Fun Day

My mom, the girls, and I went to Tuscaloosa yesterday to shop and to play at Chuck E Cheese's. We found Anna Kate's Christmas dress for next year. I already have one for Emma. We also bought 40 Christmas gifts for next year that will be for the girls' school, afterschool, and church teachers, my co-workers, and others. The girls had fun buying several new outfits for their American Girl dolls, and we had a great time at Chuck E Cheese's too.

Christmas Day

We had a wonderful Christmas. I hope you all did too.
I loved seeing their faces as they ran into the living room Christmas morning to see what Santa had left for them.

They had fun checking out all their new stuff...

...and opening presents.

Then we were at my parents' house for Christmas breakfast. Here's a picture of the girls with my brother, grandmother and parents.

My parents gave them American Girl dolls.

Lastly, we were at Tim's parents for Christmas lunch. Here's all the grandkids with Tim's parents.

And a family shot.

We stopped to visit Tim's grandmother the next day.

Christmas Eve

We had such a great Christmas Eve. I think it feels special because of all the traditions we enjoy each year.
The girls put mine and Tim's presents in our stockings.

They wrote and drew the story of the real meaning of Christmas -- Jesus' birth.

They made yummy cookies...

...and then put the cookies and some milk out for Santa.

Santa's reindeer can't be left out. The girls made some reindeer dust...

...and scattered it on our front lawn.

Since we don't have a chimney, we always put out a special key for Santa.

Here's a shot of Anna Kate's reflection in an ornament.

We also took some silhouette shots in front of our tree. This is Anna Kate.

And here's Emma.

Another shot of our tree.

Then a few more shots before they went to bed. They were so excited and had a hard time going to sleep because of the anticipation of Christmas morning.

Sister hug -- so sweet.

Love these precious girls!

Merry Christmas

From our family to yours, wishing you God's blessings today and His promises of hope, love and joy for the tomorrows. Merry Christmas!

Our Anniversary Trip

I don't regret having a Christmas wedding, but it is a hard time to get away for an anniversary trip, especially when you have kids. I am so glad we made the time to get away this year since it is our 15th anniversary. My sweet hubby took me to Florence, AL. Not only was it a short drive since we stayed only one night, but it also is a beautiful and interesting place to visit.
We stayed at the gorgeous Marriott on the water.

And we dined at the 360 Grill. It revolves while you eat.

This was a neat dining experience. The restaurant gave a beautiful view of the city. Our waiter told us you can see for 9 miles. The restaurant is 22 stories high, and it takes about an hour and a half to make a complete revolution. The food was fabulous, and the restaurant was convenient since it was attached to our hotel. This picture is taken of the lights out the window at our table, but the window also made the picture show our reflection too.

The next day we did a lot of exploring around the dam and throughout the area. We had fun despite how super cold it was. Here are some pictures we took using the tripod.

Happy Anniversary, Tim. Here's to another 15 wonderful years!

15 years!

Today is our 15th anniversary! When I was putting mine and the girls' stuff in the car this morning for work and school, I found a sweet card and this bow on my steering wheel. He found a card and a package of Reece's in his lunch box for today. We will do something special this weekend and plan to take some picture to post. Oh, I think this is neat -- in 2009, Emma turned 5, Anna Kate turned 10, and we celebrated our 15th anniversary. I love you, Tim!

Pajama Party #2

Emma is having a Polar Express pajama party today at school for her AR reading. She, like Anna Kate yesterday, was so excited to wear her pajamas to school.

Pajama Party #1

Anna Kate met her AR goal for this 9-weeks, so she got to participate in the AR pajama party at school today. We are proud of her for exceeding her goal this time. She loves reading just like her momma. So, this was our first pajama party this week. Emma's is tomorrow.

Field Trip

Emma's kindergarten class went on field trip yesterday, and I had fun tagging along.
First we saw the new movie "Princess and the Frog." It was super cute. She loved it!

She also loved the popcorn. She ate both of our boxes.

Then we went to La Fiesta for lunch because they have been studying Christmas in Mexico. All the kiddos got a taco, rice and beans plate, which was just fine with Emma because that is her favorite. Fortunately, both of our kids love Mexican food as much as Tim and I do.

Finally we stopped at the library. Mother Goose, excuse me, Mrs. Claus, lead the children in singing a song and read them a book.

Then we walked around to see all the Christmas trees in the library. Emma's favorite was the Rudolph tree because she loves Rudolph. I bet we have listened to the Rudolph song 25 times already in the van.

She had a great time, and I am so glad I got to be there with her.

Poinsettias

Our church always looks so pretty at Christmas with beautiful poinsettias decorating the stage. The poinsettias remind me of when Tim and I got married almost 15 years ago. We had a Christmas wedding, and, as usual, the church was decorated with poinsettias. I snapped these few quick pictures of the girls last night before church started.