The Elf Is Everywhere But The Shelf...

'Tis the season...
 And this marks our second year with Kannon the Elf...

He made his appearance on Sunday morning BUT almost didn't come back on Monday...

However, Kannon believed Aidan and Kam deserved a second chance...

(Ignore the dust on the top of my refrigerator!!)...

Aidan was sweating it and was very relieved to see this little guy return...

Today we awoke to find Kannon playing Memory...

Aidan asked a bunch of questions about HOW the Elf could have gotten into the hall closet...

And why he didn't get a "match"...

And Kam was mad that the elf was playing HIS game...

We are off to a great start this Christmas season!...

Stay tuned for more of Kannon's adventures...

Then and Now ~ Six Months Later...

A tornado doesn't discriminate...

There is no rhyme or reason for what it destroys and what it leaves behind...

Six months later...

For some of the fortunate ones like my Grandparents...

This...

Has become...

This...

But it has come at a price...

My Grandpa and Grandma are not the same people...

They are tired..

Shaken...

Replacing all they have acquired in the last seven decades...

Yet finding things daily that are still missing...

More than anything though...

 They are grateful...

I am grateful...

In the month we count our blessings...

We will give thanks...

That even though our family was affected...

We walked away intact...

We will all gather around the table tomorrow...

Hold hands and bow our heads...

A tornado does not discriminate...

But it cannot compete with the protection our Heavenly Father... 

Time...

The hours in a day...

Minutes in an hour...

Seconds in a minute...

Are thine enemy...

Passing slowly...
 Longing for fast forward...

Flying by in a blur...
 Pleading for rewind...

A Mommy aches as she places a new photo in a frame...

Comparing the face to the one it will cover...

The same yet different...

She must come to terms with the irony of pushing them to grow up...
Regretting when they do...
The belief that we are ready...
That our hearts are ever prepared for the overwhelming loss of words...
To describe how deeply we love...
The lengths we go...
  The sacrifices we make...
Every decision surrounded by anxiety...
Full of doubt...
Yet never doubting the decision to become your Mommy...

Daddy Take My Picture...

He's what you would call a ham...

Finding every opportunity to make us laugh...

Then asking us to document it on film...

And who are we not to oblige...

Trick or Treat...TREAT for sure!

This year for the first time my boys and my sister's boys all got to trick or treat together...

Next year we will have little Jaylan to join our fun...

Welcome Kash...

I am not a dog person...

I say that and mean it...

When my husband and I got married he had two dogs that I wasn't crazy about...

And they weren't crazy about me...

For the sake of argument he gave them away...

So when the hermit crabs proved extremely boring and Aidan and Kam started asking for a dog...

I felt myself start to weaken...

I heard myself asking Keegan about different breeds...

Researching the top ten family dogs...

And then we found G-8 (a.k.a Kash)...

An AKC registered Vizsla who doesn't shed, bark much, smell or need grooming...

Who is extremely protective and loyal...

And  to top it all off is a bird dog {my husband likes to hunt dove}...

Who was delivered to our doorstep on Sunday, November 6th...

Becoming the fifth member of our little family...

And even if this "not really a dog person" girl absolutely did not bond with this puppy {which she did}...

I can promise that these smiles...

Are all I needed to reassure me that our family NEEDED a Dog...

We needed our little Kash...

Halloween Party Plan B...

I found the battery operated Halloween lanterns...

Bat and ghost shaped cookie cutters...

Had plates, napkins, cups and goody bag treats...

And planned a hayride through our subdivision...

But when I realized my Grandma wasn't going to make it...

I knew I couldn't handle the stress of hosting a Halloween party for our boys and their closest friends...

At first I refused to cancel...

I LOVE to host...

But when texting one of my closest friends she spelled it all out in capital letters...

CANCEL THE PARTY!...

I did...

That wonderful friend gave me permission to give myself a break...

Grandma passed away on October 28th and the party was supposed to happen on October 29th...

I must admit my friend was more than right...

And on October 29th we met the boys' same little friends and their parents at Chuck E Cheese's...

We let the kids wear their costumes and ate cardboard pizza...

I even made Halloween cookies and put together treat bags...

And I must admit we had a good time...

And I am pretty sure everyone else did too!...

Thank you friends for being so understanding and flexible...

We are incredibly blessed to have each of your families in our lives...