Bouquet...For Him!

It's that time of year....the time to stress over what you are getting for people that you don't know all that well. For most of the men folk in my extended family I am a big giver of gift cards, can't go wrong there. But, I hate handing them an envelope to open amid all the boxes and paper. This year I had my cousin-in-laws name (his first Christmas with us.) I asked his wife what he might want and the best we could come up with was a Lowes gift card. I decided to get a bit crafty and headed down to the good ole Dollar Tree. I got some floral foam stuff, tissue, rope, tools, and skewers. A little hot glue later and TADA! A bouqet of tools and a gift card, just right for the man that could care less :-)! Merry Christmas!

A couple of things...

1. Kirk hated that Santa message for earlier. Totally freaked out. He doesn't mind Santa as long as he brings the gifts and leaves. No talking though.

2. I went to Subway tonight to get me, the boys, and my mom some food before the Christmas parade. This random stranger cut in line ahead of me. He just wanted to get a couple of cookies. He said "I will get these, and whatever she is getting." and pointed to me. He just looked at me and said "Merry Christmas." It's sad that the world is in a state that I don't know if I should think this was kindness or creepiness. It's the holidays, so I'm going with kindness. Danny's suggestion was to pay it forward. So, who wants a free sub?

Lil' Sebastian

Meet our newest edition, Sebastian! I've always wanted a white, floofy dog, always. This year, Danny said that if I wanted him to be my Christmas gift I could get him. Yee! I must be a glutton for punishment though. Arg, I forgot how much work a new puppy could be. But, this dog loves me. I mean for real. Things don't always love me or enjoy my company. This dog does. He is an amazing snuggler, too!

Coolest Thing Ever!

Customize a message from Santa to your child. Kirk is going to love this!

Click HERE to view his.

Mortality

This has been a bad week to be a pet around the Wilson estates. Last Friday our dog of 5 years, Libby got hit by a car. Today, my parent's dog of 12 years, Buster died. This has created a lot of talking time between my 3.5 year old and me. He's not upset by it at all. There are just a lot of questions. Questions that I can't answer. It's not that I don't know the answers, I do. It's mostly that I can't answer them on a 3 year old level. He is way more inquisitive about it that I expected him to be.

His questions start out kind of like this:

"Where is "Livvy" now?"

"Is she with Heavenly Father?"

"How did she get up there?"

"What did Pap (the area pet bury-er) do with her?"

"How did Pap get up to heaven?"

"Did Pap have to die to take her to heaven?"

"Since Livvy is with Heavenly Father is she alive again?"

"If I ask Heavenly Father, will He send her back to me?"

The more questions I answer the deeper his questions get.

I think next Family Home Evening we are going to have the glove spirit/body lesson.

I'm not smart enough to be a mom.

Charity

My best friend (who just so happens to be my sister) Marlee is a pretty awesome gal. This year instead of presents she has requested that her family donate to a good cause. I thought I would share that with you. It is a organization called My Charity Water which will help drill for and supply water in Ethiopia. I am planning on donating some and I thought that maybe some of you in the blog world might as well. It is the season of giving, of course. Click here to find out more.

Yeeee!

Ok. So. 2 things.

First, for the first time since I've been married I officially have health insurance. We have been pretty dang poor these past years (not that we are suddenly rich or anything, but it looks like that we might have a dollar or two extra!). So, now I can go ahead and get sick and not have to freak out about dying at home with no medical care.

Second, I ended up not putting up my tree. BUT, I have started baking. I need to share this recipe. It is one of my most favoritest cookie recipes ever! Chocolatey. Caramely. Nutty. Just right!

CARAMEL FILLED CHOCOLATE COOKIES

1 c sugar

1 c brown sugar

1 c margarine, softened

2 tsp vanilla

2 eggs

2 1/2 c flour

3/4 c unsweetened cocoa

1 tsp baking soda

1 c pecans, chopped

48 rolo candies, unwrapped, duh

1 tbls sugar

Combine 1 c sugar, brown sugar, and margarine; beat until light and fluffy. Add vanilla and eggs, blend well. Combine flour, cocoa, and baking soda in a small bowl. Add to sugar mixture; blend well. Stir in 1/2 c pecans. Cover and let chill about 30 minutes for easier handling....cause you will have your hands all in this! For each cookie scoop about 1 tsp of dough. With floured hands, shape dough around a rolo, covering completely. In a small bowl, combine 1/2 c pecans and 1 tbls sugar. Press 1 side of the dough ball into the mixture. Place nut side up 2 inches apart on cookie sheet. Bake at 375 for 7-10 mintues until set and slightly cracked. Cool for 2 minutes then remove from cookie sheet.

These are so good. I made a ton of them yesterday. We had hot soup for supper and then ate these as we watched the Christmas devotional. It was fantastic! I always make a lot of treats during December and then freeze them for giving out later. Let me tell you, these are just as fantastic frozen as they are warm and gooey! Yum!

I give up.

Our signing date got moved back. Again. To the 12th. I'm saying forget it and putting my tree up tomorrow. This is the longest I've ever gone without having my tree it. I would rather put it up and take and down in 2 weeks than to only have it up for a bit. So, tonight begins the Christmas baking and the tree goes up tomorrow. I've waited long enough. It's time to get festive!

Dear Family,

Despite what you think, food does not just magically appear on the table at meal times. I put work and time into making these meals, no matter how small or elaborate. I am growing quite tired of all of you turning your noses up at everything I put before you. Sure, we could live on pizzas and pj&j. That would be a lot cheaper and a heck of a lot easier on me. But, I am trying to provide for your well being. So, suck it up. Try it. You might actually enjoy it. I know I do.

Sincerely,

Your disgruntled family chef

I am venting to my blog mates because, frankly, I don't think my 3 year old or 20 month old (or 26 year old for that matter) needs to hear mommy complain. So, there. It's out of my system. I can be nice again! :-)

I suck.

We are closing on our new house in a little over a week. I have zero desire to clean this house. Half of everything is boxed up and I feel like there is no point in cleaning up all the other stuff. Don't get me wrong, I'm doing the dishes, laundry, tidying up, etc. But, there is no way I'm cleaning all the crevices. I'm kinda blah about it.

But, here's the new gal. She's not the biggest or the fanciest. But, alas, she is ours.

I love Andy Dwyer...

Therapy: Halloween Edition!

Joey's lovely physical therapist decided to do a sensory therapy session/craft. I was thrilled!

Getting those feet painted.... (while munching a string cheese, I might add)

He hated it.... Too much feet tickling and holding still for this baby!

Hannah, Joey, and his ghost feet!

She even did Kirk's too......he didn't want his picture made.

I've been crafting...

My Kirkly has had some sort of plague going on for a few days....so, I've been trapped inside...just me, my craft supplies...and pintrest....new addiction. So, I've tried my hand at a few things.

First of all, these lovely candle holders. Dollar store glass candle holders, craft glue, and sticks. Throw some apple cider candles in there. Yum. Fall is here!

Next up, this doll of a wreath. I wanted to make a hallowed out book. (I did. Not pretty. Not posting pictures.) I had all the gutted out pages and I couldn't throw them away could I? So, cut out some leaves glue them to a dollar store wreath. Done. Here's an interesting fact, this book was about Hitler. Something is ironic and humorous about having Hitler decor in my house. In fact, if you look at the leaves closely you will find all sorts of interesting thing....Nazis, sexual tension, and someones bowels being expelled. Good stuff.

Pumpkin Patch

Danny and I took the kids to a pumpkin patch today. I have been BEGGING to go since Kirk was born and Danny finally broke down and took us. It was a blast. Even Danny enjoyed it. There was a wagon ride, petting zoo, hay maze, pumpkin picking, bouncy houses, train ride, "haytona" raceway, and play sets. We spent 3 hours there and I took a ton of pictures (more of them are on my facebook). Here's a bit of what we did:

Train ride!

Our 4 pumpkins

One of my favorite pictures of the day

Then, I tried to get artsy fartsy....

New shoes!

Danny brought in new shoes for the boys....LEGO SHOES! He was the hero of the day. They are kind of atrocious, but they were on sale for like...$5 each. Yeah. Plus they are legos. Win win.

Tom

Kids Eat Free

http://www.frugalliving.tv/free-stuff/kids-eat-free.html

Here is link with different restaurants that offer free meals for the kids. Check it out!

Yard Sales!!

Me and my mom love us some yard sales. Usually, it is a whole bunch of junk that I wouldn't give away. Today, we racked up. My best buy of the day was similar to this:

Yea, it was $15. Table, tracks, train, station, and all the other stuff. It's not in perfect condition, but I figure it wouldn't be after my kids played with it for a bit anyway. Then I got a new booster seat for Joey for.....$1. This stuff, along with what I have been hoarding away in my closet for the past year, will complete the kid's Christmas. On top of that some random person gave me a big box of fabric. Granted, it is kind of ugly and I may never use it, but, it was FREE.

Yay for being thrifty.

Oh and by the way....

Parks and Recreations is one of the funniest shows ever. Just got caught up on netflix and I think I shall go back and watch it all again. Seriously. Hilarious.

nerves

Doctors appointments with the shortest man always make me nervous. Even if it is just a check up. Going to the nephrologist in Memphis tomorrow. I think I'll go power down some BBQ chips and the coke in my fridge. FFL. Fat for life.

Halloween Crafts!!

The fam and I made Halloween crafts last night! Eeekk! So exctiting!

We made trash bag ghosts to hang in the trees!

Danny helped make this cool window decoration!

And the 3 of us big people made jack o lantern/jar luminaries.

It was a pretty great night!

Fro-fro baby

Ah, the Joey man and his curly locks. They are sweet. Every lady that we walk past at Wal Mart touches it. But man, is it a mess. The back of it knots up and mats up and looks gross. So, I did some research and turns out satin sheets are easy on the hair. I packed the boys up and off we went to Babies R Us. Guess what? They have none in stock. They could order me some, but...those suckers are $20. What?!?! So, what else can I do, but make my own. Hancock Fabrics had their satin on sale, so it my grand total was around $8 for fabric, elastic, and thread. I googled some tutorials and it was actually a very easy thing to make. Plus, it looks pretty snazzy!

Yes, that is storage behind, under, and around the crib.....we've got to make use of every inch we have!

He's totally worth it, right?

There are almost no pictures of the boy where he is not eating or covered in food.

Don't tell, but I had to put his hair up in a ponytail....He may hate me one day, but, man, it is so dang cute!

My Internet Is BACKKK!!!

Get ready, cause this blogs about to blow! (singing it...you know....just like KE$HA....you know you were thinking it....)

Is it fall yet?

It's still too hot for me.

I'm fighting off putting up my fall/Halloween decor.

I already have the kids costumes lined up.

Why can it not be fall yet!??!!?!?

Artists!

We surfaced into the heat yesterday a bit. We busted out the good ole pudding paint.

We painted each other...

Kirk painted a picture...

Joey mostly just ate it...

My little artists!

And how could I not post a hair picture??

Lately....

Ok. So. Yea. Love these boys!

Fancy braces on a fancy boy!

I'm all about bribes, so I made recommend holders for my RS class!

Dad "fixed" the Joey man's hair.

I suck at blogging lately. I'll get it together...

Caution.....TMI.....

My sweet 3 year old went potty the yesterday. I could hear paper rustling in the bath room. He came out saying "I can't wear my undies, cause I'm wearing this!".....

Naked on the front, but totally covered on the back.

No net

My internet is still broken. I'm too cheap to fix it. So, I am forced to come down to my parents house and hijack their computer. Bwahaha! I have lots of updates, but another time.

Urg...

While we were in the hospital, lightning ran in on our router...totally killed it. We've have gotten 2 more since then and I can't get either of them to work. No internet. No netflix. No Call of Duty. We don't know what to do. Heaven forbid we have to watch a regular movie or even read a book or something. Sheesh.

Hospital

My baby is sick. We are in the hospital for probably the next 2 nights. In the words of the 3 year old. I DON'T like this.

Boys

This weekend, we had the opportunity to keep our niece. What a precious girl. Always polite, loves Barbies, quite a little lady. It made me realize....I have boys. Dirty, stinky, rambunctious boys. When she had the Barbies out Kirk chased them around with a T-Rex trying to eat them. Kirk let out little stink bombs and proudly proclaimed "Allie!!! I tooted!!" She would gasp and say "Kirk!" in a very motherly little girl way. She brushed doll's hair while he threw blocks and ran around screaming. It was quite a different world. I would very much like to have a little girl of my own some day, but for now, I guess me and my boys will make mud pies and gas jokes and terrorize our borrowed Barbie collections with our giant dinosaur collection. Either way...life is grand!