{Thanksgiving & Black Friday}

It's beginning to look alot like Christmas at Coffee With Me huh? I really like it!! Okay, so how was your Thanksgiving? Ours was fantastic, for lunch we ate at my Aunt Pam's and Uncle Jerry's house and had so much fun and alot of food, we were stuffed, then we had dinner at Papa and Honey's house ( my sis's inlaws) and again, sooo much good food, I honestly didn't think I could ever eat again! My brother's daughter Natalie spent that night with us and she and Hannah had alot of fun, while I went to bed around 8:30 so I could be up at 3:30, yes, I am insane. I was at Kohl's at 3:40, I live about 2 miles from the shopping center, they opened at 4 this year and had somethings I really needed, and... I got it, I was so happy! I saved $50 on a Barbie Glamour Jet for Hannah, and Terri got one for her girls, she also got alot more stuff for her little guy, such good deals. Then we walked over and joined the line at Target with mom, the line was wrapped around the building, and once the doors opened at 5 we got in and got everything we had hoped to get, no problems! It was busy but we had really good luck, no one was going crazy or anything like that it went very smooth at both places, we did have to wait in line for over an hour at Target but it was fun, we would take turns watching the buggies and stroll around for more deals, and then mom went and got us coffee and muffins at the deli area, we had the best time! Between the 3 of us we had 2 full buggies full of awesome deals, we were really proud of ourselves!!!

The rest of the weekend was full of spending time with our family, more eating, laughing, playing, sleeping in, and just being thankful for each other and what we have. Now it's time to kick it into Christmas mode, I'll start getting some decor from the storage tomorrow, we lost some Christmas stuff in the flood, so I don't remember what all I have left. We'll get the tree next weekend since we get a real one and don't want it to dry out too quick. My brother took our family pictures this weekend for our cards this year so I will be working on getting that done also. Hope everyone is resting from your Thanksgiving fun!

I was looking back at my post a year ago today and I am going to write about the same thing, because I hope I always feel the same way and have that Thanksgiving spirit. I love the week of Thanksgiving, it's so exciting to anticipate all the fun! We are not traveling this holiday, we're staying right here with our family and my brother and his family are coming in from Austin, I can hardly wait!! I have done my shopping, so all I have to do is make and bake, I am taking green bean casserole, love the smell of french fried onions, it says Thanksgiving to me, also corn casserole and a pecan pie, we are going to have so much food, and I love the leftovers :)
Cameron, Hannah and I all got haircuts yesterday, so we're ready for out Christmas pictures this weekend, the kids have a 2 day week, so they are ready for their break, lots of cousins to play with!

On another note, I am so sad that Jon & Kate are over.. what are your feelings?

{Turkey lunch at school}

Jim and I are going to have Thanksgiving lunch with Hannah at school today, good ol' cafeteria food!! it will be fun though, she is very excited, when I asked Cameron if they were having one he got very appalled, "no mom, we're in middle school we don't have our mommies and daddies come have lunch with us" I was like well sorry!!! ha! I don't like this growing up business, it's not working for me! :) It's raining today and cold, feels good though, not much going on this weekend, Hannah and her cousins are spending night with mimi tonight, and so far that's all that's planned, I like it when we just go with the flow! I am so excited about Thanksgiving, and then Black Friday, (that's a whole other post)

I better get back to cleaning, breaks over!
Stacy

{Basking in the coziness}

Such cool, cozy weather this is, it's about time it felt like fall and Thanksgiving for that matter! I love the cooler weather, such a nice break from the warm weather. As I have said a few posts before about Thanksgiving not getting it's glory, I am making sure to voice what I am thankful for everyday, and you know, that's not hard to do, I feel very blessed in my life and am thankful for it. But today I want to say how thankful I am for my family, truly the best!!!

I just compiled a list of what I am going to bake for the holidays, I have 6 goodies, and they are sounding mighty yummy!!! I try to pick up a few items everytime I go to the store, so it won't be so expensive doing it all at one time. I love to bake goodies for neighbors, teachers, my own family (can't give it all away) :) and for Thanksgiving I love making casseroles and baking pies, can't wait!!! love it!!

[Football}

Saturday was Cameron's last football game of the season, wow it went by fast, but he had alot of fun. They had the milk bowl which was played at the high school stadium, which is brand new and of so nice, they felt real special on the new turf! the weather was fantastic! love this picture of my guys...

waiting to get his trophy...

random field pics!!

{Todays Funny}

{Sneezy}

I am suffering with allergies or a cold, I never know the difference, ha! I am stopped up one minute, nose running the next, and sneezing like crazy, this is not fun, Jim is doing the same thing and the kiddos are kinda snorty too. Maybe because it's Nov. and it's too warm for this time of year, I am ready for ccccold weather, bring it on!!! Cameron's team won their game last night 24-0, what a game, they did great, Go Raiders!!! and Hannah almost has her backhand spring down perfect, I am so proud of my kiddos for achieving in what they do! I have a few things to take care of around the house including getting my beef stew ready for the crockpot, I love the smell of that cooking! and I am going to go over to mom's house and take Kirby so he can run around her backyard, being in an apartment he doesn't get to run free outside, (he would run off) so he needs some exercise, he told me the other day he missed having his own backyard, I told him he would have another one one day, haha! Well, that's about it for now, have a great day my friends!!!

{Thanksgiving}

Somtimes I think that poor Thanksgiving gets a bum deal, it seems we go from Halloween to Christmas, my husband has always been bothered by that too, he said let's enjoy Thanksgiving and then we'll dive into Christmas. We should really be thankful for Thanksgiving because it's a no gifts and no pressure holiday, just a day to eat and be with your loved ones. My sister and I were talking yesterday about this and how we have always loved Thanksgiving, the parades, cooking delicious casseroles and pies, it's a very warm and cozy day to me. I am going to do a thankful jar for our family to put what we are thankful for and discuss them at dinner time, I think the kids will really enjoy this activity. I love this plaque that sits on my bar and it's there all the time not just for Thanksgiving, I am also loving my turkey, love turkeys!!!

{What we need is more child labor...]

that's an attention getter huh? I was reading another blog about some kids who were learing a lesson in helping their parents chop and haul wood, they would put it in wheel barrels and haul it to it's destination, and so forth, the mom thought this was a good lesson in teaching "survival" or rather just some good hard work. Another blog I read or several that is, have gardens and the kids help pick, wash, sort the goods. And it really reminded me of my kids... NOT hahahahaha!
Yesterday evening my kids were playing on the playground and it was getting dark, so I yelled for them get their bikes and come home, my sweet Hannah responded "NO"!!!! really loud and clear for the whole apartment complex to hear, and I stood looking like an idiot, that is so Hannah, such a rude little toot. And when I ask Cameron to vacum the stairs he says "no, it really hurts my back" me and my MS, lower back problem self says "oh really???? get busy bud!
And he does, but not without complaining the entire time. Let's see, can I come up with another one, oh sure I can, but we don't have that long do we???? Oh, I adore my babies, they just need to get to work, earn their keep!!!!

I am so in awe of what God has done in my life in the past week or so, I can finally live in the present and look forward and not behind, I can feel happy and really be happy, I feel free to be, with no barrier in my way. I learned a few years ago in a wonderful bible study to be specific in my prayers, tell him what you need, I never thought of it that way and ever since my way of praying has been totally different, I really wanted God to tell me what I needed to do to to feel better again, to get out of my funk that I had been in, and when we set a definite date as to when we were going back to Corinth, it was his way of saying "quit putting this trip off, make a decision, just go, visit your friends and family and soak them in, and know that it will then be alright", and wow, was it ever!!! I could just sing his praises for holding my hand through this, he knows, that's the bottom line, he knows...

{Our Halloween}

Our Halloween was full of fun, all day long! Hannah won a costume contest at our apartment festival and then we went to my sisters house for a super fun party, lots of fun food and snacks, trick or treating, and old fashioned bobbing for apples, and roasting marshmellows in the firepit! the kids loved it!