Polar Express!

This year, Lulu took us on the Polar Express again! We went last year, and this year was just as great! Maybe even more fun since the boys were a little older. They were decked out in their jammies ready to go to the North Pole to see Santa! We had been watching the movie The Polar Express the week before and so I knew Braidy was ready and SO excited!

The boys LOVED the cookies and the "hot cocoa" as Braidy calls it. He finished every last drop...he loves that stuff! Quin ate about 4 cookies and might have been on a slight sugar high. He was ALL smiles with VERY red teeth and mouth, playing peek a boo with Aunt Jess and Aunt Rachy. Braidy and Crockett were really excited about getting their tickets punched, and the conductor punched a candycane in the tickets! They loved the singing elves and chefs and before we knew it we were to the North Pole!







Quin hated Santa for the third time. Lulu tried but he freaked out. Crockett and Braidy loved him and gave him a big hug. Towards the end all 3 boys got a little stir crazy, but so did the other 100 kids on the train, so it was not a big deal. Braidy made a friend sitting in front of us, so he and Crockett played with him and entertained themselves by swinging on the racks above the seats! They were having such a fun time playing on the train together....when Braidy got off the train he said, "Momma, the Polar Express was so much fun! It was "perfect!"






Thank you Lulu for another fun and special Christmas tradition and memory. I know these boys will remember this forever!!!

Silly Quinny

Quin has gotten to be a FUNNY little guy....and he LOVES to entertain. This night at dinner he just kept making this face and we were all laughing at him....so he kept on and kept on. I love his little personality. Such a charmer.



And at our Lifehouse Christmas party, we had a chocolate fountain....as you can probably guess, he LOVED it. He was getting fussy because it was late, so I dipped him a graham cracker in some milk chocolate, and the fussiness vanished. He was in heaven and we all thought his face was very picture-worthy!

Braidy's Christmas Preschool Party

Braidy's preschool class had their Christmas party a few weeks ago, and I got to go. I LOVE watching him in a setting away from me, interacting with other kids and adults....gives me a different view on my boy. He was SO excited to see me...he was just looking around at all the food and goodies and the other parents, and then he spotted me and he just was too precious!

My favorite pictures are of them saying their prayer....or singing it..."God our Father, God our Father, We Thank You, We Thank You. For our many Blessings For our many Blessings, Amen, Amen!" Pretty sweet. Head bowed, eyes closed and everything. And yes, me and another mom were wondering if it was rude to take pictures during the prayer, but I am pretty sure God thought that was just fine =)

They had lots of goodies. I brought the veggie tray because I knew Braidy would eat it up....but instead he ate about 5 helpings of fruit, and ignored the chick fil a nuggets, the sweets, and declined on a piece of cake. Who is this kid???? Everyone was laughing because he kept asking for more grapes....the kid loves some fruit.

Santa Take 2

Santa came to City Bank yesterday so we wanted to go see him again at daddy's bank! Braidy said he would NOT tell Santa he wanted the Animal Toy because he already told him that. Duh mom! So this time he told him he wanted Cars 2 movie. Quin continued to hate the old man. Better luck next year....after tonight on the Polar Express, I'm sure Quin will be SO GLAD he doesn't have to keep running into Santa!

Not my proudest post..

I was given a very large dose of humility today. God really put me in my place, and I so deserved it.

Our lifehouse adopted a 4th grade class at Wheatley (our church adopts multiple schools to bless them with Christmas parties every year) but we were in charge of a 4th grade classroom. I was our "leader" since Ryan and I lead our lifehouses and I obviously have more time than him...and I was excited about it, then. So the week comes for our party and I am getting things in order. I have many people who will be at the party with me, and it will be smooth sailing. You might not know that I get SUPER anxious when I am responsible for organizing and pulling off something like this...or a birthday party, I just don't know why but I do not like it! So yesterday rolls around and the party is moved back an hour because of the weather and the chance that school might get delayed. So there goes about 1/2 of my volunteers because now the party runs into school letting out early and other's Christmas parties at different schools. So last night I threw myself a HUGE pity party, feeling so sorry for myself. I was not feeling well, I didn't feel like getting out of the house, much less throwing a stinkin' Christmas party for some kids I don't even know (I know, horribly selfish)....and on top of that, I might be all by myself in it all. How was I going to carry the huge box of stockings into the school? How was I going to get 5 bags of chocolate chips, melted, and into the chocolate fountain? What if the roads are bad? I'm going to have to get my kids out in the yucky weather, take them to childcare at the church, when all I wanted to do was stay in my warm house.

I guess overnight, the Lord worked on my heart. I woke up feeling better. I could breathe and my head wasn't pounding for the first time in a week. The weather was fine, cold, but fine. No worries about driving on the snow or ice. And guess what....I had 2 friends who would be there to help. Thank you Jesus. Michael helped me carry the big box and Krista was there ready to serve. And the best part was the kids. They truly ministered to us, especially me. They were SO thankful for every little thing we did for them. Even the silly peppermint candies we used for Bingo pieces. You would have thought we had given them a million dollars after we told them they could keep their candies. They LOVED the chocolate fountain, they seriously were in awe. I heard so many thank you's and please's. I was especially moved when they opened their gifts. They couldn't believe it. They loved every last candy, pair of gloves, socks, I even saw a little girl holding her pillow pet as if it were her most prized treasure. They were so grateful. One of the bingo winners (a boy) chose a little girl toy for his prize so he could give it to his sister for Christmas. Oh, these kids were so precious and appreciated what they were blessed with more than I could have hoped.

So, back to the Lord putting me in my place. I was so humbled to be a part of this, and to think I was dreading it and feeling sorry for myself just last night. I am incredibly selfish and sinful, yet the Lord used some sweet kids, who have little to nothing, to show me what Christmas and what life is all about. It is NOT about me. It is not about what I want or what I think I might need. It is about showing love and GIVING to others. I gave my time, money and energy to put the biggest smile on 15 precious kids faces, I'd say that was the best Christmas gift I could have asked for.

Thank you Lord for never giving up on me, and for showing me what life is all about. Thank you for loving me when I'm unlovable and forgiving me when I feel unforgivable. God's grace is the only gift I need or want. So thankful it's a guaranteed gift that I'm always given!

Grace, grace, God’s grace, Grace that is greater than all our sin.

Christmas Card 2011

Merry Christmas from the Curry's!


{Photos courtesy of Jamie Overton Photography}

Christmasness!

Yesterday, Ryan took John and Braidy to the Tech Club to make gingerbread houses (Daddy of the Year)! They had a great time and came back with some REALLY fun and cool gingerbread houses. John is bound and determined he is going to eat his. I don't think he realizes it will be similar to eating cardboard. Yuck! They sure look pretty though!!!



Today we went to the Tech Club for brunch and to meet SANTA!!! I thought everyone would love Santa....66.6% of the boys did. Quin HATED Santa. You would have thought we were torturing the poor baby (maybe we were!). He screamed and screamed. and screamed. I even tried, and he screamed some more. So that was a fail. But Braidy and John LOVED him...of course! Braidy told him he wanted the "animal toy"...it's this toy that is for babies, like Quin's age, but that is ALL he wants, and he has stayed very constant about what he wants since he first spotted this "animal toy" in the "map" (AKA the Toys R Us catalog), so I guess Santa will have to pull through and buy Braidy the baby toy. I guess we can always pass it onto Quin on the 26th of December, when Braidy realizes it's not that cool. John asked for the Ninjaga Lego Set. After Santa, we got to go eat and we even got to sit at the table next to Braidy's best friend, Ava. It was wild, and I'm sure the staff all cheered when we left, but we survived. (kinda)!