Christmas Traditions...

When Chris and I got married we vowed to have a real tree every year for Christmas. Most of our friends have given in to the artificial, but we have stayed strong... the problem is, we would spend hours trying to find the perfect tree that would fit in our bay window. It would be so stressful that we started dreading the process. A couple of years ago I was so frustrated that I told Chris to just grab one at Home Depot that was already tied up and we would unwrap it at home. It ended up being the perfect tree and we've done that ever since. We have yet to get a bum tree, but I'm sure the day will come. So here is our tied up tree that fit perfectly in our bay! Tis the Season...

missing you...

Esther Cora Puggini

December 25, 1923- November 29, 2006
Today is always a rough day for me.
Who am I kidding? Every-time I think about her I have a hard time! She was quite the lady... and there was no one like her. She was the type of grandma who would rather line dance than bake and she never sat still! I love her... I miss her... and I know she would love seeing her great-grandkids. Now that I have both my sisters crying... here are some pics of the incredible lady we called Nonne:

Thankful 4 Thanksgiving

I LOVE THANKSGIVING! I love being with my family, I love eating good food, and I love making memories with the crazy Carlson family! I think by far my favorite part of today was watching Isaac excited to help cook with Grandma and Aunt Jeni. His face lit up as he was able to be a part of the chaos in the kitchen. That's my boy! Now if only he was as excited to clean the kitchen...

Guess Who?

Guess who was in the Detroit Free Press today?
(click on the picture to see it up close)

in da crib

Isaac-n-Zoey in da crib from lori bunk on Vimeo.

We love Uncle Tommy!

PICTURE #1:
Isaac's room after hours of cleaning and organizing.

PICTURE #2:
10 minutes after Isaac's Uncle Tommy came over.

I heard a little rumor that Uncle Tommy was coming over tomorrow during his day off to help clean Isaac's room for our family Thanksgiving party. Thank you Uncle Tommy!

Sometimes it's the simple things...

So I had everything all set up for our "special" day today... crafts, activities, a special dinner... and I was very excited about it. That was until Isaac informed me that all he wanted to do today was go to the library and read. My heart melted. A son after my own heart. We will save the "special" day for a later time... we had some reading to do (and puppets... and computer games... and puzzles).

If I could bottle up a moment in time...

If I could stop time, I would have tonight. Chris and Zoey went to bed early, so Isaac and I had some alone time... something we haven't had in about 3 months. This boy has brought me so much joy and feeling his tiny arms around my neck made me want to keep him from growing up!

...sTiR-cRaZy...

We are a little stir-crazy today... good thing we are getting out tonight! We've already used our couch as a trampoline, a fort, a tower and a bridge- we are now trying on every shoe in the house and flinging them around the room- I'm sure we will paint the walls with watercolors next... we may need some fresh air! (and a cup of coffee made by a professional!)

GNO

Last night our youth group partnered with Global Marketplace Outreach to collect and pack meals for needy families in our community for Thanksgiving. I was blown away at the response for this outreach. We were working out of our Jr. High room and had to move some things into the hall to make room for all the students to fit! Thank you to all the parents and students who took time out of the busy holiday season to put our faith in action. You are truly "leaving a Legacy!"

Not what we say about our blessings, but how we use them, is the true measure of our thanksgiving.
-W.T. Purkiser-

Lazy Fridays...

I don't know what it is about Fridays... for a mom, it's really just like any other day, but for some reason I only want to lay around the house and snuggle with my kids. Fridays used to be the days I would be the most productive and get things all ready for us to enjoy the weekend... but not anymore. It's just pillows, blankies, hot cocoa and lots of love! Maybe I should at least get my butt up to make breakfast...

"For fast-acting relief try slowing down."
Lily Tomlin

Catalyst One Day

Have you ever just been a part of something that you knew you were supposed to be a part of? That was today. A group of us went to CATALYST ONE DAY Conference in Granger, Indiana and it far exceeded my expectations. Here are some pics of Granger Community Church and the Catalyst event.

Andy Stanley

Steve Fee and Matt Adkins

Zoey and Chris enjoying Craig Groeschel
Here are some pictures of the children's ministry at Granger. The first picture is a children's check in point where the parents sign the kids in and then they slide down to their classroom. Amazing!

a day in the life...

• 
• woke up and had some incredible worship with Isaac. honestly, the best time we've had... ever!
• said good-bye to my parents who are heading to Colombia for a week. Pray for them!
• had a little angel stop by and surprise me with a bag of my most favorite coffee in the whole world! it smells amazing... thank you!
• had Isaac's sweet aunt stop by for lunch and dump soup all over our floor and walls
• had a wonderful visit with Aunt Marilyn, who brought many presents, including Zoey's name train... so beautiful!
• went to pick up our copy of Wall-E, which Isaac hasn't stopped talking about since he saw a preview with his dad a couple days ago
• came home to find water shooting out of our house and flooding the neighbors driveway
• had to climb over numerous things to turn our water off and almost broke my neck
• am now finally having a minute to sit
• and now that minute is over...

Happy Tree-n-Leaf Day!

So today was our "Tree-n-Leaf Day" and Isaac and I had so much fun! We were going to start by playing in the leaves outside, but they were covered in snow... so on to Plan B. We made a "Leaf-lette" with all the different color leaves he saw outside, then we made a tree with leaves out of his hand-print and colored tissue paper. We then finger painted his Friendship Christmas Tree with pictures of all his friends and ended the morning with tree biscuits during our quiet time. It was the perfect day to say goodbye to autumn.