Remember the ones who are deployed during the holidays...

The embers glowed softly, and in their dim light,
I gazed round the room and I cherished the sight.
My wife was asleep, her head on my chest,
My daughter beside me, angelic in rest.
Outside the snow fell, a blanket of white,
Transforming the yard to a winter delight.

The sparkling lights in the tree I believe,
Completed the magic that was Christmas Eve.
My eyelids were heavy, my breathing was deep,
Secure and surrounded by love I would sleep.
In perfect contentment, or so it would seem,
So I slumbered, perhaps I started to dream.

The sound wasn't loud, and it wasn't too near,
But I opened my eyes when it tickled my ear..
Perhaps just a cough, I didn't quite know, Then the
sure sound of footsteps outside in the snow.
My soul gave a tremble, I struggled to hear,
And I crept to the door just to see who was near.

Standing out in the cold and the dark of the night,
A lone figure stood, his face weary and tight.
A soldier, I puzzled, some twenty years old,
Perhaps a Marine, huddled here in the cold.
Alone in the dark, he looked up and smiled,
Standing watch over me, and my wife and my child.

"What are you doing?" I asked without fear,
"Come in this moment, it's freezing out here!
Put down your pack, brush the snow from your sleeve,
You should be at home on a cold Christmas Eve!"
For barely a moment I saw his eyes shift,
Away from the cold and the snow blown in drifts..

To the window that danced with a warm fire's light
Then he sighed and he said "Its really all right,
I'm out here by choice. I'm here every night."
"It's my duty to stand at the front of the line,
That separates you from the darkest of times.

No one had to ask or beg or implore me,
I'm proud to stand here like my fathers before me..
My Gramps died at 'Pearl on a day in December,"
Then he sighed, "That's a Christmas 'Gram always remembers."
My dad stood his watch in the jungles of 'Nam',
And now it is my turn and so, here I am.

I've not seen my own son in more than a while,
But my wife sends me pictures, he's sure got her smile.
Then he bent and he carefully pulled from his bag,
The red, white, and blue... an American flag.
I can live through the cold and the being alone,
Away from my family, my house and my home.

I can stand at my post through the rain and the sleet,
I can sleep in a foxhole with little to eat.
I can carry the weight of killing another,
Or lay down my life with my sister and brother..
Who stand at the front against any and all,
To ensure for all time that this flag will not fall.."

" So go back inside," he said, "harbor no fright,
Your family is waiting and I'll be all right."
"But isn't there something I can do, at the least,
"Give you money," I asked, "or prepare you a feast?
It seems all too little for all that you've done,
For being away from your wife and your son."

Then his eye welled a tear that held no regret,
"Just tell us you love us, and never forget.
To fight for our rights back at home while we're gone,
To stand your own watch, no matter how long.
For when we come home, either standing or dead,
To know you remember we fought and we bled.
Is payment enough, and with that we will trust,
That we mattered to you as you mattered to us."

Wordless Wednesday

Wordless Wednesday

Orange Custard ...mmmmm....

I was lucky enough to be given a subscription to Taste of Home's Healthy Cooking magazine for my birthday (from my mother in law). I love trying new recipes, so when the first issue arrived in the mail yesterday I chose my favorite recipe and started baking. It is called "Soft Orange Custard", and I thought it was delicious. The reviews amongst my boys and husband were not so great. I guess you have to like custard and citrus seperately before you will like them combined. Just in case someone else likes this interesting combination as much as I do, here is the recipe.

2 Tbsp. butter, softened
2/3 cup sugar
2 eggs, lightly beaten
2 Tbsp. all purpose flour
1/4 tsp. salt
1/4 cup orange juice
1 -1/2 tsp. grated orange peel
1 tsp. lemon juice
1 cup fat-free milk

1. In a small bowl, beat butter and sugar on medium for 1 minute. Add the eggs, flour, and salt. Beat for about 2 minutes or until thickened. Add the orange juice, orange peel, and lemon juice. Stir in milk.
2. Pour into five 6-oz custard cups or ramekins. Place ramekins in a 13x9 inch pan. Add 1 inch of boiling water to pan. Bake, uncovered at 325 degrees for approximately 40 -50 minutes or until a knife inserted near the center comes out clean. Remove ramekins from water and serve warm or chilled.

New Website

My new website is live! Yay! I am still in the process of uploading photos to it, but it is there on the real web, lol! :-) This is something that I have been wanting to do for awhile, and I have been working on switching over to the new site for a few weeks. So, feel free to take a look if you are interested. If not, ignore this post! You can find the link at the side under my "blogroll" section (which also needs updating!) where it says "Capture the Moment Photos". Feedback is always welcome!

Sweet Madelaine

Meet sweet little Madelaine, the 4 year old girl that I got to take photos of this past Saturday. She was a little shy at first, but after a bit we had quite a fun time.

Some very cute kids who had a very hard time sitting still for 2 seconds. :-)

More of This Weekend's Adorable Kiddos...aren't they sweet?

The equation of motherhood :-)

Someone once commented to me that being a stay at home mother would cause me to forget all of my education. Today, I have "proof" to the contrary. When you are a stay at home mom, your math skills must be sharp. Sometimes you must use your powers of deduction to figure out a not-so-tricky story problem. Here, I will let you see if you can use your own powerful thinking skills to come up with the same answer that I did!

As in any equation, there are several factors to keep in mind. First, there is the early morning riser, a certain 4 year old boy with a penchant for mischief. Then, there is the mother who is NOT so much of an early morning person, but must still rise. So, here is where the math comes in. Early mornings + small boy+ tired mother= distracted parenting. Add in 1 cup of coffee and 30 minutes of staring into space sipping said coffee, and you now have 1 semi-awake mother who is capable of resuming parenting duties. As this mother walks down the hallway she sees this:

So, now we have ANOTHER chance to practice our skills, this time our logical thinking is required! Strangely, pieces of fur are lying on the floor in the kitchen. Hmm, the cat must be shedding. I guess we need to get out the broom. Oh wait, there is MORE fur...in a trail down the hallway, across the kitchen, into the playroom...hmmm, whatever this was must have been shedding HEAVILY, or maybe has contracted mange??
So, mother begins the hunt for the animal who is missing quite a lot of fur. All 4 kittens seem to be intact. That leaves only one possibility. Yep, it has to be Spots. Upon closer examination, I do believe the mystery has been solved. That is, unless cats fur tends to grow in choppy,vertical stripes. My findings were substantiated by the small boy who was hiding behind the piano bench with these behind his back...

So, contrary to the comments of those who think my brain is turning to mush, I must say that there is NEVER a dull moment around here. I doubt that any career I could have chosen would involve a trail of cat hair, but hey, at least it keeps me hoppin'!

Last night's photo session

I had the fun of photographing a sweet family last night. The little guy didn't want to smile, and the baby girl thought it would be more fun to RUN, but we did get some cute shots. Here are a few of my favorites. I'm planning to get a new blog started for my photo sessions, but for now, I want to share. :-) After all, it is what I have been doing alot of lately! I will try to get a few more sessions on as I have time.

Wordless Wednesday

A couple more cuties...

There are another 2 little ones that we don't see often. My cousin Samantha's children, Camryana and Carmelo. They are of course, as cute as can be, with their big brown eyes. I had to post these pics for you to see just how cute they are. :-) Their mama was 5 months apart from me in age growing up, and we lived within 30 minutes of each other. Every family gathering I couldn't wait to see Sammy, and we had some fun times spending summer days walking down the country roads near my grandparents' farm. We kept each other awake at night telling scary ghost stories (ok, I was mostly the one who got scared) and I told her every silly detail about my "first love". She was a very special friend to me,and it is really amazing that the two of us somehow grew into the adults in the bunch. Our kids seem to get along well, from football to hugs. :-)

Happy 11th Birthday, Karli!

There is so much that I have wanted to post, but have not had the time!
I don't think I will ever get to catch up, so going forward from the last week or so is my best option.

This past weekend, my cousin Karli turned 11. I can't believe she is already a preteen! I remember carrying her around when she was first born, and playing with her as a baby, styling her hair whenever I got the chance as she was a little girl. The past few years I haven't gotten to spend as much time with her or her family because of the geographical distance. So, every time I see her and her sister, they have grown another couple of inches. It was so nice to get "home" for her party and to catch up a little bit on what is going on in her life these days. Thanks for having us over, Debbie and Gerry. It was fun, and the grillin' was scrumptious!

Happy Birthday, Karli!!!

Happy Birthday, Hunter!

It is cliche for parents to say " I can't believe how fast they are growing". However, it is SO very true! I can barely believe that Hunter turned 4 years old today, and that all of his baby and toddler years are past. It seems like yesterday that we brought him home, and last week that I stayed up all night rocking my baby to sleep only to have him wake wanting to nurse a few minutes later. I stumbled through so much of that first year from lack of sleep, but it was also full of sweet, tender moments. As Hunty grows, the sweet side of his little personality does not fade, but the ways in which he expresses himself are even more heart-warming. He will give me a kiss several times in a day, for no real reason other than wanting to. He sometimes tells me " I was peeking at you because I love you , Mommy". He ALWAYS wants hugs and cuddles (especially in the morning after he gets out of bed and at nap time). When we accidently hurt his little feelings and apologize, he responds with "That's ok, you're still the best". There are times when he and his older brother just don't get along...but most of the time instead of hitting or pushing as boys are prone to do, he will get a sad look on his face and tell him " You broke my heart, and my dreams, and my feelings!" (Can you tell he is a bit dramatic at times?) Most of the time, the two older boys are best friends and nearly inseperable. Hunter is learning to watch out for his little brother, too. He will play with baby Kendan, and entertain him. He wants to hold him, but gets tired of it when Kendan pulls a handful of his hair or bites his nose. Hunty can always get the baby to laugh, and the rest of us, too! He tells creative little stories, with a real story line, and great characters. He loves chocolate milk, matchbox cars, and transformers. He likes to jump on the trampoline and play outside, and he will often be found just splashing in the sink during the day. He still has that childish innocence, and you can see it in his eyes...and in the way he takes pleasure in the simple things of life. A bird, a squirrel, an airplane in the sky, a cold popsicle on a sunny day,,,,blowing bubbles, playing in the sand...and running. Always running. My little Hunter holds a very pecial place in my heart, and I am so thankful that I have the privelage of being his mother and sharing in his childhood. I'm learning all over again to see things through "new" eyes...and I look forward to the future and to watching him grow into the person that God has in mind!

Happy 4th Birthday, my precious little boy!

(almost)Wordless Wednesday... Kendan's 8 month photos

A Special Guest

The last few days we have had the privelage of a very special guest. :-) Ken's sister Marjorie was able to fly into the local airport after being abroad for 3 months, and we got to spend a few days with her. The kids were so excited to see her and it was really great for them to spend time with her, as that is not an opportunity that comes along often. Hopefully, we will have some more time with Ken's family next weekend, so I will snap a few more pics. This one, though, I really like because it was the first time little K met his auntie. As you can tell, he was enjoying having her around. :-)

If you take a boy to a creek...

...he will ask if he can stand on the edge while he eats his lunch.


Then he will decide to take his sandwich with him and wander into the water.


He may even have sooo much fun that he forgets to eat at all...but he will look so sweet & small that you let him have his space.

...and, if this boy is a country boy who has been transplanted into the city...he may even skip some rocks...just to see if his arm still works. It does. :-)

Look what I can do!

These little hands...

...and chubby toes....

...have found a brand new trick. I CAN CRAWL!

...and I am VERY pleased with myself!