Christmas Day

Happy New Year everyone! I am trying to play catch up on the blog because once we got back into town last week, Janey has been sick with pneumonia and RSV! She is getting better now, so I have more time to update the blog.

We had a wonderful Christmas in Mississippi with all of our families! Christmas morning we woke up to see that Santa had brought Mary Varner the RED trampoline that she had wanted and many other surprises like a princess umbrella, a Dora nightgown, and a chutes and ladders game! Janey enjoyed playing with her toys also, and especially loved her yellow teething ball. After enjoying watching the children play with their Santa gifts, we went to Canton to eat lunch with B'B' and Mimi and all of our many aunts, uncles, and cousins. We returned to the Elder's late afternoon to have our Christmas with John, Rena, Ben, Grandaddy, and Nana! Nana made a birthday cake for Jesus and Mary Varner and Ben helped put the candles in and we all sang Happy Birthday to Jesus. While we were singing Mary Varner would point up like she was pointing to Jesus...it was so sweet! We ate Christmas dinner and opened gifts and enjoyed the rest of the evening hanging out and watching the kids play.

I will post the day after Christmas pictures soon!

Christmas in Florida

We had our Christmas just the four of us last night. We like to open our gifts to one another the weekend before we head to Mississippi, and after opening gifts we always head to our town community center and library where they have a wonderful light display including a life sized and looking nativity and even have Santa's post office to write letters to Santa. Well, this year we had an added treat because Santa and Mrs. Clause were there at the post office!! Mary Varner was a little shy at first but went up and talked to Santa and Mrs. Clause and told them what she wanted for Christmas. Santa then pulled out of his toy bag a teddy bear for Mary Varner and she was sooo excited. She gave Santa a big hug and told him thank you and Merry Christmas...it was very sweet. Mary Varner really got into opening gifts this year, but she did say thank you without prompting which is always nice for a momma to hear. Janey enjoyed all the excitement and most of all the paper and bows to tear and of course put in her mouth! Anyway, we had a great evening with our little family and made wonderful precious memories.

A Visit with Santa

We took the girls to see Santa this past weekend. MV wanted to wear her Santa hat so she could look like Santa. At first MV kept saying that she wanted me to sit with her in Santa's lap, but I just told her that I was too big and that only little kids sat in his lap. She accepted that answer and when it was our turn she went right up there, and I sat Janey down not knowing what she was going to do. Janey just stared at Santa like he was a ghost until he started talking to her and then she started crying, but thankfully we already had the picture. We finished the night off with going to the "light show on the corner" which is a family's house about a block from our house that has over 20,000 lights in their yard and on the house and it is all programmed to music. It is a VERY impressive show that last about 20 minutes, and MV and Janey LOVE to go see it!!! We might try to get it on video...it is so amazing!!

The next morning, MV told me that she was so excited about Santa coming to see her at Grandaddy and Nana's house and that she was going to play with him and show him Jake and Susie (their dogs)...I realized that she actually thought that Santa was just coming to see her on Christmas Eve. I explained the best I could that Santa goes to every boy and girls house and delivers presents so when he comes she will be asleep and she will not see him....she responded with a puzzled look, "how does he do all that at night," and I responded, "magic" :)

4 Generations

This picture is so special to me...it gives me goose bumps!!

Little Angel

On Wednesday nights, our church has a wonderful children's program called AWANA. This past Wednesday the kids all dressed up as someone or something from the Christmas story. Mary Varner wanted to be an angel or baby Jesus. I could not come up with a way for her to be baby Jesus...so angel it was!! I took an old pillowcase and cut out the arm and head holes and then went to the Dollar Tree and bought the gold garland/rope for the halo and belt! I thought she looked great, and she was SOOO excited about being an angel. She asked me on the way to church if she was one of the "Hark Angels" from the song :)



I also wanted to post a few other pics of Mary Varner! She has really transformed this year from a little baby/toddler into this sweet little girl. Her little world changed from being the "baby" around here to being the "big girl" and I think that she has handled that change very well! She is really developing into this sweet, sensitive, silly little girl and I enjoy being her mom!!

O Christmas Tree

This year Mary Varner really got into "helping" decorate the Christmas tree. Janey was more interested in trying to put the lights in her mouth than anything else. We enjoyed watching Mary Varner dance and sing to the Christmas music while she was hanging the ornaments. Once we were finished with the tree, we gave the girls early baths so that MV could watch the Dora Christmas special that was coming on that evening (she loves Dora). It is so much fun to watch how excited she is about Christmas!











Janey hanging her 1st Christmas ornament








snuggled up with daddy to watch Dora

8 months old

Janey just turned 8 months old and yesterday she started two new things! She started crawling (an army crawl), and she said her first word (watch video to hear it)that she says over and over all day now. Jim said he did not know if we could count it as her first word because she just says it all the time and really does not direct it towards anyone in particular, but my vote is that it is her first word!! If she was saying dog over and over then you would count it so I do not see the difference:)

"crawling" for the remote


Saying her first word???

Thanksgiving in Mississippi

We had a fun and very busy Thanksgiving holiday in Mississippi! We started out Thursday going to visit Maw Maw and Judy. I think that it is so great that Mary Varner and Janey still have two great grandmothers in their lives. My brother and his family were there also, and we had fun hanging out for a couple of hours with everyone! After Maw Maw's, we had our late Thanksgiving lunch (1:30) at Mimi and B'B's house with more of my side of the family. Then later that afternoon, we joined John, Rena, and Ben at the Elder's house for Thanksgiving dinner!! We had a great day with lots of family and lots of food!! The rest of the weekend while Jim hunted, the girls, B'B' and I had fun on the square in Canton. Mary Varner especially enjoyed riding the carousel and the little train that went around the square so she could see all the lights!! This Christmas is going to be so much fun now that Mary Varner is really getting into it! On Saturday, after the exciting Egg Bowl (Go Dawgs), Jim came in from the hunting camp and we went to eat supper and visit with Papa Doc and Kay Kay! Here are some of the pictures from the fun, family filled holiday!!

MV,Aunt Jenny, Hayden, and Allie


Uncle Brad and Janey


Maw Maw and Janey





Jim and John with full bellies


Nana in the kitchen


Playing with cousin Ben


Another attempt at a family photo


Janey enjoying the Christmas lights on the square


MV having fun on the carousel


MV and B'B' riding the cars


Me and Janey on the train ride


MV and Janey with Papa Doc and Kay Kay

Lunch with our little turkey

Mary Varner's preschool had a Family Thanksgiving Lunch/ Program this past Thursday! We had a great time seeing her sing her Thanksgiving songs with her little class, and she was sooo excited that we were eating lunch with her at school!!