Gray family Christmas

We celebrated Christmas with the Gray's (Jeff's mother's family).  I love going over to the farm and spending time with the family. 

Above is a picture of Jeff's Pa.  I never had a chance to meet him but my mom remembers him well as he was her bus driver.  I know that he was Jeff's best friend and that he is missed dearly, especially around the holidays.

I made festive pinwheels to take.  They are so easy:

Mix 2 pkgs of cream cheese, 1 can of chopped black olives, 1 pound of cook sausage( I use hot), 1/2 cup of green onions, and accent to season.  Then spread on tortilla shells and roll up.  Once rolled, I put into the fridge until right before we leave and them I cut them up. 

Next, I made cornbread salad.  It is also very easy:

Simply layer the following:

Cornbread, ranch dressing, pinto beans, corn, black olive, green onion, cheddar cheese, and bacon.  I usually layer it three times but this is always way too much food.

Grayson made his first appearance to meet the entire family.  He is so handsome like all the boys.

Andrea and Seth are such a sweet couple and we love being around them.  They are so great with the kids and always get the best gift awards.

Granny Gray holding sweet baby Grayson.

Garon, Jeff and Pa all playing around.

Seth with his boys (Garon and Evan).  They love Seth and he is more like a uncle than a cousin.

After many attempts, this was the best shot of all the boys.

More Christmas fun

This year I have been so excited for Christmas.  Typically, I dont much care for all the decorations and gifts.  I believe the true reason for the season is simply forgotten when we put too much emphasis on all the other aspects.

This was our Christmas card for this year and I would say it was pretty good considering all those pictures were taken with my cell phone.

 

Outside of one of my teacher's classroom.  Her paraprofessionals do an amaxing job decorating for each holiday or season.

 

I miss those that have already gone on before us and every year when my mom gets the stockings out, I cant help but to think of my grandma Keymer. 

For every new member of the family, she would make these stockings.

We have yet to find someone that can make them look like she does. 

 

Here is Luke's letter to Santa that his cousin helped him write.

 

Sunday School party

I love our Sunday school class at church.  There are so many different types of people and we all have so much fun together.  This year for our Christmas party, we decided to go eat at El Chico's and then come back to Bro. Steve and Ms. Judy's house for desserts.  Of course we had more food that we could possibly eat but we sure enjoyed our attempts. 

Andrea always makes something amazing and this year, she made a huge cheesecake. 
I wish Jeff could have been there because he loves it.

Ms. Judy made cupcakes and put them in this festive holder.

I took the easy route and stopped by The Cake Shop. I am so busy these days, I knew I would never be able to get something made. As usual, the cupcakes were amazing but the best part of the night was spending time with friends. Thank you Lord for this amazing class and its leaders. I hate that I never took time to get a group photo but will make a mental note not to forget next year.

Day 6 &7 of Snow....

After several snow days at home, I finally got to go back to work on December 10th.  When I sit at home I try to enjoy my time with my family but sometimes my mind wanders and I began to get stressed about all the work that I need to do.  I am trying to handle that stress better and God sure has put the right people in my life to assist me.

I wanted to snap a few pictures of what our County road looks like still.  I of course stopped before taking the pictures so no one yell at me.

It was a bit nerve wracking to say the least but we made it.

Now, the above picture of the 65 Business route on the way to the babysitters.  It was difficult to stop to get this picture taken but I managed.  I couldn't believe how bad these roads still were.

Yesterday, we had a frozen fog and it was so beautiful I wanted to share.  Of course, this made me nervous driving again but we did really well.

And because Jeff is out of town, we don't really have traditional meals.  The boys and I made mini pizzas.  They are so easy.  First, you roll out canned biscuits.  Second, you scoop a spoon full of pizza sauce on each.

Then, I put cheese on them. Don't they just look amazing?!

Finally, I place three pepperonis on each and bake at 400 degrees for 10-15 minutes.  You know you want to try them.  I ate several but done tell the dieting fairy!  Between Thanksgiving, Snow, and Christmas I am going to gain so much weight.  I am working hard to be smart on what I eat but there is ooohhhh so much yummy goodness.  On another note, while I was so sick (which has helped keep the weight off,ha) I couldn't really drink diet coke.  Well since that time, I have only been having one a day.  I have been drinking a lot more water.  Go me!!!

Day #3 of snow

On day number 3 of the snow, which was a Saturday, Jeff did not work so we were able to have alot more fun. We decided to go to the farm and play.

When we got there, Pa had built a huge sled big enough for me and the boys to get into it (I doubt he built it just for us but for this day, it was all ours)!  The boys had a good time being pulled all over the farm but the snow was pretty powder like and so the snow kept covering us up.  Evan really didn't care for the snow in his face so he moved to the four-wheeler and enjoyed himself much more.

We fed the cows some hay, which Evan loved to do because he could ride the tractor.

Grandma, Jeff and Evan pulling Luke and I. 

The boys tried to do some real sledding but it didn't work as well as we hoped.  Jeff went down the hill a few times and Luke attempted to navigate down by himself.   Evan on the other hand, had to be pulled up the hill. 

I think he liked this option just fine.

Luke and Evan watching as Pa gets the tractor out.  They are always just so excited to ride with him.

Jeff and his mom watching on as Pa gets the tractor.  They are so precious.

 

Finally, here I am all bundled up.  I was so cold but it was so worth the family time. 

Day #1-2 of being Snowed In

On December 5th, it began to ice and snow so of course like everyone else who lived through the last ice storm, we should have began preparing on Tuesday and Wednesday before it hit.  I however was extremely sick but did manage to get pull ups before we got snowed in.  We were also glad that Jeff was able to make it back from Springfield.  He of course went to work on Day #1 and Day #2 of snow so it was up to me to take the boys out to play.  The first day, we pretty much only went out for about 15 minutes. 

Here are the boys after about 20 minutes of getting them and myself dressed.  There were lots of tears and stress when trying to put on this many clothes.  Evan didn't think he could walk and even started crying because "he was too fat."

Luke quickly wanted to make a snow angel, which instantly got him completely covered in snow and so then he was cold.

Evan wanted to be exactly like Luke but he had a more difficult time getting around and keeping up.  He soaked his gloves pretty much instantly and his poor little hands were freezing.

The snow was very beautiful all around the house and we are so lucky to live here.

The kids attempted to play on the swing  set which didn't work quite like they had planned but they had fun anyhow.  You can barely see our fire pit because the snow was so deep.

The boys attempted to shovel off the back deck (which was never going to happen). 

 

After all of our fun in the snow, we decided to make cupcakes.  They were so good and yes I did have more than one. 

Family

We have had a lot of family time lately.  My nephew Keyton spent the night a week or so ago.  The boys had so much fun. 

I couldn't get Keyton to take time to look at me.  He sure liked his pizza alot.

Precious little boy!

I snagged this picture and the one below from Facebook.  This is my Grandpa Keymer and Grandma Juanita.  They are so cute and in love. 

Beginning to look like Christmas

We have finished decorating for Christmas around our house.  I have never been a big fan of this time of year because I believe we have lost the true meaning of Christmas.  With that being said, I am really in the Christmas Spirit.

My living room with the curtains and Christmas decor.

Our Christmas countdown has begun!

I love this sign, and I really wish that it would stick to my walls for longer than a day using the command strips. 

Luke with our Christmas wreath made by my friend, Micha Huskey.

I love our Santa throw.

Our Christmas tree with several gifts already wrapped and ready to go.