Ginger Bread Houses

Our friends Casey, Molly & Will came over this afternoon to make ginger bread houses. We used graham crackers instead of ginger bread so I guess we should have called them graham cracker houses. Anyhow, it was the first time Anna has done something like this. She enjoyed eating the candy of course and helped a little with decorating. Molly really got into decorating hers (she's 4)! We had a fun time but thankfully our house won't be entered in any contest...it kept caving in and I tried to "glue" it back together with icing. Thanks for suggesting this Casey; lets do it again next year! Anna & Molly hard at work!

Anna pausing for a smile before eating another piece of candy!

Molly putting on the finishing touches!

School Christmas Party

Jonathan & I went to Anna's class Christmas party on Wednesday. One of the little girls in Anna's class was having her 2nd birthday so her parents brought in cupcakes. We were expecting some Christmas songs or other festivities but they sang happy birthday and ate cupcakes and that was the end of the Christmas party! We just laughed! Anna loved the cupcake!

New wake-up call

Last week Anna woke me up with a new greeting: "Mommy, come here! I want you!" She started off quietly and then worked her way up to a volume she was sure I could hear. It was 6:30 am on the weekend at my mom's house. I rolled over, laughed to myself, and smiled and thought she sure is getting smart! What mom can resist that kind of a wake-up call? I actually resisted for about 30 more minutes while I "rested my eyes" and let her sing and talk in her crib. She has continued to give me similar wake-up calls but thankfully not all at that hour.

Time with Grandpa

This past Sunday Anna and I got to visit with Grandpa Miller (my dad). This was a special treat for both of us as we don't get to do it often enough! Anna is still pretty shy around her Grandpa but gets a little better each time she sees him. She got really tickled with the pictures he drew her on the doodle pro of minnie mouse and of herself (I got a good laugh too). She also enjoyed sharing goldfish with her grandpa--more than mom would normally let her have. We love you dad and wish we could see you more!! The three of us.

Anna watching Grandpa draw Minnie Mouse.

Anna and Grandpa.

Thanksgiving Day

I did a terrible job of taking pictures this week when we were with our family. I didn't get any of my side of the family but we did stop to take a few with Jonathan's (Anna would not get in any of those pictures though)! We had a great time with both sets of parents, our brothers and family & my grandparents. Anna and her daddy doing the twist on their knees. It was quite funny to watch. Anna not only twists her little body but she swings her head back and forth too--you can tell by looking at her hair!

The Norton boys and their mama (Rachel & Sarah too).

Wish Anna would have gotten in this picture!

Jonathan's brother Chris and his girls.

Our nieces, Sarah & Rachel. Anna had such a good time playing with them this week. They were so sweet to her and gave her lots of attention!

First Hair Cut!!

I finally decided that it was time to get Anna's hair cut. Several people have made good comments about a kid friendly place called Pigtails & Crewcuts which is right down the road from our parents. We took her Wednesday before Thanksgiving. The place was very cute. There was a playroom with lots of toys, coloring books, etc. to play with while you wait and the chairs for Anna's age were little cars that they could sit in. Unfortunately Anna didn't think they were as cute as I did. She screamed and refused to sit in one. The lady helping us was very patient and moved us to the regular hair cut chairs and had me sit and hold Anna but that didn't work either. Anyhow, as you can see I ended up standing and holding Anna while the lady trimmed her hair. Anna was fairly cooperative but was definately not thrilled with the process. She has, however, been talking about her haircut and showing everyone. It didn't make too much difference b/c her hair is pretty wild and does it's own thing. At least it's even around the edges now though! Always an adventure with a two year old!!

ICE CREAM!!

This was taken several weekends ago at one of Jonathan's basketball games. Anna and I ate at Chick fil A on the way to the game and I got her an ice cream to take to the game. A girl after my own heart--she loves ice cream!!!

A Purr-fect Halloween!

Anna dressed up as a black kitty for Halloween. I dressed her up earlier this week for the Fall Festival at the library and she did great; she was not as cooperative on Halloween. She didn't want me to paint her face and kept saying "no tail". She didn't realize that I had pinned her tail to the inside of her pants and she wore it all evening! This year we decided to try trick or treating at the mall. It worked out great for us. It was warm inside and there was plenty of candy. Plus, as unsure as Anna was the whole evening I'm pretty sure knocking on doors in the dark would not have gone over too well. She wanted me to carry her at the mall but we soon got smart and rented a little red car to push her in. She was happy with it and it made it much easier on me. We couldn't get her to say trick or treat to the people giving out candy but it didn't take her long how to figure out to hold her little princess bucket out for them to drop the candy in! We ended our evening by going to the first half of the Berry Men's basketball game. Jonathan's team was there and all of them dressed up too. Anna usually goes right to his players but she was very shy with them all dressed up!

Various things...

Anna in her trick or treat outfit. I asked her to pose for a picture so I could send it to my mom today and she was so cooperative!! I loved her smile in this one! A friend of mine got Anna a princess wand and halo for her birthday. Anna was being silly one morning last week playing and let me get some pictures of her. She's been so into the Disney Princesses lately! You can see in the picture that she had on her princess nightgown (with pants underneath b/c it was chilly on the morning we took this).
More of princess Anna!
Anna with her cousin Sarah and one of Sarah's friends. They got to play together a couple of weeks ago while we were visiting at Mamaw & Papaw's house. I forgot to include it in one of my other posts and thought it was cute. Sarah is so sweet to Anna but we don't get to see much of her since she lives out of town. Anna thinks she is great though!!

Fun at Grandma's!

Anna stayed with my mom on Saturday night while Jonathan and I were away in the mountains. She had lots of fun with Grandma and her Mamaw & Papaw got to join in on the fun too. Saturday morning Grandma & Mamaw took Anna to the pumpkin patch, the park and then lunch (where they met Papaw) at Chick-fil-A. The afternoon was filled with lots more playing at Grandma's and another trip to the park on Sunday before we came back. Mom said Anna was perfect while we were gone. While I find perfect hard to believe, I do think they had a great time! Anna got to pick out her own pumpkin to bring home from the pumpkin patch--here it is!
This one is a little to big for me!
Mom had lots of new toys for Anna to play with including this tea set (the tea pot plays "I'm a little tea pot"--too cute) and a doggy doctor playdough set. Spoiled by Grandma!

Mountain Get A Way

Jonathan and I had the opportunity this weekend to spend a night away in the mountains. We stayed in a little red cabin in the NC mountains between Franklin & Highlands. It was a simple cabin but the property and the view were absolutely beautiful! The front porch was full of rocking chairs where you could sit and enjoy the view of the mountains and Christmas tree farms. Near the creek there was a hammock that we enjoyed relaxing in. The leaves have started to change and everywhere you looked were beautiful orange, yellow and red leaves. On Saturday afternoon we drove into Highlands and stopped at two waterfalls on the way. Jonathan and I love waterfalls and like to hike to them whenever we have the chance to go to the mountains. The two we saw were visible from the road but the walks to them didn't look up our speed (down a steep, rocky bank). We just enjoyed taking some pictures this time. The mountains are so breath-taking and peaceful and full of God's glory!The cabin where we stayed.
The view from the front porch.

A view from just up the road of the pretty mountains and Christmas trees!
Jonny in the hammock next to the creek.
We didn't have anyone to take a picture of the two of us so we held the camera as far out in front of us as our arms would reach!
Cullasaja Falls
The name of this waterfall is Bust Your Butt Falls. When we went to look at this one some parents were letting their kids climb on the rocks and wade at the bottom. We overheard someone saying that their child fell in. Another person said, "Guess that's why they call it bust your butt falls". Guess you had to be there--but we thought it was pretty funny!

Happy Birthday Mom!

Anna and I went to my mom's for part of the weekend to celebrate her birthday. Jonathan was busy at home with basketball practice and Abby (my sister-in-law) was out of town for work so they didn't get to join in on the celebration. My brother, Kevin, and Anna and I took her out to dinner for Italian food on Friday night and then went out again for lunch (Mexican) on Saturday before Anna and I came home. We had a fun weekend!! Happy birthday again mom--love you!

Anna's 2nd Birthday!!

I'm a little behind on my posting...
Anna turned TWO on September 20th! The last two years have flown by! We had a birthday party here at the house for her. The weather was absolutely beautiful for her party and we were very thankful because we'd never have fit everyone inside. We had lots of family, a few friends and many of Jonathan's basketball players come by to celebrate with us. Anna chose Barney for her cake this year and was very pleased with it. She actually helped herself to some of the cake before her guest arrived for the party! It was cute but I stopped her after a few bites so there would be some left for everyone else. Present opening was an adventure. Anna was not at all interested. She would open one and then wanted to go play with her friends. We got a few opened before her friends left and then continued opening after nap time and well into the evening. We finished by dinner time! She does love all of her new toys and plays with something different almost everyday which is fun for her (and for me)! She is such a blessed little girl and such a blessing to those of us who love her!!

Do you have your free ticket?

For those of you who are used to my normal blog entries, mostly pictures with a few words, you will find this one much different. Our Sunday school lesson today and several recent sermons over the past month have placed a burden in my heart for those that I love and even those that I don’t know who are lost. I’m not a Bible scholar but I do understand that heaven and hell are very REAL places. I’m confident in my salvation and do not have a fear of hell for myself but my heart aches and I feel sick to my stomach for those who don’t know Jesus—He is THE ONLY way to heaven “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6). The great thing that so many take for granted is that Jesus, through his death on the cross and resurrection, has already paid for our ticket into heaven. It’s absolutely FREE!! All we have to do is be willing to ACCEPT His gift. So simple, yet so many have turned Him away. The Bible tells us that this gift is for everyone, you don’t have to be anywhere near perfect because we are all sinners. “For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23). With God we don’t have to fear death but can look forward to an eternal life in heaven “For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord” (Romans 6:23). God loves us so much that even though we are sinners he sent his son to die for us “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8). To receive Christ we need to admit that we are sinners and ask for His forgiveness. Next we need to believe that Jesus died for us, was buried, and rose from the dead. Finally, we need to say a prayer and invite Jesus into our lives to become our personal Savior. “If you confess with your mouth, Jesus is Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved” (Romans 10: 9 & 10). If you’ve just prayed to accept Jesus CONGRATULATIONS--you’ve just received the greatest gift you can ever imagine!! Please tell someone that you love! If you’ve already accepted your free gift of salvation please copy this idea if you are a “blogger” so that those who may be reading and may not know Jesus will have the opportunity to accept His gift (we never know who is reading our blogs).

Playtime with Mommy!!

Anna and I had some fun playtime on her swingset yesterday afternoon before we went back to church. It's been awhile since I've taken pictures of her so I brought my camera when we went out to play. I'm glad I did because she was in the mood to do some posing for me!

Back to School!

Today was back to school day for Anna and I! Of course Barney and paci (she hasn't given it up yet) had to go to school with Anna too. Jonathan takes her to school and I pick her up so we started that today even though I really wanted to go with them this morning. This year was a much easier start for both of us than last year; no tears from either of us. Her teachers said she had a great day and she seemed to be happy when I picked her up. My classes got off to a good start too. So far, so good!

Cutie Pie

Anna starts back to her two morning a week preschool on the 18th (I start teaching again that day too). We got a letter from her school asking us to a bring a close up picture of our child to orientation so after church today I took her outside to try to get one. Picture taking is always an adventure with Anna but I managed to get a couple that I thought were cute! I can't believe how fast she is growing up but a what a precious blessing she is to her daddy and I--God is soooooooooooooo good!!!

Bathtime with Barney!

As you've probably read in one of my other posts, Anna LOVES Barney! The only thing Barney that we have owned up until today are a few DVDs but today at Toys R Us I found her a Barney doll that can go in the tub or pool. She loves him and has not put him down all day! I was afraid she was going to have a melt down after her bath when I told her Barney had to stay in the bathroom until the morning to dry out--she of course wanted him to sleep in her crib. Fortunately Barney also came with a little Baby Bop figurine that could be dried off easily so she settled for her for the night. Here she is in the tub with her new Barney doll...

Weekend Fun!

Anna got to spend some time with her Mamaw and Papaw this weekend. They met us at church on Sunday and we all had a relaxing day together afterwards. On Monday the girls went to the park while the boys worked on some projects to help update our guest bathrooms. I think we got the better end of that deal! The picture below is of Anna and Mamaw playing with the bubbles. The bottle was almost empty but Anna was determined to get some more bubbles out of it!!

Team Cookout

We had a cookout for Jonathan's basketball team tonight at our house to help kick-off their team building retreat for this weekend. They are having a "lock-in" at the Cage Center tonight through Saturday night and have many surprise activities planned for the weekend (I can't mention them in case one of the players reads this before they take place). Anna had such a great time with everyone being at her house and was quite the little show off. I think she could get used to having several rooms full of people to play with! We missed two of our players tonight though; K.B had a prior commitment to work camp and Brittany C. was supposed to fly in last night but her flight was cancelled. Guess we'll have to do it again soon--Anna would be thrilled! T.J., Holly, Kate, Kendall, & Laura G.
Kayla & Alex
Keta, Amy, Carol, Briana, & Brittany
Sally, Nikki, Laura M., Erica, & Keta
2008-2009 Berry Women's Basketball Team (minus two)