So Thankful

Pictures alone will make this post forever long - so I will skip the narrating of everything and just post the pics...

Happy Thanksgiving!!

Spontaneous Day!

Spontaneous Day - it's one day of the year (though you never know when it will be), when Uncle Joby provides a most excellent day of treats. It's has always been a blast (rooftop swimming, a Wii, one spring he even rented bunnies and ducklings for the day) and it is always looked forward to (I know - just ended a sentence with a preposition. Sorry. It just felt right.).

This past week the kids went to bed on Monday night and awoke to the smell of bacon and eggs - and just guess who they found making breakfast in the kitchen...? Uncle Joby!! (Well, a picture of him cooking would be appropriate right here but, well, I was in bed. Figured if he was taking care of everyone I might as well get some sleep!

After breakfast they all played in the back yard. Joby brought a football and wiffle ball set. Then he gave them all coloring books which they enjoyed for through the late morning. Joby told everyone to get ready and did the boys hair so it was "super cool." (just putting that disclaimer in since you will see pictures)

THEN..... the doorbell rings and they get picked up by this...

How cool is that???!!!

 I caught their little faces coming out the door...

They went out for cupcakes and to a play set. Then they picked up a pizza and came back home. They had so much fun.

And what did I do while I had an empty house???

OK - so I sat like that and read for about 10 minutes. Then it was on to laundry and getting ready for company. But still - it was NICE!

My kids love spontaneous day like Christmas and Reformation Celebration. At some point Joby will have to realize he can't top himself every year - but until then the partying continues. :)

Thank you Uncle Joby!

It's up for debate.

I am now the mother of a debater. Not an arguer - a debater. I am so very excited that Madison is in a debate class this year with an A-MAZING teacher. We have affiliated with the NCFCA and are pumped about getting involved in debate.

Madison is going to be a fantastic debater. She is so very excited and I am right there with her.

We traveled to Dallas to watch a Round Robin. So, it's not an official NCFCA qualifying tournament. I's more of an opportunity to practice. Madison considered debating but in the end we decided just getting to go watch and learn would be the most beneficial. We had so much fun - GIRL TIME! Madison and I haven't had that much time together since..... Carson was born! Ha!

We stayed with my brother, Joby. We set off after debate class on Thursday - had a great drive listening to a book on cd and got in late that night. Friday morning we were up early and off to the debate...

 Dallas traffic - not my fav! Here were are really trying to navigate....

 On our lunch break we got out all our "flows" from the debates we watched and analyzed and discussed them...

In the afternoon I actually got to judge two debates. So nerve wracking! these kids were fabulous.

 Joby joined us to watch a few rounds and then we headed home. He treated us to the Outback for dinner. Yum.

 For some reason after dinner we got the idea that we were going to paint Joby's dining room that night. )What were er thinking?!). So, we stayed up super late and painted. It was the wrong color. I always pick the wrong color. It looks one way on the paint chip and totally different on the wall. SO, my idea for a cool grey gave Joby powder blue walls. Sorry, Joby.

We didn't have anything to paint in so Joby said he would lend us something but we had to wear whatever he gave us...

After a few hours of sleep we were back up and on our way to watch debates again. These are our sassy poses...

My mom drove over from Louisiana and met us at the debate mid morning. So fun! More GIRL time!

We went back to the bachelor pad and got changed and headed out to Southlake for some eating and shopping. I think she looked so cute - and grown up...

Lunch at Cafe' Express - where you must pretend to smoke the bread sticks - even if you're 13,

Such a cool wall hanging at Anthropologie (where you can look and want yet never afford to buy!)...

Charming Charlie - way more our budget and so much great stuff!

And finally, a yummy dinner. It was all so fun!! My mom and my daughter - how blessed I am!

Breakfast the next morning was our goodbye and we hit the road.

It was a great time. The quality time was great and getting pumped about debate was fantastic.

First Concert!

Last week our local Groupon was for 2 tickets to see Amy Grant and Michael W. Smith in concert in Tulsa. Man, I really wanted to go! My very first ever concert was to see Amy Grant on her Straight Ahead tour.

I was in 2nd grade. I was OBSESSED with Amy Grant. I owned every album she had ever made and knew every single word to every single song. We are talking songs like Fat Baby and Grape Grape Joy. Somewhere my mom has a picture of me all dressed in my white dress to go to the concert. Opening for her that night was some guy I had never heard of, Michael W. Smith. One of the outfits she wore that night was turquoise pants with a white top and a hot pink blazer (shoot - I really think I have pictures of this somewhere!). I went home and tried to mimic the outfit with some blue pants I had and a corduroy burgundy blazer. It was hideous. But I stood in front of the mirrors in my bedroom pretending to be Amy Grant for hours.

Anyhoo - I didn't go.

BUT, last week me big kids went to THEIR first concert. It was the Rock -n- Worship Roadshow with several groups including Hawk Nelson, Mercy Me, and Jars of Clay. They were so excited...

They met up with some of our bestest friends...

They even got to meet Hawk Nelson. SO cool...

Meanwhile - the Littles and I celebrated our time together with a trip to Braums and the Winnie the Pooh movie we rented from the library. I let them get whatever they wanted at Braums. Normally they just get a kid cup. Our entire family gets ice cream at Braums for under $10! But when the restrictions came off... I paid $12 just for these three to get ice cream. Hilarious.

Wilson got the banana split. It was huge...

 Tyson ordered the Candy Bar Sundae...

 And little Pippa got the big Brownie Sundae...

 Needless to say, they were thrilled and none of them ate all their ice cream.

It was so fun to hang out with my little loves. At one point while we were sitting at the table in Braums I was talking to Tyson about something and when Ty answered me Wilson says "Red Herring."  I looked at him with a questioning face and he explained "Ty just did a red herring. He didn't really answer the question." It was so funny o me that his little ears have been listening to our Logic lessons. All three of them spend the next few minutes calling "red herring" on each other. It was pretty funny.

SO - it was a great night for all the Woodards - children and parents.