Buddy 12/24/2010

Today's prank will be Buddy's last for 2010. I'm a little sad. We've gotten many laughs and had lots of fun at his expense. The whole point in doing this was to bring a little more magic to our Christmases. As the kids get older, it becomes more and more important to me that their memories of our family Christmases are magical and fun. I have 3 very special kids and they deserve a special life, complete with elf-filled Christmases.
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Buddy 12/23/2010

I wonder how mad Alli will be when she sees herself...
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In all things, give thanks. (Even barf)

So, it's 2:30 am the first full day of Christmas break. I have just spent the last hour holding back hair, cleaning up vomit, washing a load of clothes, and bleaching, bleaching, bleaching. And don't forget praying. Praying Alli would get well and get well now. Praying that the little girls staying here with us tonight don't get sick especially here at Christmas and especially since they are about to make a 14 hour car trip to see family in Oklahoma. Praying that I don't get sick because not all presents are bought and most aren't wrapped and if Santa walked in my door right now (I don't have a chimney) he would put some coal in my stocking and walk right back out. Praying that no one else gets what Alli has. No one!

Can I just say I was sleeping wonderfully? I mean, blissfully. Until the knock at my bedroom door at 1:30 am. I knew immediately that was a mom-I've-yakked-all-over-the-living-room-carpet knock. I knew because she mentioned last night having a headache and belly ache. As I was cleaning up the mess, my first reaction was several things:
worried that she'll still be sick at Christmas and have to miss out

worried about the three little girls spending the night or the boys would catch

completely stressing that this yucky virus would make its way to me before I finish getting ready for Christmas

really tired and quite frankly, a little grossed out

And that's when it hit me. It was honestly almost like I heard God saying, 'In all things, give thanks.' Really God? I'm cleaning up chicken nuggets and grape soda in their ugliest form and you want me to give thanks?

So, I did. I began thanking Him for sending me a daughter to take care of and serve. I thanked Him for the occasional stomach virus or strep or cold to be the worst illness she's ever had to go through. I thanked Him because I was cleaning up in a warm house stocked with cleaning supplies and money to buy things to make her feel better.

I know I sound a little 'Polly anna'-esque, but really, I view it honor to be able to take care of a sick child. God has blessed me with 3 precious gifts, 3 of His children, that for whatever reason He trusted me to take care of and I am so thankful for that.

While cleaning up the remnants of a Chick-Fil-A kid's meal is not my idea of a great time, I'm still honored to do it and blessed to be a mom.
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Buddy 12/22/2010

I mean, really, how much cuter does it get?! I know you are wishing you had your very own 'Elf on the Shelf' right about now.
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Buddy 12/21/2010

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Buddy 12/19/2010

I thought this was just hilarious. Even funnier, was their words..."Santa, noel, candy, sugar, lights". Crack me up! Who knew being a prankster was so much fun? I suppose I'll need to come up with year long tricks! This has been so much fun. Every morning, the kids are just in awe of what Buddy has done while they've slept.
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Buddy 12/17/2010

This morning, we woke up to this. The boys thought it was really funny...Alli, on the other hand, completely flipped! She was convinced that somehow someone snuck in our house and got my keys and had moved my car. This was, in no way, my fault. It's not like I had suggested that so as to add to the mystery. Not me, I'm way too mature for that. ;) After I got Alli calmed down and convinced we had not been burglarized, she seemed to warm up to his latest prank.
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Buddy 12/16/2010

Today was the 3rd snow day this week. At 8:00, I heard the kids, one at a time, creep in my bedroom then take off giggling. I then called them all into my room and they told me of Buddy's latest prank! They thought it was hysterical. That little elf sure is making a lot of funny and wonderful memories for this family.
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Buddy 12/14/2010

I suppose even Elves have to potty?! If ever we were unsure of Buddy's gender, I think the unflushed toilet confirms he's a male. ;)
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Buddy 12/13/2010

This morning we woke up to find Buddy in the snow. As you can see, he made a snow angel. I'm just hoping we don't find any green snow.
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Buddy 12/10/2010

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This "elf" thing is so much fun that I thought I'd share some of my favorite pranks Buddy pulls on us.  From the looks of the pot with noodles and syrup, I'd say he was trying to make spaghetti...he even had flour and his hands and feet.

Alli said, "He has pretty handwriting."  That cracked me up!

Making it Magic

Christmas always brings out the kid in me.  I always get very excited for my own children no matter how modest our Christmases are.  Christmas truly does equal magic. 
I think my favorite parts and just a few are: 

First and foremost, celebrating the birth of Jesus, what a gift!  Imagine knowing that your baby would save souls makes a Kindle look shabby, huh? (By the way, since I already have Jesus, I really want a Kindle.)

Putting up the tree (even though this year's tradition resulted in WW3 between two siblings that shall remain nameless; all I will tell you is it was the baby and the middle).

Hearing Christmas music, I am taken back to when I was a kid.  I had this BEAUTIFUL Christmas carol book filled with all the classics.  My best friend and next door neighbor, Stephanie, would bless (at least that's what we throught we were doing) all the neighbors in our subdivision with our caroling.  We'd bundle up and go house to house belting out all the classics.  We'd murder the high notes and put in all the "extras" in Rudolph (ie; "...had a very shiny nose, LIKE A LIGHTBULB!!").  Man, we thought we were pretty cute.  I imagine to our parents we were and to our neighbors...well, they were very familar with our antics. :)  Because I loved this tradition so much I recently took Alli and 2 of her friends and one of my present day best friends, Brandi, to go sing Christmas carols to Brad's grandmother.  It was actually a lot of fun and the residents at the apartments seemed to enjoy us.  Or maybe they were just humoring us.  Anyway, I am guessing and hoping that is a memory that Alli will never forget.

Going to my papaw's out in the country, was also one of my favorites.  I haven't done it since I was a kid but I can still remember his red brick floors, his ugly, tacky tree, and getting $10 in a bank envelope that I thought was $1,000,000.  I remember riding home and it was always late and almost bedtime. There were times I could have sworn I'd seen Santa's sleigh and reindeer in the sky.  I miss my papaw so much.  I remember I ran into him at Target the Christmas before he died and he was really missing mamaw.  I told him I would come and put up his tree for him and he had no interest.  The magic was gone for him.  Then, when I hugged him and told him I loved him anyway, even if he wouldn't put his ugly, tacky tree up, he just looked back at me, smiled and said "I love you, Mandy."  Papaw was the only one who called me Mandy and I loved it. 

Shopping with Brad Thanksgiving night has become another favorite tradition.  We may leave the house with very little to spend but we always manage to stretch it into a great time.  We laugh, and act silly, and just be together.  Then, the nap the next morning is always icing on the cake.

My mother could make a stocking better than the real presents.  She has this talent for finding wonderful and unusal treasures.  I so wish I had this talent.  Many, many Christmas mornings, I was as excited to see what was in my stocking as I was to see my actual presents.

This picture is our newest tradition in our house.  You are looking at "Elf on a Shelf".  He is a pixie elf that Santa has sent our house to watch the kids and report back to Santa.  The kids have named him, "Buddy". Buddy only travels at night and comes back every morning. When he comes back, he has played some trick or brought some sort of small gift and is hiding in a new spot.  This morning we found candy canes all over our tree.  If I was guessing, I would say there were 42 of them.  The kids were thrilled and are already to see what antics he pulls tomorrow morning. I hope we have Buddy for a very long time.

Traditions, to me, are so important because they mean safety.  They mean love.  They mean that someone cared enough about us to recreate a previous wonderful experience for us.  Traditions are a great way to bring the magic to the ordinary.  Thanks Mom and Dad, Granny and Granddad, and Papaw and Mamaw for teaching me so much about traditions.

I wonder, what are some of your traditions? I would love to hear them.

Pretty deep stuff

I never intended to have two back-to-back postings about death. 
In fact, I was in the middle of another post when I received the news that my cousin's wife had passed. 
It was expected. 
Due to her suffering, it was probably even welcomed. 
Still, how does one really deal with that? 
I mean, my closest family and friends each hold a very special place in my life.
My husband, my very best friend and truly a life-long partner.  I really can't imagine a single day without him in it.
My kids, all 3 are these perfect blessings. Their imperfections make them perfect. Doesn't make sense, I realize but it does to me.
My siblings, who I learn from and laugh with.  And even though two of them are "new", I don't ever want to be at a stage in life with out you.
My mom, the epitome of selflessness and giving and independence.
My friends. So many of them yet, each one is important to me for different reasons. There is the forever one, the anytime one, the hilarious one, the fun one, the soul-sister, the smart one, the real one, the giving one, and many, many more.  The reality of it is many of my friends are all these wrapped into one. 
I have the best friends and family, I really do. 
Each one serves a purpose.
Each makes me want to be better, do more, worry less, love harder.
A hard pill to swallow is that one day I will have to goodbye to some of them. 
I get tears just thinking about it. 
My life, as I know it, will just never be the same.
Makes you wonder, do you have the same impact on people as they do on you? 
So my question (to end my depressing rambling) is this:  Do you know what purpose you serve in others life? Is it one you are proud of? And, have you told the VIPs in your life just how they make your day better so that one day, when you are telling them good-bye, they'll know why life, as you know it, will never be the same without them?