What a treat it was to have an early Thanksgiving…with these little people!

Nathans Teachers and class did an excellent job…These “yong men” set the tables…the students made homemade woven place mats with construction paper,,,

They helped with all the cooking…and it was a feast! They made Turkey, ham, green bean casserole, yams, mashed potatoes, stuffing, homemade rolls and pies…Here are some memories captured!

Peeling Potatoes for Mashed potatoes….

Getting started on the Green Bean Casserole

Homemade Hawaiian Dinner Rolls

They even helped Clean-Up! Such troopers!!

The best part of the day was being able to enjoy it with our family. Nathan invited his Grandma and we all had a special time of watching the class say thier pledges, the Books of the Bible and sing.

Thank You Mrs Davis and Miss Marissa for all your hard work and organization of the meal! We Love you!!!

It seems lately its been harder for me to come to grips that my 3 kiddos are growing up and getting older. Ben went a birthday party–alone for the first time this week. I actually understood half of the gibber “talk” from Selah on the way home from church and Nathan just wont stop growing =)

Today I ran into the store for a “quick” moment.  It turned into 20 minutes…I ran back to the van where the kids and Hubby were waiting, Jumped in and apologized to my Family for taking so long-when Nathan says “Its OK, Mom. You’re amazing. We will wait for you.”

I have to say it melted my heart, Hubby assured me that it came from Nathan and he didn’t tell him that-I also know that he got those kind words from his Daddy’s example of how he treats me. One of the “Perks” of them growing up…

One of these days…hopefully not too soon. I’m trying to get the most out of their caterpillar years…BUT one day I pray that my boys will be amazing husbands and fathers…just like their own dad.

Its September-and my life has changed. *Sigh* Both of my boys are in school now. Up till now the only school my kids have known were half days…but this year that changed. Ben is a 1st Grader and will be going full days, Nathan comes home at lunch and so its just Selah and I “roughing it” at home. Im excited to spend time with my ‘baby” while I can. I am also thankful that my hubby works so hard to allow me the priviledge to stay at home with my kiddos!

Now. Onto the Pictures of My Boys First Day of School: I love this pIcture of the Brothers!

Proud of thier New shoes-and I knew they would never stay like this after today =)

The Boys Teachers:

Im looking Forward to all this year will bring!

Well, its Back to School time here for our family. We are so blessed to have a wonderful Christian school for our boys to attend…and more importantly Wonderful, Godly teachers that will be investing in our children as an extension of our home.

This summer, a friend of mine sent me a “Ministry Wives Survival Kit” (not the actual items but the tag to do one =) and i thought it was a unique and fun way to show your appreciation for someone. I started googling the different types of survival kits out there (Tons!) and came across this nifty teacher one! Aha, the perfect First Day of School gift to give our teachers! (Or anytime of the year!)

The items needed are right on the tag-I got mine from http://familycrafts.about.com/od/giftsforteacher/ss/Teachers_Survival_Kit.html

I used clear “Treat bags”, a bit of red crinkle shred, and a red ribbon tie for extra color-I love the way it turned out!!!

What started out as a cool and functional craft turned out to be one of the best ideas ever!

I had bought new place mats for our dining room but when I used them for the kids they got so nasty. Id put them in the washing machine but 2 of them completely unraveled!

I asked my design guru hubby if he would design some place mats with the kids name on them. My initial reason was to help Selah learn her name. He took Selah’s favorites: purple & butterflies and designed…

Joe is such a great dad. He let the boys pick out their own favorites (Not an easy decision when there are so many options and you are 4 and 6) and here is what they came up with…

The GREATEST thing about it is that our kids LOVE their place mats!! So much that they turn them over and refuse to eat on the printed side because they don’t want it to get dirty. They are the neatest kids in the world now…hence one of our best ideas ever!!

I read this recently and knew i needed to be reminded of this often:

 Ps. 23 says, “He restoreth my soul.”  Restore means to restock. When you or yours are shortchanged by others, whether intentionally or not, God will restock.

He will make up the difference in some manner.

8 years ago I married my Dream Guy!

It wasnt a fairy tale courtship-we dated long distance for 2 and a half years and we went into our relationship with our heads on straight. Im thankful for my Husband-Joe Kirby.

He is my Best Friend, he tells me what I need to hear. He helps me remember life is short, petty things dont matter as much as I think they do. He makes me laugh. He makes me a better person. He is the Love of my Life-I have a husband that enjoys taking me on dates and loves being with me. The Greatest Gift God gave me outside of my salvation is my husband Joe Kirby.

This is the first anniversary that we arent together but we know being with my mom is the more needful thing.

Either way, I love and miss you Joe with all my heart and look forward to being back in my favorite place-Your Arms!!

My Awesome Sister in law texted me this recipe. She raved about them and rightly so. They were easy peasy and ooey-gooey delicious!

Smore Bars

2 sticks Butter melted

2 cups crushed Graham Crackers

3/4 cup flour

Mix and Press into a 9×13 pan

Sprinkle:

2-4 cups Marshmallows

2-4 cups Chocolate Chips

Bake at 375 for 15-20 Minutes

*Be sure to let cool completely-i put mine in the freezer for half and hour*

ENJOY!!!

Always remember to forget the things that made you sad, But never forget to remember the things that made you glad. Always remember to forget the friends that proved untrue, but never forget to remember those that have stuck by you. Always remember to forget the troubles that passed away, but never forget to remember the blessings that come each day. –unknown