But, I can't not say something about this picture.  This is Giggles dancing.  He's decided he needs to pull any torso-covering clothes down to his waste when he wants to dance.  I think he must have some Hawaiian in him......

     I hate that Christmas Decorations are beginning to be displayed at retail big box stores before the ghouls of Halloween have even said their nighttime prayers.  I hate that when I walked into Walmart looking for some Thanksgiving decorations, they were all on clearance already.   

    But, I am so excited to host my first Girlfriends Christmas Party on Sunday the 18th.  We are just coming up on our first year anniversary in our new house coming off of a 3 year stint of living in The Middle of Nowhere.  Being so far away for so long, I felt that I had led a lot of female relationships slide because it was such a hassle to see my Dear Friends.  And, as I was the only homeschooler in the bunch, it became hard to visit for Bible Studies and such.    So, I am so excited to be close by and near that I decided to invite The Girls over for a first-of-the-season, no-excuse-is-a-good-excuse-except-a-Noreaster Christmas Ornament Yankee Swap Party.

     All the guests are bringing an appetizer-to-die-for, and I'm supplying a pumpkin cheesecake, a yummy sounding Curried Chicken Corn Chowder soup (as soon as I re-find the link, I'll post it) in homemade bread bowls, and a little candy surprise for them to take home.  I'm breaking out all the candlesticks (having 3 boys and projectiles flying in the house at any given moment is a good reason to not have them lying about often), the wine glasses we haven't used since our first year of marriage, and am planning on having a great time.

     Now, every once in a while on of my Girlfriends stops my by blog, so I'm not going to give away the sweet treat recipe, but I'll share it after the party.  I promise you it is to die for.

I've never been tagged before or done one of the meme things (which I don't quite get how to pronounce), so I thought I'd give it a try.   Warning, though:  I'm really a geek, so this could get ugly and boring. Feel free to stop reading. [Note:  this is my second time writing this.  The first time, I did a search for something and forgot to save what I'd typed so ---grrr---- it all went away.  I'm hoping this second time around I'll think of more interesting things]

1.  On our first or second date, I told DH that I wanted to have 3 children some day, all boys.  Amazingly, that didn't scare him off, and he came back for a second date.

2.  Speaking of our first date, not only did I go out with DH on the first date, but also his two sisters!   They were driving back home for Christmas and were stopping through the town DH was staying in, so after our dinner-date, DH and I met them at a Ground Round for a beer.  His sisters were a blast and I loved the stories about all of them growing up.  I don't recall doing much talking during that part of our date, but I sure did laugh.

3.  In my B.K. life (before kids), I was a speech language pathologist.  I loved working in hospitals and out-patient.  My favorite things to do were videofluoroscopic  (videotaped moving xrays) swallow evaluations (for dysphagia, disorders of the swallowing mechanisms) and language testing (I love administering tests and analyzing the data) [See, I told you I was a geek.]

4.  DH and I got married in Purgatory. Really, I kid you not.

I feel I'm getting desperate here.....

5.  Since graduting from high school, I've never lived in any one home longer than 3 years (no, I'm not in the witness protection program, and we're not military).

6.  I'm still friends with Julia, my best friend from 3rd grade!

7.  I was an undergraduate history major, but have learned more history in homeschooling than I did at my alma mater (which is a top ranking U.S. News & World Report undergraduate program year after year).

Phew, I did it, and I spared you the boring facts of my adolescences.  Now, if you've read this, you are IT, and consider yourself tagged.

It is a joy to be your mama! 

     Life has been so crazy this week, trying to get back into the swing of things after being away for the weekend.  And now, DH (who desparately needs a better blog name-- I think I called him Runner Man once, but that sounds just totally stupid) is gone to his cousin's wedding in Florida.  So, it's me and the boys this weekend (tacos tonight, pizza tomorrow, grilled cheese on Saturday in case your wondering how the other half lives).  I haven't even posted last week's review (and it was a good school week ! Hugs has actually --- gasp! -- enjoyed Renaissance art history) and being on a plane has made me percolate on things I may want to write about. 

     THEN, Tapestry of Grace did this really mean thing and came out with a 3-week sample of their Year 2 American History curriculum (I think I deleted my wishy washy blog entry about wanting to use TOG but being undecided on whether to use it for our second half of US history).  Sheesh!  So I printed that out and have that to distract me from watching the rest of 24's season 4 (I love TV on DVD -- no commercials!).  So, be patient.  Don't not-ever come back.  I promise I'll do something this weekend.   Oh, and if you really, really can't stand being without something from me, head on over to Confessions of a Pioneer Woman   for a hilarious read. 

I'm so glad I get to be your Mom.  You have brought much joy into our home.

Happy 2nd Birthday!

Just 1 day old!

First Cereal (about 4m old)

6 months old

Oreo Time!

     I've just finished re-reading the 8 book Little House on the Prairie books!!!!!!  These are my original books from my childhood (remember the yellow boxed set?).  I started reading Farmer Boy because it is one of the SL Readers than Hugs will be reading this year, and I just decided to read them all.   I really did enjoy them this time around, and I know I appreciate more the glimpses of homemaking more now than I did as a child.  Thank you Hoover vacuums, Whirpool dishwashers, Kenmore friges, and Maytag washers and dryers!!!

     Speaking of vacuums, ours just died.  10 years out of a Kenmore Whisperlight vacuum.  Not too bad, I guess.

     I am currently reading The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam and the Crusades.   Quite a juxtaposition from Little House, huh?

We're visiting family, and took the opportunity to visit a castle, since our lives have been wrapped up in the Middle Ages for so long.  So we visited Stronghold Castle in Oregon, Illinois.  Isn't it cute?  There are even hidden passages in it, so I thought the boys would love it.  Boy, was I wrong!  Actually, I think it was all timing.  Right as we were going to enter the castle, the weekly tornado siren test sounded.  It lasted maybe 1 minute.  But, the ear splitting noise was enough to ruin Hugs' enjoyment for the rest of the 1 hour tour.  He kept his hands over his ears for the entire tour and begged to leave constantly.  Even walking through the hidden passage was too scarey for him.  I'm hopeful that in the future he will appreciate the tour and the effort Nana and Opa went through to arrange the tour.

Today, we're going on a tour of the new police jail.  Hugs' first question, "Will there be any alarm tests?"