Santa, I Know Him!!

This post is mainly pictures because that really says it all!  This year for Christmas we went to Indiana to spend time with Josh's side of the family.  We celebrated with Justin and the Burt Bunch Saturday.  The cousins had a great time playing with each other and we all had fun visiting.  That night we drove up to Logansport, where we stayed until Christmas day on Tuesday.  Santa came early so the girls got to open all their gifts on Christmas Eve, which is also Josh's birthday.  The weekend was full just like our heats.  We watched the nativity story, read the bible, had birthday cake for Josh and Camy, exchanged gifts, and ate.... a lot!  Poor Hadley was fighting a virus most of the weekend so she needed extra love and care.  She did play for a long time on Christmas Eve and that did my heart a lot of good.  Both kids were so excited to see what Santa had brought them.  Camy wanted to tear into everything, whereas Hadley opened one thing and was content to play with that for the entire night.  Daddy opened most of her gifts!  I'm so thankful for family to share the holiday with and I look forward to celebrating with my side of the family this coming weekend for New Year's.  This time of transition is tough, but we are so abundantly blessed to have a savior that came to this earth for us and be just a car ride from those we love.  Merry Christmas from the Burt's!!  (Since we didn't get to send out Christmas cards this year, this is it! LOL!)

 Me and the girls in front of our first real Christmas tree!

 The girl's visiting Santa at Cintas

 Nana and Halle

 Jordan and Hudson having a heart to heart

 Halle looking after Hadley

Laying on a box to read, so cute! 

Christmas at Justin and Miranda's 

 Cooking baking tradition with Nana

 The cookies won the battle

 Josh relaxing on is 29th Birthday!

 Twins

My love 

 Lily was in charge of watching Jingles

 Helping Daddy open birthday presents

Poppy roughing up Camy 

 Mommy and her sick baby

 My big 4 year old!

 Sweet, sick girl

Birthday buddies 

Hadley poking her finger in Dad's cake 

 The cool club house

 Cuteness looking in her stocking

 This girl loves clothes!

 Holiday Barbie from Hadley

 She took the clothes out and immediately threw them to the side!

 Daddy and his girl

 The Burt's

 She's saying, "Cheeeeese!"

 Stuffy got a cupcake from Hadley

 Hadley was so tired, but had to keep playing!

Lily's new toy from Santa 

 Hadley with the best toy of all, the box!

 Cam with her beloved Lamby

Me and Camy

Christmas fun!

Our Internet is out.....for the tenth time, so just a quick post from my phone :) we have been doing our best to be festive in our new home. We got a real tree this year and the kids had a blast decorating it! Hadley handed all her ornaments to Josh and Camy hung all of hers on the same three branches. I couldn't put hooks in fast enough and my camera battery died. It really was fun amidst the chaos and the tree turned out pretty. We have made gingerbread houses, watched movies, and shopped. I also made an advent calendar (thank you Pinterest!) and we're reading the Jesus Storybook Bible each day leading up to the birth of our Savior. My favorite thing, this year, has been going on a walk through Bethlehem at a local church. They did an amazing job! It was all outdoors, there were Romans hairdos, camps of Jews on their way to Jerusalem, animals and of course a stable with a baby in the manger. It made the story very real to me and to Cameryn as well. It blessed my heart to see her really start to understand the story of how Jesus came to earth. Sorry there aren't any pictures of Bethlehem, it was dark and a Roman would have seized me for sure if my flash went off, LOL! Merry Christmas!

Polar Express Night

Monday we had "Polar Express Night." The girls and I had so much fun getting things ready for that night. We built and decorated a train and planned a special treat. When Josh got home we immediately ate dinner and let the night begin! Camy made a graham cracker And whipped cream train decorated with M and M's. Hadley just ate M&Ms really! Then we went to the basement for everyone to climb on board the train. They got their tickets punched by daddy, the conductor, and we are all set for the movie. They of course got hot chocolate during the hot chocolate part of the show. Hadley just ate marshmallows :) At the end I had a surprise for each girl, a silver jingle bell necklace as their "first gift of Christmas." It was a fun night for the family if I do say so myself ;)

Thanksgiving 2012

Thanksgiving was wonderful and a little sad this year.  We made our move to St. Louis the day after so the thought of, "This is our last Thanksgiving living here," kind of hung over everyone's heads.  For the first time I was eating and chatting with my extended family and didn't know when I would see them again.  Of course we will be making trips back home, but getting to see cousins, aunts, uncles, and grandparents may not happen every trip.  It was really strange.  The hardest part for me was saying goodbye to my Dad.   My mom came with me the next day thank the Lord!! We are very close and since he's not married I just feel like he "needs" me.  I know he has four other kids to keep him company and look after him, but I just hate the thought of him needing me and it taking me 5+ hours to get to him.  Then there is my nephew, Will who will probably grow 2 inches between now and Christmas!  My sisters and little brother will be graduating this year and starting their "grown up" lives soon and I won't be nearby for that either.  It hurts my heart to think of these things, but I am trusting the Lord to make it clear as to why he called us to Missouri.  Anyway, this post is not about moving (that one will come soon!) but, moving definitely held a place at Thanksgiving dinner this year. 

We started our day of in our hotel room since all of our furniture was on a huge moving truck.  The girls had their own room and we had a kitchen with a living room so it was actually pretty homey.  Since dinner wasn't until later in the evening the four of us went to the movies to see "Wreck it Ralph".  It was really cute and Hadley almost made it through the entire thing!  When all of us can go to the movies regularly it will be a great thing for me :)  Josh and Hadley went back to the hotel for Hadley's nap but Cameryn and I had some visiting to do.  We went to the Petersen's and crashed their family Thanksgiving in the process!  The great thing about having friends like them is that you never feel out of place. We said our good byes, Sawyer and Camy played, and we got to leave a little gift for sweet Sutton too.  Side note: knowing we don't live in Louisville anymore and that Sutton will soon be home from Ethiopia made this visit even harder!!  It was a very emotional day.

That evening we all got ready and went to Beth's house for THE BEST dinner. I don't mean to brag, but my family can cook!  The time spent with everyone was so sweet and special.  It made me feel guilty for taking it for granted all these years.  Anna, Jimmie and Stephanie's little girl had her first Thanksgiving and she was so precious!  It was everyone's first Thanksgiving without Aunt Bee but she was most definitely in everyone's hearts.  Camy, Hadley, and Will chased each other and pretended to be puppies crawling on the floor and barking for over an hour.  Katie brought her boyfriend Brent, Chris brought his best friend Kirby, and Jessie brought her "friend" Eric!  My mom and dad were both there, and of course I had my precious little family of four.  We all got to count our blessings together and that in and of itself is a blessing.  

Hadley Cheesing, again!

 Camy being a ham :)

 Sweet sisters

 Mommy and her girls

Dad 

 Uncle Jim, Jimmie, and Dad

 Josh and Jessie

 Chris and Kirby

 Me and my Daddy!

 Me, Mom, and Hadley

Sissy 

Hadley being silly! I don't know what Mamaw said to make her do this : ) 

 Brother and Me

 Mom with her big kids

 Sisters!

Cameryn's favorite face to make right now, LOL!

Stephanie and sleepy little Anna