Day 323. Boots.

Saw these at Kohl's today.  I was there to get my dad's Christmas gift.  WHY do I even go in the shoe department?  I WANT THESE!  But I refrained.  :(

Day 322. Twinkies.

Wondering how much longer they'll let me get away with doing this to them... I just can't help myself. 

Not sure what's so interesting in the snow, but whatever.

Day 321. Girls' Day.

I love last minute plans.  It's fun to drop what you're doing and do something fun, even though you should probably do something else at the time.  But I suppose that depends on your definition of "should."

I knew my sisters had plans to do some shopping today.  I had already decided it was best that I didn't join them.  I had things around the house that needed to be done.  KS1's basketball game was that morning.  My husband typically likes to spend a couple of hours at the gym on Saturdays.  And I didn't dare drag all 3 of the kiddos along for such an adventure.  It would have been pure torture for them.

But upon mentioning that I would like to have joined them, my husband hurried me out the door, assuring me he would take care of the day, and be just fine if I spent a few hours away.  He's kind of wonderful that way.  (May I also mention that when I returned, he had done the dishes, fixed the furnace, and had the boys help him clean up a bit around the house AS well as in their bedrooms!)

So, it was a nice day.  And I picked up a couple of items for myself, although I didn't need them... but it was fun to enjoy the day with my sisters and play with my neice and nephew and eat lunch at the Olive Garden... even though it was crowded and the traffic was horrific and the people are just plain grumpy.  All in all, who cares.  They must not realize that we're supposed to be celebrating Jesus' birthday, and that should be enough to bring a smile to anyone's face, if you ask me.

Once again, I've gone off on a rant... My picture for today was taken while we waited for a table for lunch.  My little neice is growing up fast.  All babies are miracles, but she is even moreso for our family.  I've told stories of her before...
First Birthday

I love to watch her grow.  I love to hear her say new words, and to watch her waddle around on her short, little legs.  Her hair is growing longer!!!  She has that fine, whispy baby hair.  It's so soft, and she loves to let you rub her sweet head... Seriously, she's sweeter than sugar...  Rest assured, there's plenty of SPICE there, too!  :)

Day 320. Errands.

I have never been one of those moms who has to get a babysitter to go to the grocery store.  Not to say that running errands with little ones is a simple task... nope, I did not say that at all.  But, I never had much of a choice.  I had three little ones, age 4 and under, all at home with me.  When one became ill and had to go to the doctor, they ALL went to the doctor.  When Daddy and I had praise team rehearsal at church, they all tagged along and even joined us for dinner with our friends afterwards.  We actually liked it that way.  The fact is, I prefer to live life WITH my children.  We've had to slow down in some of our social activity throughout the years, but our boys have grown up, tagging along.  They are part of us... a package deal, if you will. 

All of that being said, as they grow, just like everything else, certain tasks have changed.  Running errands is certainly one of those things.  There was a day, that my shopping cart was as full with little boys as it was with items.  KS2 sat in the big part, KS3 was in the little basket, and KS1 was under strict orders to walk alongside the cart, hand never leaving the edge.  So, I'll admit, my current lifestage, having the freedom to run my errands through the day while they're at school has spoiled me a little.  :)  However, that luxury is not always the case.  Going to WalMart, the weekend BEFORE Christmas, WITH all three of my boys, no matter their age... Well, that's a little much for any mommy. 

Honestly, they were all good as gold.  It wasn't them.  It's all the craziness around us.  KS3 still fits in the cart.  And he was happy to be there, all of our shopping items piled up on top of him.  He sat at the bottom, while the other two helped me check off my list.  Wrapping paper, check.  Tape, check.  Milk, check.  Laundry soap, check.  Lunch meat, check.  Paper towels, check.  And the list continued.  KS3 just sat in the midst of it all, happy to have his big brother drive him around up and down the aisles as we attempted to weave through the crowd to retrieve our every-day items.  Even in the midst of Christmas shoppers, our every-day life must go on!

The biggest issue is simply that my spoiled children HATE running errands now.  They have to put on their happy faces and deal.  Some days, they handle that task better than others.

None of that really has anything to do with my picture... other than this was taken AFTER the errands were completed, and I had to giggle as KS1 was fumbling into the family room, helping carry in the supplies.  He's at a gangly, clumsy age... all arms and legs.  He's a pretty good sport about it, really.  We often have a good laugh about his lack of grace.  I've reminded him that he may never outgrow it.... Here I am, case in point.

Enough of my rambling.  Here's today's pic:

Day 319. Snowy Days.

It's been an icy, cold week.  The sun came out and I thought it might be fun to capture some moments in the back yard with the boys.  We were going to run some errands later, so it was supposed to be a quick "snapshot" moment.  Once again, giving the camera to the boys proved to capture Mommy in all of her glory...

Day 318. Christmas Cookies!

There were "kinda" homemade.  My sister would be so disappointed in me.  But we had fun, and they tasted yummy.  So, that's what counts.  ;)

Days 316 and 317.

It occurs to me that I'm nearing the end of my 365 challenge.  I was browsing back through my beginning entries, and since I didn't start until January 31st, I still have a little ways to go.  Should I do it again next year?  I didn't exactly follow rules very well.  Maybe I'll just freestyle it.  That's a little more according to my personality.

As I was going through the old entries, I was also browsing through recent session files.  I thought I'd include a few just for fun... maybe I've added them before, but most of them are collections that were made after the fact.  So, I thought I'd share.