Five Question Friday

1. Do you open presents on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day?

It has been my family's tradition to open up presents
from our family members on Christmas Eve and save
"santa's" presents and the BIG gifts from our parents
on Christmas Day.  It works better for me my family
so we don't go bonkers waiting!




2. What is your favorite Christmas cookie (or candy)?

Ohhh  I have so many!  I am a junk food junkie!  I LUV Rocky Road and
little wedding cakes...Mmm!!  Mmm!!!  And I must profess my Mom totally
makes the BEST EVA Chocolate Fudge and Peanut Butter Fudge.  And I have
had a ton in my lifetime.  Honestly.  The Best.



3. What's the worst Christmas gift you've ever received?

Well.......I feel totally bad now and wish I would have treasured
this a bit more, but my Grandma Pyles gave me an embellioshed christmas sweater
with a cat on it.  Totally embarressing.  No way could I wear that. Anywhere.  But now
looking back I am totally ashamed of the way I acted and should have
been grateful.  We live. We learn.  :)



4. Christmas song that you love?


Wow.  Don't even get me started.  I LOVE Christmas carols.  Love them.  My
family Danny is probably sick of hearing them inside the home and in the van.
My favs?  Hmm....Little Drummer Boy, Angels We Have Heard On High, Adam
Sandler's Hannukuah (haha), Winter Wonderland, Baby Its Cold Outside, etc, etc.  I regress.  I love them all.


5. How many trees do you put up?

How many do I wish I put up?  One in every room...some little, some big.  How many
do I actually put up?  ONE.  Lame, I know.  But I have small children, a small budget.  So there ya go.  One day I hope to have one on my porch we decorate. Oh, and this year we "made" a cute tree to display on the table.  So that counts right?

Hmmm.......

I don't know if this

makes my job

 easier or harder.



TREE LIGHTING IN DALLAS

We  fought the crowds but had a blast.

Because the smiles we got.  Totally worth it. 

It was all about looking cute

Being with your bff

The anticipation

And all about Santa scaling Neiman Marcus

 

And Mrs. Claus

Posing for Holiday Pictures

Walking hand in hand



Being with my family.  Love.

CELEBRATING FALL

It has been such a great week, so far.

We celebrated Thanksgiving.  With lots of yummy goodies.

We watched The Grinch.  And Elf.  Tis the season.

Hung out as a family. 

Had turkey sandwhiches for breakfast

 Its been wonderful!

Naps happened.

We cranked up the christmas carols.

Brought out the christmas tree

and all the trimmings.

Tinkerbell set straight to work on

her "masterpiece".

Even before the tree was all theway up. 

 Thats alright.

She's a pro.

And we went to the park

for some much needed fresh air

(and two littlle girls needed to burn some energy).

And I was amazed at the


beauty of Texas.


Where did all these colors come from?

And how are we still wearing shorts in

November.  Oh Texas...you confuse

me sometimes.

Kylie decided to do some rock climbing. 

And exploring.

Its the little things that make

me smile.  The biggest.  "Cause

smiling is my favorite.

HAPPY THANKSGIVING


FRIENDS AND FAMILY!!!

BRAGGING RIGHTS

I Make No Apologies, I Cannot Get Enough

Of This Lil Face These Days

So, I decided to share all her

cuteness with you....She sure brightens

my day.  :)

FIVE QUESTION FRIDAY!!!

1. What Christmas song do you loathe?

Honestly, I LOVE every christmas song I have heard.

Thats not saying there is one, some, I don't like, I just

haven't heard them yet!

2. Do you and your significant other cuddle at night or sleep on opposite sides of the bed?

If you ask Danny than NO! Is the answer.  (He's kinda

needy, heehee).  But the REAL answer would be,

sometimes.  Like the days when he doesn't come

home at 11:30 or later and I am not already

asleep, than yes, we might snuggle a bit.  Than I make

him roll over so I can have my share of the bed...ya know 3/4 of the bed!

3. Have you ever had surgery?

When I was 2 or so, I had a hernia so yes, I had surgery.

Luckily, I do not remember it.  And my Mom said I was

jumping off the stairs and running around right after it.  I'm

tough like that.  

4. When do you typically have your holiday shopping done?

Golly, I am the worst procratinater in the world! 

As of right now, my mind and body is going into overdrive

and you could say I am a bit of a stress ball.  I do not have any

of my girls big presents...I do have some stocking stuffers.  That counts for something right?  And don't even get me started on family

gifts....yikes!!  I have good intentions and I LOVE to give..its

the buying that stresses me out. 

5. If money were not an issue (and you HAD to pick something), what would your ultimate luxury item be?

 

Ultimate luxury item?  This probably doesn't apply to well,

anyone but me...but the ultimate luxury item would be

a big ol' house totally furnished in wonderful pieces that would be kid friendly and still modern.  Yes, I am a nerd.  Oh!  It would totally have to have a big ol' fireplace also...and a wrap around porch.  Total luxury baby!!

Stream of Conscience

So, some of you may know, some may not...but with every marriage there are going to be ups and downs.  And right now Danny and I are trying to come out of a down.  Its just hard.  Real hard.  Especially when our priorities are completely different.  I will not go into details about the what or the when or the who but just know we are working on moving forward. Together.

I read a blog the other day and it spoke right to me.  It was about "faking it till you make it".  Amazing insight.  Basically this couple was having a rough time as well and well, they faked it till they made it.  Two of the exercises they were to do were was to start  by holding hands for one whole week..especially at the times when you did not want to be.  The next week they were to hug...and hold on for at least 30 seconds.  Again, especially at the times when you really did not feel like being by your husband.  Sounds simple to married couples who have not looked at their spouse with disgust, resentment, anger, etc.  Believe me though, it could be tough.  We have not done the experiment, I am not 100% sure we should not do it, though I don't think we are that broken.  But the closeness it might bring us, the renewing and opening of our love, the "totally in love with you" feelings its suppose to bring....that might be nice.  And when I think of showing my affection to Danny...well, I have my reserves.  Sometimes I don't feel like he deserves it....its the resentment again speaking.  So ya, maybe we should try this exercise.  Who knows?  Maybe it would help us understand each other better if we felt "more in love". 

I do believe that if we don't look to God first to please than other areas in our life will suffer.  Mainly relationships.  We need to come to God and satifsty Him first to succeed elsewhere.  I do know I should not sweat the small stuff and have great grace for my husband.  I know this.  Its the doing part I have a hard time with.  I know there is always going to be something that Danny will do to bug me, and I just need to have great grace for him.  And likewise, I am sure I do things that annoy the snot of Danny but again, he does show great grace for me. 
There is a scripture I have been repeating to myself lately and I am amazed at how it has transformed my communication with Danny:
"A soft answer turns away wrath but a harsh word stirs up anger". Proverbs 15:1  
I know thru this I need to honor and respect Danny and through that he will honor and respect me.  All the while looking to God to please him.  I am not here to please Danny, but the Lord.  And doing so, will indeed make my marriage perfect, in God's eyes.  And I am learning to trust his heart and know that sometimes he means no harm when he says something or does something and I take it the wrong way.  Again, I am working a lot on this.  It is a life long lesson...one that doesn't end but always improve.  Hopefully. 

YOU KNOW WHAT MAKES ME SMILE.....

This little face smiling up at me.....

Kylie has discovered the phrase "Just Kidding!" and boy does she

make us laugh with all her JK sayings!!  I am going to try

to catch her on video and post it...fingers crossed she cooperates!



Hannah and her bff Jack!



Watching Hannah and Jack try to win tickets:

Watching Hannah get way excited over somebody else's presents:

Something else that makes me smile?

Learning to Crave The Word with this group

of awesome girls!

Having No Reservations by spreading the word of God with chalk

They Rocked That Sidewalk!

Snacks at Midnight?  Don't mind if I do!!

These two playing Air Hockey...ya, that

makes me smile...Alot!!

And yes, this sweet little angel who

is growing up so much lately.....

she Definetly makes me smile!!



FIVE QUESTION FRIDAY

1. If you could have any talent and turn it into an occupation, what would it be?


My special talent turned occupation would be Fashion Stylist/Personal Shopper.  I love clothes, shoes, accesories and I would love to be able to go put together cute outfits for other people depending on their personality, attitude, and budget.  Imagine being able to go explore fun accesories with outfits, whether its for everyday, work, or even better...a fancy night out.  Fabulous!!  So much fun...:)  And I could manage my own hours and be pretty much stress free.  Unless I get a picky client.  But mostly, super fun.


2. Would you rather have a house at the beach or a cabin in the woods?


Hands down a house on the beach!  Where my bedroom has a wonderful roomy balcony where the sun streams in every day to wake me up and the smell of the water wafting in thru my window and the waves crashing being the backdrop noise.  Pure Heaven.  I would definetly want a small path leading down to the water where I would have comfy chairs and a small table set up.  Along with a hammock swinging in the breeze next to my jet skis and boat.  Ahh...yes.  That is the dream!






3. Is there any meaning or reasoning for the names you chose for your child/children?
Why yes there is!  Before Danny and I knew whether we were having a boy or girl the first time, we had both instantly fell in love with the name Hannah.  Which is kind of weird now that I think about it cuz while I was dating Danny I babysat for two seperate kids whose name was Hannah...anyhoo!  So Danny and I choose Hannah and for her middle name we decided to go with the name Marie after both her grandmas...my Mom and his Mom both have the middle name Marie.  Perfect!
As for Kylie..well, that girl was "named" quite a few different names.  We would like one name one night than the next morning we had "naming remorse" and would instantly say um, no.  At one point we wrote the name "Katelyn" in her baby book but Danny and I couldn't agree on a spelling so out went that name and book!  We finally thought Kylie was perfect!  And it definetly fits her!!  As for her middle name, she is of course named after me..Elizabeth..although I really wanted to spell it like this: Elisabeth, but cuz I am so use to spelling it the way my name is I didn't spell it right on the birth certificate..I blame it on the sleepless nights in the hospital.  Oh well.  But she is definetly a Mini-Me!  So we have two beautiful daughters with two beautiful names:  Hannah Marie and Kylie Elizabeth.


4. What is your guilty pleasure? (I know we've done this one before, but I'm guessing people's "guilty pleasures" change frequently. At least, mine do!)

Right now, my guilty pleasure is this wonderful, amazing Spiced Pumpkin Pecan Ice Cream.  Oh. My. Word. It is way too good for words!!  Another guilty pleasure that is not food would be going to the store alone.  Oh, the little things.

 5. Do you live in a house that is deep cleaned or straightened?

What is "deep cleaned"?  What is that?  I live with two little girls that are tornados and a boy.  Does that cover that question? 
For most of the time it is straightened up....although laundry is always a never ending battle, but I am working on that.  And I keep it dusted, swept, vacuumed, etc regularly.  That counts right?

MY SUNSHINES

My girls make me smile. Alot. Especially when they

do the simplest things. 

Such as...







When they play Make Believe...
Like feeding their puppy.







Or Making Funny Faces.....
Which Hannah finds hilarious!

 


Or just eating cheetos. 
Who else looks this cute
while shoving food into their mouth?




Tickle wars are also hilarious.  To Hannah. 
She's such a ham.




And has one of the best smiles around. 
Along with her best friend. 
 Kylie of course!



BFF's.

These two are having

so much fun growing up together.

And yes, those are christmas jammies. 
Super comfy cozy Hannah tells me.




And I am soo glad I get to watch them laugh.
And giggle.  And grow. 
Physically and spiritually. 
These two have hearts of gold.




Especially when it comes to animals.
  Pretend or real.




I am so blessed that God gave me
these two angels to raise and love.
Being a Momma is the greatest.