Our First CHRISTmas

A few years ago, I bought ornaments on sale after Christmas. Andrew was not in the picture at this point and so I bought cute, "girly" ornaments in all colors (including pink!). Well, when Andrew saw my hot pink flamingo that I planned on hanging on our first family christmas tree, he was not very happy! Needless to say, I put away the pink flamingo and turned our "girly" tree into an appropriate "family" tree (green, red, and white...no hot pink!). Next year, I will have my very own "girly" christmas tree!

Of course Christmas day was busy...it always is, right?!? Andrew and I woke up at 7:30am Christmas morning. When I woke up,I walked into the kitchen to find that my sweet husband had left me a message in candy canes and m&m's.



He also had me the cutest stocking (from Kate McCall!) with my new name on it!


And Cooper Lee got a dog snuggie!


He is always so thoughtful and picks out the perfect gifts! After that, we opened the rest of the presents we bought one another. I got a new pair of tennis shoes, some sweat pants, a pink monogram (with my new name of course!) for my car, and the newest Nicholas Sparks book (The Last Song). We then loaded up the car to head over to the Grooms' for breakfast. Nathan and Suzette had prepared a feast...gravy, biscuits, bacon, sausage, liver mush (eww!)...the works! After eating breakfast, we began opening presents. It was so much fun watching four kids tear through their presents and get so excited! I love that along with my wonderful husband, I now have a huge family with a niece and three nephews!

After stuffing ourselves at the Grooms' we came home for about an hour (Andrew napped!) and then headed over to my dad's parents with Ashley and Brandon. All of us were too full to eat so we just visited for a little while. Dad got me a scarf with my new initials monogrammed on it! (Are you beginning to notice a theme?!?)

Last, but certainly not least, we went to my mom's for dinner. We had sooo much food, I had no idea where we were going to put it all! Mom's house looked beautiful (as it always does!)! After stuffing ourselves (once again!), we opened our gifts. Ashley and Brandon got us a new camera!! I was so excited! My camera is a few years old and takes terrible pictures! So, I have now been snapping away...and getting on my poor husband's nerves I am sure! This is our first family photo...

...I am still figuring it out!

By the end of the day, we were so tired! With all the hustle and bustle of the holidays, we tried to remember the true meaning of CHRISTmas...the best gift of all...Jesus!

Going Green

I have to be honest...I love to clean...it helps me relax! But I cannot stand cleaning with clorox and try to avoid it at all costs. I recently read a blog about cleaning with household products (baking soda, vinegar, etc) and decided to try it for myself. Well, yesterday, I researched using these products to clean and you would not believe the things I found! There are ENITRE webpages dedicated to informing people how to clean with baking soda and vinegar...there are a million uses! So, I thought I would share a few "cocktails" I found helpful...

Soak paper towels in full strength vinegar and wrap them around faucets. Let it sit for one hour and then clean as usual. It gets rid of the nasty, grimy dirt that builds up around them!

For window washing, mix equal parts of vinegar and water. Dip black and white newpaper pages into the solution and wipe until the glass is almost dry. Finish by wiping with a dry newspaper.

To quickly clean pets and remove "wet dog" odor, sprinkle with baking soda and brush them out. (I have not tried this on Cooper Lee yet, but I plan to tonight...I'll keep you updated!)

Disinfect and clean wood cutting boards by wiping them down with full strength vinegar...it also helps get rid of odors on your wood cutting board.

Clean your dishwasher by running a cup of vinegar through a full cycle (without dishes in it, of course!)


These are just a few helpful hints! I also found info about cleaning with lemon juice (since it is so acidic it works great, but you have to be careful!).

So, there you have it...along with recycling everything in sight, I am also cleaning with a more environmentally friendly product!

The Grooms' are going green!