I can not believe it has actually been so long since I last updated here.  I have no excuse, just been so busy.  Things are always busy for me, but when this particular time of year rolls around, well things explode with chaos!

We are in the middle of a birthday season with one birthday down and two more in the next two weeks.  Then, of course, we have Thanksgiving to deal with.

Thanksgiving is looking to be...oh, how shall I say it?  Complicated.  We have our plans that we made into a tradition, going out to eat and not actually cooking on that day.  It has made things so much easier for me and my family.  But, it seems that the extended family is trying to make plans, that include us, without consulting us, and then trying to rope us into them.  Because some do not like the idea of going out to eat on Thanksgiving.  Seems it does not "feel right".   And I have been informed that So-and-so is making the plans and I am supposed to get together with them and work it out.  Do they not understand that I have no intention of "getting together" and "working it out"?

Not that I really mind getting together for holidays and such, but the thing is, we are the largest family.  So we, meaning me, are responsible for bringing enough food to feed our large family as well as enough to share around.  Again, not too hard, I do cook all the time, but that is the blessing of our Thanksgiving tradition!  I don't HAVE to cook!  I can actually sit down at the table with the family and just enjoy being there rather than have to do all that work!

It sure makes Thanksgiving a time for me to give thanks rather than something to dread.

Why can't they just understand?  Now I have to figure out how to deal with it.

I am planning on making some sweets for Thanksgiving, though.  Because all my children LOVE them. 

Chocolate Cheesecake
Cherry Cheesecake
Pumpkin Cheesecake
Holiday Jello (cranberries, pineapples, & jello topped with cream cheese, sugar, & pecan icing)
Lemonade Pie (like key-lime pie)
Cookies
Candies, etc!

That way we can have a fun celebration without all the hard work of spending the day in the kitchen cooking (the sweets will be cooked before the actual day).

Anyways, enough whining from me.  I will get it all worked out.  I just hope I don't make too many people mad.

So, I finally got some pics of the children.  And FINALLY downloaded the ones from my camera (I had almost 400 that I had not even downloaded to my laptop yet!).

This is my favorite one! 

9of9 is just SO CUTE!  Of course, he is on the table, again, and eating popcorn that someone left there.  And if you can believe it or not, that smile was solely because he saw I had the camera!    He really does love the camera.

Anyways, here are my beautiful children:

Hopefully I will soon have a new pic of 1of9.  She is just as beautiful, just absent on pic day.

I am totally stuffed!  We had chicken enchiladas for supper!  Oh boy!  I do love enchiladas!  I feel like a cat after eating a huge meal and then running across a sun beam. 

I am going to crash beside my (finally) sleeping LO!

'Night!