12.23.11: Christmas with the Barton's :)

GiGi and Pops, and Darrin and Jamie got to our house around lunch time on Friday! We had one excited little girl!!!!! :) Christmas with Avaree gets better every year, and this year was certainly the best yet!!! :)

We had three Christmas Eve services in Hurst the next afternoon/night (plus practice earlier in the day, and we live an hour away), so we had our Christmas (besides Santa) on the 23rd!

This was our favorite Christmas craft this year. I think everyone loved getting one too! (So much so that I even wrapped Shan/Spencer and Darrin/Jamie two of them! I guess I was just so concerned with making sure they got one, and I did these so long ago, that I just plumb forgot! :) ha, oh well! Now they each have two! :)

Avaree and Pops!

 Once Pops and Gigi got to our house, Avaree was on Daddy's phone telling Darrin and Jamie to "hustle!" It was so cute! She was super excited when they got there! So, we bundled her up and let her go play outside with them!

 The next few shots were me playing with my new lense, but I had to include them. I know I'm biased, but I think she is just so beautiful. And I love the Christmas lights twinkling in the background. Avaree still asks me where the "mis-mas whites" are. I keep telling her that they are special decoration for Jesus' birthday, and that we will get them out again next year. She, however, thinks next year is tomorrow. Her memory amazes me. So, she asks a lot. :)

 Gimli, Pops, Avaree, and GiGi :)

 love this one!

 Uncle Darrin, Aunt Jamie, and Avaree :)

 

We are so happy that Darrin and Jamie are finally settled and together in Houston! We can't wait to go see their new house!!! I love this picture of them.

 GiGi suprised Pops with an authentic seat from Texas Stadium. Avaree tried it out for him! :)

 GiGi and Pops loved their framed hand prints. Avaree was remembering doing this as she looked at it again! (It had been a little while!) :) So sweet!

 Avaree loving on Uncle D and Aunt J! They gave her the little jacket that she is wearing in this pic. She loves it so much. She does NOT like to take it off, and she wants to wear it every day! :) (It could be the zipper, but I'm sure it is just b/c it is from Uncle D and Aunt J!)

 GiGi brought everyone's stockings from home! This is B's stocking that his Grandmother made when he was a baby!!! So sweet!!

I hope you enjoyed these sweet memories! It was hard to narrow down the 775 pictures that I took over a 4 day span! :) Christmas Eve is up next!

Twas the week before Christmas... :)

...and all through the house, Mommy was HAPPY b/c she had Avaree to play with!!!!!!!!! :) :) :) :)

My mom and Ken came to visit for a day and night at the beginning of Christmas break, and it worked out great b/c B ended up having to work that Monday, so my Mom kept Ave and Ken took me back and forth for blood work and treatment. Thanks, you two!! :)

 This is my favorite picture of my mom and ave. I love those smiles! :)

 Avaree and I LOVED being home together over the holidays! I'm not sure who was happier (okay, it was me, for sure!!)!?! :) Avaree got into a wonderful routine of going to sleep around 9ish, and sleeping until 8:30ish--amazing!!!!!!!! :) And, she still took a wonderful (flexible) 2 hour nap every day! GLORIOUS! :)

I dressed her up in Christmasy outifts every day! :) Thank you to Scott and shea shea for this PRECIOUS top! :) She wore it a LOT. She loved it!

I LOVE CHRISTMAS AT HOME!!!!!! Can you tell? I did most of my shopping and wrapping early this year, so there wasn't much running around to do. It was so peaceful at our house!

On the 22nd, we had Christmas with Uncle Spencer, Aunt Shannon, and Ranger! Aunt Shannon hosted and cooked a WONDERFUL meal, and we just had a great time enjoying being together!

The next two pictures are Avaree holding parts of the horeshoe set that she got from Uncle Spencer and Aunt Shannon! But, the best part is that she thought she got several letter "U's", and she was sooo happy!!! She kept saying, "U, U, Mommy!!" :) hehe! We LOVE her.

 Avaree's new best friend is Ranger! :) She even likes to Skype with him!

When we got home, we opened presents from each other, since we had company coming the next day!! :)

Christmas is next! :)

Avaree fun: Safety Town and a Movie!!!

The Friday that we got out of school, Brandon and I went to our church's staff Christmas party in Fort Worth (so fun), and Uncle Spencer and Aunt Shannon had a date with Avaree! :) They took her to Babe's Chicken (YUMM!) and then to Safety Town in downtown Frisco! :) She had a blast! Thank you, Uncle Spencer and Aunt Shannon!!!! :) :) :)

Fire truck! (Ask Spencer for the video of Avaree saying fire truck over and over...so funny!) :)

 Hi, Santa! :)

 The best present is smiling! :)

Brandon has been wanting to take Avaree to a movie since she was BORN! If you know him at all, you know he is a MOVIE BUFF, to say the least. So, the next day we were enjoying a wonderfully lazy day together, and decided to take Avaree to see the penguin movie (Happy Feet 2)!!! We purposefully went during nap time! We had just started Christmas break, so it was okay to get off of her schedule, and we knew that she would love it until she fell asleep! :) So, off we went. I'm pretty sure B was the most excited of all! :) It worked out great. Avaree ate ALL of her popcorn (and did not want to share with us), and then watched about 50 minutes of the movie before falling asleep! :) It was such a fun experience for our family! :) There were only three two other kids in the theater, and they were both around Ave's age with their mom and dad! It seems everyone had the same idea! :)

Walking into the theater! 

 B had to get his own popcorn. SOMEBODY did not want to share! ;)

 The end of the movie... :) The.best.ending.ever.

Happy Birthday to Aunt Jamie!

Avaree would like to wish a VERY special HAPPY BIRTHDAY to her sweet Aunt Jamie!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We are praying for God's sweet, perfect blessings on you this year!! We love you!!!!!!!!!

My beautiful girl... 2 years, 3 months, and counting

I took these pictures in the backyard last night after supper. I have the best little subject in the world. I'm in love with them, but I love the subject even more! :) Enjoy!!! :)

I think these capture her little personality perfectly. It seems like she has grown up so much in just the last few weeks. I wish I could capture each moment and keep it forever. Oh the sweet tears of a Mommy's happy heart.

I love my girl.

I hope you enjoyed the pictures. Brandon got me a zoom lense for Christmas and Martha and my mom both got me photo editing software that I have only begun to peruse! I hope I can learn more soon! :)

Happy 2012!

Christmas Re-Cap posts are ready to go and coming soon!!!!!!!!