They say it's your birthday.....

Me and my sweet boys on my birthday! Joss was snoozing so she missed the photo op!
I had a great time shopping with Mom the morning of my birthday. Then we met everyone at Longhorn for lunch. That afternoon I was able to relax for a little while before taking the princess to the dr. Double ear infections! Boo!

Daddy-O and all our loves on his birthday!

Daddy-O played golf with his bestie (lol) the morning of his birthday. We went to dinner at Ham's then came home and watched a movie together.

Christmas with my side of the family

On Christmas Day afternoon, we go back to Durham to spend a few hours at my grandparents house. We have lots of people in their house and it always brings such joy to my heart! There are 7 great-grandchildren...4 of which belong to us!

Here the boys are showing off their gift from Grandma and Papa.

Oh look, someone snapped a picture of me...and given the fact I hadn't just rolled out of bed, I thought it was okay to post it ;).

I love this picture. They both look so happy!

I guess the only way to get a picture of Papa is to take a picture of him taking a picture! He is always behind the camera!

On to Nana and Poppi's house! Camron and Caden wait patiently while watching an "old timey" movie with Poppi. This is something all 3 boys really enjoy! (Watching the old movies that is. I certainly don't mean waiting!)

They were so excited to get "The Millennium Falcon"!

Poppi and Nana holding their gifts from us.

Daddy-O and Camron were worn slap out! We love spending time with all of our family at Christmas but man, oh man does it make us tired!

We pray that each of you had a blessed Christmas with your families as well!

Merry Christmas!

We were ALL up bright and early Christmas morning! Joss and Jax are our early risers so they made sure the rest of us were up as well!

Once everyone got downstairs and took a peak at what was there, we all sat down and sang "Happy Birthday" to Jesus led by Jaxon. We usually make a cake but didn't this year. I love that my children are at a point where they see the true meaning of Christmas. Yes, they enjoy getting presents but they enjoy giving even more. I over heard them talking on numerous occasions this year to eachother as well as to others saying the best present they ever got was Jesus. Amen, boys, Amen!

Jaxon opening his present from Camron and Caden. They all did such a good job keeping eachothers gifts secret. And they were SO proud of their purchases!

Joss on her "push-cart" for the first time!

Camron and Caden opening their gifts from eachother! How funny that they got eachother the same thing but in a different color?!

Daddy-O got a new flashlight. He is ALWAYS looking for a flashlight so this was a great gift for him!

The boys each got a set of Wikki Stix. They had a blast creating with those while the sausage balls were in the oven!

Yes, I was there and even had my picture made as I opened presents BUT I am also the one that chooses the pictures for this blog...and I choose to not show those!

Merry Christmas to All! May you all remember that JESUS IS THE REASON FOR THE SEASON!

Twas the night before Christmas

We attended our Christmas Eve service this year. It was beautiful! The kids really enjoyed singing, praising, and being able to hold the candles all by themselves....;)
Once we got home and everyone was showered and in their jammies, one present was opened by each then Daddy-O ready The Night Before Christmas then the story of Jesus' birth from the Bible.

The boys have been asking me every time we go in Hobby Lobby to buy them fleece fabric and make them "tie" blankets. I always tell them no....I finally did it and surprised them for Christmas! They love them. They are camo on one side and each boy has a different color on the other!

Jossalyn got a My Child doll. I had one of these when I was a little girl and searched and searched until I found an affordable one on ebay for her! She LOVES her.

L-O-V-E this! Pure sweetness. Makes my heart like putty!

Ok, if you remember my post about the homeschool party at church, you remember the picture of the shepherds looking "scared". Well, when Daddy-O got to that point, on cue, my little shepherds looked "scared" again! I love those silly kids!

After our family routine was finished, we set out cookies and milk, threw some carrots in the yard for the reindeer and off to bed they went.....(if only it were that easy!) The excitement of our day in addition to the excitement yet to come meant a long and drawn out bedtime with lots of giggles and sillies before finally seeing those visions of sugarplums!

What a blessing these children are!

Christmas with the Duke's

We usually go to Chris' parents a few days before Christmas and spend the night. The kids have a blast hanging out with everyone and the adults get to relax and spend some quality time together. Here are a few pics of our time together!

Mimi and Grandpa with a gift from us.

Hmm, wonder what this is.....underwear?!?!

Here is Jax with Uncle Cooley. He's a big kid himself!

Not sure what Joss was laughing at but she sure is cute!

All the boys playing in the floor with their legos!

11 months already?!?!

I can't even believe in one month my baby girl will be 1 year old!! In the past month little miss priss has decided her favorite way to get around is by foot! She just took off....literally! I thought 4th kids walked later.....anyway.....Nana bought her some super cute "walking" shoes. Mostly to keep her from busting her face open in her cute little tights! She is talking up a storm, although she does speak Jossalyn-ese! We can probably understand her much better than others! Her favorites are "thank-you" and "baby". And yes, everyone slightly small (even if they are bigger than her) are baby! So, as we approach Christmas and the New Year, I guess this mama has a party to plan! This little girls is going to be well celebrated come January 22nd!

A few of our homeschool friends met us at Moses Cone hospital to deliver stuffed animals and toys to the children on the pediatric floor there. The kids had a ball and it was such a rewarding time for all of us! I think the kids would have liked to stay and play in the playroom there but we stopped for a quick picture and headed out!