tree time... or not.

so.... on friday, after we went to go visit my grandparents in tyler, we stopped at the canton tree farm - just like we did last year.

i was soooo excited about this year - for several reasons.

#1 - b. is older this year, thus more aware of his surroundings (a.k.a. 'santa claus')

#2 - we were going to be there during the daylight, unlike last year, so we could hang out and do all of the fun stuff that they have there

#3 - we were going to be coming right off of a nap in the car (hopefully), so i was sure that the bug would be in the best mood to play



this picture pretty much sums up our time at canton tree farm.

we can't be too upset, our little man was an absolute angel all week long during the holiday festivities ~ not fussing at all ~ and absolutely basking in all of the attention from my relatives.

so, it's understandable that he would have a meltdown at some point, right?






i adore their santa set up ~ but b. was having NONE of it. luckily, they are so sweet there that they didn't make us pay any money and gave us candy anyway.

we picked up our tree and headed home so that the hubbs could get started on the lights.

don't they look great?



if you don't hear from me for a few days, it's because i'm lost in the sea of christmas decorations that have emerged from our garage. there are pinecones, glitter, tree needles and styrofoam berries everywhere. and when i say everywhere - i mean everywhere. no place in our house is safe... not even the bathroom!

i heart decorating for christmas. {although - the hubbs may beg to differ since he hears me hollering, crying and talking to myself until it's all done}.

thankful.

"Oh give thanks to the LORD, call upon His name;
make known His deeds among the peoples.
Sing to Him, sing praises to Him;
speak of all His wonders."
{1 Chronicles 16:8,9}

For the first time since I can remember (which doesn't mean too terribly much), the season of the year matches exactly with the season in my life. For the past few weeks, I have been overwhelmed, to the point of tears, at all of the blessings that the Lord has poured upon our lives. I'm not talking about material blessings, that which we all have received. I'm talking about those blessings in our lives that can only be explained through the Lord. Jeff and I made a Thanksgiving list this year, which I hope becomes a tradition that the Little B-Man can participate in soon, and a few things on my list are below. I hope each and every one of you enjoyed your Thanksgiving holiday and found many blessings to sing praises for.

~a godly husband that loves the Lord with all His heart and grows in His walk with every passing day; that he prays for me and loves me unconditionally.

~J. passing the Bar and finishing school up this year (thanks to all of your prayers this year for us!) That he has a job, and that he LOVES it.

~a happy and healthy little boy (which I take for granted way too much).

~the health of our parents; and on that note, that BOTH of our parents are God-fearing and have raised us up in that way as well.

~for friends and family that challenge us and build us up in the Lord.

~for two of our sweet friends recently got pregnant... an answer to many, many prayers of ours. (we're so happy for you guys!!)

~for our sunday school class (sorry, 'adult bible fellowship'). we've been soooo encouraged through the people that the Lord has so clearly brought to our class. He has a special plan for all of the relationships that are forming, and it's sooo neat to watch.

~that my brother is home from Colorado. (Love you, Cammy).

These are just a few of the things I felt that I could share 'publicly'.

Some pics of Thanksgiving Day are below... we had a blast. Cam cooked the turkey - and it was awesome. We had so much family in town, it was so fun to see everyone. It was the first time we'd all been together in a long time. We all brought a dish and the food was incredible. Can't wait to try making Carolyn's chipotle potatoes (send me that recipe, Carolyn!)

my big daddy writes 'odes' for all special occasions. here is reading the one for Thanksgiving Day.

everyone except my aunt and brady (carolyn was taking the picture).

the two men i'm most thankful for.

McLeach Thanksgiving

Whew... this week is already wearing me out and it's only Tuesday! This seriously may be my favorite week of the year. Thanksgiving is full of good food, family and friends and you still have all of the anticipation of Christmas! I absolutely LOVE Thanksgiving (maybe my favorite holiday), so I welcome all of the festivities, it's just that, unfortunately, along with all of the holiday fun comes the work and lack of sleep. Am I right? Does anyone else have a love/hate relationship with the Holidays like I do?

Anyway, on our first night of this holiday week, we had a king-sized feast over at our house with our friends The McCords. I made Indian (excuse me, Native American) costumes for the boys to play in. They were super simple an B. LOVES to dress up so I just added it to the collection. Weren't they just little Muffins in their costumes?!? I set the 'Big Kids' table with our very own Indian names: Spotted Face, Little Tweeter, Big Buffalo and Small Foot (Inside joke, but Joanna and Jeff were in Indian Guides and already had their names picked for them...) Next year we're going to have a Pilgrim Theme. Hmmmm...... where do I come up with Pilgrim names??

J. trying to teach B. how to do an Indian chant...

We had craft time - trying to paint a turkey. B. loves his dot paints.
Pierce was still a little unsure, but had fun watching his momma and Brady.

a creative high.

Thursday night, the ladies from our SS class went to paint pottery at \Color Me Mine in Frisco. Boy, was it fun! The place closed at 9 and we were there well past that... despite our best efforts to let the workers go home! I was the only one who didn't finish, so I found some time to go back and clean up my lines. I seriously think I might be addicted. I felt completely invigorated using that part of my brain that has been asleep since the art classes I took in college. Whew. This is what I made: (yes, I painted those stripes with the help of some tape!)



I cannot wait to see what it looks like all fired up and with the NEW details I put on it when I went back. (I know everyone is counting down the days with me until I get to pick it up, right?) Stay tuned for new pictures!!

watching daddy.

good habits start early.

b.'s new-found favorite thing to do is brush his teeth. as we were moving, i noticed that his teeth were 'showing' enough, that we could probably start doing it so i got him a baby-elmo toothbrush from target and we were on our way. i was originally going to just let him hold it and put it in his mouth himself to get used to it while we were brushing our teeth, but whoa was i wrong. as soon as he saw his daddy putting toothpaste on his toothbrush, he had to do the same thing. he messes around with it in his mouth for a little bit before we actually take it and 'scrub' them - something i thought for sure he wouldn't be fond of - but again, i was wrong. he loves it. in fact, if he had his way, he'd brush his teeth 4 or 5 times a day. not kidding. the only problem is that he eats the toothpaste. as in, doesn't spit it out. any help?

dear brady.

dearest brady,

we had the most wonderful afternoon yesterday, i just had to write it down so i wouldn't ever forget. the weather was cool outside and we decided to go for a little walk down our street to collect some autumn items.

you were absolutely precious, carrying your bucket the whole time. you picked up every single acorn that you saw, and you just had to take the 'top' off of it before throwing it in the bucket. you pointed out planes to me, and squealed with delight as you watched them cross the sky. after they were gone, you'd turn to me and sign 'more'. honey, i'm so sorry i couldn't make more planes come!

we waved to a few scarecrows that we saw along the way. we petted a dog that was way bigger than you, but thought you were the best. we sang songs and picked up pretty leaves and rocks along the way. you were so happy, and smiling from ear to ear. you were talking up a storm, begging me to understand your 'words', but i just couldn't, although i tried my best.

all of these things were wonderful, but they are not what made it so special for me. sweet brady, the entire walk, you held tightly onto my hand. whenever you bent over to pick something up and put it in your bucket, you'd reach right back up for my hand. it was the first time i noticed you were holding my hand, and not me holding yours. you absolutely melted my heart. it was one of those precious moments, where i wished that time could just stop, and we could stay there a tiny bit longer.

i look forward to so many more precious moments along the way, but i just had to re-live this one for you, as i will be telling you about it someday. i love you, sweet boy.

{mommy.}

school pictures. (pictures of pictures).

sneak peak

We got our proofs back from Summer yesterday, and let me tell you, I am speechless. She did such a beautiful job. Since we're going to have to make a decision about our Christmas card, and the rest may end up being nestled into some Christmas gifts, I'm not going to give it all away. But here is one of my favorites of the Hubbs and I. Ahhhhh.... so in love.

Be sure to go and visit her website for more info! She's awesome!

he DID exist.

Guess who I found today while cleaning my kitchen counters.......

bedside baptist.

Unfortunately, today I'm suffering the affects of some sort of a nasty head cold. I think J. brought it home from work with him early last week, then gave it to my little Bug and then the Bug, in turn, generously gave it to his momma. Whew. What a treat, right!? How come this little 'virus' can so easily zap me of all energy and motivation to do anything? The sweet Hubbs forced me to stay in bed this morning while he took the little man to church. THEN, he came home, fixed us lunch and I stayed in bed all afternoon (with a few breaks as to not get bed sores). He even watched Brady while the Boys lost that awful game. He's such a die-hard fan, and I couldn't help but to hear him trying to play happily with B. while Romo fumbled the ball. What a wonderful husband!?

So, when the boys went to church this morning, I wish I could tell you that I followed J's instructions and went back to sleep, but I didn't! I couldn't go back to sleep for the life of me. I turned on the television - but it was all junk on Sunday morning. So I decided to read.

I recently finished The Power of the Praying Woman by Stormie Omartian for the second time. It's life changing. I love ALL of her books (I think I have 5 of them) but this one especially because it's absoutely filled with God's Word, and she taught me a few years ago the power of praying scripture over my own life. In preparation to finish that book, I went to Mardel in search for a new book and picked up Having a Mary Heart in a Martha World by Joanna Weaver. I've been wanting to read it for a while, and decided that it's time, as I've been a little overwhelmed recently in my "busyness" and the hustle and bustle of the upcoming holidays.

I read the first chapter this morning and have become absolutely captivated by Joanna's honesty and candid descriptions of the Mary and Martha story. I've included a few captions from the first chapter that really convicted me:

"Jesus is our supreme example. He was never in a hurry. He knew who he was and where he was going. He wasn't held hostage to the world's demands or even its desparate needs. 'I only do wht athe Father tells me to do,' Jesus told his disciples." (p.8)

"We can get caught in the same performance trap {as Martha}, feeling as though we must prove our love for God by doing great things for him. So we rush past the intimacy of the Living Room to get busy for him in the Kitchen - implementing great ministries and wonderful projects, all in an effort to spread the good news. We do all our works in His name. We call him 'Lord,Lord'. But in the end, will he know us? Will we know him?..... The world clamors, 'do more! Be all that you can be!' But our Father whispers, 'Be still and know that I am God!" (p.9)

Does anyone else have a problem with the busyness of life? With saying yes to every good thing that comes your way until all of a sudden you have so many good things on your plate that you can't concentrate on the Best thing that God has for you? I do. I really do. I am challenged by the paradox of Mary and Martha and desperately want to find the balance that God has for me.

I told my mom last week, I have a Mary heart - in the morning - before the chaos of the day starts. In the stillness of the morning, in my quiet time with Him, I'm great at 'being Mary'.... but as soon as that little boy upstairs wakes up, I turn into Martha, trying to get it all done.

So it turns out that I didn't need to go to "church" this morning to have a meaningful experience with Him. He met me where I was... sick, in bed. Don't you absolutely adore the God that we serve?

Have a great week, everyone!

Project.

So....... I never found that grasshopper when I came out of hiding. J. doesn't believe me... but boy is he going to be in for it when he opens a kitchen cabinet and googly eyes are staring right back at him!!!

This morning, I was still a little jumpy when I was walking around the living room. I shook all the lamps before I turned them on, just in case he was hiding in there. I used a yard stick to poke all the pillows to make sure he wasn't underneath them and would jump on me when I sat down. By this afternoon, I was feeling comfortable enough to attempt to finish my project from last night.

Soooooo... I saw this particular project on Amber's Blog. Click HERE to see the original idea. It kind of took some improvising, but it's done, and here's a little preview of my homemade version. I may still tweak a few things... but we'll see.

I can't wait to see what it looks like when I get it 'strung up'... AFTER Thanksgiving, of course!!