MALLORY'S PRESCHOOL PROGRAM

Right before the holidays, Mallory's preschool puts on a Christmas Program, followed by their class parties. She is our "shy" one, but still makes it through at least half of the performance. We have enjoyed yet another year, with most of our same classmates from last year. What a special group!

She's having fun singing along.
Her BFF, Madeline, is playing Mary.
Stage-fright gets the best of her, and she end's up in Ms. Ellen's arms.

Storytime during their Christmas Party.

Class picture. What a great group!

TACKY CHRISTMAS SWEATER PARTY

Very dear friends of ours, the Brooks family, hosted a Tacky Christmas Sweater Party this past holiday season. What a fantastic idea! I was determined to find the most perfect ensemble. Much to my dismay, I have a little trouble..... So, WWMD, you ask!?!?!? (What Would Martha Do...) She would make her own!!! I got a plain white sweatshirt, some puffy paint, and jingle bells, and I was in business. Tim's ensemble was Santa's version of the "tuxedo t-shirt".

It was a great night, complete with a surprise visit from Santa. Even the kids had a blast. Hopefully this will be one tradition in the making!

Me with Stephanie Brooks and Lisa English
Mallory and Tyler with Santa

My little diva.

All the ladies.

All the men (most of whom were wearning women's sweaters....).

CUTE CUTE KYLA

Well, we just can't get enough of our precious little niece, Kyla Marie. Luckily they live locally, so we can see her (and Jordan and Julia) often. We also have the honor of watching her while Julia works, just about every couple of weeks. Here are a few pictures I took of her, when she was at our house for the first time since she learned to crawl (back in early December).....

I love this pose - this is how she "lounges".

Sweet baby girl!

Not so fast, little lady!!!

TYLER'S 1ST SOCCER SEASON

During Fall 2011, we signed Tyler up for his first season of soccer. He did pretty good for a first-timer. Two of Tyler's friends were on the team, as well as having their dad as the coach. It was nice to have some familiar faces.

We enjoyed the games and he enjoyed learning a new sport! Here are a few highlights from the season...

OUR 10TH ANNIVERSARY TRIP OUT WEST

To celebrate this big anniversary, Tim and I decided a trip out west would be a fun adventure for us to do together - especially alone! (No offense, Tyler and Mallory...) We are blessed with an annual trip to Hilton Head Island, so we wanted to do something a little different. Plus, we have some great friends and family that live on the other side of this continent, so we thought it would be great to pay them a visit.

Our first stop was Denver, Colorado. Here lives my sister (as of a few years) and one of my very close friends from college, Colleen Cichy and her family. I've been to Denver a couple of times in the last few years, but this was Tim's first time in many. We visited with everyone, played with Colleen and Dan's precious little girls, Leslie and Sydney, and went on a few adventures. Suzanna was with us essentially the whole time. It was great! Some of our adventures included: a trip to Golden, Co including a Coors Brewery tour, a trip to Red Rocks, an adventure through some of the moutains through the Eisenhower tunnel (snow included), and a brunch at my favorite spot - Lucile's Creole Cafe. Fortunately, but unfortunately it snowed the day we were due to leave for our next adventure. It didn't compromise our flight, but it was sad to not have an opportunity to enjoy it more! We truly had a blast and thank Dan and Colleen for their awesome hospitality.

Our second (and final) stop was to Santa Monica, California. Laurie (another super close friend from college) and her husband, Greg, moved here a year ago right after they got married. Once again, it was a blast. This was both me and Tim's first time to CA, so it was truly an adventure! Our visit included a trip to Venice Beach (a very strange place, but fun), a drive through Beverly Hills (including Rodeo Drive, of course), a drive all along Mulholland Drive (with some breathtaking views of the entire Hollywood and LA area...), lunch and dinner at some of the most delicious spots, shopping along the Third Street Promenade, a night at the Santa Monica Pier, and my most favorite spot: The Getty Museum - complete with a delicious picnic lunch, wine and beer, and the most beautiful weather. This place was simply gorgeous. Oh, and we can't forget little Lucy!!! She is Greg and Laurie's new little baby (the furry variety). We truly enjoyed her company during our visit. Thank you to the Burns for such a wonderful stay!

This is a picture slideshow of our trip. Yes, there are a couple hundred photos, but I just couldn't condense them down to just a few.... Enjoy!!!

Make a video - it's fun, easy and free!
www.onetruemedia.com

ONCE AGAIN, PLAYING "CATCH-UP"

Out of nowhere, January 2012 is upon us! Where in the heck did 2011 go??? My goal is to really stay current on our ongoings as we move forward into this New Year. But, here is a re-cap of how we spent the last quarter of our 2011....

COUSINS

Here are a few more pics from recent visits with Tyler and Mallory's cousin, Kyla. It is hard to believe she'll be six months old in a few days!!! They just love spending time with her - we are so blessed to have them live nearby! (And, we LOVE babysitting, too!!!)

TYLER'S FIRST BRAVES GAME

Tyler and I treated my dad to a Friday night Atlanta Braves game for his birthday. The three of us had a blast - especially since it was Tyler's first experience at a Braves game, let alone his first time to Turner Field.

Tyler and I outside the stadium.

Tyler and my dad (Papa) before the game.

It was Star Wars night at Turner Field. There were people dressed up, as well as characters involved with the actual game. Storm Troopers stood by the coaches and umpires as they got ready for the start of the game.

On the big screen, all players (both Braves and Mets) were dressed up as Star Wars characters. Tyler loved it. This is Brian McCann, Braves catcher and Tim's long lost twin. ;)

An incredible firework show put on every Friday night home game. Totally worth the wait.

END OF THE SUMMER FUN

The Clifford Family (Mike, Allyson, Madelyn, and Preston) were gracious to invite us over, along with some other great friends of ours, to a family get-together to celebrate the end of the summer. Kids' waterslide (check!), plenty of food (check!), and drinks for the moms and dads (check!) kept this night fun and festive for everyone!

Mallory and Madelyn taking turns on the slip n slide.

Preston enjoying the cool water.

Tyler on the slip n slide.

Tyler and Lexi taking a break from the sun.

The guys playing golf toss.

Mally taking a break to cool off.

Heather Shroyer, Allyson Clifford, me, and Michelle Higgins.

Tyler and Summer having fun.

Moms lost a bet with our husbands' golf toss game. WE had to do the slip n slide!

A SUMMER VISIT FROM "AUNT SUE SUE"

My sister, Suzanna (aka: Aunt Sue Sue), came in town from Denver for a very generous week. We were able to spend a lot of time with her, which is always wonderful. Not only did the kids see her a lot, but I got to spend one on one time with her, as well as a night with the two of us and Tim. One thing we didn't do a lot of was take pictures. Go figure. We have a new camera and we don't even use it when she is here for nearly 10 days. We chatted too much! ;)

She and my mom came to Mallory's ballet/tap class. This is the ONLY picture I took! (OOPS!) Luckily, it is a good one!

HILTON HEAD ISLAND 2011

Once again, we returned to our most favorite place this summer, for a week of fun in the sun, back in June. We had the wonderful company of our great friends, the Clifford Family, for the second year in a row. Between our two families, we managed to take HUNDREDS of photos, so Allyson put together a video slideshow of the best of the best - and let me say, she did a great job! What a wonderful keepsake!

http://youtu.be/9ryIfDV2ZFs

GYMNASTICS, THEN BALLET/TAP

Mallory did gymnastics for a few months last year, but decided to try ballet and tap this year. Once class into it, and liking it already! Here she is with her preschool pal, Madeline, at their first class.....

And, her gymnastics class from last year.

TYLER'S FIRST DAY OF FIRST GRADE

Yep, that's right, my baby boy is in first grade. After a fantastic year of kindergarten, we we are hopeful that this year is just as great. Here's to a fabulous year of reading, learning to tie his shoe, and (hopefully) loosing his first tooth!!!

My handsome (and very tall!) little man.

MY CREATIVE OUTLET....

My new (personal) blog is what inspired me to get current, again, on our family blog. I tend to dabble in all things crafty, so I decided to start a blog journaling my creative endeavors.
Enjoy!

http://www.mycraftycreativeoutlet.blogspot.com/

GETTING BACK ON TRACK...

Okay, so there is a two year gap in between posts on this blog. You could say we got a little off track! Thanks to Facebook, life with two young children, and everyday distractions. Oh, Facebook. Love it and hate it all at the same time. I have decided to get back on track with our family blog - a much better way of tracking our lives, in my opinion.

Since most of you are aware of how we've been the last two years and what we've been doing, I won't re-cap, we'll just move forward with news and events. Stay tuned because I plan on keeping current this time! :)

A WEEKEND IN CHARLOTTE

Last weekend we spent our time visiting our great friends, the DeMauro Family. Chris, Melanie, and Mason welcomed us for a fun and relaxing getaway. We arrived Friday and spent the afternoon hanging out, catching up, and feasting on Melanie's awesome cooking! Tim and Chris took Tyler and Mason to the pool, while Melanie and I hung out as Mallory napped. Saturday, they took us out on on of Tony's boats (Chris's brother) on Lake Norman. Talk about NICE!!! I now want to move by a lake and buy a boat of our own! It was a picture perfect day with the most beautiful weather. The kids enjoyed every minute of it, as well as the parents! We swam, ate lunch, and toured all of the beautiful homes along the shore. Melanie and I have ours picked out! Here are some snapshots of our weekend....
Thank you, DeMauro's, for such a wonderful visit! We miss you guys!Tyler and Mallory playing with Mason's sand table.Getting the boat ready for our adventure.
The kids getting ready for our departure. This is where Tyler and Mason were the entire time. They loved sitting up front seeing everything!Tim and Tyler swimming in the lake.Blythe and TimChris and MelanieWhat an adorable picture of the kids!Tyler with his "godfasha"Mason posing cute with Blythe