On being "Wordy"

I am so excited for the holidays, OK, I'll be specific, and say that I am so excited for Thanksgiving and I am so excited for CHRISTmas!!!! I sooooo wanted to beat out Jen for having my decorations up first this year. At least the inside will be all finished and done before Thanksgiving!! Our oldest is being a bit of a scrooge because she thinks I'm pushing the seasons along. These are the same kids that cry when they see a new subdivision going in because it's not natural. So the house is all lit up in November, so what?? They'll be thanking me next week, when instead of hanging garland, we can play a rousing game of phase 10 by the fire.
So now we head to Lulu's in OK for a feast... Our traveling entourage will consist of my husband, commonly known around here as "Helter- Shelter," me, obviously I am "Roywife," 3 kids, 2 four wheelers, Nana, only one specific Westie that doesn't run off, one big black Lab, and a ham. That should be interesting! Our feast menu will be:


No, that would be too verbose.


:-) :-) :-)

Afterschool snack!

It's 3:30pm. The kids walk in the house after a long day at school, drop their load of books, purses, backpacks, and coats in the entryway. Nice. Now I gotta step all over it to get through the door (we're working on this little habit). After breaking through the barrier of stuff, I find the kids getting out all kinds of food in the kitchen. Their ravenous appetite came up with an interesting mix of "nutrients." This is what they came up with:

Egg nog

chocolate cake

popcorn

and dill pickles.

You know you're a redneck...

... when the house is packed for Donkey Basketball!!!


Yes, these are grown men wearing women's undergarments, attempting to ride donkeys, and shoot hoops. There was pulling, and pushing, and after the crowd groaned in disgust, there was a cleaning, riders falling, some holding on for dear life, a sold out crowd, a concerned fire marshall, and jump to your feet cheering like when the football team scores a touchdown. Actually, we're not sure what that would sound like in Rogersville. At least it was all for a good cause. 15 Grand was raised for one of Lauren's teachers who is battling cancer. It's awesome to see how God can bring a community together, much like we are to do as a church. 

High King Peter of Narnia

This will be Nathan's all time favorite costume. It better be, I dropped some change for it! I've just never been one for storebought costumes, though. One year, he wanted to be an astronaut... he wore blue sweats with a downloaded flight patch taped to the sleeve and a trash can on his head so he could breathe some oxygen. I think that one cost about 5 bucks. I know, you can't believe it.

Our pretty little southern belle was so elegant in a floor length red ball gown that she stepped on all night. But boy, did her hair look great after 45 minutes of enduring the curling iron and piling it all on top of her head!

Lauren didn't dress up this year. Now, I will cry. She opted instead for hanging back at the house with her other non-costumed friends because they're much too old for that sort of thing. I think next year she will just have to be Queen Lucy...

Discover Bennet Springs!

There's so much to do there:

* Gather as much "dry " firewood as possible.

*Roast marshmallow over the fire and make s'mores.

*Cram 5 people and an 85lb Lab into a teeny tiny camper and attempt to sleep.

*Visit the fake copperhead and all the other live, but non-venomous snakes at the little nature center.

* Squish 7 kids around a laptop and watch "Nacho Libre."

*Play a nail biting game of "Clue."

* Enjoy a pre-buffet card game and watered down hot chocolate at the dining lodge.

*Pack up and leave just before the sun comes out and miss the most incredible day of hiking ever.

Seriously, we had a great time and made some great memories. I will definitely want to go back there for a second try. Shout out to the Breaux's for letting us borrow their camper and to the Reynolds for letting us borrow everything else we forgot.