December Highlights

Can you believe that December is over? I think it was all a blur. It goes way too fast. Here is a peek of some of our fun.
- We love making a gingerbread house every year. However, next year I think we are ready to each make our own smaller houses.

- Kaylee and Kyler had their piano recital. They both played great!
- We enjoyed a family party at Emily's where Santa came to visit us.
- We've put 3 puzzles together, with one to go. It's fun to have the kids helping me some so I don't have to do them by myself.
-We had a great Christmas with new jammies! One of our Christmas Eve activities included making these little pom pom animals. The kids loved them!
-We spent 2 days to the north visiting our Grandparents. It was freezing cold! But, we still had a great time visiting and playing.We look forward to a new year with less stress and more fun. Sounds great to me.

Library Book

My kids really like getting new books from the library at school each week. Last week Kyler came home really excited about his new book find. As I looked at the book I was confused as to why he picked this book. He excitedly said, "Guess why I picked this book?!?""Because is has its own bookmark!"
I'm not sure we will read the contents of this book to actually use the bookmark, but apparently it is pretty cool when a book has its own bookmark!

Kid Fun

This was my attempt at being a fun mom yesterday. Corn Flake Wreaths. Sticky fun.

Acts of Service

Today I saw a neighbor boy outside shoveling snow off the sidewalks. I opened my door and asked him if he would shovel the driveway of my empty rental house for $2. He said sure and got right to work. While he was still shoveling I went over to give him the $2 I promised (which I thought was a steal for me!) I was surprised when he said that I didn't need to pay him, that he would do it for free. I tried several times to give him the money including putting it in his jacket pocket, he would not accept it. He took it right out and gave it back to me. What kid doesn't want $2?? I was totally impressed that such a young boy would know that you don't need to be paid for everything that is asked of you, even when it is offered. This small act of service has reminded me how good it feels when we serve one another. We will surely be taking some goodies (and probably more) over to this neighbor boy's house very soon.

New and Improved

We've been working hard and have made some big changes on our website. We have filled up our store and still have more to add. Our special right now is free shipping through the end of December. So go see what you think of our new site.

My Dad

Today is my dad's birthday, but we got to celebrate while we were all there visiting over the weekend. I just love this picture of all the grandkids gathering in to see the cards they had all made for him. This shows what a great grandpa and dad he is. Happy Birthday Dad!

Happiness Is...

I saw this post on another blog and thought that I should to give it a try. This is what I've come up with for today.

NOT my favorite thing

One day? I don't think so. We've been at it one week and I'm feeling very hopeful! I put it off as long as possible, but with Brian's help, we buckled down. We gave our diapers to Addie and we aren't going back. Today we stayed dry all day and Tyson even told me when he had to go (which he hasn't been doing.) Big improvements! Being diaper free is something that I've looked forward to for a while now. I'm glad we are done with them and the worst part is over (right?). We'll keep our fingers crossed.

More Donuts!

Brian wasn't 100% satisfied with his delicious donuts on Sunday, so last night he attempted to make a few changes to make them better. (I am a recipe follower, I could never do this!) All I can say is YUM! They were even BETTER! Crazy! Since he made them a little smaller, it made nearly 100 donuts! It's fun to watch him take on a challenge of making something taste better and succeed! It was a little late when they were fresh out, so we didn't dare take them to very many people. Brian took most of them to work this morning. The guys are going to love him.

Yum-alicious!

You should all be drooling now, because these are the best donuts I've ever tasted! Sunday's are when Brian finds a little more time to cook or bake. Today we enjoyed pulled pork, dutch oven style potatoes, scones, and donuts! Luckily, I can say I helped a little. It was all delicious.....Tomorrow will definitely be a gym day.

Happy Halloween...

....from our witch, pirate, and doggie.

Sneak Peek for Michelle

Look at this handsome little guy! He was a little tricky, but we still got some good ones. Cutest monkey I've even seen, that's for sure!

New Favorite

This has to be my new favorite picture that I've taken. It's my sister, her husband, and cute Addie. LOVE it!

Pears

I think it's time to pick the last few pears. They lasted longer than the leaves.

Cousins having fun

Cali and I took Tyson and Addie to try out a new picture spot. We like what we saw.While we were out, we played at the park (and took more pictures!)And then a dog walked by....We got lucky with these two great pics!It was a good picture day. :-) Thanks for playing, Cali and Addie.

Before and After

Last Saturday I got my new couches. I probably shouldn't have, considering everything that changed for us financially between ordering the couches and receiving them, but look at the difference!! My old couches were long ago worn through, new ones have been on the want list for a long time. I love the new feel to our family room. Now we need new curtains, pillows, end tables, lamps, paint, and the list goes on.... Those will all have to wait. Darn.

Picking Apples

In my effort to be a fun mom yesterday, I took my kids to pick apples. We took some baskets to make the collecting easier, which turned out to be very helpful. Kyler loved picking the apples, he wanted to keep going and going. Kaylee loved the dog we met named Rocky. Tyson loved the tractor ride after he realized it was fun. I really enjoyed doing something new and being outside. We picked almost 3 boxes full of apples, but we only bought 1 to bring home. Thanks for the great idea Norma!

'Tis the season....

... for family pictures! I have had so much fun taking pictures this last week. It has kept me busy, but I have loved every minute of it. Here are some of my favorites.You can see more pictures at www.hollycressall.com. Let me know if you would like a great deal on family pictures this year!

*No, I didn't take my own pictures. Thanks Amy J. for the picture swap.
*Notice my boys matching ties! These are my new favorite things to make. If you are in need of matching ties for the holidays, contact me for pricing. I'd be happy to make more. I hope to have some in my store available for purchase soon.

9 years

Yesterday my baby girl turned 9 years old! Am I old enough to have a 9 year old? I guess so. We celebrated both Monday and Tuesday. They were both busy and crazy days, but we found some time to have some fun including a party with 10 girls, lots of presents, dinner date with mom and dad, cake, and more cake. We love you Kaylee and hope you had a special day!

Like Father, Like Son

I love Sunday's that we actually get to rest a little. Those are the Sunday's that Brian usually finds some time to bake something yummy! Today he had a little help and I couldn't resist taking some pictures. We train them young at our house! Today's baking consists of a new roll recipe (you might find it here, if it's a new favorite) and the usual best bread recipe. YUM!
Here's a peak at our rolls and the new sign on our fridge! The rolls are delicious. We considered doing a bake sale all summer and never got to it. Is it too late? It would be a one or two day thing focusing on rolls, bread, and cinnamon rolls. I guess we could do other things upon request. We would love to teach the kids about business costs, work, etc... A great teaching opportunity and maybe make a few dollars to do something fun together as a family. Would anyone be interested in buying? (Sorry, local delivery only! :-))

My New Woobie

Favorite blankets at our house are called "woobies." We've all got them. I've always had a favorite blanket for as long as I can remember. This woobie I am replacing has served it's purpose for over 12 years now! When the edges were all wearing out again (I've mended the edges once before), I decided it was time to make me a new blanket. I'm excited that I finally have it done and it's washed and ready to be used. Yes, I plan on using this quilt for at least as long as the last one. No quilt rack for this one. What do you think? I seriously love it!

Old woobie:

New woobie: