11.28.2012

loved this book even though its officially classified

as a teen book.

it reminded me of 'a diary of anne frank'

slightly hard to get into at first with death taking

a talking role....

4 out of 5 stars on my scale.

11.26.2012

i am thankful for monday mornings.

i am thankful for a 5th grader on safety patrol.

i am thankful for the above treat found in the bottom of the backpack.

i am thankful for reading about what colin is thankful for.

colin is thankful for everything from an odd shaped leather 

brown ball to clouds to teachers to nfl to youtube.

he is also thankful for ketchup, election day and the water cycle.

i am thankful for school paper treasures.

11.25.2012

i am thankful for signs of christmas.

i am thankful for sunday traditions & papa murphy pizza.
i am thankful for early morning church service.
i am thankful for five family filled fun days.

11.24.2012

{top 4 photos at baylor university today, georges restaurant in waco and last 2 photos in downtown round rock}

i am thankful for sunny saturday road trips.

i am thankful for sleeping baylor bears.

i am thankful for finding the immortal ten statue.

i am thankful for justin getting a head start on his project.

i am thankful for georges classic cheeseburger.

i am thankful for walking around downtown round rock.

i am thankful for finding the immortal ten plaque.

i am thankful for justins creative passion process.

i am thankful we are a part of his project today.

i am thankful for leftover turkey sandwiches.

i am thankful for college football.

i am thankful for long weekends together.

11.23.2012

i am thankful for photos received in my inbox today.

i am thankful for colins fall season of flag football.

i am thankful for boys who love to be part of a team.

i am thankful for beautiful austin weather year round.

i am thankful for staying away from the stores on black friday.

i am thankful for planing our christmas vacation tonight with sarah & troy.

11.22.2012

i am thankful for thanksgiving day.

i am thankful for being vertical.

i am thankful for not having to cook all day.

i am thankful for back to back football games x 3.

i am thankful for sunny 82 degree days.

i am thankful for having a camera but not using it today.

i am thankful for my health & my family.

i am thankful for facetime and iphones.

i am thankful for everything except chicken salad today!

happy thanksgiving y'all!

11.21.2012

i am thankful for christmas cards arriving.

i am thankful for school holiday.

i am thankful for friends reruns & ginger ale.

i am thankful for a pre-ordered thanksgiving feast.

i am thankful for steve doing errands today.

i am still not thankful for chicken salad.

11.20.2012

i am thankful for colins lego creativity.

i am thankful for not having to worry about getting out of bed today.

i am thankful for steve coming home earlier.

i am thankful for a quiet house & ice chips.

i am not thankful for yesterdays chicken salad.

11.19.2012

i am thankful for scrapbooking september photos.

i am thankful for capturing everyday memories.

i am thankful for a busy weekend at work.

i am thankful for a short school week.

i am thankful for early morning grocery runs.

i am not thankful for chicken salad today.

11.16.2012

i am thankful for 1.00 book sale at the library today.

i am thankful for a house filled with book readers.

i am thankful for a public library that is close to our house.

i am thankful for colin and riley going to locked-in tonight at gattiland at 11pm.

i am thankful for friday afternoon pickups x 3.

11.15.2012

july and august photos have left their envelopes &
found their way to their new home in a scrapbook binder.
300 summer photos filled 26 pages & 52 layouts.
from the forth of july shootout to tag camp to church camp
to vacation days to birthday parties to the first day of school.
from here to canada.
from july 1st through august 31.
summer memories relived.
off to find the shoebox of september pictures!

11.14.2012

gratitude journal for today:

++ two hot air balloons in the morning sky on the way to drop colin off at school.

++ christmas cards ordered.

++ library book sale has a whole room of $1.00 books now.

++ football in the street x 6 boys.

++ new episode of modern family on dvr.

++ coffee mate peppermint mocha creamer.

++ online report cards.

++ not having to turn on the furnace yet this fall.

++ red envelope christmas catalog in the mailbox.

++ making nathan blush at the dinner table.

++ friends reruns on tv.

11.13.2012

todays sippel story came early - 8:15am to be exact.

'um mom, i was thinking that if you ran up to game stop today while i was at school then i wouldn't have to waste any of my time standing in line after school to pick up our new pre-ordered video game.' said justin as he laid down some cash & ticket stub.

-

well what could i say to that.

a. laugh out loud

b. smile - i've already had a cup of coffee.

c. really?!

d. no honey sorry i can't. i'm spending the day in bed watching soap operas & eating bonbons.

e. sure - i can't wait to play it !!

-

you know what answer is correct.

11.12.2012

the christmas magazines are filling the mailbox.

the christmas catalogs are arriving daily.

the christmas music is playing at walmart.
the christmas ads are appearing in my inbox.

the christmas pinterest board is filling up.

the christmas list is started.

the christmas cards are in the making.

the christmas countdown is on.

here we go.

hohoho.
christmas eve is 6 weeks from now.

11.11.2012

because this is the only way i can get a picture of the boys

these days - from far away.

where they can't hear the camera lens pop out.

when they are preoccupied.

when the minivan provides cover for me.

when the sun is still shinning.

when the shouts of football plays fill the street.

when i was able to capture a picture today - from far away.

11.11.2012

just because i don't want to forget our favorite sippel quote these days.

"the headphone jack is going to be on the bottom..."

we all use it.

we all laugh.

good stuff.

everyday memory for today.

11.10.2012

something new for the sippel gang today.

a multitasking event.

eating dinner while watching skyfall.

well done on both.

we haven't seen a movie as a family in a theater 

since the blind side in 2009.

this was the perfect movie for all.

this was the perfect menu for all.

pizza, cheeseburgers, milkshakes, queso & wings.

we'll be back soon!

11.9.2012

direct relationship between the number of books i read in

a week and the number of insomnia hours i have in a week.

just finished this book.

 good book.

life. death. relationships in between.

3.5 stars out of 5.

11.8.2012

steve and carols day of fun.

we both took the day off & headed downtown

to enjoy some early christmas shopping in shorts & flip flops.

anthropologie. book people. lunch on the patio

at whole foods.

nothing better than taking a day off from the to-do list!

11.8.2012

every once in a while something happens

that brings a smile to my face & a story to the blog.

todays mail provided this post.

the cell phone bill arrived.

history in the making.

NATHAN had more text messages than justin.

1930 vs. 1893

wonder who all those text messages are to?

(don't worry - we know the answer to the above question!)

a small sippel story for today.

11.7.2012

a quick beach read kinda book.

i think i was too old to read this one.

a week in the life of a 22 year old blogger.

oh to be young & immortal again.

11.5.2012

{nathan - last week at hopewell middle school}

junior historians counting the schools mock election votes.

our future voters busy at work!
heres to election day tomorrow.
heres to voting tomorrow.
heres to tomorrow!

11.2.2012

loved this book.

my sil rosie recommended it.

an old 1962 classic getting new life.

worth reading this one.

11.1.2012

gratitude journal for today:

colins lego creation for a school project.

87 sunny degrees.

football in the street.

not eating a piece of the boys halloween candy until 3pm.

lunch date for next week.