Look who's back in town

Speedy is back in town and everyone is on their best behavior.  I should probably mention that on more than one occasion Caroline has told me that she wish Speedy would go away.  When I asked her why, she reluctantly admits that she has to be good all the time when Speedy is around and sometimes she just needs to act bad.

Then there are the rare instances in which Caroline is placed in time out (remember, she is on her best behavior since Speedy is visiting).  Will then takes it upon himself to go tell Speedy that his sister has been ugly and that she is in time out.  Now when his sister overhears this, she is not a happy camper.  She yells from her room that he needs to stop telling Speedy everything.  Personally, I think I need to ask Speedy if he can become a permanent member of our family!

Cubbies Christmas Party

At Cubbies last week we celebrated Christmas a little early with a Happy Birthday Jesus party.  Since Will helped Caroline and me get ready for the party by baking cupcakes and getting the party bags stuffed, he was determined to go to the party despite not being a member of the class.  He even gave the Cubbies teacher (his mother) lots of kisses in hopes to persuade her.  Of course I let him go and he was tickled pink.  Since Nana was in town, she got to go as well.  Plus, Matt got off work early so that he could come too.

All of the kids really had fun participating in the What God Wants for Christmas nativity set.  It was the stillest they have ever been for me while reading a Bible story.  We made the cutest little Christmas ornaments and then finished our party by singing Happy Birthday to Jesus and eating cupcakes.

Christmas parade...Louisiana style

While we were at Pappaw's and Mamaw Kat's house, we decided to go to the Farmerville Christmas parade.  While it wasn't the biggest parade we've ever been to, the kids were thrilled that everyone threw out candy as the passed by.  Plus, Santa was on a float and that made the parade perfect in the eyes of my kids.

Once we got back home, Caroline quickly requested a fire so she would warm up after being out in the cold air.  Matt then taught Will the right way to warm up next to a nice fire.

Happy Birthday Matt!

Matt's birthday always falls over the Thanksgiving holiday.  This year, he requested that I not make his favorite cake (red velvet) at Thanksgiving because he is always too stuffed from our Thanksgiving feast to enjoy it.  Plus, he vividly remembers not eating all of the cake last year because he was so stuffed and the frustration that was voiced by his wife who took the time to make a homemade red velvet just for him.  So, this year we celebrated on his birthday with a peanut butter pie, another favorite of Matt's. 

Of course that meant that I owed him a red velvet as well.  So, while visiting his parents over the weekend, I made him his traditional red velvet birthday cake. 

Mamaw Kat topped it off with homemade ice cream.  Needless to say, Matt enjoyed his sweets and it looks like his son is going to fall in his footsteps as is pertains to his love for sweets as well.   

Where is baby Jesus?

When I notice a stool located in a conspicuous place....

I know that someone is missing.

The baby Jesus has been swiped again. 

Can Christmas get any sweeter?

Because today I walked in to find my little ones singing to Baby Jesus.  Caroline was playing the guitar and her brother was singing as loud as he could while playing the drums.  It melted my heart.

If you haven't gotten your kids a nativity they can play with and enjoy (which I highly recommend because it allows them to enjoy the real meaning of Christmas), you should consider What God Wants for Christmas.

It is a treat for parents and kids and is currently on sale at Lifeway.  As you read the Christmas story, the kids get to open little presents to find all of the important characters involved in Christ's birth.  Then at the end of the story they open one last box to discover what God really wants for Christmas....us.  Well worth the money and something everyone can enjoy.

Oh, and before I forget, my daughter has requested that I put a cute picture of her and her little one on the blog.  I took several pictures of the two of them together and Caroline then picked her favorite pose for the blog.  To be exact, she said, "that one is real cute".  For those who haven't met Caroline's baby girl, let me introduce you to Suzie Q.

Blackbear Gamboree

On Tuesday of our trip, Matt had to return home so that he could get back to the grind at work. Since we were hitching a ride with Pop and Mimi, we had an extra day to play. We decided to take a carriage ride in Cade's Cove.

A very friendly man known as Pappaw was our driver who let both kids have a turn in the driver's seat.

After our little carriage ride, we decided to sight see once again in the Smokies since the weather was so nice.

I'm glad we did because it seemed that the leaves had turned colors even more since just a few days prior.

Our journey up the mountain ended once we arrived to the state line.

To conclude our trip, we went to the Blackbear Gamboree.

It was a very family friendly show that even included dinner. Before the show started, the band asked for all kids to join them on stage. Much to my suprise, my kids went!

Caroline realized that the stage was no place to wear the hood of your jacket, so she took care of her little brother.

While neither of them performed the little act the band was trying to get them to do, they looked adorable on stage and made us all very proud!

On Wednesday, it was time to head back home. Our family is so thankful that Pop and Mimi treated us to a wonderful family vacation filled with great memories, fun times and full bellies. I failed to mention all of the wonderful food we ate...it was good and it was plentiful. I think our favorite restaurant was the Applewood Farmhouse. Those apple fritter and julep were delicious!

Thanks Pop and Mimi....we will cherish every minute we got to spend with you!

Dollywood

We decided to take two days to enjoy Dollywood and I'm glad we did. That meant we really wouldn't' be rushed and could see it all. Again, our timing was just right because we were there during the National Gospel and Harvest Celebration. Everything was decorated for fall.

The kids loved riding all of the rides, but especially the flying pigs. Dollywood's employees are so nice and the lady operating the pigs made an "oink" sound when Will and Caroline passed by. It produced such a kackle from Will that she did it everytime they passed by. Needless to say, he wanted to ride the pigs again.

Caroline seemed to enjoy driving the cars with Mimi.

Pop and I decided to get a good view of the upcoming street show that was about to start.

Little did we know that he would soon be part of the entertainment. Mimi and I both agreed that it was a good thing that she didn't offer him a microphone, or she might have gotten more than she bargained for!

For our second day at Dollywood, we took Pop's suggestion and rode the trolley there. Will really got a kick out of that.

Will also loved the carousel...

...while Caroline loved strolling around the park with Pop and Mimi.

Somehow, I let my husband talk me into riding the Tennesse Torando and Mystery Mine. He gets so excited when he rides thrill rides...me...not so much. I decided to be a good wife and accompany him. I'm glad I did because watching him on those rides outweighs the heavy pounding of my heart as I fear for my life.

We ended up shutting Dollywood down on both days that we went. It was a great amusement park with top-notch entertainment, great food and fun rides for the whole family. I should also mention that it was so clean which makes a momma really happy!