Reflecting on 2008

Here is a picture of Brent and I, New Years Eve 2007.



2008 probably went by faster than any year I can remember! Does it feel like that to you too? I feel like just awhile ago I was reflecting on 2007, and now here I am, reflecting on 2008.

2008 was a busy year full of memories, answered prayers, gold medals, exciting trips, family reunions, crazy politics, blockbusters...

In no particular order, here are my reflections from the year 2008...
Personal AND Public

SPORTS
Summer Olympics 2008
Michael Phelps


Kentucky Derby 2008
Eight Belles gets injured, collapses, and dies on track. We were heartbroken!


KIDS
Each kid started a new activity this year...

Kate-Karate


Nick-football


Ashlan - Ballet and Tap


Election 2008
McCain/Obama


My sister, Traci, successfully directed her thesis play, Cyrano. It was fantastic!!! She worked SO HARD on it!




REUNIONS
Brent and his Aunt Ruthie


Uncle Darin visited TWICE this year


Ashlan and her Great Great Aunt Eulala



NEW ADDITIONS
Our temporary addition who is greatly missed
Harley

Our permanent addition, Bismark


-

BOAT
We've had sooo much fun with the new boat and all the water sports


BRENT
Named in Dallas Magazine as one of Dallas' Best Doctors
-This is his 6th year to be given the honor-


Brent bought his 3rd motorcycle this year.


TRIPS
Our Mediterranean Cruise


Trip to Alaska


Trip to Mexico



WEATHER
Dallas had a few days of snow


Hurricane Ike



Friends who passed away
Brian Geiger
Bobby Graves
Betty Brockway



Births in 2008
Diego Koi Diaz-Nguyen
Claire Downing
Jake Dox


Answered Prayers
-We continue to thank the Lord for our health and ongoing happiness!
-We've made many new friends this year as well as reunited with old ones.
-We had safe travels and our visitors had safe travels, as well.

2008 might have flown by, but it left us with wonderful memories and many reasons to be thankful!

Here's to wishing you a

Ice Skating

The whole family went ice skating this past weekend! It was a first for Kate, and the second time for Ashlan and Nick. It had been 35 years since Brent put on a pair of ice skates.

We had a fantastic time! No injuries, no blisters, no complaints! Oh wait - we did have complaints. When it was time to leave, NO ONE wanted to leave. We were just having too much fun!

(Nick is not in the picture. It was too difficult to get him to stop and take a break for a picture)


Nick fell twice, but that was only because he didn't know any other way to stop. He was all about speed on that rink!


Kate impressed us the most. For having never ice skated before, she was amazing! Great balance, only fell once, skates fast, and can even do some turns. Wow!


I finally got both of them to stop and get a picture taken!


This was Ashlan's second time in ice skates. She was much more independent this time.
"Don't hold onto me, Mommy! I can do it by myself."


Brent and Kate spent quite a bit of time ice skating together. They were adorable!


Kate, Ashlan, and Nick skating around together.


Kate and I practicing our spins, skating backwards, etc...


And Brent and I even had some time to skate with each other! I loved it!


Brent's brother, Darin, and his family ice skated with us. Although, Dana opted out of skating for some Galleria shopping.

Here is Mason skating. He never wanted any help at all!


MacKenzie was very cautious on the ice. So her dad, Darin, stayed with her the entire time.


I've got to take this family ice skating more often. Everyone picked up on it quickly and had the most fun! Even Brent said he would go back and skate again! I wish you could have seen us! Grandma and Grandpa Morgan - thanks for coming and cheering us on! It was so nice to have ya'll there!

Ashlan speaks...

I found this on my friend Rebekah's blog. It sparked my interest enough to do it with Ashlan. I was curious as to what her answers would be...
So here are Ashlan's responses to the questions...

Questions about mom


1. What is something mom always says to you? Skunky. That's what you call me, mommy.
2. What makes mom happy? Bismark (that's our dog)
3. What makes mom sad? when I hit
4. How does your mom make you laugh? you put on silly clothes
5. What was your mom like as a child? I don't even know what that means
6. How old is your mom? 6
7. How tall is your mom? 90 pounds
8. What is her favorite thing to do? ride horses
9. What does your mom do when you're not around? grocery shopping
10. If your mom becomes famous, what will it be for? for jumping very high
11. What is your mom really good at? ice skating
12. What is your mom not very good at? squishing stuff
13. What does your mom do for her job? helping other people
14. What is your mom's favorite food? sausage
15. What makes you proud of your mom? because you are silly
16. If your mom were a cartoon character, who would she be? Dora
17. What do you and your mom do together? color
18. How are you and your mom the same? we have brown eyes
19. How are you and your mom different? we don't have the same clothes
20. How do you know your mom loves you? you always hug me


Questions about Dad


1. What is something dad always says to you? Postive and Negative (and yes, this is how Brent always answers her questions)
2. What makes dad happy? When I love on him
3. What makes dad sad? Not hugging him
4. How does your dad make you laugh? He plays the guitar
5. What was your dad like as a child? He smiled
6. How old is your dad? 21
7. How tall is your dad? 68 pounds
8. What is his favorite thing to do? Play the guitar
9. What does your dad do when you're not around? work
10. If your dad becomes famous, what will it be for? Playing the guitars
11. What is your dad really good at? Eating hamburgers
12. What is your dad not very good at? Riding motorcycles
13. What does your dad do for his job? Make people feel better
14. What is your dad’s favorite food? sausage
15. What makes you proud of your dad? He fixes my scooter
16. If your dad were a cartoon character, who would he be? Boots the monkey
17. What do you and your dad do together? Play video games
18. How are you and your dad the same? We have the same face and nose
19. How are you and your dad different? We don’t have the same eyes
20. How do you know your dad loves you? He always wants to cuddle on me

A Treasure to Keep or A Treasure Left Behind

This was found on Christmas morning, on our floor, next to the fireplace.


It seems to be Santa's watch.
On one side it reads,
'North Pole Watch Company
Official Watchmakers to the Claus Family
since 1889'
The other side is like a compass watch with several countries and continents listed.


So what do you think? Did Santa accidently drop it and is possibly looking for it now? OR did he purposely leave it on our floor to save as a treasure?

The watch was left on the floor near the toys that Santa left for Kate. So Kate has taken it upon herself to write Santa and let him know that we have his watch.


The letter to Santa reads,
'Dear Santa,
Hi Santa. Thank you for the wonderful gifts. We found your watch in my pile of presents. I didn't know if you gave it to me or if you dropped it. Santa, write me back if you dropped it or gave it to me. If by the time you get a new watch by the time you get this letter, I would like to keep this watch. Next Christmas if I keep it, can you wake me up and teach me how to use it. If you would like it back, I will send it in my next letter. You have to write me back first.
Sencirly,
Kate Morgan'

I can't wait to find out whether Santa left the watch for us to keep or not. It's so cool!

A Morgan Christmas

(this isn't the Christmas picture we sent out to friends and family, but I do like this picture)

(the Morgan children)



Like I mentioned in the post below, it's been a busy holiday! Busier than usual. Every even year, Brent's brother and his family from Florida spend Christmas with us. We look forward to this! Their children, MacKenzie (11) and Mason (7) play so well with our kids!
This year, Chris and Laura visited us, from Kentucky, the week BEFORE Christmas! This was a special treat for all of us since we don't see them very often.

So it's been a busy holiday season for us. Guests in the house constantly. But if you know me, you know that's what I like. I love to host, entertain, and certainly enjoy the fellowship! And it's even more special when it's your family!

Most of this post will be described through pictures...
We started the holiday season off with parties! We hosted our first party on Dec. 1st, so I had an early deadline to get my Christmas decorations out QUICK!
We also attended school holiday parties, neighborhood holiday parties (for the kids), and the list continues...

Ashlan and her sweet friend, Katelyn, at the neighborhood Christmas party


Santa was so kind to stop by the neighborhood Christmas party


Ashlan and a handful of her closest friends had their annual party here at our house (only a few of the kids would sit for a picture)


We did have a few snow flurries one day. Here's Ashlan dancing with excitement.


Can you see the snow flurries?


We got to see Donner and Blitzen!





Ashlan and Kate had fun in the miniature village in Allen.


We always spend Christmas Eve at Grandma and Grandpa Morgan's.
Kate has a love for Panda's, so Aunt Dana found her a panda shirt!


Grandma Morgan and Tess
(Thank you for having all of us over Grandma and Grandpa! The food was delicious and the time we spent together was so special)


Grandpa Morgan modeling one of his gifts!


Brent and his brother, Darin, wearing their matching shirts!


We must all have been on Santa's NICE list because he came! He even left Mason and MacKenzie stockings and a note that said he dropped off some gifts at their house in Florida that they will see when they get back home.


Some of Kate's favorite gifts were her Razor Scooter, a new sleeping bag, Cupcake Maker, Wii games, DVD's, clothes, and lots of Camp Rock and Jonas Brother items... But she really liked her new lunch bag - monogrammed with her name and in her favorite colors, blue and black.


Ashlan enjoyed her tall pink bubble gum machine, Cupcake Maker, Barbie Cruise Boat, Princess Scooter, etc.....but her favorite item was her new red sparkly shoes!


Nick isn't into picture taking, but he enjoyed several gift cards, along with Abercrombie and Fitch clothing, cologne, etc...

Of course, Bismark has been enjoying all the attention from our extended family these past two weeks.


His Christmas present was a good warm bath, trim and blow dry from Brent!


Kate and her cousin, MacKenzie, playing with some Christmas gifts


And I had to end with this hilarious picture. Typical male bonding time... Video games and potato chips!


Hope you had a very Merry Christmas. More posts to follow soon!.......

Christmas is....

BUSY BUSY BUSY this year!

And we are LOVING it!

Chris and Laura left this morning after a 7 day visit with us. We did lots of baking, cooking, ice skating, watching movies, SHOPPING, golf, driving to see Christmas lights, visiting the Gaylord, etc.... Oh were we busy! And ALL the pictures from this past week are still on my camera. I hope to post those on here SOON!

More family comes in tomorrow! Yippee! Brent's brother and his family are flying in from Florida for the week. The fun isn't stopping! More baking, shopping, watching movies, fellowship, etc...

So sorry for the lack of posts lately. We've been too busy having fun with our families!

More posts with pictures to come soon....

Happy Holidays to All!

Why Jesus is Better Than Santa Claus

Why Jesus is Better Than Santa?

Santa lives at the North Pole...
JESUS is everywhere.

Santa rides in a sleigh...
JESUS rides on the wind and walks on the water.

Santa fills your stockings with goodies...
JESUS supplies all your needs.

Santa comes down your chimney uninvited...
JESUS stands at your door and knocks, and then enters your heart when invited.

You have to wait in line to see Santa...
JESUS is as close as the mention of His name.

Santa lets you sit on his lap...
JESUS lets you rest in His arms.

Santa doesn't know your name, all he can say is "Hi little boy or girl, what's your name?"...
JESUS knew our history and future and He even knows how many hairs are on our head.

Santa has a belly like a bowl full of jelly...
JESUS has a heart full of love.

All Santa can offer is HO HO HO...
JESUS offers health, help and hope.

Santa says, "You'd better not pout, you'd better not cry,"...
JESUS says "Cast all your cares on me, for I care for you."

Santa's little helpers make toys...
JESUS makes new life, mends wounded hearts,
repairs broken homes and builds mansions.

Santa may make you chuckle but...
JESUS gives you joy that is your strength.

While Santa puts gifts under your tree...
JESUS became our gift and died on a tree.

It's obvious there is really no comparison.

We need to remember WHO Christmas is all about. We need to put Christ back in Christmas, Jesus is still the reason for the season.

Yes, Jesus is better, he is even better than Santa Claus.

Merry CHRISTmas!

(author unknown)

No More Wishes

Look at those shoes above. That's how worn they've gotten in less than 2 months. The shiny white on the toe of the shoes is actually where the sparkle has worn away. We bought them right before Halloween to complete Ashlan's 'Dorothy' costume. To this day, she still insists on wearing those shoes nearly everyday! I'm sure Ashlan's preschool teacher is so tired of seeing those red shoes! But Ashlan loves those shoes simply because Dorothy wears those shoes and she LOVES Dorothy.

Last week, Ashlan and I were out shopping and came upon a large water fountain. Ashlan asked me for a penny to throw into the fountain. Below is our conversation that followed...

Me: "Ashlan, remember to close your eyes and make a wish before you throw the penny in the water."

Ashlan: "I don't want to make a wish."

Me: "Why not?"

Ashlan: "I don't wish anymore because my wishes never come true."

Me: "What wishes have you made that haven't come true?"

Ashlan: (puppy dog eyes) "I always wish to be Dorothy and I'm still not her."

That is how much my daughter loves Dorothy!

Are those red shoes still for sale in the stores? I need a pair in every single size!

Opinions Needed!

I bought a few items today that could be used for a Hostess Gift. I just don't know which one to give! See, I have a friend hosting a Cookie Exchange this weekend. Unfortunately, I won't be able to make it because I'll be at Baylor University watching my sister's thesis play, Cyrano, that she is directing.

Since my friend is graciously opening up her home for this, yet I am not going to be present, I definitely wanted to drop something off to show my appreciation for the invite.

But I can't figure out which gift below to give her! She'd like them all, that's the problem.

Which one would YOU like to have?

1) A set of 3 mixing bowls with a miniature mixer/beater attached. I picked up two because I liked them BOTH. If I gave her one, I'd keep the other...hehe


or 2) 2 Kitchen Towel Set with holiday cookie cutter (again, I bought two thinking if I give her one, I'll keep the other)


or 3) 'Tis the Season Gift Wrap Set (I thought this would be a great idea, too. It's nice to have something like this on-hand if you need to wrap something quickly. Plus the colors were great!)



So, since I can't make a decision, comment or email me and let me know which one YOU would rather be given!

Also, be sure and check out my post below. There's a great recipe I shared!

A Quick Yummy Recipe

I have been researching recipes for something yummy, sweet, and bite size to give to the ladies in my MOPS group. I came across the perfect recipe this morning and I just finished making them! They were quick, easy, small, and tasty!

Crispy Fudge Truffles


Details:
Prep Time: 20 min.
Decoration Time: 15 min.
Difficulty: Easy
Yield: Makes 40 truffles.

3 cups chopped 3 MUSKETEERS® Bars
2 tablespoons milk
2 ½ cups puffed cocoa cereal
3 tablespoons finely chopped nuts (walnuts or pecans), optional
3 tablespoons confectioner’s sugar, optional

1. In a heavy bottom pan, melt 3 MUSKETEERS® Bars with milk, stirring constantly until smooth. Once melted, remove from heat immediately.
2. Stir in the puffed cocoa cereal, mixing thoroughly. Drop by teaspoonfuls onto parchment-lined cookie sheets, making 40 mounds.
3. Cool 5-10 minutes, or until cool enough to handle.
4. With buttered fingers, roll mound into 1-inch balls.
5. If desired, roll balls in chopped nuts and/or confectioner’s sugar, or simply leave them plain.

I had to run to the store to get

I already had the other ingredients.

I chose to roll my truffles in pecans, powdered sugar, coconut, and then I left some just plain.


They turned out great! The picture doesn't do justice!


Now it's time to package them in a festive, creative Christmas way!

So if you are looking for something easy, small, and yummy to give as a special treat for a friend, this is it! Enjoy!

ADVENT - The Perfect Idea!

For those of you who haven't noticed, scroll down my blog and you'll find on the right side a list of blogs I read simply to get my creative juices flowing. You'll see the blogs listed under Creative Ideas. The women/men of these blogs are genius! Some blog about their most recent creative idea, a new recipe, how they decorate a room, etc... Some even post about great deals they've found while out shopping. I read a blog last week about these cute mixing bowls that a blogger came across at Walmart. I loved them and thought they would make great gifts! So what did I do? I ran to Walmart to get them. I would never have known about them had I not read this amazing ladies blog. Thanks, Cherry Hill Cottage!

So anyways, I was reading Just a Girl's blog and she posted the most brilliant idea for an Advent Calendar! I have seen some precious Advent Calendar's out there, but Just A Girl put her own spin on it and came up with the Perfect Advent Calendar!

Check it out below. These are her words on how she did it!




I went to my local grocery store and found packages of mini matchboxes. I think they were about $3.00 each, and I bought a couple of packages—enough to have 25 boxes. I dumped all the matches into a container, and kept the “innards” of the package out (the slide out part). I spray painted those white.

Next, I chose some cute coordinating Christmas paper and wrapped it around the outside of the box. I found it easiest if I made a template of the box with one piece of paper and just cut all the others to that size. I used a glue for paper and it adhered perfectl




I found some packages of the smallest number stickers I could find, and I used some garage sale stickers that I already had. I stuck them onto each box, and this is what I came up with:


Now for the fun part! I searched on line, I stole from other people, and I actually thought for myself. I came up with a list of 25 special activities that we could do as a family until Christmas day. The list varied from having breakfast for dinner to going bowling as a family.



I cut them into strips, put them into a “pretty-fied” apothecary jar, and VOILA! Our advent calendar!



One major piece of advice if you so choose to take on this task--make sure you have a copy of what each day is going to be. If not, you may get stuck with “make a Christmas craft” and you have no supplies on that day! Oops! It took me a couple of nights of watching TV to get it all done, and I know my kids will love it!




Isn't that a wonderful idea? I just had to share that with everyone. If you have children, they are certain to love it!
I think I'm going to do this exact idea next year, and the year after, and the year after, ......