Hello, 2012!

I never planned to have anyone over for New Years Eve but sometimes the parties that come together on their on are the best kind.  Plus if you have any Sasser blood in you, you don't plan much of anything anyway. 

Jonathan made The Pioneer Woman's Whiskey Sliders for the second time last night and they were a hit!  You need to try them.  Some other eats included: Buffalo Hot Wings, Guacamole, Spinach Salad, Broccoli Salad, KK donuts, Chips & Hummus/Salsa.

Weston heard commotion outside his bedroom door. Okay, you can join the fun!

 Getting Married in 2012

 My cousin Kathryn and Aunt Jane

Jennifer & Cathy

 Lauren, Grey, & Mom

 Cousin Sam, Kathryn, & Joe

 Danny & Cathy

 Nanny's Mouth & Joe

 Kathryn & Uncle Phil

 Carter & Drew

Winter Wonderland

We really had fun decorating the porch this year.  Jonathan did too good of a job when I asked him to take care of it for the Fall.  So I handed him another picture I liked and he went to work.  He grabbed sticks from my parents yard and sprayed them white.  When he didn't find the rustic ornaments he was looking for the bag of potpourri caught his eye.  He used some twine and hung the potpourri from the sticks.  The spray snow helped a lot too.  I never would of thought I'd like that but it was really what made it I think.  

Here is the picture I handed him from the Pottery Barn magazine.

 Here is what he did.

View from Door.

Looking up at ceiling.

I made us polka dotted stockings this year!

The kids on the porch.

The kids with their Momma. :)

Weston was surprised we were letting him "blow out the fire."  :)

I love this time of year!

Field Trip to Durham

We had such a great time Sunday in Durham.  Lunch at Maggiano's is the perfect way to start the day at The Streets at Southpoint.  Well, not if you want to go shopping and try on clothes later but that is never going to stop this girl from enjoying delicious scratch-made Italian goodness.  I mean really.  

We went into the store Free People for the first time.  Stopped in Anthropology(spent 1 hour) and purchased two dish towels that I later turned into a splendid pillow cover.  

 

 I have to give my Mom credit for this because she suggested I get them to "make something."  Jonathan was able entertain  the kids by going to the water fountain and Kid Zone there while my parents and I did some more shopping.  By the way, Cinnabon isn't there anymore and that's a shame! 

Headed back to Greenville late afternoon and some of my cousins came over to my parents house that night.  We had so much fun together!  Turned out to be a great Labor Day weekend.

Uh Ohhhh

This is one thing I didn't see coming.  The transition from crib to bed went so smoothly a few months ago.  Weston was having his "nap time" and whining for me.  Then it seemed like the whining turned into more of a scream so I decided to go in there and check on him.  Once I saw him in this position I had to get Jonathan and couldn't help but laugh a little.  Oh, and grab the camera.  Honestly I tried to get him out and thought, "Oh my gosh I can't! Get Jonathan quick!"  

Poor guy won't be sliding off the bed at the foot of it anymore.  I guess that's what he was doing when he got in this pickle?

Nashville

I am leaving my husband and kids this weekend to drive to Nashville for my cousins wedding. Every time I go anywhere without them I come back saying, "Jonathan, don't let me ever do that again!" Wishing I had gone with my family or just skipped the trip altogether.

Nashville, TN sounds like an awesome place and this will be my first visit. My cousin getting married is my age and lived within an hour of me most of my life, so we have grown up together. I can't imagine missing her wedding so I'm going to go against my word and leave my family again! :) Just hoping the days are very busy and fly by so I don't have time to miss them or wonder what they are doing while mommy is away.

One funny/scary thing is that no matter how organized I am about laying out their outfits for when I am gone, Jonathan feels the need to do his own thing. It never works out for him. Once he put a shirt and tights on EG thinking it was a dress and sent her to church like that. Not that their clothes are what's important, but come on babe, this is why I take the time to plan their outfits.

As I think about leaving for the trip, I'm trying to remember how fun it will be to see my cousins and visit a new city. I just keep telling myself that.

Now, onto the to-do list so that I can actually leave.

Eyes of a Child

I was always the one in the group that didn't find putt putt, animated movies, the aquarium or museums all that exciting. Now that I have children I see everything through their eyes and all the things that used to bore me are so much fun to experience with them. I find myself using every cliche when telling stories about my kids. They all make so much sense to me now!

Watching their face light up when they see something for the first time...I swear my heart smiles. Isn't it the best? The difficulties of parenthood are far outweighed by the rewards.

Oh, Weston!

Every night before we hit the hay, we go peek at the kids. Most of the time we re-situate them and cover them up. I can't resist kissing them and even pick Elliott up out of the crib to get a good one some nights. It makes Jonathan mad and he tells me to leave them alone but I really can't help it. It's just such a sweet time to get a sniff of that baby smell (yes, they are babies!).

We've been letting Weston take a toy to bed because he will play with it in the morning when he wakes up and let us all sleep a little longer. He wakes up an entire hour and a half before EG every morning. The other night Jonathan came and told me to go look at Weston as he grabbed the camera. He had fallen asleep with his hand still in his Lego box and with toys surrounding his head. Oh, Weston!