White Christmas

Christmas morning was delightful. I think if grandma and grandpa had not been visiting I might have slept till noon. This was the first year the kids didn’t bound into our room at 6 am. They were up early but they were preoccupied with gifts they had received the night before. When I finally got up, I found the children both sitting quietly in the kitchen , “J” drawing, and “T” building a Lego set. It was heaven. As a matter of fact I was able to make everyone breakfast and shower before we opened gifts. That was a first for us.

Another first for the family was a WHITE Christmas!  Our kids have never lived up north. Snow is a rarity and snow on Christmas is pretty much a myth. Snow on Christmas is so rare that our area hasn’t had measureable snowfall on Christmas since 1882. WOW! And if that isn’t enough-we had a LOT of snow, enough to cover the grass. Sure that isn’t a lot compared to many areas of the country but it’s enough to make snow angles and snowmen. It’s also enough to cause grandma and grandpa to be stranded an extra day. It was a Christmas miracle.

"T" sits next to the gifts that Santa brought



"I'll smile as long as we can start opening gifts NOW"



Yum, Christmas Dinner.  (Please pretend not to see the bag of chips on the table.  I want everyone to have something they love for Christmas dinner, even my pickiest eater)

A quick break from playing.

Wheeee, it's snoooow!

Twas the Night Before Christmas

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house not a creature was stirring…..ok that’s a lie….we were all stirring and excited to open family Christmas presents immediately following our traditional tamale dinner. Grandma and Grandpa were visiting for Christmas so they got to join in the fun.

“T” wanted science sets for Christmas and, as usual, Lego’s.

“J” didn’t know what she wanted so we got her lots of art supplies and a few of the usual suspects.

My favorite thing this year was sneaking around and getting the kids a few gifts that they had asked for during the fall. I loved surprising them with things they didn’t expect to get.

We had a fabulous time and everyone went right to sleep, eager to see what Santa would leave under the tree.

Stirring...but just barely

"J" shows grandma the gift she made for her out of pipe cleaners.

Dad shows off his new Fighting Sioux hoodie (which he has worn every day since)

"T" wanted this sign for his bedroom.  He was pretty excited to get it.

"J" didn't waste anytime finishing her sand art kit.

Maybe a Zombie isn't the "best" Christmas present but I couldn't resist.

All smiles in their new PJ's, a gift from our friends the Azelios.

Santa wasted no time delivering presents as soon as the kids were asleep.

Found Photos



I just found all these great photos on "D's" phone. They are in no particular order and date as far back as the begining of summer through fall.


"T" in Lego Robotic Class



"T" ( not really a football fan) at the GA Tech Game



Is it time to go yet?



So excited to serve at Wreaths Across America

Having fun at the froyo place.

Yum....extra marshmellows

The summer heat has finally gotten to us.

Log Ride....no way in heck I'm getting on that...so I take photos

She will never outgrow carousels

Under Water at the Aquarium

Carriage Ride



Incline Railway-(see September post)





Boy Scout Stuff



Getting ready for Family Photos

The Craptastic Animal Ranch

Alternately called:

Look out there is a squirrel following you!

Are Graham crackers nutritionally appropriate for ruminants?

Attack of the fluffy bunnies!


Today we visited an “Animal Ranch.” Perhaps the admission fee should have clued us in to have low expectations. When we lived in Texas we often visited Fossil Rim. This is a fabulous place. Herds of exotic sheep roam free, there are zebra and giraffes and all assortment of free range well cared for exciting animals to see and even feed as you wind through the beautiful Texas Hill country.

The ranch we visited today was muddy, run down, sort of sad, completely lacked landscaping, and was just a tad questionable in terms of animal care and housing. On the other hand we had the best time.

This place has tame squirrels! They stalk you, they follow you and it was so COOL! Also there were some very tame deer that we were able to feed and pet. Finally there was a rabbit enclosure that we were able to enter…who knew sweet fluffy bunnies would fight each other over carrot eating dibs. The kids had a blast and we did too.

Do you have peanuts?

Peacocks abound

Maybe just one peanut...

Perhaps you have a peanut.....

I love everything about this photo except that we are feeding this deer a saltine (food that isn't really good for people let alone deer).

Hey you.  Yeah YOU!  I SAID do you have any peanuts!

I'm not leaving till I feed every rabbit in here.

Bunny feeding frenzy

Photo Time

I know this blog is mainly about photos...but this is the time of year when we get "real" photos. As the children become older this process becomes easier and easier...as older children are "easier" to bribe. For instance "if you smile nicely and cooperate I will buy you something" or "if you don't smile and behave nicely I will throttle you"...that is sort of how our professional photo sessions go-piece of cake!

Not sure how many more years we have until Trevor refuses to sit on Santas' lap (like the girl in front of us today who said "mom, seriously,! I'm too old for this" Mom: "honey, you're never too old for santa"  The kid was like 20.

The children were not allowed to have lunch until they smiled...

Poor "D", the flash was really huring his eyes.



The kids are really growing up.  Can I send them to college yet?



A Few Things

Find the kids.....

What do bored moms do.....

they take extreme close-ups with thier iPhones....

My son came out of the dentists office with these in his mouth.  Needless to say I FREAKED out for a few seconds before I realized he was wearing novelty teeth.  What kind of dentist gives kids novelty teeth for a prize?  This kid is a pretty good jokester.

Halloween

I used to think that when I had children of my own I would be the mom who hosted Halloween parties and made costumes from “scratch”…..but really I turned out to be the mom who dreaded Halloween parties (attending not hosting) and made my kids wear the 75% off costumes from the previous Halloween clearance sales. This year my son wanted to be a “Chomper” from his favorite video game Plants Vs Zombies. I tried to buy this costume. I really tried. Sadly there is no such thing as a “Chomper” (a Zombie eating plant) costume for sale anywhere in the world. Reluctantly I agreed to try to make this costume for my son. Let me just say….I will continue to be a “75% off clearance mom” -because it took way too much time and money to make a “homemade” costume. Still, “T” was pleased with the result. It was definitely a one-of-a -kind costume. “J” my precious “J”, opted to be Super Girl…which was by the way, a 75% off costume purchased last year after Halloween. I love this child. May she always wear last year’s costume.

Chomper-please note the Zombie arm hanging from the mouth.

Zombie make-up by mom.

My son wanted desperatley to be something "scary" for Halloween. 
Gone are the days of Cowboy and Action Figure costumes.

Super Girl posing for the camera.  She wanted to curtsey,
but I made her do a "strong" pose instead.

Such a beautiful super hero