HAPPY NEW YEAR ~ * ~ 2009 ~ * ~

As I am sitting here in front of the computer I am reflecting over this past year! God is so GOOD!! I can not express how thankful I am for all that I have!! 2008 went really fast!! Although it seems the years have flown ever since I turned 21 ;o)! As I get older, I value time and relationships more, I think of things different and with each year I have become more aware of what God has given me. It is natural for most of us to have at least a mental list of things we want to change or accomplish with a new year! Some people want to lose weight, get in shape, save more money, spend more time with their kids, take a trip...the list is endless really! Personally all of those sound like things I should do.... but one thing that I want to accomplish in 2009 is "being content". I have had this discussion with my mother-in-law...and what I mean by this is, I am always wanting more or I want to change things. Like new clothes, new body, new vehicle, new kitchen floor, changes in my house, my hair and there are plenty more. Although we all do this...I really am praying and seeking for this contentment. I know God wants me to be content with what he has given me instead of always wanting more. So as each of you begin your New Year, I really do hope and pray that you too will be content with all that you have been blessed with... May you all have a year filled with Love and Happiness! Thank you for being a part of our lives! HELLO 2009!!!!!

Christmas with the Jones Kids ;o)

Baby Nora's first Christmas..Awww

We gathered together at about 1:00 pm on Saturday for my personal favorite Cashew Chicken! It is so Good!! Thanks again Mom Dryer! We ate around 1:15 1:30. After dinner we celebrated Jesus' birthday. This a really special tradition Mark's family does every year. I have always enjoyed this. We read out of the bible and sing songs and end with singing Happy Birthday to Jesus! Then we cleared the table and got ready for the marathon present opening ceremony!! SERIOUSLY it takes a long time but it is so much fun! There is Marks mom and step dad, his Three sisters and brother and their spouses plus nine grandchildren!! And one on the way due in a couple months! So There were 21 people to open presents. It was so much fun! These are pictures from the day!

Christmas updates..

On Christmas Eve we went to church at night with Mark's parents. Our church did not have a Christmas Eve Service. On Christmas we opened presents in the morning. I was not feeling well and neither was Addison...so the day was not really what I hoped for but at least I could see everyone. Then this past Saturday we celebrated Christmas with Mark's brother, Three sisters and their families, along with his parents...Sunday we were with out our power all day so we laid low and relaxed!! I hope everyone had a wonderful Christmas and time off of work!

Christmas Morning 2008

Hallie was so excited to receive her new Bible. It is an easy reader Bible for ages 6-9! Can you tell by her face how excited she is?

Hallie is so excited in this picture!! She got a new robe!!

This is a picture of Addison's new purse that Hallie gave to her!! DORA!

Hallie helping Addison open her new purse..

Dad and his girls..we made him a coffee mug with pictures on it of Hallie and Addison! Mark loved it!!!!

More Christmas fun...

Hallie's NEW HAT!!

Mark and his new BOAT WAX , cloth and wax wheel cover! OH WHAT FUN!!

I wanted UNO attack! We played it later in the evening! It was fun!

Addison had so much fun despite going without a nap...

Addison got a very special baby doll...a bitty baby (it even kind of looks like her)!

A doggy that barks and walks...Dad says this one can even go on the boat!

Addi sportin her new vest!

Addison's favorite thing to do was unwrap the presents!

Christmas Celebration with Nana and family...

Hallie gets a horse for her American girl doll..she was very excited!

In the picture above Hallie is receiving a special necklace from Nana..It says "you are my sunshine". Always and Forever, Nana!! It was a special moment. My mom sung this song to Hallie all the time when she was little and still does.

We celebrated Christmas on Sunday with My family...My mom, her husband Mark, my brother Brandon, his wife Brandy, my brother Craig and his girlfriend Veronica. While we waited for the dinner to be ready (which was AWESOME) Hallie and her uncles played the Wii that Brandon brought over. Hallie was doing very well with Bowling--SHE WANTS A Wii !!

SNOW DAY # 3

I really long for sunny days and warm weather! WOW- Did we get dumped on with snow! Three snow days and it is not January yet!! Our trip to Florida is sounding better and better! Hallie stayed in her pajamas until about 4:00pm...I cleaned & the kids played and watched movies....Mark and I had plans to go out tonight but decided it was not a good idea...not to mention that Mark will not be home any time soon. He is dealing with snowplowing "issues"! SO FUN! Positive attitude...right ;o)! The good thing is we are safe in our home...and my neighbor is plowing our driveway! What a nice guy! Our driveway is long and the snow id very deep...Mark would have been stuck. I will post pictures later. Time to make dinner for the girls. Have a good night.

SNOW DAY # 2

Yesterday was another snow day for Hallie. The roads were very icy "up" by us :o) !! Another day of trying to entertain Hallie..who does not sit still at all!! She is so much like her Dad! We made it though! I was not feeling well so we watched a movie when Addison was taking her nap. Santa Clause 1 was on Disney...so that is what we watched. It was so nice to snuggle up with Hallie and just have some time with her. Hallie and Addison played all day together. They watched Barney (against Hallie's wishes), ate crackers and pretzels, played with babies, dressed up and put on a play for me! They sang and danced, laughed and screamed...I would say it was another fun Snow Day for Hallie!

Question.....

What does staying in your PJ's until noon, baking cookies, making paper snowflakes, shoveling the driveway,wrapping presents and lots of giggling equal??? A SNOW DAY! That's right Hallie had a snow day. She was happy to stay home with Addison and myself! We had a fun day!

The GIRLS

After the concert at church last night, My mom and Mark wanted to take us to see the lights at Fifth Third Ball Park..at the end you can go see Santa. You can not take any pictures though unless you pay another $10.00. Hallie does not believe in Santa and Addison is scared of the guy so I passed on the $10.00 for a 4x6 picture. We snapped this photo before we left. Thanks Mom and Mark for taking us to see the lights! Addison is still talking about them ;-)!! And she is still talking about Santa Clause..and shaking her head no and saying "Addi no like"!!

Catching Snawflakes...

The picture speaks for itself.

The Christmas Carol....

Last night was the Christmas Carol musical/drama at our church. It was for Kindergarten through 5th grade. The older children were the ones who did the drama..Hallie loved all of it. She can not wait until next year when she can be involved in more. The opportunities are bigger for second through fifth grade. She had so much fun! It was a very cute program. The picture above is of Kennedy and Hallie. They have been in Sunday school class together since they were in the two year old program! Now look at them!

Hallie had some lines to say. She did awesome! She did not hesitate or stumble! She memorized these lines in two days! The lines were as follows: " The king said to those on his left, "Come you who are blessed by my father". "Take your inheritance, the kingdom prepared for you since the creation of the world".

TOOTHLESS...

Hallie lost her first tooth on Saturday. She was practicing for the Christmas concert at church and while singing it fell out! The big tooth has been coming in behind it...so it needed to get out of there. The tooth right next to it is very loose also and the big tooth is coming up behind that one as well. I was excited for her..but sad too. It is just another sign that our little Hallie is not so little anymore. She was excited to see what the tooth fairy would bring! As you could probably guess Hallie had a million questions about the tooth fairy...at the end of the conversation she said "Mom how could anyone believe that some person flies around taking kids teeth and giving them money"? I just replied with "Because it is fun to believe in it"...she shook her head and said "that is crazy"! I am glad you are the tooth fairy. You have a lot of money. :-) I love that kid!

Moments I never want to Forget....

This is THE FUNNIEST PICTURE...Above is Addi and Cole they are six days apart in age. Cole taught Addi how to pick out toe jam from in between her toes. Addi was wearing a dress with tights and could not get her jam..so we stripped her down to her onesie. SO CUTE!!!

Addison is reading just like Hallie...

We brought this chair in from Hallie's playhouse...Addison likes to pull her chair up and sit and "read" with Hallie.

Christmas Card 2008 :o)

This would make a sad Christmas Card....

It's SNOWING, It's SNOWING, It's really really Snowing!

The First Snow falls...When we walked out of church this morning it was snowing big fluffy flakes. I was instantly in the Holiday spirit! When we arrived home I quickly snapped some pictures of the front yard so I could say I took pictures of the first snow! I do not care much for snow, but for some reason around Thanksgiving and especially Christmas I really like to see it falling. I do not however enjoy all of the mittens, hats and scarfs that some how grow legs and walk away...I do not like how long it takes to get out the door after chasing Addison all over the house to put her hat and coat and mittens on...Then putting her in the car seat she screams "TIGHT MOMMA" TIGHT! Makes perfect sense...the seat belt is not loose enough to accommodate the winter coat!! So back to pretty snow falling...it's nice to look at when you are sitting all cozy in your warm home and do not have anywhere to go ;o)! Enjoy..what Bill Steffen is calling a snowy week!

Cousins and Friends

The UP Jones family came to town....Mark's brother Brad and wife Lisa and their daughter Emma were in town. Brad took the week off to Hunt and see the family. Lisa and Emma took the week to catch up with family and friends. We all got together on Tuesday night for dinner and to catch up! The cousins played so good together. Hallie and Zack the oldest of NINE grandchildren put on a little "musical" while the younger ones played the "drums". It was fun to have Emma joining them all!

Baby Nora....our NEW little Niece....

Check out those Dimples..So CUTE!!

What Kind of Day am I in for?

This morning started off great..I woke up at about 5:45am came down stairs made my coffee and grabbed the devotional I have started called "A Mom After God's Own Heart"! I had just started to really get into it when Addison started crying. So I waited but NO SUCH LUCK..the crying got louder and soon turned into anger. She was yelling MOMMA MOMMA OUT! So I went up to get her. We had some quality quiet time together...it was nice. Hallie came down about 6:30...what is going on I think to myself...but with a daughter at each side snuggling I embrace the moment. All sounds great so far....well it did not last. Soon Addi wanted Hallie's doll and Hallie said no so Addison proceeded to hit Hallie. Addison had to have time out. This is at about 7:00am! Grrrr. Then they are hungry so we head to the kitchen...I get out the requested cereal (Rice Krispies) I pour the cereal but partially miss the bowl...krispies are now on the floor and counter. I think oh I will pick those up in a minute. I then grab the milk. I am ready to pour the milk when Addison is throwing a tantrum because she wants her krispies now..I begin to deal with that by talking to her and pouring milk at the same time only I completely miss the bowl and pour milk everywhere. I go to grab a Wash cloth and forgot about the Rice Krispies that had fallen and stepped on those in my bare feet. SOMEONE HELP!!!!!!!!!! Finally both girls had there breakfast and I cleaned up the mess. Things will get better. We are just about ready to walk down to the bus stop when Addison decided she wanted something Hallie had..Hallie in a very mean voice said NO ADDI!! Addison went and pushed her with all of her strength and managed to push Hallie into the cupboard door and cause her to cry uncontrollably...So I grabbed Addison and told her she was going to bed for being naughty to her sister...she then began crying. I put her to bed went to comfort Hallie who was just beat up by her 20 month old bully of a sister and we headed for the bus. Now I am sitting here writing this and thinking to myself "I wonder what God's heart would be like on days like this"? I Know the answer and so I know it will get better. Have a great day! thanks for listening.

BIG NEWS!!!!

Mark's sister Melissa gave birth to a little girl on Monday night!!!! Now Mark and I officially have FIVE NIECES and TWO NEPHEWS...... The newest edition weighed in at 8# 4oz and her name is Nora Lynn VanEerden. She is welcomed into this world by her big sister Makalynn and big brother Cole!!! CONGRATULATIONS Justin and Melissa! We love you both and you too Nora!

A Prayer by Dr Billy Graham...

Heavenly Father, we come before you today to ask Your forgiveness and to seek Your direction and guidance. We know Your Word says, “Woe to those who call evil good,” but that is exactly what we have done. We have lost our spiritual equilibrium and reversed our values. We have exploited the poor and called it the lottery. We have killed our unborn and called it choice. We have shot abortionists and called it justifiable. We have neglected to discipline our children and called it building self esteem. We have abused power and called it politics. We have coveted our neighbor's possessions and called it ambition. We have polluted the air with profanity and pornography and called it freedom of expression. We have ridiculed the time-honored values of our forefathers and called it enlightenment. Search us, Oh God, and know our hearts today; cleanse us from every sin and set us free. Amen!

Playing at the Park..Is it Spring???

Saturday I was going to stay home and get some things done around the house...but it was too nice out. So we went over to Nana's house and took a walk to the park! The girls loved it! It was such a pretty day. I wish that winter never had to come.

Addison is a little dare devil! She went down the slide and all over the play structure by herself..we could not keep up with her!

Hallie has officially mastered going across the monkey bars all the way with no help! A lot of time practicing!! Good Job Hallie!

And she is almost to the end!

AWW Hallie wanted to hold her just one time! Addison did not seem to mind.

Addison... ready - set - go!

When it was time to go I said Addison one more time down the slide..she stopped looked up at me and said "NO MOMMY TWO"!!!! Stinker!

TRICK or TREAT

Mark and I took the girls down to Jenison to Jason and Michelle's house ( Marks sister and family). The cousins were able to trick or treat together..we have been doing this for a few years now! From left to right in this picture: Addison, Cole ( in a pink car?? sorry Justin ;o), Zack, Hallie, Makalynn and Alyssa. Emma is in the UP so she was missing...Alivia was sleeping (she is 7 months old)...And Melissa is due any time for her baby!! So there is the group!

Sisters! Bumble BEE and nurse. Hallie checking out Zack's lute!

Addison is very excited people are giving her candy ;o)!

There's my BEE...check out that stinger!

Hallie's Halloween Party

Hallie in the parade at school on Halloween!

The whole first grade class.

Hallie at the "snack table"! Her favorite part of the party. She looks pretty good for having double ear infections!