Merry Christmas

I was the first one up this morning. I had to make sure Santa arrived and had everything out.

I got the sausage muffins mixed and in the oven along with the hash brown casserole before the boys were up. At 8:30 I found Keagan awake and just getting out of bed. He told me he had big plans for waking up Evan. 

https://youtu.be/lwUA8AZOfAQ

Big bro was not happy but he got up anyway. 

Keagan got a gaming chair. And new Nikes.

Evan got new basketball shoes.

And socks. I had to special order the extra large socks for his size 13 feet. 

Within the hour they were out of the house on this beautiful day headed to the basketball courts. If only their Gorilla goal was installed and ready for play. 

The Christmas dinner menu was created by Keagan and includes ham, asparagus, creamed corn, and rolls. 

While I cooked, Wes took Keagan on a practice run in the truck. He’s very eager to drive. He even has a truck picked out for when he turns 16 in August. 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=P8qLbuuqdcc

It’s 70 degrees out. I plan to spend the afternoon on the deck with a book. I couldn’t ask for anything more - except maybe the beach instead of the golf course.

Merry Christmas!🎄

Christmas Eve

We started our day at the annual holiday event for the needy. The boys handed out Bibles and I handed out books to school aged kids.

We then attended the Christmas Eve candle light service. 

We ate the traditional potato soup and sausage balls for dinner. “It slapped” and it “hit different.” These are all kind words for my cooking skills. 

We opened a few family gifts. I made Santa’s favorite cookies, and even thought Santa might want to try egg nog this year. Santa has decided that is a big fat no, so she, I mean he, has chosen Prosecco in cranberry juice instead.

We are ready for Santa to arrive!

Merry Christmas Eve Eve

What a perfect night to be outside at the botanical gardens! It was sixty degrees and felt more like early fall. We had to pull Keagan from his bed to get him in the car. Evan finally succeeded in persuading him to put on clothes with the words, “Think of this as our Christmas gift to Mom.” Mom guilt for the win! 

The battle was worth it; the lights were beautiful! First stop was the train display.

Keagan said tonight he thought he was going through another growth spurt because it’s been weeks since the last time he felt full after eating a meal. I think he’s on to something. He’s a full two inches taller than me now! 

Merry Christmas Eve Eve!

Three Hours Later

It’s my first day of Christmas break and I had to set my alarm for an early morning trip to the DMV. This is not just any DMV; this was to a Tennessee DMV. There is a lot to be learned about efficiency and fire code safety in our local DMVs. It was standing room only this morning when the doors opened at 8:30. We were squished together standing three men deep. Keagan and I were in line outside of the doors at 7:45 and it was already 30 people deep. After three hours I left with my REAL ID  and Keagan left with his permit. 

Wes has the task of teaching him to drive in his truck. 

Family Fun Day

It’s the weekend before Christmas, so we made the trip to the Nashville Gaylord to see the Christmas displays. 

The people. The traffic. Did I mention the people? It was almost too much for us to enjoy. 

But then you find a corner where the crowds are smaller, and you can appreciate the beauty of the flowers and lights. Until the next group pushes you out of the way for their own glimpse.

We took the obligatory family picture. 

This year Madilyn went with us. 

We had to stop at the German restaurant for dinner, a Radler, and live music. Hearing  the German lyrics to “O Tannenbaum” almost made me think we were in Munich. Almost. 

#Christmastraditions 🎄

Home Improvement

We bought a twenty year old house this summer. The previous owner had begun updating the house when they bought it ten years ago. Although new to us, I knew their updates would need some of my own updates.

We started by painting the master bedroom gray  to match the master bath. 

Then it was the front porch. Here’s the before. 

We found three coats of paint under the top coat. All were sanded off of the concrete. 

Then we stained it gray. I love it!

Next up was adding bookshelves to the loft. 

My dad has little by little helped us change the plug covers and outlet covers from cream to white. It’s made a huge difference! Now if I could find white central vacuum hose covers! 

Then we removed the dirty brown carpet in the master bedroom and Keagan’s bedroom. We replaced it with a gray. 

Next up was ripping out the carpet on the stairs 

and replacing it with stained wood. 

The flooring guy is returning in January to sand and stain the hardwood floors on the first floor to match the stairs. 

This has turned out to be so much fun! I can’t wait to do the kitchen and my craft room this summer. 

Fiesta Friday

We are gearing up for finals week. The boys are finalizing volunteer hours. Evan didn’t have enough hours for Spanish Honor Society so he had to donate gift cards. 😳 He was running last minute to Publix to pick them up.

I was nominated for star teacher of the week and had to wear a cape and a light up necklace all day. The students were more exited for me than I was for myself. 

Keagan had Fiesta Friday and needed cookies for extra credit. He was running to Publix with Evan late last night.

Evan had to wear an ugly Christmas sweater for the high school’s annual tradition. 

His prized sweater arrived just in time. 

And the night ended with a super exiting JV game that went into OT and ended in a tie. 

K steals the ball

https://youtu.be/zxG96bhT5lk

E with great defense

https://youtu.be/g94dy8RDLG4

E with his own offensive rebound. K with bucket. E with the assist.

https://youtu.be/CaZF8Hxha4E

Saint Nick

There are so many wrongs with this picture. First, Saint Nicolaus visited three days late because “she” was too busy juggling soccer tournaments, planning two meals a day, attending basketball games, making appointments, doing laundry, taking care of dirty dishes, installing new floors, and this little thing called work.  Then, St. Nick found no boots to stuff with goodies because they’ve been stored away in an inaccessible closet due to new stairs/ floor installation. He used the next big thing, the soon-to-be tradition adopted by every German child (I’m sure of it), the gift bag. Last, the pic was taken in the dark without kids because I was out the door at 6:10 and the boys had it all picked apart by the time I got home at 8:30!

But #traditions live on. 

When I got home, Evan actually told me thank you. My heart melted. He (and Keagan) acknowledges everything I do. 

Lost Grandpa

Evan and his friends were at the mall this week. Evan went to the service desk to ask the clerk to page his lost grandpa, “Mr. ClintonKilledEpstein.” 

https://m.youtube.com/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=cOpscEvQuIY

Y’all. I can’t believe this is my child. It’s so politically incorrect and yet so funny. 

The BEST

These are the BEST days. Friday night I watched Keagan play basketball at 4:30. 

Then Evan played at 7:30. 

Keagan and I got on the road at 10:00 and got to Memphis for his showcase tournament at 1:30 in the morning. We were up too early for his first game against Arkansas. But we didn’t mind too much after leaving with a big win of  7-0. 

Today we were up even earlier to play a very athletic team from Louisiana. Keagan had the assist that gave us a win of 4-3. He had the game of his life today while coaching, reffing, and playing simultaneously. 😂

Here we are at the end of the season finally finding some wins and some cohesion on the field. It’s frustrating that we had to wait so long to see good soccer from these boys, but refreshing to finally see the parts pull together.

My parents met us in Memphis. Besides watching soccer, we ate some good Mexican food and took a trip or two down memory lane. Daddy asked me if I could calculate the miles driven to and from soccer over the past 13 years. I could not, but I could ask them the same. 

Paint Class

Last night was paint night with my wonderful friends Shauna and Tina. We painted a stable for the Christmas season.

Kudos to us. Three hours later we all have something recognizable!