Karlee's Baptism

Today was a very special day for us as we got to see Karlee get baptized. She told us back in late November that she had asked Jesus in her heart. She went through a new Christians class at our church where she learned about what it means to be a christian, baptism, the Lord's supper, etc. All of the family was there including Kendall. It was such a neat experience to be able to see up close with her. She was very excited that her friend Hannah was getting baptized too. As a parent, this is the number one thing you pray for, that your child will come to know and love Jesus Christ. I am so proud of her and will treasure this day forever.

December Recap

Brunch with Santa at the Georgia Club - We had a family photo taken with Santa then enjoyed a wonderful brunch that included a kids buffet and gold painted cookies. Decorating Our Tree - each year the girls get an ornament to remember a special event from the past year. We also get them from vacations and other activities that we do. Here are a few of our favorites. Birthdays - We had dinner and yummy cupcakes from Silver Lining for my birthday (which is also the same day as Shanna's). I can't decide which is my favorite - sea salt and caramel or the Quentin (chocolate cake with peanut butter frosting)!
Kendall's Holiday Musical - Her class performed 3 songs and she did a great job. She loves to sing and had been practicing for weeks. Gray Annual Open House - We all headed to Gray for the annual holiday open house. We always look forward to seeing everyone and eating some really good food that Me-mom and Nen-dad had been preparing for weeks. The girls all got new outfits including new boots that they loved!Grinch Day - Karlee and her classmates celebrated Grinch day by wearing green, watching the movie, reading the book and doing Grinch related writing and crafts.

Polar Express Party - The next day, Karlee had a Polar Express party at school. They got to wear their pajamas and have hot chocolate while they watched the movie. Party Day!! - This day was jam-packed with parties. First was Kendall's school party where they celebrated with a book swap game, decorated cookies and made magic reindeer food. Then we headed to Karlee's school for her party. They decorated gingerbread houses with their 5th grade book buddies then they had snacks and decorated ornaments with snowmen families. Then it was off to the ACGA gymnastics party. The girls played games and had free time on the equipment first. Then they decorated picture frames, had a snack and gave gifts. All the girls loved their picture frames. Gym Dog Sneak Peek - Karlee and Kendall are member of the GymKids this year for all the UGA meets so they got to attend this special event and see the Gymdogs perform and then have a pizza party with the girls and get autographs. Karlee really enjoyed it.
Killin' Time - Since we had a whole week off school until Christmas, we had to find some creative ways to pass the time. So, we headed to Jungle Jumpers in Winder then to lunch at Chick-fil-A with some friends. I also had to go to the dentist to get my permanent retainer fixed and had to take all 4 girls with me! They were so good - coloring and watching. It didn't hurt that they got free coloring books and a treat at the end.

Here We Come A'Caroling - We had such a blast caroling last year that we decided to do it again this year. We invited a ton of kids (and parents). Ken pulled everyone around the neighborhood on the trailer full of hay. The kids loved it and our neighbors seemed to enjoy it too.
North Pole Breakfast - On Christmas Eve morning, we attended Mary's annual North Pole breakfast where we dined on all kinds of yummy Christmas themed dishes. The big girls had a great time playing and doing crafts. Christmas!!! - We spent Christmas Eve in Gray with Ken's family. Santa knew where to find us and had no shortage of gifts. Some of the favorites were a DSi, Leapster Explorer, new leotards, BlackJACK the riding horse, a cupcake maker, digital cameras, new babies and race cars. They also got tons of cute clothes, a purse for Kendall, piano for the twins, a new lunch bag for Karlee.
Christmas in W'ville - After lunch Christmas day, we headed back to my mom and dad's to celebrate Christmas with my family. Lots of great gifts here too including dress up clothes for the big girls, more new leotards, things for the twins "big girl" room, a race car driver outfit for Kendall, tons of sunglasses for the twins, RC cars, travel games, Sing-a-ma-jigs and . . . a pink balance beam!!WHITE Christmas - It started snowing on Christmas night so we had our first white Christmas. The girls were so exhausted from the day that they didn't even want to go out and play. However, the next morning they did head outside to play for a while. The twins were not crazy about the cold and the feel of the snow. Kamryn was ok with it but Kourtney really did not like it at all. The ATL - We were supposed to go yo NJ on the Tuesday after Christmas but the 22 inches of snow kinda changed our plans. The girls still wanted to go somewhere and since we had planned to go to the American Girl Store in NYC, we decided that we would go to the one in Atlanta. We found a great rate at a hotel with an indoor pool right across the road from Northpoint Mall. The kids had a blast swimming, eating out and best of all going to the AG store and getting new dolls. Molly for Karlee and Felicity for Kendall and then lunch at the Bistro.

Visitors from the Midwest - Since we could not go to NJ, Aunt Lois and Uncle Bob were able to come to Ga and see us. We had a great visit with weather warm enough to go to the park and play. We enjoyed opening more presents and listening to Mama Sandy and Aunt Lois play camp games.

New Years Eve - we spent the last few hours of 2010 hanging out with good friends and celebrating the upcoming year.

December Daily - Days 2,3 & 4

WOW! What a busy start to the month. We have been so busy that I have not had a chance to post in a few days. Thursday we had the Athens Christmas Parade. Karlee's gymnastics team was walking and she was so excited. She got to do handstands, cartwheels, round-offs, and tick-tocks. They also did a short dance routine for the judges to "Jingle Bell Rock". There is supposed to be a way to view the parade online but I have not been able to find it yet. Friday night we took a Journey to Bethlehem. A local church puts on a great production with live animals, Roman soldiers, market vendors, shepherds, angels and of course Mary, Joseph and baby Jesus. It was really, really good and Karlee especially enjoyed it.

Saturday we took a trip to see Santa. The twins were afraid of Santa but agreed to sit in the chair with their sisters when Santa "went Bye-Bye". Then he peeked around the edge to see them. It made for the cutest picture. I love it!

December Daily - Day 1

I found an idea on line to scrapbook every day in December. It sounded like it would be really cool. There are so many fun and exciting things we do this month that I thought it would be a great way to capture all the memories. Here is my page for day 1.