Festivities

We have been participating in several celebrations lately.

There was New Year's with the Quinns...

 Me and Leah, who conveniently woke up to ring in the New Year

 Happy, upside-down Leah

a 6th birthday party with Alyssa...

 this sweet little thing was only 1 and a half when we met her

and Paulie's 30th tailgate-themed birthday party.

 we all wanted copies of this picture that was on display

 Carolyn and me...they will be moving soon so we will be adding a map to Raleigh to our collection

Jeff, SE, Carolyn, and Paulie

A Letter to Little One

Dear Little One,

        You are already making quite an impression on this family, and there is a chance that you may not even be conceived yet.  In a sense, you have already had a first Christmas because you received some sweet and special gifts this year. 

       Mimi and Poppy gave you a teething ring that has been in the family.  Although I am sure that it has been thoroughly sanitized (your Mimi is not a fan of germs), we are not planning on letting you drool and gnaw on it.  The note that accompanied the present made Daddy and me very happy and even more excited as we wait patiently for you to arrive.  We have already made plans to frame it for your room.  

        Today you received another gift from one of my oldest friends.  Her name is Courtney, and she (along with her parents, Mr. and Mrs. McKinney) gave you an ultra soft blanket.  I could not take my hands off of it when I opened it.  Hopefully we can share it while we snuggle. 

        We love the gifts we have received.  We know, however, that the greatest gift we will ever receive will be you.  (Sorry for the mushiness, but expect more because I am an emotional gal and I am tearing up as I write this.)

                                                                              Love you,

                                                                                Mommy



 P.S.-Blogger would not let me post the picture of the blanket, but it is a keeper. :)

Crafty Wrapping

I found this crafty way to reuse old cereal boxes in Family Fun magazine. 

You start with an empty cereal box.  Cut off the box tops on the end that is opened.

Wrap the box as if it were a present until you get to the open end of the box.  Tuck the paper in the open in and tape it to the inside of the box neatly.

Make two holes on each side of the box to thread a ribbon through to make handles.

It makes a sturdy gift bag.  The magazine called them "baxes," but when you say that, no one knows what you are talking about so it still requires an explanation.



Isn't that just dandy and cute!

White Christmas

Not only is this one of my favorite movies and songs, but it really happened.  According to my pops (who, by the way, wins Jeopardy every night), this hasn't happened in South Carolina since 1953.  It was so fun to watch it coming down with my family, but I did have to cut out early on some fun family gaming to get home before it got sketchy on the roads.  Here are some pics from outside my house. 

May your days be merry and bright,

And may all your Christmases be white

(Or at least one every 50 years).

Christmas Traditions

We don't have too many Christmas traditions yet. 

We decorate the weekend of Thanksgiving, but I think that is mostly because it won't get done any other time if it doesn't get done then.  We hang our Christmas cards on a beaded garland around a door frame, but I think I stole that one from someone.  We have tried doing our Advent wreath every night in December like I did when I was growing up, but with Jeff's work schedule it is really difficult to do that.  We usually go to church on Christmas Eve, but this year that will be different, again because of Jeff's work schedule. 

So I guess I am ready to start some new traditions. 

I read a lot of people's blog and many people with children try to do something Christmas-related each day of December.  Even though I don't have a child, and may still not have one when next Christmas rolls around, I am going to start a list of things I would like to do during the month of December.  I figure if I make the list now, I can rearrange some to fit Jeff's work schedule.  Most of these I have stolen from other people, but they look so fun.

1-Watch White Christmas
2-Decorate the tree, but start by putting a nail in the trunk.  The tree and nail represent the sacrifices that God made by sending His son, Jesus, to Earth for the sole purpose of dying on a cross for our sins. 
3-Go look at Christmas lights while eating donuts
4-Bake with friends and/or family (I did do this one this year)
5-Go to a Christmas program at our church
6-Go to a Christmas program at another church
7-Read Twas the Night Before Christmas (the original version)
8-Read a different version of Twas the Night Before Christmas (Teacher, South Carolina, Redneck, etc.)
9-Go caroling
10-Exchange gifts with friends
11-Make a gingerbread house
12-Add an item to our memory ornament (may blog more about this later)
13-Wrap presents
14-Address Christmas cards
15-Read the Christmas story
16-Attempt to write/read the Christmas story from the viewpoint of a person or thing who was present (Mary, Josesph, the hay, the stable)
17-Spend a day/evening with my family
18-Spend a day/evening with Jeff's family
19-Go see my grandmother who does not travel
20-Buy gifts for a child in need
21-Buy gifts for an elderly person in need
22-Deliver gifts that we bought
23-Make cookies for Santa
24-Play carols on the piano
25-See what Santa brought

Wow!  That is a lot of stuff.  I may not get it all done and I may completely change my mind by next year, but I am impressed that I could come up with something to do each day of December leading up to Christmas.

Now that I did all that, I realize that Jeff and I did start a new tradition this year.  I found a Family Bible while I was Christmas shopping at Books-a-Million one day.  It is wonderful.  Without going on forever about all that it has to offer, there is a series within the Bible called "Christmas is Coming," and Jeff and I have been reading a part of it most days in December.  It is made to be used with children, but some of the discussion questions have really sparked a discussion between Jeff and me.  More than anything, it has brought us back every day to what Christmas is all about.  We have studied the prophecies, the birth story, and his ministry.  It is awe-inspiring every time we read it, talk about it, ponder it, study it. 

For God so loved the world that He sent His only Son...   ~John 3:16   

Go Pack Go!

After I stuffed myself on Thanksgiving and did that crazy shopping thing on Friday (1st and possibly last time), Jeff and I headed to Atlanta with the Jordans for a fun and filled weekend. We started at the Jordans' house with breakfast and then we headed to Atlanta...with a few stops. We had to stop in Commerce. Stopping at Commerce is like stopping at Krispy Kreme when the "Hot Now" red light is on...you just hafta do it. We went to the Coleman outlet and dreamed about all of the fun things we wanted to buy to go camping with. Then we remembered that we had so much stuff the last time we went that we couldn't possibly take more stuff.
We got back in the car and kept trekking down the road until we got to the Bass Pro Shop, which happens to be attached to the most interesting mall. The boys stayed at Bass Pro Shop while the girls headed out into the mall. In this mall (Discover Mills), there is just about any type of store you could imagine, a prety good food court (including a Chili's), an IMAX theater, and a Medieval Times. We decided that we could definitely live in this mall, and that there was probably a hotel tucked around a corner that we missed when we blinked.
After all of that fun, we got back in the car and finally made it to our hotel, but we only stayed long enough to throw our suitcases in the room and head back out to World of Coke. The last time I went to World of Coke was about 3 years ago and it was okay for a 5th grade field trip, which is what I was on. It is way better now. It is at least 2 times the size it was, it has 2 movies to view (one of which is 4D), and you get a free Coke in a glass bottle...and we all know that there is nothing better than Coke in a glass bottle (can I get an Amen!).
We ended the night with a little dinner before heading into the hotel to watch some rivalry weekend football, but we mostly watched the inside of our eyelids.
We woke up the next morning to do what we came to do: cheer on the Greenbay Packers. I had never been to a professional football game so I figured that it would be a cool experience for Jeff and me. And I will admit that if I ever had to pull for an NFL team, it would be the Packers because when I was younger, I did have a crush on Brett Favre (my secret is out). It was a fun game and thankfully we were surrounded by Packers fans. Nothing kills your joy like going to a game and having to sit in the midst of the other team's fans. It was a good game, but sometimes I think the Packers forgot how football was supposed to be played. They lost by a stinkin' field goal in the last 30 seconds of the game. It was kind of a sad ride home because Hawk is a big fan of the Packers...well that, and the 5+ hours of traffice we sat in...did I mention that we had 6 adults (one who is really tall) in a Grand Marquis...good times.

Hawk and Jeff before the game-we were in the 3rd row from the top

Halftime Show

The entrance of the Falcons-lots of pomp

the Packers entering the field

We decided that even though we had a great time at the game, we would like to see another one in Wisconsin so we can have the home field experience. Go cheeseheads!

Ella takes Anderson

A couple of weekends ago, the Burleys came to visit and to introduce Ella to Anderson...or should I say introduce Anderson to Ella. She stole everyone's hearts with her sweet smile (much like her big sister, Camryn).

We had a delicious dinner at DaVinci's followed by a superb Saturday with our friends. It's always sad to say goodbye, but it just gives us a reason to plan another visit.

Camryn and Ella

Allen and Ella

Ella and Allen

Ella and Kelli having a little face time

Ella, Kelli, and Stacy