Outtakes of the Originals

Could there BE a more hilarious group of siblings? I think that one of the reasons why I always longed for a brother or sister as a child was because of this crew. Who wouldn't love being a part of something like this?! I cannot imagine how stressed my Heaby must have felt at times trying to wrangle this crew. I can't even get them to behave to take a picture!

Here they are...convinced Brother not to go home yet so I could get a shot.

Alright...how are we putting our hands?

No, wait...look over here!

That youngest one is trouble. :)

And now everyone is joining in...except Sister Mary. She's still being good, as usual.

Now Sister Mary has given in...but Brother is still standing still...and getting totally annoyed at the antics.

Aww, look, now everyone is having fun....now...off to the porch!

Alright, Brother, put your hand down...

There we go...a shot perfect enough for a Christmas card! If Heaby could only see them now...

School's Out!

There's no greater feeling as a child than the "feel" of Christmas vacation looming. Today was no exception as Audrey's class had their little party and packed up for a few weeks.

Realities from the day include the following:
*a mad dash from my campus to Audrey's campus to make it in time, but a blessing that one of my dearest friends from college rode along with me
*an almost knock down drag out between me and the Mr. about how to get the crock pot full of homemade hot chocolate (thank you, Pinterest!) into the building
*an armed guard at the entrance of the school, with a long line, as visitors were checked in and screened one by one (breaks my heart at why it has to be this way, but after the events of last week...)
*me resisting creating something cutesy that would be time intensive to give as a gift to each child...instead, we brought Christmas bendy straws...but I really think my Pinterest reindeer food would have been super cute
*realizing that this is probably the only time that our family of 4 will get to go to a school party together
*Audrey crying later that afternoon asking to see her "best friend"....she sure does miss her Natalie

20 weeks and counting...

My Littlest Angel

This morning, Abby surprised us all and made an appearance in her school program as a Christmas angel. I've been asking her for the past few weeks what she was going to do in the program, and the best I could get from her was that she was going to have some bells and sing Jingle Bells. I had NO idea that today's program was going to be a "production!" We had shepherds, and wisemen, and elves....and my favorite...the angels!

Just as soon as their little songs were done, the kids shuffled out just as quickly as they came in...

...and because there was no time for posing or crazy moms wielding cameras, my little angel flew right past me in a blur. No time for camera setting changes....and just like that she was gone.

This picture is pretty indicative of how this whole season has felt....just a big blur. But, we are counting our blessings along the way, even when the angels are among us for just a little while...

Christmas Show at the Studio

Christmas time at the dance studio means that parents are invited behind closed doors to see what all the tiny dancers have been up to. My dad is the official "dance mom" for Abby. HA! Thanks to a morning dance class time, I'm not able to go, but he makes a great fill-in. And...since Ben's work schedule is all crazy right now, he got to go, too!

My tiny little tapper loves to do her shuffles and her boogie woogies!

And, oh that chalk initial brings back memories. This is the same little floor that held thousands of chalk "J's" for me through the years.

A few days later, Audrey had her turn at performing. She put together a snazzy little ensemble. :) I was really impressed with the barre work that the girls did tonight. This first grade class is working through the same Al Gilbert combinations that I did. I am getting a bit panicked for my child...next up is the buffalo and the maxi ford!! I am pretty sure that these other girls have been technically trained for years, and despite Audrey's dance enrollment since before she was two, it was NOTHING like this. Maybe Audrey should ask for a cd to practice with at home. Yikes! (I am a proud momma, nonetheless, just feeling a bit helicopterish when I see what her dancing friends can already do!!)

She relaxed a bit when it was time for ballet and the girls did a precious little routine, with lots of spins and twirls and plies.

It can't be a party without the traditional juice and cookies! We had our dessert first tonight...

Oh I just love that my girls are getting to dance with the best! Mrs. Tina keeps hinting retirement. The first recital that I danced under her direction was in 1988, but she still looks exactly the same!

Wonderland

Another tradition that we've seemed to create is our annual trek to my college town for their Wonderland of Lights. This year, we started off the evening with a Walk Through Bethlehem sponsored by a local church. I'm pretty sure it wasn't of the grandeur that some of my blogging friends have experienced, but my girls enjoyed walking through the "story" of Jesus being born.

The sanctuary was decorated beautifully, and the tour guide allowed us some time to snap some pics of these cuties, who by the way, are sporting their jackets from our DISNEY TRIP! I guess I wouldn't have complained so much about dropping that much money on a must-have for a cold night in Orlando if I would have known that two Christmases later, they'd be wearing them still. ;)

We headed over to the courthouse square to check out the lights and play a bit. Two spoiled girlies, right there...we waited in a massive line for tickets to slide....and you wouldn't have believed the wait for the ice skating rink. I'm not kidding when I tell you that I could have driven to the Dallas Galleria and gotten on the ice more quickly than we could have here. Seriously. An ice rink in a small East Texas town is apparently a big hit!

These little Christmas cuties had fun posing...

...and even more fun dancing. This courthouse rotunda quickly became a stage for my girls, and later on in the evening they somehow made their way up onto the main stage in front of a crowd. They do love an audience!

And what to our wondering eyes should appear? But a "closed" sign in Santa's workshop. Apparently, he flies back to the North Pole at 8:00, and as luck would have it, we walked up at exactly 8:02. Fake Santa by a trash can will have to suffice for this season.

Despite the craziness that we're feeling this season, these two have been perfectly content to just go with the flow. Oh, if we could all see Christmas through the eyes of a child...

Gingerbread Houses

Our Christmas season has been interesting so far. All of our worldly possessions are in storage, including our trees, our stockings, our lights...every little "thing" that made Christmas seem like Christmas is neatly packed away, awaiting its return for Christmas 2013. Until then, we are doing our best to keep up some of our fun traditions. Tonight it was gingerbread house night!!

Knowing what you know about my girlies, can you guess which house belongs to which child? House #1 is perfectly symmetrical (hmmm...wonder where she gets THAT from?!) and House #2 is a glorious conglomerate of goodies.

I will say, though, that in all the craziness of filling up Grandmother and Grandaddy's home with all our belongings, our noise, and our sillies, these two have become quite the pair. I am certain that they've made an irreplaceable connection over the past months, simply because they have had no other choice than to live right smack in each other's space.

19 weeks and counting....

A Week of Second | Identity

Entry #4: IDENTITY: Branches

I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.

—John 15:5

Tonight I just have no words as I wrap up my fourth post of the Live Second blogger launch week. We just came in from a fun filled evening of Christmas lights and all the wonders that the season has to offer. My mind is elsewhere, though. I cannot stop thinking about those babies in Connecticut. The stories are starting to pour in. The list of names has been broadcast. The ages on that list...6 and 7...bring me to tears. 

Oh come, Lord Jesus. Our world has not remained in you. Apart from YOU, we can do nothing.

A Week of Second | Success

This week, I'm working with the fabulous folks at I Am Second to help promote their newest book, Live Second. Earn FREE products if you purchase by Saturday. 

Entry #3:  SUCCESS: Camels


It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle than for someone who is rich to enter the kingdom of God.
—Mark 10:25

The daily passage that I'll be sharing today deals with money and our love of money. This verse used to confuse me. Does it mean that "rich people" won't enter the kingdom of God? Absolutely not. God uses this comparison to show how easy it is for people to put money first. Now, upon first glance, I wouldn't really consider my family to be rich by any means. I could make a list of names for you right now of all the people I know with more square footage....with more "toys"....with more vacations....with more designer clothes....with more luxury in every possible area of their life. We're a middle class family by all standards of the term. But when we pull back the lens a bit a take a peek at my life compared to the rest of the world, then by THOSE standards, why yes, we are rich.

Favorite quote from today's reading:

"Entrance into his kingdom has nothing to do with job titles or 401(k)s or manicured lawns, and everything to do with our heart, our affections, and our priorities."

What if I stopped worrying so much about Ben's next position at work, or my next degree, or what kind of tile will be in my next bathroom? What if I stopped caring less about my girls' clothes, or what neighborhood we will live in, or what brand my purse is? What if we spent less on going out to eat, or ordering junk online, or the latest and greatest "thing" that everyone else has?

Living second is hard.

12:12 on 12/12/12

Where were you at 12:12 on 12/12/12?

 

 I was trapped in my classroom with kids that were finished with their benchmark tests! Our math minded neighbor came to our room to announce what time it was, and the rest is history.

A Week of Second | Relationships

Joining up today with bloggers around the world to promote the newest book from the wonderful people at I Am Second. Books are available in stores and online beginning this week, and there are FREE things for you if you get one between now and the 15th. 

Entry #2:  RELATIONSHIPS: Love Defined



If I speak in the tongues of men or of angels, but do not have love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal.
—1 Corinthians 13:1


My assignment for today was to take a look at an entire week devoted to relationships, and throughout each day I noticed that the underlying theme was love. God's love for us, the love the we should have for others....all relationships, big or small, are affected by the way that we love.

Reading through it the first time, I, of course, thought of love towards my husband, my girls, my parents, my family....but it caused me to think a little more deeply about just how far reaching our love should go. What about the waiter at the restaurant? What about the stranger on the other end of an annoying phone call? What about the people you work with? Or the people you are waiting in line with?

My absolute favorite line in this particular day's reading was this:
"Love is not a line on our to-do list. It is the whole list..."


And, just for fun, here's a quick promo video to learn more. As I've talked with people this week in my new town, I realized that there were very few that knew what "I Am Second" was. Living near Dallas, I was used to seeing billboards, bumper stickers, t-shirts....so if you've never heard of it, watch this!

A Week of Second | Struggles

Today marks the beginning of Launch Week (December 9-15) for the new book Live Second by Doug Bender. I will be joining hundreds of bloggers around the world as we walk through four posts as they relate to four different sections in the book. 

You can get your own copy of Live Second in stores and online beginning today!

Entry #1: STRUGGLES: Death to Sin

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its evil desires.
—Romans 6:12

Life around here these days has become pretty routine. We're all used to the fact that Ben lives in another town, and we count the days until he returns "home" for a few days. The girls are settling in a little bit more each week. It's really not all that bad anymore...we're becoming quite used to the way that we do things around here for now.

I'm a mom, a wife, a teacher, a daughter....there's not a whole lot going on in my life that others would look at from the outside and see something I'm "doing" as a sin. So often we think of sin as a list of things that we shouldn't do, but how often do we take a look at the list of things that we SHOULD do, but we're NOT doing.

For starters, I've yelled at my kids more times than I can count over absolutely ridiculous things...for wanting to change clothes 5 seconds before we walk out the door....leaving crayons and art supplies scattered everywhere after repeated pleas for someone to clean it up....for taking too long to go get ready for bed...I could go on and on. Often my reaction to them is less than kind, yet almost daily, I find myself falling into the same routine. Maybe it's not them that needs to change...maybe it's me.

Or what about the fact that I have become more consumed with what the interior of my next home will look like, and less consumed with fervently praying about all the steps that need to fall into place before we even GET our next home? I have a criteria in my little planner head of mine....the house, of course, should be symmetrical with columns and dormers, have a light shade of granite in the kitchen, should be a certain number of square feet, should have a large garage....and again, I could go on and on. Things that are of no eternal value have been weighing heavily on my mind for quite some time.

To LIVE SECOND is to put CHRIST FIRST. Daily I need to remember this....

A Hometown Hallsville Holiday

Tonight was the night that Audrey has been waiting for all week...her big debut on a stage in our hometown! It's very surreal to take my kids into the same places that have been familiar to me for so many years. This cafeteria is the same place where I waited anxiously for my turn to go on stage to get my kindergarten diploma, it's where I spent every day at lunch in high school, it's where my dad received his "Citizen of the Year" award...lots of memories in this building, and tonight, my girls made some fun memories of their own!

Grandmother is still not 100%, so she had to stay behind. Grandaddy came with us for our front row view of the cutest little candy cane dancer around!

I just LOVE it when this sweet girl spots me in the crowd! The girls were part of the pre-show entertainment. Ironically, I found out later that one of the little girls standing RIGHT beside Audrey is the daughter of one of my dearest friends from high school.

Audrey was GROOVIN' tonight...and if you've ever seen Audrey dance, then you know that she likes to add her own little flare to whatever it is she's doing. Tonight was no exception, and there were lots of extra shimmies and shakes to the beat. :)

The actual production tonight was amazing...I must say that I was quite pleased with the caliber of tonight's performance. Leaving Dallas theater behind has been an "issue" of mine, so it was a great surprise to see a show in my old high school auditorium that would rival any Christmas production in the city. They even made it snow!!

After the show, the kids were invited up on the stage to greet the characters. Audrey and Abby, having front row seats, made a beeline to Santa. They were so funny around him...very reserved and definitely trying to stay on the nice list!

There were lots of other characters to greet, too. Rudolph....the baker from the polar express...

...a gingerbread man and Frosty...

...a toy ballerina and a Christmas tree...

...and of course, a hippopotamus! (Because everyone wants a hippopotamus for Christmas, right?)

And, for your entertainment.... :)