Dear Santa,

Dear Santa, she wanted NOTHING to do with you this year. At the mall, she would even turn her head and look the opposite way while we were walking by your station. So no picture with you this year, sorry. She didn't even want to leave you cookies and milk, she asked to go to bed instead (dude, she really doesn't like you)! She wouldn't even open a present that had a picture of Santa on the wrapping paper. She did however scribble on a piece of paper for ya, but her good ole mom left you some cookies and milk and even a carrot for Rudolph, (remember that next year, that should earn me more presents and points with you.)

Jolee asleep in "her" bed at Granny and Pappy's on Christmas Eve night. They fixed up her room, she had her own little Christmas tree in their and different colored lights were hanging over her bed. She loved it! Thanks Granna and Pappy for making" her" room so special!

Daddy reading her letter that Santa left her.

When we were ready to go look under the tree Christmas morning, to see what Santa had left her, she wouldn't even go back their. We had to assure her Santa was gone. not here, and would never be back if she didn't want him too!

A few presents that Santa left her:

I am going to have to get a video of her jumping rope, it is hysterical. A week before Christmas, she asked for a jump rope. Funny thing was, Santa's helper had bought one back in October for her. So she was super stoked when she opened it. That's all she wanted to do jump and show everyone how she could jump rope. If you asked her what she got for Christmas, her answer was...a dump rope! That was her favorite present and the cheapest one! Go figure!

We thought we were in the clear, you know because she loved her jump rope and had asked for it and got it. We thought maybe she would never mention the horse she wanted again. Well, that worked for awhile, until out of the blue she said...Mommy, I don't got a real horse! Although she got every stuff horse in every shape and size this year from almost everyone. And we also got to ride real horses over the Christmas holidays (and of course, I have pictures of that for ya.) So she did remember after all, but she is having so much fun with all her new toys, she hasnt mentioned it again!

Christmas Eve 2008!

And the festivities begin... On Christmas Eve around 6 ish we always go to Silas's Grandparents house, who will be known from this point as Paw-Paw and Grandma Beth (just so you know). All of Paw-Paw's kids, grandkids, and great-grandkids come. They always fix more than enough food, which starts the whole eating of way to much food during the Christmas holidays.

This is Paw-Paw giving the 3 little ones instructions. Jolee, Caden, and Braxton got to help Paw-Paw hand out all the presents this year.

Check out the concentration on her face here. She was some kind of serious opening this present!
We all had a great time, we ate, visited, and opened presents, and as always we got to hear stories on all his grandkids. Love this part, that means I hear all the good stuff/bad stuff on Silas when he was younger.

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Zachary, Jolee, and Caden!

After we are done at Paw-Paw's house, we head directly over to Silas's mom and dad's house. Which you all know as PePaw and MeMaw. All of their kids and grandkids come and we all have a good time. We eat AGAIN, and open yet even more presents!

Jolee checking out her new vacuum cleaner. When we got home, and started putting toys away, she didn't want her vacuum to go in her play room. She went and put it in the hall closet where my vacuum is and says...that's where it goes mommy!

MeMaw and PePaw with Jolee and her new Big Dora doll!

Jolee was so excited about getting a Cinderella dress up outfit and jewelry. We had to stop right then and put it all on.

PePaw and MeMaw with all their grandkids on Christmas Eve!

Our Christmas 2008!

On Sunday evening the 21st, we had our family Christmas. We always have it before we head to Bama... 1. It gives us, our little family a chance to open our presents together at our house with our tree. 2. We would have to have a u-haul, to carry all of our presents plus everyone else's to Bama. And 3. We open them a few days before we leave, so Jolee can have a chance to play with new toys and I have a chance to wash new clothes that we received, so we can pack em and wear em in Bama!

It is our tradition, that we have a nice sit down dinner on our china with candle light and just enjoy each other. Tt is something different and special. Well this year, we changed the menu a bit. You see, we had gone out for a big lunch after church that Sunday and by the time it came time to start cooking and eating none of us were hungry. So Silas came up with a good idea...we had a sit down dessert instead. We had brownie with vanilla ice-cream, chocolate syrup, marshmallows, cool whip and some even had bananas on them too. It was every kids or Silas's dream!

We had a great evening! This is Jolee opening her stocking!

Yes, we bought Sophie some new toys too!

Jolee was so into it this year. She opened every present by herself and did it piece by piece. After she would open it, she would come hug you and say thank you, Merry Christmas Mommy! It was precious!

She got tons of stuff and loved it all!

Silas and I had a wonderful Christmas too!

He did really, really good this year for me (as always)!

Jolee and her microphones as she calls it. It really is fun, that night her and I stayed up till midnight singing and watching ourselves on TV. We were jammin to songs like "Itsy Bitsy Spider", "Row Row Row your boat" and "The wheels on the bus"!

I don't think, I did that bad shopping for him either!

It was a wonderful Christmas at our house!

I will have post after post and pictures after pictures of all the events that took place while we were in Bama for the holidays!

Merry Christmas!

From our family to yours, Merry Christmas!

Look what she can do.......

She got this tricycle, back in May for her Birthday. Only about 7 months ago, but just this week stuff started clicking and she is now riding it like a pro! Believe me, we have tried and tried and worked and worked with her on riding it, but as soon as we gave it up, she hops on and takes off! Go figure! Kids! Gotta love em! So yeah for Jolee, she can ride her tricycle like a big girl!

"Let It Snow"

When "nature" calls, it calls, even if you are in the middle of singing your favorite Christmas song. Fortunately, mommy caught it on film. Because, it is just too cute that you know all the words and dance and sing to it; too many times to count in one single day!

The rest of our Thanksgiving weekend in Bama!

We had such a good time visiting and playing with all of the family. Last year, Pappy gave Jolee a snow globe before Christmas and she loved it and still does. So what did Pappy have waiting on her when we arrived at their house...another snow globe. She was so excited, she kept saying I got 2, I got 2. This is going to be their thing, I believe. Everyday all day we listen to them play while she dances and says...my Pappy gave this to me!

So Thank you Dad, she loves them!

My Grandad and well my Grandma for that matter, will kill me when they see, that I put a picture of Grandad in his PJ's on here. But I thought is was so cute, Jolee went and got him and asked him to read her some books, so they piled up in the chair with their PJ's on and several books and started reading!

My little man, Weston! He is adorable. We went up to Uncle JoJo, Aunt Pam, and Weston's house and spent the day watching the "Alabama vs. Auburn" game. Silas actually went to the game, and had a great time. But the rest of us being me, Jolee, Pappy, and Granna all went up to watch it at Weston's house and had a great time watching the kiddos play!

Jolee and Granna

After the game, we went and had a girls night out, while Pappy and Uncle JoJo stayed at home with Jolee and Weston. We did some shopping, and were headed to the movies, when we had to make a pit stop and meet Joseph and give Pam back to him, Bless her heart she got "The Virus" she was trying to hang in their, but the virus got the best of her. So mom and me went on to the movies (and had a great time) while Pam went home and got medicated and tucked into bed. People where dropping like flies, on this trip!

I better make sure we can come back for Christmas, since we brought everyone the virus our last trip home... To my family, it is gone, we are not sick anymore, promise! Who am I kidding I have presents of course we can come home!

Jolee and Weston had such a good time together. Jolee was so good with him, she helped feed him, and kept giving him puffs. She just loves him to pieces!

They even talk to each other on the phone daily. When Im talking to mom, Jolee will come to the phone (which is usually on speaker phone, because I just got through talking to little man myself) and she will say....hey Weston, its Jolee and then he will start hollering back something and then she laughs and says hear that momma he is talking to me.

Finally got a good picture of them together. We were all up their acting like idiots trying to make them smile and finally it worked.

Aunt Tara got some major loving from him, and I loved every minute of it!

Our Thanksgiving Day: Part 2

I know you are all looking at the above picture thinking to yourself, Tara must have put up the wrong picture, because that doesn't look like turkey or any other Thanksgiving Day food I have ever seen. I assure you, this time I didn't put up the wrong picture.

Pappy and Jolee

We go to my Grandparents house on Thanksgiving Day evening, and we have so many young kiddos all over the place now, that instead of doing the traditional sit down turkey and ham dinner, we have a bonfire and roast hot dogs and do smores and then we go on a hayride out in the pasture. It's all about the kids at my Grandparents house!

Everyone loves it, from the smaller all the way up to the big kids. We sit around laugh and talk while the kids run around and have a good time playing together.

Wondering why I'm helping Jolee roast her winnie instead of her Daddy (I think that is a Daddy's job, am I right)? Well, you see Silas caught "The Virus"! Yep, that afternoon he started not looking so good, and then BAM, it hit him! Bless his heart, so we tucked him into bed and well that's where he spent the next 2 days. So he missed out on all the festivities. Poor Baby.

Jolee staring at the stars! She did that for the longest time!

My grandma and grandpa!

Ok, I know that my eyes look huge and they are wide open here, but it is a cute picture of Jolee and we don't have that many of us together, because I'm the one always taking them, so there you go... one of Jolee and her wide eyed Mommy at the bonfire!

This is our cousin Alex, either pretending he is going to roast something or he is thinking about throwing the stick into the fire. Either one, he is such a cutie pie!

Aunt Pam, Uncle JoJo and Weston on the hayride! Weston fell asleep while on the hayride. But at least they know what to do on those sleepless nights now...take him on a hayride!

Look at that adorable face and those cheeks! Gosh, I miss him.

Joseph, Abigail or (Abidale as Jolee calls her), and Audrey trying to find the perfect seat on the hayride.

What a wonderful Thanksgiving we had! We have so much to be thankful for!

Our Thanksgiving Day: Part 1

Last night it hit me, that I haven't posted any pictures from Thanksgiving Day. So as the title reads above, here goes Part 1 of Our Thanksgiving Day!

We always do Thanksgiving Day lunch, with Silas's Dad's side of the family. This year it was at Granny's house! Her house was packed, almost everybody showed up this year. Everyone had a great time catching up and couldn't believe how big Jolee had gotten, it had been since last year at Thanksgiving since most of them had seen her!

The kids played outside in the leaves and had a blast. Jolee loved the leaves! She ran in them, sat in them, threw them, loved them! That's all she was interested in doing while we were there..Playing in the leaves!

You would have thought we had never seen leaves before, the way we played in them! Well it had been since last year!

Granny was so excited, that so many of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren had come. She was so thankful all day, a couple of times tears where shed, as thanked God for all he had blessed her with!

We decided with so many there, that it would be a good time to get some pictures of everyone with Granny. The one above is Granny with her grandchildren and great grandchildren!

This picture is of Granny and her grandchildren (the ones that where there)!

Granny and her children!

and the most important one... Granny with the in laws!! Just kidding, but I know you agree with me Rich!

Granny has been such a inspiration in Silas's life, a wonderful christian woman, who has definitely been a great role model for all her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and to the in-laws. I don't know, that she will ever know what an important person she is in Silas's life.

Granny is 89 years old, and has had a lot of Thanksgiving days, but you could tell this year was really special to her and to all of us as well! Please keep her in your prayers!