Smores and more

Tonight we went over to our friends house, The Brooks, for some good old family fun.  The kids loved playing on the swingset...

all three loved this swing...

 but only Maddie took me up on trying a smore.  She loved it!  And really, what's not to love?  Chocolate, graham crackers and a toasty, warm marshmallow holding it all together.  Yum!

After we enjoyed the smores and the kids ran around like rascals, it was time to head over to this awesome neighborhood train. 

J and I went last year and loved it, so we were excited to take the girls this year.  Maddie grinned from ear to ear the whole time and Lila just had a look of pure awe on her face.  Too cute.

We are taking family pictures tomorrow.  You think they're going to smile this nicely for them?  I sure hope so:)

Lila, on the other hand, is a total wild card.  If the mood does not strike her right, there's no hope for a sweet smile.  In this case, she could not be bothered to smile or even look at me.  Let's hope tomorrow morning she is feeling a little more generous!



Murphy Christmas Festival

Last night was the Murphy Christmas Festival.  Since it was nice weather and we love any fun community get together, we decided to go. 

The first attraction was the reindeer.  Two really cool reindeer.

I'm pretty sure that this was Prancer.



Then we thought we'd see what we look like as snowmen. 



Then we wrote a letter to Santa Claus.  It was the very last one they had, though, so Jackson and Maddie had to share.  We're pretty sure that Santa won't mind!  They both asked for new bicycles this year--Maddie wants a Princess one and Jackson wants a Batman one.  Let's hope that Santa can come through!

We asked Gigi to come along with us and she agreed, even though it was last minute.  We're so glad she did, though.

After we wrote our letter to Santa, it was almost time for the fireworks show to begin.  We found us a good spot on the lawn and got ready.

While we were talking about the fireworks, Maddie told Jackson that she might be scared.  He put his arm around her and said, "I'll take care of you, Maddie."  He's still sweet when he wants to be.

Afew seconds later the show began with a bang!  Since this tree was in our way, though, we quickly found another spot.

The show was great!  And very loud!  It was the closest that I have ever been to a fireworks show and I was afraid that Lila was going to be scared.  She loved watching it, though, and so did the rest of us.  What a fun way to kick off the holiday season!

Turkey Day

Turkey Day 2011

 In preparation for Thanksgiving Day this year, the kids and I made some desserts.  Our first one was a pumpkin pecan cheesecake and oh my, was it good! Chippy helped make the second one, a bananas foster upside down cake...

 and the kids even let him lick the batter off the beaters.  Guess they were really in the giving spirit!

 After we finished all of our desserts, we packed up the car and drove over to Gigi and Boom's for Thanksgiving lunch. This scene makes me smile.  The love that these kids have for their grandparents if just precious.

 Maddie inspecting the turkey--she said, "Boom, that's a big bird you got there!"  Think she's got a little country in her?

 After we had a delicious lunch, complete with Meme's sweet potato casserole (my fave!), the girls sang and played the piano for us.

 Jackson challenged Aunt Colleen to a game of Checkers...

and then the big kids did the "Turkey Tango," along with two other songs.

 They were too cute.

 After their performance, it was time to play Wii with Daddo.  Jackson was the pitcher, while Daddy tried to hit the ball.  J was trying so hard to strike him out that he started sweating!

 Then they called dear old mom upstairs and much to my surprise it was because my husband, yes, you read that right, was challenging me to a dance off!  Thank goodness I won, but not my much!

 After our dance off, it was time to go to Fort Worth to see all of the Hays Fam.  When we got there the girls immediately went to see Jerry Lewis, Aunt Carolyn's pet bird.

 Jackson set up another game of Checkers, with Pa Hays as his opponent this time.  Daddo said that Pa Hays used to beat him at Checkers when he was little.  Guess he's softened in his old age because Jackson won all three games.  Either that, or J is a genius child:)

 The kids loved hanging out with Memaw and Poppi...

 and also loved playing football outside with Uncle Scott and Daddo.

 Daddy was on double-duty--he would toss the ball to Jackson and then have to toss Lila Lou in the air.  Whew!  Guess he worked off a few more calories before we ate dinner.

 Cousin Amy came in her police officer uniform because she had to go straight to work after dinner.  The kids thought her uniform was super cool--the big kids (aka Jared, Andrew and Scott thought her taser gun was especially intriguing!).

 Before she left, she played Twister with Jackson.  After that, he got Daddy and Aunt Lyndsie to play with him, too.  It was a bit of a challenge because little sister would decide to forward roll sometimes in the middle of the game...

 but he was all smiles most of the time...

 that is, until he ended up like this!  The kids is mighty flexible, but he could only hold out so long! 

We had a wonderful day with all of our family.  We are thankful for all of them and especially for these three little turkeys.

Thankful Turkeys

They say that imitation is the highest form of flattery.  That being said, I totally stole two craft ideas from my mommy friends, Hayley and Monica.  I hope that you girls don't mind, I just thought these turkey crafts were too cute to pass up!

First we made the Thankful Turkey.  Jackson's class mascot, Chippy, is getting to spend the week with us, so he got in on the fun, too.  We cute out all the feathers first, and then the kids came up with things that they are thankful for.  I love this idea.  Having a grateful heart is so important and this really drives home that point.  It's also a fabulous reminder of how lucky we all are--just look at how many feathers there are and we could have gone on for much longer!



After doing our turkey, we went outside and J chose a pumpkin to make our next craft with (Thanks, Monica!).  This is now our kitchen table centerpiece and we love it! 

Poppi's Birthday Celebration

This year Poppi's birthday falls exactly on Thanksgiving Day.  So in order for him to feel like it was his own special day, we went out to celebrate at Scalini's. 

Our whole crew was there--all 11 of us--and we enjoyed good food and good company even more.  On a side note, for all my mommy friends, I would not recommened Scalini's on a Sunday evening.  Apparantly they only have one cook or that one cook only has one arm, not sure, but something made it take FOREVER to get our food.  As in, two hours!! Which really feels more like five when you are trying to corral and entertain a 19 month old busy body, 3 year old tired girl and 4 year old boy!!  Thank goodness for iphone games (that phone is worth it's weight in gold some times!) and a partly empty restaurant that Lila Lou could explore a bit.

In all fairness, they did great!  The girls played so well together--they really are starting to become friends, I think,  and love being together, which makes my heart smile.  And makes a two hour wait much more bearable.  Happy early Birthday, Poppi!  We will see you tomorrow and celebrate some more:)

Gig 'em Owls!

The Owls were in the second round of the playoffs last night and the game was at Cowboys Stadium.  Since we had so much fun last Friday night, we decided to go again last night to try and cheer on GHS to another victory.  

We got there just in time to see the Owls run out onto the field.

Gigi and Boom had never been to Cowboys Stadium, so they were in awe of it.  It is really nice!

We were so excited that they had the jumbo big screen on for the game, complete with instant replay and everything!  It really made it feel like we were at a college or pro game.

The game was so close--we scored a touchdown with 2 seconds left and that tied it up at 21.  But it was not the Owls night, and even though we hollered as loud as we could, they lost in OT.  Oh well, it was still a great way to spend a Friday night and now when we watch the Cowboys play tomorrow, Jackson will know exactly what it's like in person.  The kid has had a big year!

Turkey Time

Oh so thankful are we for the wonderful school that the kids go to.  Yesterday we went to a Thanksgiving Feast with Jackson's class.

Here's our little indian with his blue feather on his head.  He's holding the placemat that he made all by  himself.

We are also thankful that Daddo got to come home early from work in time to make the feast. 
What a treat!

We are a little less thankful that there were no tables on which to eat lunch--floor sitting is not Daddo's forte!  The teachers thought it was important to show the kids how the first Thanksgiving meal was eaten, so we all took one for the team and ate on the floor:)

After lunch was over, we got a real treat and watched the kids perform all of their Thanksgiving songs. 
I love this little Indian so very much.

I especially loved watching him do the "Turkey Tango."  It was too cute!

When the show was over, it was time to head over to Maddie's class for her party.  When we got there she was just finishing off not one, but two cupcakes, and had a huge grin on her face. 
Maddie is very thankful for cupcakes!

It won't be long before this little turkey goes to school.  And that's hard to believe!

For now she is content to help the big kids with their projects and sit at the table just like them.  And that's just fine with me.  I'm so not ready to even think about her going to school!

Three precious little turkeys--what I am most thankful for!