Christmas 2008

The little Paleontologist hard at work.










Well, we survived Christmas and all the aftermath. We are still digging out from all the toys. Santa brought Mason Kota the Triceratops along with a hunting play set and more dinosaurs of course. Santa brought Hayden a BIG yellow tractor, a yellow cow, and a farm. Santa brought Rex some diapers, formula, and wipes. It's what he asked for! I've invested a lot of money in all those little storage bins to try and contain the mess and all the little pieces. We'll see how long it lasts. I hope you enjoy the pictures. Quick update on the house: We finalized our granite Christmas Eve and they will start fabrication next week and it should take 2 weeks. They are laying the carpet today, so it looks like we will be moving in about 2-3 weeks. I guess I should start packing.

Getting ready for Christmas

In between Christmas school programs and Church programs, we managed to fit in a trip to Dollywood and Breakfast with Santa at the zoo. The boys love seeing all the lights and the shows at Dollywood. This past Saturday, we went with friends to have breakfast with Santa at the zoo and the kids loved seeing his reindeer. This year, we have had an elf visit our family everyday. His name is Jingles and the boys have loved him. It's so funny to watch them talk to him. He arrived through 'Elf on the Shelf'. Be sure to check their website out. We spent yesterday making cookies and getting ready for the big day. We hope all of you have a very Merry Christmas.

Progress on the house

These pictures were taken last week of the house and they are already outdated. They are busy painting and installing the stairwell. I think they will be almost done in 2-3 weeks, but it takes the granite guy 2-3 weeks and he isn't coming until Monday to measure, so I'm thinking it's going to be a mid-January move with the holidays. I'll post more pics later.

In a nutshell....

OK, so I've gotten behind blogging, but what can I say, the little ones keep us hopping along with the new house. If I'm on the computer, it's either to work or to shop for things for the house, so there's not much time to play. Speaking of the house, it looks like we will be moving in about 4-6 weeks. We are very excited. I'll post pictures soon. They are painting and installing cabinets this week. We had a great Thanksgiving with Larry's family and then headed to Nashville to see my family. Now, we have started getting ready for Christmas. Here are some pictures from the past month.

Happy Halloween

The boys had a great time Trick or Treating. We go to downtown Dandridge where thee merchants pass out candy and drinks and then we walk to the church for trunk or treat. It's so much fun and boy do they get the candy. After trick or treating, we went to a friend's house for a weinie roast and smores. Yum, yum. The rest of the weekend was very low-key. We are gearing up for Disney on Ice tomorrow. Mason's class is going, so Hayden, Rex, and I are tagging along. The picture of Hayden with marker on his belly and face was my way of getting the pantry cleaned out without being bothered.

Pumpkin Patches galore

The monkey and dinosaur!

Hayden using Rex as his table for coloring.

Mason and Hayden

Rex smiling

Hayden and his favorite animal, a cow.

I don't remember as a child ever going to more than 1 pumpkin patch per Halloween, but this year Mason, Hayden, and Rex have already been to 4! They love getting a pumpkin and riding on the hay ride. Here's an update of the past few weeks. Mason finished soccer last week and was so happy it was over. Hayden is busy being Hayden and right now he loves cows, especially yellow cows! We have yet to see a yellow cow, but that's his favorite. Rex is growing leaps and bounds and continues to be a great baby and has enjoyed all the fall festivities. Here's a preview to their Halloween costumes. This is the 3rd year Mason has worn the same costume. He doesn't want another one. They wore them to Boo at the Zoo last weekend. Hayden was a monkey. Hayden loved getting candy and wouldn't put it in his bag. He insisted on either carrying it or eating it! The house is coming along and we hope to be in at the first of the year.

We are so blessed

I took all 3 boys today to get their pictures taken and aren't they so cute. I ended up with way too many pictures, but I just couldn't decide.

Picnic and Zoo

The past few days have been pretty busy for us. Saturday was a sad day as we watched our Vols get beat by the Gators. Sunday after Church, we took the boys to the park for a picnic and a hike. The .6 mile hike took us over an hour. Larry is convinced it was longer. WE didn't see any animals because the boys were too loud, but they had a great time climbing rocks and playing in the creek. Yesterday, Mason was off from school, so we headed to the zoo for the day and I mean the day. I've never spent so long at the zoo, but they were having so much fun. Needless to say, they were worn out. Rex enjoyed the outing by sleeping the whole time. Mason has soccer tonight and Thurs and Church tomorrow night, so we will be busy the rest of the week. Enjoy the pics.