High Seas Adventure

Today was not an ordinary day.

Today was a an extraordinary adventure.

My sister invited the boys over to sail the 

High Seas in search of hidden treasure.

The boys were only too happy to accept the invitation.

Meet the crew:

Peg Leg Roo

One Eyed Kit

Black Beard Bo

Salty Bandit Rocco

And Captain Blue 

They arrived and boarded the ship,

studied the map and found their first clue.

And then they were off, 

dashing here and there,

collecting clues.

until the scallywags found X marks the spot.

A little digging and they were greatly rewarded.

They looted the treasure and then what 

...would a pirate boy do next?

Eat.

They dined on Pirate Treats 

and filled their bellies after a hard days work.

And they each left with a box full of treasure.

Auntie Cake sure made our day special.

So a HUGE thanks to my Pirate sister for such a fun day!

Nobody does adventure like her.

Ahoy Mateys!

In My Defense...

In my defense...

he was just too cute, 

and totally dead serious, 

when he looked up at me with 

those big, long-lashed eyes, 

and asked if he could wear 

his new pajama top to school on picture day.

Without hesitation I just smiled 

&

I said yes.

Chewie is my Co-Pilot.

I mean it was his 7th birthday.

:)

Christmas Joy

My family has always loved visiting a live nativity.  

It always helps us refocus our hearts during the Christmas season.  

This year we thought it might be neat to 

bring that Christmas Joy to others.

The kids were pretty excited about the idea.

So, we all picked our parts, 
and ordered some costumes.

Then, at noon on Christmas Eve, 
we piled into our SUV

and drove to the busiest road in town. 

I'm sure we were quite the site with 

our giant car load of angels and shepherds tumbling out.

The very first car to pass, 

stopped in the middle of the road,

 and yelled out the window, 

"That's awesome!"

The kids were beaming.

The cold wind was blowing hard 

but the kids were ready to roll, 

and we started across the top of the hill. 

Mary & Joseph started off first.

The angel waited till they got far enough ahead

 and started on his way.

I bent down to help Blue adjust his mittens 

while the others took their cues,

and when I looked up my heart was deeply touched. 

I had the best view of it all.

It was beautiful.

The faces in the cars were priceless,

drivers honked,

mamas pointed to show their kids, 

smiles were pressed up against the glass with wide eyes.

We waved and smiled back, so excited that people were enjoying seeing Mary and Joseph walking down the road.

And as we rounded our last corner and the star was tiring out...

the little sheep leaned down and whispered something in his ear 

and the little star took off running down the road.

It was the best Christmas present ever.

Happy Birthday Jesus!

I highly encourage families to start their own Nativity walk.

It was a true blessing to us all!

Please let me know if you do so I can post a link to yours next year.

Everyday Adventure

This summer my boys have fallen deep in love 

with fishing.

It's all they want to do.

After the lines are all untangled 

and we get through the first 5 minutes of, 

"Hey! You almost poked my eye out!" 

&

"Who hooked my shirt? Get it out!"

Then, they settle in.

No one even cares if they catch the biggest,

or the smallest.

And the sweetest conversations & teamwork happen.

It's magical & peaceful until:

"Mom!!!  My pole is stuck up in tree!"

(the tree that is so tall I couldn't fit it in the picture)

Then, the peacefulness is gone,

 because we are laughing too hard.

Until we cut that baby down.

(the pole, not the tree)

One thing for sure...

when you travel with a pack of boys,

everyday there is an adventure.