Polar Express 2011

Last year we decided to check out the Polar Express in Calera, which is a real train ride down to the "north pole" where Santa then gets on the train to wish everyone a Merry Christmas. Well, last year Sarah Katherine wasn't really feeling it, in fact she climbed on my shoulders to get away from Santa. I prayed and prayed this year would be better, and it was GREAT! We went with Heather and Kyle Davis, Jennifer and Brett Shinick, and one of Jennifer's friends - oh and a slew of kids with each. :) Everyone loved the train itself, what kid doesn't love a choo choo?! We sang Christmas carols, talked to elves, saw the north pole, ate cookies and milk, got treats directly from the north pole, and of course the grand finale - saw Mr. and Mrs. Claus. It only took 3 years, but finally my little lady saw Santa and screamed in a good way. She loved him and hugged him and really loved Mrs. Claus. We had such a great time and will definitely be going back next year! Maybe next year I'll get the tickets in July instead of August and there will be room on the two story car. :)

Connell Christmas Celebration!

The annual Connell family Chistmas party rolled in this weekend, and SK got to go again this year. She LOVES hanging with her buddy Daniley and from the looks of Danica's post they had a blast. It was a spend the night party this year, so David and I got to drop Sarah Katherine off and then went out on a date - a special treat for us since we don't have family in town to keep little miss from time to time. Thanks so much to the Connell's for being great friends and for being super fun too!!!

Here are a few pic's I swiped from Danica and the link to where the whole party was described.

http://dananddanica.blogspot.com/

Oh my gracious these girls are so stinkin' cute!

When SK first saw Santa - minor meltdown, to.....

Santa is my favorite! My daughter can turn on a dime, love it!!!

Baby Coram #3! :)

I have made it public on facebook, but I haven't posted to the blog yet - we are going to have another little one next spring! God has blessed us with a little bit that is growing and doing just great so far in it's little 15 week life. No complications and no reason to expect any, but my wonderful doctors are taking great care of me and giving us lots of great ultrasounds to reassure all it going well. I have no idea how or why, but I'm not freaking out nearly as much with this pregnancy as with the others. I guess once you learn God is truly in control and will carry you through anything life brings, it causes a foundational change in your outlook of things. This is not to say I don't have the "crazies" pop up once in a while, but I hear that voice in my head saying stop it - God's got this! We are so blessed with love and support in our lives and I know this child is feeling that as well. Thank you to everyone that has been there for us as we grieved the loss of Elizabeth Anne and all the way to the celebration of this miracle. Please keep us in your prayers - specifically peace, health, and strength of this little one (and really us too!).

6 Weeks:

8 Weeks:

12 Weeks:

15 Weeks:

Family Reunion in Anniston

Last weekend SK, Mom, and I saddled up and headed over to Anniston for a family get together. My grandmother's brother and his wife were in town, which was a big occassion because he had been sick and hasn't been able to come up from Florida for about two years. Such VIP's in town calls for a celebration, so my Aunt Kathy made a ham, turkey, and all sorts of fixings - yummy! My aunt and uncle also came over from Atlanta and they brought their two youngest granddaughters, and the three girls had so much fun playing outside. I LOVE family get togethers, I just wish we could have them more often.

Jail and Bail for MDA

This year David stumbled across and opportunity for us to go to jail for a GREAT cause! We did jail and bail for the Muscular Dystrophy Association. We got put in "the clink" at Joe's Crab Shack and were even "arrested" by a real Sherriff. Between the two of us we were able to raise over $1,300 which will really help make a difference for some very special kids. It was even enough to sponsor a kid to go to summer camp at Camp ASCA where these special needs children are able to do things they may not ever otherwise be able to do. My brother, Brian, go to go when he was younger and he had a BLAST! Thank you so much to anyone reading this that supported us. All in all the Shelby County chapter's jail and bail raised over $39,000! I get chills thinking about the amazing things that can be done with that money. Hopefully this will become an annual thing for us to do. I feel like we are taking up where my grandfather isn't able to raise money anymore. Of course, I have some huge shoes to fill - the lady up here in Birmingham with MDA knew right off who my graddaddy was from his celebrity within the MDA community. He's a fundraising rockstar!

More Halloween...

I snatched a couple of pictures from Danica's site and thought I would post them here. These girls are so stinkin' cute!!!

Happy Halloween!

This year SK was SUPER pumped about Halloween. She has truly figured out the joys of sugary goodness that is candy. So, she had a full several days of fun! On Sunday night we went to our church's fall festival where they had games, all sorts of inflatables, hot dogs, and yes - candy. Then on Monday (Halloween - day) her school did trick or treating around each class and she came home with even more of a candy stash. Finally that night we went to our friend Danica's mom's house, who is the Queen of Halloween! She decks her whole house, has all sorts of candy, and lives in a great neighborhood for trick or treating. SK was a little skiddish of the decked out house, but was super into trick or treating. She sang the whole way up and down the streets. On a fun note - her princess dress had LED lights sewn into the slip, so she literally sparkled. That was not only pretty, but super practical for trick or treating - no flashlight needed!Here is one part of the house all decked out - imagine this level of cuteness everywhere!