A Country Christmas ~

We made it home safely from Nashville this afternoon! Despite a few setbacks in the beginning, we had a great trip! We stayed at the Gaylord Opryland Hotel and saw the Rockettes on Sunday! It was amazing......especially the live nativity at the end! Somehow we ended up with front row seats and though the show lasted almost 2 hrs, Ella didn't move! She sat and watched the entire time! Last night we went to Charlie Brown ICE! Once you get past the fact that it's 9 degrees in there it's great! It's hard to believe all that was actually made out of ICE.....like the slide! The Hotel itself had enough to spend several days exploring! You would have to stay for a week to do all they had to offer! I dropped that hint to Jeb but I don't think he caught it!

A Girl's night at the Wynfrey ~

I met my sweet Auburn friend, Katie, at the Wynfrey Tuesday night for a getaway/shopping trip! I haven't seen her since we moved so it was great getting to spend time with her and catch up on things! While I was in Birmingham, Jeb was holding down the fort at home with BOTH girls! Not only did he do homework, bath, and bedtime Tuesday night, but also got them both up and ready for school Wednesday morning......including fixing their hair! I'm lucky to have him! Per Emma's request, he did have a little help! He said her bedtime prayer went something like this.....

"Dear GOD, thank you for letting us have such a fun night and please keep my mom safe on her trip and as she comes home tomorrow....and please, GOD, let my daddy make it through til tomorrow when she gets home! AMEN"

Oh Jolly!

Jolly (our Elf) has certainly been busy......and with more than just watching out for the girls! Every morning He's the first thing on their minds.....they have to find him! Sometimes He's found sitting quietly on a shelf or in the Christmas tree.....and sometimes He's found doing things like.....................

Eating candy out of the dish......

Making a mess with the cereal......

Swinging from the Christmas socks that Nana sent the girls........

What WILL He do Next!!??

A little SNOW.....

We didn't have a ton of snow but it was just enough to make it look pretty this morning! Emma wasted no time getting out in it! She was a little disappointed that she couldn't make a snowman but "hey.....at least we got to see some!"

Athens Christmas Parade ~

This was like no other Christmas parade we've ever been to! It's one of the only night parades in the state.....and it's a HUGE deal in Athens! We had to arrive 2 hours ahead of time to find a place to park and watch from! But it was worth it! The parade lasted for an hour so by the time it was over we were almost frozen! Emma (or Ella for that matter) had never seen anything like it......they had a blast!

Meet Jolly....

....Our Elf! The girls have been EXTRA good since He arrived (since He reports back to Santa)! However, Jolly seems to get into a little mischief himself! They couldn't believe it when they saw him wrapped in toilet paper this morning!! With 20 more days until Christmas, there's no telling what we will find him doing each morning!

Weee.....

Who needs a wagon when you've got a........suitcase? These two NEVER cease to surprise me!

Short and Sweet ~

Well....I finally talked Em into getting her hair cut! A little over a year ago, she decided she wanted to let it grow and eventually donate it to locks of love! However, because her hair is so unbelievably thick, the longer it got, the more difficult it was to manage! As much as it had grown, she still needed almost 4 more inches to be able to donate it......there's no telling how much longer that would have taken! So.....after 45 minutes of cutting this was the end result.....



......I love it! But more important......She does too!

Pebbles and the Pirate ~

The girls had a great time trick or treating this year! This was Ella's first time to go and Em's first time going "door to door" (she's always been to a trunk or treat or the Downtown festivities in Auburn)! It was like it used to be when I used to trick or treat.....where you couldn't even drive a car down the street for all of the people! El had a hard time grasping the concept that she couldn't eat every single piece that was dropped in her bag...other than that it was a great night!

Happy Birthday Ella ~

2 Already! Although she's been acting like it for quite some time now, I still can't believe she's already 2 years old! She had such a good time at her party! It wasn't until everyone started singing Happy Birthday to her that she realized the party was for her! As long as there's cake, Ella doesn't' care what's being celebrated! As much of a "handful" as she can be, I wouldn't want her any different! I love her to death! I wrote this for her invitation but ended up not using it! So just so it doesn't go to waste, I thought I'd add it to her Birthday "post"....Enjoy!

Ella Reid is turning Two!
These are some things she likes to do:
~
Read books about animals, letters, and shapes;
Eat bananas by bunches and fists full of grapes;
Hop in her car for an afternoon cruise;
Sneak into mommy’s closet to try on her shoes;
When “Gabba” comes on she’s ready to dance
And “break it down” with the gang and DJ Lance;
She’s rough and tumble and loving and sweet
From the tip of her ponytail to the toes on her feet!

2nd Annual Spooktacular Scavenger Hunt ~

We had so much fun last Halloween doing the scavenger hunt that we decided to do it again this year! Except, this year, we had a little more "yard" to work with! Being new to the area, I was a little worried about the turnout we might (not) have. But the turnout was great! The kids (and parents) seemed to have a great time! However, Em and her friends informed me that next year I need to make it a little more difficult (apparently 3rd graders are a lot smarter than I thought!) On a side note, Emma's costume was ALL her idea! I'm still not totally sure what she was.....she just said she wanted to be something dead!

Even Ella......

.....................is sick of hearing about Tim Tebow!

Chili A La Emma ~

Golf isn't the only thing Em's taken an interest in lately.......she also wants to learn how to cook! She had her first lesson today....Chili! Jeb and I both agreed, it was the best we've ever had!!

Practice Makes Perfect ~

Em started taking golf lessons a few weeks ago and has really gotten into it! She calls Pop after each practice to tell him what she learned (and ask for things like "ball markers")! A couple of weeks ago she was so excited because she learned how to "chip"! Right now, her clubs are a little long; so she's been practicing on the Wii until we get them cut down!

The Next Best Thing ~

Now that football has started, it makes us miss Auburn a little more! Being 4 hours away, it isn't as easy to tailgate as it used to be! But you do the best with what you've got! So we rented a projector, set up our tent, invited our friends and had our own tailgate "Athens style"! It turned out great! I don't know how many times I heard "we need to do this for every night game"! You can't really tell from the pictures, but the projection on the screen (a king size sheet) was crystal clear! And to top it all off......Auburn WON!

Since we had the projector for the weekend, Jeb set it up in the playroom and hooked the Wii up to it! He and Emma played Mario Kart, tennis, and Em even got in a little golf practice!

Sweet Cousins ~

Lori, Ava, and Anna Kate (better known as Lolo, Aya, and Cakes) drove from Texas to come stay with us for the weekend! It was their first time visiting our new home! Since it was a special occasion we decided to do some special things! We rented a moonwalk for the weekend and the girls had a blast! It also wore them out by the end of each day! With an 8 yr old, a 4 yr old, and two 2 yr olds, you can imagine the chaos! However, for every cry, scream, whine, and yell, there were hugs, laughs, kisses, and smiles! I'd do it all again tomorrow! Plus...Lori did all of my laundry before she left! Thanks Lo!