Brothers

Isaac sure loves his little brother!

Can I hold him?

Anna Grace loves her little brother! In fact, her love is sometimes a little much for him! She has been known to stick her fingers in his mouth, close to his eyes, etc. Her solution when he is crying is to try to cover his mouth! She is constantly asking to hold him. When she does get to hold him, he looks almost as big as she is. Even though it is scary at times, I am glad that she loves him so much!

Meal Plan

Monday -- Beef Stew in the crock pot
Tuesday -- Turkey fried rice
Wednesday -- Spaghetti & meatballs
Thursday -- Barbecue chicken & baked potatoes
Friday -- Homemade pizza
Saturday -- Ham, eggs & biscuits
Sunday -- Out to eat!

We had quite a bit of turkey and ham left over from Thanksgiving. I put it in the freezer, and I think that I can get at least five or six meals out of it (fried rice, ham & eggs, turkey & noodle soup, white beans cooked with the ham bone and a couple more meals I have not figured out yet). Thanksgiving is the meal that keeps on giving! Publix marked their turkeys way down, so I now have several turkey breasts and turkeys in the freezer. I am going to have to find some creative turkey recipes!

Oh Christmas Tree...

Move over Martha Stewart!

Eli was pretty excited about our celebration!

Anna Grace loves her Daddy!

We decorated our Christmas tree tonight. This is a tradition that our children look forward to every year. With five children eight and under, this experience was not completely stress free-- we had two broken ornaments before we even started putting them on the tree! Overall, it was a great evening. We decorated the tree, and then had a small birthday party for Jesus. We ate cupcakes and drank eggnog, and talked about why we have Christmas. I try to start off our Christmas season by reminding them that it is not all about presents. We finished the night by watching Frosty the Snowman. What a blessing to be able to celebrate Christmas with children!

A Short Sports Rant

I do not often blog about sports issues, but I had to write a little post tonight about Phil Fulmer, the coach of UT (actually now he is the former coach). I strongly disagree with the athletic director's decision to fire him. In my little world, I do not like it when my team loses, and I really like it when my team wins, but those emotions pass quickly. It seems like winning has become way too important. College sports in general have become too important. It is amazing to me how much money, time, emotions and words are poured into these teams and these games. I wonder if it is even fun for many of the people who coach, play and especially watch. Oh well, those are just my thoughts in my little world.

I am glad that Fulmer could go out on two wins. And, despite the fact I am sure that it has been a hard season for him, I am sure that his retirement fund is fully funded! After this short little rant, I am ready to get back to my usual blogging topics!

Meal Plan Monday

Monday: Homemade chicken soup

Tuesday: Barbecue pork loin in the crock pot, baked potatoes

Wednesday: Chicken Quesadillas (with leftover chicken from Monday) and French fries

Thursday: Happy Thanksgiving! My parents are coming to visit. This is only my second Thanksgiving dinner that I have cooked, so I am still learning! We are having ham (the children's' favorite) and turkey (it wouldn't be Thanksgiving without turkey!) -- yummy! I am planning on freezing leftover meat to use for meals in the next few weeks.

Friday: Leftovers or buy pizza -- I am going shopping!

Saturday: Chili

Sunday: Hot dogs and chili

Nine Days!

Mark has next week off, so counting the two weekends, he is home for nine days (counting today)! I am so glad! The children are excited to have Daddy home too! Bailey made a calendar tonight. She drew nine blocks, with the numbers one through nine. She crossed off number one because the first day is gone.

I am hoping to get a little done around the house while Mark is at home. With our little Eli around, and trying to get our homeschooling done, our house is a bit of a mess! Tonight I worked on packing away some toys. We have been having trouble keeping things picked up, so I thought it would be help to have fewer toys around. I am hoping to work on the master bedroom and closet over the next few days. Unfortunately, it often becomes a dumping ground for baby stuff, toys, laundry and other junk. I am ready for some fall cleaning!