Since I last blogged our family has:
1.  Attended our church Christmas Dinner and children's program where Maddie and Ty both played accompaniment on piano for the kids.  This was a first for both of them.


2.  Lived through an F2 tornado that hit our county on Thursday evening.  We were blessed to only lose power for 24 hours and sustain no damage at all.


3.  Gone to Atlanta overnight for our annual McElroy Family Christmas Celebration.


4.  Attended Buckhead Church with my SIL and BIL where we heard the gospel message preached and rocked out to the loudest praise music EVER.


5.  Attended our annual Christmas Eve Candlelight Service.  Maddie was an acolyte, Wes took part in the processional, Tyler read Scripture, I sang a solo and Tom preached!  Yikes, all of us (but Tom) are looking forward to just soaking in the church service tomorrow at 10 am.


We are so excited about celebrating Jesus' birth.  A birthday cake is all ready and the day is just around the corner.  We pray that however you celebrate this event you remember this:  Light has come into the darkness.  All our sins, all our weaknesses, all our insecurities don't matter to our Father God.  Once we see Jesus as the answer and accept the gift of his death for ours, we are seen as perfect in our God's sight. There will never again be a time when we are isolated, alone, unforgiven. We now have one who is crazy in love with us and passionate on our behalf, who is always there FOR us each moment of the day. That's good news.  That's life and light. That's Jesus. And that's what we celebrate.


Merry Christmas from the McElroys. Through Christ may you experience "exceedingly more than you can ask or imagine." (see Ephesians 3).


Wednesday's workout:  Firm Zero in 10 Legs, Buns and Arms; 10 MS Yoga for Beginners


Thursday's workout:  Ellen Barrett Grace and Gusto (standing pilates blend)


Nothing since then due to having no electricity, traveling out of town, and Christmas.  I'm looking forward to hitting it HARD on Monday.

Merry Christmas from my blog.  Decided to mix things up a bit and use some holiday color.

Today was rainy but we managed to get Tucker out for a quick walk. The kids also went out and jumped on the pogo stick in between showers. And, we used the time to firm up the chore list over the next few days and begin working on some cleaning.  Tomorrow we're planning a trip to the library and then on to the store~gotta get those items to start baking!

Tyler found a few things to record on The History Channel show called Modern Marvels. They were on the history of toys (all boy toys), the history of Christmas technology (trees, lights, etc), and then history of candy making. So I let them watch a show today. Gotta be better than cartoons since they're learning something, right?

Today's workout:  Firm Ultimate Fat Burning Workout(intervals of cardio, cardio with light weights, and kickboxing) and Yoga Journal Yoga For Well Being Restful Sleep Practice. Doesn't put my to sleep but has lovely hip and shoulder openers, twists, and forward bends.

I ended up taking a fruit tray to our breakfast at church yesterday because I thought there would be tons of high fat and goo available.  There was.  I did think the kids would give me grief but they loved it!  You never know, do you?  


The youth party was a blast. We took the kids bowling and then to Pizza Hut and Dairy Queen. They also had a Dirty Santa Gift Exchange with gag gifts.  Some of the "popular" items were a squeaky dog toy and hot sauce!!


Today the kids spent a lot of time with friends in the neighborhood and had a great time. The temps were in the 60s so they could get out and have a blast.  It's supposed to rain possibly through Sunday so I'm glad they got out of the house.  Tomorrow we'll start making a list of cleaning to do this week, start some baking, wrapping, etc.  Christmas is definitely in the air!


Today's workout:  Erin O'Brien's Strong Body, Fit Body.  I did this weight circuit workout every Monday for months in the spring and summer and it was good to get back to it.

I guess I'm being festive with my choice of colors lately.  Friday I overslept and then went to breakfast and to run an errand with Tom.  Thankfully, the kids got up on their own and got some work done.  When I got home we finished our work for the semester, yippee!  That night Tom and I had a fun Sunday School party to attend.


Today Wes and his buddy Josh sold tickets for the NAIA Championship Football game.  Tom got a ticket too and they watched the game.  It's becoming a fun tradition for them.


Tomorrow it's caroling for the shut-ins using a Trolley and then the Youth Christmas party.  Oh, an a Sunday School breakfast at 9am before Sunday School at 10.  Whew, looking forward to having a down day on Monday!


Friday's workout:  Firm Bootcamp Maximum Calorie Burn (intervals of cardio and weights)


Today's workout:  Ramping Creative Choreography; AM Yoga for Your Week, Forward Bends; 1 Mile Dog walk

Fun day here.  I got up early, got my workout and shower in and then it was off to breakfast with the kiddos and Tom. I decided to eat breakfast here because we had coupons to McDonalds and I don't love their breakfast food.  Since I'm trying to watch my cholesterol if I don't love it I'm not eating it.  (P.S.  Not THE most healthy breakfast for me but it sure was tasty~I ate a small piece of homemade banana bread with natural peanut butter and a small piece of fruit).


After Tom left us to go to work, I pulled out my Bible study materials and gave the kids their writing assignments. They had to fill once side of the page with writing without stopping~and didn't have to share it with anyone. It's just a good way to get creative juices flowing. Then we did two more "normal" type activities:  Using Christmas as an acronym and seeing how many words they could spell from Christmas. Even my teens have fun competing, er, working together on this one!


When we got home we had Bible Study and read from A Christmas Carol, which we'll finish tomorrow. Right now Tyler and I are getting ready to sort some clothing out in his room~yep, I can't wait.  Oh~and I ran out about an hour ago and finished stocking purchases for the kids, making my Christmas purchases officially done. (I bet not.  It seems like there's always something that comes up!)  


Tomorrow is our last day of school before the break and Tom and I have a Christmas Party with a Sunday School class to attend. We're looking forward to sleeping in, making cookies, wrapping gifts, and hanging out next week.


Today's workout:  Joanie Greggins' Holiday Workout; AMYFYW, Forward Bends (with Tucker licking my face in savasana, or relaxation pose)!

Typical busy Wednesday here.  We had piano and church and our run to the bread store.  We're trying to get some last minute math and other work done while still having some fun too!  So, we're reading Dickens' A Christmas Carol together as part of school and taking extra time to make sure we don't skip Bible study in the midst of the busyness.


Tomorrow we're going to have our end of semester breakfast out, read together, tie up loose ends in books, and catch up on chores.  We're also going to try to squeeze in a visit to the library.  I pray your final preparations before Christmas are filled with Christ himself.


Today's workout:  LBN Strength; Super Model Series Floor Work for hips and glutes; 1 mile dog walk.

Wow, it's sunny and 60ish degrees out today. Tucker and I enjoyed a longer walk and a nice bit of play time (read Tucker chewing a limb, mom watching) in the front yard this afternoon.  This has been the most up and down fall weather in the last month I've seen in a while.  


The kids and I are enjoying a bit more "fun" work this week. Yesterday we watched a documentary on The History of Christmas and today we read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" and studied the history of Clement C. Moore. They kids all wrote a story or poem or drew something about the poem to share at dinner tonight~can't wait to read/see what they came up with. We're also getting our math done and doing fun writing this week.


Last night Tyler had a Scout Christmas party and Wes had a board of review for his next Scout Level, Star.  He passed with flying colors and we're very proud.  One more level to achieve in the next 6 months (Life) and then he can begin working on his Eagle Project.


Looking forward to a night at home to hang out, spend more time with our Advent Wreath and devotions, and just share some laughter.



Yesterday's Workout:  Slim Series Shape it Up(high rep/low weight workout)


Today's workout:  Kickboxing CardioPower and a dog walk.

Random, goofy picture of the day.  We went to the mall as a family yesterday to finish shopping for Angel Tree gifts.  Tyler saw these small, pink, 1 pound dumbbells in Hibbet Sports and said, "I need these so I can get buff, ha ha."  I talked him into acting like he was struggling to lift one, snapped a picture on my cell phone, and this is the result.  Yes, he truly is a ham.


I also got my hair cut yesterday and walked the dog. I got a short workout in late in the day as we'd been busy and there was no time for anything else.


Today was church, a run to Kmart for final Angel Tree gifts and tonight is a dinner. The funny story (not for Wes) is that during Sunday School someone flushed one of the toilets in the women's bathroom over the youth room and water began POURING through the ceiling of the youth room where the kids were having Sunday School.  Wes and his buddy Josh ended up missing the entire Christmas Cantata at the 11 am service to mop the floor of the youth room and bathroom once the stall of the bad toilet was closed.  He and his buddy Josh decided they never wanted to be plumbers!


No matter how you are serving God~gloriously out front or mopping up messes no one knows about, do it with all  your heart.  I'm grateful today for two 15 and 16 year old kids who lived out that gospel message before my eyes.


Saturday's workout: Dog Walk; Floor Work, Abs, Stretch from Super Model Series workout.  Who KNEW doing work for your glutes and hips lying down and on all 4s could burn so much!

Happy Friday to everyone.  First a random picture of Penny and me. I realized I post a lot more pictures of Tucker and this is a cute one of the ole' gal. 


Yesterday I didn't get a chance to post.  I was getting ready for a Christmas Dinner with the United Methodist Pastors and Spouses in our district when Tom called and said he'd run out of gas.  In 5:00 traffic. In the busiest part of Rome.  So, Wes and I got our 5 gallon gas can, filled it up with 3 gallons at the station, and then went to find Tom.  (It's partly not his fault~it's a new car to him from my father in law that he got this summer and he's not familiar with the lights and gauges, lol). He and Ty had gone to get haircuts so Ty was having the time of his life~not.  Actually he was taking it all in stride.


We then got some food for the kids and sped off to dinner, only to get home about 9:30. Nice dinner but it made for a long day.


Today after school and a workout/shower I went grocery shopping and made a trip to Walmart. Right now I'm waiting for Tom to walk Tucker with me so we can start dinner.


In the midst of all of that, we've done some lovely writing assignments, grammar lessons, and math work. Today the kids played on the website:http://www.math-play.com/  It's a fabulous site and has games for kids all the way through high school.  Wes did some Millionaire math on the order of operations and a Basketball game regarding solving one variable equations. He said the hardest part was figuring out how to make the basket not solve the equations.


Tonight I'm looking forward to being inside and watching a Christmas movie as a family. It's the little things like that that just make the season so meaningful for me.


Yesterday's workout:  Exercise TV Slimdown Fast:  2 20 minute circuit workouts (weights and cardio) with Jessica Smith and Cindy Whitmarsh; 1.5 mile walk with Tucker, 1/2 mile with Penny.


Today's workout:  LBN Metabolic Cardio Intervals; Firm Get Chisel'd Kick it Into Gear Quick 15 minute cardio blast; LBN Yoga stretch. 1 mile dog walk with Tucker starting now!!

Tom surprised me with an email early this morning asking me to go run a couple of errands with him and have lunch together.  Guess where we went?  Yep, a family favorite Chick-Fil-A.  The kids were not happy to be left behind but we had a great time talking together.


Tom got up early this morning as usual~about 5:30.  By 5:50 I realized I wasn't going back to sleep so I got up, let the dogs go outside, and did my workout.  By 9am I'd done my workout, fed and walked the dogs a bit, had breakfast and my  shower, and gone to Panera Bread for coffee and Bible Study while the kids got showers.  That makes for a great day~too bad I'm not more of a morning person who can do that daily.


Wes and I spent time going through Painless Algebra again with Tyler joining in for part of the lessons. He feels so proud of himself that he can do part of Wes'  lessons with us.  We also did some writing, grammar, and watched an episode of The Universe.  


The temperature has dropped dramatically and I'm not looking forward to leaving my warm house to go to church but love the fellowship so much~and not having to cook!  


I've been studying Ephesians 2 and was reading today about how Jesus reconciled Jews and Gentiles, making us into 1 people together. Right in the middle of this I witnessed the most tender scene.  An African-American woman in Panera was talking to a manager there, who is Caucasian.  He was holding her beautiful baby who was touching his face.  He tenderly kissed the baby on the cheek and handed him back to his momma, saying he was glad to see her back in the store.  I thought, "that's what it's like, Father. Neither Jew, nor Greek, male, nor female, slave, nor free, nor color should separate your people."  It reminded me that I can't WAIT to see people of all colors, languages, and nationalities in heaven together, praising the Father and feasting along side each other at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.  I will be eternally grateful for seeing this serendipity of life without barriers and boundaries.


And with that, I pray that many serendipities come your way this day.


Today's Workout:  10 MS Belly, Butt, and Thigh Blasters:  Strong and Slim Thighs; Belly Flab Blaster; Joanie Greggin's Holiday Workout

We were busy over the weekend watching football and basketball, lol.  Wes also had a camp out on Saturday night and the kids went shopping with the youth to buy for some Angel Tree kids that our church is supporting through Christmas gifts.


Yesterday and today Wes and I've been working through Painless Algebra  (http://www.amazon.com/Painless-Algebra-Barrons-Lynette-Ph-D/dp/0764147153/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323216826&sr=1-1). We are in love with the entire series~grammar, spelling, fractions, etc.  They just explain things so well. Wes is already having things click for him that he'd been wondering about.  I love the series he uses for Algebra but some of the explanations are a bit lacking so this is a great resource.


We're also all using Daily Spark Grammar and Spelling each day.(http://www.amazon.com/Spelling-Grammar-Daily-Spark-Easy-/dp/1411402251/ref=sr_1_8?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1323216949&sr=1-8).  Again, we love these books.  They do some incredibly funny things to teach spelling and grammar.  For example, we had to fix sentences so they would read correctly. The first one we had to fix read:  "The actor was a tall man with a red moustache weighing 200 pounds."  Too funny.  


Yesterday I didn't exercise because Sunday night I re-aggravated a pulled muscle over my left shoulder blade.  It felt AWFUL. It's better today so I did some lower body work. It's bugging me a bit more now because I've been sitting at the computer more.  So, I'm off to get ready for bed and sit in my comfy chair!  


Saturday's Workout:  Joanie Greggin's Holiday Workout (cardio); AMYFYW, Back Bends; Dog Walk


Today's workout:  10 Minute Solution Ultimate Bootcamp:  Ultimate Lower Body; 10 Minute Solution Belly, Butt and Thigh Blaster:  Lower Body Makeover and Better Booty Camp; Inner Thighs on my own and yoga hip and thigh openers on my own; very short dog walk between rain showers.

Today was just so nice.  I got up early and walked Penny a bit.  She absolutely loves the cold weather, silly old girl.  I got my Bible reading and studying done and spent a bit of time talking with a friend.  I got my workout in early while the kids were doing some regular work and then spent time with Wes going over Algebra and helping Tyler with multiplication.  They're definitely getting it and I'm seeing some really good improvement!


The kids did some cleaning in the afternoon and I scooted off for some "mom time."  I meandered around Big Lots without spending impulsively which is tough to do.  I bought only what I went there to get~they have the most FABULOUS, inexpensive, healthy almond, cranberry, raisin, and dark chocolate trail mix I've ever found.  No sodium, 150 calories per 1/4 cup and 5 fat grams.  I eat 1/4 cup plus half a piece of fruit most afternoons for a snack.  


Okay, I'm sure that wasn't interesting, lol.  Then I went by my favorite Thrift store and wandered and found nothing I needed.  Finally I brought home the kids' Friday treat:  Little Caesar's $5 pizza.  


About 4:30 Tucker and I went for a walk for a mile. It was cooling off a bit, people were out in their yards, and Tucker had a ball seeing all the people and pups.  I am really starting to enjoy my walks with him lately~it's just such a great way to unwind and relax.


Wes has a scout trip overnight tomorrow and Maddie and I will probably go do something~she's been asking to spend a bit of time with momma.  And that is something to feel GREAT about.  Thank you Father that my children still enjoy being around their Dad and me.  You are so good to me.


Today's workout:  The Firm Pump, Jump, and Jab (intervals of compound weights and cardio); YZ Yoga for a Strong and Healthy Back, practice 2; Doggie Walk.

Today Wes and Tom were interviewed at 12:30 for an article in our local paper about Tom being a Georgia Bulldogs fan and Wes being an LSU Tigers fan. This is because those are the two teams playing in the SEC Championship this Saturday. As the ladies on one of my exercise check ins would say, "Only in the south."  


We started a new Bible study for December and it's on the Church and Tabernacle.  Should be interesting and not the same ole' thing.  We also got our advent candle set out and did some readings at the dinner table. That is one of our traditions that I absolutely love.


We're trying to decide what to do about our Christmas tree this year. Having a 10 month old, 45ish pound puppy has made things interesting. That pup wags his whole backside like nobody's business and I'd hate to see the entire tree go flying across the room!!


After school and chores were done, Wes and I went grocery shopping.  Wes volunteered to o with me to make it easier.  We had a good time, especially laughing at Old Yeller Dog food. Wes is convinced feeding it to the dogs would result in them getting rabies and having to be put down. ;)


Today's workout:  Martial Fusion Cardio Blast (45 minutes of kickboxing) 10 Minute Solution Yoga for Beginners, Stress Relief Segment (which is a wonderful slow stretch).