People!!

Cake balls are where it's at!! I made my first batch tonight for Anna's Thanksgiving Feast tomorrow and oh my goodness!! They are amazing!! So seriously, go here and get the very simple recipe. And get to cooking!!! You will not regret it!

(I made strawberry cake and white chocolate coating with milk chocolate drizzled on top.)

Anna is 3!!

Yes, it's true. She is 3 years old. Hard to believe, I know, but it's very real. She had two birthday parties this year. She thought she had definitely become a princess. Her first party was at her preschool. She had a blast sharing that party with all of her Snuggle Bug friends. Her second party was at Sonshine Gymnastics. That was a definite highlight for her. She had so much fun playing at "big gym" with all of her friends there.I believe it was the best 3rd birthday celebration that a girl could ever ask for.

Up

I'm finally getting to watch the Disney movie "Up". I've been anxious to watch it since it was in the theater. I'm not sure why I have been so drawn to it, but it caught my attention from the beginning. I am about half way through it as I write this and it has not disappointed! I could probably watch those balloons carry that house across the bright blue sky a million times and not get tired of it. The colors are all perfect! And the characters are very entertaining! Carl is chasing the dream he and his wife always had. And Russell is a dorky little Wilderness Explorer trying to get his "assisting the elderly" badge. I can't believe that I'm enjoying it so much, but I truly am. Maybe you should watch it!

Update: Just finished the movie! I loved it!!!! The story was better than I imagined. I think this is going to be one that I purchase. And I'm so thankful they chose to have the balloons in all different colors! They are just beautiful!

The Beach..I love the beach!!

Last month, we made a trip to Florida. This trip was for two reasons, but I'm only going to focus on the vacation part in this post. We stayed in Destin the last few days of the trip, and we all had an amazing time. Anna loves the beach as much as we do. In this picture, it looks like she's telling daddy all about how big the ocean is...

I'm not sure what she was thinking here, but it really looks like she's concentrating on something. Maybe she's trying to design the best sand castle ever and she's just not sure where to start...
We were even able to get mom out to the beach one day. Dad had come too, but didn't last very long. He decided he would rather sit in the car. :) At least mom got to enjoy feeling the sand between her toes...Of course there was some shopping too. Anna really loaded up at the build-a-bear workshop. And there was no way she was going to allow anyone to help her carry her new friends...But all in all, we spent a whole lot of the trip in the van. It was a long drive to Gainesville, FL then back to Destin, FL and then back home. But I don't think any of us would trade one single minute for anything different. The "Florida Trip", as Anna called it, was perfect.

What?? I have a blog???

I guess maybe I forgot about it. Ok, not really, I just haven't taken the time to post anything in f.o.r.e.v.e.r. I could try to sum up the last 10 months, but really that would be ridiculous. I believe I will just stay in the now and move forward. So......

Anna is in preschool now, and recently she had her school picture day. :) So cute. Stay tuned for pictures from our recent trip to the beach...

Better than I ever imagined

Yes, Christmas this year was bigger and better than I ever dreamed it would be. Anna had a blast this year, but this year was better for me because I slowed down to enjoy it. I am normally a person who can't sit still, mainly because I'll fall asleep if I do, but because of this I miss out on a lot of quality time with Anna. I changed my ways the past few days. I have played with her for hours and not touched the laundry or dirty dishes. And even though it will take me through the end of next week to get caught up on work and chores, I wouldn't trade it for the world.

This picture was right before leaving for our church's candlelight service on Christmas Eve. Daddy was at work, but the two of us went.

After our service, we went to my brother's for dinner and then to their candlelight service. Afterwards, we came back to their house and put the girls in their matching pj's. Sooooo cute!!! Here they are giving each other a goodbye hug.

I have lots of pictures of Anna with all of her new toys, but there are too many to choose from. I'm sure you will see them in pictures along the way, but she got a new wagon, a tricycle, a 4-wheeler, a kitchen...... and those are just the big things. Imagine all of the little things and all of the clothes that she got!!!! Yeah, she had a great time!! I hope everyone else did too.

We've got some catching up to do.....

Let's go back in time a few weeks to November 16th. That was the day that Anna turned two!!! She had a great birthday party and got lots of perfect gifts. Let me share a few pictures...

She got a horsey!! And she absolutely loves the horsey. She got the perfect little tea set and a Mr. Potato Head. And she got a baby carrier. Do you think she likes it?????I promise you neither the tea set picture or the sleeping with the baby carrier picture are staged. Anna is responsible for both setups.

And here are a few pictures that Cherie did for us for Anna's 2nd birthday.

Ok, now that you've seen Anna turn two, let's fast forward to this past weekend. We put up the Christmas tree, and this year Anna got to help. She did such a good job, see.....

That's all for now, but the fun's just getting started. She's TWO!!!!