Our Weekend

I couldn't figure out why I was so tired today.... until I sat down to edit pictures from this weekend...  Then I wondered how I was still functioning.  :)  Our weekend was jam packed full of fun....

Waiting in line at Toys R Us

I was one of those crazy people out shopping in the wee morning hours...  actually I was waiting in line at Toys R Us at about 10:30 pm Thursday night.  It always sounds like such a good idea when I'm perusing the Black Friday ads after our Thanksgiving feast....  and the 'good' part ends when I'm out in the cold surrounded by people I don't know...  And then the cops get called.  Yep.  The cops were called to Toys R Us that night because there was a line wrapped around one side of the building...  and then right before the doors opened another line formed on the other side of the building..... and it was starting to get a little scary.  Things got straightened out....  but instead of getting in at 12:00 am... we didn't get in until about 12:30 and by then about 3 of my toes had froze off.  But - I got some crazy deals... so it all ended well.  I really owe Allison... she came and met up with me in line and memorized my list of toys I wanted...  and I kept quizzing her until she had them all memorized.  I should probaby buy her a cup of coffee to thank her....  or maybe a pair of really warm socks for her to wear next year when I drag her out for some Black Friday Fun!   

Next stop was Jordan Creek Mall - where I spent some time trying on hats.... 

I actually ran into some of the people I go to Farrell's with...  they had a little area set up and they were EXERCISING!  At 1:30 in the morning!  I thought I was nuts for being at the mall shopping at that time...  they definately raised the bar by doing a Farrell's workout at that time of night.....

Allison's last stop with me was at Target which opened at 5 am.  Once we were done shopping there, she headed home for a little shut eye because she had to go to work in a couple of hours...  Yep.  She's a trooper!  And young(er) ish than me... so she can totally pull stuff like this off. 

Later that afternoon, RB and the girls (and Howie) arrived home and we spent the night putting up the Christmas tree and putting the lights on.  We were going to use the lights from last year (non - LED lights) and wait for them to go on sale after Christmas and then stock up... however...  we only had about 3 working sets so RB headed to Menards for LED lights.  While he was gone I was drilling the girls.... "There is no such thing as too many lights on a Christmas tree..."  (Gramma Mac will appreciate that....)  We had to save the ornaments until the next morning because we were all too tired. 

The next morning we decorated the tree and then put out the rest of the Christmas decorations.  This year, we even let the girls put some decorations in their room...  I knew it was a bad idea... but I just couldn't say no....  We'll see how long the lights and snow globes last in there....

We all wore fun reindeer antlers...  and the Christmas music was blaring from the IPod.

Howie was super annoyed that I made him wear his reindeer antlers while we were decorating....  I think he secretly liked all the attention we were giving him.. but was acting shy for the camera.....

Saturday afternoon we took the girls to Disney Princesses on Ice at the Wells Fargo Arena.  We got a great deal on the tickets.... but totally lost those savings when RB went to get some snacks for the show..  Addi begged for the Sno Cones in a Princess Cup....  I'm too embarrassed to tell you what we paid for them (yes.... as in plural...one for Addi and one for Ali...) Let me put it this way... I made sure they ate every last piece of ice.....  And then I silently pledged to myself that I was done 'donating' my money to Disney.....  HA!

She had just finished her Sno Cone....  and then I had to show her this picture about 150 times so she could see her colored lips.....

Ali Cam

The girls LOVED the show....  Ainsley did great until the last 10 minutes or so - she got a little restless.  The girls wore their princess gear again and Ali told me she wanted to wear her Belle dress to her preschool program coming up....  Lovely.

This morning we finished up with the Christmas decorations and hung out around home. I spent my afternoon at the Civic Center listening to Lorie Line on the tv in the ticket office.  After dinner we took the girls for a drive to look at Christmas lights. 

The girls have been tucked into bed for two hours now.. and Ali just came down.  UGH!  I think it's the Christmas lights we put in their room.....  Addi will be devastated if we take them down, but I think they are keeping Ali up.  Think I could get Ali to wear one of those sleep eye masks?!! 

Big News!

That's right!  Ainsley took her first steps last Wednesday!! We were at Grandpa and Gramma Mac's house and she just started walking!  I about fell off the couch....  RB and Grandpa Mac witnessed it too....  Then on Thanksgiving morning, we went out to Nana and Papa's house and they got to see her in action.....

Addi keeps asking for some 'walking baby' for Christmas...  as if she needs another baby to play with...  Plus - we have a real life version at home!  What's better than that?  HA!

Even Babies Have Bad Hair Days......

Funny Friday Foto

Happy Friday!

Giving Thanks.....

What I'm most thankful for.....

My Family. 

My dad who met us in the driveway to help unload when we pulled in last night...  my mom who cooked a huge, very delicious meal last night...  my brother Jimmy who slept with Addison last night because she didn't want to be in the room by herself....  my brother Joey who went out in the cold and snow last night to get us movies to watch... 

My Aunt Jackie and Uncle Craig who opened their home to us today...  My other Aunts and Uncles and Cousins who came and enjoyed a day of laughs, good food...  and memories....

My Mother in Love who knows how much I love mint and chocolate... and surprised me with a tin of goodies...  my Father in Love who helped give Howie a bath today when he rolled in something he shouldn't have... 

My husband who is staying another night with the girls so I can go out and take advantage of the deals tonight.....

After our meal today, we were all in the living room and this is what I saw....  My cousins and I going through the shopping ads, Addison playing with her Uncles, Alivia playing with her cousins, Ainsley snuggling with her Grandma... other family members sitting and chatting with each other... 

We are blessed.  Truly blessed.  

Happy Thanksgiving

The ONLY reason.....

I got out of bed this morning to go to my workout was because of my mom's buns. 

Wait... 

 Maybe I should rephrase that.....Because of my mom's homemade rolls that she bakes for Thanksgiving dinner...  I'm going to have at least two.... maybe even three... 

 I'm going shopping on Black Friday so I'll burn those calories right off.....  Pretty sure running through the mall, knocking people over is a huge calorie burner. 

At Monday's workout we did about 150 touch downs (which are hard to explain what they are... but they are soooo not fun)  so yesterday morning I was walking like a 90 year old woman because the muscles in the back of my thighs feel like they have knots in them.  They still hurt but I heard that turkey, mashed potatoes with gravy, corn, green bean casserole, homemade rolls and Andes Mint Pie makes all the pain go away....

The A Team