Connor's Big Debut

Connor is in the Cherub (3 year old) choir at our church. They have weekly rehearsals that began back in September and this past weekend was their first 2 performances.  Friday night they sang for the community at Christmas in Davidson- a wonderful little small town festival honoring all things Christmas. It has a live nativity (done by our church), horse and carriage rides, Santa picture opportunities, booths of crafts and hot chocolate, and lots of fun performances.  His 2nd stage opportunity was during the 9:30am Sunday worship service.  In celebration of the first Sunday in advent, they had all of the children's choirs sing.

So without further ado here is Connor in the DUMC Cherub Choir....

Connor's 1st Choir Performance http://vimeo.com/54853306

 http://vimeo.com/54853306

So Much to be THANKFUL For

We are truly blessed...there is no doubt about it. And I make an effort to thank God every day for what he has given to me and my family.  I also ask him to help those who need it. Being thankful isn't about saying it once a year, but about giving thanks all year long. Just a little thought following our Thanksgiving celebrations.


This year we were able to spend it with Oma and Inky, who came up from FL for the week. We cooked, ate, shopped Black Friday, and shopped more on Saturday, we got our Christmas trees, and Jeff and I even managed to escape for a date overnight at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville. In all, it was a wonderful holiday that filled my heart with love.  Here are a few photos of the week:

Cooks in the kitchen on Thanksgiving Day

Connor throwing the pig skin

Grey not cooperating for a cute pic in the leaves

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Here are a few pics of Oma and her grandsons

 George Wilson, our Elf on a Shelf, arrives on the Saturday after Thanksgiving bring Christmas pjs and books!

 Next up is picking out our 2 Christmas trees!!

There was even time for a quick Discovery Place visit

Here are a few of my recent INSTAGRAM PHOTO POSTS for those of you who may not follow us on Instagram!

Connor brought this home from preschool...my heart melted:

Watching the Macy's Day Parade

 At the Birkdale Village Christmas Tree

Picking up our Christmas tree....thankfully we could use mom's car since we discovered we do not have roof racks!

Mommy and Daddy's getaway to the Grove Park Inn, Asheville, NC

Fireplaces so large you could stand inside them!

Annual display of the National Gingerbread House competition finalists

The Magic of Jody G

I will NEVER regret paying a small fortune to have photos taken of my family. It is one of those things that I put a huge value on....capturing my family in photos to commemorate each year and the growth and change in the boys!  I can only wish I had the photography skills that Jody has!! Her photos never disappoint and usually bring me to tears. So as not to give away our holiday card photo...here are just a few favorites from our recent fall session. These photos were taken in Latta Park, in the Dilworth area of Charlotte.

Fall Has Come and Gone

I am ashamed that my last post was talking about summer and here we are about to welcome the holiday season.  A lot has happened since August so I will have to give it to you in a nutshell.  I went back to work...then quit 3 months later. Many factors influenced this HUGE life decision. First and foremost, family is my/our priority. I had struggled with the decision on whether or not to work since Greyson was born.  I was grateful to stay home his first year, and when I returned to work this past spring, I knew it was all wrong but kept on thinking things would get better. Summer came and went and I fought all glaring signs that it was time to be home with the boys.  I can't explain it exactly but it wasn't until Greyson got very sick that I surrendered to what God had been trying to tell me all along.  Greyson came down with just your ordinary ear infection...only his 3rd since he was born, so I have to think that isn't terrible. However, he was given a series of antibiotics all of which he reacted to, SEVERELY.  The poor child was sick for over 21 days.  No penicillin or cephalosporin drugs were going to be an option for him moving forward...long story short, the doctor warned us of the rough go we were about to face come cold and flu season.  Considering there were not many options to treat Greyson, we were in for a bumpy ride.  That was the straw the broke this camel's back.  With our second house vacant, we determined we would make it work on one income. So I gave my resignation to a career that I had gotten a master's degree in and been doing for almost 10 years. It was DIFFICULT but the RIGHT thing to do at this point in our lives. My last day was November 2, and it still doesn't feel real...just like I am on vacation.

Connor is now at our church's preschool program 3 mornings a week. It was an easy transition, however, he misses his best friend, Lucas, from Goddard whom he has known and been in class with since he was 16 months old. Greyson is home with me full time. We are going to join a fun class after the holidays so that he has something fun to do with other children too.
The boys had a fun Fall. We did so many autumn activities...pumpkin patches, harvest festivals, Halloweeen trick or treating, and even football (Connor attended his first Florida Gator football game in Gainesville).

Here are some pictures of Fall here with C&G:  

This was the reaction every time I tried to take a picture of them at the pumpkin patch.  Clearly Greyson is offended that he is not getting any cotton candy!

Connor flies his first kite while Greyson helps with pumpkin carving

My sweet little Things!

Mimi and Papa in town for Halloween

Visiting with our friends the Highlanders in Gainesville, FL-

attempting a group picture with 4 toddlers is pretty much impossible!

Connor's 1st Football Game

Playing at the Park

Love the NC trees in the fall

Greyson's poor little body at the worst point in his 20+ day sickness

Connor riding his new balance bike

When I saw this photo I realized my boys are growing up too fast!

Using our new fire pit

This is what happens when I forget a bib!

Connor on his 1st pony ride!

Connor's Preschool Class visit to the pumpkin patch

Mimi and Papa in town

Day out with Thomas the Train