TWAS THE NIGHT BEFORE CHRISTMAS...

And THIS was our tree!
I really wasn't in the so called Christmas spirit this year. I really wanted to take the focus off of the tree and decorations and gifts. In the end, I caved more than I wanted to, but I did it all for the sake of seeing the smiles on my kid's faces.

Santa must have felt bad for the kids, so he left them a little tree!

Gavin wakes up: notice my clean floors.

Gavin dumping out his stocking...and Zorro's butt!

Zorro enjoying a toy from his stocking

The Grinch strikes again! He unwrapped one of Gavin's gifts
and re-wrapped it in green duct tape.

About 20 minutes later...

Grisham FINALLY decided to join us! He was being such a punk and purposely wouldn't come out to the living room. He was in his room fake snoring.

Grisham starts to get into things when he sees M&M's in his stocking.

Clippo Hippo

Gavin was SO excited when he got this gift that he fell over! Check out the next picture to see what it was...

A mini donut maker! Gavin LOVED it!!!

Grisham is enjoying his chocolate so much that he was opening presents one-handed!

Grisham carrying his Santa gift

He got his very own white board and dry erase markers! Yay!!!

Gavin wrapped this all by himself for his dad.

Aaron was SO excited to get The A-Team movie!

Gavin picked this out all by himself for me. It's a beautiful, glass necklace pendant that has a piece of coral inside of it.

And this is why I said to notice my clean floors in the beginning!

OUR SWEET GRISHAM

Grisham lines his cars up all day long, every single day. This is his arrangement inside the cat tower. He gets really upset if you move one of his cars or if he lines them up on an unstable surface like the edge of the couch and they fall off. He's been doing this since he was one, but I've noticed that lately his arrangements are getting more elaborate. Sometimes it seems as if he's lining them up according to color. He's a very intelligent little 2 year old.

GAVIN'S 11TH BIRTHDAY AT GATTITOWN

How's this for a birthday cake?

I'm not really sure if he was honestly surprised to see Mamaw and Papaw there!

I can't believe how many candles were on that cake, um, I mean...pizza!

My silly Gavin

Gavin and Will on the bumper cars.

Look everyone, no hands!

Our beautiful family!

Gavin and Papaw

Gavin, "Aunt" Trish and his best friend, Will

Today I'm feeling so overwhelmed. I've been battling migraines since the beginning of July. Right now the left side of my head is numb again and I feel sick. I'm trying to homeschool Gavin while Grisham watches Elmo. I have to go to the bank today and take a friend somewhere. I also have to get ready for an event that I'm doing tomorrow. I can't count how many times I wished there were either more of me or more hours in the day. I feel like every day brings new things that need to get done, but I never finish the things from today or yesterday. So everything just keeps piling up higher and higher. I just want to cry and shut down to the world for a few days. But for now, I can't. I have homeschool, and event tomorrow, and tent revival that I'm helping out with on Sunday and Monday. Oh yeah, I have to practice praise and worship songs for the kids at church on Sunday too. It just never ends. I want to take this full plate and throw it across the room!

This is the prophecy that was spoken over us when Ed Trout came to our church on July 18th. I am so thankful to God for His timely word!

Speaking to Aaron: God has brought you here with a very faithful heart. You are very gifted in success, it is natural for you to succeed... you weren't the most likely man at school. Nobody saw any potential in you. When they saw only a shepherd in David, God saw a king. And God said I am going to make you more successful than even you dream possible. Because it is inside of you. You have this driving force that you just don't give up. If you fall down you just get up again and try again. You just, just don't care, you just get up, and God loves that about you, but he brought you into this house to train you, to mature you, because you have a faithful heart. You have loyalty, there's no disloyalty, there's no dishonesty, there is truth in you, you are a true friend, true son, true disciple, true everything, and he is going to use you and raise you up in this church. But God has planned you for the longevity. You are going to move house, but not move away, he's got another house that God's going to provide for you and he is going to provide a wonderful thing and bless you in your own business. God's going to bless you, that has always been his plan, that has always been your dream and it will come to pass and there's electronics everywhere, all around you, electronics, electronics, and internet and all kinds of stuff like that you will succeed in. And then as you succeed you will be in this house as a leader, as years go on and you will be faithful here and you will learn.

As for you ma'am, God is your healer, and your restorer. You have had so many things beat you up since a child, a young girl, and you always felt like you weren't supposed to be and the devil told you it was an accident and you shouldn't even be here on earth. It's a lie from hell! God planned you, God ordained this time for you to be here. Do you understand? There has been an onslaught on your life more than once to try and destroy you, and God says “I have kept my hand on you and anointed you to be one that would speak the word of the Lord and prophesy and I will bring healing in your own family without your help, without your involvement. I'm going to heal things and restore things in your family, but you are going to be a woman of God and all the hurt and all the sorrow and all the grief you went through is going to become the very tool that God is going to use to minister life to people. Do you understand that? God is your helper. As a sign to you there is something in your abdomen that is not working right at the moment, and as a sign to you when you get up off that chair it will be completely healed. That is a sign that you will know that God has spoken his word. Nothing is too hard for the Lord.

This word completely lines up with our lives. A few days prior to this word, I had started having sharp pains in my side. I had only told Aaron about it because I didn't want to speak about it much. There is much power in your words! After this word from Prophet Trout, I only had the pain one more time. Praise the Lord!

Our Baby Just Turned TWO!!!

He actually didn't mind wearing the hat!


My friend made this cake. Grisham LOVES Cookie Monster!


He's SO sweet, just like the cake! :0)

My little doggy after his bath.


This is a look Grisham often gives us.
He's SO silly!

My wonderful boys.....

My baby was so tired and not feeling well, so he fell asleep sitting up next to me. I love my kids with everything I have in me and can't imagine life without them! I am so blessed!!!

Our "New" New Years Tradition

Last year we did something as a family that we enjoyed so much, that we decided to make it a tradition! At the beginning of 2009, we sat down as a family and wrote out our predictions for what we thought would happen with our family before 2010. Then, during Christmastime, we sat down and got out that paper and read our predictions. It was an amazing, funny thing to read. I know that these pieces of paper will be treasured for many years to come. I think I will highlight all of the predictions that actually came true. I was so surprised at how many of mine actually happened in 2009.


Here are a few of my predictions from the beginning of 2009.


I will become a Scentsy Director. I came so close. Only one level away. I am very proud of that accomplishment.

Aaron will change jobs. He was part of a layoff at Clear Channel. He was unemployed for 5 months and is now a Sales Manager at Aaron's Rentals.

Aaron and I will be involved in church in ways we have not thought of. While Aaron was unemployed, we stepped out in faith and joined a leadership group at our church that cost us $400. God is doing great things in our lives.

We will have an awesome family vacation. Just after Aaron got let go from Clear Channel, we decided to take a vacation to Tennessee. We had a great time!


Feel free to make this a tradition with your own family. It is so much fun and a great way to make memories!