Wordless Wednesday

Pictures from some highlights of our week...

Moments in Time

Take a look at what we've been up to over the last several weeks...

Weekend Recap

This past weekend Jeff and I celebrated our 14th anniversary a few days early by taking a trip to Savannah, GA and Hilton Head, SC. We dropped the girls off in the POND (Green Pond...we didn't drown them...don't worry!) and we hit the road for Savannah first. Although it took us literally an hour to get there from Green Pond, Jeff had really never been to Savannah enough to know much about it, so it was really a new experience for the both of us. We loved that old city charm mixed with the artsy flair from being near SCAD (Savannah College of Art and Design).
We ate downtown Savannah at Moon River. The atmosphere was great and we had a window seat view of the city. We chowed down on yummy Sundried Tomato dip with flatbread for an appetizer. I got crab cakes for my dinner and Jeff ate crab stuffed chicken. It was really a yummy place to eat and we got to eat there off a Restaurant.com certificate, so we saved money!!! We parked across the street from The Lady and Sons restaurant, aka Paula Deen's restaurant and we went in her store and looked around. Very cute and pretty inexpensive. It was pretty cold downtown that night, so we didn't walk around too much, but headed on back to our hotel and caught up on so much needed rest that having kids takes from ya! :) The next day we started off the morning with a great breakfast and then we walked around the main stretch of the city and shopped some local shops, ate some ice cream from the world famous Leopold's and we enjoyed some Christmas caroling in the Town Square from a local church. Visiting places with a lot of charm is right up our alley, so I feel certain Savannah will be on our list of places to go again.
We headed on to Hilton Head, which was just a 25 mile ride. We stayed at the Westin, which is a place we have stayed before and we loved. We spent the afternoon resting a little before heading out to an early dinner at Red Fish. It was sooooooo good!!!! We started off with Blue Crab dip with flatbread and I had Shrimp Asiago over tortellini and Jeff had the best steak Quesadilla. It was so fresh. You HAVE to go there if you are ever in the area. After dinner we took in a movie and then we went to Outback for some dessert. Can you say, "Thunder from Down Under?" ;)
We feel so blessed to be able to get away. It was, by far, one of the best trips we have taken. Our time together is priceless and I think we've come back better people and a better wife and husband. As always, though, it passes by too fast, so today I'm planning our NEXT trip! :) Where should I go.......

Christmas Cheer!

Here's some promised Christmas photos. I keep adding to the decorations, so maybe I'll post more pictures along and along. My camera doesn't really capture the LOOK, but hope you enjoy them anyway....

Thanksgiving recap and a Look into Christmas

I bet you thought I had died, didn't you? If you didn't then my feelings are hurt! Naw! We've been in a whirlwind of activity, but in keeping with my promise to not use the word - shhhhh - "busy" - I'll just say "whirlwind." :) We enjoyed a nice time in Green Pond for Thanksgiving. Jeff took the big girls fishing and Avery caught her very first fish. She was beside herself! She brought that fish back and carted it around in her hands, and then got a very fascinating lesson from her Daddy about guts and stuff as they cleaned the fish together. You can imagine, this was right up Avery's alley. Word has it Papa Hickman was gonna eat him for dinner one night. We'll have to let you know how he tasted next time we talk to Papa!We went into Charleston for our Thanksgiving lunch to Jeff's brother's, Cary's, house. There was WAY too much food, as usual, but everything I tasted was delicious. I'm pretty sure we could've fed an entire army with what was leftover, though. We didn't stay long after lunch because we had to get back for Jeff to get ready to call the big Byrnes/Dorman game, and my dear husband indulged me by getting me back in time to catch a few zzzzz's and go shopping at 3:30am with my mom and sisters. It is such a special tradition for us, and I didn't think I would get to go this year. We shopped until 3:30pm the next day! Yes, we did!! I got everything done except for about three presents. Can you say relief? I love giving gifts, but getting them on such a large scale can divert my focus from where it should be this time of year. I'm thankful to say I'm almost done and I'm looking on to entertaining our friends and family at our home over the next few weeks. That is where my love lies! I can't wait to spend time with all of them!

I read a great book over the Thanksgiving break - The Shack. Some differ with me on this, but I thought it captured how we, a fallen people are, how we view God as though He only sits in Judgement of us, and how we say relationship, but do we really know what that means? I recommend it, and though I don't buy many books, this book is something I hope to own.

We've decorated the tree. I haven't remembered to take pictures at night yet when things look a little more festive, but tonight I hope to get some good shots of it, and post them soon. I love this time of year, and the feeling in my home now is cozy and festive. I may just keep up the decorations year around!

We have now, ALL of us, caught the stomach virus! It ravaged through our home over a span of three weeks! I am personally sick of being sick! Hopefully Mr. Germy is out of our house and we can go a long time before he revisits!

Hope your season of celebrating our Savior's birth has started off in the right direction. What a gift we've been given, and yet we hardly celebrate it like we should. I pray this Christmas is life-altering for you! Knowing my Savior has surely been life-altering for me!

Enjoy these pictures of our adventures...The road leading to Green Pond!

Avery's first fish! She was soooo proud!
This is where Quinn CHOSE to spend her time...Aunt Amber's and Uncle Benji's dog's cage.

The tired shoppers...Amy and Katie
My mom and Missy after a LONG day...my mom lost almost "angelic" in this picture with that halo effect...I tried and tried to take it off, but wouldn't you know...it wouldn't budge! :)

The Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I gave myself a makeover. Do you like it? Before you go calling me a Scrooge, I am decorating my house and my blog because I'll be away for Thanksgiving when I usually do it, so let's just say I'm getting ahead! I love this time of year more than anything. I might have said the same thing about the Fall, too, but really...I LOVE this time of year, too! I have loved Christmas since as early as I can remember. Just to get full of Christmas memories today, I pulled out my baby photo album and pulled out my favorite Christmas pictures of me as a little girl. Throughout the next few weeks, I look forward to sharing many family memories with you, as well as all the new memories we will surely be making this year. May your Thanksgiving and Christmas season be filled with so much joy that you will bust with joy from it all! ~Amy~
I've always loved a good present!

Back in my Ride 'em Cowgirl days!

Who doesn't love a fake fireplace picture?!
You will see me in this pose EVERY Christmas...right over the food!

Catching Up!

We have had some very eventful days here lately, and while I haven't really captured everything in pictures, I thought I would share a few of our favorite moments of the last couple of weeks.Avery pulled a front tooth...the Tooth Fairy gave her $5! What???!!!

Our Beautiful Bailey girl! She'll be nine next month!

Quinn is begging her Daddy for coffee..."Pleeeeeeez."

Quinn loved visiting with Mema and Papa.

Couldn't get her to sit still with Papa!
Check out my Papa's hat...He proudly served our country in the Navy in WWII! Thank you, Papa!


Guess what Quinn has taken a fancy to eating! Ugh!