Seriously?!

There are no words for this. You have to watch this video!

I'm doing good just to keep my dog from chewing the extension cord to the lights. This guy is AMAZING!

Up To No Good

My Grommie (my Mom's mom) would always tease us and say..."you're up to no good!" Well boy would she have a hay day with Mr. Cooper. He really is up to no good!

Here he is at my parents house on Wednesday night. Coop and I went over to help my parents decorate their tree (yes, mine is still in the attic) and he wanted to show my Dad that he found the rain gauge.

"See, Pops, there's no rain in the rain gauge tonight. You're good!"

He ended up destroying the rain gauge after it was all said and done. Looks like I know what we'll be getting my Dad for Christmas!

Radio City Christmas Spectacular

Mom and I went to the Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring the Rockettes last night and had a blast! What a wonderful way to get in the Christmas Spirit. The show kicked off with the reading of 'Twas the Night Before Christmas, and there were 12 scenes total filled with wonderful Christmas music and beautiful dancing! There was even a nativity scene at the end with live camels and sheep! (We snuck a "non flash" pic because it was too beautiful to pass up!)

I hope we get to go again next year!

(With Ma in her read coat, and I in my matching red coat. Bad joke. I know, I just had to!)

Thanks for going with me, Mama!

The Simple Blessings of Christmas

What are the simple blessings of the Christmas season?

In all the hustle and bustle...what does Christmas really mean?

If you are of the Christian faith, you'll love this beautiful 3 minute movie from our friends at Inspired Faith. Just click here to watch and share it with friends and family.

Here's wishing you and your family a wonderful Christmas season!

MERRY CHRISTMAS

The Puppies Are Here!

The puppies are here!! I got a text from Jan this morning that the puppies started arriving at 4:00 am! We're now up to 12! 8 yellow (5 boys, 3 girls) and 4 black (1 boy, 3 girls). I'll keep you updated on their progress!!!

A Christmas Poem

You've GOT to read this amazing poem! I'm so thankful for all the men and women serving our Country to protect our freedoms!

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,

I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.

My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,

My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.

Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,

Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,

Completed the magic that was Chris tmas Eve.

My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,

Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.

In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,

So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,

But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear.

Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know,
Then the sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.

My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,

And I crept to the door just to see who was near.
Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,

A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.

A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,

Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.

Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,

Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,

"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!

Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,

You should be at home on a cold Chris tmas Eve!"

For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,

Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..
To the window that danced with a warm fire's light

Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,

I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."

"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,

That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,

I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me.

My Gramps died at ' Pearl on a day in December,"

Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."

My dad stood his watch in the jungles of ' Nam ',

And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

I've not seen my own son in more than a while,

But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.

Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,

The red, white, and blue... an American flag.

I can live through the cold and the being alone,

Away from my family, my house and my home.
I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,

I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.

I can carry the weight of killing another,

Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..

Who stand at the front against any and all,

To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall."

" So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,

Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."

"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,

"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?

It seems all too little for all that you've done,

For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,

"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.

To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,

To stand your own watch, no matter how long.

For when we come home, either standing or dead,

To know you remember we fought and we bled.

Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,

That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

Busy Week!

This is an exciting and busy week--both at home and at work! Let me give you a quick rundown:

• The puppies should be born ANY minute! Their due date is anytime between December 8- December18!
• Today I get to work the Trains at NorthPark for work! (Love.my.job!) Stop by and see me. I'll be there from 12:00-5:00 p.m.
• Thursday night my Mom and I are going to see the Radio City Christmas Spectacular starring the Rockettes!!
• Friday we have our Communications Admin Team outing at Maggianos at NorthPark and I can't wait!

And let me tell you, my list of blog postings is growing by the minute! I hope to post more soon!

Happy Tuesday, everyone!

A Doggy Christmas Surprise!

You've GOT to see this video. If only Cooper could do this, we'd be all decorated for Christmas!

Happy Birthday!!

Happy Birthday to the most awesome chocolate cake maker, biggest fan and #1 supporter, shop-til-you-drop, go getting, God fearing, beautiful, encouraging, nurturer, Bible Study partner, shoulder I can cry on, best friend, and amazing Mother in the world!!

Happy Birthday, Mama! I love you and hope you have an amazing day!

Words to live by...

I got an email with a few encouraging words to live by...

"Success is not measured by what you accomplish. It is measured by the opposition you encounter and the courage with which you maintain your struggle against all odds. You will find all things are difficult before they are easy. The greater the obstacles, the more glory in overcoming them. So, make up your mind before you start that sacrifice is part of the package."

"No one can make you feel inferior without your consent"-Eleanor Roosevelt

"Accept challenges so that you can feel the exhilaration of victory."-George S. Patton

"And in the end it's not the year's in your life that counts. It's the life in your years."-President Abraham Lincoln

Just a little food for thought on a Tuesday!

Oh Christmas Tree, Oh Christmas Tree…

….How naked are your branches.

In fact, I don’t even have my Christmas tree down from the attic. Christmas is my most FAVORITE time of year and I don’t even have my tree up yet. That’s right—not a single decoration is out at my house except for my Mary Englebright Christmas magnets holding the schedule for ABC Family’s 25 Days of Christmas.

Of course there’s an explanation why. I’ll wait while you grab your cup of coffee. This is a good one and you won’t want to miss a single moment of the story.

It all started Saturday morning. I woke up early with full day planned--head to the gym, finish my Christmas shopping, put out the decorations, wrap the presents, listen to Christmas music, watch a few Christmas movies…you get the idea. I’m sure your Saturday and Sunday were filled with similar activities. (I’m a little jealous.)

So, after waking up and getting ready for the gym, I went out the front door to see if I would need a jacket before heading out for a day full of errands. And that’s when I saw it. A little spring of water bubbling from my front yard. The sidewalk was wet and there was a steady stream of water flowing down the street. Weird, I thought. It hasn’t rained. No one else’s lawn was wet. We don’t have a sprinkler system—so WHY on earth is my lawn bubbling over with water?

I hot footed it to my garage to get a shovel and see if I could locate the problem. I dug a small hole where I saw the water bubbling and it filled right up. I dug a few more holes and they filled up as well. Then I knew. We had a leak in the plumbing.

Why? Why today? Why now? Oh please not today! Didn’t our house know we reached our plumbing quota with the water pipe disaster?

There was nothing more I could do on my own, so I headed to the gym to find Kelly and tell him of the recently discovered DISASTER waiting for us in the front yard. I finished working out while he headed home to assess the situation. He called me when I was leaving the gym and said we would have to call my Dad because there was nothing more he could do.

So, I called Dad. He’s saved our lives more than a few times this year. One being the water pip disaster. Another being the air conditioning unit rescue (which I’ve yet to blog about, but I will.) He was on his way out of town, but he gave me strict instruction on what to do to troubleshoot (a.k.a. find out if the leak was coming from the plumbing or from underneath the house. Oh please, Lord, don’t let it be from under the house!) I quickly called Kelly to relay the message, only to hear him tell me he’s locked himself out of the house, and I would need to come home to let him back in. (How did my husband manage to lock himself out of the house? I have no idea, but he did.)

Once I arrived, we did what Dad suggested and were able to find that the leak was in the pluming (PTL (Praise the Lord) it wasn’t under the house!!) It was now time to dig, dig, and dig some more until we found where the leak was coming from. This wasn’t an easy task as our soil is clay and can become VERY heavy after hours shoveling. So, I did what any normal female would do—I set out to run my errands and left Kelly to dig the hole. Three and a half hours later (it’s now 7:00 p.m. and dark outside) I return home to find Kelly and two of our neighbors still going strong out front. Our neighbors, providing moral support more than anything, helped Kelly pinpoint the problem and successfully (or so we thought) find the source of the water leak. Kelly cut out several HUGE roots, dug through the clay soil, and was covered from head to toe in mud when I arrived. Because the clay soil was so slippery he was sliding down the front yard in his mud soaked sneakers, and wasn’t able to get leverage to dig the hole any further—so we called it a night. Poor thing was EXHAUSTED! We could finally rest easy knowing all of his efforts would soon be rewarded on Sunday morning when my Dad could come help us locate and repair the cracked PVC pipe. Until then, we had to live with the water shut off to the house. Do you realize how often you use running water? Well, you sure don’t realize it until you don’t have it any more.

8:00 am came all too early on Sunday morning. My Dad come over early because the forecast said it was going to rain, and we definitely didn’t need any more water to deal with. Once he arrived we were able to dig deeper into the hole, use his electric tree cutter, plunger, and all the necessary tools to FINALLY find the hairline crack in the 20 year old PVC pipe! Hallelujah! In an hour and a half we had that thing repaired and were on our way piecing our front yard back together. In her true “supporter, encourager, I’m here to cheer you on” fashion, my Mom arrived just in time with reinforcements (a.k.a. sausage balls) and my brother (not wanting to miss out on the action) wasn’t too far behind her. By noon we had everything washed off, cleaned up and put away. I was too exhausted after that to tackle another project, so I passed on putting up the tree.

This Thanksgiving, I’m thankful for:

• A husband who is strong, calm, and patient. (As they say—opposites attract!!)
• A father who is willing to drop everything to come over and help this young couple as they learn how to deal with the joys of home ownership.
• A mother who always knows your biggest need is support (and food!)
• A brother who is willing to help.
• Nosey neighbors who stand by your side for hours on end to help you see a project to completion.
• Indoor plumbing and running water!!
• (And a puppy who, no matter what you're dealing with, will love you and just wants to play!)

Next up, Mr. Cooper turns 1 and has a birthday party!

On a completely different note, I’m about 90% finished with my Christmas shopping and plan to start wrapping the gifts tonight! I can’t believe it’s already December 1. 24 days until Christmas!