"Come On In"

Here are a few shots of the girls this morning at Sunday School Christmas Program-"Come On In". The animals were inviting Mary and Joseph to "Come on In" to the stable on the first Christmas. Our wish this Christmas is that more people will invite Jesus to "Come On In" in their lives. Have a very Merry Christmas!

A Saturday of Holiday Fun

The girls decorated a gingerbread house Saturday night after Grace danced at the mall in the afternoon. The had fun spreading the frosting on and designing it-each took a side. Olivia had taken a shower after basketball earlier in the morning, but as you can see, she needed to hop in the tub with Emma again after she was finished! You are suppose to be able to eat the house after you are done, but believe me, I wouldn't want to eat their house! Too many licked fingers! We'll just enjoy it on the kitchen table!

Grace the Concert Violinist

Grace had her first violin concert last Monday. I was very impressed with the fourth graders and how well they could play. We also got to list to the fifth grade orchestra, so it was fun to see what we have to look forward to! Doesn't she look professional?

Baby It's Cold Outside

We went to the Festival of Lights last night here at the Cincinnati Zoo. It was a great time as usual, but COLD! We rode the train and the carousel several times, got hot chocolate, gingerbread cookies, and warm cinnamon nuts (Yum!) Yes, Emma got hot chocolate at the zoo. I guess she learned her lesson from the tree farm trip! She was an angel last night, despite being freezing! Both she and Olivia were asleep before we pulled out of the parking lot.

Cuddling on the train.

Daddy and Mommy on the train.

The girls enjoying the lights from the train.

My silly girls!

Grace and Olivia's Piano Recital

The girls had their piano recitial on Saturday in the lobby of Mercy Anderson Hospital. It was Olivia's first recital, so she was pretty nervous. The recital was at 3:00, and I bet she played her song at least 50 times that day, complete with the "Hi, my name is Olivia Hamilton and I will be playing "We Wish You a Merry Christmas", and the courtsey. It payed off for her, because she was great! Way to go girls, you make us proud!

A Perfect Day for Getting a Christmas Tree

Saturday we drove out to Sugartree Farms to get our Christmas tree. It has become a tradition in our family to make the long 45 minute drive out to the tree farm. It's a great place! The girls love running up and down the hills looking for just the right tree and this year we even hiked through the woods to another lot filled with even more trees. After finding the perfect tree, daddy cuts it down and we drag it back to the barn. There, we warm up in front of the roaring fire and enjoy some hot chocolate. This year was even more perfect because it was snowing while we were cutting down the tree!!! I can't remember any other year with the girls that it has snowed when we were cutting the Christmas tree. They had fun throwing snowballs, running in the snow, etc. Sounds like a Hallmark moment, doesn't it??? Well, actually it was!!!

The girls in front of the tree before Daddy cut it down.

A little teamwork goes a long way! Go girls!!

Warming up in front of the fire. (Emma has ice water, though! It's a long story, but let's just say it wasn't a pleasant ride out to the tree farm, and she lost the privilege of having hot chocolate. )

Dancer of the Month

Olivia was dancer of the month for the month of November in her Hip Hop class. Here she is proudly displaying her trophy that she got! Way to go Olivia!! You deserve it!!! Now, can we see a some "chicken" or "towel" moves???

Happy Birthday, PaPa!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY, PAPA!! We love you! Here are some of our favorite pictures from good times over the past year. Emma loves the ones of the tractor rides. She said, "Oh, I love that! You just go down the hill and go, "Ohhhh!" It's so much fun!" Thanks for all the good times!

Thanksgiving in Tennessee

This year we spent Thanksgiving with Dan's entire family in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. His entire family was there at some point. It was great to see everyone! The girls especially had a great time with all their cousins. It was truly a Thanksgiving they will never forget! We had an action packed weekend of eating, shopping, going to the Great Smokey Mountain National Park, seeing a movie, and just hanging out. Our family has so much to be thankful for this year. The Lord has truly blessed us!

Emma and her cousins Madelyn, Evan, Josh and Abigail on Thanksgiving day.

A family tradition!

A shot of the mountains in Cades Cove.

Olivia took this shot out the window of the van in Cades Cove. She didn't even zoom in--that's how close it was!!!

Watching the UK-Tennesse football game.

What are you girls plotting to do next?

Abigail and Sammy

Everyone packing up to go home.

Grace Gets New Glasses

Here is a picture of Grace in her new glasses!!!!

Veteran's Day

Grace wrote an essay for Veteran's Day and was chosen along with two sixth graders to read her essay in a ceremony in front of the school on a very cold Veteran's Day morning. Dan and I were very proud of her! She got up in front of about 60 people, and even the superintendent of the school district! Here are a couple of great pictures that Dan snapped from that morning.

An American Girl Morning

A couple of Saturday's ago (like they often do) the girls had "American Girl Fest". They had a grand old time dressing up their dolls, doing their hair, etc. Grace even put Olivia's hair up in curlers for her. Is it any wonder that half their Christmas lists included American Girl stuff?