Another Thanksgiving in the books!

We now have enough left-overs

in the fridge to last us the weekend!

I'm trying to think of creative ways

to serve turkey for the next two

nights without us getting sick of it!

My absolute favorite left-over is

turkey sandwhiches on white bread

with mayo, salt and pepper!

Yumm!

We had pumpkin pie and

Georgia style pecan pie for

dessert.

Bren actually wanted pumpkin pie for breakfast

this morning.

And I, in a midnight madness sleep deprived haze,

thankfully gave her a nice thick slice

complete with a small mountain

of redi-whip.

I was happy to get out of scrambling eggs

or making french toast for her this morning.

That girl loves her french toast!

It was so great to not have dish duty!!

The kids all pitched in and got the job done painlessly.

We all settled in to a turkey induced coma

soon after sunset.

David and I turned in extra early so we could

hit the stores at the ungodly hour of 3am!

We were tenth in line at the NEX on base

and got everything on our list

within 30 minutes!

It was very well run.

They opened the doors at 4:00 so we could get in out of the cold

and wait the remaining hour inside.

I passed the time reading New Moon

the second in the Twilight series,

so the two hours we spent in line

flew for me.

They gave out tickets for the limited items

and served free coffee, hot chocolate

and spiced tea.

They also handed out coffee mugs full of holiday treats

for us crazy deal seekers.

Everyone was polite and cheerful

despite the early hour.

I bet Walmart didn't wait on their

door buster customers with such attention

to our comfort.

And so, after one sacrificial morning,

I'm happy to say that we are just about done

with our Christmas shopping

and were able to save a good chunk of money

along with all the other crazies!

Now to get them all wrapped!

Gobble, Gobble!!!

Happy Thanksgiving to all my

Friends and Family

across this great world of ours!!

We woke this morning to

gorgeous snow-capped mountains,

just another reminder of

all we have to be thankful for.

My family is gathered in little clusters

all over the east coast

and Florida panhandle.

Some are celebrating at well decorated tables

full of all the traditions of the holiday,

others are celebrating beside hospital beds

but one theme binds us all.

Our love.

No matter how far the Navy sends us from all of you,

you will always be in our hearts and thoughts

on special holidays like this one.

And I'm thankful for you all!!

My own little cluster will celebrate

with turkey and all the trimmings

at about 3pm today

followed by lots of football

and decorating the house

for Christmas.

I'll take photos all day

and post them over the weekend.

For now, here's what David and I did all day yesterday....

He's shipping out soon and wont be home until

just before Christmas

so we had to get a jump on the shopping.

Unfortunately,

we were slowed down by

Black Friday!

Almost everything we planned to get

is not out on the floor yet,

but we were assured that we could get our desired item

bright and early on Friday morning....

as long as we got in line by 3am

and got a ticket for our item.

ug!

So, we are gonna try.

Bleary-eyed and pumped up with coffee,

and freezing in line at 3 am on Friday

is where we'll be

because we are insane!

Here's some photos from our mostly fruitless trip.....

At least we got Bren almost done!!!

See these crazy people in line already?
This is Wednesday at about 4:30 pm!




And here we are this morning
watching the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade!




And Bren passing time while she watches
me work in the kitchen.




I hope you all are gathered around
a table full of loved ones
today!!

I leave you with a tradition in my family.
Ever since I was about 10,
my parents would ask me to quote
this verse that I had memorized
at the Thanksgiving table.
It's been a few years since I've quoted it
for their ears to hear,
but I think of it every year
and I'm sure they do too!

Psalms 100:

Make a joyful noise unto the LORD, all ye lands.
Serve the LORD with gladness:
come before his presence with singing.
Know ye that the LORD he is God:
it is he that hath made us, and not we ourselves;
we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture.
Enter into his gates with thanksgiving,
and into his courts with praise:
be thankful unto him,and bless his name.
For the LORD is good;
his mercy is everlasting;
and his truth endureth to all generations.

Wooooot!!!

So, if you signed up for Kid Trends Weekly

when I posted the link last week,

You got this surprise in your inbox

yesterday!

I was so excited

when Jillian asked me to do a cover

for their e-zine!!

Over the past year I have watched

and cheered as

some of my favorite

super talented photographers

have had their photos featured on the cover

of this widely distributed e-zine.

I never dreamed I'd get my chance too!

In speaking with Jillian

about how excited I was over this,

she said that it is her experience

that even the most accomplished

photographers count this as an honor

and add it to their portfolios.

Thanks, blog readers, for sharing

in my little burst of

"Holy Cow! Bren and I are on the cover of Kid Trends!?!"

The dress Bren has on

is by Sheila of Baby Go Retro

and is still available on her website!!

When in Rome.......

Do as the Romans do, right?

Well, when in Washington,

put up your Christmas lights

before any sane southerner would even

dream of pulling out the Christmas storage bins.

I get it though.

The weather here can turn on a dime

and when it does,

it's all over for roof climbing and

light hanging.

So, we followed suit

and started decking our halls

this week!

We haven't done anything inside yet,

except run our fireplace to take the chill out of the room.

But a glowing fireplace always makes me

feel all warm and holiday-ish, so to me

it's sorta like a Christmas decoration.

We'll start working indoors

this weekend after Thanksgiving.

Michael and David worked outside

adorning every possible area with

white lights.

Our neighbors have cornered the market

on flashing, chasing, colored lights

that are synchronized to music,

so we thought,

"why even try?"

ya know?

I love the elegant simplicity of all white lights though

and thankfully,

so does David, so there are no

"my way"/"your way" arguements over how we decorate.

They climbed on the roof
and got the job done pretty quickly.
They told me that the view from way up there
is completely different and
utterly awe-inspiring.
They think I should go up there
and see it for myself.
As much as I love beauty,
I also know that my knees melt when
I'm navigating unprotected heights,
and having just dealt with
a bone crushing injury,
I can't even imagine risking
it again.
So, I'll just take their word for it.



Here is our work in progress
glowing at night.

And yes, that is my crazy daughter silloutted in the window!

She got talked into checking out that fabulous view

that I'm too chicken to see!

We've still got a few things to do around the top floor windows
{and by "we", I mean David and Michael}
but it looks pretty good so far, huh?
Anyone else out there crazy enough to
put up their decorations
the week before Thanksgiving?

ummmmmmmmmmm......................

I don't even know what to say.

I was there at the innocent inception of this painting,

but I didn't see it coming.

David and I were helping in Bren's class

last Friday.

During center time,

Bren made a b-line for the art center.

There she began her symetry painting.

I was gabbing with the teacher

about how I was happy she was going to do some

colorful painting because there is a wall

in my kitchen that I would like to use to feature

some of my kid's artwork in frames.

Words I wish I could pop back in my mouth right now!

I watched as Bren plopped some colorful paint lines

onto one side of the white paper.

Blue, yellow, red...

this was going to look amazing on my wall!

It looked almost like three people,

and when she folded the paper in half

there would be six....

one for each person in her family.

Perfect!

But then,

she folded the unpainted side of the paper

over the painted side to make a symetrical print.

And that's when I saw it!

Somehow, her adorable, creative painting

no longer looked like six people.

Her masterpiece hung to dry in the classroom

until Monday afternoon when it came home

in Bren's backpack.

Bren proudly handed it to me

and with much fan-faire,

I ohhhed and ahhhed over her color choices

while David and both of my sons

could hardly breathe from laughing so hard!

So, now

I have six colorful and surprisingly anatomically correct,

penis's

that I'm expected to frame and hang in my kitchen!

sigh.

Seventeen Years Ago Today......

I became a mommy!!!

Our oldest son, Zach

is 17 years old today!

Since I was just 17 last year

{I was, really. Just ask my dad!}

I have absolutely no idea

how I ended up with a 17 year old of my own!

You know how in the movies,

they always show a mom or dad

having flash backs of when their teenager

or adult child

was just a little kid?

Like when a kid is getting his driver's license

they'll show the dad having flash backs of teaching his

son how to ride his first bike,

or on her daughter's wedding day,

the mom will have flash backs

of her little girl playing dress up when she was 4 or 5?

Well, I've been having those alot lately.

I keep seeing this vivacious little boy

with blonde hair, daring green eyes

and the greatest belly laugh you ever heard!

He's running, laughing, jumping

busy with little boy things,

hardly noticing me at all.

He'll run through the room

and as soon as I

reach out to pull him on to my lap,

he's gone.

And I miss him.

Those same daring green eyes

look back at me now through bangs that cover

way too much of his handsome face.

He's almost 8 inches taller than me now

and way too big for my lap.

True to his Scott-Irish heritage,

He's always been full of fire

and fight.

He entered this world, wide-eyed and curious

and he's been trying to take over the throne

ever since!

He's a very head strong and opinionated kid.

He's right.

Always.

No black or white.

Ever.

But lately, I've seen a little hint of change.

A new maturity in him that

manifests itself in a slight concession of pride.

A little bend in opinion.

A willing glimpse into another's perspective.

Perhaps a spark of compromise.

I see it glimmer and it grows.

The gift of Zach in my life has taught me

determination, patience, selflessness,

endurance, reliance on God

and the importance of grace.

He's brought such joy to his Father and I

and we are immensely proud of him!

Standing on the traditional threshold of childhood,

peering into the vastness of adulthood,

Zach has an exciting year of change and growth ahead of him.

We are excited to see what this last 365 day journey toward

a great milestone

will hold for our tenacious young warrior!

A soul satisfying view!

No matter how hard I try,

I will never be able to do this view

justice with my camera lens!

It's like a different light show
from God that takes our breath away every night!
I've been known to call home when I'm out
and about at sundown and the mountains are in view
just to remind whoever is
home to look out the window and
see it for themselves!


There are lots of things I'd change about
the house we live in, and honestly
about life in general right now,
but this view is not one of them!



Every time I see it,
it's like a reminder to me that God
specifically designed his creation
for our pleasure.
I am reminded of his vast love for me
and the fact that he knows me so well.
He knew I would need this view.
He knew I would need the comfort it gives me
knowing that even when things aren't
exactly as I'd like them,
He's still there.
He's still King
and I'm still his daughter.
You know, that's just like my God!
It's just like him to quiet my anxious heart
with something that speaks to my soul.
He knows I love beauty,
and beauty he has given me....
times a million!
When I stand at the window
or on the deck, as I do several times a day,
it's almost as if he created this view
specifically for me
and just me.
That is how personal it feels!
He's doing the same for you.
Look around today and
see if you can spot his
soul-satisfying gifts
created especially for you
and just you!

The rookie season comes to a close.....

Last Saturday marked the final game

for the ponytail posse!

Bren had so much fun this season
and made lots of new friends.

She learned alot about the game of soccer.

She scored five total goals this season.

We are so proud of her progress

and can't wait until next season!

Tonight we'll have an end of season

team party at a pizza place.

David is making a slideshow of all the

photos I took during the season.

And, as a team gift to the coach,

I got one of those frames that you can sign.

I picked out three photos to put in the

frame and we'll have the girls

sign it for him.

I think he's going to love it!!

He is such an awesome coach and

poured alot of time and energy into

these girls!

See ya next year, Ponytail Posse!!!

***

In other news:

There is a big surprise coming on November 23rd!!!!

But, in order to see it, you must sign up

for this e-zine.

Just follow the link and make sure you

check the box for kid trends ages 5-9.

You will receive this fun e-zine in your e-mail inbox each week.

Its full of unique gifts and fun finds for the kids in your life.

There's also an incredible give-a-way

that will be announced any day now.

It's for a $250 Daisy Rock Guitar, so make sure

you get in on that!!

And watch out for the issue coming on

November 23rd!!!!!

My Daddy is a Hero!

HAPPY VETERAN'S DAY!!!

I thought I'd put this up tonight because

there's no school tomorrow and we are

sleeping in!!!

{woot!}

Bren learned this chorus in music class at school this month,

and she's been singing it around the house for weeks!

On Friday her school had an assembly for Veteran's Day.

The verses of this song were sung by young soloists

and all of the students sung this chorus in unison.

It was so beautiful!

And so, here's Bren

and her Veteran's Day tribute

with special dedication to her own hero, her Daddy!

She says:

"I love my daddy, he's a hero and he's on the Abraham Lincoln."

{ Turn my music player off before hitting play}

Fall Faves

The prints from the Fall social are in!

I'm busy packing them up in gift bags

to deliver to the school on Wednesday.

Here are some of my fave's from the night!

I feel like I've been editing all weekend!

I can't wait to post more photos from the newborn session.

I have some great ones of big sister Mattie too!

I've also got a video I'm going to try to post tomorrow

in honor of Veteran's Day,

but for now, here's a photo I took on Friday

at the Veteran's Day assembly that

Bren's school held.

I distracted myself as much as I could

by fiddling with the settings on my camera

and trying to look all involved in my shutter speed selection

so I would not give in to the tears that were welling up in my eyes.

It started when the 4th graders sang the military medley

and all of the service members stood when they heard their song.

I saw a few grandpas stand with pride gleaming in their eyes,

and I felt my face getting hot.

But, it was all I could do to maintain control of myself when a few

young soloist sang the verse of a beautiful song

called "I'll Always Be An American"

and the rest of the school kids joined in the chorus.

There is just something about a choir of 300 elementary school kids

singing a touching song about American heros.

The tears fell anyway,

but not in the all-encompassing,

public image threatening way

that they would have fallen

if I didn't have a diversion in my hands.

Have a happy Monday, my friends,

and give a nod, a smile and a thank you to a military person

if you happen upon one this week!

Swoon!!!!

Oh my goodness!

I just love it when a plan comes together!

I've been wanting to do a newborn shoot

like this for about a year.

I was so excited when my friend

Jessica gave birth last Wednesday.

I got them into my studio as quickly as I could!

The session lasted a little over five hours with lots

of comfort (and social) breaks.

I shot both baby Calton and his big sister

Mattie.

There were over 350 photos to go through

this morning.

I decided to sneak peak just a few

for Mom and Dad who I know are anxious to see them!

I haven't even gotten to Mattie's solo

portraits yet!

A complete lack

of decisiveness follows:

Sigh!!!

Can you pick a favorite??

This last one I call, "The Womb".

I love how it turned out,

but next time I'll try it on a colored backdrop

and see what I get.

So, I've got my baby fix now until my little Nephew is born in March!!