Christmas Recap

It has been entirely too long since I posted, and we've had a lot going on, so I'm just going to hit the highs and lows. I don't have a whole lot of pictures, but I'll post what I do have later:

• We went to Angelo the weekend before Christmas for the Cauley side of things. We opened presents with my parents on friday night and had our big Barn Christmas on saturday with my dad's parents. The Barn is our favorite Christmas tradition. This year is wasn't very cold, which is actually kind of disappointing to me. We eat and then open presents, and then spend the rest of the night, and I do mean all night, playing 42 and other games. I, however, missed out on all that. I had a lovely allergy attack right after presents and O.D.'d on Benedryl, children's Benedryl at that, so I passed out halfway into the first game of scrabble. I'm told they had a lot of fun. Sunday Cameron, D'Laney and I went over to my mom's parents house to open our presents with them since we weren't going to be in Iraan for the whole holiday.
• Monday night we had our little Christmas. This will be the last year that we can do it whenever, next year D'Laney will probably understand Santa and all that. I'll have to actually hide her things, not leave the box in the living room for her to see like I did with her little kitchen this year. We didn't get her much this year, we decided to let the grandparents spoil her until she can understand a little more. We got her an adorable little kitchen that expands as she grows and a stroller and carriage for her baby dolls.
• Tuesday we headed to Iraan for the rest of the week. We spend a lot of time just hanging out with family, which is rare these days. It was nice not to have to rush and have things structured in the one and a half days that we're usually there. Cameron got to go hunting several times, one day my sister in law, Amy, and Cameron's cousin's wife, Amy, and I all went into midland for the day, and Cameron and I got to spend some time alone together. We had a pretty good week, but we were very ready to come home by Sunday. 5 days is a long time away from home, and D'Laney doesn't sleep very well when she's not in her bed.
• Tonight my brother and his girlfriend are coming to spend New Year's with us. We're going to go to bed early, cause we're old and boring like that, and watch a very full day of football tomorrow. I love New Year's Day!!
• These last couple weeks haven't been all peaches and cream. The economy right now is affecting everyone, but no area as much as the oilfield. We found out on monday, just 3 short days before Christmas, that Cameron's company is downsizing, and having only been working there 4 months, Cameron was one of the first to go. I think they wanted to do it then so they wouldn't have to pay him a bonus. It kinda puts a cloud over the holidays when you're suddenly unemployed. And it's the worst possible time of year to try to find something else. Cameron has just about decided to go back to welding, we're just not sure in what capacity. We have a couple options out there, but either one means that he'll more than likely be on the road quite a bit again. It's a scary thing, not knowing what's going to happen next week or next month. I know that something will come up, God has always taken care of us, but this is just one of those times when we're really tested to trust Him and not worry.

7 am on a saturday...ugh!

D'Laney is bright eyed and bushy tailed early this morning. Ah, I remember the days when I could just lay her in bed with us and we could go back to sleep even if she didn't. Although even that wouldn't last long.
Y'all are not going to believe this, I still don't believe it. My parents have had boxers for the last few years...Keida, a beautiful little brindle, and one of her puppies, Gus, named for Lonesome Dove, who was an athlete of a dog, except he still acted like a 2 month old puppy even though he was almost 4 years old. My folks were excited when they finally moved out to Maverick that the dogs would have a couple hundred acres to roam instead of small back yards. Well, a couple hundred acres wasn't enough. They hadn't been out there 2 weeks when the dogs ran off. We found Keida, but we never found Gus. It was just a few days later that Keida took off again, and that was the last we saw of her. That was in september, and since then, Lucas and Cadye (who are both back at home, lol) have gotten two precious little blue healer/blue lacy crosses that are sweet little girls. Well... Cadye called me late last night and said, you're not going to believe this. When she got home from work last night, who was there to greet her? None other than Keida! Just sitting there! Cadye said she's skinny, doesn't have a collar on anymore, and was a little timid, but she came when Cadye called and followed all her commands, well, both that she knew, sit and stay. She also said her breath was terrible, which makes me think she's been fending for herself all this time. It's been almost 3 months! I just can't believe it. That poor dog has been through so much, when I was in high school, she had apparently gotten into some one's sheep or goats, because daddy found her on the porch one afternoon with her butt shot off, hanging there. The vet was able to sew everything back on, the only effects are a massive scar on her haunches and her tail is crooked now, but it didn't hurt her any, she had two litters of pups. That's one tough little girl, definitely lives up to her boxer title. Since Cadye and Lucas have the two pups now, I think I'm going to try to talk Cameron into letting Keida come live with us. Our backyard is small, but at least she won't have to be tied up during the day. And she is the absolute most gentle dog I've ever been around, and that's perfect for D'Laney. But truth be told, I don't know if I'd be able to get her way from my parents, even if Cameron were to agree!

Flashback Friday

I'm running out of older pictures on my computer, I'm going to have to start scanning! This picture is from Christmas 2004, our first Christmas together, at the barn. We always have the get-together with my dad's folks in their barn. When we were little, we'd stay the night in the cold, but now that everyone is a little older, we all stay in the house and let the kids stay in the barn with the men. Christmas at the barn is by far my favorite tradition. Christmas of '04 was special for us because Cameron proposed. I have that on a disc somewhere, maybe I'll find it and post it next friday.

20 years old!

My parents are officially old... they have three kids in their 20s! Today my little sister is 20. So happy birthday, Cadye, we'll see you soon!

LOL, this always works so well when Shaunna has Addi do something like this!



And, need more proof that D'Laney is a daddy's girl?

I asked for a kiss and she just laughed...

Christmas decorations

I couldn't wait to decorate this house for Christmas, but it never crossed my mind how expensive it might be! So I just used what I had and bought very little more. Maybe next year I can add a little more. It's a lot of pictures, but I think it looks pretty cute.

No lights, just a little garland and a couple wreaths.


Welcome to the Holifield house!

No fireplace, so we hung the stockings on the stairs.

So far, D'Laney has left the presents alone, and she can't reach the tree.

Christmas card display

I used a lot of pine cones this year, and of course lots of candles!

White dishes are easy to dress up, just add a little color!

My little jar of candies. Isn't the lamp beautiful? My mother-in-law had an antique oil lamp converted to electric. I absolutely love it, it's probably one of my favorite gifts I've ever received.

The Santa on the right is bipolar. One way, it says nice, the other way, it says naughty.

a few random pics

She really does love him... just not his whiskers.

Chilaxin'... we get more use out of this thing now that we ever did when she was little.


OK, short story about this blanket. When Cameron and I decided to start our family, he was working in New Mexico for a few months and only came home once a month. When he came home for thanksgiving, well, D'Laney was born in August so you can do the math. It's totally embarassing, but it's Cameron's favorite story to tell in a large group... we burnt a couple batches of cookies the morning of thanksgiving. I really wanted a baby! plus I missed my husband, so yeah, really embarassing, but I saw this blanket at Wal-Mart and almost died laughing. D'Laney looked at me like I was crazy, but I had to have it.


Cameron was supposed to be putting D'Laney down last night. This is what I found when he didn't return. The crib didn't break, but I was worried about it.

I love these two!!

And a couple videos...

Cameron would spit in his can, and D'Laney would mimick him. I should have been mad about it, but it was so cute.

Laughing at Daddy playing peep-eye at the top of the stairs.

How long has it been?

What a week! Well, actually, more like what a 9 or 10 days! Last week, D'Laney and I spent the whole week in Angelo to help my parents get ready for 2 Thanksgivings. We squeezed a 15 month well baby in there, and I'm very pleased to report that the little munchkin isn't so little anymore! She finally hit the 20 pound mark, which puts her in the 10%. I was so relieved. She also hit the 30 inch mark, and is still in the 15% for height. Dr. Patyrak was pleased with the progress and told us that developmentally, D'Laney is in the 18-24 month range, so even though she is always going to be tiny, it hasn't held her back in any way. We spent the rest of the week shopping, cooking, and hauling dead sheep (daddy's having trouble with some wild dogs.) Thursday we had a wonderful day with my mom's parents and one of her brothers, the other one lives in Idaho. We ate entirely too much and watched the cowboys and the horns win big. Friday, Cameron and I went to town, without D'Laney, and got to eat and go to a show. We saw Australia, and it was great, I highly recommend it! Saturday, we had another Thanksgiving with my dad's side, although the football kind of spoiled the meal. Stinking Baylor, they just couldn't pull it out. And Oklahoma just had to win convincingly. Ugh, I can't stand it any time OU wins. *Sigh* oh well. Sunday afternoon, Cameron, D'Laney, and I headed to Iraan where we dropped D'Laney off. I had never, ever spent more than a few hours away from her, but it was time. I wasn't worried about D'Laney, she'll do great, but I was worried about me. But it's been a couple days now, and I only cried once, and even that was because of that stupid (but great!) new Darius Rucker song. Yesterday, I got most of the rest of my christmas shopping done, Cameron helped me put the tree up, and today I'm going to finish decorating, wrap what I bought yesterday, and take a nap! Tomorrow I'll leave for Iraan as soon as Aubrey is picked up and get my baby! I do miss her like crazy, but my goodness, it's so nice to be able to get some stuff done without little helping hands. You'd think this post would be loaded with pictures from the very busy week, but my camera decided to suck this week. It won't hold a charge at all. I'm going to buy a new battery pack today, so hopefully that's all it needs, and I can get some pictures of the house all decked out. The second I walked in to this house for the first time I couldn't wait to decorate it for christmas, and it's been a lot of fun. I hope everyone had a great Thanksgiving!!!

Flashback friday and 15 months!!!

Today my little Laney bug is 15 months old! So in honor of this momentous milestone, today's flashback is devoted to the number 15. We know what was going on 15 months ago today, but what about 15 years ago?

I was in the 4th grade and had just moved to Merkel. My friends were Blair Gorbett, Stephani Hart, Katie Boyd, and Janae Goldsmith. I played basketball for the first time this year and fell in love with the sport. Cameron was a freshman at Abilene Christian and wasn't playing football yet. He lived with his brother and ran around with a group of people that included Jayma Goldsmith, Janae's older sister, but obviously Cameron and I had no idea the other existed.

I could find any pictures that I'm sure are from the fall of '93, so I just got as close as I could:

I'm pretty sure this was christmas '93 at the Holifield house.

This picture was actually from '92 when we were still in Ira, but I doubt I changed much in a year. Doesn't D'Laney look a lot like Lucas in this picture?

And, because I can't have a picture post with out pictures of D'Laney, 15 months ago, a proud new daddy showed of his little girl to her very large, excited family. (the date stamp is wrong, I promise we have her right birthday.)

Rubber ducky, you're the one...

D'Laney loves bathtime! I finally got the camera out to record a little of it. She has such a cute personality. Contrary to what the sash and pic in the yearbook say, I don't have much of one, so she must get it from her daddy. She talks constantly, and we know where she gets that! She's also very very loving. She gives us hugs and kisses all day long, and whenever you're holding her, she pats your back. Someday, no day soon, but someday, she'll make a great big sister. Here are a few bathtime pics and videos from the last couple nights:

christmas cards

Once again, Keva has done a wonderful job taking pictures of D'Laney. We had a short little session last week in order to get some pictures for christmas cards. D'Laney was not in a model mood, but she got some good ones. Cameron and I couldn't agree on which picture to use or which card we liked, so we decided to split the order in half and get two different ones. Since our families are huge and we won't be able to send cards to many friends, I wanted to post them for y'all to see. I think they both turned out great.







Also, we finally got new bedding. Actually, I should say that we finally got bedding, period. We've never had any to speak of, we've always just used quilts. Penny's was having a big sale last week, so I decided that it was time we had something nice. What we got wasn't my first choice, or my second or third really, but it's what Cameron and I could agree on. Apparently, we have very different taste in bedding. I really like what we got, though, and I do plan on adding to it. Right now all we ordered was the comforter, shams, and a couple of valances. I want the euro shams and a couple little pillows to go with it. Not a lot of pillows, I think too much is ridiculous, but it looks kind of bare with just the two little shams that are on there now. Now I can pick out a wall color and get some things up. The walls are so bare right now. Notice that the valance is crooked? We're lucky the window is not shattered. The drill gun and I had some issues, and I almost sent it through the window. I'll let Cameron fix it when he gets home.

At my wits end...

I can't get that child to eat! All D'Laney wants to eat is cheese and bread like things, waffles, pancakes, etc. I know she needs more than grilled cheese sandwiches every meal. She was never picky when she was still eating out of jars, she'd eat anything I put in front of her. I don't know if it's because of how late we started on solids, so I'm trying to be patient with her. But she will not let me feed her anymore, she wants to do it herself. If she can't pick it up, she won't eat it. And very little of what she actually puts in her mouth stays there, she'll spit most things out. I'm sure it's just a phase and that soon she'll be hungry enough to eat what she's given, but with our little scare a few months ago, I worry that she's not getting enough nutrients. I guess I'm just going to have to admit that I've got a picky child and learn to deal with it. But I'm not going to be one that makes a meal, and then makes something special for one person. I'm not a short order cook, my kids will have to learn to eat what's for supper or do without. Wow, my lack of sleep the last few nights is really coming out! D'Laney has been a little sick, and I know that has a lot to do with why she's not eating very well the last few days, but this is nothing new.

Whew, ok, ranting over.

On a happier note, we are completely off bottles. I hate that we ever had to start on them, but it was just for 3 months, now we're exclusively on a sippy. We thought that we were off of the paci too, but D'Laney had other plans. She went a couple days without one, and was fine, but she found the ziplock with them and for the first time has developed a vicious attachment to them. Since she was born she really only ever had a paci when she was sleeping or when we were driving, but now she wants one all the time. I'm going to give her a little more time since we just took her off the bottle, but I don't think she'll miss a paci for long. We'll see.

It makes me so sad, though, that she's hitting all these big girl milestones. No bottle and no paci... next it will be a toddler bed and potty training. Which reminds me, moms of toddlers, when did y'all move to the big bed and at what age did you try potty training? I can read all the books I want, I'd rather hear from moms I know and trust.

Flashback Friday....late

It has been brought to my attention that I forgot my flashback friday!

Sibling edition:

Cameron with his brother Jason. I don't have any pictures of his sister Amy on my computer. Cameron is the youngest of 3, Jason is a little less than 2 years older, and Amy is 3 years older than Jason.

This was taken when they still lived in Crane. I'm guessing it's around 1977 or 78 based on how old the boys look. They used to be so sweet!

They took this picture in Branson in 1991. It's pretty fitting, these two are definitely outlaws.

Cadye, me, and Lucas at the lake outside Snyder around 1992. Lucas is 2 years younger than me, and Cadye is nearly 3 years behind him.

At my uncle's wedding in 2002 with all the cousins on the Deere side.

New Music

I just picked up this CD.

It's a husband and wife group and I think they are awesome. If you like good old fashioned, traditional country music, you should definitely check it out. The best song on the CD, I think, is called Tonight, Cowboy, You're Mine. It's country romance at its best.

Where was I?

1 minute ago: getting D'Laney up from her nap

1 month ago: worried about my baby's health and growth

5 years ago: finishing up my last semester at ASU. No, I wasn't graduating in record time. After this semester I decided to take some time off, save some money, refocus, etc... Instead, I met Cameron, fell in love, and never went back!

7 years ago: I had just moved to Wall. New school, new friends, new everything at 17 years old. It was the most stressful time of my life. But it was the best thing my parents have ever done for me.

10 years ago: high school, baby! I was cheering, playing basketball and softball, and running track, and since Grape Creek was a new school with small numbers, all that was varsity. I was so proud to get a letter jacket when I was a freshman!

I tag: Amy G., Marlayna S., Lindsey J., & Cameron B.

Am I pregnant?

Ok, so if you have a blog roll and saw that title, you probably couldn't get to this post fast enough. Just so you know, I'm not pregnant. At least I don't think so;) I'll tell you why I thought so. I woke up yesterday in a terrible mood. I was just mad, no reason, just aggravated at everything. I wasn't yelling at D'Laney or biting Cameron's head off, but I was acting just like I do when I'm mad about something. I get really quiet and just want to keep to myself. I'm very, very rarely in a bad mood. However, every since D'Laney was born and my lovely little monthly visitor returned, the couple of days leading up to it are no fun in this house. I've never PMSed in my life, but I am not a nice person towards my family for a couple days, and then it goes away and I'm my jolly old self again. So back to yesterday, for some reason, I was just pissed. And I knew it wasn't PMS, that was last week. I thought to myself, it's not a big deal, everyone is allowed a bad mood every now and then, and I'm long overdue. The three of us got up, Cameron made breakfast, and we went about our normal saturday routine, ya know, settling in for a long day of football. Only I didn't want to watch football. I wanted to clean my house. I realize that most of you don't know me well enough to know how crazy that sounds, but rest assured, it was very out of character. But I dive right in. And I'm not just talking usual stuff. I scrubbed both bathrooms top to bottom, not just the commodes, sinks, and tubs. I washed windows, I dusted ceiling fans, I reorganized my laundry room closet. I couldn't stop myself. Cameron and D'Laney were watching TV and would just stare at me every time I would walk by. I was elbow deep in a toilet when it hit me...oh my goodness, this must be what nesting is like. I never went through that when I was pregnant with D'Laney. I knew I wasn't actually nesting, but the thought did cross my mind. Next I decided to box up all of D'Laney's clothes that were too small for her. It took me over an hour, but I filled up a very large plastic tub. I cried and cried. I'm not extremely sentimental, but I do form memory attachments to clothes, especially hers. She had some precious, precious outfits that she was so sweet in. It was like I was boxing up her babyhood. I was so sad, way more emotional than I should have been. I thought, What's wrong with me? I've been mad for no reason, all day long. All I want to do is clean, and I'm crying like a baby over onsies and socks! Am I pregnant?! I have to admit, I seriously, seriously thought about it for a while. I had to fight the urge to see if I had a pregnancy test left over in the medicine box. Surely I'm not, just last week... Well, I know I'm not. No, I didn't take a test, but my demeanor returned to normal and I'm as lazy as ever today. I have no reason to be, I've been good about taking my BC, but still, I was a little scared there for a while. We definitely want more kids, just not yet. I'd like for D'Laney to be a little older. I just hope I don't act like I did yesterday!!

Flashback Friday

With little ones, everyone always wants to know which parent the kiddo looks like. When I look at D'Laney, I see Cameron, but a lot of people say she looks just like me. I do think she looks a little like my brother. So for this flashback, baby pictures, for you to compare.


Isn't he just the cutest thing ever?! D'Laney definitely has his profile.
(Notice the guitar? He started early!)



I expect to see that expression often. And poor Lance!



Lucas is going to kill me!


OK, maybe she looks a little like me, lol...

Awesome fountain

My friend Skylar email this to me. I thought it was really neat. It's amazing what some people can come up with. You might want to save it to your computer so you can see it full screen, unless you know how to do that from here. In that case, let me know how you do it.

Looking back and ahead

Bullets about the weekend:

• We didn't do a costume for halloween. D'Laney is too little to trick or treat, and we still don't know the neighborhood all that well, so we decided to stay home and hand out candy instead. She did have a super cute "Daddy's under my spell" shirt that she was wearing, so we were a little festive.


• Cameron had to work all weekend:(


• Saturday my mom came to see us. We didn't do much, just went into town and did a little shopping, but it's always fun when we have visitors.


• Saturday night, well, I still can't talk about it.


• Sunday I finally got to see sweet little Eli and Landon. Dustin and Amy were able to bring their boys home and since my mom was here, she watched D'Laney for me and I drove over to see them. Even though D'Laney hasn't been sick a day in her life, I don't want to take a chance on her passing anything on to the boys. She'll just have to wait a few more weeks before she can attack them with kisses. I'm going to go back over there tomorrow to help Amy all that I can. Dustin has to go back to work tomorrow and their Nana can't be there until Wednesday, so tomorrow D'Laney's Nana (Cameron's mom) is coming to hang out with her so I can go back to Snyder.

I'm having a hard time not worrying about the election tomorrow. I don't really worry a whole lot about anything, probably to a fault, but I try really hard to just do something about the things that I can and leave the worrying to God. Tomorrow, though... I am fervently praying that the people of this great country will make the right decision.

This election is really having an effect on me. I'm not a mean or confrontational person, I hate confrontation. I don't even send food back if it's not cooked right, but today I was confrontational. As I was leaving the bank this morning a car pulled in beside me with Obama stickers all over the windshield. I guess I was making a face as I was reading them, because when the woman got out and saw me she gave me the worst go-to-hell look I've ever seen. I don't know what came over me but I looked her square in the eye and said "Are you sharing the wealth?" I was immediately embarrassed and turned around and got in my car without looking back. I can't believe I said that!! I avoid eye contact with strangers, I certainly don't try to pick fights with them! What is this election doing to me?!

I'm nauseous...

but what a game!

Flashback Friday!

I steal all my ideas from friends! Page has started posting old pictures and I think it's a great idea. Though I've known her husband's family for many, many years, there were several years when I didn't see or talk to them, and I've only known Page for about 5 years now, so I love seeing all her old pics. So I'm stealing the idea, and I would love for all of you to do the same. I love looking at peoples' old pictures. Here's my first flashback, Cameron and I in high school...of course not at the same time!



He looks like such a baby, and I was so skinny!

Grab a tissue

I just saw this on Oprah and bawled my eyes out. Thank the good Lord for the health of my baby and the babies of those I love.

http://www.oprah.com/media/20081001_tows_99balloons

Eliot's parents are about to welcome a second child who, as far as they can tell, is perfectly healthy.

My little Picasso

Didn't she do a good job? I found some triangular crayons, which are great for little fingers, and sat her down with some paper. I was pretty impressed that she just picked them up and knew exactly what to do with them. I didn't help her at all, she did it all on her own. Cameron laughed that I labeled the picture and put it on the fridge. He'll really bust a gut if he knew that I put it on here, but I set this blog up for the exclusive use of bragging on my daughter. My sister-in-law Amy is ridiculously talented when it comes to art, and my dad and uncle Levi are pretty talented too. Maybe D'Laney will pick up on some of that.

feels like saturday

The oil show is in town this week, and apparently it's a pretty big deal. I'd never heard of it, but it's huge in this area. Cameron's company has had a lot going on with the show, and had two very different parties this week which we were required to attend. Tuesday night we went to the Hog Pit Pub and Grub, and it was exactly like it sounds, pretty much a biker bar. But Stallion had rented the whole place for the night, and we had some great bbq. There was a lot of drinking and smoking and a couple live bands, but we were able to stay in the back out of the way. I got to meet some of the guys that Cam works with and the bands were great. Last night was about a 180 from the night before. It was a banquet at the Hilton in downtown Midland with the owners of the company who were up from Houston. It was a much more formal atmosphere. We just ate and listened to the head safety man talk about how well all the employees were doing, and then they gave away door prizes and we left. Because they've been so busy with everything, Cameron's office shut down until Monday. I don't remember the last time he had a 3 day weekend, much less a 4 day weekend. He did have to run to a rig at lunch today, but he was only gone for a couple hours. We slept late, ate breakfast, then laid around watching westerns for most of the day. It was wonderful! But it sure felt like saturday, and I kept thinking, when does the game start? Tomorrow we're going to try to go to Lubbock for the day, but other than that, we have absolutely no plans for the rest of the weekend. I bet we'll find something to do, maybe we'll finally get the buggy shed cleaned out. The buggy shed is what we call the garage. I don't think it's 100 years old like the house, but it's pretty close. I guess it's supposed to be a garage, but there is no way a car could fit in it. As soon as we can afford it, we're tearing it down and putting a real garage and storage room in it's place, hopefully with a covered patio attached as well! We have a long list of things like that we'll probably never get to, but at least we have an idea of how we'd like the house to look. Wow this post has been all over the place, but you're brain isn't supposed to work on saturday, right;)

some pictures and videos

Pumpkin patch and hay ride with the Sheffield church. Not a fantastic picture of us (the photography is good, just not the subjects!), but I can't remember the last time the three of us had a pic of any kind taken. You might notice that Cameron is having a difficult time quitting dipping, lol. But it's ok, I'm having a hard time getting off my butt so I can lose weight.

This girl loves to dance! Any time any music comes on, and I mean any music, be it on the radio or just a little commercial, she starts to boogie. Right now it's cute, but there is some serious shimmying going on that we're going to have to have discussions about in a few years.

D'Laney has begun trying to say her name. It sounds an awful lot like daddy, but the majority of what she says sounds like daddy. We're also starting with the please and thank yous. Please sounds like, you guessed it, daddy, but she's beginning to get thank you down. Just a minute ago she said it without being prompted when I handed her some juice. Cameron and I really make an effort to say things like to each other so that our kids will hear it on a daily basis and it just becomes second nature. We'll see how that works...

And finally, today I let D'Laney try to feed herself completely on her own. She did really well, only about 1/4 of the food ended up on her, the chair, floor, me, etc...the rest went in her mouth. When she was done, I did the cold weather version of hosing her down, naked in the sink with the sprayer. As she's learning new things, so am I. Like don't wear socks when she's eating something mushy, because no matter how careful you tiptoe around, your feet will find the food on the floor. And that not only will the kiddo need to change clothes, so will I. Do they make bibs for moms? And I'm going to have to break down and get a swiffer. My old fashioned broom and mop is not very practical with what I've got to clean up on a daily basis. I need a little hand vac too, maybe one of those cute cones or curves.

And when it was all said and done...

Reminder: two carbon monoxide detectors!

I love the smell of running the heater for the first time in a while! Not really, it's pretty bad, but I'm just so excited it's finally cold enough. I'm just going to have to remember carbon monoxide detectors next time I go to WalMart. I've never had a gas heater before, it makes me a little nervous. And it is cold! Well, OK, not that cold, maybe 65, but it's freezing in this house, so I decided to try out the heater. It works great, the house was a lot warmer almost immediately, but it sure stinks. I have candles burning all over the house, which, by the way Mom, I'm running low on all of them;) I love a good candle. Circle E is my favorite, and not just because they last so long. They are so seasonal. Nothing makes me think of Christmas more than their Christmas Spirit candle, and the country morning (Cinnamon and pumpkin spice) is thanksgiving in a sniff. *Sigh* I love this time of year! My husband makes fun of me because I smell everything. But it seems like I have to assign a smell to something for it to stick in my head. I can think of baseball, and automatically I can smell the grass or the leather of a glove. Or a new baby and smell Johnson's lotion. My MamaDeere's house will always have the same smell, and I can even smell it on blankets that she gave my mom years ago, the smell is still there. I'm beginning to understand why my husband calls me a freak...

Meet Eli and Landon

I just wanted to share a picture of D'Laney's two new cousins with everyone. I know a lot of y'all have been praying for these little guys. They were born Wed. and are in really good health. Both are breathing on their own and they're able to share a bed. I'm so glad D'Laney will have these two cousins close to her own age. Technically they're 2nd or 3rd cousins, I'm not sure how it goes... Cameron and Dustin, the boys' daddy, are 1st cousins, but in our family it doesn't matter. D'Laney, Eli, and Landon will be around each other so much growing up they won't know the difference. All of Cameron's nephews and his niece are a lot older than D'Laney, and she probably won't have any cousins on my side for a while either, so she's stuck right in the middle. Thank goodness for large, close extended families. I stole this pic from Amy, we actually haven't seen the boys yet, they're still in the NICU, but I just wanted to show them off. They're so beautiful and so healthy, and we just love them so much already, never mind that they're 2nd or 3rd cousins-in-law or whatever!

Eli on the left, Landon on the right. Dustin said that he's glad one is a little bigger than the other...it's the only way to tell them apart! Isn't it funny how their hands are exactly the same?!