Thomas the elf

Thomas, our elf on the shelf, arrived the day after Thanksgiving. The children were so happy to see Thomas again - they have already started leaving him notes.

The Muppets movie

The cousins went to see the Muppets movie this afternoon. According to Charlie, it was phenom-in-um.

Decorating the Christmas tree

Decorating the Christmas tree is one of our favorite things to do as a family. It is so fun for the children to hang their very own Christmas tree ornaments (we give them a special ornament each Christmas). Mommy and Daddy love their ornaments, too. In the first picture, the children are hanging the ornaments their great-grandmother Koon crocheted. In the next picture, Daddy is putting the angel that Nana cross-stitched on the top of the tree. The Fairs' Christmas tree skirt is the finishing touch. We love our Christmas tree!

Christmas tree farm

We went to the Christmas tree farm this morning to get our Christmas tree. The children helped Daddy cut down the tree and drag it to the car. Jane Gray and Meg also enjoyed petting the horses.

Thanksgiving in Yazoo City

Today, we headed to Yazoo City to celebrate Thanksgiving with the Barbours. We ate another delicious Thanksgiving lunch, decorated a gingerbread house, and played outside. Charlie caught a monster five-pound bass. It was huge!

Hunting in Louise

On opening morning of duck season, Daddy took Jane Gray and Charlie duck hunting at Louise. There was a crowd, so we were kicked out of the blind and relegated to the levee - and it turned out to be a good thing as the ducks flew over us. Charlie worked on his calling, and Jane Gray was our spotter. Though there were not many ducks flying around us, you couldn't tell it from the good time that was had.

Charlie Brown Thanksgiving

We ended the day watching Charlie Brown Thanksgiving.

Thanksgiving Day lunch

We celebrated Thanksgiving at Nana and Grandpa's house. After a delicious lunch, we played at the Bridgewater park, caught falling leaves, and watched the Cowboys game (Charlie proudly wore one of his Daddy's old Cowboys jackets).

Thanksgiving morning

After church, the Hursts came over for Thanksgiving breakfast and the Macy's parade.

Lunch with Gigi

We had lunch with Gigi today. Meg gave Gigi lots of hugs, Charlie brought Gigi flowers from our camellia bushes, and Jane Gray played some songs for Gigi on the piano and violin. It was a lovely lunch!

Christmas card picture

We took our Christmas card picture this morning. This was the easiest picture to get of the children so far - all cooperated so sweetly! Yay!

Shopping with Jane Gray

Jane Gray and Mommy spent the afternoon shopping. Jane Gray slung this bag over her shoulder and said she was Santa Claus. She's a cute Santa Claus!

Charlie and Daddy in Louise

Opening day of deer season, and Daddy took Charlie hunting in Louise. As we pulled up to park, we saw a doe which raised our anticipations, so we snuck to the stand we previously made and excitedly waited for the sun to ease up. After a couple hours of hunting, including pop-tarts, naps, sneezes, mosquitos and a beautiful morning, we had enough primarily since the deer didn't cooperate. We 'heard' one in the woods, but it was apparently too smart to come out in the open. We did manage to do a little work on a duck blind, play in the mud, found turtle shells, and generally had another big time in the Delta.

Disney on ice

Meg and Mommy went to Disney on Ice tonight with Ella and Aunt Stacy. The girls were so excited, and the show did not disappoint. The girls were mesmerized - they clapped and waved and pointed! Meg kept asking me if it was about to be over - she did not want it to end. Meg said her favorite was Ariel, but she loved Peter Pan, too. I love her face when she saw the children flying (last picture).

Jane Gray's Thanksgiving party

Jane Gray's class didn't dress up as Indians, but they did play some fun Thanksgiving games like who could come up with words starting with the letters in "Thanksgiving" first and who could make the most words out of "Thanksgiving Day." The class also had a snack, which Jane Gray sweetly shared with her brother and sister. It was a fun party!

Charlie's Thanksgiving party

Daddy made an appearance at Charlie's Thanksgiving party, too. The boys had fun shooting him with bows and arrows.