Thanksgiving

We spent Thanksgiving in Kaufman with Nonnie and Bubba. We had a great time playing and relaxing. Below are the only pictures I took all weekend. I got sick on Thanksgiving night and didn't feel well the rest of the weekend. I ended up having strep then Campbell got it a few days later. Fun stuff! In spite of that, we have so much to be thankful for this year!

We had a great time making turkey cookies...

Judd & Bubba are real pros at decorating! I only get to do the dots on the feathers and eyes!

We were laughing so hard we couldn't see!

Charlie & Uncle Judd - this is HUGE! Up to this point, Charlie has NOT been a fan of Judd AT ALL! She wouldn't talk to him, give him a hug, or anything. They made great progress over Thanksgiving!

The cousins playing at Nonnie's school

All five!

The two youngest - Scottie - 10 months and Campbell - 2 1/2

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas...

We completely decorated the house for Christmas the weekend before Thanksgivng! It was so nice to have it done!

This is the first year for Campbell to have a tree in his room. We put it on his train table and set up a track around the base of the tree. His tree is decorated with pine cones and dark green and bronze ornaments. We were going for an "outdoorsy" theme.

Bailey's tree has hot pink, lime green, and teal ornaments. I just love the initial ornaments on each of their trees!

The tree

Close up of the topper - we tried something new this year

Dining Room - One of my favorite things is my Christmas dishes. I actually have more Christmas dishes than regular dishes! This year I got brave and decided to set the table with dishes. I love how it turned out! The kids haven't even touched them and it keeps our table clean!

Close up of the dishes - chargers, plates, and soup bowls - all from Target. I began collecting these after we got married. For several years I bought place settings or serving pieces after Christmas when they were half off!

Entertainment Center

The mantel - my favorite!

Sofa Table with my Willow Tree Nativity & Santa pictures over the years

I love changing the ribbon and message for holidays/celebrations on this plate!

Upward Awards Ceremony

The Upward season came to a close today with the end of season awards ceremony. Every football player and cheerleader was recognized and received either a backpack or football. We had tons of families gathered on our little field and the gospel was shared. I just love how Upward is a combination of sports and Jesus. It has been great for our community!

Bailey and her team cheered one last time.

Bailey getting her backpack from Coach Magen.

Eating hotdogs...mmmm!

Bailey & Pickles

We can't wait to do Upward again next year!

ABCDEFG...

This makes a momma proud!

Baylor vs. A&M

Football season has been more exciting than usual this year because our Baylor Bears have been doing well. We're bowl-bound! We went to the Ferrell's house to watch the Baylor vs. A&M game with them. The kids had a blast and the grown ups enjoyed visiting while watching the game. Let's not discuss the outcome of the game though...

Paisley and Presley have a balance beam in their living room!

Little Bears and Little Aggies

Nick and Jaime made dinner and we brought desserts. I took "Baylor Bear Lime Jello Cake" and "Aggie Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars." I was excited to try the new cherry recipe (which was awesome!), but there was no way I was going to show up with just a maroon dessert so I had to make something green as well!

Cherry Chocolate Chip Bars

1 (16 oz) pkg refrigerated chocolate chip cookie dough

3/4 cup quick cooking oats

1 (8oz) pkg cream cheese, softened

1/3 cup sugar

1 egg, slightly beaten

1 t vanilla

1 (21 oz) can cherry pie filling

Preheat oven to 350. Lightly grease an 8x8 baking pan. In a large bowl break the cookie dough into large chunks. Knead in the oats. Press 2/3 of the mixture into the pan. Bake 12-15 minutes or until crust is set. In another bowl, beat cream cheese and sugar until smooth. Stir in egg and vanilla. Spread cream cheese mixture evenly over the crust. Top with cherry pie filling. Dot with remaining cookie dough. Bake for 20-25 minutes or until set and lightly browned. Cool completely and chill for 2 hours. (We ate it warm and it was awesome! Then we put the leftovers in the fridge and ate the rest cold. That was good too!)

2.5

Here is what Campbell Clark is up to at 2 1/2 years old:

• Says, "I wanna hold you" when he wants to be held.
• Says, "I can't want to" instead of "I don't want to."
• Loves Woody and Buzz and every other Toy Story 3 character
• He's still a Daddy's boy and cries whenever Momma picks him up from school.
• He sleeps with his sister almost every night.
• Calls Bailey "Bay-Bay"
• Knows his full name
• Can count to 14
• Knows A - G of the alphabet. He knows other parts of it too, but not correctly.
• Sings "Itsy Bitsy Spider," "Row, Row, Row Your Boat," and "Wheels on the Bus"
• Hates collared shirts! He always throws a huge fit when we dress him for church on Sunday mornings.
• He's not potty trained, but CAN do both #1 and #2 in the potty...He just doesn't WANT to!
• Likes to watch the Wiggles on TV
• He is very tempermental, especially in the mornings! For example, he may choose cereal for breakfast, but change his mind a minute later and throw a huge fit!
• Wears size 24 months or 2T in pants, 2T or 3T shirts, and size 8 shoes
• Sings the chorus to David Crowder's "How He Loves" and calls it the "Jesus Love Me Song"
• If he doesn't want to wear something he says, "It too fit." I guess he's trying to say it's too big or too little.
• Loves to sit on the kitchen counter while I cook
• The ONLY thing he wants for Christmas is a Buzz Lightyear bike!
• He knows who Santa is, but is already saying that he is NOT going to sit on his lap! One night this week, I asked him if he was on the naughty list. He said YUP!
• Says he's going to have a Woody-Cowboy birthday party when he turns three
• Loves Wal-Mart & McDonalds
• LOVES balls
• He says he's Amber's boy
• He's so smart! The other night the kids were watching a video. As letters from the alphabet were displayed on the screen, Bailey called them out. Campbell repeated her, then said, "I so smart!" He cracks me up!

A Trip to the Zoo!

After three failed attempts this summer, we finally made it to the zoo! We didn't have Upward last weekend because it was opening weekend of deer season. (I'm serious...apparently there wouldn't be any coaches, refs, or dads present! That's small town Texas for ya!) My good friend Rachel and I took advantage of the beautiful weather and headed to the zoo!

Our trip was perfect timing because Bailey was the Star Student of the Week at school. That means she got to bring home Bananas the monkey! The kids in her class take turns taking Bananas home then they draw pictures and write in a journal about what they did with him over the weekend. Bailey was so excited to take Bananas to the zoo! We had to get pictures of Bananas with the real monkeys!

Look at this guy!

watching the monkeys...

We love Colton!

We saw tigers (who Campbell called Sealy Tigers)...

bears...

elephants...

and so much more!

Campbell is ready to brush the goats!

Colton, Bailey, and Campbell

Campbell & Bailey acting like prairie dogs

Best Friends!

Momma's little monkeys!

Storybook Parade

For the past two years, Bailey has participated in the Storybook Parade at the kids' school. The kids dress up as their favorite book character and parade around the block holding their favorite book. This was Campbell's first year to do it! He wore his Woody costume (again) and carried a Toy Story 3 book. They always have this event right after Halloween...probably to give the kids another opportunity to wear their costumes!

It's a big deal with a police escort and drumline!

Campbell walked with a friend and the assistant director

Kindergarten Homework

Judd and I worked really hard on Bailey's homework this weekend! In our defense, it was a "family" project. We had to disguise a turkey so it won't get eaten for Thanksgiving. We were supposed to cut the feathers off of the turkey and dress it up (turkey in dressing...get it?) Bailey wanted her turkey to be a Baylor cheerleader so here's what we came up with...

Hard Day of Parenting

I had high hopes of making chicken pot pie for dinner tonight. I put the chicken in the crock pot this morning and planned on putting it all together after work. That is, until Judd called me this afternoon and said that if I planned on having chicken pot pie for dinner, I'd better go to the store and buy some. I apparently did not turn the crock pot ON this morning! That's when I decided I would take the kids to McDonalds for dinner! (Judd had to be at church early this evening so the kids and I were on our own.)

After we finished our dinner at McDonalds, the kids had an ice cream cone. As they were licking away on their cones, an elderly lady walked in. Now, this woman was old. She was wearing a house coat, winter jacket, and bulky velcro tennis shoes. She walked with a cane and had no teeth. I'm pretty sure my children have not seen many people like this before in their little lives. Upon seeing her, my son pointed at her and said, "Look at that lady!" I was mortified. Bailey giggled. This made Campbell say it again and laugh along with his sister. As I rebuked my children, I scooped them up, threw away the ice cream, and headed for the door before the lady made it out of the bathroom. After I buckled them up, I told them how disappointed I was that they pointed and laughed at someone. I told them that pointing and laughing is not nice, especially to an old person. Then Bailey said, "God, please forgive us." It stopped me in my tracks. Why didn't I think of that? She never ceases to amaze me. I took that opportunity to pray with the kids about what had happened...saying sorry for what we had done, asking His forgiveness, and praying for the old lady whose feelings we had probably hurt.

Parenting is hard...and humbling.

I snapped these pictures before the pointing fiasco.