It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year!!

Christmas has always been one of my favorite holidays of the year (the other favorite being the 4th of July!!) and this year did not disappoint, even without snow. Oh, yes, for all of you who were wondering why I made such a big deal about having a white Christmas last year take a look at these two pictures.

The picture above on the left is Christmas 2011 which depicts a typical Christmas scene in Charlotte, North Carolina. The temperature was 62 degrees on Christmas Day. The kids were outside playing in short-sleeve shirts and no coats. The picture above on the right is the wonderful snow storm we got on Christmas Day 2010.

We were all bundled up in coats, boots and gloves. The picture to the left is my clematis vine just outside my front door in bloom on the day before Christmas. We will most likely be mowing the lawn this weekend because the warm weather has caused the grass to grow.

Since Christmas was on a Sunday this year and we wanted to make sure that the kids remembered that we were celebrating the birth of our Savior we had Santa visit us a night early. It turned out to be a great thing. We had fun on Saturday and spent the day on Sunday attending a special sacrament meeting involving three wards, talking to family and spending time relaxing.

Check out all the Christmas fun below!

Nicholas made sure that Santa was compensated for his willingness to come a whole night early.
This is my torture picture. We made them pose BEFORE they could open a single thing. Can we open them now?

Santa brought Jeremy and Nicholas golf bags and putters to complete their golf sets. They are taking golf lessons and loving it, but now they look like pros. Naomi has been wanting a soft mattress cover for her bed. Santa thought it would go well with her present from Mom and Dad (see below).
The kids and I found this walking stick a couple of weeks before Christmas and had to get it for Daddy. Every hard-working Scoutmaster needs a good walking stick. This one has a fox on it to show everyone that he belongs to the Fox Patrol for Woodbadge (the highest level of training in Boy Scouts!!). He had an REI/scouting Christmas complete with all the camping supplies he needed in order to complete his collection.

Naomi's new bed from Mom and Dad. She now has a desk underneath and a cool bed on top (just like the boys).

Nicholas got a new Lego building station. He can now organize all the pieces and have a place to put everything. Needless to say, we didn't see much of him after all the presents were opened. He was in lego heaven. Jeremy took his hammock he got from us and hung it on his loft bed. That is where he spent most of the day. (Sorry, none of those pictures turned out well)

I got buckets of paint from Steve for Christmas to finish painting the last two rooms downstairs. At first the kids did not understand why I was so excited about cans of paint, but they soon caught the vision and excitement once we started painting.

As you can see, we all got what we wanted and enjoyed our Christmas weekend. We ate our cheeseball, rootbeer floats, doughnuts, Greek potroast, mashed potatoes/gravy and all other things Christmas, but the highlight was getting to talk with family.

We hope you had a wonderful Christmas as well.

Childhood Traditions with a Southern Twist

Growing up, each year on my birthday we would pile into the car and go downtown to see the lights on Temple Square. It was great fun and the highlight of the day for me. Every other year or so we would see the Ballet West production of "The Nutcracker" as well. I have very fond memories of my birthdays. This birthday (42 years and ticking!) was especially fun because I got to do these activities once again, only with a Southern flair. On Friday, December 9th, we went to see the light show at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. The tour started at the Dragway and wound around the dirt track, under Highway 29 and ended up on the track!

This one really was as big as a barn. It was great!

Naomi is really into dragons right now, so this one was her favorite.

The highlight of the whole thing was getting to drive ON THE TRACK!! We were only going 20 miles an hour, but you could still feel the angle of the tilt. It was thrilling. The picture above was taken while we were on the track. Those are the stadium seats. Cool, huh!!?! (I took some video, but it did not cooperate during the upload process - Errrrg!)

After driving on the track we parked, center field, and visited the "Santa's Village" There were several different areas of interest. First, we visited Bethlehem.

There were Roman guards at the entrance. The kids thought the guards were cool because in school we are studying ancient Rome at the time of Jesus's birth right now. We really felt like we were in Bethelehem. The buildings were realistic and there was a live nativity, complete with donkeys and a camel!!






At the petting zoo we had fun visiting with the different animals. Our favorites were the little goats and the duck with the funky haircut (on the right). I think he was having trouble convincing his peers that his new do was cool. What do you think?








The baby goats were really cute. Naomi and Jeremy didn't want to leave them. For those of you who are wondering, NO-we did not cave to the ultra cute request from Naomi to get a pet goat. We stayed strong.





The line to see Santa was really long so the kids opted to have their picture taken with this St. Nick. By this point they were ready to go home and have cookies and hot chocolate.

"Why this picture?" you ask!
While the kids ate their cookies and drank their hot chocolate I savored every last morsel of this fabulous white chocolate, caramel, macadamia nut cheesecake from the Cheesecake Factory. Go get a slice! The first bite will convince you that it definitely earned it's place in this blog. I can taste the wonderful combination of flavors just looking at the picture. This could become a new tradition every year on my birthday!!

On Thursday, December 15th, Steve and I took the kids downtown to see the North Carolina Dance Theater's production of "The Nutcracker". It was a matinee performance for the area schools and was not the complete version, but included the highlights. It was the perfect introduction to ballet for the kids.

This is the "hugest tree ever!" Naomi had to have her picture taken in front of it.

In front of the Belk Theater posing with one of the nutcrackers!

As you can see, we are thoroughly enjoying our Christmas season in the South! We send our love and wishes for a wonderful holiday season to all of our friends all over the U.S. and the world. MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!

I am Thankful for...

Thanksgiving 2011 was a wonderful day. I have so many things for which to be grateful. This year I am mostly thankful for my wonderful family. I am thankful that they put up with me and my stubborn nature. I am grateful that I have an amazing husband who looks out for me, especially when I won't look out for myself. I am glad that I listened to Steve and finally went to the doctor who gave me the medicine I needed to get over what I called a "stubborn cold" and what he diagnosed as pneumonia. I am grateful for my children who helped me get the house straightened up and a few side dishes fixed in between the naps I took (during which they played quietly so Mom could sleep.) I am thankful for a husband who took the kids on a bike ride (to get out their extra energy) and geocaching (so Jeremy could finish up his merit badge he started in September) while I took another nap. I am grateful for children and a husband who did dishes after dinner while I took a nap. I am thankful that the weather was so beautiful and we could spend some time in the sunshine after dinner (and a nap). Thanksgiving 2011 was a wonderful day full of things for which I am grateful.

Here are the kids pointing out the one of the three geocaches that they found. It took them awhile but they said it was like being Indiana Jones without the snakes, spiders, aliens and curses. They had a great time.

Enjoying some fudgecicles outside in the gorgeous sun. This is how we eat dessert after Thanksgiving dinner in the South.

It wouldn't be completely Southern-like without the plastic flamingo.

Sidewalk art by Naomi. It is her rendition of the Solar System.

P.S. I am also grateful that I have had this time to catch up on all the blogs I have been wanting to do for the last six months but haven't taken the time to do because I have let everything else become so much more important.

A Nice Walk to Africa

I had to start with this picture because it is so incredible!

(We teased Steve that he was trying to get a job with National Geographic, but he really does take great pictures. You will see his work throughout this post)

All the animals seemed to be up really close and willing to pose for pictures! It was a great day at the zoo.

Nicholas had been begging for months to go to the North Carolina Zoo in Asheboro and we finally put it on the calendar for Saturday, November 19th. That was the first free Saturday we had in months - no scouts or soccer games! The last time we went to the zoo was when Naomi was about 6 months old. It was definitely time for a return trip. We headed out bright and early in the morning so we could spend the whole day there enjoying all the sites.

We started out in North America. The kids really enjoyed watching the animals. I was surprised at how many of them were up close and really active. Naomi wanted to have her picture taken on this rock. She loves to model for the camera.

I told the kids that if they weren't good this crocodile would be happy to help keep them in line. He was so close we COULD had touched him, but.... nuf said.

The seals were especially entertaining. They would swim around and play peek-a-boo with the kids watching through this underwater viewing area. They would swim right against the wall so the kids could not see them coming. Jeremy nearly jumped out of his skin the first time the seal used this surprise tactic. It appeared out of nowhere and the kids loved it.

Bored in a gourd!

The sea otters are always a favorite, but they wouldn't hold still for a picture so the kids posed with this sculpture.

I have only ever been this close to a real buffalo once and that was all it took to convince me that once was enough. Buffalo smell really bad!!! The kids loved this buffalo, though.

INTERMISSION

After walking three miles through the North America exhibits we met some friends at the half-way point for lunch. We needed the rest at that point and a chance to refuel before tackling the 2 miles of Africa.

The first stop was the aviary. The flamingos were outside the front doors to the building. Naomi wanted to know if the flamingo had been hurt because it only had one leg. Then she saw this... (look below)

...a headless flamingo!

Her sympathetic little heart was about to break when the flamingo finished grooming itself and it's head popped out.

The Tufts brought the wagon for Callie (in the front), but Haylie and Naomi hitched a ride whenever possible. I can't say I blame them. The zoo is 5 miles from top to bottom. That is a long way to walk on little legs.

Inside the aviary there was a sign with all the birds that you could see during your visit. The kids decided to play "Find the Bird". Here are pictures of our favorite finds.




Nicholas had a great time holding Callie's hand. He has decided that she is the cutest toddler in the whole world and if he can't have another little sister he will adopt her (IF/WHEN she will let him).


















The gorillas and meerkats were up close while they enjoyed the warm sunshine.

Here we are with our friends, riding a nice kitty cat.

At the entrance to the zoo they give all the kids stickers that say "I belong in the zoo." My kids are trying to find a way to get to stay here forever. They do a great impression of a monkey.



































As you can see, the walk was worth it. All the animals were out and the kids had a great time.

Do we look tired?

YES WE ARE!!!!

That is why we took the bus back up to North America! Thank goodness for public transportation.

All-in-all it was a great day and we slept VERY well that night. Walking to Africa would wear anyone out - but it was worth the trip. We recommend that everyone try it at least once.