We Are Still Alive...

We made it thru Christmas all in one piece! I'm not going to leave you with any pictures today...but, I thought y'all would appreciate me taking the time to take the blog out of Halloween/Fall mode and kick it into next year already. So, there you have it...This may be my last post of 2011, I'll have to make it a resolution to be a better blogger. For that to happen, Owens' Originals would have to slow down...and we don't want that! :) Happy New Year to you and your families, may 2012 bring bigger and better blessings!

I might...

I might have something interesting to blog about in the next week. Or, I might not...because I might not be done Christmas shopping. I might be cursing the new grading system our district implemented...it's terrible. I might be done editing everyone else's Christmas pictures...but I might not have taken any of ours yet! I might curl up and just pretend Christmas isn't 6 days away.

You might need to commit me when this is all said and done. I might be joking, or not. :)

Random.Ness

It's Friday...can I get a Hallelujah? I only have to make it thru one more FULL week before we get out for Christmas break...that deserves a Hallelujah with your hands held high!

I thought y'all might need some photographic proof that Trey and Em are still alive and well...

We took the kids {and Grandma & Papa too} to Santa's Wonderland Wednesday night. Always makes for a fun night. I was a little worried that Emery wouldn't even look up from the iPad though...

Speaking of 'i' stuff, my new iPhone 4 case came in the other day.....LOVE

{make your own @ getuncommon.com}

Last Friday night I got a girl's night out with my mom and Billie {aka Grandma}. We went to the auction and I got some fun stuff. I usually go looking for photo props but come home empty handed. Luckily this time, I threw off the average age and the old folk didn't want what I wanted! :) I also got Joe a cool cross...we have a thing for crosses in our house...and license plates too. We're classy, don't judge.  While you're at it, don't judge the iPhone pics either...my camera is working over time lately. :)

I told y'all this was Random...ok, so I didn't but the title did. To finish up, check out what Skippy's been up to lately.

Enjoying a bowl of Lucky Charms under the tree...

The sugar ants enjoyed it to. :-\

Joe was in charge of this one...

So thankful Grandma & Papa came and cleaned it up before we got home!
Which leads to their masterpiece below...

Grandma & Papa thought Skippy might be thirsty. :)

Peek-A-Boo, I see you!

More Skippy Fun...

We are having a great time with Skippy...the kids wake up every morning and from every nap to check on him. We had a minor meltdown yesterday morning when Emery realized that Skippy had snagged one of her last donut holes! Speaking of melt downs, the following Skippy picture has a story...wait for it.

Skippy was perched upon one of Trey's little play houses in his room. Trey was out of his room, but Emery went in there to play. While playing, she bumped the house that Skippy was sitting on...knocking Skippy off. Joe and I looked at each other when we heard these massive sobs coming from Trey's room and we couldn't make out what she was saying. After some deciphering, we discovered she was saying 'Skippy TOUCHED me!!' In the book that comes with Skippy, part of the story is that you can NOT touch Skippy or he will lose his magic. Emery thought she had RUINED Skippy. We're talking, she could not catch her breath. We finally calmed her down and told her it would be okay. If you've watched the TV movie about the Elf on the Shelf, then you may have caught the part where the brother touched him and the other elves had to give him cinnamon or something like that? I wasn't doing my best job of listening when the kids were watching it...anyways, I'm going with that. SO, that night, Skippy made his way into one of my old mason jars with some cinnamon and sugar to get his magic back! This was one of my favorites so far. It convinced the kids that Skippy was going to be OK...so sweet!

Moving on...this is what Skippy's been up to the last couple of nights...

The Abominable Snowman seems to be his favorite...Yahtzee!

 Spooky Skippy!

Yesterday, the weather was YUCKY! Skippy opted to e-mail Santa and let him know that Trey and Emery had been very good. I woke up at 3 a.m. to find Trey trying to read Skippy's note...

I'll leave y'all with an iPhone pic of our tree this year!

Skippy is Here!

Y'all...seriously. Last year I said, "I will not purchase Elf on the Shelf...$30, no way!" We tried using a little reindeer stuffed animal we had...um, not so much. The whole concept is genius, and I think Joe and I may be having more fun with him than Trey and Emery!

During the day, Skippy perches somewhere and keeps an eye on things. After the kids go to bed, he 'flies back to the North Pole to report Trey and Emery's behavior to Santa'. When he gets back, while everyone is sleeping, he usually gets into something. Every morning for the last week, Trey and Emery have woken up and said, "I wonder what Skippy was up to last night?!"

This is what he's been up to this week...

Night 1: Got all of the colors out and left his mark in the coloring book.

Night 2: Skippy vs. The Abominable Snowman in a serious game of checkers.

Night 3: Skippy is brave!


Night 4: Trey ended up in our bed, so Skippy decided to go keep Trey's bed warm for him.

Stay tuned for more of Skippy's antics. Leave a comment if you're doing Elf on the Shelf...I'd love to get some more ideas! :)