Christmas Day

The kids woke up bright and early (well, actually it was just their normal time) to see if Santa came to visit him. It was a bit touch and go for a while as to whether or not any or all three were on the naughty list. 

EK was thrilled with her doll bed. 

Walker almost took out his sisters/furniture/window with his new baseball bat and glove. 

Emma loves a doll, so she was happy to have her own American Girl doll to go in the new doll house. 

My parents came over to our house for breakfast and to check out the loot. We then went over to their house to open gifts and hang out for the day. It was a bit odd with only my parents and my crew being there but we had a good time. We face timed with the newlyweds in St. Lucia, Jordan and Ross in Maryland, and with Aunt Carolyn. Technology is pretty great when it can bring people together when they can't actually be together!

Emma was all about the gift opening. Our family has always taken turns and opened gifts one at a time so everyone can see what's inside and it helps to make the present opening last longer. Well, Emma was not interested in the way we do things and just ripped through her gifts like a Tasmanian devil. The adults just decided to open gifts after the littles were finished. 

EK loved all the new additions for her house! 

Silly boy! He loves a truck!

Emma got a baby doll who she named "Mamie."  My girls apparently think all babies should be named after Gordon kids!  We now have Mary Reeves and Mamie!  So sweet!

Etch a sketching is serious business!

The kids were very helpful during the gift opening portion of the day. 

EK immediately had to assemble her Lego set after she finished opened no her gifts. She loves to build. 

He's all boy!

Sister girl was sporting some vintage Christmas gear circa 1982-ish. My mom cross stitched these for me and now baby girl gets to wear them. Love. 

Thanks Kay Kay and G for a fun filled Christmas Day!

It was really a great one!

Christmas Eve

I just love pictures in front of the Christmas tree!!!  We snapped a few before heading to church for our Christmas Eve service. 

G and Kay Kay met us for the service. 

Pop and Nana went with us as well. 

The music was amazing and it was a sweet time worshipping together and being reminded of the true gift of Christmas. Ella Kate got to help us serve communion as well which is always so special. 

The candles and chorus of Silent Night were a precious sight and sound for sure!

After the service, the Nelsons headed home and my parents and my crew went to dinner at Mugshots. Festive, don't you think?  We then headed home to spread out our reindeer food, set out some cookies for the big guy, change into our pjs and head off to sleep!

Christmas With the Nelsons

Nana and Pop came on Christmas Eve morning to spend the day with us. The kids were tickled to see them and excited to open some gifts!

They had a friend build a doll house for EK's American Girl dolls. Wow. It's awesome. They gave it to her unfinished so she could paint and decorate it as she sees fit. Girlfriend loves her dolls and a craft project so this is right up her alley for sure!

For size reference......it's legit big! EK has been busy filling the house the last couple of days with all her new doll accessories that she was given as gifts (bed, armoire, spa set, bath tub....it was an American Girl Christmas for for EK!)

Ready to tear into their presents,

Emma slept through Chrismtas last year thanks to the jet lag....not this year!  She ripped open each gift and squealed with delight at the sight of each new thing!

Hugs for Nana!

Walker opened a new scooter and immediately had to change into clothes and head outside to try it. He loves it and it is so much fun!

Emma needed to ride too 

EK stayed inside to play with her house. She hasn't done much else since then. She said we will post pictures as she makes progress on the decorating. This should be interesting. 

We had such a great time with the Nelsons and we are thankful for the time to get to celebrate with them!

Fa La La Fun

The day after the wedding, we met up with our Porter family at The Cock of the Walk. We stuffed our bellies and then played outside for a while with our 4 legged cousin Bo. We looked over and Walker had his bucket and was trying to milk the dog. Oh geez. 

Emma loved getting to play with Katie!  We miss having all the family in town!

Our friends the Kirk's live around the corner from us. They invited the kids over to decorate Christmas cookies. Their kitchen may never be the same after these 3 got finished with it. Sprinkles were EVERYWHERE!  We loved getting to hang out with Kendall and John Sharp. It's so special to have former students love on our kids so well!

Ella Kate was invited to a Christmas party with some of her church friends. They decorated cookies, ate lunch, crafted and played and played. She had the best time....the mamas had a pretty good time visiting as well!

I was so excited to meet the mail man at the door with a giant box his week!  Our friend Lissa sent us the portrait of Emma she did and I love it!  So thankful to have the final piece in my collection and we certainly appreciate her painting all our babies over the years!

We cheered on the Bulldogs one night this week as they played in Jackson. The kids did surprisingly well!  We hope to make it to Starkville soon to see them in action again. 

We had a wonderful Christmas and hope you did as well!  I'll post more pictures soon. 

Christmas Eve means Family Day!

One year ago today, J, Emma and I were making the drive from Dallas to Jackson thanks to our cancelled flight. We had been traveling for 36 plus hours and we were exhausted! Emma slept the whole way and woke just as we pulled in to Jackson at 11:15 pm. We walked into our house and were greeted by some pretty excited siblings and a hosts of aunts, uncles and grandparents who were anxiously waiting to meet Miss Emma. Although we didn't have the airport homecoming I had always envisioned, the intimacy of that time with our close family is something I will treasure forever. A whole year has passed since we officially became a family of five. This year has taught us more things than I could every adequately put into words but one theme that rings true is that we choose love. 

Our dear friend Joseph Craven put together a video showcasing our journey to get Emma and her arrival back home in Jackson. I cry each time I watch it and I am so thankful for this gift that he has
given us to celebrate her 1 year anniversary in this family. You can check it out by clicking on the links below. There are two different versions. The first one has narration by J which I didn't know he was doing, so it was super special for me to hear him share his heart!  The second one just has the song playing along with the pictures.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xl2kAzmAj-I

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QbgHTWrG-2Q

Happy Family Day, Miss Emma!

Haley and Robert's Wedding Day!

Haley and Robert's wedding day was simply perfect. I'm not sure that it could have gone any better!  Haley and Mom worked so hard on all the details and all that work really was evident. We got to the church bright and early to get all glammed up and we had the best time visiting and laughing! EK loved being with the big girls!

EK looked like a little angel. I might have teared up a bit when she walked down the aisle!

We were sneaky and watched Uncle Robert make his way to the spot where he would get his first look at his bride. Once he got in position, we went inside so we wouldn't disturb their special time together. 

These two have the sweetest relationship. They adore each other so much!

"Yall, stand still and smile so I can get a picture in your pretty clothes! Please!!!!!"  Yeah right, mom. 

The beautiful bride! Haley was absolutely stunning!

I love these 3 so much!

We had a couple of hours to hang out after we finished all the wedding party pictures (which I can not wait to see! The photographer was amazing and I know he got some fabulous shots.)  EK was so happy to have all the special time this weekend with Aunt Jo. They read together and EK filled her in on all that is going on in the 1st grade. 

My aunts came to sneak a peek of the bride, so we had some hang out time with them as well.  We love Aunt Carolyn and Aunt Ellen!

We love Aunt Diane, too!

We are so excited for these 2!!!!  

Yay for the Henshaws!

The reception was at the Mississippi Craftsmen Guild. It was such a unique space and a fabulous set up for the reception. 

G says he is not a dancer, but he held his own during his dance with the bride. 

This may be my favorite shot of the day!  Walker followed Haley around holding her dress up for a while at the reception.  Sweet boy said that he didn't want her dress to get dirty. He loves his Aunt Haley so very much!

These 2 (and their mama) want to send a super huge THANK YOU to Nana!  J's mom spent several days at our house keeping the kids and taking care of the house (including all my ironing...awesome!) so EK and I could be at all the places and do all the things we needed to do this weekend. I could not have made it this weekend without her and I was able to really enjoy all the festivities so much more because I knew that these two were taken care of. Thank you, thank you, thank you, Nana!!!!

After so many months of talking about and planning the wedding, it is almost surreal that it is actually over now. We loved getting to share in all the joy and excitement for Haley and Robert and we are anxious to see all the Lord has in store for their marriage!