Christmas Time!

Here are some photos of Christmas decorating,

our first snow this season,
and other random moments this month.




I'm making ornaments every year for River and my niece, Mallory, like my Nanny did. This year I made the owl.

Dada and River put the star on the tree!

Our little cabin in the woods

Santa Love still rocks!


The bottom third of the tree is left undecorated and without presents. We planned ahead.
River loves Santa Love

Dada and River make music

A buck out of our bedroom window.

This Wren Adventure deserves its own blog. Long story short. It flew out of our Christmas wreath when I walked outside. It flew into the back of my hair, and then got confused and flew into our house. I had to call Ryan in from work to help with the removal. It didn't take long for the wren to fly out the door. The removal involved some sheets, a couple of brooms, an open door, and lots of muscadine bird poop to clean up.

Santa receives a phone call

Our First Snow of the Season

Letting Go and New Creations

Over the last few days I've been thinking....Uh-oh. That can be dangerous, but this time I think it's a good thing.

2010 is wrapping up. We have a couple of weeks left of this year, and I've been pondering about things I want to leave behind before 2011 gets here. When I started thinking about that, then I started thinking what do I want to do in 2011. Then, it all began unwinding from there.

So, here's my plan. And if any of you want to join me on this adventure, I'd love to have you do this too.

I beginning a few lists:

1) Things I Want to Leave in 2010. I already have 5 or 6 things I don't want to bring with me into the new year. Here's sneak peek: Worrying about finances. I'd like to leave that junk in 2010.

2) Goals and Positive Intentions for 2011. I've created categories like Personal, Career, Ryan, River, Family, Friends, and Miscellaneous. Under each category I have anywhere from 2 -4 goals or intentions.

3) Plan of Action. Some of my intentions need a little bit of strategy to them. For example, one of my career goals is to double my massage practice. My P.O.A. is to hand out some brochures and business cards in the community and network with other health care providers. Now, not all of my categories need an explanation, but I feel like some of my goals need a little direction.

On New Year's Eve, I'm going to share my Letting Go list with whomever I'm with and of course, YOU, and burn my list....taking some action in letting it go.

Then, I'll read to my "party goers" and the world wide web my Goals for 2011.
Throughout the year, I'll share and keep my blogging world up to date on some of the goodness that happens.

I'd love for you to do it with me. Take some time over the next couple of weeks and jot down your ideas. I'd love to hear about your experience too.

Lots of Love and Warmth to you!!

Halloween

Yes. Halloween Pictures a month later...
And our blog is out of order because when you start one that's where it lines up, but I figure most of you get that Halloween is before Thanksgiving. Just bare with us. We're always a couple of months off it seems.

I bought River a monkey suit, but after a couple of tries and crying, I decided to take it back. Maybe when he's older he'll like dressing up. Last year he was a cowboy, and this year a farmer who refused to wear his hat.

We carved pumpkins with the Sams.' It's a running tradition we've had for 7 years. I think we missed one year. But it's a tradition we always enjoy.

Ben and Melanie brought the girls over to my parents, and we had dinner and trick or treating. Ryan had to work this year, so we missed him! But we did have a blast watching the kids get excited about the candy and looting the houses that left candy on the porch for self-service.

River and Addie

Three Pumpkins Later...

Karis giving her best mad pumpkin face.

"I don't want to hear a hat!"

Cleaning up the sidewalk before his lady friends arrive for trick or treating

And we're off for a night of candy!!

Exhausted from all the fun!

Halloween PJ's and mismatched socks

Attack of the Turkey!

*Ryan wrote this blog, but this is Kari suggesting that the best way to read this blog is to read it out loud with your best redneck accent. It'll provide the best reading enjoyment for this story!!

Thanksgiving morning we woke up and were having breakfast, preparing to travel to Jim and Choyers to eat Thanksgiving turkey and all the fixins. I just happened to hear something out in the driveway so I took a quick peek. There were about 20 turkeys hanging around our front yard. The male turkeys were chasing the females around and were spreading their big tail feathers out like they were peacocks. Then I notice this one turkey staring at our car. I wondered what in the heck he was doing. All of sudden he started pecking at our car and jumping and scratching. I sure didn't want to have to explain to the insurance company that a turkey fighting his own reflection was the cause of all this damage to my car, so I ran out the door clapping and yelling and scared the turkey away.
Then, a bit later, Kari looked out the window and the turkeys were back! I ran out the door again, this time with Chaco, and scared those turkeys away a second time.
Sure enough, a little while later, those turkeys were back and that male turkey was fighting itself in the reflection of our car again! So this time Kari took post and ran out the door. She must be scarier than I am because those turkeys didn't come back. I'm not sure, but I think she yelled something about turkey dinner and the chopping block.
Needless to say, I no longer feel like I have to wash my car. If a turkey thinks it's that clean, then it must be clean. And no cars or turkeys were hurt in the process of this story!

Playin' In The Dirt

Now that it is not 100 degrees outside, River has been playing out of the house more. We have began perfecting the art of baby proofing the inside of the house but didn't think about the outside of the house, so needless to say, River found the first thing to make a mess.
Fortunately, we don't mind. He is a little boy. It's in his nature to get dirty and make a mess. I know he sure had fun doing it. We just don't always enjoy the clean up afterwards.

I am a living dirt tornado!!

Sometimes it's just nice to be out of my pants, playing my kazoo, and kicking around some dirt on the porch.

Mom doing the hard work of cleaning up my mess

Help! I'm in a wooden jail!

My Mommy and Daddy let me roam around the yard now that all the bugs are gone.

Touch a Truck

The Teals church was putting on a touch-a-truck day for local kids. So while Kari was in a class one Saturday, River, Larry, Janice and I all went to look at some big 'ole trucks.
River was a fairly stand-offish. He wasn't sure what to think about the big trucks. But we ended up having fun after we got to ride the little train and paint our own wooden race car (and getting paint on our face!)

River loves to see trucks on the road, but he wasn't sure about standing on the back of a big dump truck!

I didn't mind the extra affection though.

Thank you for taking me Grammy and Pappy!

To Charleston

Back in September River and I went with Grammy and Pappy to visit our newest family member, Mallory, in Charleston. I saw my niece the first few days of her life, but it had been 3 months. So, I was thrilled to get some snuggles with her. She's growing up so fast, and she's a beautiful girl! When we were there, we just hung out. We played on the playground, went to Market Street, ate at Hyman's Seafood, and saw the sunset at the beach. AND we even got to babysit while Derek and Mandy had a date.

"Oh, Aunt Kari! I just love your necklace."

Do you remember, Mr. Buckethead? He's a man of many talents. He's also Mr. Diaperhead!!

"Daddy, I love your kisses. But your breath stinks!"

River had so much fun at the beach. He cracked me up! He ran and ran into the waves, down the beach, into the waves, down the beach......

I Love This Boy!!

"That's Cow Juice, River!!"

"What?!!!! You have to be kidding me."

Mallory Grace