Happy Birthday Luke!

February 25th. Yesterday. That’s the day our Luke turned 4!

 How can he already be 4? It’s so hard to believe that this June will be 2 years since we were in China! Gosh, how time flies! And he’s growing up right before our very eyes!

I so wanted to post on my blog yesterday morning on the actual day of his birthday, but our plans were shifted to Plan B. I’m learning to chill out a little when these things happen because there’s nothing at all I can do about it. It’s hard for a type A personality!

Pop (my daddy) had it all worked out with a friend through his work for Luke to explore his 18-wheeler on Friday evening. However, the man didn’t make it back in town in time. So it was moved to Saturday morning, which turned in to Saturday at noon. With plans for a birthday dinner and party at 3:30, this made me nervous. But it all worked out!

Luke loves 18-wheelers! And Mr. J had the nicest cleanest Peterbilt tanker 18-wheeler around!

 Luke was so excited. He had been talking and talking about getting to do this for a long time. Then when it finally was time and he got there, he was suddenly shy.  He had to have his Joy there with him!

After that, we came home and decorated (very quickly and simply) for the birthday party.

It was just family. He still gets overwhelmed with kids, so we decided to keep it low key. He sure didn’t need a lot of gifts either. He’s definitely not toy poor. So Pop, Grandmama, Colt, and Amber came out for dinner and the party.

We wrapped a few small inexpensive gifts just for the fun of opening.

And Colt and Amber gave him the Chuck and friends racetrack.

Then we brought out the big gift he had been anticipating (from us and the grandparents)…..

It didn’t take him long to figure out how to handle his new motorized John Deere tractor.

He still needs a little practice on reverse though.  :)

He has plans for that cart too. He’s already talking about all the sticks and tools he’ll haul in there and help Daddy and Pop.

In fact, it was hard getting him back in. It was dark (and cold) outside. Only the lure of birthday cake awaiting him did the trick.

Oh, and he was pretty tickled with himself for mastering the art of driving a John Deere.  As you can see, we were clapping for him.

And I'm so glad I had my camera clicking because I caught this priceless moment.  He was literally strutting into the house, and turned around with this proud look:

Can you guess what kind of cake?

He was very specific about the kind of cake he wanted. An 18-wheeler cake. Not just any 18-wheeler cake either. He wanted it to be a blue tractor and a yellow trailer.

 He loved his cake and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Then we had to play a little “pin the wheel on the 18-wheeler” (drawn by his daddy).

After the party was over and everyone was gone, the kids did what kids do best after opening fits – they played with the boxes. One huge box in particular…..

Luke called it Honduras. Guess he listens in on school more than we think. I suppose not every 4 year old names their box Honduras.  So when he goes to play in it, he says he's going to Honduras.  :)

At the end of the day, he was exhausted and I had to capture the sleeping emperor.  I just love sleeping babies and kiddos!

And here it is Sunday afternoon. First thing after coming home from church today, Luke wanted to drive his John Deere.

And so he did.

He helped his daddy carry some tools to mend the fence.  He got it delivered before I got to my camera.  :)

Then, he gave free rides to a couple of Joy’s old dolls.

And he collected sticks to haul.

He rode until the battery bit the dust. It’s now recharging for another adventure.

As I was typing this post, Luke found another use for his box - he made an 18-wheeler out of it.  He's driving in the cab, and the box is his trailer.

He suggested that his sister be his cargo:

I thought I'd share some random tidbits that sum up Luke at 4 years old:

- Adores his sister.
- Loves to build things.
- Loves to do demolition on the things he builds.
- Likes to show off and use his big vocabulary.
- Acts silly when he gets nervous around folks.
- Loves 18-wheelers…..toy ones and the real things.
- Adds “tones” to his words – very expressive.
- Is afraid of most dogs.
- Bosses the cat.
- Tries to boss his sister.
- Loves Bob the Builder and Thomas the Tank Engine.
- Loves Cat in the Hat, Blues Clues & Super Why.
- Doesn’t take a nap anymore (unless he’s in the car).
- Loves green beans.
- Doesn’t like much Chinese food.
- Loves any type of construction equipment.
- Can’t stand the tags in the back of his shirts.
- Picked up on the sarcastic remark, “Oh burn”.
- Loves riding in the car. Perfectly content there.
- Plays on the iPad like nobody's business.
- Doesn’t like having his hair washed.
- Says “Joy” about 999 times a day.
- Very good about sharing. Will share his last crumb.
- Loves to help me cook.
- Likes putting together puzzles.
- Is either ornery or gives a cheesy smile for pics.
- Loves books.
- Likes for his daddy to get in the floor and play with him.
- Carries a tune really well.
- Makes up words to familiar tunes.
- Adores babies and is gentle with them.
- Not particularly sociable.
- If he is sociable, it’s usually with girls or older kids.
- Is a master pouter when the need arises.
- Can work up a pretty believable fake cry.
- Loves trains and train tracks.
- Likes “doing school” and asks for more.
- Loves sweet tea.
- Likes going barefoot.
- Has “Jack Black” eyebrows.
- Prefers his pajamas over clothes any ole day.
- Holds the doors for “the ladies” as his daddy taught him.
- Likes to ham it up when his big brother is around.
- Gives the best hugs and kisses.
- Has a BIG imagination.
- Little booger likes to play practical jokes, especially on Joy.
- Likes to jump out and scare us.
- Teams up with his sister and locks me out of the car and "makes me dance". 
- Does the "Indian yell" when he wins a game.
- Loves music.
- Sings or hums constantly.
- He’s loud.
- Loves to pray.
- Has a southern drawl.
- Has his entire family wrapped around his little finger.

Our little guy is such a gift and a blessing. It’s hard to even imagine life before him, or without him. Our lives are all the richer (and livelier) since he became part of our family!

Happy Birthday Luke! We love you…..to the moon and back!

A Christmas Party & Parade

Friday night was our Church Ladies Christmas Party. I look forward to our party every year, as we have SO much fun, and I was especially looking forward to hosting the party in our home this year.

We had about three hours of fun, food, gifts and games. And did I mention food? Oh my goodness....my kitchen had food in every possible inch of countertop (and more). I never dreamed I would have trouble finding enough room for the food. I had to bring out TV trays to help hold the overflow of food! I guess when you factor in 30 women bringing what we call "Heavy Hors D'oervres", that explains it!

Before the party, here are all the plates, napkins, and utensils awaiting the ladies....



See for yourself! (Keep in mind this is after we ate...with all the cups, napkins, etc...sitting around everywhere....plus that explains all the food missing from the dishes!)









Well, after "gorging" ourselves (yet another "sin" that we would commit during the evening..lol!), we played a Christmas Trivia game with questions from the movie, It's a Wonderful Life and Frosty the Snowman, and a few from some Christmas songs as well.

And then our Ladies Party would never be complete without our gift exchange, or should I say......"Dirty Santa". We laugh about the fact that we really have to pray after our party....all that "stealing" of gifts and all! But really.....we have so much fun! In the end, this is what I got to keep:



It will be perfect for my little Santa wall.

The ladies presented me with a gift certificate (in the cutest little gift box) to my favorite store.....Gordmans. That was such a thoughtful, generous gift. It's one of the rare places around here that sells the primitive decor that I love! Now I get to go shopping!



From the comments I received, I think everyone had a great time. I know I did. I certainly enjoyed having the party here and having everyone over! Here's a shot of the group...missing a few ladies that had already left.



Oh, and after everyone was gone, I went back to my bedroom and there was a gift sack for me from one of the ladies, Mrs. Ruth,......and this was in it!



Wasn't that sweet? It goes perfectly with my new coat! Hmmm....I wonder if she knows me well enough....

I know you all would have loved the party and fellowship and I wish all my blogging and forum friends could have all been here too!

Oh and here's a cute picture of my mom (on the right) and my friend Betty (on the left), the friend that we go to visit in the Ozarks, taken right before all the rest of the guests arrived. Don't they look hot? (Okay, they're going to kill me now)! lol! Sorry, I couldn't resist! They did look really good!



Then next up on the weekend's agenda was Saturday evening's parade. Joy, and her best friend, Katie Beth, marched in the Christmas parade.....or I should really say they danced in the parade (with their dance school). They danced down the street to a Caribbean themed song......Santa's Run Off to the Caribbean although it was far from tropical weather...actually VERY cold! Joy was bundled up in many layers of cothing....and I was wishing I was bundled up in as many layers!

Joy danced by on our side, thus I did get a good close up shot of her. That's Katie Beth, a row up in front on the far opposite side (smiling toward us). They went by so fast, I had trouble finding her and getting a picture!





Joy and Katie Beth enjoyed the rest of the parade on the curbside (after their daddies went and walked them back)since they were 11th in the parade. Here they are being silly with the pom poms given to them by folks in the parade.



And what parade would be complete without a visit from Santa at the very end?



The girls ended up with a lapful of candy (lots of candy canes!)

Now I know I did promise Christmas pictures of my living room or kitchen, but I just had to share our weekend of fun first. My next post will most definitely be Christmas photos of my living room. And please don't give up on me....I dream about sitting down with my cup of hot chocolate for a couple of hours and catching up on my blog reading and leaving comments! Everything has been SO busy and time is flying by....I need just a few more hours in a day! Hopefully tonight or tomorrow night.....

Until then, have a great week everyone! :)

Welcome Home, Richie!

Last Tuesday, my brother Richie, arrived safely home in the United States from Iraq. We were so glad to hear from him and know that his feet were safely on American soil. My mom and dad were able to go and be there when he arrived. I talked to him just a couple of hours later and he was having his first meal in the States at the Longhorn Steakhouse. He said it sure beat the freezer burned ones he had over in Iraq!

He had quite a welcome home fanfare. As he neared his hometown, he was escorted to his home by police escorts with their sirens. They had announced it on the radio station. His wife, Missy, was also interviewed for the local news. Many friends and relatives lined the highway and backroads to his house with flags and signs, waving him home. I think it was quite an overwhelming experience for him.



Then this past weekend, we were able to go to Alabama (without Colt again because of his work schedule) to see him and be there for his welcome home cookout. There were about 70 people there for the cookout held outside their home. It was a great evening for a cookout too.

The fence down the side of the driveway was full of handmade signs from kids of their church, friends and relatives.



You can see the cows eyeing me on the other side of the fence....That brings back lots of memories of playing out in the pasture near my grandma's house. I always hated when they stared at me like that! lol!





I just had to get some shots of some of these signs! I love when kids make these! I love their interpretations! Aren't they sweet?









Here's the house with all the yellow ribbons and flags. I love the flagpole in front of the house. It all looked very pretty and very welcoming!





And here's the tree and tire swing welcoming him home with the big yellow ribbon..



Richie taking it easy in the tire swing...I'm sure it felt good to be this carefree swinging in his tire swing in his own front yard. He said he really missed seeing grass (the little things you take for granted). All he saw over there for 4 1/2 months was sand and concrete!



All the chairs were set up around the back yard near the deck and were pretty much full when everyone sat down to eat.



The kids all had a good time too. Here's a few pictures of the kids doing what kids do best....having fun!

They were playing "Army" here (America against Germany she tells me!) Joy is right at home with those guys...It reminds me of Richie and I playing army when we were younger. Richie's son, Kemper, is the one with the hat on.



Here's a picture of Kemper and his dirt bike. He races them.



Joy and Laci. Laci has been sticking pretty close to her dad and not letting him out of her sight very much! She sure was glad to have her daddy home!



Here some of the kids were very intent with a video game.



Now the girls are hanging together (Cousins Joy & Sydney):



Here's some of the "big guys" hanging out in the front yard.



Meanwhile in the house, here's a picture of my Grandma. She is 90 years young!



Later that evening, my cousin, Robbie, serenaded the girls on the guitar. He was singing Lunch Lady Land. I bet you can only imagine the words to that one! Joy just loves Robbie and begged him to play that song for her again!



I realized when I got all my pictures on here that somehow I got home and didn't have a picture of my sister-in-law, Missy, and their oldest son, Trey, and his wife, Shauna. I called my mom and she had one of each on her camera. Now my mom is notorious for cutting off the tops of heads on photos! lol! But she did get most of them! :)

Here's Missy. I'm know she was tired, but very glad to have her husband home.



Here's my nephew, Trey (their oldest son) and his wife, Shauna.




And here's a picture of the old barn on their property. I love this old barn and I love to take photos there. Isn't it the coolest old barn? I bet those walls could tell some stories if they could talk!



I just want everyone to know how grateful I am for the prayers for Richie and his unit while he was gone and I thank the Lord for bringing him back home safely to his family. Please remember still all of those currently serving in our military everyday to secure our freedom. Each and every one is SOMEBODY's husband, wife, son, daughter, brother, sister, dad or mom.

Welcome home, Richie! I love ya bro.! :)