Thanksgiving 2012

We had a very blessed Thanksgiving this year, my Grandma Carie, Mom and John all drove from Iowa to spend the holiday with us. They arrived around 1:00 AM on Thursday and stayed until Saturday morning. We had a nice visit.

This was one of the few times, if not the first time, that I made the entire Thanksgiving meal (minus the pickles and deviled eggs Grandma made). I spent most of Wednesday afternoon preparing food. The girls were great helpers in the kitchen. Kaylee made the pecan pie, while Kianna helped me make the pumpkin cheesecake. Both girls also helped tear the bread apart for the stuffing. It was fun having them work beside me. So fun in fact, that I actually had a smile on my face for most of the time I was working. Well that is until about hour four when I began reaching the point of exhaustion. It was then that I was thankful for having been invited over to a friend's house for dinner and games for the evening! It was good to be out of the kitchen for awhile.

In addition to celebrating Thanksgiving, we also had the pleasure of celebrating my mom's birthday, which was also on the 22nd. We decided to have a special meal in her honor the following day. Grandma made her famous Chimichangas and I made our family's homemade hot fudge recipe. It felt like most of our weekend was spent eating and unfortunately the scale is beginning to reflect it. On ha happier note, when we weren't eating we had fun playing games, visiting, and trying to learn how to knit. Knitting is a bit tricky. Kaylee has been wanting to learn to knit, because she has a friend who knits. Kaylee got a knitting kit for her birthday and wants to knit a case for her iPod. I have been trying to follow the kit's instructions to teach Kaylee how to knit, however, not knowing how to knit myself, has been a struggle. It was nice having my mom and Grandma here to help teach us, although in the end Kaylee decided that she is too young to knit. In time...

Some of the things I am thankful for this year include:

• A loving and gracious God- God has been teaching me about his love and grace this year. I continue to be challenged to love others as God loves me. 1 Corinthians 13: 4-8a says that "Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails." I find these verses to be quite convicting. My personal challenge is to offer this same love to those around me, especially to those in my own home. I find it quite difficult to be kind, gentle, patient, and not easily angered when my kids disobey me for what seems like the millionth time. Instead I often find myself being quick to anger and yelling at them. This is where God's grace comes in. Grace is God's generous love, mercy and forgiveness He offers us even when we deserve the opposite. How thankful I am to serve a God like this, who offers me His grace, love, and forgiveness. If He can do that for me, I should be able to offer my own kids a little more grace on occasion... 
• My husband- Trevor is a huge blessing in my life. He is a good Daddy and husband. He is a man of God. He is very wise and offers me great advice. He is a hard worker. He is a good provider. He is loving. He is motivated. He is faithful.
• Kaylee- She is a fun little girl. She is very obedient and always wants to do the right thing. She is very mature and responsible. She likes to laugh and have fun. She is very considerate of other's feelings. She is nurturing and trustworthy.
• Kianna- She is a nice little girl. She loves to be silly and is a good sister. She loves to play with her brother and sister. She is kind and loving.
• Trace- He is a fun little guy. He has a ton of energy and is all boy. He loves to play with his sisters and loves to be tickled. He has a great laugh.
• Health- It seems like there are so many people that are sick around us. I am thankful for our good health.
• Freedom- I'm thankful to live in a country where I am free to worship as I choose. I am thankful that our country fights to give other's the same freedoms we have.
• Home- It is cold outside and yet I am warm inside. What a blessing this is!
• Food- My belly is full and often too full. I'm thankful for the abundance of food around me.
• Friends and family- I'm thankful for my loving extended family and the support they offer. I'm thankful for the many friends God has blessed us with, they make daily life more fun. 
• My job- I'm thankful for the flexible hours, the extra money it provides, the new friendships developing, and the ability to use the gift of physical therapy to bless and strengthen my patients lives.

We are truly blessed!!!!

LCS Christmas Program

The girls both had their Christmas Programs today. It is earlier than usual, but that is due to a scheduling conflict. The girls both did a great job singing. Kianna was cracking us up as her and her friend, Carter, began elbowing each other repeatedly while standing on the bleachers. Thankfully the elbowing stopped once the singing began. When asked about it later, she acted like it was no big deal saying that Carter liked it and was doing the same thing to her, which was true. Kaylee volunteered to sing a duet with her friend, Ella. The girls both did a great job singing part of "Mary Did You Know". It was another nice evening!!!

Our Sweet Kaylee

Kaylee celebrated her 8th birthday today. She is getting so big and grown up. We are so proud of her! Kaylee is very mature and responsible for her age. She is a rule follower and enjoys quoting the rules to her brother and sister. We often joke that she is 8 going on 30. Recently when asked what she wanted for Christmas she said a "nook". I don't know of too many 8 year olds requesting nooks for Christmas, but maybe I'm wrong? Kaylee enjoys reading. She recently discovered Nancy Drew books and is hooked. Kaylee loves school, especially math, art and choir. She says she wants to be an art teacher when she gets bigger. 

Kaylee continues to make friends easily and is everyone's friend. She is very outgoing and confident. In September, she tried out for the school play "The Best Christmas Pageant Ever". She got cast as one of the baby angels and as part of the Sunday School class. She was later given the name Naomi and one line to memorize. I don't think she could be more excited about being in the play. She LOVES it and is completely in her element. When asked whether she liked soccer or drama more, she enthusiastically answered drama. The big performance is December 13-15th, so she has been busy practicing since she was cast. We are excited to see the final product! 

In addition to drama, some of her other interests include:

• Sports- She continues to enjoy playing soccer, especially as the goalie. She is also gearing up for basketball this winter, as is Kianna.  
• Swimming- She is a fish in the water.
• Crafts- Grandma Becki just taught her how to crochet and she just purchased a kit to learn how to knit.
• Playing games- She likes both board games and video games. 
• Star Wars- The kids are all hooked on "The Clone Wars" DVDs and Trevor loves it! She even enjoys Lego Star Wars. 
• Listening to her radio- She loves listening to her "Adventures in Odyssey" CDs and audiobooks.
• Her favorite foods include: Penne pasta, black olives, macaroni and cheese, cream cheese and green olive sandwiches, peanut butter, Moose Tracks Ice Cream, and anything sweet as long as it isn't a sucker and doesn't have caramel in it.

To celebrate her birthday, Kaylee opened her gifts first thing this morning. She got some new clothes, a new game for her DS (Lego Star Wars III), a leotard for her American Girl doll, a desk, and an iPod. She had no idea she was getting an iPod so was super excited. She immediately downloaded "The Secret Garden" audiobook and listened to 11 chapters. In the evening, we drove to Toledo and had a nice dinner at The Olive Garden. We spent the rest of the evening at Chuck-E-Cheese. We had a fun time celebrating as a family. It is hard to believe that our baby girl is 8 years old. We are so blessed to have her in our lives. We love you Kaylee Rebecca Cook!!!! 

American Girl Tea Party

Tea Party

Ella and Kaylee

Kaylee's birthday weekend officially began last night with an American Girl Tea Party/Sleepover for her and nine of her girlfriends. The girls had a great time with the tea party. Kaylee helped plan the menu and prepare the food. She was a HUGE help. The menu consisted of the following:

• Beverages: Apple Juice or Hot Tea
• Appetizers: Ham and cream cheese wrapped pickles, cucumber sandwiches, cheese and crackers,  and a relish tray.
• Main Dish: Sandwich options including choice of peanut butter and jelly, ham and cheese, or tuna salad; pasta salad, and fruit salad.
• Dessert: Cupcakes with chocolate chip cookie dough on the bottom, a Reese's Peanut Butter Cup in the middle, and brownie batter on the top all baked to perfection. Can we say YUMMY!

The above items were served on a fancy white tablecloth I picked up in the parking lot of the Great Wall of China 10 years ago. It had yet to be used. We also used my Grandma Gaskill's China with beautiful pink flowers all over it. The table looked beautiful!

The rest of the evening was filled with opening gifts, 11 kids running madly throughout our house playing "dungeon", which apparently is some game they made up; watching The American Girl movie, "Samantha" and chit chatting themselves to sleep. I awoke this morning to one little girl sitting at my computer without permission. I found out later that someone had been messing around on the computer at 5:30 AM and announced to those around her the name and color of Kaylee's birthday present, which she happened to see while playing on our computer. I believe Kaylee was still asleep, so will still be surprised on Monday when we give her gift to her, but I was a little perturbed at the lack of boundaries this little girl displayed!

After feeding the girls chocolate chip and banana pancakes this morning, we were definitely ready for some peace and quiet. All and all, I would say the party was a success, although I will admit a bit stressful on my end. It was worth it though, because Kaylee had a blast with her friends. She is a sweet little girl, with a big heart, and we are so thankful God has blessed us with her! Happy Birthday Sweet Girl!!!

Kianna's Sleepover

Kianna has been wanting to have a sleepover, ever since Kaylee and Trace had one recently. We decided to invite her friend, Jenae, over for the night. The girls had a great time playing dress up, performing several skits. and watching "The Smurf" movie. The girls were all giggles until 9:22 pm when Jenae came downstairs in tears and wanting her Mommy. Jenae's mom came and got her and poor Kianna was the next one in tears, disappointed that her friend didn't actually sleep over. Life is so full of ups and downs. We'll have to try again another night...