Christmas Day 2013

Christmas morning was finally here!  The boys came out about 7:30 excited to see what Santa had left them.  They were thrilled to see their basketballs, but even more excited to read the note from Santa about their BIG surprise.  They quickly rushed to the window to see if it was really true!

Before getting dressed to go break in the new basketball goal, we opened a few presents and stockings.

These laser guns were a hit!

These two were beyond thrilled to have their very own basketball goal.  Santa brought the perfect gift!

Cole and I even got in on the fun.

Mimi and I planned a fun Christmas brunch at our house.  The menu consisted of monkey bread, quiche, sausage log, blueberry muffins, snowman donuts, and mixed berries.  It was all delicious!

The boys especially loved the Rudolph punch!

After brunch, the boys opened lots of fun surprises in their stockings from Mimi.  

Mimi and Connor

Connor had Mimi out shooting a few hoops before she left.

Later that day we headed over to Nana and Poppa's house to celebrate some more.  The boys always have a great time with Kate, Hannah, and Natalie.  Cousins are so much fun!

We all enjoyed an afternoon of opening presents, a delicious dinner, and then ended the night with a birthday cake for Jesus.  It was the perfect ending to a great day!

Merry Christmas!

Christmas Eve

We headed over to Mimi's house on Christmas Eve for an afternoon of exchanging presents and playing. (more pics coming soon)  After dinner, we headed up to church for the Christmas Eve service.  The boys were happy to see that their cousins had come to town.  Sweet reunion!

The kids went to the stage to listen to the Christmas story and then we sang some more songs in candle light.  Connor LOVED getting to hold a candle this year.  Sweet tradition that our family has done for many years.

Carson on the other hand was worn out and fell asleep right in the middle of the service.  That boy can sleep anywhere!

With Carson out for the night, Connor took care of leaving milk and cookies for Santa.  Connor was almost too excited to sleep!

Merry Christmas!

Johnson City Lights 2013

Visiting these amazing lights is quickly becoming one of our favorite Christmas traditions.  Now that we have moved into our new house it is just a short drive away which makes it even better!

The boys love running around under all these beautifully lit trees.

We grabbed the boys for a quick picture as they ran by!

Apparently no trip is complete without a game of Ring Around the Rosie with Mimi.  

I love sweet moments like this...

Don't let those sweet smiles fool you into thinking it is like this all the time though. Ha!

Carson LOVES Mickey Mouse and was smitten to cozy up next to him.

This train full of dogs has been a favorite year after year.

Gingerbread boys

And just for fun here are some links to some of our past trips:

2009  2010  2012

I love seeing how much the boys have grown year after year.

Great Grandparents

The boys and I were thrilled when it all worked out for us to head to Texarkana with Mimi for an early Christmas celebration.  On Saturday we headed over to Papa and Ginny's for a visit.

It took no time at all for the boys to get busy opening presents.

They were so excited about all their new things!

We all enjoyed getting to visit with Papa and Ginny.

It also was a nice surprise to see Ashley and Mark who came down for the day.

Mom, Papa, and Uncle Mark

Super Hero Carson loved snuggling up with Ginny to read a book.

Later that day we headed back over to Momma Lou and Ed's house for some more celebrating.

It is a rare moment when this one will sit still long enough to be held, but he was perfectly content snuggling up in Momma Lou's lap!

The boys had a great time checking out their new things and spending time with Momma Lou and Ed.

 On Sunday we spent some time baking our favorite Christmas cookies.

 The boys loved getting the decorate the cookies.  Carson went with "the more the merrier" method while Connor took his time to get each cookie just right.  Thanks Momma Lou and Ed for letting us use your kitchen.  Hopefully we didn't leave any sprinkles behind!

As always we had a wonderful time getting to be with family.  I am so thankful that even though we live hundreds of miles away, we still get to have this special time with all of our great grandparents!

Winter Fun

Connor's first year in school included lots of holiday fun.  Kindergarten celebrated Polar Express day where everyone dressed in their pjs for the day, watched the movie, and drank hot chocolate.

 His class Christmas party was a success!  (Which is a good thing because I was in charge of planning it. Ha!)  They played games, made an ornament, and ate lots of yummy snacks.

 Our family has been so thankful for Connor's school and all the wonderful people that work there.

 At church, the kids sang a song in the Christmas production.  The glow sticks were a hit!  

 Connor did a great job!