Signage

A friend of mine is hosting a Garage & Bake Sale this weekend.  ALL proceeds are going toward the refugee crisis.  ( Isn't that wonderful?)  So when I found out she was doing that, I immediately offered to make signs, because that's my favorite thing ever, pretty much.

I've said before here that if you give me some paper and a Sharpie marker I'm a happy girl-- for hours.  So last night after the kids were in bed I sat down with my pens and some poster board and went to work.  Here are (some of) the results:



I seriously had so much fun.

My sweet Ella is going to bake some treats for the bake sale, too, which just makes me so happy.  When I initially asked her if she'd like to bake anything, she said, "YES, mommy. Especially for that cause. I've been *wanting* to do something to help, so I would love to."  (Is she not the cutest?)

Random

[written last week, but I forgot to post it!]

-We finished our standardized testing today.  I am so relieved.  One of my testers got a little weepy every time he came to a problem that was challenging, so it was a little rough.  I think the whole idea of testing stresses my kids out.  They are never tested until standardized testing rolls around, and then suddenly they feel all this pressure to get.it.exactly.right.  Quite frankly, I don't put much stock in it.  I do it because we have to.  But- truly: I know my kids are doing just fine.  I think they're smart.  And if my son doesn't know how to do division yet?  That's perfectly fine with me.  He will.  He will learn it eventually.

-Now we're officially on summer vacation. 

-I am exhausted.  I began the month of May (or maybe it was even April?) with my normal end-of-the-year zeal to plan for next year: I started making lists, reading, talking with Mark, and praying through ideas-for-next-year.... but in the past few weeks I have completely lost ALL motivation to do anything school-planning related (or meal-planning related, or house-cleaning related...).  I just need rest.  I know I'll get there eventually, but right now I just can't.  I am tired.  Mentally and emotionally, I feel weary. 

-That reminds me of a post I read recently by Jen Hatmaker that was hilarious.  If you're weary at the end of your school year, then go read this: Worst End of School Year Mom Ever.  I was in tears.  It is that funny.

-Last night I printed off this Bible Reading Checklist for Isaac, 9.  I think he'll use it.  He doesn't like to follow a plan.  He'd rather read what he likes when he likes. This is simply a checklist.  Each book and chapter of the Bible is listed, and when you read something, you check it off. 
(HT: Mystie)

-This is also completely random, but since Google reader is closing down as of July 1 and that's the site I've been reading blogs through, I've switched to feedly  and I like it very much.  Just in case anyone else is trying to figure out an alternative to Google reader.

Okay.  That's it.  I hope you're all doing well as you end the school year!

Thoughts on a sunny Tuesday

~ Mark and I are celebrating 14 years of marriage today. How I *love* my husband! Mark blessed me with a bouquet of flowers at lunch today-- yellow and purple, the same colors we had for our wedding flowers-- and then a sweet card he handed to me when he got home from work this evening. Tonight we feasted on crab (with oodles of butter, garlic, and fresh-squeezed lemon juice), greek salad, and bread (with the kids, at home.) Yesterday my mom watched the kids so that just the two of us could spend the day together, which was such a gift.

~ Last night we took down Audra's crib and Adelia's toddler bed and moved up to a full and a twin in the room. Audra (2) and Ella (9) are sharing, Adelia is in the twin. The girls LOVE it. Seriously- they could not be happier with the arrangement. We're still transitioning the room so right now it's just mattresses on the floor. They've been a little rambunctious in there at bedtime (it's like a slumber party to them), but they're settling in...

~ I am cheerily planning our schooling for next year. (Have I mentioned how much I *love* planning?)

~ We received Ella's standardized test results in the mail and somehow I now feel "official" that Ella is getting properly educated. (This is silly, I know. I knew she was getting a solid education already. But still.) She tested very well.

~ Our garden is growing. I always feel so proud of those little shoots first coming up out of the ground. Our strawberries are ripening. My peonies are happily blooming.

~ I went away last weekend on a little retreat with these wonderful ladies and was so blessed. I have such respect for each one of them, and it was such a treat to get away and talk about parenting, homeschooling and our faith. And eat. And laugh. And rest.

(l to r: Cutzi, Sarah, Jodi, Amy, me, Rebecca with her newest little Reuben)

~ I said to Mark today: "Remember when I used to bake bread? And make homemade yogurt? And make our own laundry soap? Sheesh. It's been awhile... " I have definitely not done those things for a long while. I feel like we're entering a new season, though, in our family life... with the little girls being not as little anymore. Within the past couple of weeks I've gone out twice with all five kids to run errands or go grocery shopping. That is something that did not seem AT ALL feasible to me for at least the last couple of years. I joked to Mark that some of our neighbors were probably shocked to see us going out-and-about in the daytime hours. (It's just easier to stay at *home* with little ones, so that's what we do.) It makes me realize just how taxing the years are with little ones in the mix. All that to say that if you're in that taxing season, it *does* get easier. :) [Oh. And for any of you with inquiring minds that might be thinking: "Wait. They took down their crib and she feels like they're "entering a new season of family life"-- Does that mean they're not going to have/adopt any more kids?" Nope. That's not what that means. :) That's just where we find ourselves right *now*. We'd love more children!]

How are *you* today?

Blog stuff

Dear readers,

A couple blog-details:

1. I had some time today to respond to your recent comments. [Thank you to those of you who do so... I appreciate each comment!] I really try to be faithful in replying back to you in the comments section, because I truly love "chatting" with you that way, but I have neglected to do so on recent posts... until today!

So... if you remember commenting on any of the following five posts, you can click on the link below and my reply to you will show up in the comments section:

Birthday Letter to Adelia: three!

Refilling the Copywork Jar: Quotes and Poems

Grateful: Monday, March 7

Something I love today:

Two years ago today...

2. Also, I'm curious to know how many of you read through a reader versus through a link from Facebook? Is it helpful to anyone to have me linking here from Facebook? (I've only recently been linking via Facebook, but if it's not necessary, it's one less step for me!) I'd appreciate your thoughts on this!

Thanks for taking the time to read here today!

Hope you've had a wonderful day!

~Stacy

A must-read

I'm still wiping away my tears from reading this beautiful birth story.

I just couldn't do it

I couldn't bring myself to make them. You know- those cool rolls that you can make for Easter? You fill them with a marshmallow and then when you bake them, the marshmallow melts and it's hollow inside, symbolizing the empty tomb? Great idea, I thought.

Resurrection rolls, they are called.

I considered making them last year, too- having seen the idea floating around the blogosphere. But my considerations occurred too late: I wasn't organized enough and we never got around to it.

So this year I was determined to do it. I bought the marshmallows and everything.

And then last night I hopped online to find out exactly how, now, do I make those rolls? And that's when I realized that I should have bought some crescent roll dough with the marshmallows. But no, that's okay. Surely there's a recipe somewhere online where I can make homemade dough. So I did a little more searching and found one. In preparation to make them, then, I skimmed through the entire recipe:

Mix sugar and cinnamon together.

Great, have that.

Dip marshmallows in melted margarine, then into sugar mixture. Wrap roll around a marshmallow, covering completely. Dip once more into butter, and again into sugar. Place rolls in a large greased pan and allow to rise till double (about 35 minutes).

No problem.
This will be fun. The kids will love this!

Bake at 375 degrees F for about 15 minutes, or until done. Rolls should be completely empty when cooled…like the empty tomb.

Okay.

Give each child one piece of roll dough—that represents the tomb.

Mmm hmm.

Give each child a marshmallow— that represents Jesus’ body.

Wait. What?

I cannot imagine holding up a marshmallow to my children and saying:
"See this marshmallow, here? This is Jesus."

A marshmallow.

I realize that it seems I would have already made that connection: that the marshmallow would represent Jesus' body. But I didn't really think it through so much. But after thinking it through for about half a second?

Nope. I cannot say that. Cannot do that.

I know some of you can. I'm sure many of you have made these. I think that's great, truly.

Personally, I just couldn't do it.

Guess we'll just have to use those marshmallows for some rice krispy treats instead.

Due date. And an update.

I know some of you are faithfully checking in to see if I've had this baby yet, so let's go ahead and get that news out of the way first.

I haven't.

Today is my due date, though, so I had a doctor's appointment this morning. I'm only dilated to a "1" (that's usual for me at 40 wks) and nothing is happening. [I mean, other than the fact that this little sweetheart just really likes his or her home God created for this season and is perfectly happy to stay put. And I love that.]

We scheduled an induction for Friday, February 27th-- unless this baby decides to come out sooner than that, and if the childbirth rooms aren't full that particular day.

I'll keep you posted on any further developments.

***

Oh! ...Just a reminder to those of you who have not yet entered the baby contest...

Go here, leave a comment, and consider yourself entered!

December

We got our Christmas tree today, and spent the day decorating the tree and the house- outside and in!

So. Now that the house is fully decorated, I'm going to take a full month to enjoy it. Thus, a little blogging break.

Not that I'll simply be sitting around enjoying the tree, mind you. There is plenty to do aside from that, but blogging isn't high on my list this month.

Have a *wonderful* December, all!

~Stacy

Random thoughts at 5:00 am

I see now that it's actually 5:22 am. I've been awake since 4:30. Don't ask me why. I'm tired and would like very much to go back to sleep, and have spent the better part of an hour trying to do just that, but sleep eludes me. My brain is too full. So, here's what I've been thinking about for the past hour:

-Adelia's nap schedule: She's been faithfully (and happily) taking a morning and an afternoon nap every day, until about a week and a half ago, when I'd lay her down for her morning nap and she didn't seem tired. Eventually she'd sleep, but then not for very long. Then for her afternoon nap, she would sleep much less (which means that I wasn't getting my afternoon nap; and that's really hard to swallow at this stage in my life.)

It never even dawned on me that she might be transitioning to one nap a day until Amy mentioned it to me last week. [Um...isn't she too young for that?] So I've tried that tactic for the past several days: holding her off until her afternoon nap. And that's not working either. Ugh. I asked Mark last night what he thought about Adelia's new nap schedule, and he said something to the effect of her being tired and cranky most of the day (he's been home for the past two days) because of it; so today we're going back to a two-nap schedule.

So tell me: When did your children make the transition? I forget when it happened with our other children.

-Family Christmas photo: Every year at this time I get severely stressed about getting a picture taken for our family Christmas card. We are later this year than I'd like: due to Adelia's chicken pox that we were waiting to clear up and the fact that, unfortunately- we don't have any friends or family members that are budding photographers and want to take our family picture.

Maybe this year we'll just go with a children-only shot. But I'd really rather have the whole family- especially since one of our children is currently in my belly. But the thing about the kids-only photo is that it's easier. There are plenty of opportunities we have to take pictures of the kids together, AND Mark and I can engage our children to smile for the camera while others can't. And then we don't have to find someone to tag along with us to take our photo. Ugh. See? It's stressful. Maybe we should skip the picture altogether this year.

-Christmas gifts: Aack! I have way too many gifts yet to buy. I wish we had smaller extended families; quite honestly, this time of year. I felt like I was doing really good until I sat down the other day and realized that most of the gifts I've bought over the last several months are for the birthdays of friends/family that crop up around this time of year, not for Christmas.

And I have no idea what to get Mark for Christmas this year, either.

And then there are the stumpers on my list, like: What on earth does a 13-year old boy want for Christmas? That age is just completely out of my range. I have NO idea. [If you have ideas, leave them in the comments, please!]

-Freezer meals: It's my goal for this pregnancy to make-ahead a bunch of meals to stock our freezer with. Then when the baby comes, I can be a little less stressed when it comes to meal-times at our house. [And yes, our church family is amazing about bringing meals when babies are born, but I'd like to have some of our own, too.]

Oh, but first: we need a freezer. Our chest freezer is older than the hills, and I want an upright freezer so that things won't get lost in the bottom of our freezer (out of sight, out of mind). Who has time to go shopping for a new freezer, pray tell me? Not us.

And I really should put off this whole making-meals thought until after the holidays, because it's not like I'm going to be able to make any meals within the next month or so. But then, if I don't? Am I really going to feel like doing it when the holidays pass and I'm a [large] 8 months pregnant?

That might be all I was anxious about. Maybe I can fall asleep now that I've dumped it all out, here? I'm going to try. I will not check Bloglines, email or Facebook. I will go crawl into bed. It's not quite six, so technically, I could still squeeze in another half-hour of sleep if I fall asleep FAST.

Okay, so I was a little attached. For a little too long.

To my White Goose Down pillow, that is. [That's it there, on the bottom.] I'm sure it was a little puffier when I bought it, years ago, and I know I paid a pretty penny for it.

But it's sort of lost it's oomph. I think it's down to about 14 goose feathers.

So I splurged and bought a new pillow tonight. A down alternative pillow.

I laughed when I saw them side by side. Although this new one is so poofy I'm afraid I might wake up with a kink in my neck.

But it was definitely time, dontcha' think?

Followers

I've added a new little section in my sidebar. I'm actually not really sure how it all works, just that I have noticed that a few people were "following" my blog (which I think, in plain language, just means that they read it!), and so I added them to my blog page.

If you want to officially "follow" my blog, feel free to click on the little "Follow this blog" link in the sidebar and your name/profile photo will appear. Note: by doing so, your photo can be clicked on and will link straight to your profile page.

I think this would eventually replace a Blogroll type of list. And I do like the idea of seeing all your faces right there on my sidebar! :)

A little of this and that...

*First of all, thank you all for your congratulations and joy for our family! I read each comment aloud to the kids and they were beaming.

*Several questions came in after my On my mind... post about foster care and the hows and whys of it. If I haven't responded to you yet, I will!

*We've been heading out each morning for swimming lessons this week (and will next week, too), which is just a little extra on all of us. The kids love it, but having something on the calendar every day is something I'm glad we don't normally do!

*For those of you who asked how I'm feeling, I am feeling... pregnant. (So, tired, then. Really tired. And nauseous.) Mark is still trying to get used to me heading to bed at 8:30pm- which is about 3 or 4 hours earlier than my usual schedule!- and I'm still trying to get the kids used to the idea of mommy taking a nap every day. [Not always a successful venture, mind you.]

*Something I've learned recently: General public opinion is that five children is far, far too many. Three children is acceptable (but then, why would you, if you have a boy and a girl already?) Four children is toeing the line. But five? People do not know what to do with it. So they say something out of their own discomfort. It's taken a little getting used to, the idea that people have not responded with much enthusiasm. Ah, well. No matter. Thankfully we don't take much stock in other peoples' opinions. We wholeheartedly embrace this truth, instead.

*I just finished reading Charles Martin's new novel Where the River Ends, and can I just say- for the hundredth time- how very much I love his books? He is an excellent storyteller, he writes so well of the tenderness of a marriage, his characters are so real and his books make me cry. I, personally, love that in a book.

That's all for today....
I'm off to make lunch!

Have a wonderful weekend, dear readers!

For fellow fabric addicts

Randi from i have to say... has opened an online fabric store called Fresh-Squeezed Fabrics.

Today is her shop's Grand Opening. Woo hoo! If you head over and leave a comment on this post, you've entered yourself to win some *free* fabric. And then if you post about it on your blog, you get to leave 3 comments!!! And that triples your chances of winning, which is why I am doing that (well, and because I adore Randi and think she has great taste in fabric selection!)

If you're interested, head on over and comment. If not, don't. By all means, should you choose not to leave a comment, it only betters my chances of winning some of that free fabric. So now why am I telling you about this again? Oh, yeah. I get to go and leave 3 comments now!

Congratulations, Randi!

On Netflix and why we don't do that anymore

We just cancelled our subscription to Netflix.

Here's why:

We had a documentary in our queue and Mark said, "You should see if that one is at the library. They may have it since it's a documentary."

So I checked. And they did have it.

And then we checked every other movie in our queue. And the library also had every one of those.

Who knew?

Clearly not us. But now we know: the library carries several movies.

And now we can, for free, watch movies we were previously paying money for.

And since we're at the library frequently, and Mark passes it every day on the way to and from work, it is nearly as convenient as Netflix. And it's FREE. (Which is clearly my favorite part.)

I heart the library.

Some lighter fare...

You all have kindly reassured me that you weren't at all bogged down by the last series of posts, but I feel a little bogged down myself what with all the emotional upheaval of late on the blog. ~smile~

With that in mind, some lighter fare this morning... My friend Mrs. M tagged me for this meme (months ago?), so here goes:

1. Were you named after anyone? Nope.

2. When was the last time you cried? Wednesday night, for missing Baby, and for challenges I've had with one of our children.

3. Do you like your handwriting? Like it? Yes. Do I wish it were nicer? Also yes.

4. What is your favorite lunch meat? Salami.

5. Do you have kids? Yes. LOVE them.

6. If you were another person would you be friends with you? Yes.

7. Do you use sarcasm a lot? No.

8. Do you still have your tonsils? Yes.

9. Would you bungee jump? No way.

10. What is your favorite cereal? Grape nuts is the *only* cereal I consistently eat. And I could eat it every morning for the rest of my life and be completely content. Mm. I could have a bowl right this moment. Grape nuts, with homemade yogurt drizzled with honey. Delish!

11. Do you untie your shoes when you take them off? Nope.

12. Do you think you are strong? Yes.

13. What is your favorite ice cream? Do I have to choose just one? How about this: if I could have a bowl of ice cream right this second, it would be Tillamook's Marionberry Pie. But I can't say that's my all-time favorite or anything. I simply can't narrow it down.

14. What is the first thing you notice about people? Warmth-- as in, friendliness, approachability.

15. Red or pink? Red

16. What is the thing that you like least about yourself? How quick I am to react in anger or impatience with my kids.

17. Who do you miss the most? Michelle.

19. What color pants and shoes are you wearing? Trouser jeans, so... a dark blue denim. Shoes? I never wear shoes in the house. I'm barefoot at the moment.

20. Have you ever re-gifted? Yes. But only for stocking stuffers.

21. What are you listening to right now? My son, playing quietly.

22. If you were a crayon what color would you be? Yellow. Because it's cheery.

23. Favorite smells? Lilacs, the satsuma scent at The Body Shop, bread baking, and garlic. Oh- and in the fall, pumpkin-spice anything (candles, bread, cake...).

24. Who was the last person you talked to on the phone? Um... I spoke with a social worker yesterday morning. I think that was the last time I was on the phone.

25. Do you like the person who sent this to you? Yes! Mrs. M, we should definitely do a breakfast date, each with our respective bowl of Grape nuts! ~smile~

26. Favorite sports to watch? I am actually quite proud to say that after *years* of "hating" football, I married a man who loves the sport and finally, I love to watch it with him. If his team is playing, that is. Second runner up? Baseball.

30. Favorite food? There is NO way I have just one. At the top, though, would be chips with guacamole dip, ice cream, bread, meat and potatoes, salads, fruit, salsa, ... and I'll stop right there because clearly I sound like a piggy.

31. Scary movies or happy endings? NO scary movies. I LOVE happy endings.

32. Last movie you watched? ~grin~ The word "watched" would be a bit generous, since I fell asleep about 20 minutes into it, but the other night we watched Letters from Iwo Jima. (And the fact that I fell asleep may have more to do with my sleep deprivation, not the movie itself.)

33. What color shirt are you wearing? Orange-y. Coral?

34. Summer or winter? Summer.

35. Hugs or kisses? Hugs.

36. Favorite dessert? I think this has probably been made clear. Ice cream. Next runner up? Cheesecake or berry pie (but not blueberry.)

39. What book are you reading now? I just finished a book called The Book Thief. There's also a stack of books by my bed that I'm in process on, but their names escape me at the moment.

40. What is on your mousepad? No mouse pad. Laptop.

41. What did you watch on tv last night? We don't watch TV.

42. Favorite sound? The voices of my husband and children.

43. Rolling stones or Beatles? Neither.

44. What is the furthest you have been from home? The Ukraine.

45. Do you have a special talent? No. (But just so you know, when I read that question aloud to Mark for help, he said: "Anything you do is special and talented." Awww... what a guy. He means it, too. That's the amazing thing.)

46. Where were you born? Washington.

If you've made it all the way through this meme, consider yourself tagged. I'd love to read your responses! :)

OH! And I *promise* my next post will be all about our sweet Addie! :)

Blogroll

If you're reading this post, glance over in the sidebar and see if your name and link-to-your-blog is there.

If it's not, and you'd like it there, leave me a comment and I'd be happy to add you! (And Amy, that includes you when you get your blog up and running.)

I know there are some of you who read here semi-regularly and I haven't yet added your information on the sidebar. I'd like to, and I figure this is easier than me searching through all of the comments to find out who isn't listed.

And if you'd rather not be associated at all with my ramblings over here, that's fine, too. *grin*

Caught up

Just dropping by to let you know that although I've been a bit remiss in responding to your comments of late, I think I'm now caught up.

I've now commented back on the book review post, on the housekeeping post, and on yesterday's post.

And a *huge* shout-out to Micah, my little brother, who has just started reading my blog. And he left his first comment yesterday. (And Micah, just so you know: I'm still searching for the perfect picture to post of you.)

Have a wonderful day!

~Stacy

A Post by The Husband

Hi. This is Mark here. Stacy's husband. I've never "blogged" before. But since I was so kindly celebrated here by my wife, I figure I'll write the follow-up post. Here goes...

WOW, what a GREAT birthday I had, thanks most of all to my lovely wife. I was so blessed by her letting me sleep in, by her gifts to me (a subscription to Steelers digest, a Steelers book and a Steelers cap). And that dinner and dessert were phenomenal -- she is an exceptionally excellent cook.

Okay, to answer the questions...
1. I am now 38 years old, I guess, but my youthful wife keeps me feeling at least five years younger.
2. The Pittsburgh Steelers are my favorite team. Always have been. Asking me to choose a favorite player is a little like asking me which one of my children is my favorite. My favorite current player is probably Hines Ward, with Troy Polamalu a close second. All time favorite Steeler? Come on, how can I do that? (Fletch, if I was a Seahawks fan, Largent would of course be my favorite, but that's kind of easy when there's only one Hall-of-Famer to choose from.)
3. My favorite musician/band? Another really tough question. Most days it's U2, but there are times when I think it's Van Morrison, and often I think it's the 77s. Maybe it's Michael Roe (of the 77s) because of his solo work and his being part of both the 77s and the Lost Dogs. Overall, I'll stick with U2.
4. I'm 6'6"
5. We didn't have a snake. I caught lots of garter snakes, but never kept them for a pet.
6. I have 5 siblings: a sister and four brothers.
7. I have a B.A. in Journalism
8. My current favorite game to play is Ticket to Ride Europe, but I enjoy all those on the list.

Jodi, thanks for being such a good sport and playing even though you don't know me at all. And yes, I do seriously love the Steelers. If you do the math, you'll realize I was about 5 to 10 years old when the Steelers won 4 Super Bowls in the 70s. Even at that young age, I recognized true greatness in a football team. I made a lifetime commitment that I've never regretted.

Mike, you got 7 out of 8 right, with a bonus for knowing Ward. That makes you one of the big winners. But that's hardly fair, because you know me well IRL (how's my use of blog lingo?) But you did beat the other contestant who knows me well -- your wife, who only got 6 of the 8. (And I'll give Amy the bonus just for knowing there was somebody named Lynn who played for the Steelers.) [Lynn Swann]

Chad (w/ Michelle helping out) also got 7 of 8. (As for Ken Griffey Jr. being my favorite player, I think it was clear that NFL was meant, but you're right, it wasn't specified, so BONUS to you!!) Chad lives far, far away from me, and I've only seen him on three occasions, so his score trumps Mike's. I crown him CHAMPION of the contest, and I'll put him on the waiting list for BFF status.

Carrie, who amazingly got 5 of 8 right, is the winner of those who don't really know me at all. I am impressed.

Ella, thanks for playing my game, sweet girl. So glad you got the Steelers question right, and yes, Bettis was my favorite Steeler in his time.

Sorry, Cutzi, you didn't win, but thanks for playing.

Fletch, Settlers is probably my all-time favorite game, but the question asked for my "current" favorite.

Cindy, although you skipped the quiz, your comment that I have a beautiful family and an amazing wife who adores me is the best response of the bunch, so I award you SUPER GRAND CHAMPION PRIZE in my birthday contest.

Finally, thanks again to you, Stacy, for making my birthday (and 364 other days every year) so great. I love you and cherish you. To all of you who read Stacy's blog and to those of you who "know" her solely through this strange blog world, I can assure you that you are only seeing the tip of the iceberg when it comes to how encouraging, caring, amusing, thoughtful, Godly, and just-plain-wonderful she is. I get the incredible gift of being loved by this woman every day. I am blessed.

- Mark

Happy Birthday! (and a game!)

Today is Mark's birthday!

Mark has the day off today, so we began the day by giving him the gift of sleep. While he was doing that, we crept out of the house to pick up a few groceries. We woke him up with donuts and coffee and a noisy song of Happy Birthday. Then we did some gifts, and then I spent a few hours in the kitchen. We get to have my family and Mike and Amy and family over for a birthday dinner tonight, (and oh how I wish you could join us, Timmons family!)

On the menu:
Two lasagnas (one regular, one butternut squash)
Garlic bread
Caesar salad
Apple pie & ice cream

In honor of Mark's birthday today, I'm posting a little "How Well Do You Know Mark?" game. For those of you who have been to some of our birthday parties over the years, you'll recall that we like to play these types of games. Now, I know many of you don't know Mark all that well, so I'm going to help you out by making this a multiple choice game. Ready?

1. How old is Mark today?
(a) 36
(b) 33
(c) 38
(d) 35

2. Name Mark's favorite NFL team
(a) the Seattle Seahawks
(b) the Cleveland Browns
(c) the Pittsburgh Steelers
(d) the New England Patriots
*Bonus Points (2) if you can guess his favorite player, too!

3. Name Mark's all-time favorite musician/band
(a) Van Morrison
(b) U2
(c) The Seventy-Sevens
(d) Elvis

4. How tall is Mark?
(a) 6'6"
(b) 6'4"
(c) 6'2"
(d) 6'

5. What pet did Mark's family NOT have while growing up?
(a) snake
(b) pigeons
(c) goats
(d) chickens

6. How many siblings does Mark have?
(a) 4
(b) 5
(c) 2
(d) 6

7. What did Mark major in in college?
(a) Elementary Ed.
(b) History
(c) Journalism
(d) English

8. What is Mark's current favorite game to play?
(a) Poker
(b) Settlers of Catan
(c) Ticket to Ride Europe
(d) Carcassonne

Now... you're on the honor system as far as copying other people's answers when you see them in the comments section. I know you wouldn't do dare do such a thing.

Have fun! :)

~Stacy

Back for a brief post

To let you know that:

...Mark is back to work after 10 days of vacation, so we're settling into a routine here at home. Which means that we're catching up on all the things we were vacationing from. Mainly: laundry, chores, cleaning, and cooking, as well as our sleep and meal schedules. (Yikes!) And for the record, can I just say that I *love* routine?

I will begin posting regularly again within the next few days. I have lots to catch you up on-- the entire month of December, photos of some handmade gifts, some book reviews, adoption updates, and all sorts of other stuff. It's good to be back... I've missed my bloggy friends!

I hope each of you had a wonderful Christmas. Welcome to this New Year! :)

Blessings to you and yours,
~Stacy