Christmas at Grandmother's House

One of my fondest memories is the time I spent growing up with my cousins.  Christmas at my grandmother's house was so very special, and I am very thankful that Maddie and Lillian are able to spend time with their great-grandmothers on both sides of their family!  I know from experience that they are making special, lifetime memories!!

Grandmother and Papa enjoying the day

Lillian certainly seemed to enjoy getting to know her cousins better, and they all loved it, too!

Maddie especially enjoyed the big girls! Here they are having a few laughs before we eat!

Maddie and Josey

Sweet Sisters!

 Lindsey, Maddie, Reed, Uncle C and Di - Some of very favorites!

 I love the smiles of Christmas and the special feelings of just being together!

Special hugs for Grandmother and Papa!

 The decorations are all put away, the tree is down, and we are ready for the new year! But, the memories will last forever!

Christmas Morning

Reed, Caleb and I began the morning checking out our stockings from Santa and enjoying breakfast.  We also waited for Lindsey and the girls. I know it's hard traveling on Christmas Day. but they arrived shortly before lunch. We were so sorry that Josh had to work. Next, we tackled some presents.

 Caleb checking out his stocking and later handing out gifts!!

Maddie helped Uncle C hand out gifts and then they both enjoyed opening presents!

When Lillian decided to crawl, she took off!  She is little, but quite adventurous!! And she is everywhere!  She even tackled climbing the stairs!

 Presents everywhere!

 Pop went shopping by himself one night, and he came home with this new big wheel for Maddie!  Look out hill!

We next headed up the hill to Grandmother's for another wonderful family gathering!! More on that next!

Christmas - Round 1

I love everything about Christmas - shopping, wrapping, cantata's, parties, church services, etc. However, my favorite by far is spending time with my family. Lindsey and the girls came here on Christmas Day, but Josh had to work and wasn't going to be able to come.  So, we loaded up the princess castle and Red Rider wagon and headed east the Saturday before Christmas.  We had a wonderful visit with them.  It was the perfect start to a perfect Christmas!

Lindsey & Caleb

Lindsey has her hands full!  Lillian is a fantastic baby, but she's on the move now!!

The life of a nurse!  Working on holidays is no fun!  We are glad we were able to spend time with Josh!

Uncle C is the best! He loves his nieces!

Maddie directed us to her playroom, gave us all crayons and paper, and instructed us to draw....And of course, we did!!

Princess Castle time!!

Pop spent 1/2 a day putting this together!!

Uncle C is helping get everything organized.  Maddie got the princess dolls for the castle the next day, so the Barbies got to try it out first!

Wagon time!

After a little more fun with Uncle C and a great meal by Lindsey, we headed home.

Next up, Round 2 at our house and Round 3 at Grandmother's!  It truly is the most wonderful time of the year!!

Oh Christmas Tree

Little Bit is crawling, pulling up and exploring everything around her.  Even though she is only 6 1/2 months old, she is doing amazingly well getting around. Right now, the Christmas tree seems to be one of her favorite things!

I think she's wondering what she should tackle first!  Her mom used to sit just like this, too......

First, she enjoys playing the drums on the boxes. The ribbons, bows, ornaments, and branches are all so much fun! Lindsey wisely put a few empty boxes in the front of the tree for her to enjoy.

And after lots of exploring, it's also fun to take a little bite out of the ornaments!!

Merry Christmas!

Love in Action

Christmas, my child, is love in action. ...

I recently came across this quote, and it fits perfectly for this post.  As an educator, I can't really put into words the love I have for my co-workers and students.  It's something we all feel.  After a career that has spanned 29 years, few things surprise me.  However, this week I witnessed one of the greatest blessings I have ever seen.  Our new federal prison "adopted" our students, and presented EVERY SINGLE CHILD with a present. That's well over 300 gifts! The employees each took a child or two and purchased gifts for them.  Did I mention that it was a secret, and the children didn't know anything about this until they were called by grade level into the gym?  Every child was called up individually by name.  It was overwhelming!  One teacher told me today that it was like something you see on TV.  I am so glad to have been able to witness this.  Today as I was going through the pictures, I shed several tears.  While many of our students will go on to have a wonderful Christmas at home, others will more than likely not receive any other gifts.  What a blessing these wonderful people are!  I feel that I truly witnessed the true spirit of Christmas!


These are a the employees that came and participated in handing out gifts.  Many more contributed gifts.

Warden Aducci personally called out the name of every child, as Santa and Mrs. Claus assisted. She was also instrumental in arranging this wonderful event.

 Our faculty members were as excited as the students!

These are just a few of over 300 excited and grateful students!

Merry Christmas!

And if you happen to see an employee of the prison,

please give them a hug for us!

Ho! Ho! Ho!

I recently had a workshop in Wetumpka that enabled me to attend a very special production - Maddie's Christmas Program.  Is there anything more precious than a bunch of 3 year olds in there pj's singing to the top of their lungs? The arbor of their church was decorated to the hilt in all things Christmas.  Following the songs, different stations were set up and the children were able to rotate to each activity.  There was a train ride, Candy Shop, Santa and Mrs. Claus, a snow room, and a manger room.  It was quite impressive!!  I can't tell you how much it means to me to be able to experience all of this!  Due to my workshop, I didn't get to see each station, but I am so thankful for the time I was able to be there.

Too cute!!

The train ride was a big hit, although Maddie was not a big fan of the snow machine!

Such a sweet family!  Lillian is sound a sleep and big sis is pretending to be!

Little Bit was a big hit with Maddie's friends!

In the beginning it looked like Santa was going to be a bomb!  She has not been a fan the past couple of years!

But after some gentle persuasion from her mom, she finally warmed up to him!

And little sis even got in on the fun! 

Sweet, sweet memories!!

Next up - we have a crawler!!

Wedding Time

Marnetta and I recently hosted a shower for Amy, and today is her wedding day. We were so glad to be a part of this special time for her!  Anytime I help with or attend an event like this, Reed will ask me what we did.  Well let's see..........we eat, we chat, we open presents, and simply have a grand ole time!!

The beautiful bride to be with her mom and future mother in law and with Marnetta and me.

 And here some of our guests are chatting, eating and checking out the gifts!

Amy use to spend the day with us during the summer.  To me, it seems like she should be about 12.....Time flies! I know she will be a beautiful bride.