Oh What Fun...

Christmas day began with an early morning run to the stockings.

Instead of the usual candy and trinkets, Eloise found a small gift and a post-it-note, that began a scavenger hunt that eventually led her to her big present.

Hubby had so much fun watching his plan unfold.

He almost couldn't contain himself.

Thanks to my husbands co-worker we were able to get our daughter a great present at a fraction of the original cost. With this "Kindle" our daughter can carry an entire library around with her. Her Daddy pre-loaded it with 50 free e-books (mainly classics like "White Fang" & "Little Women") which might last her a couple of weeks. I'm not kidding. I put this kid in the basket with a pillow and three Nancy Drew books when I go to Wally World and by the time I'm ready to check out she has finished them all. This gift is going to save us from having to buy more bookshelves. Another bonus is that my husband downloaded the entire Bible to it.

After taking a quick run to a neighboring state to visit relatives, Eloise came home so we could go to my sister's house for a Christmas/1st Birthday party.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JESUS

&

TOO TOO!

Merry Christmas to all & to all a good night.

I have proof......

...that not all things purchased at "Whole Foods" are healthy or nutritious.

Plain Old Kriti's hubby and my hubby are buds.

Her husband stumbled across this odd gift and instantly thought of my husband,

who is a carnivore at heart.

In case you can't see the picture clearly, let me give you the scoop:

This is a chocolate bar laced with bits of apple wood smoked BACON!

I repeat: CHOCOLATE COVERED BACON!

The only thing that could make this healthier is if they took the candy bar, battered it, deep fried it, and sprinkled a little more salt on top.

In case you are wondering....It wasn't totally nasty, but it isn't anything that I would go out of my way to get.

I will say that it made us laugh, so I guess it was worth it.

Thanks Byron.

He looks so innocent.....

...but notice his little paw inching its way to my decorations (above).

I knew he couldn't resist for long.

Yes, I am finally finished with school for a while and am starting to feel like a normal person again. Today was great. My house finally looks and smells like Christmas. I also had a couple of friends over for broccoli cheddar soup, curry chicken salad with cranberries on croissant, and chocolate eclairs. It's good to be me again!

I hope all is well with everyone.

-Happy Christmas-ing and God Bless-

Almost to the end of this tunnel....

Next week is the last week of this semester. I have had a wonderful time working with the students from various schools in the New Orleans area, but the schedule has been grueling for this full time mommy and wife. I will be able to breath a little easier after finals.

Out of the three groups that I had to teach (P.E., Math, Language Arts) this was my favorite, because I love to engage children in good literature.

We did a whole unit on the fable about the six blind men who wanted to find out what an elephant was. One man grabbed the tail and said an elephant was like a rope. One man grabbed the leg and said that an elephant was like a tree etc...

During this clinical we read, discussed, did activities, wrote newspaper articles, and completed some worksheets. I have compiled all of this, some photos, and a copy of the story into books for the students to take home and share with their families.

I am glad that my work is almost finished, but I am going to miss the children.

It's ok though, because now I'll be able to spend more time with the child that I have been missing all semester.

***The parents of these students have all signed waivers concerning the use of their photos for non-commercial use***