whirlwind.

The past few weeks have been a total blur around here!  We have had baby sickness, adult sickness, leaving Olivia for the first time while we went on a week long trip to Jamaica (I will post all about the fun, and the anxiety of leaving her behind, so don't worry!), hosting and attending Christmas celebrations, last minute shopping, a big Santa delivery to a deserving Baby Girl, and sending Andy off on deployment.  

I suppose I will do things in rewind over the next few days.  I will begin with today. 

We said good-bye to Andy this morning at the airport.  Surprisingly, it wasn't as sad as it has been in the past.  I didn't have a toddler to care for during the previous four deployments, so I guess my emotions were more focused on me and my hurting heart back then.  However, this time my heart just hurts for Andy and the memories he will miss over the next few months.  It also hurts for Baby Girl because  'dada' has really become a favorite person of hers lately.  However, modern technology will keep the three of us more connected than other deployments, so that is a huge bonus. 


 Now that Baby Girl is asleep, I am about to tackle the Christmas tree and the disaster that has become our house!  What is it about the holidays that make everything so messy?!  However, before I go I ask that you say a quick prayer for all of the families that were without their loved ones this holiday season.  So many of our military spend more time away from their family than with them and I don't think that is recognized enough. As much as we hated to say goodbye the morning after Christmas, it was a huge blessing to have Andy around this holiday season while so many of our friends were already overseas.


God bless our military members,
 and the little hearts they leave behind.

to get you by.

I won't be blogging for at least the next week, so here is some cuteness from today to get you by!

Olivia talks to the baby on camera! from Stephanie Allen on Vimeo.



independent reading time from Stephanie Allen on Vimeo.

My future's so bright I gotta wear shades!

a Santa spotting!

Santa took a break from checking lists and building toys to catch a flight on a C-17 today!  He left the reindeer and elves at the North Pole and landed at the Air Force Base just after lunch.  Lucky for Baby Girl, her daddy has the inside scoop and had us to the flight line just in time. 

Santa taxis in.



can you see him waving in the window?!



Gillian, Grant, Olivia, & Grace wait for Santa's arrival!

A family photo!  Notice anything different and exciting?!

Olivia loved seeing the airplanes.
She kept signing 'airplane' over and over.

There was a mini C-17 on display, too!
She loved climbing in and out of it.

signing 'airplane' with Daddy.

she didn't care too much for sitting on Santa's lap! ha.

Gillian moments before
bursting into tears!

Grant with Santa

Gracie with Santa

Much happier now that she saw her
Elmo present!

What fun to see Christmas through the eyes of children!  Thanks, Santa, for taking time out of your busy schedule to help make our Saturday fun! 

Nana is sad.

She says she misses her "sweet South Carolina baby".

So we took a few pictures this morning to brighten her day!  It is hard to get Olivia to look at the camera these days and smile, so I am continually disappointed in the pictures I am able to take.

I told her to say "cheese" this morning and she got up and ran to the refrigerator.  Our photo session was then replaced by a snack (of cheese, or course) with mommy on the kitchen floor.  sigh.

So, Nana, I give you the best of what I could get!  Mostly action shots, but pictures of your sweet grandbaby none-the-less. 

And, just because I think you'll like these too, here are some from our MOPS play date this morning.  Olivia LOVES babies and was so excited when Ms. Kelly let her hold baby Molly!  (And you can go ahead and tell Papa to keeps his thoughts to himself!)

birthday wrap-up and a tree in the house.

I figured since Andy's birthday month is over (and we have now moved onto mine! wahoo!), I should conclude the details of his 30th birthday celebration.  You all remember that Baby Girl made his cake, right? If not, you can see the proof here.  After a bath, a nap, and a change of clothes it was time to decorate the cake she had worked so hard on baking!

the theme was sprinkles, lots and lots of sprinkles!

making a wish....hopefully it wasn't for a store
bought cake next year!

After cake and presents, Baby Girl was shipped over to the neighbors so Andy and I could enjoy a dinner out to ourselves.  Or so he thought......because a few friends just happened to meet us there!  Hmmmm, what a crazy coincidence!

Happy birthday, Andy!  I look forward to celebrating many more!

Now that we have the birthday details all taken care of, I can move on to another exciting event!  We got our Christmas tree on Sunday.  This is the earliest (by weeks) that I have ever had a Christmas tree!  As a child, it was always a big deal if we had our tree before my birthday, which is two weeks prior to Christmas.  That has influenced me, I suppose, because as an adult I never get into too much of a hurry when it comes to decorating.  I like to savor each holiday and I feel that Thanksgiving gets cheated if we are too focused on Christmas.  However, this year we had some extra time the weekend after Thanksgiving since we didn't travel, so I got the decorating bug! 

Baby Girl was snotty-nosed, coughing, cranky, and not really in the holiday mood, but we persevered. 

...and searched.

We searched....



then we found the perfect one!

high five for Daddy! 
Now lets get this thing in the house!

Thanksgiving in pictures.

Baby Girl tries some fried turkey (or maybe we gave her the smoked;)



A busy kitchen!



some serious eating happening at the kid's table!



Andy and Tracy enjoy the new outdoor kitchen!

 

Baby Gillian crashes our family photo ;)



a table of love and friendship (minus me and Christina - we
were busy grabbing last minute items in the kitchen!)



How do the adults enjoy a dinner to ourselves?
By putting on a movie for the kids, of course!

a list of thankful.

                             "Thankfulness is an act" 
This was the message that struck me the most this morning at church.  I will try my best to act out in thankfulness as often as I can, not just today, but always.  I know I am not always as thankful as I should be, nor do I do enough acts to show off the thankfulness I feel in my heart.  However, today I am going to start. 

My first act of being thankful is a list.  One that is in no particular order, but is a glimpse into my thankful heart. 

I am thankful for.....
1. the ability to freely worship God
2. a healthy daughter
3. a husband who loves me even when I am pretty un-lovable (hard to believe, I know...)
4. the smell of the Apple Butter Pumpkin Pie coming from my oven
5. to be sharing this holiday with friends, who really feel more like family, when we can't be with our God-given families
6. ice cream
7. baby snuggles in the morning
8. the amazing opportunity to be a stay-at-home-mom with Baby Girl
9. my education
10. that I grew up on a farm where we learned the importance of hard work
11. coming from a family where love and hugs are free flowing
12. good friends, who's friendship doesn't skip a beat even when the time between face to face visits seems to grow longer with each passing year
13. leggings with an elastic waist (that I may or may not be wearing in honor of this holiday;)
14. a house that has become our home
15. music! - it keeps us moving and smiling!
16. the Internet - it makes the world just a little bit smaller!
17. selfless people who choose to serve our country
18. bubbles  and Elmo (well, those may be from Baby Girl's list, but I thought I'd share them!)
19. my good health
20. that you all read this blog! =)

Happy Thanksgiving from our thankful hearts to yours!