Thanksgiving

This Thanksgiving was a blast...Especially with all of the babies. They were surely the little princesses of the entire time. If any one of them let out so much as a whimper, they were immeadiately on somebody's hip or in their arms. The schedule was strict---eat, take a nap, eat, play a game, hang out, eat, watch football (mostly for the guys...Although I did watch a game that was very exciting!) Here Princess Livvy Bug is enjoying her Auntie Natty.

We spent a lot of time just hanging out. This was after Daniel and I went running...Of which Daniel said was just "culturally wrong." I don't see what's wrong with a little exercise on Thanksgiving Day!

Snowfall was a great surprise...The kids (and me) got so excited!

Dad built a nice fire in the wood stove. He actually had his sons-laws gather the wood outside....

Zoe and Ellie are the best of friends! They share their toys very well (most of the time) :)

This is our bird, enjoyed by all, along with many gluten-free sides for Caity, Al, and me!

Wow! Now here's a sight...Daniel and Ryan setting the table...10 places!

Here's Olivia...She's wearing her new bib, entitled "Baby's First Thanksgiving."

Here's a clip of the chaos of playing "apples to apples," a game of comparison where each one sumbits a noun to fit a particular adjective. Here, the word was "smart" and Cherith was the judge. She suggested that there should be a card with her name on it...Everybody here is pulling for their own card, especially Daniel, who submitted "Darth Vader." Observe how he is impersonating Darth Vader...He does the impersonation once, everyone laughs...He then finds himself so funny that he does it over and over again. Caity ends up winning.

The girls had fun together also!

More about Lord's Days

And the fun continues. Little Elaina Grace and her parents, Todd and Anna, came to our house for pork roast in the crock pot. She enjoyed herself so much that she fell asleep in my arms. She, too, like us experiences the weird biological phenomenon of Sunday comatose naps! What a doll. Ryan, again videoed me without me knowing it...

I love Lord's Days Too!

Lord's days are so fun...especially when 3 out of my 4 siblings come with their cuties! I think I had a jaw ache from clenching my teeth so hard (cause that's what I do when something is too cute!) Anyway, after enjoying the rich spiritual supply, we also love to enjoy our physical supply!



Here, Johnathan is cleary ecstatic about the 3 deserts he's about to enjoy with his childhood friend, Troy Talent

Here are 2 of the 3 super-moms in the family...Uh Daniel, where were you? Just kiddin.

Grampa and Poppy love Ellie

It's really cute how John Bishop and my dad enjoy Ellie together; but not without some friendly competition...My dad was out walking on a Sunday morning at the Bishop's house (good job, dad!) and Danny and Cherith gave Ellie to my dad to walk back. John came out to get his little granddaughter, and she wasn't there! Here comes my dad, just as proud as a peacock, carryin' Ellie down the driveway. I hear John say, "You ole dog! You beat me to it!" What pround boys! I have a feeling this is just the beginning of their friendly competition....there are more babies on the way!

Can't Get Enough...

Of my nieces, that is. I love being an aunt. It's so fun...Going to Arkansas is a blast cause I get to be with my sweet little niece...Ellie! I could squeeze the livin' gizzard out of 'er! I wish that Cherith lived closer so I could take her and watch her and thereby become the favored aunt, but
she's not too far away. Take a look...You'll fall in love with her right away! Pretty as a picture!

We Love Saturdays

Saturdays are pretty fun. We usually sleep in, mosey around the house for a while and I like to make Ryan a nice breakfast. Today it was cinnamon-raisin french toast with blueberries and strawberries. I like the way cooking breakfast makes the house smell. He's so cute. He looks like a happy little boy here...
Then, after a while, we went to work out at the Y. Ryan's swimming is rapidly improving...I'd better watch out....He's gettin' pretty good. Then, we came home and I made us a huge salad with lots of good stuff...spinach, butter lettuce, walnuts, olives, tomatoes, avocados, cheese and chicken (thinly sliced, the way rp likes it). It made us feel quite healthy...Unannounced to me, Ryan filmed me. But, it was a lovely lunch...you might even hear my french cafe music in the background!

Anway, we just love hangin out...especially on Saturdays!

Suprise Visit...Kind of

A couple of months ago, I really started to miss the sisters I lived with in Anaheim. Ryan and I prayed about having Jane come to visit in October, and I was thrilled! I actually had Jane book the flight, because she's so good at that kind of stuff. (She's tiny, but she's really smart, spunky, quick, and cute). She sent me the confirmation and I had it in my mind it was the last weekend of October...Well, I made a boo-boo. I remember thinking how I was going to make this big weekend plan so that not a minute would be wasted...Come Thursday night, I received a phone call and I hear Jane say, "Nat! I'm here! My flight arrived early!" (She meant minutes early...She didn't know how early!) Anyway, I was running around the house like a mad woman, but I made it to airport eventually.

So much for my big plans. It actually worked out great because Ryan was gone to Texas and I had a sweet companion to stay with me. Jane's an LA girl, so she saw some different parts of the country. I'm so glad she drove me around in Anaheim...She was such a good driver and her map skills were excellent (whew!) and...I was definitely a fish out of water! Anyway, She stayed in a real log cabin with a big front porch, wind chimes, a lazy dog named Billy Bob and 2 feisty cats named Frank and Beans. It was so much fun.

We talked and sang and laughed until our voices were hoarse. At the end of our two years in California, we had to give a little quote that described our experience...We both joked that our quotes would be one another's names. I couldn't imagine my time there without her. I remember sharing with her about my feelings for Ryan. I had determined to keep them all to myself, but when I got around Jane, I felt like I couldn't act naturally and that she must see I was bothered and trying to hide something. It was really perfect because I trusted her not to give a girly "ahhh, that's so cute!" , but to pray with me and help me commit it to the Lord.

So, my weekend was so refreshing and sweet. I just noticed that something in me felt so happy after she left. It reminds me of 2Cor7:3... "For you in are in our hearts, for our dying together and our living together."

This is us just singin away...The voice of the filmer is Ryan Pagel.:)