SOOOO many things and people to be Thankful for!

The Beckner Family made the loong trip to Missouri for the Thanksgiving Holidays...and let's just say I am thankful that we made it there and back safely and I am thankful for getting to borrow a DVD player and for books on tape!!!

We stopped off in St. Louis first to see Grandpa, Barb, Parker and Kaitlyn and the amazing St. Louis ZOO. We had a great time...even if it was really cold! So Thankful that Barb stayed back to babysit little Bryn!

Had to climb on the beetle...I am thankful that it was not real!

We then, drove over to Kansas City to see lots more family! Uncle Chris and Aunt Andrea came up from Texas...Brynlee loved Uncle Chris...Thankful for an Uncle who will be a wonderful daddy....soon :)!

Over at Great Grandma Baker and Dale's house...Hadley held their cat hostage...she loved it...I am just thankful that the cat did not claw her way out of that hold!

Traveling with little ones is really hard because they miss naps, go to bed late and are just exhausted...so Thankful that Reese got in a little nap one day...she was passed out!

Uncle Dale and Cameron showed us their chickens and the girls loved them...poor chickens were running wild to get away from these little redheads...I am so Thankful that we got to leave the chicken there! :)

The girls and Great Grandma Baker...so Thankful for this lady!

Great Grandma love

I could have taken this picture 3-5 times a day...every day. These two loved sitting at the bar watching Aunt Joyce cook up so many delicious meals. So thankful for Joyce and Mike who hosted our family of 5 and in Jason's words...we ate like Kings...Joyce is a fabulous cook!

See that grin...she is saying how Thankful she is that she started crawling!!!

And...when crawling happens...it opens a whole lot of other things...like trying to get electrical sockets...I told her "no" and she just looked at me and grinned! Thankful for sweet smiles!

Never fear...big sister to the rescue...So thankful that Hadley problem-solved for me...she stood in front of the outlet!

Trying to get a family picture...Reese was not in the mood...that is life with a 4 year old going on 14! I still love this picture...Thankful for this family!

Brynlee playing with Anna and Katie...she is so thankful for them...so are we! It is so nice to have the older kids really loving on and playing with our girls.

Hadley and Reese in heaven with Aunt Joyce! Hadley would have let Aunt Joyce hold her all week if she could have! Once again...so thankful for family who loves on our girls!

The girls with Great Grandma Beckner...I took so many pictures of these 4 together...and seriously this is the best I got! The girls loved seeing Grandma and we are so Thankful for her!

Reese and Hadley with Grandpa, Barb and Kaitlyn. The girls were so excited to stay at Grandpa's house our first and last night! We are more than grateful for our wonderful hosts...and our 4 babysitters! (we wish you lived closer)

The girls with Annie and Chris...we decided to let them have a lot of quality time with the girls to prepare them for their new addition....so excited for them...this summer the girls will have a new cousin! So Thankful for Annie and Chris!

The trip would not have been near as entertaining without Parker and Kaitlyn's dog, Patches! Reese carried him around everywhere...Thankful that he survived, Hadley chased him everywhere...Thankful she survived, and Brynlee just watched him and grinned...Thankful for that!

Love from Grandpa...thankful for his granddaughters

The girls, so thankful for their best buddies, Parker and Kaitlyn!

We had a great trip...we did not get to see all of our family...but we are so thankful for each and every family member and friend that God has put in our lives! Hopefully we can all remember to be thankful 365 days a year...not just one!

All is quiet...can't be good!

Not to always be thinking the worst...but 9 times out of 10...if the house is quiet and by that I mean if Hadley is quiet...it is normally not good news. It could mean that pasta or beans or other things from the cabinet are being dumped out...it could mean that my makeup bag is being investigated...my purse is being raided...tooth paste is being squeezed (not on a toothbrush)...toilets are being played in...OH THE LIST GOES ON!!

But the other day I was quite surprised...in a good way! Reese was at school and I was finishing feeding Brynlee her lunch. All of the sudden I realized that Hadley was not in the room...and I did not hear a sound. I dropped the spoon and immediately began to look for her...

Here she is...sooo sweet...just sitting on Reese's bed "reading" her books!

The moments like this make me love being a mom 100% and being able to see these moments during the day with them is priceless! Hadley is a handful...but she is so darn cute and sweet that it is hard to get mad at her...even when you happen to step into a gob of toothpaste on the floor!

Sometimes it's hard to be RED and BLACK

The Real RED and BLACK that is....at least living in Alabama...sometimes when you don't "roll with the tide" or " yell "war eagle" it can be hard here....BUT NOT TODAY! GOOO DAWGS!!! Since our household is full of Bulldogs...(and one alligator...just kidding babe...we pull for the Gators too...except for that one day a year!)...we feel a little isolated in Alabama...but our girls have already been set straight from the beginning!

One little bulldog...Starting them early...Reese at 19 months old

Two little Bulldogs...Reese (3 1/2) Hadley (13 months)

Three little bulldogs...going strong...even stronger today!!!

*New Post Below*

NINE

Brynlee Noel is 9 months old!

Brynlee is still such a sweet baby and still really laid back. She just sits back and enjoys the shows that Reese and Hadley put on all day long! She has 4 teeth and grinds them...which gives my spine the shivers! And, as you can see she has a lot of hair! When the girls are in the tub washing her hair...she literally has almost as much as Hadley!

Brynlee is following Hadley's trail of taking her time with moving around. She does not crawl yet...she moves backwards and when she is sitting up she scoots all around! While I want her to crawl...there are days like yesterday that I am grateful that she is content to hang out. I took the girls to Pump it Up and Bryn just sat, smiled and watched most of the time.

She loves "reading" books and really loves being in the mix with everyone! Brynlee has started eating finger foods and she is doing really well! Bananas, pears, sweet potatoes, beans, bread, chicken and tofu are our staples right now! She will also try to take anything and everything that you have in your hand!

Brynlee loves to babble..."Dada" is still the favorite...but ever since Hadley's famous "Dirty Dog" phrase I swear Brynlee says it when Hadley does!

She LOVES to dance! Shocking since that is all Reese and Hadley do! Anytime there is any hint of music she starts moving her whole body and grinning!

Hamburger Cupcakes!

Don't worry they are really good...and Reese had that same reaction when I told her we were going to make them! But, once she saw the ingredients she was sold!

Don't judge my hands...I was trying to hide my chipped nail polish...and on this one the lettuce may be a little drippy!I know you are all dying to do this and to see the finished product...so what you need...
A very willing assistant

One that is very hardworking... A Taste Tester...

(don't worry that spatula was not used after this picture was taken!)While I wish I was one of those people who takes pictures of every step of the process...this is about as far as I got. The hamburger buns are actually just mini cupcakes...Betty Crocker yellow cake mix and mini muffin tins...cut them in half and there you go!

See...told you I did not take pictures of the steps...so viola...the final product! Aren't they so cute! I mean I am no Martha Stewart but I was pretty proud that I tried something and it actually worked (I have had a few failures...ok more than a few on things like this)

So why? Well, Reese's class is working on writing their letters and early reading...so this week they were on the letter "H" and so Reese was in charge of an "H" snack! I was trying to be creative and not so plain...I may have been that mom who sent carrot sticks...trying to be healthy! So, I found this on one of my favorite blogs, Bakerella, (please note it is one of those blogs that 99.9% of the stuff I can't do and don't even attempt...but if I did these...anyone can!)

You can find the exact recipe on Bakerella, mine was not an exact copy of hers.

I used

1 box Betty Crocker yellow cake mix (used egg beaters instead of eggs)

1 box Betty crocker fudge brownies (used applesauce instead of oil and eggbeaters for eggs)

I did not use cupcake liners...just baked them straight in the pan

I did not have the "handy" circle cutter that she has...so I improvised..I tried any and every little round plastic thing until I found a new bubble bottle top that worked!

1 container of Betty Crocker cream cheese icing

Yellow, Green and Red food coloring that I had

Sesame seeds..(these are key...it makes them look so real!)

They were a HUGE hit with the kiddos...and they are really tasty!

A little comedy

I could (should) do a post about this one every week...about how stinking funny she is! Seriously she cracks us up all the time...her timing on things is amazing! I just have to share what she said today...

I was putting laundry away in my room...Hadley was on our bed "reading" some of her books. I began to hear loud thuds on the floor....which I knew was the sound of her tossing the books to the ground. So, I called out from my closet "Hadley, I hope you are not throwing your books onto the floor"...to which she replied.."I hope you're...not a dirty dog"! Yes...she did...but actually it sounded like "I hope you're not a derrtay dawwg".

I just stood there in my closet, trying not to laugh and trying to figure out how in the world she came up with that. I finally walked out into the room to see her sitting on the bed "reading" her book, Harry the Dirty Dog! So, it made sense now...but seriously cracked me up!