Dear Santa.....

The kids were able to visit Santa and it was a huge treat for them! They were able to sit on Santa's lap, make snowflake cookies, see a life size gingerbread house and paint an ornament. What an exciting night and a great way to kick off the Christmas season.

So Thankful

Our family truly is blessed beyond measure! I am reminded of this every year as we celebrate Thanksgiving together. We celebrated at the lake. Wonderful food, gorgeous weather and most of all our family were just a few of the things we were thankful for last Thursday. It is a blessing that both of our families celebrate this holiday together. We hope you and your family enjoyed a wonderful Thanksgiving as well.

Pilgrims, Indians and Barn Dancing

 
 
 
 
The kids had a wonderful time celebrating Thanksgiving at school. The kindergarten classes sang wonderful Thanksgiving songs and dressed as pilgrims and Indians. Samuel's class enjoyed a barn dance with the parents. Lots of celebrating and lots of fun!

Happy Halloween

Halloween was such a fun evening for the kids. Emma was Cinderella, Samuel was a football player and Wilson was a ghost. Wilson's friend, Sam, joined us for the fun dressed as a fireman. The kids LOVED all the yummy candy.....even in the rain they had a blast!!

Happy Fall from the Echols

We enjoyed a GORGEOUS fall day by taking a day trip to Uncle Shuck's Pumpkin Farm and the waterfalls. It was a perfect day full of sunshine, fall leaves and fun.

Career Day At School

 

The kindergarten classes have been studying community helpers this week. They completed the study by having each child dress up and write about what career they would like to pursue when they grow up. Wilson said when he grows up he would like to work for the Australia Zoo as an animal catcher/rescuer like Steve Irwin. Emma said she she grows up she would like to be a teacher or a chef. So, her outfit is a combination of the two. They were too cute all dressed up!! I couldn't resist posting a picture of them on our family blog. Enjoy!

Go Falcons

 
 
 
 
This fall Samuel is a part of the Falcon Football Team. It has been so much fun getting to see the excitement on his face after each practice and game. He is into football 110%. Since Samuel was four years old he has asked us if he could play football. At age 7 we felt he was ready to commit to something that required this much time, patience and hard work. He has done so well!! He practices hard and has improved greatly since his first week of try outs. He is now playing kicker and lineman. His team is a great group of kids and the coaches love winning but most of all want the boys to have fun! We look forward to the rest of the season. GO Falcons!!

An evening at Build a Bear

 
 
 
 
Meme took Emma to Build a Bear as part of her birthday celebration. Emma was so excited. She had the days counted down until she and Meme went on their Build a Bear date. When she arrived she chose the cutest black lab (we have a love for labs in our family so that was no surprise). After having her new Lab Puppy stuffed, sewn and washed she chose the cutest outfit for her......a UGA cheerleader outfit!! Then she went to the computer to complete her adoption of her new pet and chose a name, Molly. Emma was so proud of Molly and her evening at Build a Bear! Meme had a great time too. They were all smiles when they came home and introdced us to Emma's new friend, Molly.

Labor Day Weekend

 
 
 
 
We spent Labor Day weekend enjoying the lake. There is nothing like late summer at the lake--great weather, sunshine and fun! We spent time swimming, riding the boat, tubing and fishing. We also enjoyed a great evening with family and friends as we cheered on the Dawgs!

Happy 6th birthday, Emma

Emma turned 6 in August. We had an amazing time celebrating Emma's birthday with her friends and family. She requested a dog cake since she loves dogs. It turned out so cute! She had a ball running, jumping, and laughing!

Back to School

In August all three kids started school. Emma and Wilson started kindergarten and Samuel started first grade. Excitement was an understatement as they prepared for their first day of school! They have been in school almost a month now and are settling in to the new school year beautifully. All three have great teachers, are learning so much and are making new friends. It is so fun to hear the news of the day each afternoon when they get home.

Samuel is Seven

In August Samuel turned 7. Where has the time gone? It seems like he was just a little toddler running around, learning to talk and run! He had a super day at the pool celebrating with friends and family.

Happy 5th birthday, Wilson!

It is hard to believe the baby of the family turned 5 this July! We had a wonderful time celebrating his special day with friends and family. He loved every second of it...the cupcakes, the inflatables, friends and lots of great gifts--more plastic snakes and reptiles than you can imagine! A perfect day for a five year old little boy!

It's an Adventure

We spent one day this summer going on a Wildlife Adventure. It was such a fun and exciting day! We were able to see animals up close and personal...animals you just don't run across on a normal day. We were even able to feed some of them. The zebra, giraffe, buffalo and ostrich were some of the kids' favorites. It was quite an adventure.....kind of like a mini safari!