Thanksgivin wit da Girlz

Our wee thanksgiving was made so bright with the presence of the Kriby crew. Cannon & Leah were able to come up, so we got to revel in the pleasure of their company and the abundance of little girls runnin about. Sooo nice to have them all here.... Beautiful chaos... lots of laughter, cries, giggles, runny noses and suprises. Love em all !!!

(this first pic of Fern lettin Lavender know whats up just cracks me up - makes me think of all those "how old are you" measuring up convos of long ago)

Of course, there was good food, good conversation and just good fun. I just can't say how much I love Thanksgiving... such a chill holiday... lots of family, lots of food, no worrying about presents, and generally just focusing on the many many ways God blesses our lives. Too bad we get so caught up with santas, bunnies and other festive entities during holidays, ya know!

Anyway, I'm in tha midst of christmas cookie madness here... I will pop out some more words when the sugar lets go of my system... smile!!!

Athens town

So, the fam took a little trip to Athens town this weekend to see sweet Amelia and Lee. How nice it was to have some time to catch up... to breathe... time to talk and be silly. We felt like we were on vacation... no pressure... no schedule... just fun and good food. I didn't want to leave... but I never really want to leave their company anyways. I guess everyone feels that way about their oldest friends... people who know ya and all your quirks... and love ya anyway!

Here are a few pics of Lee with our little one... I love these. Lavender fell in love with Lee the moment he scooped her up. She's been smiling at him ever since. I don't know what kind of special wooing skills Lee seems to have... but I can't attest to their power. So cute!

Some how I didn't get a good in focus pic of Lavender and Amelia... hmmm. sorry, girl.

And one last thing... for anyone taking a trip to Athens, GA anytime soon, I gotta a couple of tips... You absolutely must stop in at the Last Resort... a restuarant downtown with incredible food and charm to match. They make one mean cheesecake that is worth every calorie it packs. mmmmmmmmmmm. Also I am forever happy to shop around in couple of really unique spots... Helix and Toulas... so cute stuff!

SSScrunchy Face

When Lavender gets excited this gleeful scrunchy face appears... I luv it. Her dadda can evoke this response on a moments notice.... see.

It makes me smile.

Luv these ones.

Amusing Ourselves

sometimes on rainy days i like to take pictures of me and my girl. I can do this all by myself because I'm WonderJen and I like these big facey pictures... even if Josh thinks they're silly. I take pic after pic with the camera in the air... on the floor... in my very outstretched arm until Lavender cries enufff Ma! I know they are not these perfectly composed snapshots but I love em. Here they are...

Fun times with Palmer and Blakey

I forgot to tell you cats about a couple o thangs...
Blake S. (Josh's former guitar playing band mate from high school - for those non-Chatty native readers) came in town this past weekend and brought his sweet wittle girl, Palmer, over to see us.
It was a lot of fun to catch up on what's new and, of course, tell tales of old times. So fun to be with friends who you have history with, ya know!

Here is a pic of wee Palmer and Ella, who played together so well... and the other pic is Juden who sat all quiet and cozy (thanks to a severe case of doggie fear - txs Adel) with his papa for at least an entire half hour. What a monumental photo... take a good look cause you won't see this again!

Fabulous Fall

The more this season begins to fade the more I realize how much I adore it. I love the festivities in the Fall... searching for the perfect pumkin with the perfect stem... carving pumkins... and dressing up for Halloween.
Plus, there are all these special small things that make my heart swell... like wonderful orange and yellow colors everywhere... the smell of spices in coffee shops... and the beginning of eagerly awaiting the suprises of the holidays to come... especially Thanksgiving... I love a holiday centered on thankfulness and being together (minus all the giftgathering stress like at christmas)! Yep, I love it all!

Holidays make me want to make things, like this wreath or my little Tumbleweeds. This makes me happy.

Here are some pics of things that all make me smile... Lavender with a pumkin, Fall trees and handmade things.

Cakes for Mommas

My momma's B-Day is actually today... HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM!!!!

We had a little ol' celebration this weekend with some local girlfriends while Dadda was a campin'. Apparently, I thought the occasion called for me to turn into Martha Stewart of Chicky town.
I just wanted to make a birthday cake that was beautiful for my sweet mom, who has made countless cakes in her time for her family... (and let's face it, most of the covenant college community). Unfortunately so many recipes I found require 2hours or even 1 freagin day! So, I decided to make a Chocolate Earl Grey Cake and here is the result! I think it turned out pretty cute. And Mom had candles to blow out. Check it out!

My hat is off to all the Moms out there who have spent countless hours on cakes, costumes, toys and generally making life not only more fun, but beautiful. Love ya'll! I wish I could muster the energy to make a cake for each one of you... just because.

I have all these MANYMANY things to show ya'll. I got really far behind in postin' stuff due to a case of computa itis... that's what I call it when the thought of loosin' an hour or so on techy devices makes my eyes itch. I hope I'm not the only cat out there that has a love hate relationship with technology... so fickle is my heart!

Anyway, there are many more snippety snips of my days to come, so check back soon.

HALLOWEEEEEN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Here is our Hallowed night of spookiness! Little Lavender and Ella were transformed into acorns, thanks to the hard work of their Mimi... Nice work!!! Don't they just look so adorable! The girls handled all the costuming and Tricking and Treatting like champs... so little fussin'- just a happy little twosome!
Now to the rest of the St. E posse... we have almost the entire crew of the Wizard of Oz with Dorothy, the Lion and the Scarecrow (also know as Meadow, Dove and Oak). How perfectly they fit their parts, eh?!!!
And last, but never least... Here is a wee wittle cowboy also known as Juden, who rode in literally from the WILD WILD West!!! Crazy boy... runnin and jumpin and going full speed ahead in pursuit of CANDY CANDY CANDY!!! Juden was hilarious making the neighborhood rounds... when someone would open their door, Juden would yell "Trick or Treat" and walk right in! So funny to watch that bold little guy! He also did this one hysterical thing I have to mention... He pointed his plastic orange cowboy gun at Scott's tummy and said "Bang!... Does that feel better?" It was so fun to watch all the kiddos running about in little costumes smiling and out of breath from the candy conquest. It brings up all those memories of past Halloweens and costumes that Mom tirelessly labored over without much of a thank you.

To all moms out there... THANKS FOR ALL THE HARD WORK!!! Holidays (and everydays) would never sparkle without your presence and dedication. We love ya!