Sugar Cookies.

 Love my drawer of a bazillion

cookie cutters.

 Love fishing through all of them

to find my CHRISTmas cookie

cutters . . . Memories of YEARS

of baking about a million sugar

cookies come flooding back each

time that look through all of my

cookie cutters.

 Love my 28 year old cookbook.  It contains

THE tried and true sugar cookie recipe.

 Love my cookie racks that my Tim gave

me last CHRISTmas.

Love my cookie testers the mostest.

In the Pink.

Mr. Macho stepped into the orthodontist

chair today and accepted the pink bands

in support of breast cancer.  What a guy!

Being the youngest of four brothers, they

busted his chops a bit!  If NFL football

players and major league baseball players

can do it . . . Luke can too!!  I was

pretty surprised myself . . . but if  any guy

can rock the pink bands, it's my Luke!!

Treats for Dad.

Lately, our Dad really cannot eat too much,

but every once in a while, he has had a

"hankering" for peppermint taffy of all things.

I was so excited to find this holiday taffy

today.  He probably won't eat but one or

two of them ever, but I just had to buy

two just . . . just in case.

"I waited patiently for the Lord; he turned to

me and heard my cry.  He lifted me out of the

slimy pit, out of the mud and mire; He set

me feet on a rock and gave me a firm

place to stand."  Psalm 40:1-2

My Office.

 When I am not tending to my family or

chores around our home, I can usually

be found in my office.

 My office has lots of my favorite things

in it and is the hub of LOTS of activity.

 It seems as though we have made some

pretty.big decisions in my office in the

short time since we have moved back home.

 Of course, Luke and I are in my office for

many hours each day homeschooling.

 I have TONS of schoolwork of my own!

 There is a space right next to this for

my Doctoral Degree.

 Someone in our home is ALWAYS

ironing . . . I spend many hours at

this ironing board preparing fabric

and quilts!!!

 Yep, everyone needs a space to call 

their very own!!!

 Sometimes Luke and I get cozy and

share the bench while he works away

on assignments and I sew on a quilt

or project.  Luke has been known to 

be poked with a pin or two during the

process.

 Just thinking about it . . . my office has also

served as Santa's Workshop and Command

Post Central for CHRISTmas wrapping

and gift preparation.

Love, love, love my office space.  I love it

even more that this is the very first place

that the kids report when they come home,

to check in with old Mom . . . just before

they hit the cookie jar.

My office . . . just.another.blessing!

Monday, Monday!!

Days are MUCH different around our 

home now! Mike is EXTREMELY fatigued!

As in brushing his teeth is a HUGE

accomplishment . . . and that is THE

big accomplishment for the day.  The

effects of this chemo drug have been

devastating for him.  We are praying our

way through it and are grateful for 

modern medicine.  I do think that we 

were unprepared for the side effects

of the drug.  We are praying that it is

working . . . by working it would mean

that this drug would stop our cancer at the

point it is now and perhaps shrink some

of the tumors.  It is very difficult to watch

someone you love so very, very much

go through something like this.

So . . . as I began to say, days around

our home are "different"!!  The boys 

still come and go like with a flurry of

activity, but I spend most of my time

where I should be . . . home . . . with

Mike.  I am always busy with a plethora

of tasks and eagerly awaiting more

approval so that I can continue on with

the research portion of my dissertation.

I usually have a quilt going and have 

a ton of things to do to keep up with

our home and the boys.  It is awesome

to receive phone calls, texts, emails,

notes, and encouragement.  Without our

support team, we would not have made

it this far.

The pizza . . . Luke started dreaming about

homemade pizza last night and we 

were excited to make it for dinner tonight.

Zach was in class, so Sam and Luke

gobbled the entire pizza by themselves.

My boys are so sweet to include me!!!

We realize that we have so very many

blessings!!!  I am blessed to have been

able to stay at home all of these years,

even now as Mike has not been able

to work for the past 18 months.  We

love our brand new beautiful home and

are thankful that our boys have been

able to become plugged in at our new

church!!  We are so grateful for our 

SMART doctor, caring nurses, and their

knowledge and willingness to try

ANYTHING!!!

Sunday . . .

 Yes indeedy, it must be Sunday in our

home . . . Sunday just wouldn't be Sunday

without chocolate chippers.  Sometimes we

eat almost the entire batch of dough before

we even get any in the oven.

We are excited to begin decorating

for the celebration of our Savior's birth.  It

has most definitely been a whirlwind 

weekend and we are bracing ourselves

for the week ahead.

I continue to be thankful for our

many, many blessings:

*grateful that our home is built

on the foundation of Jesus.  I

simply do not know what others

do who do not know the Lord

when the walls crumble in the

times of trial and tribulation.

I am thankful that we have never

been angry.  I am thankful that

we have a strong foundation as

a family, that we communicate,

work together, and are a group

that sticks together when the

going gets tough.

*grateful for a wonderful

THANKSgiving weekend and

prayed up for the coming week.

Thanksgiving Weekend Fun.

 For a crew that  is on the go constantly . . .

 being cozy on THANKSgiving weekend

 was definitely on our agenda!

 I had shinsplints from running all

over on THANKSgiving Day like

a wild woman getting everything in

order for the big feast!!!

We all had shinsplints from running all

over the malls on Black Friday!!!!

We totally took advantage of our Saturday

and were cozy as bugs all day!!!  We

CHRISTmas shopped in our pajamas

and baked yummy CHRISTmas cookies!!!

You know how teenagers are . . . the

action definitely picked up once the

sun went down!!!

Black Friday Fun.

Sam, Luke, Grandy, and I made a run for

Black Friday!  We had so much fun tramping

through the crowds.  I was excited to 

be out and about after feasting yesterday.

The kids, on the other hand, managed to

munch down after having Thanksgiving

leftovers for breakfast, chocolate pie and

whipped cream for a snack, and a few

pieces of turkey on their way out the door!!

*I am thankful for my people who stick

with me, it is not easy!

*I am grateful that, even though we

are in difficult circumstances, we

still have a spirit of levity in the air!

*I am thankful for those who are

praying without ceasing.

*I am thankful that their are 

advanced medications . . . although

the side effects are tremendous!

*I am thankful that, even though

our life changes each and everyday,

we are able to work through 

anything TOGETHER!

*I am thankful for memories.

While it is difficult to remember my

old life, maybe that is the way that

God wants it.  I try really hard to 

remember when we all jumped in

the car on a whim.  Went on long

trips together and made decisions 

off the cuff.  It is difficult to remember

some of them thinking that they may

never happen ever ever again.

One thing I know for sure, "If He

brings you to it, He will bring you

through it".  I am counting on that!

Happy, Happy Thanksgiving.

 Snippets from a very happy,

happy Thanksgiving in our home!

 Trimmed and decorated.

 Favorite peeps.

 Love these two!

 Cranberry eating.

 Turkey carving.

 Outside eating.

 Dad dutying.

 Bro talking.

Love that we were able to spend

so much time together today.

Missed a couple of important

people who were celebrating in

Heaven today!  Missed my Tim

who was on his way back to

shore from Aruba, St. Maarten,

St. Kitts, and Barbados. (He has

a really rough life!!!!)

We shared memories, laughed lots,

were thankful for the moment,

and happy, happy when the last

razzleberry pie fork was washed,

dried and put back in the drawer.

*Love my family.

*Love that the kids love each

other so much!!

*Love that laughter was heard

in our home today.

*Love that we pray together!

*Love that, despite our many

differences, we are excited

to celebrate together.

Thanksgiving Preparations.

And so it begins . . . Love, love, love our

THANKSgiving cooking and baking day!

The calories that come with it, not so much!

*Thankful for happy boys with hungry

tummies!

*Thankful for lots and lots of footsteps

sounds all throughout our home!

*Thankful that we have a brand new

home to call Command Post Central!

*Thankful for our sweet neighbors!

*Thankful for happiness in our home!

*Thankful that even though we find

ourselves in difficult circumstances,

there is laughter in our home!

*Thankful that our home will be

filled with lots of family tomorrow!

*Thankful that my sweet Tim is

happy on his new cruise ship.

Not so happy that he will not

be here tomorrow!

*Thankful that we have a home

that our boys love to bring their

friends to!

*Thankful that God has given

me tons of energy to pick up the

slack when others cannot.

Loving THANKSgiving!!!

Turkey Trot.

Seriously. Luke and I spent about FIVE hours

of our day helping Sam with his golf 

fundraiser of selling THANKSgiving turkeys!!

Super.crazy.story.

*Love that my boys help me ALL of the

time.

*Love being a close family!!!!!

*Maybe we share TMI, but I love it!!

*Love that we grow even closer in

tough times.

*Love that being a family means

that we are safe as long as we

have each other.

*Love that I live closer to all

of my family.

*Love that my little family loves

JESUS.

*Love that we have had so many

wonderful years of homeschooling

memories and experiences.

*Don't love that my boys have

grown up so fast.

*Love that they are AMAZING

young men!!

*Love that these boys love

their parents SO MUCH and

are not afraid to show it.

Loving the THANKSgiving

season . . .

THANKSgiving Week.

This card is EVERYWHERE, but so cute!

THANKSgiving week is definitely one of

my most favorite weeks of the year.  I, for

one, have a bazillion blessings to count:

*JESUS

*AWESOME family

*AMAZING husband

*FOUR of the most amazing boys EVER

*Terrific friends

*Great support system

*Homeschooling!

*Beautiful, cozy home

*A church home/church family

*Cooler weather

*Homemade whipped cream

*My sewing machine ;0)

*Fun times with friends and family

*MEMORIES

*Family Sundays

*Wonderful docs

*Chemo meds . . . although the side effects

are brutal, we are grateful for medical

technology.

*Surprises in the mail

*Cards, notes, and flowers from 

amazing family and friends

Can't wait to continue counting

tomorrow . . . 

Spreading Salt.

 Sam has been in training for the

past several weeks in order to participate

in this ministry event that took place

this morning in downtown Las Vegas.

 We feel so blessed and grateful that our Sam

has chosen a great group of friends and is

plugged into ministry in our new church.

 The team headed out early this morning

and returned late this evening.

We sure are proud of our Sam and his

terrific group of friends.  It is awesome to

witness teans this age ministering to those

less fortunate and desiring to serve God

and spread the Word.  They have plenty of

other less desirable options in these times

and we are so very grateful for the choices

that they are making!!!  Not only were those

that they served blessed, but this group 

received many, many more blessings from

those that they ministered to.  The stories were

incredible.

Lovin' From the Oven.

Nothin' says love more than homemade

cornbread . . . talk about comfort and yummy!

Scampering around the house today, I was

excited to bake this for my crew!!  They

love, love, love it . . . with honeybutter,

of course!!!

Gratitude and a heartfelt thank you to 

all who have been praying for our

Dad and our family during our battle

with adrenal gland cancer.  Wow!  I can 

sure feel the encouragement from

the prayers!!  We.would.not.make.it.

without.them!!!  He is EXTREMELY

fatigued!!!!!!  I mean, extremely!!!

He is here and we are grateful!!!

Onward.comrades.

Projects.

These days, it is best to keep my hands and

mind occupied.  I have had so much fun 

working on this collage of family pictures.

Each picture represents such memories:

birthdays, vacations, celebrations, and

milestones in our lives.  What a blessed

crew we are for sure!!  The Lord must

really love us . . . He has poured out

abundant blessings to our family!  We are

forever grateful.

My door at the top of my stairs had a 

little makeover today.  In response to the

red lockers, I HAD to give my door a 

little lovin'.  I love the new shabby chic

color and am thrilled to have another spot

to hang some of our quilts!!!

I Heart My Mailman.

Our mailman has a habit of coming a wee

bit late in the evening and now with the 

time change, it is usually dark by the time

that he gets here with our goodies.  I 

usually go out to our mailbox early in

the morning to get our mail.

This morning I was so surprised to

find a pair of these DARLING, AMAZING,

CUTE, FUN, ADORABLE, EXCITING,

missed-matched socks.  I know that

the sender was my main cheerleader,

my Mom.  I immediately ripped them 

out of the packaging and slipped them on

my little feet.  It is crazy how God made

girls.  They get so excited over the

littlest things like nail polish or a

droopy rose cut from the garden.

Well, my day is now made.  Thanks

for the fun socks Mom!!!!

We Did It!

A wee bit blurry and a mouth full

of congratulatory M&Ms, Luke

finished four-week courses in order

to earn both his Lifesaving and 

Swimming merit badges.  This

class was not for the faint of heart,

every single night for four weeks.

(I think I must might whip up

a little merit badge of my own!)

Congratulations Luke!!!

The Lockers.

Excited about our latest family

project . . . Any guesses as to

what these numbers mean?

 Put a "19" in front of each of them and

you might have a better guess!!!!

 Getting warmer?

They are the numbers on our FANTABULOUS

new lockers built and designed by our Dad

with all of us as helpers!!!

 Love the vintage door pulls . . .

 Take a very deep breath.  Try not

to tip over in your chair!!  Just look.

Look at them.  I do so love, love,

love them.

 Take another peek!

Now we have a place for our

coats, shoes, and purses right

as we come in through our 

front door!!  Are we lucky or what?!?

1918:  The year that Grampa was born

1958:  The year that Mike was born

1963:  The year that I was born

1984:  The year that Mike and I were married