Gift #222- Monkey Man Sam

I am not quite sure how Sam climbing the door frame qualifies as a gift, but I just had to post.  I did the same exact thing when I was a kid!  Weird huh?  Randall kids, does this look strangely familiar?

Gift #221- Macy and Sarah

Macy and Sarah trying on hats at the Exchange

Macy has always been a little bit reserved.  She did not speak her entire first year of preschool!  But she has made a little friend here and they are stuck together like glue.  They can get a little crazy, but I love seeing Macy being silly with her sweet little friend Sarah.

Every now and then, they let Sam in on the fun too!

Gift #220- Hank's Birthday

He is handsome and kind.  A really great guy.  He is clever and funny even though he doesn't try.  He likes popping his toes in the middle of the night and chewing his ice and that's just not right.  But he wrestles with Sam and tells Macy she's cuter.  He cheers for Jack on his bike and for Josh on his scooter.  We wouldn't trade him for all the gold on the earth.  We hope that he had the most wonderful birth(day).

So, it's definitely not my best work.  But I hope that it does the trick.  Happy Birthday Hank.  We love you most.

Gift #219- Sam's New Pet

So our little sugar glider was just a little more pet than we could handle.  He had a little bit of a biting habit and Sam was afraid of him, so it just wasn't going to work out.  We found him a great home with another sugar glider.  We were sad to see him go, but we knew that it was for the best.  We replaced Sam's little pet with a class guinea pig.  This little guy is super cuddly and lazy and EASY!  The kids can hold him all day long and he doesn't try to get away.  Sam named him Charlie and I think that he is a keeper.

Gift #218- DJ Sam

Sam spent ALL day outside today with his friends.  They were building a DJ stand.  They made a stage and a turn table and had spotlights!  It was pretty impressive.  Sam was the DJ.  They played Christian Rap songs and invited everyone in the neighborhood.  It was freezing out, so we had a slim crowd (only the parents).  The boys put lawn chairs out for the families.  We all came out wrapped in blankets and cozied up together to watch our kiddos put on a show.  It felt like family as we laughed and cheered and complained about the cold together.  It was nice!  We were happy when it was over, but it was nice.

Gift #217- Papa

Papa and Jack

 Papa and Sam.

The Day that Sam and Macy met their Papa.

Happy Birthday to  Papa!  We love you so much!  I asked Sam what I should write about Papa and he said that I should say that he is "one cool cat".  I don't know where he comes up with this stuff!

Happy Birthday to One Cool Cat!  We hope that your day is as wonderful as you!

Gift #216- Christmas Packages

Most of our Christmas packages got a little held up in this year.  In fact, there is still one floating around out there that was mailed on December 13th!  But this hold up turned into such a blessing! Over the past 4 weeks, our Christmas packages from home have been showing up intermittently at our little post office.  This has helped stretch our celebrating way into the New Year!  Getting a package always brings so much joy.  But what has brought even greater joy this year has been the amazing thoughtfulness that has been poured into each every box that we have opened!  Tony Hawk t-shirts for skateboard-addicted kids.  Panama City Marina and Life is Good T'shirts for adults who needed a little reminder of home.  Beautiful old hankies and Valentines Day cards from my sweet grandma's house.  A box FULL of beautifully- wrapped homemade treats and candies (even Turbo treats) that were lovingly made by little hands.  An Amazon gift card to a girl who orders from Amazon almost every other day! An unfinished Christmas letter to her children that my mom began writing many years back.  A beautiful necklace.  A paper arm-sretched-hug from a sweet niece.  The greatest bacon turner ever known to mankind!  Chick-fil-A sauce!  A favorite book from a childhood best friend.  Nerds and candies, and silly putty, and whoopee cushions, and cold hard cash for kiddos who LOVE Nerds and candies and silly putty and whoopee cushions and cold hard cash!  SEASON ONE OF DUCK DYNASTY on DVD!  Happy Happy Happy!  Every opened box has brought so much JOY!  So many smiles.  So many memories.  So much gratitude for the family that God has given us.  Blessed beyond measure is how we are feeling.

Gift #215- A Date with Dad

Macy chose Kikutei for her birthday dinner.  So she and her dad went out on a date this evening.  When Hank asked her to go get dressed, she put on her prettiest black velvet skirt and her sparkly top and her navy blue pea coat.  She even sprayed on a little bit of my perfume.  Such a big girl!

Gift #214- Twin Seven Year Olds!

Sam and Macy turned 7!  The time sure does fly.  I remember adding blankets to their car seats so they would be big enough to bring home from the hospital.  They had their friends Sarah and Colson over to celebrate.  Sam chose Crossroads for dinner (the base food court)  Easy Peasy.  Sam had a chocolate homemade cake with a Marine fire team on top.  Macy chose an icecream cake.  Until this year, I had been able to get away with just one cake.  My run is over.  But I can't complain.  Happy Birthday to my favorite twins!

Gift #213- Macy and her PJ's

Macy gets home from school at approximately 2:45 every week day.  This is her by 2:47.  My girl loves her PJ's.  She gets this love very honestly from her momma.

Gift #212- A Birthday Card from Papa

This birthday card was actually a gift for Jack, but it truly is a gift to all those who see.  Right?  Dad has never worried about acting silly.  It is one of his most endearing qualities.  Whether it is candy corn on his canine teeth and his best dracula voice or pickles hanging from his tongue, he never fails to entertain.  He gets that from my grandma.  So when this little jewel arrived in the mail, I thought that it truly captured the man that is my dad!  I wouldn't change a thing!

PS- I thought that he might be a little bit hesitant for me to post this picture.  But when I asked him if I could use it on the blog, his exact response was "Blog Away".  Typical.  :0)

PSS-  One of Jack's friends said "Cool, he has a blue tooth.".  Jack said "look closely, he literally has a blue tooth."  Hilarious!  Thanks Dad.