see you in the new year!

We headed out of town the day after Christmas (officially known around here as Brent's birthday). We'll be gone for a few day and although I have limited internet access I don't have a card reader on my laptop so no photos. =( When we get back though I'll have a slew of Christmas stuff to share with some beach and grandparent goodness thrown in for good measure.

In the meantime, is anyone up for another round of photography FAQs? Seems I've been getting lots of emails lately in that vein and my guess is lots of you got new cameras for Christmas (woohoo!). So let the questions fly if you have them and I'll get started on "your questions, answered - part III".

merry and bright.

Hope your day was too!

Love, the Cobbs.

memories abound.

We just returned from our Christmas celebration at my mom's house, or, "pretend Christmas" as I referred to it for the kiddos sake. How do you explain to a three year old which present-giving occasion is actually Christmas and which one is the real deal - all the while knowing (and hoping to relay) that the real deal is actually only in your heart? Sheesh!

Our first pretend Christmas was lovely. There were frothy warm drinks and sparkling lights and gleeful children and family games. My mom and stepdad's house is so cozy in the winter time...something about it just brings me peace. Maybe it's the wine. ;)

Saturday night mom started Sarah on a Christmas card collage project that our prolific little artist very much enjoyed. Almost as much as Meghan and I enjoyed it 25 years ago. Mom pulled out the albums for memories' sake...

Memory Lane is one of my favorite places during the holidays.

Giving is AWESOME!

Congrats again to the winners of yesterday's Shakleey giveaway. I love doing things like that and I promise to keep doing it anytime something cool comes along. Before I head off to my mom's for our first Christmas celebration of the season I thought I'd fill you all in on another fun giveaway going on over on the business blog. If you're local or just know someone who's local who might qualify for the giveaway be sure to enter. Just six days left!

And because we've been pictureless for a while...

Happy weekend friends!

the winner(s!)

To avoid leaving any of the fun details out I'm reposting Janelle's email from this morning in it's entirety: (emphasis added by me)

"Erin,
Wow, what a wonderful response you've had to your giveaway! I love caring parents and I'm really excited to share with them. We don't have to have toxic cleaners in our home and now, even the little ones can help us clean the bathroom! Since we broke over 100 comments, I think it's only fair to give away two free gift boxes! Yep…you'll need to pick TWO lucky winners this time around!

As for everyone else who is still interested in Shaklee cleaners I will offer another chance to win free stuff! Who doesn't like FREE STUFF?!?! :)

Anyone who puts in an order between now and December 31, 2008 will be entered into another drawing for $100 FREE Shaklee Products of their choice! The winner will be able to pick $100 of what they want from the website and I will also pay for the taxes, shipping and handling.

Keep in mind…
1. There is no membership requirement, however, one will provide you a 15% discount on ALL Shaklee products
2. Shaklee products are NATURALLY SAFE & CLINICALLY PROVEN EFFECTIVE, ALWAYS 100% SAFE TO USE, ALWAYS WORKS and ALWAYS GREEN
3. Shaklee also provides 100% money guarantee, no questions asked policy. I can answer any questions that your readers may have. They can email me at janelleanne @ gmail.com or call (801) 518-9659. I don't stock pile products so everything is done online and shipped directly out to them! I can help walk people through the website to make things easier while ordering too. To order go to www.shaklee.net/JanelleAnderson

I want to thank you and everyone else for sharing their stories with all of us. As a mom (dad's too), we all encounter those scary moments with our children and I'm thrilled B-Ro was not hurt! My mission is to educate families and eliminate the toxic scares and accidents in people's homes. They are truly avoidable when it comes to cleaners. The Basic H2 I'm giving away can replace all your bathroom, kitchen, carpet, furniture, floor, glass, etc. cleaners and it's so safe you can wash your fruits and veggies in it! The best part, it literally costs about 25 cents a gallon making it an affordable option for everyone!
I hope not to sound like an infomercial either, I just get so excited to share and want people to know that this is such a positive choice they can make for their family.

Thanks again!
Janelle"

Pretty cool, huh?

So who are the winners?

According to random.org...

29. Tanya - "Thanks for the giveaway and as always for making me smile reading your blog." (How nice! Thank YOU!)

99. Cathy Bolander - "He is such a cutie. He looks easy to forgive." (True dat.)

So girls, get in touch with Janelle using the email above and she'll hook you up!

THANK YOU JANELLE FOR THE GIVEAWAY!

how I narrowly avoided poisoning my child...and a giveaway!

How's that for a title?

What you may not realize based on B-Ro's sweet and innocent looking face is that he's actually a mischievous stinkerbug seemingly bent on putting his life in jeopardy on a daily basis. Glass shards in his mouth, fingers in the light socket, playing in the toilet - the whole bit.

Who? Me?



Yes, you. Stinkerbug.

I'm sure that part of our problem is that Sarah has always been an ultra-cautious baby/toddler/girl. Our house in Colorado had three flights of stairs and only two sets had baby gates at the top - and those weren't added until she could walk. She was just cautious and we got spoiled. And lazy.

Enter B-Ro. I'll spare the drama of all the ways he's made my heart stop and just recount a particular time. The time I like to call "how I narrowly avoided poisoning my child."

It was a typical Saturday morning at our house a couple of months ago. Pancakes had been mixed, flipped, eaten, and cleared and the fam was scattered around the house each doing their own thing. I was perched right here at my computer catching up on blogs; getting lost in the photographs and words of other women. I knew there was a child in the kitchen with me because I could hear one bumbling around but for some reason I thought it was Sarah. Sarah = little or no attention (see above). So I ignored the present child who was fairly quiet and not needing of me in that moment. Don't mess with a good thing, right?

Um, wrong. After several minutes (5? 7? 36?) I heard a noise that didn't sound quite like Pi'bears. Slurping maybe? Yes. With a little sputtering mixed in for good measure. When I whipped my head around I found B-Ro, soaking wet, sipping happily from a now near-empty bottle of kitchen cleaner. Yes. I know. Believe me, I know. The particular bottle he had found had been dropped the previous week so it was missing the spray action part...leaving only a vertical tube, just perfect for a baby who does a mighty fine job of drinking out of a straw. My immediate reaction as I scooped him up was panic. But panic was quickly replaced by relief and gratitude. For what? My friend Janelle and her company Shaklee.

Janelle has been partnered with Shaklee for over a year now and when Ephraim was born last year she sent the most thoughtful and useful baby gift - a starter pack of their organic, non-toxic cleaning concentrate. THAT, my friends, is what Ephraim was drinking that morning. And THAT is why I had no worries (and a really clean kitchen!). So without sounding anymore like an infomercial than I already might let me just end with these: 1. I love this cleaner 2. I wouldn't just say that 3. Brent added cabinet locks that very night.

Janelle emailed last week and said she'd love to do a giveaway on the blog so here's your chance to grab some of your own organic, non-toxic, won't-poison-your-baby-or-your-dog-or-your-husband cleaner. The starter pack that Janelle's reading to ship your way if your name is randomly selected from the pool of comments tomorrow includes:

- 1 Bottle of Basic H2 Concentrate (Makes 48 Gallons of All Purpose Cleaner)
- 3 Spray Bottles
- 1 Micro Fiber Cloth for Glass
- 5 Basic H2 Samples to Share
- Some extra stuff too!

So comment away! If you feel like confessing your own motherly inadequacies, even better! ;)

I'll let random.org choose a winner tomorrow!

Ten on Tuesday.

1. My Christmas cards are addressed...does that count? I couldn't face the post office so I ordered stamps online. Who knows when they'll arrive. But the shame of late Christmas cards is worth avoiding the post office after Dec1.

2. Lots of people have been understandably disappointed by the Blurb not slurping Blogger thing. A friend posted a link in the comments last week to a new site that might work though. I don't have experience with them but it's definitely worth investigating. Check it out here.

3. Baked cookies with my girl this morning during B-Ro's nap. We cranked Pandora's White Christmas station up and went to town. My favorite part was that for the last 2-3 minutes of each batch of cookies she wanted to sit in my lap and cuddle while we watched them bake through the oven window. Sarah is not a cuddler so I enjoy it when I can.

4. Her job was to sprinkle the sugar when the cookies came out of the oven which means there was sugar all over the floor. Which also means today was the perfect day to teach this three year old how to operate a dustbuster.

5. I've been missing my sister a bunch lately. I try not to swell on it though since I've pretty much resigned myself to the fact that we'll never live within driving distance of one another. It stinks.

6. Some of you asked how I was planning to make B-Ro's board book of baby faces. I'll share finished pics when it's ready but basically I'm using a blank 6x6 board book that I bought at JoAnn (or Michaels?) a couple of years ago. In photoshop I opened a 12x12 document and then pulled 4 cropped 6x6 images onto it of babies/kids in Ephraim's life. Then I used a basic font to type the child's name on each photo. Like this...

I'll cut it up and glue the pages in when the prints arrive.

7. My Dayton trip has been postponed. =( Brent is still coming in January but since we'll be fresh off of holiday travel we decided it would be best for me to keep the kiddos at home. The GREAT news is that he'll be headed back to Dayton again in March or April for two weeks and we'll tag along then. I'm disappointed about having to wait a little longer but I think this will work out better for our family AND for the outdoor sessions I hope to schedule while I'm there. Dayton can be pretty miserable in January.

8. For those of you who were moved by the video of baby Eliot the other day, his family has a blog. They have a newborn baby girl in their house now. God is good.

9. We're headed to my mom's house on Friday for the first of five Christmas celebrations we'll have this season. I think I need to go see this to get in the spirit before the festivities begin!

10. Giveaway tomorrow so stay tuned!

pictureless post, version 3

I realize this blog is quickly getting pictureless and stale but I promise to have more pics to share soon! Do you believe me? Yeah, you probably shouldn't. My blog promises are notoriously bad.

At any rate, I just wanted to pop on to say that I've been having HORRIBLE problems with my email lately. Some messages get sent and others don't...with no rhyme or reason to it. Sometimes I get bounceback messages...and sometimes I don't. If you've tried to get in touch with me over the last couple of weeks and haven't heard back from me please be patient while I get this whole thing worked out. Thanks! =)

As I was mentioning my frustration over this ridiculous problem to Brent this morning Sarah piped up with, "yeah, mommy, sometimes I have that problem with my blog too. (pause) At my pretend house."

Thanks Pi'bears. It's good to know I'm not the only one.

be blessed.

Last week at a cookie swap with girlfriends a new friend tipped me off to 99 Balloons. If you haven't seen or heard the story of Baby Eliot, make time right now. Just be sure you're in a place where you won't feel ridiculous bawling like a baby (that warning is especially for you, Joel).

99 Balloons.

add this to the list...

...of inadvertantly inappropriate Christmas lyrics by Pi'bears:

"Goooo tell it on the mounnnntain...
JESUS CHRIST IS PORN!!!"

wow. I was speechless. I asked her to repeat and got the same version. I won't be asking her to repeat again.

O Christmas Tree.

This Christmas thing isn't new. We've actually been incessantly listening to the same 2 children's christmas cd's since JULY. I wish I were kidding. And technically, we listened to them for most of February and March too since that's when I purchased them on the 75% off rack at Marshall's. So really we've only had a three month hiatus from Christmas this year.

Sarah showed off her mad Christmas caroling skills when the Clarks were here and serenaded them with pretty much ever tune she knew. Of course they're mostly approximations like "Bow to the World" (I'm not really sure that was Jesus' mission exactly) but still cute. One of her faves is O Christmas Tree which also happens to be the tune to my high school alma mater. Go figure. I'll try to get the man of this house to grab some Pi'bears Unplugged. In the meantime, just one of our little Christmas girl...

the gift of time.

Been tying up some loose business ends around here this week and enjoying preparations for Christmas. I'm totally soaking up the holiday season this year since I felt like I was celebrating in a fog last year with a newborn and a family of mice in the house. This morning Sarah helped me grab some images for my business holiday card to go out next week. She was more than happy to help when I told her what her job would be...



And that she would get to eat the product she was featuring when she was finished. She's all about that. (which, coincidentally, is a phrase she's taken to using lately.)

So in my holiday glee I've been flitting about from store to store and website to website hoping to choose the perfect items for those still on my list. Often (like today) I walk out of the store with items for no one on my list...but myself. Tis the season, right?

We're trying to establish a tradition (borrowed from my friend Nicki from years ago) of giving our children three gifts from Santa Claus, to represent the three gifts given to Jesus by the wisemen. Yes, I realize the bible never actually says how many wisemen there were but it's a nice way to tie in the story nonetheless. And this year we're adding a new tradition - the gift of time. The latest issue of Wondertime (Sharon , I still need your address for your subscription!) had a fabulous article about a family who chose to go this route for their holiday celebrations. The idea behind it is gifting things to your children that require more than a trip to the store and a few bucks. Instead this article highlighted a mom and dad who spent careful time planning and making special gifts they knew their children would enjoy - a homemade children's book with the child as heroine; a mixed CD of favorite tunes, etc.

My mom has been a master of this often over the years. One year for Christmas she bound and restitched my sister's childhood blankie that had been loved to smithereens. She could barely contain her excitement at giving my sister that treasure. I'm finding this year that I too and most excited about giving our children the gifts we're making for them. Sarah will be getting a brand new blog book covering 2007 -she's obsessed with our 2006 version and I know will spend most of January pouring over the new one. Ephraim will finally have the scrapbook from his first year finished and under the tree. Brent will be working on a new video set for each of the kiddos with highlights of their year. I'm also hoping to gift Sarah a new scrapbook and Ephraim a board book filled with faces of babies he knows and loves. I'll be sure to share finished products once it's all said and done.

Of course each of the kids are still getting storebought gifts and stocking stuffers galore but I have a feeling the things they'll still treasure years down the road will be the ones gifted, with love, by time.

ado(red) x 2

Baby Ben has arrived and is cuter than you can even imagine! If you don't know who baby Ben is read his story here. And then view more of his scrumptious sweet babyness here.



The kiddos and I traveled to B'ham yesterday to hang out with Daph and Ben and have Ben's welcome home photo shoot. I made sure B-Ro was wearing his Adored shirt and I contemplated Sarah and I wearing our (red) shirts as well but tossed out the idea the last minute. I was SO MAD at myself when we arrived and Daph and Ben were decked out in their gear too. Ugh. First instincts are always right! Oh well...the boys were adored-ly perfect together!



Not sure if you can see B-Ro in these shots since he appears to be pretty much translucent (wow, we are some pasty people, huh?) but it's all good since Ben was the star of the show anyway! We've waited a long time to help Daphne welcome her son and we couldn't be happier for her...and for Ben!

and the winner is...

Random Integer Generator
Here are your random numbers:4
Timestamp: 2008-12-04 02:37:33 UTC

So Sharon, shoot me an email so I can get your addy and get you hooked up with Wondertime!

Thanks for playing everyone!!!

Ten on Tuesday.

1. Be sure to read all the way down to #10 for a giveaway today!

2. I'm SO excited to say...OUR FAMILY IS HEADING TO DAYTON!!! (for a visit, not to live). We lived in Dayton the first three years we were married and I loved every single thing about it. The people, our house, my job, the magic of newlywedhood, our church, the weather (yes, even that)...EVERYTHING! When we moved to Colorado I mourned it's loss for at least a year, even though our best friends moved to CO with us. So when Brent came home and said he was looking into a reserve job in Dayton I was beside myself. I've been dreaming about it ever since. I can't wait to see friends there and revisit all my favorite places. So if you're a Daytonian I hope to see you while we're there the week of January 12th!

3. Yesterday our pictures from Angela arrived...I posted a few of the kiddos and me on the biz blog. And here's one of the whole fam that I adore...



4. As long as I'm sending you to other blogs I maintain, might I mention that I'm trying to get back on the Photo-A-Day wagon?

5. Am I the only one with a healthy Etsy obsession? Here are a few things I love right now.

6. And speaking of things I love right now...



Is that amazing or what? Amanda at Queen Bee Designs emailed me a few weeks ago remembering that I had a subscription to Wondertime magazine. Her awesome work was being featured as one of their favorite gift ideas for the holidays and she was hoping I could grab a few snaps for her since she isn't a subscriber and wouldn't be able to view it until it hits newstands. Always ready with my trusty camera I was more than happy to oblige. ;) So how stoked do you think I was to get this in the mail as a thank you?! You have to check out her work...it's amazing!
7. My kiddos are driving me a little bit insane today. Okay, I lied. A lotta bit insane. Ephraim refuses to put his milk cup back on his tray -- opting instead to dangle it over the edge and look at me as he drops it and it splashes to the floor in slow-mo. And Sarah. Oh Sarah. Where shall I start?

8. The good news is...we're going on a DATE tonight?! A real, live, no-kids date. Hooray for babysitters!

9. Blog stalking anyone? Try a few of my faves lately: This is Not How I Planned My Life, Snickollet, NDG, and SweetSalty.

10. And for our giveaway...I'm renewing my Wondertime subscription and would love to share their 2 for 1 offer with one of you. So if you want a subscription for '09 post a comment and I'll pick a winner tomorrow!

homey.

That just about sums up our holiday celebration in a word. We spent three days at my mom's house and did the exact same things countless families around the country were doing - feasting, watching tv, talking, playing dominoes, entertaining kiddos, reading sale papers, telling stories. Americana in a weekend, yesiree.

When mom was planning the meal I volunteered to make my favorite Cranberry Apple Relish. Then I volunteered Brent to make the delicious pecan pie that he prepares every year. Or so I said. Upon relaying this to Brent he informed me that he's never made a pecan pie in his life. Really? Huh. Must be my other husband. I could have sworn we had a long-standing tradition of Brent making pecan pie but apparently I was wrong. So instead he made his first annual pecan pie...and had all of us cracking fresh pecans from his Aunt Alice' tree. Slave-driver.



I guess that's what I get for volunteering him. It's a good thing he's cute or I wouldn't have been so willing to oblige...



My grandpa was willing to chip in too. As long as he could enjoy the fruits of his labor every now and then...



Love that man. We don't see him often enough which is why we loved on him as much as we could...



Then we glued ourselves to the Macy's Parade...



and the sale papers...

And called it a successful celebration.