Christmas Tree: Discovered!

Claire LOVED the tree when she saw it this morning! And she was pretty willing to stand by the tree after church so I could take some pictures. {To her, standing by the tree means standing so close to the tree that her entire back side pushes in on the tree. Oh well!}


I've seen her touch the tassels on the tree skirt more than I've seen her touch the ornaments!

She has a "ball" (ornament) in her hands. - But that's why I had a completely different mindset when I decorated the tree this year: breakable at the top, indestructible at the bottom!

I LOVE it that Claire is old enough this year to have some fun with Christmas and the decorations. I love to see her get excited to see the snowmen and the reindeer decorations in our house. I love it that she points out Christmas trees at Walmart and in pictures that she sees. And I love being able to tell her that the reason for all of our Christmas fun is that Jesus was born, to which she promptly replies, "Jee, boh." Yes, Claire, Jesus was born!

Christmas Tree!

Claire and I picked out our Christmas tree today! On the way home, I told her we had a Christmas tree in our car, and she kept saying, "ah-tree cah," {meaning Christmas tree -- car}. She was soft to the tree during the ride home.


We did this without Jordan knowing. - He is studying hard for two finals he has on Monday. - But I wanted to go ahead and get the tree up, so we can enjoy it longer. I was thinking that getting the tree in the tree stand was going to be the hardest part to do alone, but I was willing to give it a shot - or call on my neighbors to help if I needed it. But when I went to the little, local place to get the tree, I saw the guys putting tree stands on trees for their customers. What a wonderful idea! So I went home tree-less that first trip, and later we went back, picked a tree, and roamed the tree lot as they put the tree stand on for us. Awesome! {Claire loved walking around the tree lot! I wish I had brought my camera!}


Claire had to go to bed before I got started decorating the tree. But if she was awed by the tag at the top,

I'm sure she'll be amazed by the tree tomorrow!

I'm quite pleased!

I did let Claire see her stocking before she went to bed, though.

I love Christmas time!

Iron Chef: Baton Rouge

Iron Chef made its way to Baton Rouge! {Thanks to Mel for this great idea!!} Some friends came over to join in a culinary challenge. Everyone brought a dish that included some type of cheese. We ate, {hooray!} and then we judged each dish based on taste, creativity, and presentation. I think we all had a great time!

Morgan and Heather

Heather, Megan, and Helen

Stacy and Lindsay

The kids had a great time...... {They even outnumbered the adults!}

{This picture reminds me so much of pictures of my cousins and me at the piano at my grandparents' house! Cute!}

The dishes we had were:

Chef Heather P - Stuffed Mushrooms
Chef Megan - Chicken and Cheese Lasagna Rolls
Chef Lindsay - Cheesy Potatoes
Chef Stacy - Cream Cheese with a yummy sauce that I don't remember the name of!
Chef Heather U - Caramalized Pear and Gorgonzola Pizza
Chef Helen - Mac 'n Cheese
Chef Morgan - Chocolate Pie
Chef Julia - Sausage Freezies

Chef Heather U and Chef Helen were TIED after the initial judging, so we went to a run-off. {Such suspense at our first Iron Chef: Baton Rouge! Wow!!!}

And the winner is....... Iron Chef Helen! She was thrilled that she won!

Thanks to everyone who came! And if you couldn't make it this time, hopefully you can make it next time!

Thankful for: Birthdays!

Today is my birthday! So yes, I'm thankful for birthdays! (Even though today's birthday makes me no longer in my 20's, I'm still thankful for it!)

I had a celebration last weekend in Dallas, but I'll get to that later. Here are some pictures from today. We went to On the Border tonight for dinner. Yum! Then I got to open presents when we got home!




Claire loved all of "her" new stuff! -- And so do I!

Jordan made a heavenly homemade cheesecake with a blueberry lemon sauce. Wow! It was delicious!

I'm thankful to be alive on the earth! I'm thankful for each day that I have. I'm thankful that I've made it to another birthday. I'm thankful for the kind messages from many, many people to help make this day great for me. I'm thankful for Jordan for helping me have a great day, too!

Thankful for: Parents and Grandparents

I'm thankful for my parents, who worked so hard to raise my siblings and me. I'm thankful for Jordan's parents, who worked so hard to raise him and his siblings. I'm thankful that Jordan's parents and my parents are wonderful grandparents! I'm thankful that Claire was able to spend some time with my parents last week. It was sweet to hear her say "Ah-da(d)" and "Minee" (like mine plus eeeee) to mean Granddad and Grandmom. I'm thankful that I was able to spend time with my parents last week, too! I love being around family!



Being a parent, I've learned, is hard work! :-) I love being Claire's mom! And Jordan's a wonderful dad. And I'm guessing that being a grandparent is simply great fun!