Christmas Rewind Part 1

After spending 10 days on the road for Christmas, it feels good to be back home! We loved seeing family and friends- most we hadn't seen since we moved back in June.

We took off in the family SUV after school let out on the 16th. The kids had an early release day so we got out of town around noon. I told them to lay out what toys they wanted to bring with them, and this is what I got: Can you guess which one is Caroline's? :)



We pulled in my parent's drive in Noblesville a little after 1 in the morning. The next day, they were frantic to see their cousins, so we all got together at my sister's house for the kids to play. Then we took them bowling and out for Mexican food, followed by sleepovers-- the girls at one house and the boys at the other.

Sunday we all got together at my parent's for our Christmas dinner and exchange. Caroline with her nesting dolls......


Alex with his rocket....


All of the cousins.... Alex (10) Caroline (7) Taylor (9) Mya (almost 9) James (3) Lauren (7) and Jackson (12)

The brothers- in -law enjoyed hanging with each other......


Jason modeling Caroline's pink slap watch....


After 4 days in Noblesville with my family, we headed north to the lake to stay with Jason's parents. Caroline's first stop was to see her BFF Zoe... they have been friends since preschool and she misses Zoe so much! Thanks, Shannon, for having Caroline over to play!


We also stopped by the Hartman house to see Gracie and Graham. Grace wasn't in the mood to have her picture taken, but Alex and Graham had fun hanging out.

We also got to see our friends Brooks and Shelby! Caroline and Shelby are also BFF's -- they were wishing for some snow to play in, but unfortunately it didn't snow until we left!


Alex and Brooks on the computer....


It was so good to connect with our Indiana friends and family. We miss you!

Part 2 coming soon!

Christmas Performances

It's that time of year-- Christmas performances all weekend! The first was last Saturday.... we had two piano recitals in a row. The first was the "official" recital where each student performed several Christmas pieces. Alex played a jazzy version of "Let it Snow." He really got into his performance... he is such a little ham! Caroline played "O Christmas Tree", "Silent Night" and "We Wish you a Merry Christmas". They both did very well. So proud of their hard work.

The second performance took place at a retirement community in Sandestin. I don't have any pictures, but the residents really enjoyed listening. I love that the kids can share their gift of music with others.

On Sunday, the children at church put on a play and musical. Alex had a singing solo with his group.




And Caroline was an angel and sang with her little group of girls.


Finally, Santa made an early stop at our house last weekend as well, since we will be away from home on Christmas morning. Alex's main gift was an electric scooter--he was beyond thrilled. And here is sis with her beloved American Girl doll, also know as "Sissy".

It was a small, but fun celebration at our house. Teaching the children about the joy of giving to others because of the most precious gift given to us at Christmas-- Jesus our Savior-is our heart's desire as parents. It is so easy to get caught up in the craziness of decorating and parties and buying everyone the "perfect" gift. Since we have downsized and simplified, it has been much easier to focus on advent and preparing our hearts for the birth of the Lord.

We are getting ready to celebrate Christmas with our families in Indiana, so stay tuned for pictures of the crazy fun we will have!

Our Special Visitor

My close friend Shannon flew in for a few days last weekend. I was so excited to see her! The two of us became friends at church and got involved in ministry together. We shared our love of walking, cooking, reading, and blogging. Her husband Shane and Jason are good friends as well. We miss them bunches! So it was so good to spend time with her.



We took walks on the beach... it was a gorgeous weekend. The kids were so excited to hang out with her, too. We took her to one of our favorite places, Hurricane Oyster Bar.




Saturday we all got our bikes out and headed to Seaside for the afternoon.








Of course we did some shopping, indulged in some Starbucks salted mocha drink that she got me hooked on, and ate lots of good food.


This little beach kitty said hi on one of our walks....

Sunday we went to church and brunch at Another Broken Egg Cafe... the kids were fascinated with these giant Nutcrackers out front. It was a fun, relaxing 4 days. Thank you, friend, for leaving your little family and visiting us at the beach!

Thanksgiving Break Part 2

It was my intention to get part 2 done right after part 1, but you know how that goes! One of my dearest friends came into town on Thursday, and my computer barely was opened all weekend!

Okay, back to Thanksgiving break: We went to the beach to walk off a few calories and take in some fresh air on Thanksgiving Day. You could totally tell we are locals now; while others were wearing shorts and bathing suits, there's me in my sweater and jeans. It was in the 60's!



A little beach soccer.... My son is like a little oven. As soon as he gets a little hot, off comes the shirt!


A nice late November sunset....


We were a bit excited about the thought of putting lights on our palm trees. I think the novelty of the idea wore off during the actual event of doing it. Not easy... but it turned out pretty!


Our little fir tree... it smells so good!

Not many other decorations this year... I got rid of most of them when we moved, and I am slowly acquiring new ones. I bought a very cute wooden angel made by a local folk artist. And a little Jesse tree for the kids to put ornaments on as we do our advent devotions.

Hope you had fun decorating your house for Christmas!