Last night, we headed out to look at Christmas lights. It's always so
fun to drive around and peek into the windows of some of the largest
homes in our town.

Here's the typical car conversation while looking at lights...

Perry sees a house that has lights everywhere - windows, doors, even the
basketball goal. "Dad - let's put lights on our basketball goal next year, 'kay?"

Phil - "If you put blue lights up on your house, does that mean you are Jewish?"

Lori - "These houses are ginormous. What do these people do for a living?!"

I also love Christmas homes tours. I didn't go on any this year... just
ran out of time. But every year before this one, I would buy the
ticket, walk around in someone else's home and admire their Christmas
decorations, trying to figure out how I could make it look just as
lovely in my home. All the while asking myself "what do these people do
for a living?"

I. MUST. STOP.

Our home is our home and we love it. It will never be the largest or most
decorated home in the town, but it is our home and we have made it very
special for the three of us. Join me now as I take you around our home
for our Christmas tour.

Come in the front door... make yourself welcome.

Our dining room is just off to the left of our front door.













Our living room... (my comfort zone)

I like to display all my Christmas picture cards so each post in our living room is adorned with the holiday cards so that I can look at them daily.

Come on upstairs now to see Perry's Christmas tree. We put it up each year while he places all his ornaments on it. He collects different ornaments each year based on what his interests are. This year he added Lightning McQueen and Towmater ornaments, as well as a new Tony Stewart ornament and the one he made in Sunday School a couple weeks ago.





And no home is a home without the Chiefs fan Christmas Tree - located in our Chiefs rec room...

Thank you for stopping by. I hope you and your family have a wonderful and blessed Christmas.

Labels: Christmas

My good friend Katrina at Callapidder Days just posted one of the funniest things I have read this holiday season... you have to click here to read it. Go there now and then come back to me, pretty please.

Her post today was particularly funny since this happens to me ALL the time, and not just the holiday season.

I'll even have my husband stand in one line, while I stand in another, just to see who can reach the cashier first... and he detests this. If it wasn't such a competition, I really don't think he would do it. Forget a good game of cards when we get home... we just get in separate lines at the discount store and see who wins. We both like a bit of competition every now and then.

Last Friday as we stood in line together at the big box toy shop, we ran into another obstacle... our own. We got to the cashier - extremely fast - and as she is scanning our items happily along, one comes up without a price. Of course, I always think that the item should then be "free." Don't you just wish you could make this a new law?

It has no price, therefore it should be free.

So we stand there, waiting patiently, striking up a conversation with the gentleman behind us that "he should have known better than to get in line behind us. Didn't he see the sign on our backs that we have wrong line syndrome?" Fortunately he laughed with us... informing us that we were "wise to shop on Friday instead of Saturday for it will most likely be a disaster tomorrow."

Just like Katrina, I too have experienced the joy and benefits of online shopping this holiday season... now if I could just figure out a way to order my holiday dinner online and have it delivered.

I took this quiz because I just knew that I would pass with flying colors... I LOVE me some grammar!

My mother - who taught 5th graders for over 30 years - would be so proud. She is my greatest influence to read everything you can get your hands on at a library, write correctly, and use proper grammar.

I am also employed by an ad agency. The majority of my peers here are college-educated, journalism-degreed, creative individuals. But you would be amazed by the grammar that is used in memos, emails, and even agency message boards.

Hideous, I tell ya!

If one more person sends out an agency-wide memo informing everyone that "your invited to partake in sweets at the bar," I will forever roll my eyes and sigh a heavy sigh in disgrace of their grammar mistake.

But then again - why sweat the small stuff, right?

Besides, I would be awfully cranky if I didn't get invited to the bar for all the sweets being gifted during the holiday season. I just love me some sweets!

Labels: fun

This past week, as I was finally finishing up all of our Christmas decorating, I decided to light some votive candles I had found in some boxes. I thought to myself "they look a little dusty, so lighting them will clean them up."

Yet I didn't realize that one of the votive candles sat directly under our flip-top tv that is tucked away under our cabinets.

This is what happened... the candle burned a hole in the front panel and charred the back side of the tv.


I was noticing that something didn't smell quite right, but I just chalked it up to dusty votives. Had I not decided to blow them out just about 10 minutes later, I imagine that I would have caught my kitchen cabinets on fire, thus releasing my home in flames.

I am so very thankful for the blessings that Christ has given to us this Christmas season. I am very blessed that I have a home to decorate for the holidays, and I am very thankful that He took care of me and our home that day.

Labels: home

The ride home from school after picking up Perry can either be very quiet and introspective - especially when it's been a tough day (for him and for me). And mind you we only live 3 blocks from the school so we can't get much in during that time. Or it can be very talkative one.

Today was a talkative ride. It went like this...

"Mom, I saw Caden in the hall today and told him that I was going to be over at his house on Saturday."

"What did Caden say?"

"Cool. That's how me and Caden talk - in the cool language. I told him I was going to wear my jersey over to play and he said sweet. That's just how we talk - cool and sweet."

Okay - the new cool language. Thanks for introducing your almost mid-40's mom into this new language. I sure would hate to be the uncoolest mom in the 'hood who doesn't know cool.

Labels: family fun

I saw this game on Amazon this afternoon. It looks like a great game to play on Game Night with our Sunday School friends. We get into boisterous men vs. women rounds of DVD Scene It and The 80's Game. I think the men are still winning against the women - but just you wait - the rematch is on December 16th.

I think my husband had another idea for this game yesterday afternoon though... he calls it...

Shout at the television as loud as possible so that all members in the rec room run upstairs and hide. And if I jump up right in front of the television screen and yell even louder, I'm sure the coach on the sidelines will hear me.

Perry invited a friend over after church this morning. Our good friends (who also teach our Adult Sunday School class) have a wonderful little boy in Perry's SS class named Joshua - the oldest of 3 boys in his family. Perry and Joshua have known each other for many years and they are like brothers. I'm sure Joshua is used to a noisy household and all with 3 boys and a fun dad that reside there with him, but seriously?! I don't think he was in the mood to play this game at our house yesterday afternoon.

Today I emailed his mom to make sure that he wasn't traumatized. "Surely you jest", she stated... "Joshua also too sees his dad yell at the tv on Sunday afternoons." He obviously thinks that's what all dads do on a Sunday afternoon in their home.

Now I'm just trying to think of a new Sunday family tradition for the moms. I think it goes something like this...

At approximately 6:00pm, shout to the microwave and oven in our kitchen that all fixing of dinners have been banned this evening, and I will be heading here - alone - and returning near bedtime.

Ahhh - I like that new tradition.

Labels: family