Knoxville to Memphis to Arkadelphia to Jackson to Knoxville......

We took the family to see our Uncle Brad graduate from college. At first, Steve was just going to go, but he wanted to go as a family to tread the trip with three kids and a pregnant wife who has to stop every two hours per doctor's order. It took a whopping 14 hours to get there with an overnight stay in Memphis and a whopping 12 hours back with our overnight stay in Jackson. And boy were we ready to get home. We spent most of our time in the car with a few outings. One being, a half day in Hot Springs, Arkansas on Bath House Row, very famous! Good quality time with the fam....

In the Kitchen...

We decided to make homemade Christmas cookies. Once you start, there is absolutely no turning back....it is a project! I let the girls cut and decorate all by themselves and they loved it! As you can see, we have Lydia, the messiest, Emma, the semi-messiest, and Madelyn, the cleanest! What a mess! One fun family event!

Let it Snow...Let it Snow...Let it Snow...

It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!!! We woke up to a nice surprise last Saturday to a beautiful blanket of snow. The kids we too excited to eat breakfast until they made it outside to sled and build a snowman. They absolutely loved it! I was away for the day to a women's Christmas lunch from church and then off to a little shopping adventure with Nana. Dad was IN CHARGE and the girls had a blast! Just the most perfect daddy/daughter day! Sledding, Snowmen, Snowangels, hot chocolate, homemade pizza's and a Little House on the Praire.

Part 2 of Emma's Birthday Celebration...

Okay, I am a little behind.... Last weekend we went to Nashville and stayed with mimi and pawpaw and took the girls to the wonderful and exciting Rockettes! The girls loved it! Last Christmas, Steve and I went to New York City and saw the spectacular show and actually bought the video for the girls to enjoy. And do they ever! They absolutely loved the show since they knew what is was all about! Tons of fun!!!!

After the show, we went back to mimi's house to have cake and open presents. Mimi made a Mississippi Mud Cake (a Steve favorite) and loved every bite of it! The girls had a blast celebrating Emma's 5th birthday. Happy Birthday Emma. The celebration comes to an end....until next year....the big 6!

Thankfulness....

I love Thanksgiving and the wonderful food that comes a long with it! I can hardly wait to munch on that delicious turkey and dressing. My mouth waters just thinking about it.

In school, we have checked out many books at the library about the wonderful holiday Thanksgiving and how it came about. I myself enjoyed relearning the history of the holiday too. To celebrate Thanksgiving, we have been working on a Thankfulness Tree. I cut the tree out and the girls painted the leaves and cut them out and wrote on each one what they are thankful for.

Today, we made Pilgrim masks and Mayflower boats. So fun! I am trying to get creative with art time because the girls look forward to it each morning.

Just a few things that the Cobb Family is thankful for this year: Our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, the blessing He has blessed us with this year, a child of His, our family and the home we have, the love for homeschooling, our church and friends, our health and the love we have for Jesus.

Thank you Jesus for all that You bless us with......

Happy 5th Birthday to Emma!!!

We were thrilled our middle girl turned the "big 5". She was so excited with the anticipation of turning one year older. As we did with our youngest last month, Lydia, who turned 3, we decided to celebrate as a family. I love birthday parties because it is a celebration of life. A celebration that the Lord has blessed us with. I love celebrating every year I have with my children. Thank you Lord for my girls!

We woke up to our traditional smilely face pancakes whith redi whip and chocolate chips. Then, we got ready and went to the Rainforest Adventure Center in Sevierville. The center had many of the rainforest animals. The kids had a blast! Grandaddy met us there to celebrate Emma's special day.

Then, it was back home to let the family party to begin...We started off with a Wizard of Oz party, Emma's favorite! We had lasagne and bread and I made ice cream cone cakes with icing. I thought I would do something a little bit different for the girls, but as soon as we sat down to eat them, the first thing Emma asked was, "where is my cake momma?" I will know next time, do nothing new, just stick with tradition of a "cake".

We then opened presents and played several games the girls were excited to play. We played musical chairs, pin the tail on the donkey-an all time favorite, pop the balloons, and the pinata. It was so much fun!!!

We were tired! Now, this weekend, we are off to Nashville to see the Rockettes in celebration of Emma's birthday too! A gift from MiMi and PawPaw.

I'll post the pictures next week....

Ear Piercing...

We had date night with Madelyn on Friday night. We wanted to treat her to a "big girl" night with mom and dad. Our evening started at the Olive Garden with salad and breadsticks. She loves salads! Then, a yummy dinner and two desserts! Yes, you heard right, two desserts! Daddy overtreated his girls!

Next was off to the mall. Madelyn mentioned earlier that she wanted to get her ears pierced. She was ready! I could not believe my ears. We have actually tried this once before and she chickened out! This time she was excited and ready. She had bravery written all over her face! So, to Claire's we went! She sat in the chair, did not move an inch, and "bam" those ears were pierced. WOW! Even the other little girls in the store were amazed at how still she sat and with no reaction. I could not believe it! The fun part was picking out ear rings to wear afterwards! She had a big night!

A night I hope she will remember the rest of her life. I still remember the day I got my ears pierced and I don't remember much! I was eight-she is seven, so I think she'll remember!

Catch Up....

I have been a little behind this week on my posts. We have done a lot! First, I will recap from last Tuesday night from The Ladies Tea at church. What a fun night! Each year, the church hosts a Ladies Tea, open to the public and other churches with reserved tickets only. Probably about 300 women attended. Each table seats 8 ladies and each table is decorated different. There is a host for each table that is responsible for decorating and hosting each lady at their table. Every table could have been in a magazine. I was completely amazed at how beautiful each table was decorated and the thought and planning of each. We were served on beautiful china and served by the men of the church. So fun! The speaker this year, Candy Wood Lindley, a survivor of a baseball-sized tumor in the center of her head. Amazing testimony to see the work of God's hand throughout each step of the way of every surgury she had to endure. WOW! I was so blessed to have been able to go and enjoy listening to her share God's amazing love.

My girls beg for craft time in school. Sometimes it is hard to work that in, but we did that day and they loved it. I found in the clearance section at Wal-mart these cute Martha Stewart puppets for $3.00. Cute too!

Okay, to avoid germs as much as possible, this is now how I go to the grocery store. I put Lydia in the stroller and one of the girls pushes her while the other helps me gather items off the shelves. No touching the buggy or anything else for that matter.

Then, I was able to attend a wedding of a girl friend of mine. Such a sweet couple and beautiful wedding. The reception was outside in the freezing cold weather. Burrrrrr......

On Sunday, we were able to attend a beautiful service in a Primitive Baptist Church in The Cove. God is so good...Worshipping Him in an old church built in the 1800's, with fingerprints still on the ceiling and walls of the men who built it back in the day. Simply amazing. The kids had a blast afterwards playing in the leaves and laughing and playing for hours. So fun!!!!

Camping for the First Time...

We decided it was time to take the family on an adventure and camp. We have had this camping trip planned for several months and of course, when the time came and it was our weekend, it was one of the coldest weekends we have had this year. Oh well, we had to go anyway because we have talked about it and talked about it to the kids. They were not about to let it go! The anticipation and excitement was at its high!

We borrowed my dad's camper which has heat and air, kitchen, bathroom, and two beds. So, we were able to come in from the cold and stay warm. We spent the majority of our time in the camper because it was cold and wet outside. We did grill out hamburgers and hotdogs on the campfire and had our "all time" favorite, s'mores. So good! We brought a few games for the kids and just enjoyed being together as a family.

All of us had the best time! On Sunday, we were able to have "church in the camper". You can praise and worship our precious Lord anywhere. It was great!