New Saturday Rules

Today was my first official Saturday.

After about 3 1/2 years working on the weekends, I made a change. I am now a week day employee. My job has been such a blessing. It has allowed me work to accommodate my family's need. After we moved to South Carolina, David started school. I started to work on the weekends only to make sure that there was always someone here. Now that David finished his school, and is established in his job, we are finally able to change our shifts so that I can come off the weekend. It is bittersweet for me. I have loved not missing anything the girls did during the week. But really felt like I have been away from my home church to long. I am really looking forward being able to go to church as a family once again. This means a huge change in budget for us, but we are all excited about the change. I am excited to be able to be in church on Sunday mornings and being challenged by the word, and encouraged by the people sitting beside me.

Saturdays are a different story. . .

I asked the girls to go clean up the playroom and their bedroom. And Emma informed that they don't do that on Saturdays.

Ohhhh I had no idea.

I think she was very disappointed that they actually had to clean up.

It was a classic Emma moment.

One I was glad I was at home for.

Picture Perfect end for 2009

January
Snow Days! We had a beautiful day of snow, sledding, snowball fights, and snow cream!


February
The Annual Father Daughter dance. This Year Dad had 2 twirling dancers. Ohhh to be able to be there.


March
The girls are dressed up to go to an art exhibit featuring art submitted by Maggi.



April
Spring Break at Myrtle Beach, nothing could be finer than to be living in Carolina.



May
Picking Strawberries at the Bush-n-Vine. Emma ate her weight in Vine Ripe Strawberries. We love getting the slushies freshly made from the park

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June
From the redwood forest. . .This land was made for me and you



July

Bald Head was so much fun with our long time friends Wes and Sherry. We laughed, cried, ate, had to push our golf cart home, and went on a three am turtle hunt! It doesn't get any better than that




August
Emma is sitting on top of the world as she begins Kindergarden!



September

One last walk in the park. We enjoyed a day off at Martha Rivers Park in Gastonia.


October
We love to drink a cup of hot coco on a cold crisp fall night, we even convince Dad to light the fire.


November
Our Thanksgiving Feast was hotdogs this year, as we were watching the Macey's day Parade from New York City.





December

A beautiful end to an amazing year

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A Light in the House

You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house.

John 5: 14 & 15

Christmas was good part II

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.
Norman Vincent Peale

Christmas was good

Christmas was so good this year. I don't know where to start.

We started off the holiday season by going to Boone, NC to get our Christmas tree, and found a winter wonderland! There was a fresh layer of snow! That really got us in the holiday mood. We picked out a 10 foot tree, and brought it home. The family tree is where we showcase. Whenever we go on a trip, or an adventure we try to pick up an ornament to remember it by. So this year we added alot of favorites! We added a jellybean from the jellybelly factory, a trolley car from San Fransico, a tomahawk from the Cherokee mountains, the statue of liberty, a redwood tree, and a sealoin! We all have our favorite ornament! We are going to need a really big tree if we keep going on all of these adventures!

We were also blessed to have Judy spend the holiday season with us. We have kept her very busy, shuffling her to school parties, horse lessons, church, and a shopping marathon.

Dave and I both had Christmas Eve off this year, which was a blessing. We started out that morning by making a peppermint cake Emma found a recipee for. She was reading a Christmas cookbook, and picked it out all by herself, so we made it for her. It was a big project. We sifted, measured, whipped, baked and iced for about 3 hours. Well worth the holiday memory. Later that night she said she didn't really like it, it was just too pepperminty. Oh well.

Then as tradition would have it we go to my moms. We all get together. It is a night of excitement and huge anticipation. Before we open presents though, we read the nativity from a book I bought Dave when we were dating. We try to take a few minutes out of the hustle and bustle to refocus on the true meaning of Christmas.

Then the mayhem begins. . . This year was fun for me, because Robbie and Angie and I got to go in and buy my mom a laptop! Robbie had fun picking out the specs and customizing it just for mom. It was such a treat to watch her.

After the craziness we come back home. The girls sprinkled reindeer food out on the yard, put Santa's cookies out, and got to unwrap a new pair of jammies. This year, those girls could not go to sleep!

But. . . Christmas morning was worth the wait! Maggi found a stable, horses, and lots of treats. Emma found a DSI, games, and more treats. Then Judy sent them on a treasure hunt for their American Girl Dolls. Amazing.

This year, Judy even got an American Girl Doll. This year was about indulging in our "wishes" not being practical.

Then we were blessed to be able to go to my dad's for Christmas Day. It is fun to find out who went to bed the latest and got up the earliest. And to find out what all Santa brought.

I haven't had a chance to upload all my Christmas pictures, but these are a few of my favorite.















I don't know where we will be next year for Christmas, but I know that whever we are, or how is beside us, my family will always be in my heart. Thank you all for making my Christmas so wonderful!

Spread love everywhere you go: first of all in your own house. Give love to your children, to your wife or husband, to a next door neighbor... Let no one ever come to you without leaving better and happier. Be the living expression of God's kindness; kindness in your face, kindness in your eyes, kindness in your smile, kindness in your warm greeting.
Mother Teresa

"The Lord your God is with you,He is mighty to save.
He will take great delight in you,he will quiet you with his love,
he will rejoice over you with singing."

Zephaniah 3:17