Snow Flurry Be Happy!

You know it's really cold in Georgia when it snows. Yesterday it started snowing around 3pm. At first it was hitting the ground and melting right away, but about 5:30pm it was starting to stick. Needless to say, we took Ava outside for this rare special occasion. She really had fun running around in the snow...in the dark and can't wait for some "real" snow when we head to Utah in a month.

These pictures were taken before it started to accumulate.

These pictures were taken after it started to accumulate. Notice, Ava in her "ski" gear! She especially loved throwing snowballs with Daddy.

Ava has Piggies!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Finally, after 28 months Ava's hair is long enough for pig tails! I tried them last night and she didn't want to take them out!

Christmas with the Morrow's

Christmas day is never the same without getting an extra special hug from Aunt Katie and Uncle Adam. Ava had tons of fun playing with Aunt Katie & Uncle Adam while Granny got a great lunch ready for all of us.

After lunch, we all gathered around the Christmas tree to open up gifts. We all had tons of fun watching Ava open her gifts...are you starting to see a theme here? Ava once again ran away with the loot!

She got a great build-a-bear from Aunt Katie, a magic bear from Uncle Adam, a talking tea pot, a new baby & bathtub and a kitchen sink from Granny & Pop. She was super excited about the kitchen sink as it completes her set! She especially loved sitting with Granny and having a tea party.

After a great day with our families, we headed home to un-load a packed car. I was able to get one last picture of Ava and baby Lila (in her new outfit of course).

Santa's Visit

Santa found his way to Cornelia this year. Ava woke up to find Santa's cookies & milk gone and some big reindeer bites taken out of the apple. Santa even left her a note! Still to this day, Ava tells everyone that Rudolph ate her apple!

After all that excitement, Ava ran into the family room to find a mountain of presents. She was super excited to see her Pro Chef refrigerator, and couldn't believe that Santa wrapped all her presents in Clifford paper...He's so smart! She didn't know what to dive into first, and was a little overwhelmed.

She got so many great accessories for her kitchen, a dollhouse, new outfits for her baby's and even a highchair for baby Lila. She even got some new cozy clothes for our February ski trip.

She was very thankful and thanked everyone including Santa for her gifts. With all those gifts, we were able to get our annual picture of Ava buried in wrapping paper. While Mimi cooked breakfast, Ava relaxed on the couch with her Uncle Chris.

After what seemed like hours of opening gifts, we had a great breakfast and got ready to head to the Morrow's house for more family time, food & presents.

Christmas Eve

This year, we spent Christmas Eve with my family and Christmas Day with the Morrows. We headed over to Gigi and Gi-Paws house for a delicious dinner and opening presents. Ava got a drying rack for her baby doll cloths and other great goodies! After dinner we watched a movie then headed out for the Christmas Eve candlelight service at the Mt. Airy Chapel. After church, we rushed home to Mimi and Papa's house to get ready for Santa. Ava left Santa a letter as well as milk & cookies and even an apple for Rudolph.

Each year that goes by, it get's so much fun seeing the wonder and amazement in Ava's eyes. It makes us feel like kids all over again!

Christmas Cookies

Every year we get together and bake yummy Christmas cookies with Mimi. Ava loves to be in the kitchen and always runs and gets her "stool" so she can help out. She was Mimi's special helper this year and did a great job mixing the ingredients, reading the recipe, and pressing down the sugar cookies. Of course her favorite part was tasting her creations!

Our visit with Santa

After finally getting an appointment this year with the "Phipps Plaza" Santa, one would like to think their child would be jumping with joy. Well I have to say, in Ava's case it was running in fear and pouting in distaste! We should have known after a successful visit with last year's Callaway Gardens Santa that this year would be totally different. Oh well...the picture makes for a fun memory.

When we asked the photographer to get another picture...he kindly replied "I think the last one is good...her eyebrow wasn't up". Oops...seems she inherited that very talented trait from her mother. We had another opportunity to visit with Santa when he made a special visit to the Robertson's house. As you can see her feelings for Santa didn't change. Oh well there is always next year!