May your heart be full of joy and peace on this day as we celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior.  

It would not be Christmastime in the Watson home without a mini catastrophe. Does the the Lay-a-way Disaster of 2015 ring a bell?  You know...the time I forgot my items and had to run all over town to find last minute gifts for the kids?  What about the illness that hit in 2010 or the trip to Urgent Care on Christmas Eve in 2011 for a nasty sinus infection?  Then there was the time in 2012 when my mom totaled the truck the day they came down to celebrate?  Ellie got an eye infection on Christmas Day in 2013.  The good news is that 2014 went smoothly as far as I can remember. Worry not. It's all good, ya'll. We're blessed that it's never been anything more than minor inconveniences that make for great stories later on when the chaos dies down.  This year was not without incident.  Yesterday, we spent the afternoon getting ready for Christmas.  Eric put together the toys while I entertained the kids, wrapped presents and did a little cleaning and laundry. Since w

Yesterday after work, we picked up the kids and headed to Nashville for our annual trip to see the lights. I love doing this because not only is it free, it's also a tradition that we can carry on as the children get older.  Eric and I hope that we are blessed to one day bring our grandchildren back to enjoy the lights. We're in a season of life where we do our walk-thru very quickly.  The kids lose interest in a very short amount of time, so we have to keep moving. While we don't spend a lot of time in each room, we get to see the highlights and keep the kids entertained at the same time. Some day we'll take it all in at a much slower pace, but for now, it's just right.  The memories we create are what it's all about. My favorite atrium is this one.  I forgot what it's called but I feel like I'm walking in a winter wonderland every time I see it. The kids like the Cascade Atrium because of the waterfall.

I hope to get back into the habit of posting Midweek Musings again in 2017 so that I can photo-dump all random pictures from the week.  Since it's Thursday, and the end of my week, I thought that Mistletoe Musings would be a more appropriate title.  It keeps up with the alliteration and gives it a nice holiday ring.  Don't you agree? Anyway, we woke up with freezing fog yesterday.  It's quite dangerous for drivers, but is it not breathtaking?  I felt like I was inside a snow globe.  It was just beautiful. In other news, I have yet to post a single picture of my Christmas Tree lighted up at night.  I love how warm and cozy it makes my house feel.  Just because I like to keep it real- what you don't see in this picture are the toys cluttering the other side of the room or the pile of shoes behind me.  Last night we went to the Beckham's house for pizza and to watch the UK v. Louisville game.  For the first time in my life, I wore read.  Don'

One of my all-time favorite things to do during the holiday season is taking the kids shopping at the Dollar Tree and allowing them to pick out whatever they want to give the members of our family.  Not only is it budget friendly, it also instills in them a generous spirit because money is no object. It warms my heart to listen to them brainstorm ideas and walk up and down the aisle looking for the perfect gift.  They put so much time and effort into finding something special for each family member.  I leave the decisions completely up to them, and for the most part, they do an incredible job. When it comes time to pay, I explain to the clerk that I cannot see the items, but that I will pay for them once they are bagged. Of course, I end up seeing them, but this makes the kids feel special. Ellie bought me some napkins with Elsa and Anna on them, so that I will have something pretty on the table for Christmas lunch.  She bought Eric some razor blades, Beau a hamburger s

While we LOVE our Elf on the Shelf, we don't really use as it is intended.  Basically, we don't catch ourselves threatening our kids to behave. Peyton Siva is more of fun little friend who does silly things to make our mornings more magical since I'm the loan early riser of the Watson home. Of course, desperate times call for desperate measures.  After a few nights of less than desirable bedtime behavior, I decided it was time to pull our the "big guns" so-to-speak.  Before the kids woke up on Sunday, I did a little writing to help inspire them. Eli has been stressed to the max over this.  He even took it to bed with him and used it as a check list.  It cracks me up every single time he brings it up.  Had I known how affective it would be,  I might have done it a long time ago.  I'm totally rocking this parenting thing. Ha!

Yesterday started off a bit busy with a ballgame bright and early.  Eli scored all but one basket for his team, including a three pointer!  We are so proud of him. After the game, we ran to town for a few errands and a quick lunch at Pizza Hut.  Then it was back home to get ready for the wedding.  Ellie was all about getting her hair curled and all dolled up.  She is such a little prissy-pot, and I love it! She and I left early for the wedding so that she could be in all the photos and do another practice run in the venue. She was eating it all up. She loved everything about getting to be a flower-girl. When it was time to walk down the isle, she did great.  However, once she was on stage, she spotted a Sunday School friend, and it was all over.  She ran off the stage and straight to her friend. I ended up having to get up and get her, which was so embarrassing.  Me and my forever date.  I can't believe we did this eight years ago.  PS-

It's the most wonderful time of year, and it's also the busiest.  After Eli and I picked up Ellie following our little date yesterday afternoon, we all headed home. I had to make something for the Boy Scouts Potluck, so while the casserole was finishing, I dressed Ellie for Rehearsal Dinner. She was asked to be the flower-girl in a wedding for someone at church.  That was way back in the summer, and she has been super pumped about it ever since.  She was so excited to get dressed up and head to the church to practice.  The little ring-bearer also goes to our church and is seriously one of the cutest kid I have ever seen.  I begged to take their picture together, and finally, we made a compromise. If I let him take one in his Spiderman mask in one picture, he would take one picture for me without it.  That's a win-win, ya'll! They both did a great job at rehearsal and loved hanging out with the groomsmen and bridesmaids.  My sister bought Ellie a p

Today was Eli's Christmas Party at school, and since I had a Board Meeting last night, I had enough hours in to be able to enjoy it.  I fully realize that my days of Christmas Parties are numbered because he'll be too cool for me all too soon.  The class did a few games that were adorable to watch and lots of fun for the kids to play. First, they did a relay where they put Vasoline in their noses and tried to pick up a dot of red paper without using their hands.  It was so stinking adorable.  Then they divided into teams and made human snowmen by wrapping a classmate in toilet paper and designing an outfit for him/her to wear.  I'm just saying that there are some little fashion designers in the Second Grade.   Their teacher had everyone bring a $5 gift card, which is so genius!  She read an embleshied version of the "The Night Before Christmas."  Every time she would say "left" or "right" they would have to move their p

Earlier this week, work landed me at Eli's school.  I happened to finish my project just a few minutes before lunchtime, so I stuck around to dine with my favorite second-grader. His school is about 20 minutes from my work, so I don't often get the luxury of eating with him.  When I do have the chance, I always enjoy sitting with his friends and catching up on the latest second grade gossip. Today the conversation was all about Christmas and what everyone would be getting from Santa.  It was a pretty deep discussion.  Ha!

Remember yesterday when we talked about the photo out-takes?  Well, I just wanted to give you another glimpse into reality. Eli wanted his picture taken, but NOT with Santa.  Ellie wasn't too thrilled by the prospect.  I think she's watched How The Grinch Stole Christmas one too many times.  Ha! And for the sake of memory, Eli also had a little Grinch in him when he was about this same age.  He was less than thrilled that the present he was holding was NOT for him.  Ha!

If you follow me on social media, you know that I love to post pictures of my babies all dolled up and ready for church or whatever outing that we are attending. Because I like to keep it real, I want to disclose that my children are not always as charming as the photos imply.  In fact, we usually have to threaten, bribe, and take about a half dozen pictures before we get one that's usable.  This particular Sunday, Eli was feeling a photoshoot, but Ellie not so much. By the time we got her to look at the camera, Eli was distracted. And with the next click, it was Ellie who wasn't looking.  It's a vicious cycle, I tell you.  And after all the bribing, and flashing, sometimes you get a gem like the one below.  You know, when your three-year-old looks like she's trying to go for the cover of Vogue, but ends up looking like Zoolander.  Ha!  I'm just relieved that we don't do Christmas Cards....you're welcome!