A Three Generation Tradition

A few weeks ago, I noticed that tickets were on sale for the Ballet Memphis production of The Nutcracker.  I remember taking a school field trip to see it when I was a little girl and decided that Ava might enjoy it.  Since I knew Kevin wouldn't be super keen on this idea (in his defense, he would have happily gone along with his girls but he would really rather be home watching football), I thought this would be a fun girls day for me, Ava, and her Neena.  Neena happily agreed so I purchased our tickets.  Before the ballet, I thought it would be fun to spend a couple of hours at The Peabody Hotel enjoying the Christmas decorations and lounging in the lobby listening to the Christmas carols being played on the piano.  As soon as we walked in the hotel, we saw the gingerbread village.

***I knew I wouldn't be able to take my camera into The Orpheum, so I had to take all these pics on my cell phone which I don't particularly like to use but you make do with what you have.

As we were walking into the lobby area, we just happened to run right into Santa!  It was so exciting!  He was off-duty at the time but he graciously stopped and spent several minutes talking to us and posing for pictures.  He even had some extra candy canes in his pocket for us!  It was totally unexpected to see him but a very, very cool surprise.

We took some time to walk around the hotel and enjoy the decorations.  It was absolutely beautiful!

Ava visited the ducks

and made a wish in the wishing fountain.

We all got delicious desserts from The Peabody Deli & Desserts and found a quiet corner to enjoy them.

Once we finished our fancy desserts, it was time to walk over to The Orpheum. 

Ava loved the ornate decor.

We found our seats and got ready for the ballet to begin.

I had no idea what Ava would think of the ballet but she seemed to really enjoy it.  I thought with the length of it and the fact that there is no speaking she may be bored, but it really held her attention. After it was over, we went to the lobby and bought Ava her very own fancy nutcracker to decorate her room for Christmas. 

She was very excited to bring it home and show it to her Daddy.

The three of us had such a fun, special girls day.  It is definitely a tradition that we would all like to continue!

The Adventures of Ferrell

After Thanksgiving,  Ava always anxiously awaits the arrival of our elf, Ferrell.  She absolutely ADORES him.  She mentions him throughout the year and when he is here in our home, we will often catch her in the middle of (one-sided) conversations with him.  He is SO real to her and it is magical to see.  We learned a lot about Ferrell this year and here are some highlights from his visit.

We learned that our Ferrell loves syrup!  We caught him in the pantry drinking it straight from the 

bottle.

He hijacked my weekly menu planning board and we learned what elves' four major food groups are:  candy, candy canes, candy corns, and syrup.  Ava thought that menu looked pretty good but realized that it really wasn't that healthy.

Ferrell is also really thoughtful so he packed Ava's lunch one morning before school.  Guess what was included?  That's right, syrup!  It's too bad the rest of her lunch was so yucky--cayenne pepper, jell-o powder, a candy cane, and a K-cup.  Ava quickly let him know that that was not a good lunch for little human girls and we packed something else. 

Ferrell also was thoughtful when he made a special welcome banner for our new dog, Janka.  It was really sweet of him and Janka loved it.

Ferrell may be thoughtful but that elf also has a mischievous streak!  He snuck upstairs to Kevin's office and used the copier to photocopy his little booty.  And doesn't he just look pleased with himself?!  Ava thought it was hilarious and the elf booty picture is still hanging on the front of our refrigerator.

Then he got into our dogs' treats thinking they were cookies and made himself sick.  We learned that elves vomit glitter.  Good to know, huh?

Ferrell thought it would be funny to "trap" Ava in her room.

He also apparently felt like painting one night but he couldn't find any paper.  So he painted the next best thing--Kevin's toes!  I say it all the time, but I will say it again--I just adore my husband! 

The funniest thing was later that night when Kevin and I were getting ready for bed, I told him that I would get the nail polish remover and take it off for him.  He said, "You mean there is something that will get it off?  I thought it just had to wear off!"  He was prepared to have to wear that polish for days! He is such a good sport.

After all that mischief, Ferrell just needed to enjoy a nice bath with some cozy cotton balls instead of bubbles.  Those elves are just a little bit strange!

Ferrell rode along to drop Ava off at school one day and to pick her up in the car line after school.  The other kids waiting to be picked up were really happy to see him--squealing and pointing as we drove up.  I think Ferrell really felt like a big shot that afternoon.

Hanging out the window on such a cold day must have given poor Ferrell a cold. :(

Every once in a while, Ferrell would have something for Ava.  One morning, he showed up with a very official Elf Progress Report on Ava.  Unfortunately, it said she had some work to do to make sure she ended up on the nice list.

The following week, Ava got an email from Santa with a video for her to watch.  By the end of the video, we learned that she had made her way back onto the nice list!  She had worked hard to improve on the things on which Ferrell said she needed work.

Ferrell also brought her a very fancy, special letter from Santa one morning along with a golden ticket for the Polar Express.  The letter explained how Santa had emailed Kevin and myself to ask if we would be willing to bring Ava on a special vacation to Chattanooga to meet him and celebrate the holidays.  We said yes, of course--who turns down Santa?!  I am catching up on lots of blogging and will cover that trip shortly.

We have such a blast when Ferrell is here and we are always sad when he has to head back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve.  I guess he needs that time off to plan what kind of fun he will bring to our home next year!

Celebrating 8 Years of Marriage Today!

Eight years ago today, I married my better half.  It was such an amazing night spent with family and friends and I hate that it seemed to go by in the blink of an eye--very much like these last eight years.  Kevin and I have been together for 13 years now.  We have so many wonderful memories.  The last few weeks we have been working on a very special project that is taking us both on a trip down memory lane.  We spent the evening a few days ago going through old pictures that were taken all throughout our relationship.  I thought that today is the perfect day to share a few of those in celebration of our wedding anniversary.  Kevin was nice enough to stay up late last night scanning all of these pictures onto my laptop for me--thanks, babe!  

 Fun at a Grizzlies game

 On vacation in Destin

 New Year's Eve 2001

 On a trip to see our friends in Knoxville

 Down in Gulf Shores for a friend's wedding

Groomsman and bridesmaid in our friends Paul and Jenny's wedding in 2003

The night Kevin proposed--December 22, 2003.  He did it in front of quite a few of our friends!  I was speechless.

One of our engagement photos taken at Shelby Farms

Presenting Mr. and Mrs. Kevin Daniel--October 9, 2004 at Carahills Estate

This was our first photo Christmas card that we ever sent out as a family in 2004.  Look how little Patton is!

Celebrating our first New Year's Eve as a married couple

And the day our lives changed forever for the better and our family grew by one.  In the hospital for the birth of Ava Reese--March 5, 2007.

Kevin, I thank you for the constant love, support, and commitment that you show me.  I am grateful for the hard work that you put in so that I can stay home and spend more time with Ava.  I love you for making me laugh and for taking care of me.  I am constantly in awe of the amazing father that you are to Ava and I make sure to tell you often how proud I am of the example you set for her.  You tell me often that one of your biggest goals in life is to make me happy.  I just want you to know that you do that just by being you every day.  Here's to eight years and hopefully many, many more.  

I love you and I am so blessed that you were part of God's plan for me!

Our Crazy, Busy Weekend

My favorite season is fall.  The weather is great and there is just always so much fun stuff going on and excitement for the upcoming holidays.  It has quickly become apparent that October is going to be one of the busiest months of the year for us but we would not have it any other way.  :)  This Friday night, our nieces came over to spend the night with Ava.  Kevin and I took the girls out to dinner at Swanky's where we dined al fresco.  

Then we took them roller skating.  Kevin and I had not skated in years and Ava had never skated so it was interesting to say the least.  I was proud of Kevin and myself because neither of us fell even once. 

Ava quickly told us, "This is harder than I thought it would be."  We spent much of the time pulling her up as she fell all over the rink.

Kevin and I kept trying to give her pointers and teach her some technique but Ava is very independent and insisted that she knew what she was doing.  She had fun for awhile and then after a particular rough fall, she decided that she had had enough.  She had just as much fun running around on the side of the rink in her socks than she did actually skating.

Ava and Leah

After the girls were tired of skating, we had a little air hockey competition.  Kevin and I are extremely competitive with each other and we had a fierce air hockey battle that easily lasted 10-15 minutes.  I won. :)

When we got home from the skating rink, it was time for pj's, Good Luck Charlie, and s'mores!  Yum!

That was brilliant of us to sugar them up right before bed, wasn't it?!  The girls ended up staying awake most of the night.  They were quiet though and not getting much sleep is the sign of a good sleepover, I think.  We were up early the next morning for Ava's soccer game.  It was chilly but such a beautiful morning.  Her team won 6-1.  She and her teammates really play well together and they have won all but one game. 

After the game, my mom, Ava, myself, and my friend, Meme, went to check out Mistletoe Merchants.  I had never been before and they had some good stuff but it was sooo crowded!  I absolutely hate shopping in large crowds so it was not exactly my cup of tea but we had a good time.  Ava and Meme had fun trying on some really fancy headbands.

When we got back from shopping, Kevin and I took Ava to my in-laws and then had a date night.  We went to the movie theater to see Taken 2 and then had a delicious dinner at Bonefish.  

This morning after church, Kevin, Ava, and I took Meme out to lunch to celebrate her birthday.  We had yet another delicious meal at J Alexander's and a great time hanging out.  

Our plan is to spend the rest of the evening relaxing after our busy weekend.  Ava is on Fall Break so we don't have to do any of our usual Sunday afternoon lunch menu & clothing prep for this next week which is so nice.  Hope everyone enjoyed their weekend!