Ooh.. Aah..

Phew, we survived Christmas!  What an awesomely, hectic weekend!  I was right to be anxious for it though, this was easily my most favorite Christmas so far. :)  We had a few unexpected events, but the important parts, the ones spent with family and Jesus, were well worth the wait and chaos.  Cmas Eve was great with the in laws.  We had a yummy dinner, went to church and then back to Becky's for more food and some gifts.  Lot's of great stuff changing hands there.  Then home for a quick gift before ushering all the little elves to bed.  My favorite part was Cmas morning.  The excitement, the anticipation, the ripping of wrapping paper and the oohs, ahhs and squeals of delight!  (what can I say, Joe's a squealer..hehe)
Oh, here are some pictures real quick..
Here they are anxiously awaiting the moment I put down the camera and they can start opening!

 We like to go slow and steady.. one gift and one person at a time.. oh, and don't forget to ooh and ahh!

 Much excitement over the PS3!

 and much excitement over the trampoline! (Riddocs attempting to lift the box, really, he's not pooping) :P

 a little less excitement..

 enough about them, here's my awesome 'booty'!

Can you tell I like kitchen stuff?  I know some women are insulted when they get a lot of domestic stuff, but not me, the more kitchen gadgets the better!! (I'm using that awesome crock pot you see pictured at this very moment, it's full of meatballs waiting to become yummy sandwiches later!)
Oh, then after we did our family Christmas, Joe's extended family came over and we did lunch and gifts.  Mmm, good food and lots of fun Nerf battles.  And a special thanks to Uncle Jim Bob for helping put the trampoline together! :)

Ok, so now that that parts covered, let me rewind to the morning of Christmas Eve.  I had my very first (in all the years I've been a licensed driver) automobile accident.  I was on my way into Conway to grab some groceries for that nights festivities and my car slid on a slushy spot.  I put it on it's side in the opposite ditch.. oops.  Luckily there was nobody with me and I was uninjured.  My car however is spending some quiet time at the tow lot awaiting the final say by the insurance guy.  Will he total it or fix it? Hmm..?
So anyway, I took some pictures so I could help explain exactly what happened.. if you will direct your attention to exhibit 1. 
I was heading (in my race car) to town..  (la la la la la..)

                                            

 then all of a sudden (with out warning or skidding or swerving) my car hit a slick spot and turned side ways, going down the road at a not recommended angle... (aaauugh!)

 then, going that angle and direction, my cars front end hit the ditch with a motor cracking thwak! (that's not good..)

 and then, after sliding down the ditch collecting dirt into a pile, said dirt caused my wheels momentum to suddenly stop and the roofs momentum took me onto my side.  I ended up on my passenger side, facing back towards home. (holy crap, I'm sideways!)

Luckily (thank you Jesus) I didn't have a kid sitting next to that exploding window and I was able to crawl out through MY window and walk away unscathed.

Oh, and here is a picture of the real car..



So now we're praying for an easy and not too complicated or depressing insurance thing. (come on, mama needs a new car!) ;)

Also unexpected was the stomach bug I got hit with yesterday (the day after Cmas).  I spent about 20 hours in bed or on the couch and lost 4 pounds.. hehe.. a good cheater way to kick off my New Year's diet.  Today I feel 100% better and was able to dismantle and pack away all our beautiful (but in the way) decorations.   *Sigh* I love an uncluttered house. :)

K, one last thing this evening.. I had to take a picture of Riddoc's hair.  One of the things in his stocking was his very own comb (ya I said comb.. I know we're cheap, but my kids are easily delighted).  Anyway, he has his own comb now, so he wanted to do his own hair.  Totally fine with me.  Here is the style of his choice.  (kind of reminds me of a "Something about Mary" style..)

Hehe.. awesome.
Until we speak again and just in case it'll be a while, may you have a safe and happy New Year!! (we should get together and play cards..)

Who's on that sleigh??!

I love Christmas time!  I love what it stands for of course, the birth of Jesus Christ who would die 33 years later for our sins and win us back from the clutches of Hell, but I also love the atmosphere that comes along with this time of year.  People are happier (for the most part), nicer (in general) and there's such anticipation for what's to come that you can't help but feel the excitement hanging in the air.
I'm anxious for it this year.  Normally I'm excited about Christmas, but I'm not 'anxious' about it.  I don't typically put up the decorations until the weekend before and I've never been one for getting presents (for myself).  This year's different somehow though.  We put up the decor on Thanksgiving and I can't wait to open my gifts!  I actually have presents under the tree that I don't know what they are! ;) (Mostly because Joe didn't tell my MIL what he got me.. she's notorious for giving away secrets.. Last year she came over for dinner and said "Oh, I see Joe gave you your coffee pot already".  and I was like "uh.. no, that's my old one.." and she was like "ooops.."  Joe was one unhappy little elf.) hehe.. 
Not only that, but we were able to get the boys some awesome stuff (which I can't tell you yet because the eldest is a follower of my blog) and they're all old enough to truly understand what Christmas is all about.  We don't celebrate Santa, but we do celebrate Jesus. (Just a personal family choice, not to make anyone feel like we're judging you if you do Santa)  The boys are grateful of the gifts they get and they KNOW that it's daddy's hard work and sweat earned money that pays for said gifts.  They're also knowledgeable of the facts that surround Christmas.  I love when Ramsey says grace because he always thanks Jesus for being born and then dying on the cross.. and that's truly what it's about.  But the gifts are awesome! And I LOVE getting together with family and friends and having parties with lots of food and plenty of laughs!
The big extended family gathering is something that I didn't grow up with.  We moved so much and lived so far away that there was never a holiday or birthday where we had Aunts, Uncles, cousins or Gparents around.  It was always just the 5 of us, and my mom always went overboard and made Christmas (and Easter and New years and birthdays) extra special and super memorable.  I didn't taste the splendor of the extended family gatherings until I got married.  We still get together with Joe's entire family every holiday, which is great, but I crave and demand that Christmas morning be done in our house, with just us 5.  And I can't wait for Saturday morning!! 
Oh, and speaking of Christmas, and the fact that Christmas Eve is tomorrow, I have to tell you something funny that Ramsey said the other day.  He was recollecting that in a few days was Cmas Eve and then he stopped and asked thoughtfully "Mom, why is it called Christmas Eve?  What does she have to do with it?" lol, I thought it was funny.. (maybe you had to be there..) :P
And speaking of funny things that silly kids say, here are a few things Riddoc (the speaker with a never ending statement) said the other day on the way home from MOPS.  Here they are in no particular order or relevance..  "I think I just saw Batman trying to get out of the back of that truck." "I wish I had a fake beard, not a real one, but a fake one." "Could you talk if you didn't have a tongue?" "Can you turn the heater down, it's melting my face off."  OH! and I can't forget to tell you the lyrics he's been accidentally singing instead of the normal "one horse open sleigh"..  the new version goes something like this .. "jingle bells, ~blah blah blah~, with one whore on the sled.." LOL, and no, he's not doing it on purpose.. that's just his '5 year old, I don't  know what the real words are' version.
That child should come with a warning label.. kind of like roller coaster's do.  Caution, do not engage if you have a heart condition, thoughts of suicide, a short fuse, anger issues, sensitive ear drums (cuz he has no volume control), a history of violence or any other condition that would cause you to want to jump off of a bridge after answering non relevant questions and commenting on off the wall statements for 18 hours straight.  *sigh* He's gonna be the class clown and my main reason for reporting to the principals office.  But he's awesome and God definitely has something major planned for him!!!  (you may repeat that statement as often as needed to get through your day with The Riddoc at your heals) ;)  Nah seriously though, he's an outstanding little boy, sweet, super funny and highly intelligent with a wit quick enough to keep any average adult on their toes.
So, now that I've rambled on (and on), let me ask you a question.. What are your plans for the next two days?  How do you celebrate Christmas Eve and Christmas Day? 
I'll get the poll rolling.. tomorrow we will go to Becky's house (my SIL) and the 12 of us (Becky, Dustin, their 3 kids, Nana, Papa and the 5 of us) will go to church.  Then we'll go back to Becky's house to eat dinner and open presents.  Then the 5 of us will come home and open one gift a piece before going to bed.  The next morning (before the sun comes up I'm sure) we'll get up and open all the gifts under the tree.  Then around 11 Joe's extended family will come over to our house and have lunch/dinner and do a gift exchange.  Then everyone goes home and Joe and I will collapse on the couch not to move again until after the new year.  Now it's your turn... :)
Oh, and I hope you have a Merry Christmas!!!!
PS.. here are some random pictures of our holiday cheer!

Making cookies on that snow day I talked about previously..

 Still making cookies.. but who's foot is Riddoc holding? lol

 Some of our beautiful creations.. and very loaded with icing and sprinkles!!

 Our tree..

 The Mantel

 The entry way, going into my Living Room.. (take a left to go to Joe's living room..)

 The little blue tree in the Dining room (next to the hot drink station) :)

 A cool picture of the lights that Riddoc took..

 A picture Riddoc drew for me while I was blogging just now.. (It say's "love Riddoc to Mom) He spells love with a heart.. :)

Snow day!

I love how paranoid our school system is!  We had some freezing fog this morning and wham! no school.  Seriously, there's nothing on the roads.. at least not from my house to the school. Of course, there are a lot of back roads, so maybe they're icy.. ?
Anyway, no school also means no work, which means .. uh.. well, I don't guess it actually means anything in particular.  It just means no work, which would be awesome if the boys were in school! lol  oh well, we'll just have to make cookies or something.

(Since you can't hear the commotion, you have to create your own..  Here you need to start yelling "Don't shoot me!" scream "Augh, I've been shot in the eye!" and just some general shouting, high pitch laughing and stomping around.. oh and for good measure, sprinkle about 70 nerf darts throughout the house.. yay snow days)
Oh and speaking of the boys, let me explain my blog title real quick.  Thanks to my lil sis and an early morning brainstorming session, we came up with Cheddar Pirates and Dairy Dogs.  The Pirate part is a play on initials.  The boys' first name initials put together are ARR (Austyn, Ramsey and Riddoc) which sounds like a pirate.. get it.. Arr..I'm a scary pirate, ARR..  K, moving on..  I love cheese and anything related to it in any form, hence the cheddar and dairy parts.  The last part is probably self explanitory, but I'm in a 'mood' so I'm going there too.  I love dogs.. and cats.. and horses.. and guinea pigs.. and I'm sure you're getting the idea.  We have 3 doggies at the moment, so I had to include them in the title of my blog that will be mentioning them on a regular basis, so there you have it!  (Oh, I forgot to mention that I like weird and semi chaoc blog titles that at first glance make no sense.. I only say that in case you're wondering why I didn't just call it 'boys, dogs and cheese')
Phew, that took more explaining that I was anticipating! lol.. That's ok though cuz I have nothing else to do this morning.
Hmm.. and now my brain has hit a bloggers block and I can't seem to think of where to go from here.  I started thinking how nice a hot bath sounds and that's all that's in there now.  I guess that means I'm going to get off of my laptop and go hop in the tub.. and I can do that because it's a snow day and I have nothing more pressing to do. :)