Yee-Haw!

Yesterday I had the opportunity to attend the National Western Stock Show with my kids. After a suprise snow storm (see above!), my hubby's rushed trip to buy chains for the van, figuring out how to put them on, returning home to take them off because the roads were only wet (total I-told-you-so opportunity, which I resisted), and a very slow drive to the complex - we made it! The storm turned out to work in our favor because it seemed to have kept many people home. I hate crowds when I am with my kids. Serious anxiety attacks. But that is a blog for a different day.

Back to the four-legged fun!

Instead of giving you a play by play, I will just share a few of my many pictures.

Back-Stage with a Professional Rodeo Clown:

There is more room in there than in my old apartment!

Watching the Cowboys:

I loved the lightning bolt mark on this horse.

Petting Farm:Happy was very popular after she spilled their food in her coat and hood.

I know it doesn't look like it, but she really loved this over-sized rocking horse. I think it was me she was getting annoyed with! :)

Laughing at Others' Expense

I have not been very good at reading my favorite blogs. Many, admittedly I have just marked as read. I am trying to keep up with the ones people I know in real life write, but even that is a struggle at times lately. I blame Facebook. You can too.

Tonight however I was trying to catch up a little. I had triple-digit unread entries.

Oh the humanity.

After catching up on my real-life friends I went on to my bloggy friends and came across this gem that had me falling out of my chair I was laughing so hard. I have shared her blog here before so she may be familiar to you all. This woman always brightens my day and this is why. In particular is the part about her dog. My parents have a cute wiener dog and so I could totally picture this scene.

I am still laughing! Thanks, Sarah!

Again, Merry Christmas.

FaLaLaLaLa....

Do you ever have one of those moments where it seems as though God is speaking to you so clearly it is hard to breathe? I am having one of those moments so what do I do? Pray? No, I blog.

I am not sure what God is trying to speak to me. I think I am a little too excited to listen well. I am 6 years old. Maybe it is the Christmas spirit, or the music or my parents driving out tomorrow, or my {adorable} children tucked all warm in their beds. Honestly it could also be the wine I treated myself to this evening. Whatever it is, I am feeling very blessed and happy and peaceful. And again so very blessed.

WARNING! If you have small children who can read and who do not know about the big, jolly guy ask them to leave the room before continuing.



Seriously.












Now.








All clear?







OK. Z is almost 9. Honestly this may be the last year of Santa for him. He has already started asking a few questions that lead us to believe he might be catching on. Truthfully I am not the best at being sly. Even when I am trying. I suppose it is a good quality that I am a horrible liar. Just ask my parents.

ANYWAYS!

So truthfully this may be the last year that has that magic for all of my children. That innocence that tells you truly {anything} could happen. I will so miss it. I will cry. Because I am a girl and that's what I do.

I also remember being the older sibling and getting to play along to make Christmas special and magical for my little brother. Z will love that. He is just that kind of kid.

As melancholy as this could make me feel I can't because for our entire lives, and the lives of all of us, we get to celebrate the true Magic of this Season and the greatest Gift we could every hope or dream of! The Almighty Father's gift of His Son so that we could be saved. Wow. Even typing it many many years past first learning of this Gift, it still blows me away. We are so blessed to be loved with a strength that is incomprehensible to our feeble minds.

So for this year at least, we will enjoy all the magic of the big, jolly guy and the true Magic of the season.

See why I feel so blessed!

On a totally different topic...

Many of you have been praying for my cousin and her/our family. First thank you so very much. There were a few very scarry days. I wanted to let you all know she is home and recovering well. Better yet she is glad to be home and alive. We are so thankful for that and all the prayers that carried us through. We have no idea what the road ahead will be, but He does and with that we can rest peacefully. If you think on it, please keep her in your prayers.

So with that I wish you and yours a very merry and peaceful Christmas filled with love, joy and laughter. If you are traveling, please be safe. If you are hosting, please be patient and let the little things go so you can enjoy your loved ones.

This Mother's Dream

Sing to the tune of I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas. Please remember I am no Anita Renfroe.

I’m dreaming of a clean kitchen
Where meals are cooked and counters clean.
Where laundry is ironed,
And I’m not so tired,
And offspring play peacefully.

I’m dreaming of a self-cleaning mirror,
And reflections that won’t make me scream.
I love the little fingers,
And the ones who own them,
But why do they have to be so greasy?

I’m dreaming of a hot shower,
That lasts long enough to rinse.
No, I don’t want to answer the phone!
May I please have just 5 minutes alone?


And now the real thing:

Take a Chill Pill

I admit it. I have been avoiding blogging. Not that I figure I was that missed or anything. Truth be told I have been a bit of a grump lately and I really do not want my posts here to be a never-ending vent-fest. Positive, funny, uplifting - these are the attributes I strive for. These are things that have been missing from my attitude and actions lately and I am not sure why.

Additionally I have had the attention span of pocket lint lately. Seriously. I will get a cute idea for a post and begin forming it in my head, only to be completely distracted by something meaningless and all my cute ideas are gone in a blink. Trust me they were completely fascinating, insightful, funny and heart-warming. Honest.

I am living a chicken-and-the-egg metaphor as well. I am not sure which happens first but a daily snowball wrecks havoc on our home in a never ending volley of my kids not listening to me or being mean to each other and me repeating myself and yelling and threatening to ground them for all eternity. Whichever is the initiator the end result is always the same - yelling, crying, big sighs, big threats, regrets, and guilt - and then my unsuspecting hubby comes home and is ambushed.

Wow, so this turned into more of a vent that I had wanted. And in true ADD fashion I have forgotten the point I wanted this post to be about so instead of rambling until I find a point I guess I will just end this here. Aren't you glad you stopped by?