Happy New Year!!!

Some of our dear friends invited us to join them at Olive Garden for dinner. They had been blessed with a few gift cards and wanted to share their blessing with us. It was such a sweet time! We had all the kiddos with us so luckily we were seated in the very back corner of the restaurant. We chose NOT to take that personally!! :) Great company...Great food...Great conversation! What an awesome end to 2008!

What a Gentleman!

I don't know about you, but the 2 week Christmas break from school is something I always looked forward to as a kid. I wanted to do a few special things as a family to try to counteract all the chaos that surrounds this special season. I asked Trey what he would like to do on his break from school and he came up with a pretty good list! He wants to see LOTS of Christmas lights...check. He wants to play LOTS of video games with dad...check. Play with Shaefer...check. And last but not least: take me out on a date!

Yesterday was our date. He was SO cute! He asked Alf's permission to take me out the night before. Alf laid down the ground rules for taking out his wife...he even gave us a curfew! :) While I was getting dressed, so was Trey...all the way to his "boy smell" (that is what he calls Alf's cologne). Around 11:00am I was at the computer and he asked me if I was ready to go. I said absolutely, but you have to pick me up at the door. He went outside and rang the doorbell. Alf answered the door, reminded Trey of our curfew and off we went.

Our first stop was McDonald's for lunch. We ate in the play area and had some great conversation. Trey played a bit before it was time to go to the movies. We saw Madagascar 2: Escape to Africa. It was cute. Trey spent most of the movie with either his ears covered or his eyes closed. I love my sensitive boy! I know God is going to use that part of his personality in a huge way one day. Our last stop was a cookie store on Main Street. They make the most beautiful decorated cookies. We noticed they also serve Blue Bell Ice Cream! I opted for a warm cookie while Trey dove into his Birthday Cake flavored ice cream.

We had a great afternoon! I can't think if anything cuter than seeing my 6 year old open my door for me and hold my hand. I will cherish this time with him forever! I pray he does too!

Stolen Traditions

Hi. My name is Kelly. And I steal traditions from other families.

One of the MANY things I admire in my best friend Amanda is her ability to create memories with her kids. She has been able to begin traditions with her 3 little ones that they will remember for a life time and hopefully carry on with their own families one day. One very fun tradition I have stolen from her is CHRISTMAS PAJAMAS. I mean really...what kid does not look cute in pajamas. Then you add Christmas to it and you have memory magic!! :)

Here are a few of our 2008 Christmas Pajama pictures:

And for giggles...a few outtakes:

And for a few more smiles...one from last year:

The Half Marathon is OVER!!!

This past Sunday I participated in my first half marathon: The Dallas White Rock Marathon. I have much to say, but I am too sore to do anything right now! :) Hopefully in the next few days I can begin to verbalize this very emotional experience. Thank you for all of your support and prayers! I felt it!!

What do you think?

Each Tuesday I have the awesome privilege of meeting with a group of ladies for Bible Study. Beginning January 13th we will dive into a new study together: Desiring God by John Piper. I've never read this book, so I thought I better get a head start. I'm only in the Introduction and it's already blowing my mind! Here is a quote that I have been chewing on:

The chief end of man is to glorify God by enjoying Him forever.

I will definitely be sharing more as I get further into the book. I want to hear from you on this quote. What do you think? How does it make you feel? What is your initial, gut reaction? Even if you don't agree...I still want to hear what you have to say! :)

My New Kitchen!!

Here it is friends...MY NEW & IMPROVED KITCHEN!!!

Kitchen Update - IN PROGRESS

I've heard many times that home improvement projects ALWAYS take longer than expected. Well, we definitely proved that theory right! My sister and I are what you would call "planners." When the project began, we got out our calendars and marked the weekends that we would work on the kitchen along with what we wanted to accomplish on those designated days. Our intentions were great, but reality set in quickly...a month long project turned into a two month project! Let's just say I have a few new best friends at Lowe's!! :)

We couldn't have done this without some dear friends: Mark, who had way too much fun knocking down my wall. Jamie, who had all the right tools and experience to make it all happen. Steve & Cathy, who were grouting fools as our birthday party deadline was looming. Lori, who lent her painting talents. Casi & Matt, who offered the budget and manpower. And Alf, my husband, who dealt with the process! :)

Enjoy the "in progress" pictures! Be sure to check out the "before" pictures too!