Merry Christmas!

Since I won't be posting until after Christmas, we wish you a very Merry Christmas.

Lots of Love and Happiness!

The Thompson!

Christmas countdown..3..2..1..

I can not believe in a couple more days it will be Christmas! AHh!! I don't know where the time has gone. Today I finished making cookies and then we dropped them off to a few different friends houses. I swear this year more people have Christmas lights up on their houses, I don't know if it's because everyone is depressed because of the bad economy so they're trying to cheer themselves up or what. Anyhow, that is my theory. So next year I am not booking any appointments starting Thanksgiving and going through the New Year, I am way to busy with my holiday cheer and family stuff.

Can you believe the nasty weather we've had lately? It was icky icky icky out the other day. Kaylee and Nathan were at my parents house spending Saturday night, it was so bad they ended up spending Sunday night as well. That actually worked out in my favor, I finished Kaylee's room except for some trim above the closet door and some touch up painting. Jimmy and my dad did a great job on it, lots of hard work and it really doesn't look like a room that would be in a basement. Anyhow, check out some pictures of her room and just a few random ones:

Picture of my goodie bags:

My backroom Christmas room:Emily looking out the window at our winter wonderland:

Kaylee's new room:

Bed, I'll be making her a new brown and pink blanket: Walking in:
Emily is too cool:

Let the baking begin!

This week I am doing some Christmas baking!! I plan on having the kids pass out goodies to our nearby friends this next Saturday. I think we'll drive around town and tour some Christmas lights, listen to Christmas music on the radio and pass out goodies. Sounds like fun! So this next week I plan on making some home made cinnamon bread, sugar cookies, oatmeal cookies, andes mints cookies, holiday chip cookies, caramel corn, and chex mix. Mm.. doesn't that sound yummy? I ran to the store on Saturday and picked up everything I should need to bake with. I'm not going to the store again until after Christmas, it was nuts! Crazy people everywhere. Jimmy hasn't been feeling hot the last few days, poor honey. I think we'll all take a nap when Emily does today, it's always nice to get a few extra winks of sleep when you're under the weather.
Speaking of weather it's 44 out and rainy!! Crazy to think a few days ago it was snowing and now it's all gone! Michigan weather...
Emily was sitting on the chair the other day looking like such a big girl, I just had to snap a couple of pictures of her:
I love her little lips:
Just relaxing with her snacks:

Great Wolf Lodge 2008

We just got back from our trip up north. Aside from a small patch of nasty weather everything was wonderful! I'm telling you the time to go to Great Wolf Lodge is the early part of December, hardly any people. I don't think I had to wait in a line once, and the Magi quest game didn't have tons of kids running about. I'm glad my mom and dad made it up a night. We all didn't get much sleep that first night with the.. ahem.. men snoring and then the kids couldn't seem to settle down with Emily having the most trouble. The 2nd night was much better. Emily and I went to bed at 9 pm, Jimmy and the kids went to bed a little after 10 pm and we all slept straight through until 9 am the next morning...ahhh.. now thats a vacation!

Thanks to Jimmy I got to eat at a few of my favorite places:

Ruby Tuesday which has a great salad bar.

Olive Garden which has my favorite salad dressing

and
Cracker Barrel which has some yummy hash brown casserole.

Pictures:

So many pine trees just covered in snow on the way up:

Emily snoozing in the car:

Kids getting ready to play the Magi Quest game:
Emily playing the Magi game:
Ahh...lazy river:
Me and Emily:

More pictures on my facebook and i'll post more in the family album one of these days here.

Seriously people seriously!!

Ok people really fall for this junk? I can't believe it. I've gotten the emails before about so and so is holding millions for me in an account and I just have to pay some legal fee and I'll be rich. Which I realize is bs. Now today I get an email from... gasp... the FBI. Wow, contacting me by email to let me know how to get my millions how nice of them. I just seriously had to post the letter I got because I'm still laughing about it. Please notice that the FBI can't spell and has terrible grammar, ha. I will be putting my own comments into the email as well because I can't help myself:


Anti-Terrorist And Monitory Crime Division.
Federal Bureau Of Investigation.
J.Edgar.Hoover Building Washington Dc

Attn: Beneficiary,
This is to Officially inform you (by email not on the phone or in person)that it has come to our notice(because we're watching youuuuuuu, always watching) and we have thoroughly Investigated (because we don't have any other thing to do but monitor random emails about money from Africa) with the help of our Intelligence Monitoring Network System that you are having an illegal Transaction with Impostors claiming to be Prof. Charles C. Soludo of the Central Bank Of Nigeria, Mr. Patrick Aziza, Mr Frank Nweke, Mr. Nwachukwu, none officials of Oceanic Bank, Zenith Banks, kelvin Young of HSBC, Ben of FedEx, Ibrahim Sule,Larry Christopher, Dr. Usman Shamsuddeen, Dr. Philip Mogan, Puppy Scammers are impostors claiming to be the Federal Bureau Of Investigation.
Which is all amazing to me because I have never gotten any mail from the above listed people nor have I had any transactio with them.

During our Investigation, we noticed that the reason why you have not received your payment is because you have not fulfilled your Financial Obligation given to you in respect of your Contract/Inheritance Payment.

Therefore, we have contacted the Federal Ministry Of Finance on your behalf (how nice of them) and they have brought a solution to your problem by coordinating your payment in total USD$11,000.000.00 in an ATM CARD which you can use to withdraw money from any ATM CENTER anywhere in the world with a maximum of $4000 to $5000 United States Dollars daily.

You now have the lawful right to claim your fund in an ATM CARD.
Since the Federal Bureau of Investigation is involved in this transaction, you have to be rest assured for this is 100% risk free (wow, because they say they are the FBI surely they must be) it is our duty to protect the American Citizens (sure buddy). All I want you to do is to contact the ATM CARD CENTER via his email or phone for their requirements to proceed and procure your Approval Slip on your behalf which will cost you $250.00 only (an approval slip for the low low price of 250 bucks) and note that your Approval Slip which contains details of the agent who will process your transaction.

CONTACT INFORMATION
Name : Dr. Andrew HallDirector- General,
ATM CARD PAYMENT CENTER Federal Republic of NigeriaCentral District Area,
AbujaTel : +234 12132294Cell: +234 7032886904
EMAIL: andrew_hall@yahoo.cn

Ok first of all why does an agent have a yahoo email address? 2nd why is he from Africa and why does he have a cell and regular telephone number from Abuja?
I seriously almost expect his email to be aguynottryingtoscamyou@It'sthetruth.com
and his phone number to be 1-866-not-ascam

Do contact Mr. Andrew Hall of the ATM CARD CENTRE with your details:
FULL NAME:
HOME ADDRESS:
TELL:
CELL:
CURRENT OCCUPATION:
BANK NAME:
AGE:
because although the fbi figured out that someone has my money and they figured out my email they do not know my full name, address or phone number.

So your files would be updated after which he will send the payment information’s (multi info) which you'll use in making payment of $250.00 via Western Union Money Transferor ( FBI works through Western Union) Money Gram Transfer for the procurement of your Approval Slip after which the delivery of your ATM CARD will be effected to your designated home (my home was designated) without any further delay.
We order you (ordered even) get back to this office after you have contacted the ATM SWIFT CARD CENTER and we do await your response so we can move on with our Investigation (If I don't hurry and send that 250 I'm delaying the investigation) and make sure your ATM SWIFT CARD gets to you.
Thanks and hope to read (I hope to read from you too highly educated and respected FBI director) from you soon.
ROBERT S. MUELLER, IIIDIRECTOR, FEDERAL BUREAU OF INVESTIGATION UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF JUSTICE WASHINGTON, D.C. 20535
Note: Do disregard any email you get from any impostors or offices claiming to be in possession of your ATM CARD, you are hereby advice only to be in contact with Dr. Andrew Hall of the ATM CARD CENTRE who is the rightful person to deal with in regards to your ATM CARD PAYMENT and forward any emails you get from impostors to this office so we could act upon and commence investigation.
How thoughtful of them to want to keep me safe from the impost0r's that is trying to take my magic money that i have somehow. Thanks FBI, you're a pal!

Seriously I can't believe it, I don't even have the words. So with my new millions the FBI helped me find I'm taking everyone on vacation! WHOO HOO!!

Eating my oats!

I'm sitting here watching the snow fall eating a bowl of oatmeal trying to remember my giant list of things to do today. I'm sure I'll forget something. Now if it was night time and I was trying to get to sleep I'd remember everything I needed to do, shoot I'd probably remember things I forgot to do when I was ten.

Jimmy took the kids to see Bolt on Saturday. I guess they really liked it. I'm glad they had some daddy bonding time, he's been busy at work lately. I took Emily over to my Grandma's house. She was so funny trying to walk through the door ways that have those little edges. She'd step her little leg nice and slow.. heehee.

Sunday we just hung around the house all day. I worked on some pictures, Jimmy worked on getting my Grandma's computer all set up for her for Christmas. We even got to sleep in a bit and Emily took a nice long nap which made her want to stay up later so it was a little tricky getting her to go to bed, she's still sleeping now.

The kids are getting super excited for Great Wolf Lodge this Sunday. I hope the weather is clear for our drive up and back. I know they'll have a nice time, I'm excited too!! I just hope Miss Em's can sleep ok.

Fal la la la la.....

After we got Mr. Tree all set up in his new home we gave him a little rest to warm up (and took a nap) then got down to business. I put up my fancy new LED bigger bulb lights. Then the kids took over and finished decorating the tree for me. Even Emily got into the action, although she really just enjoyed walking around with bulbs and stepping on the lights.
And for everyone who thinks I'm the only Christmas nut in this family Jimmy even set up a speaking inside the tree this year so when I put on Christmas music it sounds like it's coming from the tree.

Today we're off to South Haven. Kaylee, Nathan and Jimmy will be watching a movie while I take Emily to my Grandma's house for some hugs and kisses (and maybe a little pie for me).

Tree Pictures:

Getting the lights out:

Kids looking at the lights:

Hanging up the decorations: Emily putting hers on:

Off to the tree farm!

Ok lets see if this blog turns out a little better, dang picture problems.
Off to find our trees:

Emily and her Santa hat:

Looking around for the tree:

Me and Emily:

Me and the kids:

All the kidlets:
Squinty eyes:

Cutting down the tree:

Girls walking around:

Jimmy cutting down the tree:
Does it smell good?:

No "proper" way to cut down a tree:

Emily watching the action:

Walking back with the goods:

Does it smell like a tree Kyla?:

Mm.. fresh pine smell:

Tree stuffed in and ready to go:

Thanksgiving Pictures

I didn't take a ton but you get the idea
Thanksgiving Pictures 2008:

Mmm.. yummy:

Nathan thought his foot needed to be in the picture:

MM.. John fed Em's some of Susan's yummy pudding:

Yes I put her 6 hairs in a ponytail:

What I see a lot of, Emily pulling on my shirt so I pick her up:

Doing the dishes, everyone pitched in isn't that nice?!?:

Good Turkey Beautiful Tree

I hope everyone had some good gobble gobble. I think my food turned out pretty dang good and I do say so myself, ha! I don't mind cooking Turkey dinner, the last half hour is a little hectic because everything happens at once, like the turkey needs to be sliced, the potatos mashed, green bean casserole baked, gravy gravified, etc... But I did it! Jimmy helped me lots (thanks honey), my dad got the turkey all ready (thanks daddy). So now we eat leftovers for a week, heehee. I do have some pictures to post but they're on the back computer and I'm on my laptop so I'll post them later on.

So we went and got our Christmas tree and it is beautimus! I luvs it lots!
We went with Dan and Liz and Kyla who also got one. Everyone was out getting trees this morning it was crazy busy. I guess we weren't the only ones to go first thing in the morning, I thought for sure it would be busier in the afternoon time. Jimmy cut it down then hauled it to the front then got it in the car then carried it into the house and set it up in the stand and now it's all ready for us to decorate this afternoon/evening. I have some pictures of that as well, not many because I was holding Emily through a lot of it since the ground was kinda mucky. The kids are excited to decorate it. We're going to stop over and see Dan and Liz's tree after lunch.
I'll post again later!

Turkey Madness.

I'm still slacking on my blogs a bit, no pictures to post...sorry. I'll get some tomorrow
when I'm not stuffing my face with food. Speaking of stuffing faces with food...
We went out to eat for Mom's Bday. We ended up going up by C.J. and Rachel.
Mom choose to eat at Red Robin so everyone met there and then the girls went
shopping at the mall and we stopped by hobby lobby (of course). I got these
cute little red bags with white polka dots. They're too sweet, they kinda flare out at
the top, not the usual square shape. I'm going use them to deliver Christmas
cookies to nearby friends. I can't believe in a few short days we will be in December.
Isn't that craziness!!?!?!

This year we're having Thanksgiving dinner over at my house. Jimmy's parents,
my parents and John and Susan will be here. My brother is going to Rachels families
house. It will be a little sad with out him. Thats the thing about getting married and
all that, you have to split up the holidays between each others families. A lot of times
the girl ends up winning out on more of the holidays with her family because we're
a little more emotional and sentimental about things like that (in a lot of cases).
But my brother has always been one to want to be with his family during the
holidays so it will be interesting to see how they decide to split up things so it's
fair for the two of them, ecspecially when children come along. Heehee...
I have heard some couples have Thanksgiving one year with one family then
the other gets Christmas for that year then the next year they switch. Jimmy has
a small family on his side so I haven't had to give up much on my families side. We
were skipping out on Christmas eve service at the church for years but last year we
went. I just missed it so much, I'd always gone growing up. I think we'll go again this
year if the weather is ok. It just makes for a later night but Kaylee and Nathan
are older now so it's not as big of a deal. I am really excited for the Holiday season
though! So anyhow, back to Tday... I hope I don't screw up anything. I'm in charge
of the Turkey, Stuffing, Mashed Potatos and gravy. My mom is making a fruit salad,
a dessert, and green bean casserole, John and Susan are bringing home made rolls
and pudding and Jimmy's mom is bringing the pies! Yay for food! I'm going to
finish cleaning the house tonight and make a batch of chex mix. Then tomorrow
I'll stick Mr. Turkey in the oven around ten while watching the Thanksgiving
parade with Kaylee and Nathan which is something we've done every Thanksgiving
together since our Napier house. I'll post pictures and a blog about the happenings
at some time in the next few days. Then we're all set until the first weekend in
December when we'll be heading up North to the Great Wolf Lodge for some
family fun!

I hope everyone has a wonderful Thanksgiving!!!

It sure is crowded outside!

Ugh.. so I get up this morning, look out my window and see a whole mess of snow. Ew, I'm thinking to myself when did this happen?!?! Nathan runs in and says "no school today because the snow is too crowded". Emily was a giant mess yesterday. She started off the day full of snot and drool running down her face, I had to change her shirt three times before the light bulb in my head went off and I finally figured out that a bib might be useful. Anyhow, about mid day she became super plugged up and had to breathe through her mouth, nap time was a nightmare I basically held her the whole time so she could breathe. Then at the end of the day all heck broke out in her nose and everything began to run, her snot, her drool and her eyes were super watery. She looked like a hot mess and she felt like a hot mess, poor baby. So she spent the night with us. She likes to sleep sideways so we end up teetering on the very edge of the bed which is not a very sound way to sleep. Plus I got the brillant idea to start working out again and so today I feel like I'm trapped in the body of a 98 year old. Emily actually slept a lot better then I thought she would and today she seems a lot better (so far). So I am unsure as to whats going on with that little monster. I thought for sure she had a cold but then she's had her hands in her mouth half the day so maybe she's a mess from the teeth she's getting in. I know she's getting in two of her bigger back teeth, I can feel huge lumps in the back of her mouth. I'll just have to keep my eye on her today. So yesterday was not so fun. Today will hopefully be better, I have to clean up this house it's driving me crrrrrrrrrrrazy! Jimmy has had to stay after this whole week, he's got a bunch of projects to catch up on. There is some good news, I've caught back up with my editing and am finished (until my next appointment at the start of next week). Yippee! I'm slowly easing my way into being done with photography for a couple months. I have a few people who want Christmas cards (I've already ordered mine, if you want one and you usually don't get one from me let me know your address and I'll send you one). I am planning on reorganizing my list and trimming out some people I really don't talk with much anymore so I will have some extra for others!! I even have some stamps ready! Who's on the ball? I am! Go me!
Little Emily update:
Emily cracks me up, I was playing the piano earlier (this is the time of year that I like to plunk out some Christmas songs) and little Miss Emily was watching me, all of a sudden she runs off to the front room and sits down and starts playing her little crocodile xylophone. Aww.. she's so cute!! She has learned how to use her little yellow chair as a step stool, she pushes it over to the couch or bay window and then climbs up, little stinker. So now her little yellow chair is in her room. She was super cute the other night, she kept giving me a kiss then turning around and giving Jimmy a kiss and then me a kiss then him a kiss (of course the next day she was full of snot so lets hope we don't get her cold) I loved it! I've noticed that she is WAY into dancing lately, she spends a lot of time on her tip toes, or waving her hands in the air and the other day she was wiggling her little bum HA! Last but not least she now knows how to say "ho ho ho" for santa. She is really full of personality right now!
Next week should be nice and busy, going out for my mom's bday this weekend, one appointment next Tuesday and then turkey day here on Thursday. Putting the tree up, then some Christmas shopping!! Jimmy is already teasing me about what he has planned for Christmas (won't tell me a thing, not even a little hint). He's such a tease!

So it begins.

It's not even Thanksgiving and I'm already taking Christmas pictures, hey got to get on the ball with these kinds of things, besides Emily's attention span is like 10 seconds so I'll probably have to take ten pictures a day for the next 3 weeks before I get the ones I want. I took some while the kids were at school today. Nathan has a holiday concert today, I believe my mom is coming up for that. They don't do Christmas ones anymore because everyone is so busy then, dang I'd rather have Christmas concert then a Turkey concert. I'm busy now and then and I'm betting so are most people. Oh well bunch of grinches. I can't believe next Thursday is Thanksgiving, AH!! I need to dot my i's and cross my t's here! Hopefully I'll be ready. My mom's birthday is coming up this weekend, we're looking forward to going out of town for that.