Emma

Loving the lashes and lips in the portrait below. I'm not sure I'd want to run into this person on the street, but the details are exceptional. :)

It's happening. My youngest baby is growing up right before my eyes. I love to see her learn new things, and become more independent, but sometimes it saddens me to see the time slipping away. I guess, as my PaPa says, "that's part of the growing up tree".
That being said, I have found that in the growth, we have much to celebrate. One thing in particular is that Emma is now writing her own name. We are so proud! She loves to do "homework" and show us what she can do. She is also starting to get more detailed in her drawings. We look forward to seeing where these new talents take her in the future!

101 Days of 1st Grade!

Today is Claire's 101st day of 1st grade! The entire 1st grade celebrated with a hat parade down the halls of the school. Each child wore a hat with 101 items on it. Claire chose to go with a crown of flowers. The whole thing was such a cute idea!

Cheer Clinic

This past weekend, Claire participated in a Cheer Clinic at the high school. That same afternoon, the girls cheered and danced at the girls' varsity basketball game. They had fun!

Time to Catch-Up!!

I'm back! What a whirlwind of a month it has been. Although we are so happy to be in our new house, moving 6 days before Christmas is slightly crazy. I hope to use this post as a way to catch up on all that we have been doing.

Let's start at the very beginning. . . A very good place to start.

Moving Day!

We were blessed with beautiful weather, and so grateful to have my parents in town to help. We needed it!

Claire packing. . .

Emma being packed. . .

School Christmas Parties

Claire's class had a gingerbread house decorating party in pajamas. This was the same morning as our move, so Emma came along with me, and my parents and Jeremy stayed behind to keep the movers in line.
I also got to visit Emma's class on their party day. I was the "special reader" for story time, and then the kids made "Reindeer Food".

Christmas time is here!

The plus to buying our Christmas tree 5 days before Christmas? It was 50% off!
On Christmas Eve, Mr. Jingles showed up in our tree with a can of snow!
Decorating Christmas cookies. . .in a swimsuit, of course.
Creating the perfect cookie arrangement for Santa. . .
Scattering "reindeer food" off the back deck (in creatively chosen pajamas). . .
A couple of Christmas morning treasures!
When all of the wrapping was said and done, someone was a little sleepy. . .

Christmas in Atlanta

Owen was rocking his gift from Santa!
The girls were swooning over their Justin Bieber note pads from the Bradley family. You would have thought they had the "Bieber Fever".
Zoo Day
Visiting with Kenzie and Caleb. . .

Enjoying Our New Home

Our little back yard get away. . .
The girls love "shower baths" in Mommy and Daddy's new shower!
Looking forward to many more beautiful sunsets in the years to come!

There you have it! That pretty much puts our past month in a nutshell. Hopefully, we are now up to speed!

A Dream Come True

Photographer Claire was able to capture Daddy & Mommy. . .

The girls watching the "dancing" fountains. . .
When looking at this picture, Emma mostly remembers getting her head stuck between the bars. We didn't catch that on film, but I assure you that she won't be doing it again anytime soon!
She wasn't stuck for long, but it was traumatic enough.

I have always wanted to see the Radio City Rockettes live and in person. This past weekend we drove to Nashville and I got my wish! They put on a wonderful Christmas show, and the girls loved it. While we were there, we toured the gigantic Opryland hotel. In fact, it was so big that we took a river boat ride through it!
We also ate at the "famous" Loveless Cafe while we were in Nashville. Actually, I had never heard of it until my sister gave us the tip, but it has been featured on Food Network and they are well known for their biscuits. It did not disappoint!
Overall, it was a fun little weekend getaway. The girls enjoyed swimming at the indoor pool, we ate well, and we saw a fabulous show at the Grand Ole Opry House. Great memories!