Jeff's job moves them every year to different locations. They are currently in Australia, this picture is in New Zealand.

This is one of Nick's older brothers, Tony. His wife Debby, their daughter Jessie & her family. They live near Pittsburg, PA.

Brian, Sara, Savanna & Micah Calhoun

Brian & Sara are very dear to my heart. We met them when Brian became a Pastor at a church near our old house in Jacksonville. At the time I was a new mother & was praying for a Godly babysitter for Roman. Our plan was for me to return to work for one year. God blessed us with Sara, first as our babysitter then as one of the best friends I could ask for. They now live in Molino, FL where Brian continues to Pastor. Praise the Lord for this sweet family!

These two boys belong to an old friend of mine from my working days at Florida Oncology Associates. Victoria was in the insurance department & I was in human resources/payroll. A friendship formed which continued on even after we were both stay at home moms. We used to get together weekly when Trent (the older boy pictured) & Roman were just babies. Victoria probably even remembers Tyler (from above) because he was always there on our playdates. I miss these days but enjoy the days I'm in now too.

Dylan, Dayna & Gavin Buik

Dylan is Nick's oldest sibling's son. Here he is pictured with his beautiful wife & their 1yr old son Gavin. They live in Southern California, which is where most of Nick's family is.

What do you do with the picture cards after Christmas? I feel weird thowing them away. This is what I do:

LOOK closely, you might see your family! Plus a few added extras to fill in the space. I didn't get as many picture cards this year so I'll have to make a smaller collage.

Christmas Card Ettiquite: My mom taught me to keep a list & check it twice. I use Excel to help me. Each year I have a list of cards I 'Sent' & 'Received'. I check off all cards going out & coming in. Cards received from people that are not on my list will get added & they will start receiving cards from us as well. If I get a card from someone new a few days before Christmas I usually do not send them one until the next year. Usually I will remove people if we're out of contact or if they have moved from our Sunday School class to another, but add them back on if we still receive a card from them. I'm not sure if this is 'proper' & I'd love to know what Martha Stewart has to say on the issue but the system works pretty good for me. Thanks Mom! (I use this same spreadsheet to list gifts received & thank you cards sent.)

Ecards for Christmas? NO WAY! Stick with the hard copies. I bought ours from Sam's Wholesale Warehouse this year and got them within a few days. I paid $15 for 100!! Rule of thumb; plan on having your cards ready to mail/hand out the weekend after Thanksgiving. The closer you get to Christmas the busier your schedule gets.

Raise your hand if you saw your picture on our 2008 collage!

Family Advent Devotion #3 (actually #4 but did #1 & #2 together)

Saturday, December 19th

Today we ventured out to watch Avatar at the theater, have lunch at the mall then visit Santa Claus. We had a great time together as a family. This evening we gather to look toward Christmas, anticipating the birthday of our Lord Jesus.

Our fourth week is Joy focused.

Scripture: Luke 2:1-14 In those days a decree went out from Caesar Augustus that all the world should be registered. This was the first registration when Quirinius was governor of Syria. And all went to be registered, each to his own town. And Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the town of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and lineage of David, to be registered with Mary, his betrothed, who was with child. And while they were there, the time came for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son and wrapped him in swaddling cloths and laid him in a manger, because there was no place for them in the inn.

Carol: "Joy to the World"

Dallon lit the Hope candle.

Roman lit the Peace candle.

Rocco lit the Love candle. I don't know how I missed getting the picture, but I did get a picture of this.

The boys read our scripture.

I lit the Joy candle.

On Christmas we will light the Christ candle.

This is blurry but I like it because I caught Rocco praying.

Santa was at Regency!!

Every year we take the boys to see Santa (THE REAL ONE mind you) at Regency Mall. Every year it's the REAL Santa!! (The boys check previous pictures to make sure.) This year Rocco would sit in his lap without making us get in the picture. Roman asked for Pokemon trading cards, Dallon asked for a potion maker & Rocco didn't answer so Dallon told Santa Rocco wanted a potion maker too. I sure hope Santa knows what the heck a potion maker is!

Monster Cookies

The last few years we have made Paula Deene's Monster Cookies for Christmas. They're called Monster cookies because they have so much stuff in them! But no flour! They are scrumptious!! (For the recipe click the hyperlink above.) This year we made two batches, which equals 6 dozen!!! Some for Sunday, December 20th's Lottie Moon cookies sale, some for caroling to our friends & some for us! Unfortunately we didn't have any leftover for Santa tonight so he's getting Oreos. Here are some pictures. (Roman is not pictured because he was was in his bedroom, in trouble.)

Dallon's like me, he always get caught making the funniest faces in pictures. Needed Daddy's muscles to add the oats!

These scoops are a must for cookie making!!

Can you smell them baking?

Aren't they beautiful? YUMMY too!