I'm just an angel in disguise

This year Woodland re-defined the meaning of the best christmas pageant ever. Here, a few of the players who you should be looking for at this year's Tony nominations.

Lucie

We are so thrilled to introduce our newest cousin, Lucie Susanna Pensak! She was born Wednesday, December 19th and weighed a teeny-tiny 5 lbs. 14 oz. Her happy parents can't wait to get her home so Santa can visit! We love you Lucie!

Dresses, Daring-Deeds, and Decongestant

Lots has been happening around here. Porter is sick, and has spent lots of time on the couch with a wet rag on his forehead. Brice taught him this trick in the middle of the night, and now he feels that it always has to be there. Poor guy. The baby started pulling up on anything and everything. Such a brave girl, but I don't like to be reminded that she's growing up. And on a cuter note, the girls wore matching Santa dresses to church last Sunday that were made and smocked by my grandmother almost 30 years ago! The one Riley has on was the one my cousin Lisa wore, and the one Lizzie has on was mine. Props to my mom for keeping those dresses in such good shape.

Mirror, Mirror on the Wall

"I need to brush my hair. Because it's hair, and it needs to be brushed."

Porter the Wise

Last night Porter and I went to see USM play basketball. About half way through the game, Porter looked and saw the USM mascot, Seymour the Golden Eagle.

Porter got my attention and said: "Look, It's the Turkey!"

I'm so glad he is a SEC Boy!

Brice

So Fresh and so Clean

A lot has changed since the last time I posted about Lizzie helping me with laundry. Check out Lizzie here compared with nine months ago, here: What a big girl!!!

PJ Turkey Day

We started a new tradition this year of giving the kids Christmas pj's for Thanksgiving. I think they were more thankful for those than the desert I made, which none of the children touched. Oh well, we still had fun with our friends the Wilckes and the Landrums. The boys did outnumber the girls just a bit though, wouldn't you say?

One Little, Two Little, Three Little Indians

Porter's class sang a Thanksgiving program at a local retirement home today. One line from his program- "Thanksgiving day is a happy day, with turkey and pumpkin pie. Gobble Gobble Gobble, did the turkey run away?"

Baby's First

Lizzie has had lots of firsts lately. First attempts at crawling, first fever. And along with this fever came first diarhea, which prompted us to try out first bath in the bath tub without a baby seat.

Home & Religon

I have been branching out of my typical reading lately, theology. Joey recommended a book to me called "The Geography of Nowhere". I was reading today on my lunch break and came across an interesting section. The author, who is a none believer, wrote this book in an effort to lament how we as a country live in our communities and our houses. I find there are several interesting parallels in what he describes in the following:

Americans wonder why their houses lack charm. The word charm may seem fussy, trivial, vague. I use it to mean explicitly that which makes our physical surroundings worth caring about. It is not a trivial matter, for we are presently suffering on a massive scale the social consequences of living in places that are not worth caring about. Charm is dependent on connectedness, on continuities, on the relation of one thing to another, often expressed as tension, like the tension between private space and public space, or the sacred and the workaday, or the interplay of a space that is easily comprehensible, such as a street, with the mystery of openings that beckon, such as a doorway set deeply in a building. Of course, if the public space is degraded by cars and their special needs - as it always is in America, whether you live in Beverly Hills or Levittown - the equation is spoiled. If nothing is sacred, then everything is profane.

The equation is also spoiled when buildings cease to use the basic physical vocabulary of architecture - extrusions and recesses - and instead resort to to tacked-on symbols and signs. One is a real connection with the real world; the other is an appeal to the second-hand mental associations.

This habit of resorting to signs and symbols to create the illusion of charm in our everyday surroundings is symptomatic of a growing American character disorder: The belief that it is possible to get something for nothing... They (Americans) didn't care if things were real or not, if ideas were truthful. In fact, they preferred fantasy. They preferred Lies. And the biggest lie of all was the place they lived was home.

He goes on from there. But you get the point.

There are alot of applications that we could pull from this, and at some point all illustrations break down. I thought about the tension the author refers to and remember something that our pastor told me several years ago when dealing with tension in the promises of God. He basically said that tensions are good. They keep us striving for the truth and in making our calling and election sure. I think of all the people who call themselves Christians but are not and simply hold to the tacked on symbols of "Faith". It sickens me to think of these people living a lie. They believe they are a 200 year-old Georgian Plantation house but are really just a prettied up Jim Walter Home.

Food for thought.

Brice

An orphan and a superhero

Shiver me timbers!

Maybe it's because the older two just attended a pirate party, maybe it's because I happened upon a really cheap pair of black pants I would have never otherwise bought, maybe it's because I'm on princess overload with Riley. But for whatever reason, this is Lizzie's outfit for our church's Reformation party. Somebody plundered the cutey-pie ship.

Meerkat Magic

It was a great season with a lot of great moments that will go down in soccer history. Thanks KK and Poppy for joining our cheering section for the last game! Porter's teacher, Mrs. Newman, even stopped by to root on the Meerkats.

They'll know you're a pirate when they hear you say "Arghh"

It's a good thing no one had to walk the plank at Ben's 5th birthday party! Happy Birthday Ben.

The reviews are in!

The Spicy Pickle is the best place to eat in Hattiesburg! Our dear friends Chad and Leslee Smith have realized their dream and opened up a fabulous restaraunt here in the 'Burg. Even their 3 year old, Bennet, gave it two thumbs up! Can't wait to go back and explore the other menu items. Way to go Chad!

Sleepy Sister

Will somebody please lay this baby down for a nap?

What a Difference Duracell Makes

Turns out all our camera needed was some good batteries. I had been putting the Walmart Brand batteries in our camera. A couple of Duracells and we're as good as new. So, here are a few pictures to update. Pictured above are the kids with Bric'es uncle and aunt who recently took us out to dinner, me with my dear friend Haley who I got to go visit in Starkville, Riley posing after church on Sunday in a dress that used to be mine, and a really cute group shot of the kids. Enjoy!

Broken Camera Woes

I should have known better when I bought the Kodak Easy Share camera for 60 dollars on the sale table at Walmart that it would bite me in the badonka-donk. Well, it got us through the first day of school and the first soccer game, and then for no reason, it konked out on us. So sorry for those of you who've been yearning for updates (read: Jessica, Ragan, mom). We're working on it. Until then, just visualize Lizzie, only slightly bigger; Porter with a new haircut; and Riley with ant bites. That should do you for awhile.

Po The Famous Goalie

The Hattiesburg American was taking pictures yesterday before our first game and clicked this shot of Porter retieving His ball from the goal.

The Meerkats played really hard but in the last secnd of the game they scored a goal that one of my players said was worth 32 points, just so we won.

Brice

Beckham Shmeckam

Forget that posh pair that are supposedly turning the world of American soccer upside down. This duo is making some serious waves on a soccer feild near you. (If you happen to live in South Mississippi)

Five is Enough

Finally....a family picture!

You Ain't Lion

We went to Memphis over Labor Day weekend to take the kids to see the Lion King. We'd heard it was good, but this was beyond good! Anyone that can should go.

Bubba

This Is A Test

Bride of Frankenstein

Swingers