Cornelius Chronicles

I want to open by sharing a little conversation between Bekah and Dustin on Christmas Eve regarding the true meaning of Christmas. I hope it sheds some historic light on this magical season. Dustin: Do you know what Santa Clause represents? Bekah: Yes, he represents Jesus. Dustin: Do you know what present Jesus gave us? I'll give you a hint. It's the best gift of all. Bekah: Yes! He gave us Santa Clause! We've had a busy week. Here are some of the highlights. On Tuesday, we went to the League City library and made gram cracker houses. We had a super fun time decorating our little houses in candy and cereal. Not to mention how much we fun we had eating the yummy frosting. We probably ate more frosting than we put on the houses! We could hardly wait to get our creations home to devour them! Grandma and Grandpa P came into town on Wednesday for the holiday season. We've been busy showing them around town. On Thursday, we went to the Dickinson festival of lights...

Boys are funny things. They have curious minds and wiggling little bodies. They have creative ideas that mothers never can see coming. Here are just a few I've encounter over the past few weeks. Funny Things Loyd Did: One day, as I was picking Loyd up from preschool his teacher pulled me aside. She said with a bit of a smile on her face, "I didn't see it happen, but...when Loyd came out of the restroom he told us he wanted to see what the toilet water tasted like. We checked the top of his head and it was wet. We didn't see him do it, but a quick shower might not be amiss when you get home." The next week after the toilet water incident I was again pulled aside by this kind and long suffering teacher. Loyd had been caught playing kissing tag with another little girl. The teachers found out about it because she went to brag to all of her little girl friends that Loyd liked her best. He's only three years old and already he's been dubbed "Dream...

Santa made a special appearance at the library this week. We were so happy he took the time to come and visit us during his busy time of year. :D The kids thought really hard about what they wanted for Christmas. They come up with some pretty good ideas. (Anxiously waiting in line by the romance novels at the city library to see Santa Clause.) Bekah: Rebekah had a terrible time thinking of something. With a little bit of help she finally made a decision. She rehearsed her simple request over and over again under her breath as she waiting in line for her big moment. When she finally had her chance to ask Santa for what she wanted her mind went blank. Pleadingly, she looked to Dad for help and he reminded her of what she was going to say. With much relief and a big smile, she asked Santa for an art kit. Loyd: Loyd figured out pretty quickly what he wanted to ask for. He wants a remote control Xavier for Christmas. He's a genius! I should have asked for a remote contr...

In the spirit of Thanksgiving I thought I would share what the children said they were thankful for this year. Bekah: "I am thankful for Jesus for making all of the animals." Loyd: "I am thankful for the Christmas tree and all of its ornaments." Xavier: Bekah said he was thankful for toy cars. I think he is thankful for cows for making all of the yummy milk he likes to drink. Xavier opted to shove food into his mouth rather than share any insights into what he is thankful for. :) Because they didn't let Bekah go to school this week due to the holiday break, she has been desperately trying to fill her days and avoid boredom. She has come up with several very cute and clever crafts all on her own as a result of her boredom busting efforts. On one such craft she even included instructions in case anyone else should want to do it too. It was so cute I thought I would share. She thought of the craft, figured out how to make it, and wrote the instructions...

We hope you are ready for another busy, but fun holiday season! I know Bekah is ready for the upcoming big feast day. She has a new outfit and everything. :) Bekah had her first dance performance this week. Her dance class put on a little performance at a local assisted living facility. The girls were adorable in their pink tutus as they danced to the "Dance of the Sugar Plum Fairies." She had a fun time and did a great job. She didn't even have a hint of state fright. I appreciate that her dance studio takes the time to organize these types of events for the kids. It was a perfect teaching moment to show the kids how to share their talents and bring happiness to others through service. We had a fun night. ***** Something funny Rebekah said this weekend: Completely bored after a Saturday of no school, Bekah woke up Sunday morning and lamented, "Mom, they won't let me go to school tomorrow because of the holiday." It's very tragic that the schoo...

I can honestly say, there is something special about a Texas Halloween. We all had a great night walking around our cozy little neighborhood eagerly soliciting candy and toys from smiling neighbors who were enjoying the warm evening with comfortable lawn chairs, mosquito spray and big bowls of candy. Each time the kids arrived at a friendly door the generous answer to their, "Trick or Treat," was a generous fistful of chocolatey, sugary treats. We were under-prepared for the generosity of the Texas spirit and quickly found our small bags inadequate to their load. Admiring our bursting buckets, we called it a good night's work and gladly took our candy home. The children all had a wonderful night and they are already asking when we can go Trick-or-Treating again. We told them not to worry. Just 12 more months to go and then they can do it all again. :) So, what was everyone's favorite candy treat this year? Rebekah's was Kitty Kats (Kit Kats), of course! L...

Halloween celebrations kicked off this week and we've been having a spooky good time! Here are some of the highlights from the week. :) The Church "Trunk or Treat" party was on Friday. We dressed up our excited goblins and headed to the Church Parking lot for some fun! (The weather finally turned chilly on Friday so our Kitty Cat wasn't very enthusiastic about getting her picture done outside. It must have been super cold. You know, like 61 degrees F or something. ;>P Don't worry, we put heavy coats under everyone's costume once we got to the church. No frozen Texans for us!) There was a costume contest at the Church party and one of our three cuties won first prize. Can you guess who it was? That's right! Xavier won first prize for his amazing Yoda costume! I'm pretty sure the original Yoda didn't even look that cute. :) This did lead to a brief discussion with Bekah on why they all didn't win a prize. When she's older...

Rebekah received her first progress report from Kindergarten this week and it caused me to reflect on some of the things I have encountered that I didn't expect from having an elementary schooler. I thought I would share some of those things: 1. All Betty Crocker boxes and cans throughout my kitchen are suddenly filled with square shaped holes where "Box Tops" once lived. 2. I have to remind Bekah that she can't do the entire month's worth of homework in a single night. I have to reason with her that if she does, then she won't have any fun doing homework later. 3. Having to sort through the millions of brightly colored fliers, pictures, and fundraiser reminders sent home in her folder each week. 4. Realizing the importance of having your mom show up for a lunch date at the school cafeteria to a tender 5 year old. 5. Running after the school bus inevitably becoming part of the morning exercise routine. 6. Watching "Wild Krats" after school en...

These pictures of Xavier sporting his new fireman hat were too cute to pass up. We are so grateful for library story time themes about fire fighters and the fun hats they share. :)

Sharing his birthday with the great John Lennon, we celebrated Xavier's 2nd birthday today. He has been a joy in our family and I don't know what we would do without him. His cute giggles, mischievous grins, and constant running from place to place keep a smile on everyone's face. To celebrate this milestone out of moving out of babyhood and into the official toddler years, we took the family to the Fall Festival at Rebekah's elementary school. The kids played games, won prizes, got their faces painted and ate lots of junk food. Everyone had a great time. Bekah even won Xavier's birthday cupcakes from the cake walk game. Thanks Rebekah! After all the fun that could be had was over we came home and the kids and the daddy took a much needed nap. After nap time we pulled out the birthday cupcakes and present and sang a rousing rendition of "Happy Birthday" to our Mr. X. Xavier had a tough time blowing those pesky candles out. However, thanks to some ...