Christmas Tree

  I can’t remember the last time we had a ‘fake’ Christmas tree.  This year we decided to forgo a real tree and see what we could find. Black Friday had so many tress advertised but I wanted to go look at them, touch them, and just make sure they were good quality. I found one at Home Depot that we loved. It had all the bells and whistles anyone could ever want. Not only did it come with over 550 LED lights, but also you have a choice of multi-colored, white, or blinking lights.  But wait, that’s not all… it has a remote control! 7’5” of pure easy for under $100 – SCORE!

Once we got the tree up, which took less than 10 minutes Jaylyn came over and helped decorate. The best part of the entire thing was that Shelli and I didn’t fight over putting the lights on for the first time in almost 15 years because the lights were already on the tree!!!!! I think she would have paid $200 for a tree just so she didn’t have to put lights on the tree with me.

The tree looks beautiful and the girls did a fantastic job!

Sweaters

It’s that time of the year where the dogs try to hog the fireplace as much as we humans do. If the fire is on, the dogs are lying right in front of it. Not that I blame them! Tonight we took them to the pet store for winter coats. We’ve tried to find Rex one at regular stores but they don’t make them big enough for him so we had to go to a pet store that carried XXL (He’s big and tall, like Granddad) –ha! At the end of our shopping trip, we had two happy dogs with new sweaters. 

Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving was wonderful! Last year Shelli wasn’t in town for the holiday, so this year we wanted to make sure we did-it-up. We FRIED a turkey, for the first time in a few years and made all the traditional fixings.  We had Green bean casserole, mashed potatoes, homemade cream corn, cranberry sauce, and stove-top stuffing (my fave).  For dessert Shelli even made a pumpkin and pecan pie. Everything was perfect!

Shelli & I even hit the stores for a little Black Friday shopping to finish up the rest of the holiday shopping, all without Zoe (because let’s face it.. kids see everything even when you try to hide it in the cart!)

Now that Zoe is getting older, I value every second, hour, and holiday with her. It’s so nice to have her helping in the kitchen too. It was nice having us all together with the fireplace burning, wine in hand, and just having family time. I’m extremely thankful for Zoe, she is the reason I wake up every day and I know Shelli feels the exact same way.

Shelli has a few work trips this month but Zoe is actually getting used to it now. I always tell her that she has to enjoy the time with Mimi when she is in town because that’s when it matters most. Sure, I complain and struggle when Shelli isn’t around however, when I look at all we’ve been through and continue to push through, I don’t think anything can bring us down. I’m thankful for Shelli in so many ways. We’ve had our ups and downs, broken up/lived apart, have our differences in parenting BUT, at the end of the day we are together, next to each other making things right and trying to be the best parents we can be for the one little girl we love most in this world.

We hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We sure did!

Snow Storm

We had our first ‘snow storm’ of the season, which in turn made Zoe and I come back from AZ a day and a half early. We didn’t want to leave but we also didn’t want to get stranded at the airport and not make it home for Thanksgiving. We changed our flights and were homeward bound well before the snow arrived. We woke up this morning to a light snow falling – all day! It was a perfect reason to stay in our pj’s and watch TV. The Petsch farm made it out okay too.

Hiking

                                                   Hiking in Arizona = Priceless!

Arizona

Once a year, I usually fly to Arizona for a couple days for a little mommy getaway. I spend the time with one of my good friends, Amy & her partner, Michelle. We hike, nap, watch movies, check out local wineries, hike some more, go out to eat, and just enjoy lots of quality time. Every year I go, Zoe asks me why she can’t come with me? This time, I brought her with with me.

Shelli travels so much during the year that when it comes time for me to travel, I

usually want to do it by myself, especially since it's a true 'Mommy' vacation.  However, every time I come I think to myself how much Zoe would love it here. She’s been to Arizona before but she was too young to remember.

The flight is so long, so I was looking forward to the company.  We picked her up from school at 1:45pm and after a couple hours laying over in Dallas, we finally arrived in Arizona at midnight (AZ time, 2am EST). That layover about put us over the edge, but I just kept telling Zoe that the long travel would be worth it. When we finally got to Arizona, we were greeting by Amy & Michelle at the baggage claim. We couldn’t be happier to see their faces! We got back to their house and went straight to bed.

We didn’t wake up until 10am, (which is 12-noon our time). We slept so good and hard, we were exhausted after a full day and night of travel. Once we got up and got moving, the plan was to go to the Arizona Zoo.  We had a great time. The weather was perfect in the 70’s and all the animals were out and about. Zoe even got to ride a camel, which she thought was pretty amazing.

By the time we got home, we were all beat. Our first day here has been pretty perfect. Can’t wait to see what the next couple days have in store for us.

Sleepover

Zoe was invited to her first sleepover birthday party. It was for a little girl in her class, Sarah who she considers to be one of her best friends. We got the invite several weeks ago and Zoe has been counting down ever since. When Zoe got home from school she didn’t know what to do to pass the time. The party started at 6:30pm so she had to try to make herself busy for 2 hours. It was hysterical to watch her look at the clock every 30 seconds. Finally 6:15pm rolls around and she is ready, bag packed, sleeping bag and gift in hand. When we pulled up to the house, Sarah ran over to hug Zoe (and the other kids that were arriving at the same time). I went in, spoke to the mom, left her my cell number, and just chatted for a few minutes until I got the ‘look’ from Zoe. I took the hint, gave her a kiss and off Shelli and I went to dinner, alone, without Zoe! It was nice for the first hour then, Shell and I looked at each other and said, “As nice as this is… It sure is quiet!” As we were saying that, I got a text message… I looked at my phone and it was from Zoe letting us know they just ordered pizza and she missed us. It doesn’t get any better than that! It made my whole night.

I’m the first to admit that Shelli’s schedule is extremely hard on me, on Zoe, on our relationship, and on Shelli. However, you have those moments where you just know that life is good even if it is hard! I would sacrifice my last breath for my family.

2 new....

We are proud to announce the arrival of the two newest members of the family. Before we got the first three chickens, Feisty, Lovey, and Dot, we were on a waiting list for a local hatchery in the area. They said they wouldn’t have any pullets for a while so we decided to go with a different farm, in another state. Well, the other day Shelli got a call that they had 2 ladies ready to go. We were planning on adding a few more in the spring so we really hadn’t thought about getting some now with winter on the horizon. But who are we kidding? Of course we told the lady we’d be there to pick those sweet girls up. We are now a chicken family of 5! The new girls are young so they won’t be laying for at lease 2 months. They are still trying to get the lay of the land. Our older girls are ‘testing’ them and making sure they know who is boss. For now they are in separate coops and have supervised playtime. We have to wait about a week or so until they can be put in the same coop. We names the new ones Sweetie and Ginger.

We also took the time to winterize the chicken pen. We ordered a solar tent to put over their coop. We want to make sure they stay warm and out of the snow. Shelli also made them a water heater, which will prevent the water from freezing. Ok, so they might be a little spoiled but who isn’t in this house?