Countdown for the Company

Yes, we are in the middle of 2 countdown's at our house: Christmas and moving day!! The company is scheduled for 2 weeks from today...aaaaaagh!!!! So thus it has begun. Not only the single busiest time of the year, but the single busiest thing a person/family undertakes, and yes, we're doing it all at the same time. Here's to the lovely decor that has begun to take over our home, and no, it is not of the red or green variety!!

Christmas Countdown

One of our favorite memories from childhood was having a way to count down the days until Christmas. When we saw this tree calendar in a catalog we both had to get it ordered for Grayson. We hung it after he went to bed on Sunday night and filled it with goodies, ornaments, gift cards, etc. When he awoke Monday, December 1 morning, he noticed it right away. I explained to him what it was and that only once a day and only one day at a time, we were going to get to remove something from the tree. Day 1 was a penguin jingle ornament for the tree, Day 2 was a chocolate star and mini Santa, Day 3 was an "arches" gift card which he promptly enjoyed for lunch today.

It is fun to share old traditions with our own families!! Here's to only 22 more days until the jolly one arrives!!

Visions of the Parade Danced in his Head

That's about as close as Grayson was getting to the parade tonight!! This little guy was having visions of the parade in his sleep as this is the way he looked at 6:50, even before the start time of the parade!!

He has never had a hard time adjusting to fall or spring time changes, but this time he has never recovered from the clocks setting back. We have been dealing with a 6:15 riser for weeks now, and we are tiring of it on so many levels. Today was just the culmination. We knew we wanted him good and rested, so we tried to let him stay awake even later than normal last evening (8:30) in the hopes that he would sleep good, sleep in a little, so we could stay awake longer and be pleasant tonight even way past his bedtime. Absolutely no luck!! He was awake singing, and I mean it literally, this morning at 6:05!!!!!! The singing means he was fully awake, no chance for a snuggle to lull him back to another hour of sleep.

By 4:30 this afternoon, the departure for the parade time, we were all exhausted, and had a glossy-eyed little boy on our hands. It was all we could do to get dinner in him and get him into bed at 6:40. Afterall, it had been a 12 hour for him, and with a 4-year old needing his 12 hours of sleep, especially with a typically busy Hoare family Sunday, parade was out and sleep was in!! Yeah for mommy and daddy to get to have some alone time and an early bedtime too!! May we all have visions of sugarplums dancing in our heads tonight with the excitement of the holiday season here, parade or not!

Homeowners!!

It has been a very busy couple of months at our house. With all the usual stuff going on we have been trying to do some house-hunting. We have loved our place, but you know when it's time to move on...and it is definitely our time. It's a great time to be buying right now and because of that it made our hunting actually a little bit harder! Sometimes too many choices is not a good thing. I wasn't really picky: we needed more space, a yard for Grayson, a laundry room for me, a dishwasher for Trevor, a garage to store outside bikes and stuff, 2 bathrooms, 2 floors...you know all the stuff a family hoping to grow needs!! All of that and we wanted to be close to the church/school.

Well, it isn't our dream home (which we found many of!), but we found a place that has a lot of equity built into it already, 3 bedrooms, 2 1/2 baths, a small yard for Grayson, an upstairs laundry, an open floorplan downstairs, and a neighborhood pool across the way. Oh, and best of all, the train tracks are right in our backyard practically! Dream home or not, I'm ecstatic to be moving!!!!! I can't wait to decorate, paint walls, hang curtains, pick out flooring and countertops, etc.

More than all that, I am thankful to be this blessed to be able to buy a home and be "upgrading" our lives at a time that is trying for many. I am truly grateful for my new space, my new place to hang my hat, a home that will allow Grayson to have a 'real' childhood, a place for our families to visit, a place where Trevor and I can entertain and cultivate relationships. We're hoping to be in to celebrate our first Christmas "at home" truly at our home!!

WV in October

We made a trip to WV in October to see Trevor's parents. The leaves had already started to change and it was a beautiful drive. It is always great to visit WV but this trip was extra special. The boys took in a Mountaineer football game and the the girls took Grayson to a country Fall Festival celebration. The highlight of the trip was the "real" train that we took through the mountains on Sunday afternoon. It started off a little hectic with Trevor getting a plate of food dumped in his lap, but then we got settled, enjoyed a good brunch onboard, got off the train to enjoy some of the Fall colors and scenery, got back on for our trip back down the mountain, and enjoyed some cards on the way. It was a great experience. One Grayson will not soon forget. Thanks Papa and Grandma for a special treat for all of us!!

Make a Smilebox photobook

No Tongue Lashing Necessary

I know we haven't updated in almost 2 months, but that doesn't mean that there hasn't been a lot going on. As the day progresses, I will organize my thoughts and pictures and add a few new posts. Gotta have everything documented for that good 'ol blog book that someday I'll get around to ordering!!

Catch up real soon!

Time to Change

I know, I know, I'm jumping ahead of Thanksgiving, but there's something about being in a family that has been talking about Christmas, planning for Christmas, shopping for Christmas, playing Christmas music for a month now that puts you in the holiday spirit. Like the song says, it truly is the greatest time of year, and I think Thanksgiving and Christmas are just extensions of each other. And as Trevor likes to point out, we could play Christmas music all year long as it celebrates Jesus and the gift of Himself in our lives each and every day.

Here is a picture that Grayson painted weeks ago. It is hanging proudly on his bedroom door in hopes of good things to come. I did have to help the underlying sketches, but he did a great job painting!!