Christmas Day '09

Christmas day has finally arrived.  Time for kids everywhere to be rewarded for faking niceness for the past 364 days (just kidding, kids).  It was a very exciting time.

Owen woke up first and stepped out to see what Santa had left him.  He was greeted with his brand new big boy bike.

Later, after Elizabeth woke up, they went through their stockings then started with the presents.  Owen took over playing the part of Santa as he delivered presents to everybody (he got plenty of practice working with Uncle Burt).  

Finally, it was time to open the presents and the kids wasted no time getting into it.  They sat in their own chairs and opened their gifts as I imagine royalty would do.

Along with the gifts from family that Elizabeth opened, she also got a baby doll from Santa.  She loved this doll and carried with her as she opened other presents and played with other toys.

Santa even remembered Halle.  She got her share of new chew toys so she was very happy playing with her new toys while the kids played with theirs.

After we finished waking up and finished getting dressed, we had lunch with Nonie and Poppie as well as the rest of our family.

Finally, we went to my folks to spend some time with them and let Owen and Elizabeth show their cousin Dylan their new presents as well as get more gifts from the grandparents.

Christmas Eve '09

Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house every creature was stirring including this little mouse.

The tables were set with great food and great care while we tried to corral two kids with wild hair.

When dinner is finished kids know that it's time to get pictures with family so let's form a line.  First, family pictures with Nonna and Pop, even though kids want the smiling and posing to stop.

Just one more pic and we're done for a while so the kids sit real still and pose with a smile.

Once we get home and pick P.J.'s to wear, we check and make sure that all stockings are there.

Then, make sure cookies for Santa are plenty.  There were a ton of them there, it seemed close to twenty!

One final story then we all stop and say, merry Christmas to all it's been quite a day!

Christmas Visiting with Pipaw

Today we took a trip to McComb, MS to visit Pipaw.  He was happy to see us as always.  The kids kept him entertained.  Elizabeth played with the coasters that she found around the house.  By the time she was finished we had an inventory of every coaster he owned.  Owen was his usual bundle of energy.  He might wrestle with Elizabeth or run up and down the hallway.  Every so often, we'd hear Pipaw say, "He sure has got a lot of energy!"

We'd let Owen loose outside and he'd run through the unraked leaves or jump around on the moss covered sections of ground.

"He sure has got a lot of energy!"

"Ha ha, yes sir he does."

Eventually, we all came back inside and the kids gave Pipaw his Christmas present which, of course, Owen helped open.

Then we decided that it was time to load everyone up and head back home.  We could tell Pipaw was ready for a break and a some quiet time.

"He sure has got a lot of energy!"

Pre-Christmas in Tunica

This weekend we loaded up in the two wheel drive family sleigh and headed off to have our Christmas celebration with our family in Tunica, MS.  We first made a stop in Senatobia to see our cousins Zabe and Kristina as well as their new house.  

Next it was off to Tunica and to see Papa and MawMaw.  Zabe and Kristina came as well as Burt and Rebekah so the whole family was there.

We visited with everyone and had a fantastic meal.  Afterward, the kids were itching to get into the large stash of gifts that were awaiting them under the Christmas tree.  So, Owen worked with Uncle Burt distributing the gifts to everyone.

Once the gifts were handed out, everyone opened them.  Owen was an old pro by now so we knew that he wasn't going to have any trouble with tricky wrapping or ribbons.  Elizabeth was the surprise though, as she seemed to have a natural talent for tearing open things.

Here's Elizabeth with her new Elmo and her new Doll bed.

It was a good weekend.

Christmas Parade

This morning, the city of Madison held its annual Christmas parade for everyone in the town.  It was made even better by the rare snow that had fallen the night before.
Owen didn't mind the cold.

There were plenty of good floats to watch as they passed by.

After the parade, everyone hung around the park and played in the snow. Owen made a snow/mud angel.

The kids also worked on making a snowman.  Well actually, Owen worked on it while Elizabeth ate the snow.

We also had our picture taken to commemorate the rare Mississippi snowfall.