Rummages to Rodeo

2008-10-21T13:26:00.000-07:00

Future Cheerleaders...

Just a side note...#54 is for Brian Urlacher on the Chicago Bears.

Meet Gator

2008-10-13T13:11:00.001-07:00

I would like to introduce to the newest member of our family, Gator. He's a 6 week old American Bulldog. We have been looking at the English Bulldog breed for awhile now, but it seems that to get one with a good health pedigree you have to spend ALOT of money. We saw a sign a few weeks ago for these American Bulldog puppies and went to see them. We kinda knew going that the chances of us walking away without one were pretty slim, and we were right. They were only 4 weeks old at the time and so we were able to go pick him up on Saturday. Chad liked the name Gator because his mouth is going to be huge!

This is actually Gator's dad, Dozer. It's kinda hard to tell how big he is in the picture, but he's 150 lbs of pure muscle!

Dozer again...

This is Gator, isn't he so cute!

Grayson and Laila were loving him. In a few weeks he's going to be bigger than them!

Livi LOVES him!!! We told her it was going to part of her responsibility to help train him. She's doing pretty good with him, until he grabs on a little to tight with those puppy teeth!

His first bath, and boy did he need one!

Livi isn't the only one loving him! :)

2008-06-24T17:10:00.000-07:00

Who is That Woman on the Back of the Motorcycle and What did She do With My Mom????

Peggy Ames and her daughter Faith (sorry, I didn't get any pics of her) were out riding around one night last week when they decided to stop by my parents house. Peggy and my mom did some cooking together a few weeks ago and are starting to be pretty good buddies! Somehow, she talked my mom into taking a ride on her bike and thankfully stopped by our house! Chad was outside when they drove up and we all (Livi, Maddie, & 3 more nieces & nephews) ran outside to see what the commotion was. I could not have been more surprised to see my mom on the back of a motorcycle! Peggy took her around the block and brought her back safe and sound! Thanks Peggy for a fun memory and a great blogging piece!!

2008-06-09T19:58:00.000-07:00

My Little Daredevil!!!

All I can say is she doesn't get this from me! I STILL don't like the high dive!!

2008-04-19T16:22:00.000-07:00

Fun in Indy...

For Livi's birthday my aunt wanted to take her to Indy to Build a Bear as her birthday present. I was excited to go of course because it's not often I get to Indy to take advantage of their great shopping! So, early Friday morning my mom, Livi, & I headed out to pick up my aunt and we were off. Our first stop was Build a Bear and I must say I was quite impressed. I have heard lots about it but have never actually been there. It kinda reminded me of American Girl because they had everything possible you could think of, only for stuffed animals instead of dolls. She quickly picked out her favorite animal, "stuffed" it, gave her a bath, and went on to pick out some outfits. Probably an hour later we were all done and have a new favorite friend in our house, Lucy the bear. After that we went down to Libby Lu. I have been wanting to get her ears pierced for a few years now, but Chad didn't think it was necessary to put her through the pain. Lately she had been talking more about getting them pierced (with some encouragement from me of course) and we called daddy on the way over to Indy for permission. He finally agreed and and her ears are now the proud new owner of "diamond" earrings.

Standing outside the Build a Bear store getting ready to go in.

Lucy's first bath...

Lucy's all dressed and ready to go in her prom dress and glass slippers...

Close your eyes and we'll count to three...

All done!

2008-04-19T16:15:00.000-07:00

Update..

Thanks to all of you who asked and prayed about Chad's head. All is well and it healed up nicely! He will have a crooked scar on his head as a reminder of the incident, but we are thankful it wasn't more serious! Thanks again for all your concern. It was a true blessing!

2008-03-29T20:31:00.000-07:00

WARNING...The following pictures may not be suitable for the faint of heart! Please proceed with caution!

This afternoon Chad went to work on a paint ball course that he & a few buddies put together last year. It took a beating over the course of the winter, and with nice weather hopefully coming soon, they are ready to start playing again. He hadn't been gone very long when he called and said he was coming home. I was suprised, but didn't really think much about it. Before he got off the phone very casually he suggested I get ready because we were probably going to have to take a trip to the ER. He was driving a t-post into the ground with a post hole driver when it got caught and came down and whacked him on the head. He was hit so hard that it split his head open. Soooo, 4 hours later he came out with 2 staples & 7 stitches on his head.

When he does something, he does it well...It was about a 2" gash on his head!

I call this one his mug shot. I took it because if you click on the pic to blow it up you can see the split in his head.

The ER doc gave him several shots to try to numb the area a little bit & then proceeded to give him 6 staples. However, when all the stitches were in the Dr. wasn't happy with the way one area was closing up. He was afraid of the scar it would leave on his head. SO, he took out the 4 middle staples and started stitching him up.

This is the final outcome. He had a pretty big bump too from where he got hit, so it was starting to hurt by the time we were all done. The doc stapling, pulling them out, & then stitching didn't help either! =)

2008-02-23T18:18:00.000-08:00

Wipe Out!!

A little way over on the hill someone had made a bigger ramp out of snow. The girls wanted to try this one out, but after what happened on the small one, we decided that probably wasn't the best idea. However, the more Chad watched people go down, the more he wanted to try it. Thankfully, no bones were broken! =)

Is this really a good idea???

Too late to back out now!

This is going nowhere good!

What happened to my sled??

2008-02-23T18:11:00.000-08:00

More Sledding Fun...

I love the looks on her face!!!

Maybe it will help if I close my eyes!

BIG air!!!!!!

"That was AWESOME!!"

2008-02-23T17:54:00.000-08:00

Snow Fun...

Several weeks ago when we got alot of snow (one of the MANY times) we took Livi & Maddie sledding. On our way to pick up Maddie we passed Elsworth Park and saw that people were sledding there. Since that is close to Greg & Mandy's house, we decided to try it out. We walked up the hill and Maddie had already started going down when we realized someone had made a little ramp out of snow. She was headed straight for it, but she did great holding on and the girls decided it was great fun. They wanted to go together so we loaded them up on the sled and sent them off. The pictures tell the story of how that went...

It's kinda hard to see the ramp from this pic, but they are getting ready to go over it...

Here they go...

The looks on their faces says it all...

Uh oh, this is heading no where good!

Maybe not the best way to land! =) Thankfully she popped right up and was fine, but I have to admit there was a moment of worry that crossed my mind!

2008-01-29T20:37:00.000-08:00

The "Perfect" Christmas Gift

The holiday issue of the American Girl catalog brought much excitement to our house this year. Since we were planning on visiting the store and I knew she was probably getting a doll for Christmas, we took alot of time looking at the magazine and picking out some of the favorite things. By far, her favorite thing in the book (besides Samantha) was the Midnight Holly Holiday dress. She pretty much talked about it non-stop and when you asked her what she wanted for Christmas, that was one of the main things she asked for. I have to admit, I had NO intention of getting her this dress...but, we went to the store. I kid you not, when she saw the dress in the store she ran over to it and started hugging it!! She obviously has a flair for the dramatics, but it was pretty cute to see. Being the pushover mom I am, I was able to purchase it w/o her knowing about it! (Thanks Heather!!) She got it a few days before Christmas so she could wear it to church as her Christmas dress. In her dramatic way again, she proclaimed that "this is the most perfect Christmas present ever!" You don't have to wonder what she is thinking! :)

If you are wondering about the dog in the back, we were dog sitting for Emma.

She was having a hard time with her smiles that day! :)

Again, not the best picture day!!

It got a little better...

2008-01-29T20:22:00.000-08:00

Welcome Samantha...

Well, I am clearly behind on my blogging, but I thought I would post a few fun moments from Christmas. We welcomed into our house this year the American Girl doll, Samantha. Livi loves her Bitty Baby doll (Baby Stephanie) so I thought a "big doll" would be a big hit. Her 2 best girl friends also have "big" AG dolls, so I know there's going to be many fun moments in store.

Can you tell she was a little bit excited?

She LOVES her Samantha!

For Christmas my mom got her the matching Samantha nightgowns for both Livi & Samantha. For those of you who don't know Livi very well, she LOVES nightgowns! This one couldn't have been any better with the ribbons & big puffy sleeves! I think this was a big a hit as the doll! :)

2007-12-16T19:28:00.000-08:00

First Annual American Girl Doll Store Bus Trip...

Every year around Christmas the Blue Kangaroo bookstore takes a bus trip up to Chicago to visit the American Girl Doll store. I had a chance to go last year but thought that Livi might be too little so I thought I would wait. Several months ago I began thinking about the trip again and thought this would be a great year to start going. Livi has owned a Bitty Baby for several years (her beloved Baby Stephanie) so I wanted to see what she thought of the "big dolls". My friend Heather & her daughter Emily also decided to go which was alot of fun. We invited Aunt Rae to go as part of her Christmas present, & Maddie Mae also joined us. My dad drove the bus & did a great job, plus it was nice to know we wouldn't get left behind! :)! The AG store was crazy busy but alot of fun! We didn't do the lunch this year but everyone who did said it was great, so I think we will be planning that for next year! I have to admit I was slightly stressed (ok, alot) at making sure I made it home with the 3 people I was responsible for. I wish I had taken a picture of the crowds, seriously wall to wall people!! All in all it was a really fun day & I'm already looking forward to next year!! All the girls did great and loved the American Girl Doll store (and so did the mommy's!). Thanks, Julie (Blue Kangaroo) for planning a great trip! We can't wait for next year!!

Livi w/Baby Stephanie & Maddie w/Baby Girl Twin (I think she was named Baby Lucille for the day)

Maddie, Livi, & Emily w/her AG doll Emily

Aunt Rae

Outside the AG store...This isn't a great picture but we were being told to move since there were so many people trying to get through

The ONLY reason I am posting this pic is so you can see how cute the AG picture window was!

I love this pic! All 3 girls with there famous red American Girl bags. I love the red door in the background. This is an old but beautiful fire station that was on our way back to the bus to drop off our bags.

I wish you could see more of the building in the back, it almost looks like a castle!

2007-11-02T19:51:00.000-07:00

Where's Toto????

That was the main question of they day. Livi was Dorothy from the Wizard of Oz for Halloween and we had a basket for her to collect her candy in. Unfortunately, I didn't get a Toto for the basket and he was missed by all! We had a fun day going to several different places for trick or treating! We stopped by the hospital to see Grandma LouAnn and all her friends. We then headed to Grandma Mitchell's house in Covington for a visit. We did our annual visit to all the stops on King St., and then ended up at the farm for the SWITCH. We ended up with a basket full of candy, which is not so good for late night cravings by mommy!

Sparkly Dorothy w/o her Toto...

Princess Maddie w/Dorothy, FINALLY both smiling for a picture!

Dorothy w/Tinkerbell, aka Hailynn

Livi loves the fun things they bring for the kids to do! This is a ball that turns in circles and she loves it, but just watching kinda turns mommy's stomach!

She loved the trampoline this year! What a great way to burn out energy at the end of the night!

She did it!

2007-10-24T09:01:00.000-07:00

Basketball player or pink cowgirl?

We found out a couple of weeks ago that Olivia gets to play Upwards Basketball this year. She was so excited to be able to play and I think she will have a blast! We decided to have a practice session before evaluations since b-ball isn't something we practice very much around here. Have you ever seen a b-ball player in a pink poodle skirt and cowboy boots? Only Livi! :) Who knows what outfit she may end up in on the court!

Learning the basics of passing...

I think she's getting the hang of it...

This pic kinda says it all...

Um, she's practicing a secret play! :)

2007-10-16T21:21:00.000-07:00

Update...

Everything is going great for Mandy and the babies. Thanks to all of those who prayed for her nausea, it seems to be much better! She was up walking around and doing really well. The plan is to head home tomorrow sometime, I think the sooner the better! The babies are doing wonderful and are so sweet! The are truly a gift from God!

Uncle Chaddy w/baby Grayson...

Maddie is doing GREAT! She loves the babies and is going to be a big help at home!

I think Livi has decided that Grayson is ok, even though he isn't "the pink one!"

2007-10-16T03:00:00.001-07:00

Sweet Baby Laila

Here is a better picture of Laila. A few of you have been asking the correct pronunciation of her name. It is LAY-la. She's a beautiful baby and seems so tiny! Thanks to everyone who has called or posted your comments. I will pass all of them on to Greg & Mandy. I know they are much appreciated.

2007-10-16T02:56:00.000-07:00

A Few More Pics...

We all made a trip back to the hospital this evening so see Mandy and the babies. Everyone was still doing great. I was going to take a picture of Mandy to show everyone how great she looks, but she didn't think that was such a good idea! :) Maybe tomorrow! She was pretty tired tonight, but in great spirits and for the most part still feeling pretty good. She's had a little trouble with nausea so if you wouldn't mind praying for that to clear up, I'm sure it would be much appreciated.

Livi was very excited to hold her new baby cousins'! When she first sat down to hold one, she said "I want the pink one!" :)

Livi and big Sis Maddie! One for each of them! :)

Aunt Rae Rae with baby Grayson.

Livi decided she would give Grayson a chance.

2007-10-15T14:57:00.000-07:00

Introducing....

Grayson Robert Cooper

6lbs 6oz, 18 1/2" long

Laila Jane Cooper

5lbs 14oz, 19" long

Mommy and babies are doing GREAT! Grayson was born at 12:32 & Laila was born at 12:33. Mandy looks great and is feeling pretty good too. Everything went as smoothly as possible and both babies are ADORABLE! Grayson has a lot of really dark hair and Laila has quite a bit but is lighter in color. It's kinda hard to tell who they look like yet! Most of the pics are from when they were behind the window and aren't super good, but I will post more as soon as I get some.

This is right when Greg brought them out for us to see for the first time...Not that you can really see them but Grayson is on the right and Laila is on the left.

I think this is a great pic, super cute of the footprints, all 4 of them! :)

Grayson with his hair combed and ready for his first official pic!

Not really a good pic of Laila, but I tried to get one with the bow in her hair!

Together again...

Big sis Maddie all dressed up in Daddy's surgery gear!

Grayson all bundled up and ready for a nap!

Daddy with Grayson...(his first burp)

2007-05-12T21:20:00.000-07:00

Sunday School

At our church, when the kids turn 4 they no longer go to the nursery but go downstairs to "big" Sunday School. This has been highly anticipated from Livi for almost the entire last year. The majority of her friends are older than her so one by one they would leave the nursery and go downstairs. She has known for a long time that when she turned 4 she too would get to go "downstairs." I must say, this new adventure was not so exciting for her mom. I have to admit to being a little teary knowing my "baby" is growing up. I am truly thankful to know that I am leaving her in the great hands of her teachers, Miss Marlene and Miss Kathy. Miss Marlene and her husband were the children's chuch leaders when I was growing up, so I am thankful for her love of kids and her faithfullness to continue in helping kids grow in the Lord.

Getting ready to go into church...

Livi w/Miss Marlene putting her name on the chart...

Her first official Sunday School sticker...

What could be better than starting off class than with an Oreo?

Having them w/friends...

2007-05-12T20:48:00.000-07:00

Birthday Party #2

We were going to have a birthday party for Livi and her friends at Winter Park this year, but when we woke up that morning, the weather had not cooperated. Thankfully, our church has a gym that they allowed us to use and the party was able to go on! The kids brought their bikes and Aunt Mandy brought her "jumpy" castle so it turned out to be a great day in spite of the weather. The theme this year was Strawberry Shortcake, so thanks to e-bay and WalMart for their help in making the party perfect! :) Thanks so all the kids & moms who made it out that day! I know there was alot going on, but thanks for being a part of the day.

Posing by the cake...
Livi w/2 of her best buddies, Hailynn & Maddie Mae

I think the cake was the best part! She definately gets her sweet tooth honest!

Thanks so Elijah & Isaiah (& Aunt Steph) for the great SuperGirl t-shirt....As you can see she is super excited about it!

Having fun riding bikes...

2007-05-12T18:23:00.000-07:00

Birthday Girl

I know this is a little late, but we've been on vacation this week (more pics to follow) so here goes. I can't believe that our little girl is already 4. I mean, seriously, where does the time go! It seems like yesterday we were trying so hard to have a baby, and now our baby is growing up. My friend Charity posted something similar about how quickly time passes (although she has a much better way with words than I do). Sometimes I do find myself wishing some of the "toddler" days away, but once they're gone, I can never get them back. Thanks for the reminder, Char, to love them right where there at!

This is at my Grandma Mitchell's house. We have 4 April birthdays so we celebrate them all together.

Blowing out the candles...

She got lots of fun "girly" things from my Aunt & Uncle. This is her admiring all her new fun things!

2007-04-16T19:52:00.000-07:00

Aunt Rae Rae

I think that most people who read my blog are people who know me, but if not, I will share a little about our family. I am an only child, and while that does have some advantages, there were times in my life when I would have loved a sibling. Little did I know that I would be blessed w/six siblings when I got married. Chad is the oldest of seven kids, and the youngest is Rae Anne (otherwise know as Aunt Rae Rae.)Chad & I were dating when Rae was born, so I have had the privilege of watching her grow up. When Chad's mom was pregnant with Rae I remember praying for a little girl that had dark hair and looked like Chad. As you can see from the pic, my prayers were answered! :) And seven years later, we were blessed with our own "little Chad". Rae is 11 now and is a GREAT aunt! She's had alot of practice with 6 nieces and nephews and one on the way! She is great with the kids and they LOVE her, sometimes a little too much! :) I'm excited to see how the relationship between Livi & Rae grows & changes. Obviously the age difference right now seems huge, but one of my best friends is 7 years younger than me, so I pray that over the years they can develop a true friendship! I feel so blessed to have her, and the rest of the fam in my life! Maybe I will tell about the rest of his siblings in a later post!

Livi & Rae after a long shopping day in Champaign...Do you think we wore them out?

2007-04-16T19:35:00.000-07:00

Happy Easter...(Late!)

Well, I was deciding whether or not I wanted to take down my blog, since I posting seems to be a problem for me lately! I thought I would give it one more chance, so here goes...I have to say, the older I get, the more I love the Easter holiday. I mean, I love all the normal traditions that go along with it, looking for the "perfect" Easter dress, Easter baskets, Easter Bunny, egg hunts, etc...It's so fun w/Livi because she is really starting to get into all the holidays. I think that because she is getting older though, it really is important to me to teach her the real meaning behind the holidays. It's fun to enjoy the fun things, but I wanted her to know there is more to Easter than just "fun." And in sharing with her, it helps to remind me of the gift Jesus gave to us.

Posing for a pic at church...

Livi & Maddie w/their annual Easter pic...

Goofballs...this is what all their pics would look like w/o much prompting (or should I say threats) from their moms to smile pretty

2007-02-13T20:06:00.000-08:00

Fun in the Snow Part 2

I kinda thought when January was over this year that we might not get any snow. I was wrong! We received more snow today than we have in years! I was thankful to not have anywhere to go because I'm not sure my car would have made it out of the driveway! My parents never had any sort of 4x4 vehicle when I was growing up, but I must say, I'm glad we have Chad's truck! He drove around today helping people who were stuck on the road or even in their driveway. Tonight we went "street sledding." He hooked our sleds on the back of the truck and pulled us down the road. Thankfully, there weren't too many other drivers out!

We ended up with our own sledding hill after Chad was done shoveling the driveway! The car in front is one that got stuck in front of our house! (Chad tried to pull him out, but the car ended up dying!)

Snow angel time!

Our neighbor brought down his little girls and we took them for a ride on the back also...They are getting ready to go!

My camera takes horrible night pics (or maybe it's just me), but this is them riding behind the truck...

2007-02-06T15:01:00.000-08:00

Fun In the Snow

Today was the first day we actually got alot of snow this winter. We have had some light snowfall a couple of times, but nothing that really added up to much. Mandy, Chad, & I took the girls to Harrison Park for some sledding fun. It was fun, but very COLD!!! The girl's faces were bright cherry red, but of course they weren't cold! :) They did great holding on and once we went down a few times and created a smooth path, they were able to get some speed and went pretty far! It was a fun day that wore all of us out!

How many snowflakes can we catch with our tongue?

They are ready to go!!!!

Even Daddy got in on the action!

It's fun going down, but it's a looong walk up that hill!

Snow fight!!!!

2007-01-22T16:31:00.000-08:00

Go Bears!!!!!!!!

I saw Megan's post about the Colt's, so I thought I had better post a small note about the Bears! We all 3 had our Urlacher jersey's on yesterday watching the Bears win their way to the Superbowl! Livi woke up from her nap to see the end of the game and there was much dancing and cheering going on in our house! She wore her jersey proudly to church last night! GO BEARS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

2007-01-22T15:40:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm finally doing my tag...Here are my ABC's...

A...available or single? UNavailable, or otherwise known as married! :)
B...Best Friend? My hubby, too many more to list...you guys know who you are!
C...Cake or Pie? Cake, unless it's strawberry pie from Bob Evans!
D...Drink of Choice? Truly, it would be a fountain Mt. Dew, there is nothing like that! But I am
trying to refrain from too many, so my everyday drink would be Dt. Dr. Thunder!
E...Essential Item I use Everday? Cell Phone, I'm not sure what I did w/o it!
F...Favorite Color? Green
G...Gummy Bears or Gummy worms? probably worms, but I like them both!
H...Hometown? Dville
I...Indulgence? Fountain Mt Dew and Reese's Peanut Butter Cups
J...January or February? February
K...Kid's Name? Olivia (Livi, Livi Lou)
L...Life is incomplete W/O? The mercy and grace of the Lord!
M...Marriage Date? July 27, 1996
N...Number of Siblings? 0
O...Oranges or Apples? Apples, but I like both
P...Phobias or Fears? Too many to list, but a main one is heights. I get butterflys in my stomach just seeing something tall on TV...probably has something to do w/my fear of flying!
Q...Favorite Quote? anything by Beth Moore
R...Reasons to Smile? Livi (and all of the crazy things she does!)
S...Seasons? They all have their moments, but probably summer!
T...Tag 3 or 4 people...Um, I don't know if there is anyone left...Megan, have you been tagged?
U...Unknown Fact about Me? that's why they call it UNknown...
V...Vegtables You Don't Like? Brussel Sprouts!!!!
W...Worse Habit? Biting my nails
Y...Your Favorite Food? Is there a food I don't like? :) My fav...ribeye from the Outback Steakhouse
Z...Zodiac? I think I'm a Virgo

2007-01-17T20:22:00.000-08:00

Is It Vacation Time Yet????

After reading my "summer friends' " blog, I have to admit I am also ready for some warm weather. Thankfully we have seen the sun the past few days, but the temp sure has dropped! We usually take our beach vacation in August, but that sure seems like a long time away right now. We have some friends who are taking a cruise in about a month and I have to admit, I'm a little jealous! I guess that just gives me more time to get in "summer shape"! :)

This is just after we had arrived after a long 12 hour car ride. We shared a condo on the beach w/Chad's parents and 3 of his siblings. We unloaded the cars and headed staight out to the beach. We ended up walking to a restaurant on the beach, but the wait was too long since we were all starving (so we ended up eating at the Waffle House)!

Livi w/Aunt Rae Rae waiting outside at one of our favorite restaurants, Lambert's Cafe!

So small compared to the huge ocean!

Taking a break, just catching some rays!

Just posing for some beach pics...

2007-01-06T19:09:00.000-08:00

Drama Queen?????

This is what she does all day...look in the mirror, dance, and make up her own songs...at the top of her lungs!!!! These will be fun to have in the days to come, looking back and hearing her own little songs and stories!

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2007-01-05T10:15:00.000-08:00

Olivia's Style
Ok, I know...I'm sorry to those of you who check my blog and have seen the same thing now for almost 2 weeks. I obviously don't have this blogging thing down and sometimes am not sure what to post. But at the request of a friend, I will post some of Olivia's different outfits that she picks out herself. She LOVES to play dress up and as you can see she has her own unique style. These are just a few pics, there are many more (which I will save for another blogging option)!

Daddy's work shirt...I think it is a little big!

Showing off her birthday duds...New bike, helmet, elbow pads, and cheerleading outfit...

Nothing goes with black dress shoes like a nightgown and winter coat!

Snow White on a wakboard, who would've ever thought...

Here she is in MY boots, Tinkerbell nightgown, shiny purple fuzzy jacket, and to top it off, and bright blue snowflake hat...I think I have to work to do!

2006-12-26T14:34:00.000-08:00

Christmas #2 Continued...

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Singing w/Pa-Pa...

A new Aerial nightgown, new shoes, and a feather fan...can it get any better than this?
Maddie Mae, Livi, and Dakota all in their new nightgowns!

The newest member of the family, baby Sierra Jo...

Our favorite gift this year was a new TV stand made for us by Chad's dad, Denny. This was made from trees that they cut down from Chad's Grandpa Edgington's land. All of the married kids received a piece of furniture. The picture does not do justice as to how beautiful this piece is. And not only is it beautiful, it has so much history that makes it even more special! We love it!

Trying to take pics at church, but too many kids to get one perfect! :)

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I'm so mad I took my finger off the button and didn't get this all in one shot, but it was too funny not to post! Chad & AJ give their rendition of Sisters from White Christmas...

2006-12-26T14:17:00.000-08:00

Christmas #2

Saturday morning we took off and headed for Peoria to spend it with Chad's family. The whole family gets together over Christmas, which makes for a full house (18 people total), but a great time. It's alot of fun when everyone gets together, especially now w/all the grandkids around! I think for the first time everyone was healthy, which was a huge blessing! Pa-Pa Edgington had a time where the kids sat around him and he told the Christmas story and asked the kids if they wanted to pray. Of course they all did, and the rest of them were thankful for baby Jesus and other normal things. Then when it came time for Livi to pray, she wanted to pray for Frosty the Snowman. Apprently, we have some things to work on! :)

As soon as we got there, the dressing up started...Thanfully Granny has a bunch of great dress up clothes for all the kids to use!

Dakota (the pumkin), Pa-Pa, and Olivia, watching Aunt Kim & Aunt Dara practice signing Mary Did You Know for church the next day.

Singing Christmas carols w/Granny...

Christmas story time w/Pa-Pa...New shoes, one of her favs!

2006-12-26T14:06:00.000-08:00

Christmas #1

We have had many Christmas's over the past few days, with our first one starting on Friday night at my Grandma Mitchell's house.

Just hanging out w/Daddy, waiting to begin opening presents...

She is modeling her new nightgown, I think this might be her favorite present of all!!!

She also got a new pet monkey, which is a little creepy it is so real looking!

Showing off Daddy's new ladder!

2006-12-17T18:42:00.000-08:00

Sunday School Program 2006

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XB6140vtzDI
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YlUEJR37Jdg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NbUReiHOlQs

2006-12-17T17:32:00.000-08:00

The Christmas Dress

Today was the kids program at church for Livi's Sunday School class. Well, not so much a program but just a few songs that they sing. She again proved that she is not shy on stage! She is also wearing her beloved Christmas dress. She has been bugging me to wear her "spin Christmas dress" since we got it, which was probably over a month ago. She loves to dress up and twirl. We have been counting down how many naps she had until she got to wear it. I wish I could explain just how very excited she was this morning!

Olivia & Maddie Mae in their Christmas dresses...

Being silly...

I think she would wear this everyday!

2006-12-13T07:49:00.000-08:00

Monday Night Football

We are starting a tradition in our house of watching Monday night football, especially when one of the teams playing is the Bears! Both Chad and Livi are sporting their Brian Urlacher jersey's, #54. Olivia is very proud of her jersey and gets very excited when she sees the #54 jersey on the TV screen. She can tell you who her Daddy's favorite player is, his number, and even his position! I am glad she is learning about football at a young age, so maybe she won't have to ask so many questions like I do. All in all, this is a pretty fun thing to do, especially when Chad says ordering pizza seems to go along w/football. Sounds great to me!

2006-12-13T07:40:00.000-08:00

Slumber Party

Brave Aunt Mandy decided it would be fun for the girls to have a slumber party and invited Olivia to spend the night with Maddie Mae. I have to say, she is probably more brave than I am at this point to attempt this! I think all went well, until Maddie woke Mandy up at midnight saying Livi was still talking! She just doesn't know how to be quiet!!!! :)

2006-12-06T20:41:00.000-08:00

Where did it go?
Where did all the warm weather go? Just to think, these were taken less than 2 weeks ago, and our high tomorrow is supposed to be 19 degrees. It's gonna be a cold day for christmas shopping!

2006-12-06T20:31:00.000-08:00

Thanksgiving Day 2006

Ok, I know I'm a bit behind on my blogging. I'm sorry for all of you out there who have decided to give me a hard time!:) I don't have a ton to say, but I guess I will just try to keep up with pics here and there. This is Thanksgiving Day at Grandpa Edgington's farm. It is always so nice when it is warm enough to be outside for part of the day. The girls love to go on rides on the 4-wheeler. Let me say, this ride was loaded because I ended up on the back and Rae ended up on the front! By the time it was over, we were all frozen, but it was fun anyway!

We are ready to go!
This is from my view on the back of the 4-wheeler. There is just something about a sunset! It is also kinda nice being in the country, where you can actually appreciate all the colors w/o the lights of town getting in the way!

2006-11-21T10:54:00.000-08:00

Happy THANKSgiving

I love Thanksgiving, but I have to admit that I can get caught up in preparing for Christmas and let Thanksgiving slip by without giving it much thought. On Sunday, part of Pastor Scott's message was about having gratitude. It's so easy to look at how hard life can be sometimes, and I have to admit I fall into the "poor me" syndrome trap pretty easy! The message was a challenge to me, especially at this time of year, to stop feeling sorry for myself and thank God for everything He has given me. When I really stop to think about it, I am truly blessed! Take a few minutes and thank God for all He has done. This really helped to brighten up my day, I hope it can do the same for you!

Psalm 107:1
Oh, give thanks to the Lord, for He is good! For His mercy endures forever.

Just a few of the things I am thankful for...

2006-11-17T17:57:00.000-08:00

Thursday School Progam 2006

Sorry this is out of order. I tried to do this a different way and I couldn't get it to work. This is Livi singing with her class at the Thursday School program. I think she thought she was singing a solo. I asked her why she sang so loud and she said it was because her teacher told them to sing loud so the people in the back of the toria (auditorium) could hear them. She definately got the job done! American Idol, here we come!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DjNXBAxt8qo

2006-11-16T20:36:00.000-08:00

The Festival of Lights Parade

Every year we love to go to the Festival of Lights parade. This will be our third year going. We love going and seeing all the floats with the lights on them, however, it is always FREEZING cold. I am learning how to dress us warmer to make it more enjoyable!

Nothing is getting through this get-up!

This year the Blue Kangaroo bookstore was open before the parade. They had hot chocolate, cookies, and lots of different snack foods. They also had a 20% off coupon to use only tonight, which was a smart move since of course I can't resist a sale! This was a great place for the girls to warm up before the parade started!

This is in front of the Blue Kangaroo bookstore. The window reminds me of a Christmas movie! I LOVE Christmas time!!!

What a perfect night for Eskimo kisses!

2006-11-16T19:20:00.000-08:00

Thursday School Program 2006

We are in the fake smile stage, so all our pics end up looking rather cheesy!

Mandy & I took so many pictures to get a good one, but this is as about as good as it got! They were both ready to go eat soup and the bread they made the week before.
Waiting to sing...

2006-11-09T20:17:00.000-08:00

Livi Singing w/Grandpa

This is main reason I wanted to start a blog. I hope this makes someone smile today! :)

Rummages To Rodeo

2006-11-09T19:54:00.000-08:00

Well, here goes. This is totally not my thing. I am not much of a writer and never seem to have anything to say, even if it's just to comment on someone else's blog. However, sometimes I have really cute pics that just have a need to be posted, so I guess I will try my hand at this. Thanks to Steph for the title. Most people know my love of shopping, but I am not picky about where I shop. I love rummages all the way to the Magnificent Mile (although that is mostly window shopping). So this title seemed to fit!