The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

Yes, the most wonderful time of the year came again this year, the much dreaded anticipated Virtual Christmas Card Picture...

only this year, the kids actually behaved better than the dogs!!!

Go figure!! 

And while I am still not totally satisfied with the results...

at least no one was injured in the process - Charlie!!...

there were no tears - Charlie!!...

from the kids or me...

no electronics had to be threatened - Caleb!!... 

and Hubby never had to raise his voice!

shocker!!

And ya know what...

I missed it!

I missed it all!

I missed the tears and the tantrums and the injuries - Charlie!

and the deep Daddy voice...

OK maybe not that one!

*grin*

I missed it all because my kids are not acting like kids anymore...

They are growing up and acting all mature and stuff!

Harumpf!

I don't have any excuses for the dogs!

Unless they were just trying to make me feel better!

Yep, this crazy Christmas picture thing started with our very first Christmas as an engaged couple in 1995 when all we had were doggies!

Never could we have imagined what the Lord had in store for our lives and good thing cause we likely would have said...

"Yeah, thanks but NO thanks!"

But He knew that we needed time...

LOTS of time!

LOTS and LOTS of time!

*grin*

Through the years, as our family grew and the Christmas picture got harder and more exasperating, it sort of became a part of the whole Christmas picture tradition....

how dare the kids mess with my Christmas picture tradition and actually behave - hehe!

Oh well, there's always next year and the hope of better out-takes!

Merry Christmas and Happy 2019 and yes, the doggies were back on the sofa in no time...

I mean how could you stay mad at that face!!!

Christmas Card 2010

OK, so this year we are not sending out Christmas Cards - just didn't make the budget this year!  Sigh!

However, we just had to take the insane traditional Christmas card pic, you know, cause I don't have enough insanity in my life!  Heh!

So, here is the official 2010 Christmas Card pic - unless I can talk the kids into doing it again!!!  Hehe!!

and some of the out takes:

 As I wrote on another friend's blog, I think I love the out takes more than the perfect picture because our life is more like an out take than a perfect picture.

I like it that way!! 

Here are also a pic of a beautiful Christmas ornament for some of my adoptive friends.

My beautiful sis in law gave me these wonderful ornaments at Christmas last year and I love them.  Pier One, y'all!!!

and because I am really tired, here are just some of our pics from Christmas so far, excuse the lack of snappy repartee':

Christmas PJ Party madness

Waiting on Santa

Santa at last!

wonder what Santa is telling Em??

Must have been good!!

Even big guys get to sit on Santa's knee

and little teeny ones too!

Must have told Lizzie, she wasn't getting that puppy!

Couldn't talk the 2 biggest boys into it!!!  3 out of 5 ain't bad!!

Merry Christmas Y'all!!!