Praying for Them

Let's not forget to pray for them......

Pictures-Another Gettogether

Gettin' ready to head to Thanksgiving get together #3.....

Jase with his uncles

Daddy's pretty girl

Playing with "Auntie Whitney" never gets boring

Sometimes instead of time-outs and spankin' we just give good ol ticklins!!!!

Uncle "Machic" brainstorming his next move to torment which family member

I didn't catch the action shot, but Matt had just thrown Gabe thru the air to Jason......a family tradition called "Kid Tossing"

Now that there is one mischievious monkey laugh ;)

Enjoying all our extra time with Daddy over school break has been so fun!

Gettin' serious and gettin' dangerous!

Paper Angels

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9lAgP6JsDPE
After every day-after-Thanksgiving sale the malls just ain't complete
Without a bunch of decorations and a paper angel tree
There's artificial smiles on artificial tree limbs
Saying what she'd love to have and what to buy for him
Well i hope Maggie likes her new winter clothes and her buggy with a baby doll
And maybe Tom'll smile with his new nike shoes when he shoots that basketball
I can't help but wishing that i could do more
But not just while I'm shopping in the department store

[Chorus:]Paper angels you're in my thoughts and prayers
No matter where you are right now remember God's right there
He's asking all of us to help take careOf his paper angels everywhere
Going through the mail almost every afternoon i see a Mom and Dad's Worst dream
There on the back of a money-saving ad to get my carpet cleaned
Height, weight, hair, eyes, date missing, and DOBA child's name, a picture,
and the words 'have you seen me?'

[Chorus:]Paper angels you're in my thoughts and prayers
No matter where you are right now remember God's right there
He's asking all of us to help take care Of his paper angels everywhere
His documented bruises fill a folder file
She's a second grade self-portrait drawn without a smile
And every town is littered with this kind of debris
We've got to stop this madness and it's up to you and me

[Chorus:]Paper angels you're in my thoughts and prayers
No matter where you are right now remember God's right there
He's asking all of us to help take care
Of his paper angels everywhere Paper angels everywhere
~Jimmy Wayne

Pictures-Gabe's Bday

And sometimes we have belated birthday parties for our monkies.....very, very belated ;)

Thankfulness Today

"4 Blessed is the man You choose, And cause to approach You,

That he may dwell in Your courts. We shall be satisfied with the goodness of Your house,

Of Your holy temple. 5 By awesome deeds in righteousness You will answer us,

O God of our salvation, You who are the confidence of all the ends of the earth,

And of the far-off seas; 6 Who established the mountains by His strength, Being clothed with power; 7 You who still the noise of the seas, The noise of their waves, And the tumult of the peoples. 8 They also who dwell in the farthest parts are afraid of Your signs; You make the outgoings of the morning and evening rejoice. 9 You visit the earth and water it,

You greatly enrich it; The river of God is full of water; You provide their grain,

For so You have prepared it. 10 You water its ridges abundantly,

You settle its furrows; You make it soft with showers,

You bless its growth. 11 You crown the year with Your goodness,

And Your paths drip with abundance. 12 They drop on the pastures of the wilderness,

And the little hills rejoice on every side. 13 The pastures are clothed with flocks;

The valleys also are covered with grain; They shout for joy, they also sing."

~Psalm 65

Trails

Every person has the power to make others happy. Some do it simply by entering a room --others by leaving the room.
Some individuals leave trails of gloom;others, trails of joy.
Some leave trails of hate and bitterness;others, trails of love and harmony.
Some leave trails of cynicism and pessimism;others trails of faith and optimism.
Some leave trails of criticism and resignation;others trails of gratitude and hope.
What kind of trails do you leave?
by William Arthur Ward

Pictures-Jason's Family

Last night we had Jason's family over for Thanksgiving/Ellie's Bday.....the day started like this:
The big boys having their monkey fun like they always do ;) And I love this picture because it shows Ellie's personality so well....while the guys are right next to her, causing a ruckus, she does not get her undies in a bunch......she keeps investigating how fun this Nintendo64 must be!

And then the littlest monkies of the bunch investigate further.....

THey got some good quality time with Gramma S.

And the big monkies wore the EXACT same expressions as they get serious about their game....

Great fun with Whitney!!!!

And great fun with Aunt Em....

Then the roughhousing begins again.....

And then it's fun play time with Uncle Matt....

He loved every bit of the kid chairs as they did ;) Now I know what we can get him for Christmas!!!!!

And then it was time for horsey rides......

And a crazy game of keepaway......Big monkies against the little monkies....no fair!!!!

And pumpkin pie for Ellie's Bday treat.....

And by the end of the night you can tell how tired this preggo mama bear was! But it was so worth it!!!! We love you guys!!!!

GRACE

“A heart full of grace is better than a head full of notions.”

I have to admit, I'm learning this quote the long and hard way. But this Thanksgiving, I'm also learning to be so much more thankful for my Heavenly Father and my earthly husband who are gently teaching me the defintion of love and grace.

Pictures-Weekend Fun

Since Daddy was at a contest all day, the kids and I headed over to my cousin Marci's and played with her 4 adorable little girls. Baby Hannah was very attracting to our monkies ;) They just have no idea what's gonna happen in February and they'll get their own little baby to play with!

Meet Leah, Abby, and Emma

And then meet Daisy.....my brother Matt's girlfriend's pet sugar glider....

They are home for break so I thought maybe all the kids would want to meet this facsinating creature!!! And did they ever think it was cool!

Here is Daisy, eating a monkey biscuit (ha ha, my kids need them ;) she is full grown, kinda looks like a flying squirrel (although we didn't let her loose in house to demonstrate) has a pouch like a kangaroo, is notcturnal, has a little piggy nose, screeches and has eyes like a bat.......crazy!

Thanks Whitney for being the best zoo entertainer EVER!!!! The kids loved it! Gabe asked if you are gonna bring yer kitty to our house tomorrow ;)

And a big huge thanks to our sweet friend, Nickole for being brave enough to babysitt all these monkies so Marci and I could get out this morning and have some fun!!!

I've been telling people how different it will be this time around with monkey #3 as Ellie is all about babies and wants to touch, hold, help, smother, etc And when she was a baby Gabe would just kinda look at her (although he was alot younger too) so it will be interesting!!!

Pictures-Monkey Madness

Monkies....always....climbing wherever we go......

Snoopy the dog is seriously the bestest fake pet ever!!!

Can't you tell how loved he is?!?!?!??!

She even likes to teach him to praise and worship.....

Mischief comes in types and forms......

Supper time with Paw-Paw...

Notice the rag on Gabe's foot....he scratched it and sat there for almost an hour......"nursing" it back to betterness.....there was soooooooooooo much drama, but wow, he actually sat still!!!

Best buds

You never know what kinda sights you will see in our zoo ;)

Seriously....they are funny monkies.....24/7

And this is always a cute sight when I get home from work at night....Gabe leaves me monkey himself....waving out the window at me.

And even though somedays I am filled to my gills with monkey madness......oh how I love them so very much.....they are just the bestest things ever!!!!