Merry Christmas and Happy New Year...a month late!!!!:)

Obviously 2011 has began on a busy note or I would have already posted Christmas pictures...but it is better late than never!!! We had a very enjoyable Christmas break. We had our own family Christmas on Christmas Eve. We spent Christmas day split between my parents and Josh's parents house...of course they are 3 1/2 hours apart so we also traveled for a large portion of the day. Never the less, we had a great time everywhere we went. My mom also hosted the annual "Appetizer and Game Night" which is fun for all. The entire meal consisted of just appetizers....which is my kind of meal. We also played Rook and other board and card games. We also had house guests for a couple of nights. My cousin Sarah and her husband Jared and their dog Chloe from Tennessee joined us over the New Year's weekend. We celebrated Christmas at my grandparents that weekend. We had a wonderful time visiting and catching up with family.

In addition to the family festivities, our dog Gracie kept us busy. She began the break with stitches due to a spaying. One week later, she was attacked by a coyote...IN OUR YARD...and had to undergo another surgery to install a drain tube in her side. The poor thing had 17 stitches in her at one time, a yellow latex tube on her side, half of her body shaved from the two surgeries, and the icing on the cake was when traveling to Josh's parents in Illinois, she had to be sedated for the trip. Gracie was quite comical looking but handled it well. I think we spent more money on her than the kids for Christmas!!!

School began for the new year much as the year ended...with snow. Several inches have fell on the area in four small snow storms. As a result, we have missed five days of school this month. Now I love a snow day..probably more than my students. But I will dread waking up on a nice morning in June for make-up days. However, I should be thankful for the extra time spent with the kids.

Enjoy the pics from the holiday break!!!

Our Family Christmas Tree

Abby's Homemade Advent Calendar---On the back of each date was a task for the day, such as help mommy set the table, color a picture and hang it up, or play quietly in your room.  Once Abby completed the task she received a piece of candy.  The tree she colored "rainbow" colors.

I love this picture of Abby!!!  She was so excited about this book.  It has princess figurines that coordinates with the story.  She had been asking for this gift since October.  I think her reaction says it all!!!

Micah and his guns!!! He LOVES to shoot them.  He makes a sneezing noise when he shoots.

Abby and her bathtime Ariel doll.

THE CREW!!!--Isaac, Abby, Micah, Levi, Caleb, Samuel, Camden, and Cainan at Nana and Papaw Jeff's Christmas Eve.

Abby and Micah at Mamaw and Papaw Steve's in Illinois.

Abby and Micah climbed in Gracie's dog cage.

Micah lounging in his FAVORITE pajamas.  He LOVES these pajamas and wants to wear them all the time.  He evens wants to wear them over regular clothes.  I thought this picture was adorable.

Sarah reading to Abby, Micah, and Chloe!!!

Micah shooting his gun...it requires safety goggles, two hands, and a dirty face!!!!

Gracie in the goggles....now where is that gun!?!?

New Year's Resolution---push ups every night!!!

Jared playing golf on the Wii!!! 

My attempts at a Christmas picture....there were several like this.

Finally, one worth sending in the Christmas cards!!!

Gracie!!!!  The picture says it all!!!

Bye, Bye Pacifier!!!

Monday, December 6 was Micah's last day with his pacifier!!! I didn't want to say anthing too soon and then him revert, but so far, so good. This past weekend was a little stressful for him. I think that he was tired and really missing his "BFF" but now he is sleeping peacefully, all through the night!!! One more milestone in his life!!

Happy Birthday Micah!!!!

Two years ago, our family welcomed an 8 pound, nine ounce baby boy named Micah....today we celebrated his second birthday with friends and family. It is hard to fathom how quickly time passes. When the kids were newborn, people would often times use the cliches "they grow up faster than you know", "enjoy them when they are young", and "I can't remember when mine were that little." I remember thinking, "I'll never forget how little he was"...but it is true. When I look at Micah, I see a lively two year old who is happy exploring the world around him. He enjoys saying his new words, using his funny faces, and trying to make us laugh. He is so full of life and energy. Although the two years have fleetingly passed, I am thankful to have a happy and healthy young boy. I hope he continues to stay healthy and that his happy personality is continously fostered.

Micah had a dinosaur birthday party and loved all of the balloons. I am a little dorky about birthday parties and I like the outfit to coordinate with the party. So I was so excited when I remembered he had some dinosaur overalls....Micah looked extra cute today. Josh, Abby, and I gave him a chair, so he reclined in it while opening his gifts. I loved his faces today. He really enjoyed being the center of attention (sounds like his sister:)

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MICAH..WE LOVE YOU!!!!

Trick or Treat!!!!

Only three weeks behind....that's where I am at with the blog. Halloween week...definitely more trick than treat. First of all, our county can't decide if Halloween is October 30 or October 31. I know you're thinking..."Really?". However, since October 31 fell on a Sunday this year, there was a little confusion. The last time this conundrum occurred, the county collectively decided to celebrate Halloween on Saturday night so that it did not interfere with Sunday evening church services, which honestly was fine with me. Well this year, part of the county celebrated on Saturday and part of it on Sunday. In addition to Trick-or-Treating, Abby was also the flower girl in my cousin's wedding and the rehearsal was Saturday night. So we dressed the kids for Halloween and went to the rehearsal. However, we were late (which we did call to inform everyone) but by the time we arrived at the church, rehearsal was over and the preacher had left. Why? Because this church was one that decided to celebrate Halloween on Saturday and had a Trunk-or-Treat at the local park. SOOOO, we left the rehearsal and went to the park. However, EVERYONE had ran out of candy....ONE HOUR EARLY. Needless to say Abigail, or shall I say "The Little Mermaid", was quite sad. So I did some quick Internet research (what did we do prior to cell phones) and discovered a couple of churches in Elizabethtown that were having Trunk-or-Treats on Saturday night. So away we drove...and drove...and drove because we couldn't find one location. So we abandoned that idea and drove to the other church. When we arrived, there was not a soul (no pun intended) in sight. No candy again meant a sad Abby!!! So, I called my mom and asked if she had ANY candy at all....I didn't care the age or the amount of fuzz from the couch cushions that was on it. My kids just wanted candy!!! Of course, my prepared mother already had individual bags made for each grandchild:) So we drove to Mom's and Trick-or-Treated. After two hours of driving, my kids finally had some loot in their pumpkin buckets. What a night!!!!

On Sunday, we then attended a different church in order to assure that Abby was at the church in time for pictures. She was such a beautiful little flower girl and she did a really great job...of course it was her second flower girl gig in October...she's like a pro. Anyway, after the wedding, we redressed The Little Mermaid and the deer hunter and went Trick-or-Treating for the second time in one weekend. We stopped at the usual places but we also went back to the last church and realized that the Trunk-or-Treat was actually Sunday night, not Saturday night. No wonder no one was there!!! We spent almost two hours at Valley Creek Baptist church playing games and collecting candy. Abby and Micah both really enjoyed the evening. All-in-all, the kids were able to dress up two days in a row, received candy two days in a row, and we had some great family time!!!

Micah the Deer Hunter....Abby as The Little Mermaid!!!

Funny Sayings!!!

At church Wednesday night, Abby discovered (for the 50th time) a mole right below my collar bone. Although she has seen it before, it fascinates her. So she looked at me with wide, innocent eyes and said "Mommy, your heart has a mimple!!" I thought it was so cute. These are the little sayings and words that you hope you'll never forget...but I thought I better jot it down, just in case:)

Fall Break Frenzy!!!

I love being out of school!!! I love the time I get to spend with my family and the break from the daily duties of teaching. As a result, I try to fit as many things into a break as possible, often times resulting in a very tired Mrs. Wilson when school resumes:) Anyway, over our fall break we had a wedding, traveled to North Carolina, visited a pumpkin patch, and laid hardwood floors in our house.



My sister Stephanie was married on October 1 to Tommy Brothers. I was her matron of honor and Abigail was the flower girl. I helped decorate the morning of the wedding and then spent a very nice evening enjoying the festivities. They had a small, intimate ceremony at the Brown-Pusey House in town (ironically the same venue where Josh and I were married six years ago.) She had several innovative ideas that made the wedding extra special. For example, she and Tommy each have child, Caleb is 7 and Camden is 5, so they each contributed to the unity sand ceremony. Each had their own color of sand and added it in layers to a vase. It was really neat. She also had a wishing tree at the reception. This was a tree where guests could hang notes of encouragement from the branches. In celebration of fall, the little notecards were in various fall hues and shaped like leaves. She also only had desserts for refreshments. Cheesecakes, pumpkin desserts, coffee, hot cider, and more yummy treats. It was just a really nice night!!! Many happy years to both of you!!!



The day after the wedding, Josh and I left for North Carolina. We were traveling to see two of the couples from North Carolina that we met in Austria. We left on Saturday and spent the night in Tennessee. Then we spent Sunday with Anthony and Amy Reese in Boone. Boone is a beautiful mountain town. The Reese's, along with their daughter, took time to show us the town and surrounding attractions. Josh had the opportunity to go the office with Anthony to discuss business. Amy and I spent the morning talking...which we found we were really good at:) After we left the Reese's on Monday, we drove to Asheville (about 1 1/2 hour) to meet David and Angela Rea. Although they live on the coast, Angela had a conference in Asheville so we just met up there. We had supper at the Mellow Mushroom and then spent some time with them at their hotel. On Tuesday, we only saw David briefly and Angela was in a meeting. So we went to the Biltmore Estate and spent the day touring the home, gardens, the farm, and actually had a great meal at Cedric's Tavern which is on the farm. Neither one of us had ever visited the estate and we really enjoyed our day.



Thursday of fall break, the kids and I, mom, Pam and the boys, and Tommy and the boys went to Jackson's Orchard in Bowling Green to spend the day. The kids played on the tractors, the Cider Slide, the petting zoo and the straw castle. Then we took a hayride to the corn maze and pumpkin patch. The kids were grimy, head to toe and slept the whole way home. Of course, the adults were pretty tired too. I am glad mom and Pam drove so that I didn't have to. I think I snoozed a little on Pam on the drive home:)

Micah at Jackson's Orchard...attached to the pacifier and refusing to look at the camera.

Micah and the goat at Biltmore Estate....having a standoff!!

Abby and Isaac on the "Cider Slide" at Jackson's Orchard.

Abby at Jackson's Orchard.


Thursday evening, Josh and I ripped up the living and dining room carpet in preparation for putting down hardwood floors. Josh's parents came for the weekend to help as well as Adam, Sarah, and Adelynn Bunnell. (Adam has laid several hardwood floors so he was the expert on the job:) Anyway, it was a very tideous, time-consuming project but with fabulous pay off. I LOVE our new floors!! I feel so blessed to have such a beautiful living room. It doesn't even look like the same house.







Abby and Micah helping Daddy rip up the old flooring.

Abby pretending she is taking orders at a restaurant. We had to take the screen out of the

window so the air compressor hose could come in the house.

Early Sunday morning dancing....the kids love the slick new floor.

A couple of after pictures of the floor.


As usual, my break was packed full with activities and projects, but it was a GREAT fall break...my favorite time of year!!!