Christmas time 2010

Christmas time in the Mershawn household this year was BUSY.

I'm sure it was the same for most of you...but man, I don't like how busy=faster.

But...we are always intentional with Christmas time & our memories.

So, looking back at pictures always makes me feel better:).

We had a fun & eventful month leading up to Christmas, kicked off by a little someone's birthday. Then we jumped right into Christmas time...

We've always wanted to go to a tree farm for a tree, but never really took it seriously.

Until this year.

Now we'll do it every year.

So easy, so fun.

The trains...

A good friend & I (ahem...Liz) led a small group at our church this fall.

A preschool playgroup.

It was small, for sure, but we had lots of fun.

Our last "event" was visiting the trains at Northpark.

I, the grown up, was a little disappointed at how it seemed smaller than I had imagined.

However...the 3 year old & 1 year old in my company were not bothered at all.

In fact, they would have stayed forever...that is if lunchtime hadn't gotten in the way:).

Christmas with Nana.

Officially kicks off our Christmas every year.

Always has for me & my family.

And this year...baby Okee was here.

Sweet, sweet boy. We miss you!

Sorry. This made me laugh...

Clueless.

All of us.

We'll end with Tuck & his new cell...

he's gotten some serious talk time in thanks to Aunt Carolyn.

Talk time & button pushing.

(Yes. My Nana still has shag carpet. Gold & in perfect condition. She's cool like that.)

********************

Got plenty more Christmas to come...but I'll end by saying:

Happy New Year!

Merry Christmas...a little late!

We hope you had a very Merry Christmas!

We sure did...

And...we always enjoy remembering the real reason we celebrate.

Praying He brings you joy for the new year!

Countdown 1 year {12 months!}

Tuck...you're 1!

I can't believe that one year ago, you were a tiny, sweet newborn.

I love that your birthday is close to Christmas...even though it is crazy.

It will always make me think of Mary...and her sacrifice.

And I'm grateful for that.

Oh boy...at one year, you are moving forward all the time.

You are taking 4- 5 steps at a time & you get very proud of yourself.

You squeal & laugh as you make your way to your goal...usually someone with open arms.

You know how to drive cars, tractors, dump trucks, & trains.

How? I have no explanation...except that you are a boy.

Some of your favorite things to do are:

clearing dvds out of the entertainment center, pulling toilet paper until it is all gone, then ripping it up into shreds, turning the tv on & off, unplugging things, playing in any cabinet (kitchen, bathroom...our house, or not...), drinking from your sister's cup...you keep us on our toes.

You can say dada, dog, car, uh-oh, & mama (sometimes...).

You wave hi & bye, know when daddy's home, tell Lilly no when she's barking, & yell for your sister when you hear her.

You've stopped putting EVERYTHING in your mouth & only choose the most interesting things to put in it. Hmm.

You love to push things...chairs, toys, your wagon, your new lawn mower.

And...you know how to use a vacuum. If only it weren't a toy...

We think you're awesome Tucker B.

At your 12 month check up you were 19 lbs 5 oz (7%), 30 in (55%), & your head...95th percentile. :)

You have your first ear infection, discovered at your birthday appointment (sad) & you had 3 shots & blood drawn. Happy birthday to you.

But you're such a trooper.

And, you love your new pink medicine...

Happy birthday little man.

You keep the twinkle in our eyes...along with that crazy sis up there.

Countdown 1 year {Birthday Boy}

One year ago...

we met you.

And loved you.

I remember how sweet you were.

And cuddly.

You melted our hearts instantly...our baby boy.

Oh how we love you now.

I'm so glad you're still so sweet & cuddly...

in a much busier way.

Happy Birthday our sweet baby Tuck!

We're so proud to have you in our family...

Countdown 1 year {That's one small step...}

on his way to toddlerhood.

Four steps on Thanksgiving night.

Wasn't he just a newborn?

Swaddled in a blanket?

Rocking in a swing?

I need to excuse myself now...

Thankful

and grateful.

For mercy & grace.

For love that abounds.

For gifts & blessings.

For His constant presence & reminders of love.

For all that we have.

Come into my home :)

We're project people.

I'd never really thought about how often we have a project going until here recently.

I discovered...we ALWAYS have a project going, or in the works.

I used to think that once I got a room JUST the way I liked it, I'd never change it again.

I was wrong.

I change my mind....a lot.

But thanks to the many blogs I am hooked on, we've discovered the fun, joy, & budget friendly way of "re-purposing."

SO fun.

That brings me to our new entryway...

Some of you have been in our home once or twice, or many times before.

You may not have ever noticed anything about our entryway.

But I noticed it everyday.

There aren't any windows. It's dark.

I wanted it to be bright & friendly.

After all it's the first & last room people see.

Sorry, these first few pictures are really terrible.

Super blurry.

Oh well.

This is our old bench/shelf unit. We loved this thing when we bought it from Target.

Then I started to be not so crazy about it...so we tweaked it a bit.

Now I LOVE it again...only it's 2 pieces now.

In 2 different rooms:).

And a different color...

Our new entry.

See how dark it is?

But with the yellow & white it feels sunny to me.

To me...that's what matters, right?:)

The once black frames befriended a fresh coat of spray paint.

And so did a few more frames.

The shelf, table, lamp, & chairs are all repainted.

The chair cushions are also recovered.

Did you know IKEA has really cool fabric?

We made the print on the wall, too.

It was way easy...except, be sure you have the CORRECT words before painting them on.

Grr. GRANT should be GIVE.

I'm just...you know...changing up the Word of GOD.

Hmm.

Alright. Have Christmas decorations, a baby birthday, Thanksgiving food, & stuff with my kids to plan.

I love the holidays. :)

Samaritan's Purse {OCC}

Samaritan's Purse is so cool.

They make you feel like you can really help people in need.

And the Christmas boxes are awesome.

They have a list on their website of great ideas of what to give.

And it makes little 3 year old girls begin to understand there's a world out there that's not like hers.

And she can serve them.

We made cards, wrote notes, & sent a family picture with our gifts.

She watched the videos on the website about where these boxes go & got excited to see kids like her, receiving special boxes like the ones we packed.

She noticed they were dirty. She noticed it made me cry.

She noticed.

And...maybe in the next few years, he'll notice too.

And...maybe they'll grow up knowing that serving others & showing Jesus' love however they can, is what our life is all about.

Thanks Samaritan's Purse. You bless so many, especially the ones who get to give.

Several churches in our area are collecting boxes THIS week!

You have until the 22nd (next Monday-the day after Mitchel's birthday!) to get them dropped off.

If you want to that is:)...

Countdown 1 year {11 months}

My baby, you are eleven months.

One more & you'll be a toddler....technically.

Only, you'll still be my baby.

You are one busy boy.

You can't stand to have your diaper changed...too much down time.

At nap time, we lay you down & you immediately stand back up to play until you finally crash.

You crawl so fast now.

It really drives you crazy when someone walks by you, you follow them, then they turn around & pass you up.

You want to be where the action is & you're good at getting there.

You cruise around anything you can hold on to.

You're getting very close to taking your first step. Each day you get a little braver.

You put everything in sight & reach in your mouth.

You love being outside.

Seeing Lilly through the back door makes you point your finger wildly, while saying, "na, na, na..." (no, no, no)

You can say hello & dad.

You are one smart baby boy.

You think the house phone is yours.

Anything that lights up or makes noise should, in your personal opinion, instantly be in your possession.

And, I only give in most of the time:)...

And you are, oh so precious.

I squish you a lot.

You've been losing a lot of squish lately, Mr. Skinny.

Way too busy to keep weight on...I should take some lessons from you.

Did I mention you're busy?

No time for picture posing...

especially with a sister distraction,

or a piano to play,

or a box to pull over on yourself,

because after all...

you do like to keep yourself occupied.

Happy 11 months Tucker B.

Now, let's pause this month for a while.

You must stay little for a while longer...just for my heart's sake.

The Great State Fair of Texas

October 6, 2010, we came, we saw, & we went:).

We love the fair.

So many memories from growing up going, from hearing our parents' stories of the same, & of taking our kids now.

It's just a plain fun place.

We hit the Pee Wee Stampede first.

For some rodeo fun.

Yeehaw!

Stick horses, cowboy hats, chaps, stick bulls.

So fun. So funny.

Got us a calf wrangler on our hands now...

Then we headed to our usual stops:

watching the dog show,

(with Grammy & Poppy- we went with them, my Aunt Sha, Uncle Barry, & Aunt Tina)

a snack:),

(thanks to Grammy & Poppy...hmm)

& a little rest,

in the sun...poor baby.

Smart girl.

Happy guy.

Petting zoo.

Pig races.

Dinner time.

Goodbye "Big Texas" (aka- Big Tex).

Until next year...can't wait to see your outfit.