Koko Bean's Blue Christmas Tree

Koko Bean picked out her own Christmas tree today at Target. They had some really cute colorful small trees, so I gave Koko Bean the choice. The choices were pink, gold, silver, blue and green. Guess what she picked!

BLUE? Yes, blue!! Koko Bean had all those beautiful choices and she chose blue. Not only did she have to have the blue tree, but she had to have the blue skirt and blue ornaments too. I convinced her to get the silver garland and multi colored lights though.

When we got home, she couldn't wait to start decorating.

The finished product looked fantastic!

Great job Koko Bean. Our house looks very festive now with this addition.

Family and Faith- Thanksgiving 2011

Psalm 107:1

"Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever."

This Thanksgiving was another whirlwind trip to Southeast Kansas and Oklahoma. Our first stop was Grammy and Grandpa K's house. We arrived late Wednesday night. Koko Bean was a very good girl on the ride down, while she watched her portable DVD player. The dogs, Flex in particular, were AWFUL!!! Flex whined, screamed and clawed in the backseat until he got his way and sat on Mommy's lap.

Thanksgiving Day was much better. We feasted on smoked turkey, mashed potatoes, green bean casserole, veggies, and too many dessert choices. Koko Bean played all day with her second cousin M.

Koko Bean is almost eight months older than M. However, you would think it was the other way around. Uncle Polly Wog and M's daddy are the same age, so it reminded Mommy of how Uncle Polly Wog and M's daddy and uncle Bubba use to play and play. M's daddy and uncle Bubba still play and play.

The girls had fun watching all the "adults" wrestle. M took a wrest on Great Mema's lap.

That night, Mommy and her best friend, H, took a trip to Wal-Mart for Black Friday shopping, but not before a photo op.

Black Friday turned out to be a pretty exciting time. H and Mommy came back with some bargains, not to be disclosed until after Christmas.

The next day, we got up bright an early (okay, so it was more like 10am,) to head to Oklahoma. I love Oklahoma. Perhaps, it's because everything important in my life happened there. I had my first career there, I met my future husband there, and Koko Bean was born there. Aside from all my silly Okie jokes, it truly holds a very special place in my heart. On the way to Mema's, we even drove by the place where Koko Bean was born. I tried to explain what that meant to her, but she was too busy helping Dora get over the tall mountain.

When we arrived at Daddy's childhood home, we were greeted by more cousins!! Koko Bean has many many many cousins on Daddy's side of the family, so there is always someone to play with at all times. The twins are two years older than Koko Bean and she fit right in, playing hide and seek and coloring.

This Thanksgiving was full of fun, family and Faith. From the moment we arrived at Grammy K's, to the moment we all held hands around the table, while Great Papa said Grace as he does every year. From the traveling to hugs and kisses goodbye, we enjoyed every single moment, every single smile, and yes, even every single wet willy exchanged by cousins. As Great Papa said, "Lord, please watch over us, please lay your hands on us, keep us in good health, and let this food provide for the nourishment of our bodies. In Jesus most precious name we pray, AMEN."

Here's to another Thanksgiving in the books and here's to many more.  And as my friend Ashley always says,

"Loving my wonderful family. God is soooooooooooooo good."

Sugar, Spice and Everything Nice

See this face? That's the face of a little girl who will turn THREE in less than two months!!! I've always said three was my favorite age. When I taught swimming lessons, the three-year-olds were my favorite group to teach. However, I've heard three is worse than two, and I think I'm beginning to understand what everyone was talking about all this time. We are smack dab, in the middle of, "I do it myself, but I need your help. I don't want to wear that because it doesn't match. I need cereal now! It's 'Santa Claus,' not 'Santa.' Why are you wearing Daddy's T-shirt? Where are we going? Don't be a jerk Mommy, I'm just looking." Half of these are usually followed by a temper tantrum that has to be ignored, but Daddy doesn't know how.

And even though these days are quite challenging, I'm thankful for every single moment, quotation, and experience. Koko Bean has also developed quite the imagination. The other day, she came running into the living room, with a a bucket in her hand. She stopped right in front of me and said, "I need a sandbox." I have never taken her to play in a sandbox, nor have we ever talked about sand. She was determined she needed a sandbox at that instant moment, so we improvised. I told her to pretend to build a sand castle in our living room. I showed her how to scoop, pack, and build the sand into a magical sand castle. Then she knocked mine down and built her own.

Of course, for a girl about to turn three, this got old really fast and she demanded to take pictures herself with my camera.

(Not too bad.)

After we exhausted this activity, we took pictures together.

These are the best times. Laughing and playing with my sweet princess is what makes me the most happy. You see, she's not all spice. There's quite a bit of sugar and everything nice in this little girl. She loves to share, hug and meet new people. She will even say, "nice to meetcha," and shake a new friend's hand. If you ask me, she's got the best combination of attitude, independence, and poise I've ever seen in an almost three-year-old. I may be a bit biased though. :)

NO Tricks, Only Treats



When I was a little girl, I remember going house to house and getting loads and loads of candy. Of course, in a small town, you know practically everyone, so the only scare you got was from the teenagers running around in spooky masks. These days, trick or treating is more scary to me than a horror film. You never know who lurks behind closed doors, mixing razor blades in Kit Kats and rat poison in candy corn. Yes, I'm THAT mom!

This year was Koko Bean's first year to trick-or-treat, so we ventured over to my dad's sister and brother-in-law's neighborhood. I wanted to surprise them, since I don't see them often and I knew they knew practically all their neighbors. (We've only met the ones across our street and only because they informed us they chased our dog three blocks when she got out one day.)

My aunt and uncle were very excited to see us, and informed us of which houses at which to trick-or-treat. We brought along Koko Bean's sidekick, K2, who was sporting her sparkly red shoes, and her Jessie shirt.

For as outgoing and social as Koko Bean usually is, she sure was mute during our entire trick-or-treating adventure. She wouldn't say "trick or treat," or anything.

(This house just did an "honor system" handout.)

After a about an hour of walking, Koko Bean's Halloween bucket was half full. We decided that was enough and headed back to the house. As Koko Bean checked out her loot on the way home, I was hoping she hadn't planned on eating all of it in one night.

As soon as we got home, Daddy got Koko Bean out of the car, and Mommy took the candy inside to hide. The girls hadn't had dinner yet, and even if they had, I wasn't about to let Koko Bean have candy at 8pm, especially with her sleeping habits. We let them have a McDonald's picnic in the living room instead.

Koko Bean still doesn't know where her candy is, but Daddy sure does!!