Snow Day!

This was our forecast Tuesday afternoon, when the kids were let out of school early.

This doesn't happen very often, not even once a year often. So, everyone was pretty excited at the prospect of having a few inches of snow to play in, and of course, not having to go to school the next day was their biggest hope.

It didn't come down very fast. In fact the majority fell after dark. So, they went out for a couple of hours to play in the newly fallen snow(the best kind) in the dark. Unfortunately, the 1-3 inches of newly fallen snow caused extreme chaos along the highways and interstates. People were stranded for hours, walked for miles abandoning their cars to find a warm place for the night - some even spent the night in their cars. It was not a very restful night for many individuals and families. Thankfully, there were a lot of businesses - Home-Depot, Kroger, Publix, and many more organizations, churches, and schools that opened their doors for people who found themselves stranded for the night. Here are a few images I found online of the Atlanta area GRIDLOCK during the snowfall:

Amazing stories of kindness and generosity came out of the woodwork. People helping people in ways unthinkable. Here are just a couple of them:

http://www.buzzfeed.com/kimberlyt/the-silver-lining-of-atlantas-snowpocalypse-2014-w6l

http://www.foxnews.com/opinion/2014/01/29/chick-fil-gives-free-food-to-motorists-stranded-in-southern-snowstorm/

As for us in Athens, thankfully, we were safe and warm. Ryan woke up early to enjoy his snow day home from school.

Unfortunately, they only had a two hour delay this morning. Ry was bummed.

It's not even February yet, who knows...maybe more snow is in our future!

Throw Back Thursday

I found these gems while going through some photos with my mom this summer during my trip to Oregon. I love these two ladies with all my heart!! They have made me who I am today and continue to influence who I am becoming. I am thankful for a mother and grandmother who were, not only my biggest supporters, but also my very best friends.

Saturday Night Shenanigans - LOTR

I don't remember when it first started, but we all love hearing Cody do his Gollum impression from The Lord of the Rings Movie. I have wanted to capture it on video, but Cody has not been willing to share his talent...that is, until now when Ryan decided(and has been practicing) he does a better impression than Cody. So Kaitlyn suggested a voice off...Gollum style---

In case you don't know who Gollum is(mom).

Christmas Break

This pretty much sums it up. I'm still recovering. Everyone had their turn, except for Cody(knock on wood). Thank goodness for modern medicine! Mine lasted the longest... After being bedridden for 4-5 days, I decided a trip to the Urgent Care was in order. A quick diagnosis, a few prescriptions later, and I was feeling like a super-hero in a matter of hours, well sort-of. Needless to say, not a lot of pictures were taken or fun was had. It was about the longest, drawn out, tiring, most exhausting, Christmas break I've ever experienced. School starts back on Monday, and I feel like I need a do over. I did get to relax and watch a lot of Netflix. I love Netflix!!

Christmas Photo Dump:

Here's hoping for a Happy and Very Healthy New Year!

Christmas Cards

Each year I look forward to receiving my Brother's family Christmas card. Darcy, his wife, is always so creative in creating their yearly greetings. And this year was no disappointment. She is my Photography hero! They are too much fun!!

Thanksgiving in bullets with a few pictures

Since it is almost Christmas and Thanksgiving seemed to whiz by so fast, I'm going to try and save some time and post quickly about our busy Thanksgiving week.

In summation:

*Saturday - Andy and family arrived. It was so nice and warm outside. We took a few pictures.

*Sunday - Weather turned cold. Everyone rested and stayed indoors. Played UNO 500 times.

*Monday - Ryan and I had dentist appointments. - Cody had his wisdom teeth removed.

*Tuesday - Cody was in a lot of pain, couldn't talk or eat solids(barely anything).

*Wednesday - Baby Josh had surgery in Atlanta

*Thursday - Cody was mad/concerned because his teeth still hurt. He was hungry. Baby was also uncomfortable and not sleeping well. And, oh yeah it was Thanksgiving. We cooked and ate and tended to the ailing.

*Friday - Did not do ANY black Friday shopping! Went out for dinner.

*Saturday - Attempted to take Christmas pictures with the boys. The two oldest weren't really interested, and Baby Josh was good for a bit. We managed a few cute ones all around. Went out for dinner again!

*Sunday - Andy and family went home. Time to start a new week. Cody was feeling better...finally!

Our week in pictures(didn't take a whole lot because of the surgeries and craziness.)

So glad I picked up this game. It was a life-saver after the weather turned wet and cold for most of the week.

We loved spending time together, even though it was a pretty traumatic week for a few of us. We definitely have a lot to be thankful for and are looking forward to a more relaxing Christmas break.

Crazy Weather

While 3/4 of the nation was being plummeted with snow and ice, in Georgia we were in the high 70's. Beautiful pictures were being posted all over facebook of everyone's snowfalls.

I was a tad bit jealous, just for a moment. I really don't enjoy the cold and would take flip-flop weather any day over bone-chilling coldness. So, I sent a picture to my brother of my footwear for the day during his 2-4 inch snowdrop.

His response...he could wear flip-flops too! (just didn't feel quite the same, ha!)