SNOW DAYS

so, for months now ben david has been talking about snow. he likes movies about snow, books about snow...pretty much anything about snow. you can imagine my excitement, then upon finding out we were actually going to have some in charlotte.

tuesday morning we awoke to a ground covered in white! i rushed ben david downstairs and told him i had a surprise to show him. he glanced out the window, turned and gave me a terrifed look and then BOLTED into the other room. puzzled, i went and found him and again, took him to the window to see the snow. he did not want to look at it and said, "no snow, mommy! no snow!" i tried explaining how fun it would be to play in, at which he declared he DID NOT want to go outside. for the rest of the morning, the word "snow" was rather taboo over here.

long story short...i think the bottom line was he felt a bit overwhelmed by how different his "world" suddenly looked covered in white. he did however gradually warm up to the idea of playing outside, and thanks to our cousins, he and james enjoyed some fun sled rides. our time outside was brief, but fun!:) on a side note, james found the snow quite enjoyable and laughed hysterically when he first saw it outside.

Christmas Festivites

this christmas was made extra special by the fact that we had our daddy home for a WHOLE WEEK!! in addition to letting mommy sleep in each morning and caring for the boys, he also planned a fun-filled agenda for each day!

we kicked off the week with a family trip to the "lazy 5" ranch in mooresville, nc. the boys were quite amused by this drive-through zoo of sorts. just a few pics...

ben david found this somewhat scary looking bird quite hilarious and fun to feed.

james making friends with a cow

the next event ben lined up for us was a day at monkey joe's! no pics this time, but we had a blast keeping up with two busy monkeys of our own.

christmas eve was spent at grandmommie and poppie's with the anderson crew. always fun to be had with this gang..7 kids + 6 adults = christmas extravaganza!!

movie break

ben david kept chasing james around with this food strainer while poppie and the other kids read the christmas story. hmmm...maybe next year they will sit quietly???

let the present unwrapping begin!!

remote control car for ben david

ben david and kurt had their own little table
and at the end of the night, we found james here. poor guy was just trying to find a quiet place to enjoy the lollipop from his stocking.


christmas morning brought more family fun with breakfast and lunch at marmie and poppy's with mamie, deuce and kai. there was present opening, lots of eating and even scooter rides for all!
a t-ball set!! atlanta braves, look out!

deuce introuducing james to the scooter

ben david and his marmie

WHEEEEEE!!!!

james and kai hanging out.

CONGRATS TO KAI who took his first steps on christmas day!

and my personal favorite...here are a few shots of the boys enjoying what i think might have turned out to be the best christmas gift ever. for his birthday (two days post christmas) ben was given a grill from the emmrich/wright/anderson and wray families.

while the grill was a HUGE hit...the large cardboard box it came in turned out to be an even bigger hit! ben made it into a great "house" that has proven to provide hours of entertainment.

Christmas Tree Shopping: Not a Spectator's Sport!

while some families enjoy cutting down their own tree (andersons:) along with the ambiance of hot chocolate and a hayride, the wright family has their own tradition.

WE GO TO LOWE'S!!

we start off with a trip to starbucks where ben and i get a holiday beverage of choice, then it is off to pick the perfect (and least expensive) tree.

each year, with the addition of one more mobile child, this tradition has become a bit more challenging. this year, while ben diligently held up tree after tree for my approval/disapproval (being met with such comments such as: "hmmm...that one is too sparse: or "too short" or "lopsided" or "looks like it got eaten in the middle), here are a few pics of what the boys were up to. who know there was so much free entertainment to be had at Lowe's??

for the record...not one of these (with exception of the family shot) were staged!!

ben david, hauling mulch

james pushing a wagon he found

perhaps a good christmas gift??

and finally..the tree is purchased!

One Little Pumpkin and a Big, Scary Bear!

though belated, wanted to post a few pics from our venture to the fall festival held at calvary church this year. we have not done this before with the boys, but decided to join our anderson cousins for a night of fun! james, in a costume suited well for his physique, debuted as the great pumpkin, while ben david opted for going as a cute brown bear (not so scary, really). james quickly perfected the art of stealing candy from other kids bags when they weren't looking (he was pretty good at it too). ben david caught on to the concept that you really didn't have to win a game to get a candy prize; looking cute and being under 3 was enough. we even enjoyed a hayride with our cousin adah, a.k.a. "the red m&m." special thanks to aunt anna for lending us the costumes from their stash! check out: www.theandersoncrew7.blogspot.com for fun pics of their family! somehow in all the excitement, nobody got a group shot.

A Fun Filled Weekend

on sunday, we took a very special trip to montgomery county near star, nc. many generations of the cochran and ellis family call this home, as do our very own nana and papa! these countless acres of land hold so many memories for the entire family. it was the perfect place to enjoy a picnic lunch and some outdoor games. the weather was beautiful and it was just good to be together, reminiscing, and just relishing God's creation.

we love you nana and papa!

because of you...we ARE a family!

*a special thanks to beth tanner for most of these pictures. you can see more of her work at: momentsframed.blogspot.com

thanks beth!!

Nana and Ben David
Nana and the boys

(nice expression ben david:)

Nana and Ben

praying for the food

Meg and James...best buds from the start!

the cousins all had a ball, and the older ones (ben david was included on this) got to take a truck ride out to what is affectionately known as "the woods." ben's papa long ago constructed a cabin that remains out there, just waiting for the next generation to resurrect the camping trip tradition! i think next year, we will be ready!:)meanwhile...ben david (unbeknowst to me) did get his first lesson in firearms.

picnic lunch with abigail, ian and owen

Marmie and her little buddy

Poppie and two of his sidekicks
james (aka, mr. independent)

The Pumpkin Patch

this weekend, we also mananged to squeeze in a festive trip to "hunter farm" where we met up with mamie, deuce and cousin kai! there were lots of pumpkins, hay, tractors and animals. needless to say...this was a great place for boys!

A Little Monkey Business!

after contemplating this excursion for many weeks (would it be fun? would it be a disaster? would our kids find this enjoyable or slightly terrifying?), we finally decided to go for it. on sunday afternoon, we ventured over to "monkey joe's!"

for those unacquainted with this place, it is essentially the land of gigantic inflatable kid's toys. all things considered, we had a great time! even mom and dad got in on the action (yes, if you look closely, you will see me attempting to relive my childhood). we were quickly reminded, however by our headaches and back pain that we just aren't kids anymore!:)

hard to catch good shots on camera with all the movement, but here are a few action photos:

WHEEEEEE!!!!!

what was i thinking...

james...wondering why we stuck him in this strange, plastic thing

and what he is suppose to do now.

ben david, tackling (or being tackled by) a giant carrot of sorts

and finally, here is a shot of our little handyman. ben took ben david to the home depot craft hour and they made a toolbox together! he was very proud!:) (ben and ben david, that is)