I'm Lovin' It

I love the Christmas season, but I hate when people try to downplay the special time of the year by saying Happy Holidays or calling it a holiday tree. Even the latest gap commercial is irritating to me. Have you heard it, it goes like this "go Christmas, go Hanukkah, go Kwanzaa, go solstice." Don't get me wrong, I am cool with the Hanukkah part even the Kwanzaa part to a degree, but solstice, solstice? Now we have to mention holidays that the wicca's celebrate! How politically correct are we going to take it? Why can't we simply use this time of the year to use it for the purpose it was intended, to celebrate the birth of Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior. It's like businesses want to cater to everyone to make sure they don't offend anyone in their path to making more money.

I am amazed by the businesses that stand up for what the believe and don't lay that aside in order to make a few bucks. Like our local McDon@alds, who every year paints a nativity scene on their windows. We have 2 in town, in they both do it. Also, our local GiGi's cupc@kes who had Jesus is born painted on their windows. Thank you for standing up for what you believe in!

Jesus is Born!

Suffering

Today, during my quiet time, I was reminded of something. We hear of children being born who are blind, with down syndrome, with physical deformities, etc. We hear of infants, toddlers and children battling cancer, HIV, and suffering malnutrition among so many other disease and conditions that we hope we never have to endure as an adult. Then there are adults who are solid people who suffer, and the age old question is why does God allow these things to happen? If he is a caring God, why does he allow it?

The verse I read today was in John 9, when Jesus comes across the man who was blind from birth and his disciples asked who sinned to cause his blindness his parents or the himself. (It was normal for people to associate sin with disease or conditions back then, and I believe that some people in certain cultures still believe that to be the case.) Jesus clarifies that neither the parents nor the man sins caused his blindness. His blindness happened so that the work of God might be displayed in his life.

How many times do we find ourselves throwing pity parties when something goes wrong. We want it our way. God can take the smallest trial in our life and turn it into the largest thing that will glorify Him so that it may be displayed for all to see. How we react to our certain issue, trial or temptation speaks volumes when it comes to God's glory especially if we are claiming to be a christian.

As I read this chapter, I was reminded of my friend, sorority sister, Stephanie. Stephanie was one of the kindest, most genuine people that you could ever meet. She was diagnosed with cervical cancer and just in life, she was born in 9 months, in death, she died in 9 months. Her battle was not easy, she struggled day in and day out with pain, not just physical pain, but the pain of leaving behind her husband and her daughter Zoe, who would soon turn 2 years old. Stephanie was a fighter until the end, not only in the physical sense of the word, but in the spiritual sense as well. Her journal entries praised God's name and she was not scared at all, because Jesus was by her side. Her testimony was one of the most powerful things I have ever read. To see someone enduring a huge trial and living it out in front of the world to see and never once complaining about the unfair hand that she had been dealt, but praising God the entire time....WOW! I can't say that I would have handled it the same, but she is such an inspiration for me.

Here are a few excerpts from her journal which you can check out here, also check out her foundation that was started shortly after she passed here

her mom writing on Christmas day, as this was a few weeks before she passed away....

Stephanie has said from the beginning "I do not want to die on Christmas....I don't want something as joyful as the birth of Jesus to be made sad by my death." "If God takes me on Christmas, tell Zoe Jesus wanted me for His Birthday present". We are really praying hard that Steph's biggest prayer come true.

another post...

I am so thankful to have family that surrounds me when I need them the most. I just want to be surrounded by love from now til whenever. It has hit everyone very hard and by much surprise but this fight is FAR from over. I know my days are numbered, as are yours... God knew when He created me in the womb how many days I had. He still knows when I will take my last breath here on earth and IMMEDIATELY be in heaven with Him. As a selfish human, I am not ready to go and will contiue to FIGHT FIGHT FIGHT, but when the pain gets to be too much and this body gives out I know where I am going... DO YOU? As selfish as I am, wanting to be here for Zoe and my family and friends, I am much more excited about getting to finally meet Zain and be reunited with all of my other family members that I loved so much!!!! It sucks for yall to suffer here, but I will be SINGING all day long and I will get to see Jesus face to face. Yall just thought you were jealous of my accessory bag back when I had it (i.e. the pee bag), you will really be jealous of me when I am with Jesus and no longer hurting and yall are stuck here in the number 1 most violent city in America thanks to that idiot mayor we have... did I say that out loud?

Even until the very last day, she was sweet, funny, God loving, Stephanie. How do you think you will respond if you were faced with a similar situation? Would you give God the glory or would you speak ill of Him?

Santa Came to Town

Big things were happening at the Weaver house today, Santa came to visit...okay so it was really just Papa dressed up as Santa, not the real Santa. When Dylan saw him at the front door, he ran screaming.

Santa came inside, and he didn't even want to look his direction. It was so pitiful, yet so funny. Santa sat down in the chair and we revealed to Dylan that it was only Papa.

He still wasn't sure of this guy. Even though, he saw it was Papa. He wanted nothing to do with him. Then he got a candy cane, then he was a little at ease....not so much.

After a while, Dylan really warmed up to Santa. They even did high fives with each other.

Merry Christmas!

Twins?

Damien and I have been debating who Dylan looks like. Even with him being our child, I can't even tell. In the beginng, most people said he looked like me. Now, we are getting more and more people saying that he looks like Damien. Damien doesn't have a lot of pictures of him as a baby, but we got to look at a photo album while in Mobile. We came across this photo of Damien and his sister Tracy.
We guess that Damien was about 2 years old based on the 4th of July summer attire, but that is totally our guess. The age difference between Damien and his sister is exactly the same between Dylan and Tracy's daughter Taylor, who looks exactly like Tracy when she was a kid. We got the idea to try and recreate the picture. Here's what we got...

What do you think? Other than the haircut does Dylan favor Damien more?

Reclaiming the Season

On Tuesday night, I attended a women's event at church called Reclaiming the Season. I hadn't planned on going, but my sweet, sweet friend Cindy took me as her guest. I was so grateful because it's not something that I would have done for myself. This event is an annual event where the women get together, fellowship, sing Christmas carols and remember what Christmas is truly about. Not the stressed, hectic, crazy season that it sometimes ends up being.

The first 30 minutes of the event is walking around to look at tables. Look at tables you ask, don't they all look the same? The tradition is that you decorate the table that you are sitting at, and it's really fun to see everyone's personalities. Here are a few (unfortunately I don't have a picture of our table as I meant to take one and I got caught up in the moment, and when I remembered, we had already ate and it was a mess.) In years past, the women at the event voted on the "best" table, which is all a matter of opinion anyway, so the women just asked to do away with the voting. Women just love to decorate regardless if there is a prize involved or not. I would say there were around 18 tables if I had to guess.

fun, whimsical table

"Breakfast at Tiffany's" table

(you can't tell, but it was blinged out)

Alabama table (houndstooth)

cute, creative table

Candy table (I think this was my favorite)

The message that night was "what's under your Christmas tree". It was a fun time to reminisce about what gifts we have gotten in years past. It really triggered some great memories. Like at 6 years old, I would say, if memory serves me right, that I got a cabbage patch kid or 2 for Christmas along with lots of other stuff from Santa. Then we talked about the age around 12 or 13 where we were entering our teenage years. I had forgotten all about it, but someone mentioned it and yes, I remember having it.....here it comes a Caboodle. Remember those? It was like a female version of a tackle box that held makeup, curling irons, brushes, etc. I loved my Caboodle. I remember, I went through 2 of them...one was purple and pink and the other black and white.

Along with my caboodle, I could remember loving me some Liz Claiborne perfume in the triangle bottle and I am sure that I probably got something New Kids on the Block or Tiffany related (don't talk to me about Debbie Gibson. I was a Tiffany fan, through and through). Ah, the memories.....I really liked hearing everyone's memories, but then we were posed the greatest present ever...then we heard things that ranged from a glass bracelet to an engagement ring and the main point was it wasn't the gift itself that made it the best, but the emotion that was tied to it. It didn't matter what it cost, or if it was the latest craze, but what the feeling was when you got the gift....isnt' that true. One of my favorite gift, I got for my birthday. My mom made me a recipe book and wrote down a bunch of her recipes in it. I know that it took a lot of time and I really appreciated the gift. What has been the best gift you have received?

Thanksgiving Tour

Last week, for Thanksgiving, we made a tour of the south. Well, it at least it felt like we did. We had made plans months ago to visit Damien's family and friends (mine are all local for the most part). This trip was going to be a sneak peek at how Dylan will behave when confined on a plane for a long time. Dylan got a special treat though, Christmas came early. My mom gave him his "big" present before we left. She got him a portable DVD player and 3 movies, so before heading out, we stopped at the library and picked up 3 more movies.

With DVD player in tow, we left on Tuesday and headed to Birmingham to stay with Damien's fraternity brother and his family. We arrived in B'ham at lunch time so we grabbed a bite to eat and headed to the zoo for a few hours. (Nice perk of having a Nashville Zoo membership is that it gets you into other zoos for half price or sometimes for free.) Seeing we didn't pay anything, we felt like if we were there for an hour, we got our money's worth. We got to see some great animals up close and personal, ones that Dylan hasn't seen lately (except our trip to San Diego when he was 7 months old.)

The McLeods made dinner plans with some other friends at the local Mexican restaurant. Afterwards, we let the boys and Sara Francis run around outside for a while. They all got wound up and Dylan began giving out the hugs.

Damien, Dylan and the boys

That evening, we went over to Damien's step mom's house where Dylan got to play with cousin Taylor. He loves him some cousin Taylor. That night, we let Dylan sleep in bed with us. He was a hoot, jumping and diving on the bed. Finally after winding down, he fell asleep. I love falling asleep with him, but I hate the rest of the night. How does a kid turn all different angles and hog the majority of a king size bed is beyond me.

The following day, Thanksgiving, we met up with Damien's sister's family and his step mom to head to Hattiesburg, MS to see Damien's Aunt Dot and his Dad's side of the family. Once their Dylan and Taylor played outside whenever we weren't eating. Taylor insisted on climbing a tree...monkey see, monkey do, Dylan had to give it a try.

Aunt Dot's husband, Jackie, recently passed away, so this Thanksgiving was going to be hard for her and I think she enjoyed having the company. Before the meal, Dot along with some other family members remembered Uncle Jackie. One of the things said was, I've never done anything but always wished I had something to brag about, but Jackie had done everything and never bragged about any of it. That was really a good legacy to leave. Jackie was an all star football player and Southern Miss and was inducted into their Hall of Fame in 1979.

In 1953, in the Sun Bowl against Pacific, he played the second half with a broken collarbone (ouch) and was later named one of the USM's top athletes of the 20th century by the Hattiesburg American. Aunt Dot said that he never argued with her, unless it was about hunting or his truck. He knew when to show them and when to fold them :)

Uncle Jackie

Our niece Taryn, Aunt Dot, niece Taylor and Dylan

Later on, we drove back to Mobile and hung out with the family a little longer. The next day, we headed out of town, we were suppose to drive to Arley, Alabama (aka Smith Lake) but we had to make a stop in Birmingham, back at the McLeods, to watch the Alabama/Auburn game. It was perfect timing which allowed Dylan to play a few hours to break up the 6-7 hour drive. It was a close game and we were on pins and needles, but Alabama pulled it off. Roll Tide Roll.

Dylan with Elliott and Sara Francis

We got to Smith Lake at Uncle Buddy and Aunt Nancy's new house on the lake, and it was gorgeous. Uncle Buddy recently retired from his second career (first being in the Air Force) and has set up a new home on the lake. Who can blame them. We enjoyed our time with the family and headed home the following day.

Dylan fell asleep reading a book

It was a great week catching up with family.

Visiting America

If you read my blog about my mission trip to Malawi, Africa, then you may remember T.K. T.K. was one of our hosts while in Africa. T.K. was born in Nigeria, but has found his way to Malawi and calls it home. He is employed by African Leadership as a director of several countries in Africa. He helps train men to become pastors. He has 4 kids, which I cannot tell you what they are in his language, but in English their names translate to Jesus' reigns, Jesus is good, Jesus is enough to look on to and Jesus is King (hopefully I got all those right). T.K. is the one of the most joyful person that I have ever met. He truly loves God and it shows.

T.K. came to the United States a few weeks ago for some meetings with African Leadership (which is located in Franklin, TN) and also to have a cornea transplant. This was his first visit to the United States. He was here for about 7 weeks and even made a trip to North Carolina to speak at a church and stopped off in Connecticut for Thanksgiving dinner before going back to the warm heart of Africa, Malawi.

We had the pleasure of having T.K. stay with us 2 nights. One of the nights, we got to sit around and listen to music and talk. We found out that country music is his favorite and that he especially likes Don Williams, Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton. Damien pulled out his cd collection and listened to a few of his favorites. T.K. even got to read a few books with Dylan.

After Dylan went to bed, we had a time of prayer with T.K. and we were honored to have him pray for us. We really enjoyed our time with T.K. and like he said, our relationship is not by coincidence.

3rd Annual Special Weekend with the Fallers

Two weekends ago, Damien and I made a journey to Memphis to kick start our special weekend with the Fallers. This would be our third annual weekend with them, but earlier in the year, they moved to Memphis so we had to travel a bit before the weekend actually started. Our special weekend is centered around the Alabama and Mississippi State game. Since the Fallers are Mississippi State Alums and Damien an Alabama alum, this is a great game to go to. The first year, we went to Starkville, where the Tide, unfortunately, lost to Dawgs. It was a horrible game as the sound of cowbells gets quite annoying especially when MSU fans see Alabama fans. Oh well, it was a great weekend over all. The 2nd annual special weekend was spent in Tuscaloosa where the Tide was victorious. This year, we headed back to Starkville.

Saturday morning we got up pretty early and hit the road, with only a few stops to try and find MSU magnets to go on Daniel's truck to compete with the Alabama magnets that we slapped on his truck :)

on the road

We had a great time just hanging out and tailgating a bit before the game. Rachel even pattied some burgers and Daniel grilled them up. Our friends, the Ogles, met up with us for a bit as well. The weather was perfect football weather and to top off a great day, the Tide won!!! It was a long way home and we finally got in and to bed around 1:30am.

On Sunday, the Fallers took us to their church, Fellowship Memphis. We were super impressed with this church and Damien and I agreed that if we lived in Memphis, this would be our church home. There wouldn't be any need to church shop. We were super excited to find out that they put their sermon's on iTunes podcasts for free, so we subscribed. It was really refreshing to see church done in a different way.

Thank you Fallers for hosting the Special Weekend. We look forward to next year when we can host you in Alabama. (oh and in case you are wondering why it's the "special weekend" with the fallers, that's something that you will have to ask Daniel about, he gave it that name :)

18 months

I am like 9 days too late for this, but better late than never, right. Well Dylan turned a year and a half on November 10. We went to the doctor for his well visit and it went, well, well. hehehe. Okay seriously, he hadn't grown any in height since his 15 month visit, but his weight was up to a whopping 22lbs and 7 onces. I know, we have a little thin one on our hands, but at least he's tall right. I say he's my swimmer boy. We make them long and lean. We got one shot that day, his last Hep A, which makes it official, we are done with shots, woo hoo. Oh, wait, the following day, everyone in the family got the H1N1 shot, so now we are done with shots, woo hoo. At least until next year's seasonal flu shot and every year there after and when he's 5 years old and they make us get the chicken pox shot that I denied, but we are done, woo hoo. (side note on the H1N1 vaccination, I swore I would not get it for months, but after prayers and seeking counsel from all the doctors, including my woman doctor, we went with it. I figured I will do all that I can to protect and leave it up to God. Plus since we won't have insurance soon, I didn't want to risk it.)

In addition to his physical growth statistics, Dylan is right on track with his developmental. He can say Mommy (or mama), Dada, Nana, PawPaw, Stella, dog, duck, light, eat, eye, bye bye, bubbles, bath, balloon, ball, moon, oh no, uh oh, sky, one, two, yea, mine, baby, tree, and turbo. (those are the ones I can think of right now). Since he's been walking for 10 months now, this boy can get around. He climbs into chairs and then onto the dining room table. He motors his way around the playground, playing on the older kid's side. I have to watch him carefully as their are lots of openings. One week he fell through a spot at the top of the stairs and the pole, luckily I slowed him down on the drop by grabbing his shirt, so he barely hit the ground. He got right up and took off again. This boy has no fear.

He brings such joy to Damien and I, sometimes we just like watching him. The other night we were laying on the couch and he'd put his hand on my cheek, turn my face and kiss me. Those are the memories I want to keep forever.

This day, he was full of himself, he found Damien's glasses, and surprisingly put them on correctly without breaking them.
Then he went to the closet and got my hat out and put it on.

Favorite Foto Friday

After reading one of my friends facebook status on playing in the leaves with her son, I thought maybe Dylan would like it. I raked a pile of leaves together, and I was right, he loved it. He would run and jump in the pile, roll around in them and laugh. The past few days, I have gone out and raked up a pile of leaves (Damien scatters them afterwards to not mess up the grass) and Dylan has so much fun. It's free family fun....and it's for the whole family did I mention?

Proof that mommy is there, she just doesn't always make it in the pictures...

Finding Joy

Last week, Dylan and I went to the park to enjoy a beautiful fall day. While I was pushing him on the swing, I saw someone, from a distance, out of the corner of my eye, running down the path a la Phoebe style. I thought oh I bet she has a little kid with her and she's just being silly to make them laugh. I kept waiting to see a kid, but there wasn't one. I noticed she was running towards me. She was running towards the swings. Once she was closer, I realized she didn't have a kid with her, she was a kid herself. This girl was about 15 years old. She slowed down once she got to the swing and gently sat down in it, carefully holding onto the chains. As soon as she was sitting down, her eyes had a new shimmer to them. She ran back in the swing, picked up her feet and let a little smile loose. She began to pump her feet harder and harder until she was reaching the sky. Her smile was so big. She was finding joy in one of the most simple, pure things, swinging. You could tell that she really enjoyed the swing, that it was freeing to her. We were at the park for about 40 minutes after she began swinging, and she was in the swing the entire time with a smile plastered on her face. At that point, nothing else mattered to her but the swing. I couldn't help but be drawn to her and the joy she radiated. My eyes teared up. I wanted for everyone that I knew to be able to share in that moment with me.

As many of you know, Damien was let go from his job 3 weeks ago. Being in the business that he was in, we knew that it could happen, as not many people are remodeling their kitchens because of the economy, but we were shocked by how quickly it happened. In the past, I have prayed a few times that Damien could get a job where he didn't travel so much; one where he could be home for dinner every night. Damien had mentioned to me (maybe even prayed) that he would like to have a different job than he had, one outside of the industry. Well, I guess our prayers got answered. We kind of thought that it would happen on our terms, not someone elses. We know that God has a plan for us, and it's going to be better than the path that we were on. Even though we were surprised, we know that He wasn't. We are seeking His will and what He wants for us to do. Although, Damien and I are worried that we may not know what He wants...how are we to know? I was reminded by a friend last week at bible study that as long as we are seeking His will and that He is our priority, then we will make the right choice. God will never abandon us or forsake us based on a decision that we make. We know that God is teaching us something through this experience and while I pray that it's a quick lesson, I have to remember that God's timing is perfect timing.

I heard a portion of a sermon the other day on the radio, and it really hit home. He was discussing how many people worry about their reputation among men, but the only reputation you should worry about is the one you have with God. (maybe worry wasn't the right word, I am paraphrasing here). That as long as you have the right attitude towards God, that God will provide you favor through people.

That is what we are choosing, we are choosing to have the right attitude through this season of our life. We are seeking first His kingodm. God is using this time to prune us. In James 1:2-4, it says Consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds, because you know that the testing of your faith develops perseverance. Perseverance must finish it's work so that you may be mature and complete, not lacking anything. We are thanking God for this trial, because we will be more mature and complete in Him.

I know that people are going to think we are crazy for some of the things we are going to choose to do or even the choices that we have made, but we cannot be concerned with what man thinks or say. We are praying about every decision that we are making, that's all that we can do. Pray and be patient, to let God reveal to us His will. If during that time, we want to go to Hawaii (which we are at the end of the year as we already had the trip planned and it's basically free other than food) than I would hope that no one would say anything negative about that choice. If we end up selling our house, so be it. God is giving us this time to spend a together as a family and with Him, and that's what we plan to do. During this season, we choose to find joy in everything. Some of our friends, who recently went through the same situation, told us that they kept a blessings journal. As you're in the moment, it's really hard to forget about all the blessings along the way. Thanks Allison for sharing that, we plan on doing just that, remembering all the way God blesses us on the journey.

I have realized that I haven't been as sensitive to others in the same situation and for that I apologize. I have been so thankful for the kind words, encouragement, prayers and the genuine concern even from people whom I don't even talk to that much. It really has shown me who the people are that really care. I feel horrible that I haven't been that friend to people I know that may have needed that encouragement from me.

One of my favorite bible versus speaks to me no matter what trial I am facing. I lean on this verse and rest on the promises whispered by God.

1 Peter 5:7-10 - Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. Be self controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of sufferings. And the God of all grace, who called you to his eternal glory in Christ, after you have suffered a little while, will himself restore you and make your strong, firm and steadfast.

Free Groceries

Today, I went to Kr@ger to do a little shopping. I didn't really have time to plan out a list nor pull my coupons. I was up late last night clipping and sorting coupons from the past 5 weeks, so I was tired. (I really need to do it every week. I just let it get out of control.) I went to the Kr@ger in Franklin as they are doing triple coupons up to 99 cents to competed with H@rris Teeter's triple special. I tried to pull it together and get a few things (I am disappointed as I should have grabbed more, but will go back Sunday when we are in Franklin.) I ended up saving $48.46, so I don't know if that includes the $1.36 that Kr@ger ended up paying me for my groceries. Yes I got paid for buying my groceries. That has never happened, and I was elated. As soon as I left, I called Angel, who teaches the couponing class I went through, and told her. I was like a little kid on Christmas, still am, this is a natural high I am experiencing right now ;) I love playing a game with Damien, I come home, set out my stuff and have him guess how much I spent. His guess was $9. Usually after his guess, I say, now I am not that good, but today I got to say, now, I did better than that. I had to say it about 7 times until he got down to free, then I told him that they paid me $1.36. We had a good laugh with our little game.

The breakdown: ($5 discount on mega event only applied once after purchasing 10 participating items)

- 2 Pepperidge Farm Texas Toast - free item after coupons and $5 off mega event discount

- 2 Birdseye Steamfresh Vegetables - free item after coupons and $5 off mega event discount

- 2 lean pockets - free item after coupons and $5 off mega event discount

- 2 Maruchan Noodles - free item after coupons

- 4 Ortega Taco Seasoning packs - free item after coupons

- 2 Martha White muffin mixes - free item after coupon

- 3 (4 packs) Yo Plus Yogurt - $3 (mega event item)

- 1 (6 pack) Yoplait Kids yogurt - $1.20 discount (mega event item)

- Juicy Juice - no coupons or discounts

- Post Raisin Bran - coupon for a free box

- Chocolate Chex Mix - free item after coupons and $5 off mega event discount

- Mentos Gum - free item after coupon

- Playtex Gloves - free item after coupon and $5 off mega event discount

---$2 off coupon for spending $10

I wish every shopping experience could be like this!

Fall Pics and Fun Family Day at the Zoo

Today, we headed to the Nashville Zoo for a little family fun time. I have to say, this trip was the best we have had, not just because Damien got to come, but because of the weather and the fact that no one was there. I felt like we had a private tour of the zoo. Okay, there were a handful of people, but that was it. It was so a beautiful fall day.

The zoo had an area where an old farm once was. We checked it out and sure enough there were some really pretty trees with leaves on the ground. I had to get some pics of Dylan.

Of course, we checked out the animals and I thought we were going to see some giraffe lovin', but the volunteer told us that he wasn't quite sure what to do yet. The female is ready, but the male just ends up spooking her. He did say they were smitten with each other though. I feel bad for the other female, she's not going to have a boyfriend.

After viewing the animals, we ate lunch and played in the jungle gym area. Have I said how I love this area before? I think I have. We all had fun playing. It was nice to have an extra set of hands.

mommy's a little frightened by it

hangin' tough

monkeying around

we had a a hair raising time (what's with my cheesiness today?)

Halloween Fun

As we drove around yesterday, from activity to activity, I found myself saying multiple times, I love Halloween. I do. I explained to Damien, not the evil side associated with Halloween, but the family time that the day offers. I just love the activities and family fun that Halloween has to offer.

As usual, we went downtown Franklin for the annual Pumpkinfest. I just love this event. We love walking the streets and meeting up with friends that we don't see that much and friends we see all the time. Also, I love the fact that our church, The People's Church, sponsors the children's area, as one of our biggest outreaches. The area is totally free (with the exception of food). There are bounce houses, pony rides and lots of games and candy for prizes. The weather cooperated and it turned out to be a beautiful day.

After Pumpkinfest, we came home and put Dylan down for a nap. We had a big night ahead of us. Once he got up and got ready for the night, we headed to a local church for their fall festival, which I am sure is a big outreach for them as well. They had bounce houses, laser tag and games all for free too. (Another reason I love Halloween, free activities.)

We stayed there for a little over an hour, but I can't wait to Dylan is old enough to really understand what it's about and old enough to play all the games. He did get to play some games, and he understood that he was suppose to get the candy at the end. Although, he didn't really care to eat it unless it was a sucker.

We came home, ate dinner and headed out to do a little trick or treating.

He was so cute when he tried to say trick or treat, but of course wouldn't say it in front of anyone. We only went to 4 friend's houses, but he had a good time, especially at one friend's house, as he got to go up and play with the boys.

We had a great night. I can't wait until next year.