Disney live

One of the girls' Christmas presents was tickets to see Disney Live- three fairytales! They were so excited!

We settled into our seats and enjoyed every bite of our $10 cotton candy...

The first fairy tale was Snow White...followed by CInderella....Sk crossed her tigers and wished the third and final would be Beauty and the Beast...sister loves her some Belle! ( the princess who loves to read!)

Beauty and the Beast was indeed the final tale and the girls were oh so happy!

It was a great show...with the happily ever after we love....

and all the Disney characters to top it all off!

Rollins went to see the Dinosaur exhibit with Nana while we did all this princess stuff! He had a ball too!

night phone call

When the phone rings in the middle of the night....the chances of it being good news are slim...last night at 2 am my phone rang.

It was my sister telling that that there had been a bad accident.....a bonfire and gasoline....my nephew Alex...burn unit at University Hospital by Ambulance....get mom.

We could not get mom by phone so Jeremy went over to pick her up while I got dressed. It seemed like forever so I made fresh team for my littles to have in the morning...unsure what the night would bring....What we would find when we got to the hospital.

We arrived and found the burn unit and....and my sister crying into her crutches....she has a broken foot.  When your baby is hurt...it hurts you....no matter how old your baby is ....that is just part of being a Moma. We comforted and talked and waited....

 Finally they told us the preliminary extent of his injuries....both hands...belly...chest...right hand and face would need skin grafts probably....plastic surgeon would be in.....and the nurse told us he was so upset to scare and disappoint his family....we took it all in in choppy doses of information...processing it all slowly but what we got from it in the end was that he was not going to die....there would be a great, long battle to recover but he was going to be here to fight it....and in that moment that itself was a victory.

 Finally we were able to see him...and he looked awful...bandaged and the raw skin peeking from under the bandages...the smell of singed hair in the room....and although the long eyelashes were gone....his beautiful blue eyes were right there...

 He said he was sorry....we told him we loved him.....we told him we would get through this...we told him we loved him....we told him to take his pain meds and get some sleep.....we told him we loved him....and he told us he loved us too. The ebb and flow of he speaks...we speaks..was nice....his voice...unaffected by the accident was comforting to hear. He was still here...we could touch him and talk to him. This night could have ended very differently...but it didn't...

I cried seeing his girlfriend Sara see him for the first time all bandaged up....she is his first love.  One word...Tender.

He wouldn't rest until we all left so slowly, reluctantly we all headed home....hugging everyone goodbye just because they were there to hug....

It will be a long, slow, painful recovery for him....

It had been a long night but that is the thing about nights...no matter how long they are....they always end...bringing with them a new day....and new hope. Praying for comfort and healing....and offering support and love very step of the way. We love you Alex Clay.

Nana's cookies

Nana stopped by to give SK her Christmas gift...new books...PERFECT!

 and she brought the cookies she bring us every year....they are the sweetest cookies ever!

 and delicious too! Thanks, Nana!

Happy Birthday, Nana!

Today we celebrated Nana's birthday! It was a big one! ;)

We all gathered at Butch and Joyce's house for a wonderful meal!

It was nice to be together to celebrate my sister!

The girls all helped her open presents!

Happy Birthday, Nana! We all love you very much!

Vacation here we come!

Last year we had a ball with the Timmerings going to the beach! Although it was bittersweet we went our separate ways this year with our own families. We talked about following each other all the way down 65 but Jenna and I thought it would be too hard...to not just keep going together all the way so we did our own thing...left at our own time...and right as we got on 65...they came up right behind us. I guess fate had a different idea! We could not believe it! We stopped for breakfast together and could not believe it when we realized it was the exact same McDonald we stop at for breakfast on the way to vaca last year! The kids were so happy to see each other!

 Jenna and Julia were extra happy to see me because I have become Julia's tooth puller and she had a loose one...so I pulled it and in we went for breakfast! Look at Julia's new smile for vacation!

After breakfast we took the girls and the Timmerings took the boys and we traveled together as far as we could...with hugs we went our separate ways..the Timmerings off to Florida and we were off to Alabama! After a ten hour road trip...with one stop for breakfast and one stop for gas...and four amazing children we pulled up to our house....... Beachwalk!

And entered a beautiful space full of possibilities for a wonderful week!

 We unloaded the car, grabbed a quick sandwich from our delivered groceries, and got ready to hit the beach!

 The waves were calling our name!

So off we went....

 and oh that first moment when you see the ocean on vacation is the best...my heart swells with the sound of the waves, and the sand under my toes...and watching the littles rediscover it all over again!

 When you are little it's extra magical...to Lila it's still like the very fist time all over again.....and her precious reaction did not disappoint....she was beyond in awe of the mighty waves as they crashed on the shore...

 Although the afternoon was short after the long road trip we still did it all...even making our first of many sand castles!

 It wasn't long before I heard a familiar and excited...Moma! The boys had found a treasure!

 Rollins lives to find treasures at the beach! He was beyond excited to find this whopper crab on our first day!

He was so proud!

 After baths to clean the salt and sand from our scalps to our toes and supper we headed back down to the beach! We just wanted more!

My nephew, Hunter, made a bonfire...getting ready for his night time fishing with his friend Brit.

 The brothers thought that was amazing!

 As it got darker and darker we enjoyed the beach and watching Hunter and Brit fish for a while.

 We all loved the warm glow of the bonfire too....

 It was the perfect way to end our long day....and believe me with the sound of the ocean in our minds and after the long day of traveling and beach fun...we all slept like babies!