December 25 - Merry Christmas!

The stockings were hung by the chimney with care, 

in hopes that St. Nicholas soon would be there

(he made it!)

Happy Holidays to all of our family and friends. We hope you are all having a wonderful weekend filled with family and friends. 

We started a new Christmas even tradition last night by having an early, delicious dinner (ham, my fave!) and then drove around looking at lights. Oh-and of course, J.D. swung the kids around (their fave!). Do you love Julia's hobo chic outfit? She loves mixing crazy patterns. 

Jules loves her new Dora couch! 

She also loves opening presents!

Julia and Luke

Mr. Dimples

Our Gorgeous Ballerina

We went on a holiday carriage ride recently with Sarah, Emma and Hannah. They had cookies, hot cocoa and lots of holiday cheer! 

I love them!

Who said stockings were just for presents?

Amelia enjoying her Christmas bone

Happy Holidays, love Jules & Luke

December 15 - Dear K.C.

Dear K.C.,
I want to write you a special letter so you know how much I love you.  You are my very first feline friend and will always hold a special place in my heart. You aren't just a pet to me: you are my playmate, my partner in crime, my favorite animal in the whole world. You hold a special place in my heart and I don't think any cat I meet will ever measure up to you. You let me hold you, snuggle with you, kiss you, feed you and carry you around everywhere. 


My mommy said you lived 22 long years and are now in a better place. She said I won't see you again and that makes me very sad. I am glad we stopped in Tampa before Thanksgiving so we could play one last time before you passed. 


Thanks for being such a great furry friend.


I love you,
Julia

December 9 - I'll Be the Pickles

Cute story I have to share. J.D. and I love to pick up the kids, give them a bear hug and kiss their cheeks. Last night before bedtime...


"Let's do a Julia sandwich. I'll be the pickles. You guys are the bread." - cutest little pickle in the world, Julia

December 6 - Happy Belated Turkey Day

Greetings munchkin followers. I just got back from a long walk with Amelia and I feel invigorated. It is about 30 degrees here and I am LOVING the cooler weather. I hope it stays. There is nothing I love more than turtlenecks, hot chocolate and brisk walks with the pooch in the evenings. Of course, J.D. prefers to be indoors in front of the fire, but that's a Floridian for you! Although I will say that Jules seems to take after me and really enjoys the cold as well. We were outside putting lights on the bushes today and she did not want to come in. She was loving the chilly weather! It is still too early to tell with Luke, but I think he takes after his daddy. Anyway...wow-I cannot believe it is December already. Christmas is just around the corner. I'm usually done shopping by this time and I've barely started. I just started putting up decorations and we're getting the tree this week. So many things to do, so little time. 

So, we traveled to Florida for Thanksgiving and boy, was it an adventure. We left at 4am on Saturday morning and drove straight to Tampa (got in at 10:30pm). We discovered a few things on the trip: #1-Julia gets carsick when she is reading or doing stickers. #2-Julia is content watching Disney movies for several consecutive hours. #3-my children do not like fast-food (Luckily I packed lot so of snack foods). #4-Luke is fine in the car for about 12H...then he reaches his breaking point. #5-Luke loves foot massages and head massages. 

We stayed in Tampa Saturday and Sunday night (the weekend before Thanksgiving) and it was great seeing Grammie, Uncle Chad, Aunt Nicole, baby Leah, and of course-K.C. the cat. It goes without saying that Julia is in love with that cat. I think she believes he's a furry doll. He literally lets her do whatever she wants with him. 

After visiting with almost everyone in Tampa (Uncle Greg was unfortunately out of town working) we drove to Miami on Monday. That was just a "quick" 5H drive from Tampa. Luckily, the kids did well in the car again. We took a scenic route through Florida (instead of taking 75 to the turnpike...we took some back roads that the i-phone said would be faster...it was definitely traffic free however we were in the middle of nowhere). Greg, Jill and the kids drove down from Raleigh and we arrived at Uncle Brian and Uncle Craig's at almost the same time. We all stayed at Grandpa's house (he is in a rehab facility recovering from a leg issue) and the kids had a blast playing together. Grandpa has a fabulous, screened porch where the kids played, ate and had fun. It was also great seeing Uncle Brian, Craig, my brother Bryan (who flew in from CA) and Grandpa. Our resident chefs, Craig and J.D., cooked most of the Thanksgiving feast and it was delicious. Thanks guys! 

We started our journey back to Texas the Friday after Turkey Day and stopped overnight in Pensacola. It was the kids first night ever in a hotel and Julia did great. Luke...not so much. We checked into the hotel around 10:30pm and Julia immediately went to bed. Luke was up until around 1am..then the little stinker woke up at 5am. There was a young couple in the room above us having a party and we were near the staircase so there was a lot of traffic near our room. Hopefully next time we'll be in a quieter section and the little dude will sleep. 


Well-enjoy these pictures everyone and hope you had a great Thanksgiving!

Julia meets Baby Leah for the first time with Grammie

Grammie and Julia playing Memory

The cutest little girls in the world 

Great Grandpa and the Kids

Cousins!

Silly Uncle Bryan

Uncle Craig and Luke

Uncle Brian and Julia 

Thanksgiving Feast

Mmmm...turkey bone!

Ready for the journey home. Amelia had a great vacation as well!