Some of My Favorite Things

As we get ready to close out another year, and we prepare to get back to our daily grind I'm reflecting on some of my favorite things from the holiday season. This was truly the best holiday I've ever had. Spending time with my family was much needed, especially after the events from two weeks ago. The boys stayed home with me every single day and Daddy P was even home a lot this holiday. I am going to miss our lazy days together. I'll also miss things like:

• Ryan and Evan hamming it up and making us laugh
• Looking at my Christmas card tree and being reminded of my family and friends each day
• Having my kitchen smelling like cinnamon and vanilla
• My favorite Christmas tree ornaments
• Making crafts with my Peas (thanks Pinterest and MK's mama!)
• Cooking dinner and looking out into the family room and seeing my fellas  (who am I kidding, I do this nearly every single day, but it felt different this past week!)
• Smiling each time I opened the fridge because I saw more Christmas cards and R & E's Christmas projects from school
• Having Evan, the keeper of the tree, turn on the Christmas lights first thing in the morning and then demand breakfast

It's been a great break. I can go even further...it's been a great year. We've had our ups and downs of course. Each day isn't easy; we've had our challenges. But, through it all we're still standing. God has never left us. We've been blessed tremendously with new opportunities. We have each other...it's been a great year indeed. 

First & Last Snow Storm of 2012

We had our first significant snow storm on Saturday. It snowed all day, so we spent the entire day inside lounging around. It was great! We were able to get outside later that evening for a little snowy work and fun. I am not an outside kinda girl, but I must say that playing in the snow with my Peas was pretty awesome!

Happy Everything~Christmas 2012

We hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas this year. I can certainly say that we had a perfect holiday. It was exactly what I wanted: quiet, relaxing, and fun. Of course we wished that we could have been with our families, but we made the best out of it just being the four of us. Christmas Eve started early, as usual! I can't wait for my boys to learn the art of sleeping in! We headed out to breakfast and to run a couple of last minute errands. We made it home early afternoon and got dressed in our pjs. I dreamed about just staying at my home in my pjs the week before Christmas break! We had company for a little while and I started my baking and treat-making for our neighbors. We rocked out to Christmas music and enjoyed each other's company. I was all nostalgic and thinking about my mommy so I decided to make one of my favorite dishes of hers~ chili. I'm sure mine didn't even come close to hers, but it made me feel like I had a little piece of her still right here with me. We ate dinner together and just hung out some more.

We set the timer on our camera to get a rare family photo.

Ryan and Evan took a few minutes to play with last year's Christmas present~finally!

We even had a white Christmas! It was the perfect kind of snow~ pretty to look at, but not enough to shovel and it was gone the next day. That's the kind of snow I don't mind. Finally, it was time to put the Peas to bed so we could set up for the big day. Let me tell you, toy makers today make sure that their products are secure! Took me forever to get some of their toys out of the package! I rewarded myself with a little play time for my hard work though. I'm just a big kid, and Thomas the Steam Engine sure was fun!

We knew they were going to be so excited! Those drums? My boys LOVE the drums! Ryan especially has a love of music and each Sunday after church he makes a beeline to the drum set if he can. We seriously want to get him in music lessons when he gets a little older. Here is where I should post a video of Ryan and Evan waking up and seeing their presents. Let's just say one of us ran into some technical difficulties and thought we had everything on camera. Turns out, we had nothing and only a few pictures!

It was hard to convince the boys to leave their toys, but we had a church service on Christmas morning. Afterwards we had a luncheon where we served lunch to the homeless and gave out presents. What a wonderful experience it was! It was an honor to be a blessing to others. What a blessing it was to just be together. After all, isn't that what Christmas is really about? I know that the boys are still too young to understand any of this, but I hope that these seeds we are planting will sprout later on. It truly was a very Merry Christmas.

Merry Christmas

The Parker four would like to wish each and every one of our family and friends a very Merry Christmas. As we enjoy this Christmas Eve, dressed in our new pjs, listening to Christmas tunes, eating dinner and treats, and preparing for tomorrow's festivities, we are reminded of what this holiday is really about. Before we open one gift tomorrow we know that we've already received the most precious and priceless gift of all~ a loving Saviour in Jesus Christ. We wish you much peace, love, and joy.

Headed to Church

I'm pretty sure this was the last time the boys (and Daddy P) would allow me to dress them in longalls, so I'm savoring the moment! #southernboysinct

Meanwhile, this was Happening..

I was supposed to be wrapping presents and making peppermint bark, but instead I was cleaning the walls.

I learned two things tonight: ALWAYS do a room sweep for crayon contraband before bedtime and NEVER run out of Mr. Clean Magic Erasers.

E is for Evan

Look at what our boy did yesterday! While waiting for his dinner Evan decided to write his name. While he didn't write his entire name this time, check out the E that he wrote. It's the neatest, most perfect E ever, and he did it all by himself! Way to go Evan:)