Friday, November 25, 2016

Thanksgiving 2016 Farm Style

My dad's Uncle George and Aunt Shirley have hosted our family Thanksgiving on their farm my entire life and then some.  It is a tradition and one that keeps family members traveling from lands afar to be a part of.  Wednesday evening the men all gather to cook the pig and talk about the good ole days....and Thursday is when the 100+ family members come to be together and give thanks.  
It really is amazing and my memories from growing up on the farm run deep.
 Thanksgiving 
I give thanks to the Lord above for these precious faces that greet me each morning.  From the oldest to the youngest, my heart is full.  
We are far from perfect, there is always some sort of somewhat managed chaos that follows us yet I would not trade one ounce of it for anything.  
Colin and his jokes - he tries so hard to keep a straight face.
Pryce and his ambitions - his heart is so full.
MK and her sweetness - she is a gentle little soul.
Maddox and her words of wisdom - and sometimes her words of hard truths.
Maryn and her complete love for her mama - oh this little one never forgets to give a kiss and a nose kiss too!
Chapman and her busy-ness - this is a little one on the move at all times!  
 And my nieces and nephew, my brother's children, who we see so little of but adore all the same!  
 And my sweet sister and her family....Emma was the little girl in our home that led us to our MK, the one who Pryce would not even let me hold during our first visit with her when she was a mere one week old.  And Jay, Jay-Man is the man.  He is full of dance moves like no other and is always up for fun during family gatherings.  He adores the boys and the boys love playing all things sports with him!
 My Parents
Gran and Pop
The beginning....
Eleven grands that they hold close to their hearts
I know they are proud.  I know they are in love with the ones that surround them.
I pray that my children will have the memories with them that I have with each of my grandparents.  Thanksgiving is the one holiday that brings back so much for me....it was the one holiday during my childhood that I spent time with all of my family including both sets of grandparents.  Wednesdays were always set to go to the Goodson's house, my Granny and Grandaddy.  There we would be greeted with a refrigerator full of our favorite foods and drinks and dinner of the traditional waffles being cooked.  Thursdays, Thanksgiving Day, we would awaken to BoBerry goodness from Bojangles and the smell of bacon and eggs cooking for us to enjoy as we watched the Macy's Thanksgiving Day parade.  And then we would go to the farm, sometimes my Granny and Grandaddy would join us, other times they would do their own feast.  At the farm we were greeted by my father's family, his parents, my Nannie and Papa, as well as my great-grandmother who lived to be 100 years old.  And the farm, full of giggles from all ages, newborn to 90+, was the annual reunion of sorts for this large Peebles, Tisdale clan.  I thought of my Nannie especially yesterday - the weather was so perfect, just a few clouds with sun bursting through, a mere 75 degrees, low winds....the weather was what my Nannie would have worried over for weeks before the big Thanksgiving Day gathering, she wanted it to always be nothing short of amazing!  And, I missed her famous caramel cake. 
 This little turkey is one of my six favorites.....
 She is full of love and silliness and there is never a dull moment!  I am so proud of her!  She has navigated this big sister thing remarkably well!
 And this sweet girl.
Gosh, I am not sure how we deserve to parent such a sweet, humbling child.  She is a little old soul with one of the kindest hearts you will ever meet!
 And Miss Maddox loves this baby Chapman.
She will tell you that Chapman cries ALL of the time, which, in her world, I am sure it seems that way.  However, Maddox is always, always the first one to ask if she can try to make her smile!
 And our sweet little Noah.
This guy has taught us all so much.
We adore his family and we are so thankful they love him to the moon and back!  He is a light in their lives and it gives me nothing but pure joy to know that he is right where he is supposed to be, thriving as he should.  He is a treasured son, brother, grandson, nephew, and friend.  We are especially thankful to be able to visit with him and his family often and watch him grow up!
 This little nugget.
This time last year, we had no idea she was even waiting.  We knew nothing of her.  This littlest light of ours was a missing piece to our puzzle and I am so thankful to call her ours!  
Happy Thanksgiving from our home to yours!  May your days be full as you welcome in the holiday season of 2016!

Thursday, November 24, 2016

Maddox

We love our little seven year old Maddox.  And this Thanksgiving, I am thankful for just listening to her talk with me about a few things.....
1)  "Mom, is this the first Thanksgiving that Chapman has spent in this land?"
2)  "Mom, you do know that we learned about the pilgrims in school?  Well, they were allowed to eat their dessert first and they didn't even get into trouble!"
3)  "I haven't even eaten pie before!  I want to try a piece of each pie at Thanksgiving!"
Lo and behold, our little Maddox ate an entire piece of apple pie and an entire piece of lemon meringue pie during our meal....and then she followed that up with an unidentifiable amount of cookies!  She may not have eaten turkey but she sure did get her desserts in!

Wednesday, November 23, 2016

A Time For Thanksgiving

30 thankful thanks.
My husband.
My six children.
Our home.
My Parents - they have been our rock this past year as we pursued our little Miss Chapman.
My neighbors - aka, the village.
My church.
Homeschool and Greenbrier Elementary school and Greenbrier High school and Augusta University and Grace Baptist Preschool - honestly, I am thankful for school and the many choices we have for schooling our children.
Candy - specifically chocolate, I am a junkie.
Coke Zero - it is my coffee that keeps me running.
Adoption - the children of adoption, the friends we have made through our own adoptions, the adoption community, adoption agencies, social workers, advocates, foster parents....
Friends - old friends, new friends....
Doctors
Family Time - there is absolutely nothing more in the world that means as much to me as the time we spend together as a family....I am thankful for our little adventures, for the memories that are always made.....
Pizza - it is my comfort food.
China
Orphan Hosting Programs
Facebook - it allows me to stay tuned in to people that I have been honored to meet at some point in my life.
Dunkin Donuts - a good bagel with some strawberry cream cheese on the side....and maybe a munchkin to taste too!
The Beach
Fans that lull me to sleep
Music - it is my therapy.
Family Vacations
Grace - goodness knows we can always use a good dose of grace!
Finley - our little dog, he can drive me batty when he barks randomly but he sure is a sweet little guy and quite warm too!
Make-Up....the older I get, the more this stuff is just needed!
Clean Water....I drink a gallon each day!
Heat....and heated seats, and heated blankets, and heated showers!
Dishwashers...tis true I am not even allowed to operate ours BUT it is also true that this simple machine plays a major part in our everyday, first-world lives.  Feeding six children is no joke:)
My Sister....she is my go-to person, my person that will make me laugh when I don't even know what to laugh about.
My life.  I am thankful for my life, my dream come true.  I always wanted exactly what I have right now - a family of my own, children who call me "Mama" and a husband who gets me and loves me for me and all of my crazy ideas/thoughts/and dreams.