Our Christmas!!

I know it's now New Years Eve but I figure I'm doing good. I still haven't gotten my Christmas cards in the mail. Seriously family/friends don't expect to get them until Marchish. Ok really like late January early February. We'll be moving then.

I don't know about anyone else but we celebrate in rounds. We went to my mom's house Christmas eve after Firefighter got off work. Me being the spaz that I am I forgot my camera. I also failed to take any photos when I was at Aunt N's house later that night.
We'll start with Christmas morning. Santa hooked our kidlets up. If you look on top of the TV the big gift for everyone was on top. They got a Wii. We have a 4th controller. I know I bought it. I just can't seem to find the gosh darn thing. I had to play gift giver so I was only able to get a few photos of the kids opening gifts. They had a great time. Firefighter got an Xbox game that he wanted really badly and didn't know he was getting along with a DeWalt drill he knew he was getting. I got a Wii fit and a beautiful silver necklace. The kids got so much it would be impossible to narrow it down.










Carrot Top and Wild Boy had to leave around noon. We have an agreement with their mother that we can always have them on Christmas eve and Christmas morning if she can have them Christmas night. We are a-ok with that and probably won't ever change it.
We headed down to Firefighter's dad's house with Aunt N around 2. I snagged some photos of them all together. Can you possible tell what Firefighter will probably look like in 20-30 some odd years?



From there we headed over to their Grandma and Grandpa's house. We met up with their cousins, who are our kids' ages.
We didn't plan to eat there. Grandma more or less made us. It was fine until she pulled out the ham. Aunt N looked at me and asked if it was roast beef. It was that over cooked. We ate a little just not the ham. Or the cottage cheese with orange jello in it.





This is Blond Terror and his cousin, well actually Firefighter's but that is another story. They're 15 days apart. I didn't even know that his mom was pregnant until we were both at least half way through.



Firefighter, Aunt N, Grandma and Grandpa L


Then onto Friday at the hotel when Firefighter's mom came into town. We can get a little crazy :). For the record I didn't take all of these. I snagged a few from Aunt T.




How cute are my boys in their bibs? Firefighter was wearing his and Blond Terror had to wear his too!

I don't remember what Aunt T said to us but Aunt N and I both turned and did this. Butt shots are customary in this family.

Prissy Pants and Super Hero stayed at the hotel that Nana(Firefighter's mom) was staying at with their Mimi, my ex husband's mother. They opened their gifts from Nana and Aunt T and Uncle J then. Christmas time for us is hectic and only randomly will you be able to catch us with all of our children.
After we left the hotel Firefighter and I went and got our big Christmas present to one another. It's smaller than what we had but we're both super happy with it.


Saturday Firefighter and I cooked and baked and cleaned our booties off. Nana, Daddy Loves, Gma, Gpa T, Aunt N, Uncle B, Aunt T, and Cousin I were all coming over for dinner and gift opening.









Our Christmas festivities wrapped up on Sunday morning. We went out to eat with Nana, Daddy Loves, Aunt T, Aunt N, and Gpa M.

Aunt N, Crazy Mama, and Aunt T. These 2 are some of my absolute favorite people. They just get me and they accept me for who I am. I love them for who they are and all that fun jazz. I'm getting kinda sappy so I'll quit now.

100th post!

This is my 100th post. I figured I'd do an updated 100 random things post. I'll do all my Christmas posting either tonight or tomorrow. I left my camera in the van and Firefighter has my van.

1. I still don't know exactly what color my hair is naturally
2. It is currently brown with red and blond highlights in it.
3. I had a hair dye fiasco in August. I will never dye my hair myself again.
4. I have 4 gray hairs that have surfaced recently. I have more but I dye them to cover them
5. I don't wear make up unless we're going out and usually it's just mascara
6. I love eyeliner. I don't wear it often though
7. We're moving at the end of January/beginning of February.
8. It's a MUCH larger house and we're in love with it.
9. My favorite color right now is green.
10. It was purple a few weeks ago.
11. It'll change again soon I'm sure.
12. I'm currently rather loopy from a vicodin for my back.
13. I'm a klutz and fell on the ice in our yard on Christmas Eve and hurt myself.
14. I love playing with play dough with my kids.
15. I love playing with legos with my kids too.
16. I bake when I'm upset or stressed.
17. I don't eat when I'm stressed though.
18. I am guilty of frequent run on sentences. I know they're run on and yet I do it anyways.
19. I think people look silly when they do the air quotation marks. More so when they do it completely out of context.
20. I dislike the phrase "how ironic"
21. I finally read the Twilight series.
22. I'm totally in fictional love with Edward Cullen.
23. I would be a vampire for him too.
24. My washer has had frozen pipes at least 7 times this year.
25. They're frozen again.
26. It's nearly impossible to keep up with laundry when they're not frozen. I have mounds when they are frozen.
27. I have 3 dogs.
28. Only one likes me. She doesn't like Firefighter.
29. We got the kidlets a Wii for Christmas. Firefighter and I have been playing it since late October.
30. I have a fabulous pink fuzzy Nautica robe that I love and wear all the time.
31. I highly dislike cleaning.
32. I clean because I have to.
33. Firefighter enjoys cleaning. He's weird.
34. Firefighter gave me a beautiful silver necklace for Christmas.
35. It hasn't come off since that day. I don't normally wear necklaces.
36. I want to get my monroe/madonna/whatever it's called piercing back. I miss it.
37. I have gained 10-15lbs since August and it's kicking my butt.
38. I can barely button the jeans that I wore when we got married.
39. I have been battling with depression since August.
40. I'm back on antidepressants for the first time in 3 years.
41. We didn't get our Christmas tree up until a week and a half before Christmas.
42. I'm struggling with the fact that my business isn't nearly as busy as I'd hoped
43. I'm addicted to myspace apps. They're stupid and a waste of time.
44. I used to have a really bad drinking problem.
45. I rarely drink anymore.
46. I believe that in moderation it is alright. You have to be able to practice moderation for it to work though.
47. I also don't have a desire to drink like ever.
48. I love coffee.
49. I love when it comes from Starbucks.
50. I can't afford Starbucks often. It's a real treat when I get it.
51. I have felt ignored and alone more often than not recently.
52. I feel abandoned by some of my closest friends lately.
53. My husband as been awesome being my only support lately.
54. I love unicorns. I know it's cheesy but I do.
55. I still haven't mailed my Christmas cards. If you're expecting one from me. It may be mid January before you get it.
56. We only have one vehicle right now.
57. It's too cold to walk anywhere.
58. I refuse to bike unless someone else is with me.
59. Last time I biked into town I lost my bag. Blond Terror threw it.
60. I got it back the next day at the Police department.
61. I love my kids dearly and I wouldn't change my life for anything.
62. I still wonder how my life would've turned out had I not gotten pregnant at 16.
63. I would love to attend Savannah College of Art and Design.
64. I doubt I ever will but a girl can dream.
65. I want to move back to the south.
66. I miss my family in the south. I don't get to see them nearly enough.
67. I feel guilty that I haven't gotten to see them at all in the last year.
68. I don't like picking up the phone and calling people.
69. I would rather be called.
70. I prefer to text or email or IM
71. I feel like something is missing in my life and I'm not sure what.
72. Firefighter's family can completely exasperate me.
73. I love them but they don't see how much Firefighter hurts by their words and actions.
74. It hurts me to see him hurt.
75. My Firefighter makes me happier than anyone else has come close to.
76. He also knows how to push my buttons and piss me off better than anyone else has ever done.
77. I never quite understood why my step mom felt the way she did when there were pictures of my mom on my great grandmother's walls.
78. I understand now and it hurts.
79. I know it's their past but it doesn't mean it doesn't sting.
80. I highly dislike when people play favorites with any of my children.
81. I am full of random information.
82. I'm allergic to hyacinth flowers, pine trees, and sage.
83. My favorite flowers are tulips.
84. My favorite color roses are the yellow to pink ones.
85. I can't wait to start planting flowers at our new home.
86. Firefighter and I are going to build our new dining room table together.
87. We're also going to build our new bed frame and the older boys' triple bunk.
88. I love making things versus buying.
89. I hate doing dishes.
90. I make Firefighter do them.
91. We've been using paper plates for the past week.
92. Only because they're left over from when we had company.
93. They're fully compost able :)
94. I don't know if I'll be able to have a garden next year.
95. We're renting for the first year then hopefully buying.
96. I will have my own bathroom.
97. Firefighter will have a huge pole building.
98. I think it's a fair compromise.
99. My toenails are always painted.
100.Independence day is my favorite holiday.

Elfing Around

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Send your own ElfYourself eCards

Miss Prissy Pants

Miss Prissy Pants has been rather busy in the past couple of weeks. She had her Christmas Program. I didn't get very good photos. The lighting sucked. We got there late and had nowhere to sit. I had a shaky arm and no tripod. Firefighter swore it was at home. It was in the back of our van. We won't go there.
This is the second year in a row that she sang beautifully and didn't freak out when she saw me and Firefighter. She gets embarrassed easily. Her Kindergarten and 1st grade performances didn't go nearly as well. She cried during both. Last year she couldn't see us since we'd more or less hidden ourselves to her and they dimmed the lights. This year they didn't. I'm so proud of her!



The only good photo I got of her the other day. She was making the oddest faces and nothing else turned out.

Christmas Tree!

This year we didn't end up going out to the tree farm to pick out the tree together and have Firefighter cut it down as we have for the past 2 years. This year it was frigid weather with mud and snow on the ground and I honestly didn't want to deal with all that mud and the whining because of the cold fingers. We'll pick it back up next year.
We went to the local grocery store and picked out a beautiful and rather large Douglas Fir. It was WAY cheaper than we would have paid at the farm too. Well we could've gotten one at the farm for that price but I'm allergic to pine trees and I really wanted to be able to breath this holiday season. I'm rambling. Nice.
We still decorated it together like we always do. Firefighter and I got it set up and lights on it before the older 4 got home from their various hangouts that weekend. Last Sunday night we pulled out all the ornaments and decorated our huge tree.











After it was all said and done we went about our business getting the kids fed and ready for bed since they had school the next day. Next thing I know our tree decides to try to nose dive. To keep our tree upright a bungee cord was our solution.

Photostory Friday-

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

I was so going to use my sweet Blond Terror's photos this week but then we had an ice storm last night. Of course me being me went out in my sneakers, that are now soaked, and took photos.

Santa Baby

I was playing with new actions and lighting last night and to see more hop on over to my photography blog to see more. I'll be posting with tree decorating photos later in the week. I need to finish going through them.

Have you seen?

Have you seen my sweet little boy? Blond Terror really is a sweet, very well mannered little boy. He generally listens to what you tell him to do and doesn't get into too much trouble unless it's climbing. Yesterday a different child emerged. This one is mean and doesn't listen. He's terrible. Tantrums and fits and constant trouble.
Where did my little boy go? Have you seen him? If you do can you send him home and tell him to boot the little terrorist running around my house out?

Because everyone needs a laugh

This is one of my favorite blogs to follow. No matter how craptastic I feel that day I always get at least a giggle off of there. Several times I've nearly fallen off my chair laughing at the videos. Seriously go check it out. You'll probably get addicted too!

Photostory Friday!

Hosted by Cecily and MamaGeek

I've been gone for probably close to a month or maybe it's been two. Between the computer wipe out and only shooting in raw and not having photoshop and not liking any other raw converters my photos just stacked up on my CF card.
So this weeks is my sweet little one in his boots and big boy undies.

He wears those boots regardless of his clothes. We're also potty training to undies and boots are a very normal combination in our house for him.

Come Join H.I.M

I don't usually put a whole lot of information that leads to more of our personal information but I figure this one is for a great cause.
Hogs in Ministry (H.I.M) are hosting their 1st Annual "Bearly Bearable Ride" for Cunningham Children's Home Saturday December 6, 2008
Any and All Vehicles are welcome, not just limited to motorcycles! That is good news in this cold weather ;)
Registration Begins at 10:30am at the First United Methodist Church in Rantoul Ill. Kickstands up at noon. Entry fee is a $15 gift card from one of the following stores:
Kohls, Best Buy, Market Place, Target, TJ Maxx, Meijer, Wal-Mart, Barns&Noble, Borders, Toys R Us, or Gordmans. Please mark the gift card value on the card.
Lunch after the ride will be provided by the United Methodist Men. There will be Raffles and 50/50 drawings will be held after the meal.
Many local companies have donated for the raffles.
For more information email me at kyleandleigh@hotmail.com and I will email you the phone number of my step father so you can contact him directly
Donations are tax deductible.

I suck

I totally haven't blogged in what feels like forever. It's been crazy busy around here. I figure I'll update with some photos from this past weekend.
First was the ToulBox's Christmas parade. Only here will you find Santa riding in a monster truck instead of a sleigh.






We followed that up by going and getting a ride on the monster truck. Ok fine I didn't ride it. I am a horrible passenger. Had they let me drive it I would've been all over it. The boys were tickled pink and purple. Blond Terror wasn't too thrilled with me staying behind. Apparently he thought they were leaving me. As soon as they started moving he was all happy.
Mark Hall, the Raminator's driver, giving Carrot Top a pound.



Mark Hall, Raminator driver, signing the poster for the boys room

Geremie Dishman, Rammunition driver, signing the poster.

Sunday all we had was Blond Terror. We also got a ton of snow. He had experienced snow last year but didn't like it at all. Then again he was still a little thing. He likes it this time around.