Koopman Kraziness

Jeff and I took Kamden out to see his first Christmas lights last night. The Rotary Club in our city puts on a Winter Wonderland every year with both a drive through and walk through in the zoo with TONS of lights. Kamden was absolutely captivated! He loved it! We even took him by "Santa's House" and let him sit on his lap. I was a little worried he might freak out but he did really well. Here are just a few pictures of the fun! Before we even got a chance to leave the house, he conked out. And no, we didn't leave him in that position. I promise. With the exception of my double chin, this is a great picture! ;) This one was SO cute. It started out looking like the Charlie Brown Christmas Tree and ended up huge with lots of presents under it! Our little elf... Waiting with Jeff outside of Santa's House This was the SWEETEST Santa Claus. His first question was, "Uh oh...you're the littlest guy I've talked to yet. Are you going to be okay with me? ...

We celebrated Thanksgiving early this year with Jeff's family. We all got together the Saturday before and had a great time with all his brothers, sisters, nieces and nephews. I got a few pictures and thought I'd share. Kamden's first time in a high chair. He LOVED it! (At home he usually just uses the Bumbo) Posing with Momma at the end of the day Jeff isn't a proud daddy at ALL....:) Not long after we got home, he was crashed out in the swing... And this...is the official "How to Know You Had a Successful Holiday" picture..

About a week ago, I posted the following list of "need to's" and thought I'd give an update on how it's all going! (I know that at LEAST my bestie reads this because she talked to me about it at church last Sunday!) *Christmas cards are written, but all still need to be addressed, the family Christmas letter must be completed for those it will go out tp with the cards, and I need yet to buy postage and of course, mail them. (Deadline-12/1) With the exception of about 10 cards, this is FINISHED. I have to go and buy the postage tomorrow, but they will be mailed out by Tuesday and I feel great about it. Especially considering that the last TWO YEARS I have written out cards and NEVER sent them. *Finish packing up non essentials in the house and get all boxes moved into a storage facility. (Deadline 12/12) Blah, I wish there were more to report on this one. The kitchen is pretty much packed with the exception of bare bones essentials, but I've definitely not ...

We are t-minus 30 days and counting until we leave to spend a couple of weeks in Texas. I am very excited to leave for our trip, but the reality of it is that we have a LOT to do before we head out. *Christmas cards are written, but all still need to be addressed, the family Christmas letter must be completed for those it will go out tp with the cards, and I need yet to buy postage and of course, mail them. (Deadline-12/1) *Finish packing up non essentials in the house and get all boxes moved into a storage facility. (Deadline 12/12) *Wrap Christmas gifts and finish making gifts. (Deadline 12/7) *Finish planning Jeff's going away party. (Deadline 11/30) *Complete FRG leadership courses. (Deadline 12/12 but can be pushed as far as mid February) *Get signed up for dental hygenist courses. (Deadline 12/12) *Finish packaging and arranging homemade Christmas gifts. (Deadline 12/7) *Videotape Jeff reading bedtime stories and singing songs to Kamden to use while he is in Iraq. (Deadline 1...

With all the craziness that has gone on for our little family of three lately (getting ready for deployment, trying to sell the house, etc.) we have been trying to get out and do some fun things as a family that are 1) cost effective, 2) fun for all three of us, and 3) memory makers. I have to say that this Veteran's Day we got the chance to do all three. We started the day early and finished last minute picking up and spot cleaning for a prospective buyer walk-through and an Open House through our real estate company. After giving Jeff a quick hair cut (which I have to brag about a little because it didn't turn out badly at all!) we went over to Walgreen's. The stores were offering a free photo session with a one pose photo package for any veterans who came in in uniform. Jeff polished up quite nicely, as always, we dressed Kamden in his camo and I got into my FRG and 32nd Brigade Support gear and we got a family picture done as well as one of Jeff with Kamden in their...

Getting the house in order to sell it has taught me a lot of things. First, I really am kind of a neat freak. Not to the point that I'm going to spaz out if there's a little dust or clutter here or there, but to the point that seeing the clutter accumulate does irritate the heck out of me. For another, I really like the idea of being a homemaker. Not just in name but in deed and lifestyle. Here are a few of the things I've been up to... Baking Goodies I decided to have a "frugal" but generous Christmas as far as gifts this year and am baking ALL our gifts for family. As of last night, I have 36 of the 54 loaves I'm baking finished as well as 70 of the 90 muffins. Here are a couple of pictures of the first batch of baking. The deep freezer in the basement is getting full! (To keep on with my "Homemaking skills" and to kind of explain the weird green goo in the ice cube trays pictured above....) Making Baby Food Okay, I can not even begin to tel...