No Soliciting?

I am frequently approached at my front door with "deals" from solicitors. I have this fierce looking rooster with a sign, but...
So, what does "no soliciting" mean to you? I think it means "no flyers stuck to my door and no ringing my doorbell to sell me anything...unless you are a girlscout!"
I have had a few solicitors actually say "what does soliciting mean?"... duh. Anyway, the sign clad rooster may not ward of solicitors, but it's pretty cute.

Love those Grandparents!!!

We were so blessed to have both sets of grandparents "travel" to our home for Christmas! They actually all live within 10 minutes of our house, but came to spend the night on Christmas eve so they could share in the magic of Christmas morning! We really enjoyed this special treat. Our lives are richly blessed by their presence in our life!

Merry Christmas Everyone

So, it's Christmas evening and everyone in my house is tucked in to bed after a wonderful day filled with good food, wonderful gifts and lots of laughter. My favorite memories... hearing the girls squeel at the new wii from Gramma and Grampa; seeing the joy of a new sewing machine for the girls from Mama J and Papa J; bread pudding; an airplane ticket from my hubby so I can spend a long weekend with my sister in Florida; a perfectly cooked prime rib; a house full of people I love; knowing that because Christ sent His son into my world, I am His child for eternity.

I tend to forget to look at the big picture of life. Instead, I get bogged down in the trivial day-to-day details that don't really matter (is the house clean enough? are my clothes cute enough? does my family appreciate all I do for them? did I recycle my trash properly?) I forget to enjoy each and every moment with my girls. I forget that someday the girls will be grown and gone. I want to soak them up and pour myself in to them. I want to love my husband UNselfishly. I want to love him above all the "things" in my life that don't matter. I want to respect and adore him every moment I live. I know that all these things are possible when I put my trust in my Heavenly Father. Christmas is my wake-up call... I cannot let another moment go by that is wasted. It's time to Celebrate a New Year! It's time to commit to loving others more than I love myself.

The Campaign Trail

Okay, so you need to know that this is a photo of my hubby and me as "Sarah and Todd Pallin" on the campaign trail on Halloween night. We had such a blast! My kids felt a bit over-shaddowed, but how often do we dress up anyway? Maybe more after this great experience!!! (Notice the picture is not centered "left" or "right" but "center"... sort of reflects my true political views... which I will not talk about any more anyway. There, enough said.