New Years Day

Hunter's new truck!

Making a sand castle.

Chasing birds!

We headed out to the beach that afternoon. It was the perfect beach day. The water was calm, the weather was perfect, and Hunter had a blast. Santa brought him a dump truck that he was able to try out at the beach. What a way to start out the new year!

New Year's Eve

Having fun on the beach at night!

Jayme and I posing for a picture and Kevin trying to get Hunter to do bunny ears on me.

Having this be our last New Year's in Naples, we decided to join up with our friends, Jayme and Kevin to watch the fireworks on the beach. I don't know what I enjoyed more the champagne, friends, the reflection of the moon on the water, the sound of the calming waves, the fireworks, or watching Hunter have fun with his glow sticks that Jayme brought (she brought them so that we could keep up with Hunter on the dark beach). It was perfect!

Catching Up!

Hunter's new "truck" given to him by Annmother and Pops.
A new tradition - Hunter and Colin in matching PJ's on Christmas Eve.

The family!

Christmas has flown by. I have been so busy that I haven't had time to sit down and blog. Today is the last day of freedom before going back to the "office". We have had a wonderful time.

Brief summary...

Saturday, Dec. 20th. Left on a flight out of Ft. Myers at 7am. Had dinner and caught up with Lisa and Jeana from college.

Sunday, Dec. 21st - attended City Road UMC with the family, had lunch and Christmas with the Pearsall family. Then that evening Adam joined us for Christmas with Nannie, Papa, Sara, Chad Colin, Martha, and Donnie.

Monday, Dec. 22nd - Had Christmas with Annmother's side of the family.

Tuesday, Dec. 23rd - Spent the day with Adam ALONE! Shopping and went to see 4 Christmases. Hunter came down with a fever that he had been fighting for a few days.

Wednesday, Dec. 24th - Christmas Eve - spent the day taking it easy and letting Hunter rest and recover, which he did. Went Aunt Linda and Uncle Dave's house for the Morris Christmas.

Thursday, Dec. 25th - Christmas Day - Opened stockings with Nannie, Papa, Sara, Colin, Martha, and Donnie. Loaded the 4 Runner so that Adam could take off that afternoon and headed up to Ashland City for Christmas with the Boyd's.

Friday, Dec. 26th - Spent most of the day resting and enjoying family. Went out that night with Kelly and Virginia. Enjoyed catching up with them.

Saturday, Dec. 27th - Took Hunter up to the Boyd's to spend the day and night. Took mom out to see Marley and Me. LOVED IT!!! That night I just sat and enjoyed sitting because it doesn't happen often.

Sunday, Dec. 28th - Tuesday, Dec. 30th - Flew by. I'm not sure what we did those days, but it didn't involve a whole lot.

So...the summary is...busy, but enjoyed the family and friends. I'm looking forward to seeing them more frequently. NOT LOOKING FORWARD TO THE DRAB, COLD WEATHER THOUGH. ;)

12 Days of Christmas

The excitement of opening a gift so magical.

Yummy surprise!

One afternoon Hunter and I came home to a huge box sitting at our front door. We opened it and discoverd that Annmother has sent several gifts counting down the days until Christmas. The first day of Christmas was today. He opened a box of yummy cookies. I have to admit...I tried them too. I love this idea and we are looking forward to opening a new gift everyday until Christmas. What a great way to spread out the magic of this time of year.

Thank you Annmother!

Christmas Book Exchange

Colin loved his new Christmas book so much.

Haley picking out her book to unwrap.

Hallie and Deanna enjoying their new book.


Ashley and Elliot opening their new book.

Jackson was still hungry, but eventually unwrapped his book.

Christine and Colin debating on what to pick. They had #1.

‘Twas the night before Christmas,
And in my cozy nook,
I was curled up reading my new Christmas book.
This special book was given to me by a dear friend,
It is something that I will cherish to the end.

I had so much fun putting Hunter's birthday party together that I decided that I wanted to have the kids together again around Christmas. At first I thought I would do a cookie party. After a few days of debating frosting, sprinkles, and hyper kids, I decided on something different...a Christmas Book Exchange. Each of Hunter's friends brought a Christmas book wrapped. The kids picked numbers and then went in order to pick a new book to unwrap. The kids had a great time and I think the parents had a little fun also.

Girl Time!

Jayme, myself, Michelle, and Megan
Us with Jill and her beautiful baby boy.

Can we say "getting a baby fix"?

Moving to Bristol has lit a little fire under my girlfriends and I. We have been getting together more often. We recently took a trip to Tampa to see Jason Mraz. I knew a little about him before I went, but LOVE HIM now. It was Megan's idea and I'm glad we did it. We spent the night in Tampa and then the next morning went to a friends house, Jill's house, for breakfast. Her baby is growing so fast! Then we did what we do best...SHOP! Had fun and ready for another trip.

'Tis the Season

Hunter's Christmas Tree is made up of ornaments that are both kid friendly and that he has made.
Nannie's gift to us. We put a new ornament on the tree everyday. Cute!

Adam putting up his 2 ornaments.

Oh "Mistmas" Tree, Oh "Mistmas" Tree

Decorating for Christmas is one of my favorite things to do. In the past, I have been able to get this process done in one afternoon with Christmas music in the background and peppermint candles providing the Christmas aroma. However, having Hunter around has definitely changed this process. WE decorated over a period of a week. We started with the biggest project, the "mistmas" tree (as Hunter calls it). Every evening we would put a little more up. We would have Christmas music in the background, but it is not Frank Sinatra...Veggie Tales Christmas music. Good enough. The candles were lit, but once they were discovered Hunter would want to blow them out. Overall, I think I enjoyed the decorating process more this year because it wasn't a process, it was a daily happening. This year it has been a little easier to get into the Christmas mode because of 2 things 1) Having a child around puts magic in the air, and 2) Florida is actually chilly this year. Happy Holidays!