Thanksgiving 2009

Each year on Thanksgiving we all reflect on what has occurred in the past year that we are thankful for. There are so many blessings that we receive each day, but I can say that what I am most thankful for this year is my baby Jack. He is such a joy and a wonderful addition to our little clan. Also on our list and in no particular order are health, a happy family, a wonderful church, great kids, great friends, a prosperous & thriving practice, a wonderful nanny for our kids(actually make that 2 wonderful nannies), our home, lessons learned, the love of God and much much more.

Our normal Thanksgiving traditions continued this year without missing a beat...

This year we started the day delivering a meal to a family in need. After lunch we went out to Weber's Tree Farm to get our annual Christmas tree. The kids especially look forward to it because Heath lets them take turns driving around as we look for the "perfect" tree. This year's tree like many in the past was a bit large. Why is it that they look just right out in the middle of the field, and then when we cut the twine in the living room, the branches encompass most of the room? I guess you could say it is our "Griswold Family Traditon."

Our good friends the Pohlman's joined us for dinner. The boys were especially excited to have Jacob stay for a slumber party. Miss Morgan wore one of her fancy dresses for dinner, and baby Jack got his very first tooth. Last year I let the kids decorate the tree but this year I waited for them to go to bed and surprised them with a fully decorated Christmas tree when they got up in the morning. All in all it was a pretty laid back day this year but not any less special than any other.

I have cooked Thanksgiving dinner every year but one since I started dating Heath in 1995, but our traditions didn't really start until 2001 when we first moved here. Heath always travelled for Christmas and didn't really care much about decorating or all the preparations for the holidays. I on the other hand had grown up with numerous traditions. So when that first Iowa Thanksgiving arrived, my parents came out to share it with us. I decided to take advantage of their presence to enjoy some traditions with others who shared in my excitement. We went to a tree farm on Thanksgiving and cut down a tree. We decorated it together complete with eggnog and Christmas music. My dad and Heath even put lights on the house. The fact that it was 70 degrees that year was probably more influential in getting the job done than my request. Over the years they continued to come visit over Thanksgiving until recently, and each year we did the same thing. We also try to invite others to our home who like us might not have family in the area to spend the holiday with. One year we had 15 extra people at our table. That year was particularly funny because if you know me, you know that I love to cook, but could really care less about baking, so when people asked what they could bring I said dessert. Needless to say, we ended up with a dozen pies from the Village Inn plus the desserts that I had made. Whether it is just us or a houseful of friends and strangers, Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year. A day to remember good times, and not so good times, eat too much, enjoy our family and friends, and truly embrace all that God has blessed us with.

Mommy's little cooks in training



Game time!!

Annual Driver's Training


Jack's 1st Thanksgiving!


Fire up the chainsaw!

Morgan's working hard to find our tree


And we found ourselves a winner


Ryan's choice


Patrick's pick

The prettiest little hostess

The 3 Muskateers: Ryan, Jacob, & Patrick


Randy, Isaiah, & Katie Pohlman armed with plenty of sweet potato casserole.


And the verdict is....yes it IS another big fat tree.


Deck the halls!

Morgan's 1st Haircut

Well Heath predicted that this wouldn't happen until prom, but I have been wanting Miss Morgan to get her haircut for a little while now because the ends were pretty ratty. Everytime that I brought up the subject to Morgan she was very adamantly against it. The conversation went something like this. Mommy: Morgan do you want to get a haircut? Morgan: No Mamma! Mommy: Why not? Morgan: Because it's pretty mamma.
So this evening after she got a bath, we sat down at her Dora vanity to blow dry her hair and she handed me the special scissors for cutting Dora's hair. I asked her if she wanted a haircut, and she said "Yes." So what I thought was going to be just a trim around the ends ended up being a little more because who knew that she would not be able to sit still for the few minutes that it should have taken. It is still long and beautiful. We put curlers in it and blew it dry and had just the best time at the Dora Beauty Parlor tonight. The boys took turns taking pictures which also contributed to Miss Morgan not being able to sit still. She is insistent on seeing the picture as soon as you take it. One especially funny moment was when we had all her hair in curlers, she looked in the vanity mirror and said, "I'm a real princess mommy!" Indeed she is our favorite little princess, the most beautiful precious little girl in our treehouse.

Veteran's Day

Oh what a great Veteran's Day!! The whole day was a JOY! I got to sleep in 'til 6:15. It is Wednesday so I didn't have to go to work until noon. The kids were so good. Everyone did what they were supposed to and we all got along wonderfully. I love it when that happens.
On our way to drop Patrick off at school, we were talking about Veteran's Day. Ryan and I have been talking about veterans all week because his word of the week at school is veteran. So I told the kids, "hey today is Veteran's day! Ryan do you know what a veteran is?" Ryan said "I don't know." So I reminded him that "they are the people who have served in the armed forces. You know like the Army, Navy, Marines,..." and Ryan excitedly piped in "and the Dolphins too mom." I laughed so hard because I knew he was meaning the SEALS. I guess he just remembered that there was some group of water animals that were veterans.
After Ryan and Patrick were both dropped off at school, it was just Morgan, Jack and Momma for the morning. We were playing in Morgan's room for most of the morning. We made pretend brownies, sang songs, Morgan gave Dora a haircut, I dressed all the naked babies and Barbies, and then Morgan decided she had another plan. She got her high heels on, gathered up her purse and "cell phone," put her baby in the stroller and asked me if I could watch her baby and Jack so she could go shopping. I asked her what is your baby's name. Morgan replied, "Peyton Manning." Another great laugh for my day. She then came over, grabbed my face, said "kiss, kiss Mama, I love you" and off she went to go shopping in the boys room. She is SO different from the boys and it is so much fun to watch her grow and to listen to the crazy things she says.
Eventually I had to go to work where everyone was crabby today, but I had a good time anyway. I love taking care of people. I love answering questions and teaching people, and while most days I would rather stay home with my kids, I feel blessed to have the opportunity to serve others.
After work I got to surprise my husband by dropping of dinner at the office since he would be working late and end up eating nothing or eating very late.
The kids and I just spent the evening talking and crafting, and just enjoying each other's company. No TV, no computer, no phone calls. It was just perfect.
Stories were read, teeth were brushed, and prayers were said now all my little angels are asleep in bed. So ends another day filled with endless blessings. God is so good to us.


This is Ryan. Yesterday he wanted to be a photographer and below you will find a sampling of his work. I am a bit biased but for 4 1/2 year old, I think he did a pretty good job.


Here is Jack in his highchair waiting patiently for dinner. He has a binkie in his mouth which we keep trying to get him to like better than his thumb, BUT he mostly uses it as a chew toy. It is quite comical to watch him with it. He chews it so vigorously, it is like he has a wad of gum in his mouth.


Can't believe that Ryan got Patrick to stop playing on the computer long enough to get his picture taken. Now that is a talented photographer. Patrick loves to play Lego games on the computer and is hoping to find a Wii under the Christmas tree this year.


Miss Emma our golden retriever. The easiest, most loyal dog ever.



Mommy and her faithful helper Princess Morgan hard at work making breakfast for dinner.


Jack may have outgrown this seat but Mr. Skippy Jon Jones finds it a great place hunker down for a nap.

Thanks Ryan for the great pictures!

6 Months & Counting

Today my baby Jack is 6 months old! It is hard to believe and yet at the same time I can't imagine life without him. He is the sweetest little baby and I thoroughly enjoy loving on him every chance I get. I have said it before and I will say it again, I could just kiss his face all day!!





Mr Jack is getting so big. He has been eating real food for about 2 or 3 weeks now. As much as I love to give my babies avacados, once he tasted a banana it was all over for the green stuff. He enjoys plain yogurt(the good stuff) and buttercup squash and of course the banana. I have succeeded in tricking him by mixing the avacado and banana together. So far so good!!

I have had 4 babies and none of them were ever interested in their feet until now. Jack loves his feet. He is always trying to eat them and like his big sister Morgan, socks are rarely found on his toes.


Other things that he enjoys right now include the amazing EXERSAUCER!!, watching Patrick, Ryan, and Morgan(hopefully not picking up any tips from them), being tickled(he has the cutest little giggle),rocking with mama and taking a tubby with Miss Morgan.

High on Jack's list of dislikes include mostly getting dressed or undressed and getting in his carseat. Other than that he is pretty easy to get along with.


Last weekend we had Jack dedicated at our church. It was nice because my mom and sister as well as some friends(the Williams and the Wilcoxes) came and shared in the service with us.

Jack got to spend the week with Gramma and Aunt Trish and we really enjoyed seeing them and having them stay at our house.

This weekend was Halloween, and while I am not particularly a fan of the holiday we had a great time with the kids. Patrick and Ryan were going to be Lego blocks, BUT mommy got a little busy and tired and so when we were at Kohls on Thursday night we got Transformer costumes instead.



Miss Morgan was a sunflower which is very fitting for her, and Jack wore a cute little lion costume that we have had since Patrick's first Halloween. We went "trunk or treating" at Ryan's school and had dinner, played games, and the kids made smores with Daddy at the bonfire while mommy passed out candy.

Tonight we went to youth group at church and Patrick busted his head open playing soccer. He was a very brave little guy and endured the ER without a tear, and Mommy is very proud of him. He ended up with 8 stitches total, 3 inside and 5 out. One could say he is like his mom who clocked many hours in ER's over the years for busting up her head in some adventure or another.


And so ends another night in "The Treehouse." Tomorrow is waiting for another adventure and my pillow is waiting for my head. God bless you my little angels and sweet dreams!