Thanksgiving Moments

Here are some pictures that I took throughout this Thanksgiving Day. Even though it rained pretty much the entire day (and when I say rained, I mean poured), it was a nice day with warm food and company. I wish that our time here could be longer. Travis is already on his way back to Alabama to shoot the Iron Bowl tomorrow, but here's some moments from our day.

Family around one table. They were kind of all over the place.

Cousins: Sage and Mikayla. They are tight, just like Lindsay and I were when we were little.

It can be tough to get a picture of these 2 little divas together.

Travis & Co.

Jaggar never did take a nap today. THAT was fun. He wouldn't let Travis out of his sight without that spine tingling scream that he has.

Mema and Papa. This is a Thanksgiving miracle in itself. When we visited for Fall Break back in October, he had a heart attack, and the drs wanted to send him to hospice because they said he wouldn't come out of there. Well, you can see that God always has the final say because not only did he obviously not die, but he had Thanksgiving dinner with us. And he was talkative, pleasant and had a nice visit before he went back to the nursing home.

Some of "the spread" One thing that we haven't had in 5 years now is cauliflower salad. My aunt Carol always made that...I always think of her when it's not there, as she isn't either. Miss you, Carol.

Lindsay feeding baby Tyler in his pink bumbo seat. I'm sorry, buddy. I should've sent you Jaggar's blue one.

These next 4 pictures are a sequence, and they show the loser/OCD/weirdo in me. Mema made a peanut butter pie this year in addition to a million other desserts, but this one was a huge hit. I wish that I'd had a time stamp in the way that I took these, but I can assure you that it wasn't long in between each shot
. Going...

Going...

Going...

Gone...

Jaggar decided he'd go in and climb up in Papa's lap.

Cousins

Mother and I

I don't know what that face is.

I think I'd like to make this into a Christmas card. I mean, is this hysterical? Since Mema is by herself at night, she wanted my uncle Danny to bring a shotgun over. And that he did. And I can assure you that she knows how to use it too. She grew up in the mountains!

Mista T and Me

A Thanksgiving Miracle!! One picture and EVERYONE was looking. :) I like it.

Little girl

Sage and Mema

Since Travis was about to leave, I told Sage to give Mema her Christmas gift from us.

A gift card to Cheddars, one of her favorite restaurants. That way, she can take a break from the kitchen!

Christmas on Thanksgiving

Happy Thanksgiving!! Since Travis has to leave tonight, we did Christmas with my family this morning. My brother and his girlfriend, Caitlin, came over this morning and Mom made them all breakfast. Kevin and Caitlin are going to Bowling Green today to see her family, so they couldn't spend the "day" with us. Kevin and Travis set Mom's tree up, but we decided to decorate it this evening. After they ate (I'm saving my big meal for later), we exchanged gifts. Honestly, Mom didn't need to give us anything. She got us a new floor in July, remember? And we love it, but you know how those Moms are. :)

Ironically, my turn came first, and it was something I've wanted for a while now. Diamond earrings! I mean, wow! 1/2 carat to be exact, and they are beautiful. I have 6 piercings (3 in each ear), but I was over that. It's not the 90s anymore, and I'm not in 7th grade (random fact: I pierced the 3rd myself in 7th grade actually. With the ole needle and ice cube. Twice. Because it got infected the first time. No pain, no gain, baby), so I'd been saying how I wanted some nice earrings that I would never have to change out because I never change them anyways. I'm so excited about these. :)

This picture is blurry, but I just liked it. He was ready for his presents.

Sage just loves opening presents, whether they are her's or Jaggar's. Right now, she can get away with helping him. :)

A toolbox! Just what every man needs, right? He loves it. Look at that sweet face.

Making it light up and make sounds.

Sage's turn: Look at that face.

Now she wasn't sure what this was because the box leaves some to be imagined (for a 5 year old), but it's basically like a touch screen video game player, but it's educational. For anyone that has kids this age, they know what a leapster explorer is. She also got a princess game for it and a matching pink case. Sidenote: She hasn't moved since we've got it up and running for her. Sage lives right now to learn to read and write.

Carrying his toolbox to Caitlin, who was gracious enough to open all of his presents for him. Kids' toys these days...ugh, they are TERRIBLE to open. It has taken me a good 20 minutes to get ONE thing out before.

Kevin and Caitlin. I wish I'd gotten a family picture of us...It's been a crazy morning. Though it doesn't show it in these pics, Jaggar has been a whiny mess for hours but refuses to nap. I think children have a 6th sense in them to know when you REALLY need them to nap because of a long day ahead.

Dad opening one of his gifts from us: hickory farms. We also got him a keyfinder because he's always saying that he loses his keys. Aren't we all?

Jaggar's other present: a pull along Vtech truck with several cars and animals. He loves it, and he will love it even more when he's had a nap. Or maybe I will. :)

Sage giving Nonni her gift from us and Kevin and Caitlin.

She sees what is on the box. Every girl smiles at "Swarovski." :) I know that I do.

It's the butterfly that she loved from Couches. It is so pretty.

Bubs trying to get his truck out.

And then Travis's turn. His was not a surprise. When Mom was in for my birthday, we went to the new outlets in Leeds, and he fell in love with the Kenneth Cole store.

I picked this shirt out.

Try not to look at the fact that I look disgusting. I just wanted to show the shine in my ear. :) Hope everyone has a great day. I'm not going to be hard on myself with any kind of dieting today (do you know I actually went to the GYM on Thanksgiving morning a few years ago? That's sin.), have good conversation, take lots of pictures, decorate a tree later, and enjoy my family and the many blessings around me. Hope you all do the same!! Happy Thanksgiving!!!

A Christmas-y Wonderland

After we left Build-a-Bear yesterday, we walked around the Summit for a while. It was a beautiful day. We stopped at 32 degrees, a nonfat frozen yogurt "buffet," if you will. This place is fantastic. I had just gotten Jaggar a treat at the one in Birmingham the week before. It's self serve frozen yogurt with every kind of topping that you can imagine, and it's your option to "pile it on."

After that, we walked out into the courtyard of the Summit into my kids' dream come true: a HUGE Christmas tree covered in ornaments and a sleigh that was open to be climbed into complete with reindeer made out of evergreen, holly and lights. It was the perfect photo op. The only glitch was that the wind was blowing about 40 mph, no kidding. At one point, mom was trying to take our picture when the Build-a-Bear box went flying across the courtyard. Mom went chasing after it, and the closer she got to it, the further it blew away. It was AWESOME and hilarious. Sage and I were sitting in the sleigh cracking up. She finally managed to get it after chasing it a good 30 feet.

In front of the huge Christmas tree: Jaggar was in heaven. This picture is an irony. It's November, and I have no sleeves. It was 74 degrees! The windstorm made it a bit chillier though.
Heaven on Earth: I'd like to speak with whoever put this tree together because they made it so that you could not take the ornaments off. I want this same setup for my own tree because, believe me, Jaggar tried to get them off with no success.
So sweet and fun. Notice Jaggar is still trying to get an ornament off.
Cutest boy EVER. I'm in love with this picture. He was SO ecstatic to be able to touch that tree!
Sleigh Ride
Notice the windblown look.
Sage wanted to sit in the reindeer's lap.
Then Sage wanted a picture with Nonni. I LOVE Jaggar in this. He is always on the lookout for what his next move will be and here's the proof.
Love Sage's face in this one. Very fun day.

Thankful

I had this idea that since it's close to Thanksgiving and all that I wanted to write some things that I am thankful for. Here are some things in MY life that I really love and appreciate:

Travis. Our (mine and his) sense of humor. Our life together. Travis's patience (mainly with me). Adult conversation. Sage. Sage's laugh, honesty, tender heart and spark. Jaggar. The way Jaggar looks at me or pictures of me and says, "Mama." That smile. Jaggar's big blue eyes, usually full of mischief. Hugs from both of my kids--the really tight ones. Their innocence. The way Sage wants to cuddle at night. The way Jaggar wraps his whole body around me when I carry him to bed. Sage's contagious laugh. Our home. My car. My space heater. Cupcakes. Caramel apple spices from Starbucks. My mom. My dad's hard work. Christmas. Christmas Lights. Christmas shopping. All things Christmas. Shopping. Chick-Fil-A. My Michael Kors watch. Pandora. My hair colorist. Express. Sequins. Chrissie. Mine and my family's health. Winter. The office. Mitch. Chocolate chip cookies. Facebook. Candles that smell like cookies or pumpkin. Coach purses, mine particularly. My friendships. Easy pregnancies with minimal weight gain. Losing that weight. Word Alive. Boots. My ability to sing (not being arrogant, but I'm glad I can do it!). Diet Coke. My phone. Dr. Collins. Target. Chocolate VitaTops (the ONLY breakfast). Forgiveness. Travis working so hard so I get to stay home with our kids. Staying home with our kids. Traditions. Confirmations. Love.

Holiday Traditions

I love them, and one tradition we have come to have is going to Build-a-Bear when we're in Louisville to make their holiday friend for the year. As I said a few posts back, I was excited because I thought Jaggar would want to participate. Um, I thought wrong. He could have cared less about anything other than running through that store. We tried to make him care. Then I thought, "What is wrong with me? Take this moment while you CAN! ONLY buy one because, right now, you can get away with it because he doesn't care." And he really didn't.

It was so fun. We had our lunch at 5 Guys, which is next door to Build-a-Bear. And then we had Build-a-Bear completely to ourselves. Last year, we made the mistake of going the day before Thanksgiving, and it was crazy busy. But because of having it to ourselves, we were able to take our time. Sage thought that she would want to make Hello Kitty, and that was okay with me. We do this once a year, so that's fine. But then (as I KNEW she would), she saw Clarice from Rudolph and fell in love. She talks, she lights up, and she was Sage's choice. I secretly wanted to make Rudolph too...but I refrained. Build-a-Bear is an indulgence, and you don't get out of there for under $50 PER item that you make: another reason that I didn't "persuade" Jaggar to make one. So, here's some pictures from the annual event.

He was thrilled to be FREE.Love at first sight. She couldn't resist. If you look back 2 years ago, she made Clarice on our first visit here, but THAT one doesn't talk. This isn't the one that Sage made though. This was one of their displays that sold Sage on Clarice.
Making her. When they turned the machine on, Jaggar screamed because it scared him. It may have been because he was behind it at the time. He had to come out and see for himself.
And still not so sure about it....
Rubbing Clarice's heart to her head. They have them do several things with the heart so the animal will be a particular way. Like, rub the heart on your head so she'll be creative like you. Rub it on your ears so she can hear your secrets. Oh, and we didn't just get the complimentary stuffed heart. No, we got the beating heart, which can be your's too...for 6 more dollars.
This is her favorite part: giving her a bath. It's air that comes out when you step on the pedal. Jaggar did it accidentally later, and he freaked out.
Making sure that she is COMPLETELY clean.
And trying to decide on that PERFECT outfit. We tried on about 3 or 4 different things over the course of 30 minutes or so. We ended up going with the sequined snowflake dress, but oh, it was tough to get there. :) But EVERYONE left satisfied, even Clarice.

Sweet Moments Thus Far

That's right, I'm blogging from my laptop. This NEVER happens as far as uploading pictures goes, but I figured I'd go with it while my motivation is high. I know I'll have a lot of pictures by the time I return to Alabama, so I thought I'd post some I've been taking since I've been here.

This was our first morning here. Happy kids. :)Sweet, sweet
With Mema. I tried to get them to look at the camera. After many attempts, I just gave up.
Whitney, my cousin, came over to get some recipes from Mema, and Jaggar was in love instantly. He loves older women, unlike his father apparently. ;) He refused to come to me and hit my hand away when I said that it was time to go.

Thanksgiving...5 Years Ago

Since we are in Louisville, I did what I do every time that I come here: look through the many scrapbooks my mom has made. She started them after we got married. Then she took them to another level when Sage was born, as we did with picture taking--capturing every moment, or trying to, at least. I like to go back however many years to the time that I'm at currently, like Thanksgiving last night, for example.

I came across this.

I took this with my phone, so it's not the best quality (a picture of a picture in a book) but this was 5 years ago. It was Sage's first Thanksgiving. You think that you'll have that time forever, that babies will be babies for a long time, but I remember that day like it was just a month or two ago, not 5 years ago. Now she's an almost 6 year old walking, talking, OPINIONATED (God knows where that came from), sweet, caring, funny, loving, kind kindergartner. I am proud of her and who she is becoming, but I'd be lying if I didn't say that sometimes I long for these moments again.