Catching a breath....

We had a great Thanksgiving. Lots of family, lots of food, lots of things for which to be thankful. Now, I can't believe it's so close to Christmas! It is going to be so much fun this year with Joshua. He has really enjoyed helping with the decorations. Here are some pictures from the last couple of weeks:

Ready for takeoff:

Immediately after takeoff:

Joshua and Alyssa greeting each other:

Joshua and Brittany:

In the Dora house:

Say cheese:

Decorating the tree:

Thanksgiving

We will be heading to Hazy's tomorrow for our annual Thanksgiving celebration. This will be Joshua's fourth trip on an airplane, but I think this year, he will really enjoy it. We've been talking about it all week and this morning he was really excited about going to see Hazy (or HeyHey as he calls her). I'm also looking forward to seeing my entire family. I haven't been home in quite some time.

We have set aside this time of year to reflect upon all of our many blessings and God has blessed me beyond measure. I have so, so many things for which I am thankful, but here are a few:

A loving, caring, supportive family.

Many friends.

Food, clothes and water. (With the severe drought this year, it's pretty scary to think that we may not have enough water supply. I also heard on the news that the food banks are much busier this year. The news report stated that at one area food bank 8 out of 10 people are first-timers. With increases in the price of gas, food, and healthcare, many families are pushed to the brink.)

An employer who provides me with a flexible work schedule so that I can spend a few days at home with Joshua. And also provides my family with great medical insurance.

A warm and comfortable home.

A wonderful church family.

An amazing, loving husband.

Without a doubt, the most precious little boy in the world.

My Lord, who has provided me with all these blessings and so much more.


Happy Thanksgiving!

Just a bigger snowball....

The days and weeks are going faster and faster. I can't believe that next week is Thanksgiving! We are planning to fly to Virginia next Thursday and we are all looking forward to it. The last couple of weeks we have been fighting illness again. Fortunately, not Joshua this time, but Ronnie and I. Hopefully we are well on our way to recovery and we can get past all the sickness we've had this year. Here are a couple of pictures from the last couple of weeks.

Resting with Elmo

Playing at the birthday party

Friends

Mater!

Bob the Builder

Say cheese!

Ever feel like a snowball?

Each year, January seems to begin very slow and relaxed and easy going, but as the year progresses, the days get busier and busier. By this time of the year, I feel like I am at full speed rolling down the mountain, gathering more snow and getting bigger and bigger until I smash into a tree!!!

The last couple of weeks have been crazy! Several doctors visits, many extra days of work, a couple of church meetings, and so on and so on. Anyway, at least every one is finally well at our house. Joshua kept running a low grade fever on and off for a week for no apparent reason...we can only believe that his two year molars are trying to break through. The only other evidence, besides the fever, is that he wants to bite all of his toys! I am so thankful that he is feeling so much better this week and has not had any trace of a fever since Monday.

I am posting some pictures from Halloween, but we have decided that Joshua is not going to be much of a Halloween type. He likes to pick out a costume and gets very excited about it, but doesn't like to wear the costume. The year he was born, he was only two weeks old on Halloween, but he still didn't like the pumpkin costume. Last year, he was Tigger, but only wore the costume a short period of time. This year, originally he was going to dress as Bob the Builder. He loves Bob the Builder! We bought the tool belt and hat and, of course, have overalls and a flannel shirt. No problem wearing the hat, but the tool belt, for whatever reason, brings on a complete down on the floor meltdown. I can't figure it out. He loves the play with the belt and tools, but refuses to wear it.

So, we decided to dress him as a Lion. Hazy found a really cute costume and sent it to us. Joshua was so excited opening the package and when he saw the costume, he started pretending to be a lion, but when I said, "Okay, let's put on the costume!", his answer was a very matter-of-fact, "No." For the next couple of days, we tried to convince Joshua to try on the costume. He would carry it around and pretend to be a lion, but would not put the costume on. I thought maybe once he saw the other kids with their costumes on, he would change his mind. Nope! He did not want to wear the costume. I finally coerced him into it for all of 5 minutes so I could snap a few pictures! I do pray that he will always have a mind of his own and that he will grow to be a leader among his peers.

Hope everyone had a great Halloween!

Happy 2nd Birthday, Joshua!

I can't believe my baby is already two years old! The time is passing much too quickly. He is such a joy and a blessing and makes every day special for me.

Happy birthday, baby. We love you so very much!!!!

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Music: Sweet, Sweet Baby - Michelle Featherstone

Back to 100%

Joshua is back to 100%! Monday was kinda rough, but by Tuesday he was running around and playing again. We're very hopeful that he won't be having any more ear infections. Thank you for all your prayers.

Here are a few pictures from our visit to the pumpkin patch today:

Vacation, Party, and a Prayer Request

We've been on vacation for the last week visiting family in Mississippi. It was a good trip; one that we have tried to take a few times, but never actually got to go.







Then on Saturday we had Joshua's 2nd birthday party. That was a fun day!






Lastly, please remember Joshua in your prayers. Tomorrow morning he will be having surgery to insert tubes in his ears and also to remove his adenoids. Hopefully this will eliminate the chronic ear infections he has been having the last few months.

Thank you for your prayers. I will post more pictures and an update on Joshua tomorrow.

My Little Helper

Annual Tradition

I love this time of year, when the mornings are cool and crisp, but the afternoons are still warm! This is also the time of year for muscadines! We have developed an annual tradition over the last five years of picking muscadines and making jelly. I can quickly say that the "picking" of the muscadines is not my favorite part! Actually this tradition started years ago (only a fews years ago, of course) when I was in college. My aunt, Joyce, had a muscadine vine and would make jelly every year. I didn't mind picking the muscadines back then. Maybe it was youth that kept me from worrying about snakes and spiders, but now that part makes me very jumpy. Ronnie will tell you that he has heard me squeal a few times while washing the muscadines because I found a spider. Fortunately, we've never seen a snake while picking them.

The last couple of years, Ronnie's friends at Jaemor Farms have actually picked the muscadines and brought them to him. How nice is that?

So today, Joshua and I have been cooking up the juice from the muscadines. Talk about a wonderful aroma! I love that smell! Hopefully we can find some time to make up some jelly in the next couple of days. Yum yum! My favorite part is eating the jelly!!!

Favorite Book

Joshua loves to "read" his books. His favorite book right now is "My Big Truck Book". We read it at least twice a day. He is all into trucks and tractors these days - what boy isn't?

Again, I am amazed at how much Joshua knows; and I don't even realize that he knows it. For example - the days that I go to work, Ronnie gets Joshua dressed and takes him to school. Ronnie's routine each morning is to make us coffee, read his bible and play the mandolin awhile. One morning recently, I was getting ready for work, and Ronnie called me into the study. He told me that after Joshua finished his breakfast, he grabbed Ronnie by the hand and led him back to the study. Then Joshua pointed to his chair for him to sit down, handed him his glasses and pointed to his bible! Sometimes Joshua likes to sit in Ronnie's lap and hear him read the bible. Then, of course, he motioned to the mandolin hanging on the wall and wanted Ronnie to play it! How does he know every schedule in our house? It's difficult for me to remember all those things!






As I've said so many times before and I'm sure I will say many more times in the future - every day is a great day with Joshua. God has blessed us so much more than I could have ever imagined!

For his merciful kindness is great toward us: and the truth of the LORD endureth for ever. Praise ye the LORD. Psalm 117:2

Lots of friends

Joshua has lots of friends to play with at church. Although, it seems that Ivy is going to be outnumbered by all of the boys!