A Look Back at Christmas Morning 2014

Last November, I posted my 30 Days of Gratitude and then I started a recap of Thanksgiving.  After that, I took about a 4 month sabbatical from my blog.  I can't even give you a good reason.  Mostly, I got behind and felt overwhelmed.  I never recapped Christmas.

So, I'm going to start December off with a few pictures from Christmas morning at our house last year.

The stockings were hung with care.  We had a couple of extra stockings (that you can't see) for Grandma and PawPaw Larry.

Here is our modest little tree.  There were more presents tucked around the corner.

One of our favorite ornaments

A house divided.  Most of us are dog people.  And, then there is Jessie.  She is cat people.  

We enjoyed having Grandma and PawPaw Larry spend Christmas with us last year.  We had such a nice Christmas.  We tried to make it a very memorable and special Christmas for them.

1,000th Post!!!

In honor of my 1,000th blog post (oh yeah, that's right, 1-0-0-0), I felt like I needed to do a little Throwback Thursday and pay homage to Angela's birthday, the State Fair of Texas and these boys that truly love each other!

So, first of all Happy Birthday to my crazy friend, Angela!  You haven't changed a bit-- you still look and act just like you did when we were in college.  Amy, your hair was a little higher in college!

I feel like there are several things to point out...

1) That "kiss" sure is awkward

2) I wonder if we planned our coordinating outfits.

3) Check out Dave's flip phone held together with electrical tape.

4) Fred needs a hair cut.

5) Why did they pose like that?

6) I believe this is the one and only time that I have ever been on the Texas Star.

7) I wonder if I needed Dramamine.

8) Can I say Amy has great hair?

9) Again, do we know why Dave and Fred posed like that?

10) I'm just going to keep asking the question about Fred and Dave until someone answers it for me.

I don't think there will be 1,000 more posts, but here's to a few more!

Thanks for reading!

P.S.  Here is last year's tribute to Aunt Angel.

Just Like That

Saturday night, I was sitting in the stands at Independence High School. We were there to for the school's 2nd Annual Rumble, which is a fun little event to introduce the students and parents to all the school's extracurricular organizations.  It is also a fun little event to drain you of all your money so that you will spend it supporting these organizations.  Anyway, we were sitting there waiting for the band to march out on the field.  They were going to play the fight song 400 bazillion times in a row for each organization to come through blow-up contraption that football team runs through.  It is their time to shine.  Anyway, we were there to support our most favorite sousaphone player in his second year of band!  The Rumble also features a fun little scrimmage game, which I suppose is the main draw-- not the band.  The Rumble will get its own post, because I took some pictures-- trust me!

Anyway, while I was waiting, I happened to look down at my phone.  My friend Jeanette had sent me this picture of the cutest little Cub Scouts I've ever seen in my life.  I defy you to send me a picture of cuter Cub Scouts.

And, just like that they went from being cute little Cubs to Sophomores in high school.  

I Used to be an Eagle

I posted the cute story about Sophie Hudson being overdressed for her son's Family Night at Scout Camp earlier this week.  You can go here to read it. Since we are a family that is so heavily involved in Scouts, I could totally relate to her story.  For some reason it reminded me of getting conned into a BBQ dinner with my husband and the Moffitts.

As I've posted before, Fred and Rod participated in Wood Badge which is a very big deal.  There was a dinner for the participants.  I feel pretty sure that our husbands set us up.  Now, I love Ruth and Rod, so I don't hold any grudges, but I think it was very tricky.  I'm not exactly sure, but I think Rod told Ruth something like, "Hey, Fred and Donna are going to the BBQ, why don't we go, too?" and Fred told me the same thing and that is how we all four ended up at this BBQ that really should have just been Fred and Rod.  (If that is not the case, then I owe those boys a very big apology!)

Now, in Sophie's story she imagined a picnic with lights strung across like in Parenthood.  Well, I may or may not have imagined a classy little BBQ that was Ewing style-- as in the Ewings from Dallas.  Only, the BBQs on Dallas normally took place outside during warmer temps and this was definitely winter, so I imagined it to be in a heated barn-like structure.  I also imaged it to be decorated super cute with red and white gingham tablecloths.

In Wood Badge, you are divided into patrols and each patrol is assigned a "critter."  Fred was an eagle and Rod was a buffalo.  I know, I didn't even pretend to try to understand.  The dinner was held at a Boy Scout Camp in Dallas.  On the drive, the men were in the front and the women were in the backseat. The men were talking about their "chants."  Fred lets loose with his patrol's chant about eagles.  Then, Rod tells us that he WROTE his patrol's chant.  Impressive, huh?  Well, we then hear his chant that is all about buffaloes.  It was well written, but as you can imagine, anything that has to do with buffaloes is just weird.  At this point, sweet Ruth pipes up from the backseat and says something like, "Gee, honey, that is really great."  The way she said it was heartfelt.  I remember thinking right there at that moment, I need to stick with this woman, because she is an exceptional wife!  I wondered if she might give me wife lessons, because I felt inadequate next to her.

We arrived at our BBQ that was nothing like an event that the Ewings would hold.  The dinner was held in a metal building that might have been heated, but I sure didn't feel the heat.  We sat on cold metal folding chairs.  The building was so cold that I never took my coat off-- the entire night. If there were decorations at all, they certainly paled in comparison to what I had laid out in my head.

I'm sure the speakers were interesting, but Fred is the Scout, so the topics were a little lost on me.  Mostly, Ruth and I talked about how the Scout uniforms should be redesigned.  Khaki is not an attractive color and what is up with those green pants?   It was very reminiscent of Clairee's interview on KPPD in the Devil's locker room.  (In case you don't know, that is a Steel Magnolias reference.)

The best part of the night came at the very end.  They asked the Wood Badge participants to gather in their patrols.  Which means they were grouped by their "critters."  They stood around the room in a circle.  Once they got up, it felt like Ruth and I were the only ones not standing.  We were smack dab in the middle of the room-- looking so out of place.  It was a strange feeling.  I felt like E.T. must have felt like when he was trying to get back to his homeland.

Then, each patrol chanted their chant.  I thought they were done.  But, no!  Then, they sang a song.

I used to be a Beaver, 

And a good old Beaver too. 

but now I've finished beavering,

And I don't know what to do.

I'm growing old and feeble,

And I can Beaver no more.

So I'm going to work my ticket while I can.

Then they repeated it with all the rest of critters:

Bobwhite 

Eagle
Fox
Owl
Bear
Buffalo
Antelope
Crow

At that point, I really felt like E.T. trying to phone home!  When it was over, my sweet friend Ruth (the one that I want to take wife lessons from) looked at her husband and said "I will never go with you to one of these events ever again."  In my head, I was saying, "Yeah, preach it, sister!"  But, I think I really said, "Me, too."  Just so you know, I still want to take wife lessons from her, because I think she is the greatest wife, ever.  No one should have to sit through that.  I want to be supportive, but it is too hard to be supportive when you are freezing.  

P.S.  Some people relate everything in life to Seinfeld or Friends.  I have one friend that can relate anything and everything to Everybody Loves Raymond - yes, that's you, Tanya!  But, as you can tell,  everything circles back around to Steel Magnolias for me!

Memories of Parents' Day with Jonathan

I sent this email to my friend Angela on 2/16/08.  She kept it all this time and resent it to me this afternoon.  I just about fell on the floor laughing.  I had to post so that I could remember the time that I took Jonathan to Parents' Day!

This morning I took Jonathan to his martial arts class.   We walk in and see the huge signs posted everywhere declaring that it is PARENTS' DAY!  I absolutely hate parents' day. 

This particular parent's day was especially rough.  The first drill involved me holding a big pad in front of myself while Jonathan did a back kick.  He was told to kick at our privates. Nice.  Only he was having a lot of trouble.  I guess because of the height disparity and his depth perception issues, he wasn't hitting the pad with his back kick.  Instead he was kicking my knees... very hard!  Luckily, we only worked that drill for a few minutes.

Then we had to work a more complicated drill with our kids.  I had to sit on my knees.  Jonathan was laying on his back with his legs wrapped around my waist.  From there he had to use his right arm to lock my right arm.  He used his left hand to pull my head down.  Fun, huh?  It gets better.  From there he had to swing his legs around and wrap them around my neck.  We did this over and over for what seemed like an eternity. 

The instructors were walking around checking the kids and parents to make sure that they were doing it correctly.  The teenage instructor, Mr. Paul comes over to see how we're doing. I guess Jonathan wasn't swinging his hips correctly when he went for the headlock.  BTW, since it was raining, I had my hair pulled up in a pony tail.  At this point, it has almost been completely pulled out. I am looking really rough.   Mr. Paul sits down on the matt next to Jonathan and motions for me.  I am a bit confused and think that I misunderstood.  I choose not to move.  He motions for me again and tells Jonathan to watch.  It was like a bad dream.  I couldn't believe it.  Did this young guy really think that I was going to perform the drill?  I am completely humiliated as he proceeds to grab my arm and head and then wrap himself around my neck. 

The worst part was that we were right in front of the window where some of the other parents stood watching.  One of the parents happened to be the dad of Jonathan's friend, Jake.  It is even more humiliating when you can identify the face of one of your observers.

They don't prepare you for these kinds of moments in those Parenting how-to books!

The Family We Choose

I am sure Angela hates this picture, but it is one of my all time favorites!

Jonathan is my boy that has a hard time reading between the lines and understanding inferences.  A sweet friend gave me a little plaque for my birthday that says "Friends are family that we choose."  Obviously confused, Jonathan asked what that meant.  So, I asked him what he calls our friend, Angela Garstka.  He replied with Aunt Angel.  I then asked him if he she was really his aunt.  He summed it up perfectly with, "No, but I see her more than I see a lot of my own family."  I explained to him that while the Garstka's aren't technically our family. We "chose" for them to be our family.  He completely understood and I came away wishing every concept was so easy to explain to that child!

We are so blessed to have such wonderful family members - both the ones we that came to us by birth and the ones we chose.

P.S.

This is not our first post about Aunt Angel. Go here to read how much Jonathan loves his Aunt Angel!

Memories

Yesterday, I was sitting at my desk and heard that familiar ding from my phone.  My friend, Angel, had sent me a text.  Only, I had never dreamed this little gem of a picture was what she was texting me.

This was taken in one of those little photo booths at Mountasia.  I'm guessing it was taken in 1992.  Fred and Dave were inseparable, so Dave went everywhere we went.  That meant that the three of us were inseparable.  It was a great thing when Dave and Angel finally started dating!  I joke that it was like dating two guys at once.

Those were such fun times!

Sweet Memories

Jessie and her classmates are putting together their yearbook.  They asked for old pictures of each Senior.  Jess and I went digging through the pictures.  We didn't always agree on our favorites, so we had to compromise!  What is for sure is that I dearly love that sweet curly hair and big brown eyes!

Flashback Friday: Jon The Builder

September 2007

Who knows what he was building!  He was probably just practicing his hammering skills.

Flashback Friday: Sibling Love

Easter 2005

I absolutely love this picture.  It is typical Jonathan and Jessie.  Jonathan is smiling so sweet with his arm around his sister.  He looks so sweet angelic.  My favorite part is that he is absolutely oblivious to the fact that he has caught her ponytail in his embrace and apparently it is painful.  My guess is that she is adding an extra dose of dramatics for added flair.  

The more I look at this picture, I could just eat him up and perhaps take that shirt back to The Children's Place and get a smaller size.

Flashback Friday: Blue Skies

2005

This was our Christmas picture from 2005.  It was the perfect picture.  Only problem was that I didn't notice that someone had walked behind us.  It was all the way in the far back left corner, but it was distracting and annoying just the same.  I asked our Art Director for help.  I thought she would do something realistic.  Instead she put this fake sky in the background.  It grew on me and I just hoped everyone focused on how it made my adorably cute kids pop!

Flashback Friday: Jessie and Baby Kylie

February 2004

I remember this day.  It was a hard day for the Fortenberry's, but this moment was certainly happy.  Jess enjoyed holding and getting to know her baby cousin.

Flashback Friday: Bowling Buddies

2008

Madison, Ally, Jonathan, Laura, Katy and Jessica

bowling together back in 2008!

It is so fun to look back and see how much they have all grown. 

No one would have ever guessed that little tiny Katy would surpass everyone to be the tallest. Jonathan is hot on her trail at 5'2" tall.  Although, I am sure Madison will end up the tallest girl in the end.  She looks like she will have her Mom's height.

We are so happy to have these sweet friends.  However, I am sure Jonathan wishes there were some boys thrown in the mix!

Flashback Friday: Rockin' Times at the Roller Rink

 

Back in 2007, Jessie and Ally took a roller skating class.  They were too cute for words and it is hard to believe Jess' hair was so long.  I don't remember much about that day except that it was incredibly relaxing to hang out with my friend while our girls were doing it up old school on the roller skates.  I also remember needing to bring thick socks and Jess working up one serious sweat. They had so much fun that it was a shame they weren't born in a different era. 

 

Flashback Friday: Birthday Fun

I had a ton of pictures that had been sent to me at work.  I resent them to myself at home and that is where they have sat for some time.  I was going through them and saving them.  I found these sweet little gems.  These pictures appear to be from precious Ally's 5th birthday (she is 12 now).

I think Jonathan's hair is gorgeous and the look on his face is priceless. And, Ally is cute and adorable as always.   I just can't get enough of this picture. 

There are no words for this picture of Fred.  I hope there weren't any small children near this end of the pool.

It has been fun to see these sweet kids grow up.

Flashback Friday: Beehive Jessie

I found these sweet pictures of Jessica.  They were downloaded from her camera.  I am pretty sure that they are from Young Women's activities in the 5th Ward.  These pictures remind me why I love the Young Women's program and why I love Beehives.

(Jess and Sydney Burbank)



Flashback Friday: Pinewood Derby

On February 23, 2008 Jonathan participated in a Pinewood Derby.  I love the look of concern and determination on his face as he watches his car (or maybe he is waiting to see his time).  Not sure, but he is clearly watching and waiting.

So cute!

1st in his heat

Flashback Friday: Auntie Jan and Uncle Joe's Wedding

1) I hit 500 posts last Sunday!  I big accomplishment considering I dropped out of the blogging world for a while.

2) I am a day late on Flashback Friday, so you are getting FF on Saturday.  I hope that is ok...

3) I haven't had any posts this week.  It has been quite the week.  My sweet girls were in charge of a Standards Night at church on Wednesday. We have been planning for weeks.  It has been daunting and we planned one activity only to scrap it two weeks ago.  At the moment we scrapped it, we realized that we lost a week of planning due to a combined young women's activity taking the place of our last planning day. Plus, it has been so incredibly busy at work. We have been preparing for a customer visit all week.   All I can say is that I have had some things to post, but I have been just to tired mentally and physically to sit and type.

So... here is Flashback Friday on Saturday...

Jessie and I had a great time traveling to Austin for Auntie Jan and Uncle Joe's wedding.  We had just returned home from our Port Aransas trip.  We dropped the boys off at home and then Jess and I jumped in the car and headed back towards Austin.  In hindsight, I'm trying to remember why we just didn't stop in Austin, but I think we were trying to conserve money after our vacation, plus there was the concern that everyone was going to be exhausted and on each other's nerves after our time in the sun. It was probably a good call.  Jess and I had a fun girls' trip.

 

Auntie Jan and Uncle Joe got married on August 9, 2008 in a beautiful ceremony in their backyard.  They have an awesome backyard full of trees.  I wish we had backyards like that in Dallas!  Then we moved the festivities in doors.  I am sure Auntie Jan was cleaning and recovering for weeks.  We all contributed our punch glasses to the affair.  We were finding punch glasses, cake plates and who knows what else stuck in every nook and cranny of her house.

 

The sun was in an awful place for this picture.  Jess was so cute that I had to share it.  She was sporting her tan from Port Aransas and we had gone for pedicures just before our trip.  No matter how old you are, you can't go to the beach without a fresh pedicure!

 

 



Flashback Friday: Something Fishy

April 2, 2008

Flashback Friday: Mollie's Homecoming

June 21, 2008

The day our sweet Mollie came home with us!

The happiest day ever...

(That was before we embarked on training!)