Ringing It In

Twelve Barker's have invaded the Grove Park Inn to continue our annual tradition of ringing in the New Year in Asheville, North Carolina. The hotel is lovely and when we arrived there was still SNOW on the ground from the White Christmas.

We are staying in the Arts & Crafts themed suite. When the GPI opened in 1913 the Arts & Crafts movement was at its height. The suite features a lot of quarter-sewn oak and hammered-coppered detailing.

Each year the hotel hosts a National Gingerbread Competition and this is the Grand Prize Winner from this year. I have heard many mumbles from guests that is not a true "gingerbread house" but whatever it is, it is made from completely edible materials and is amazing!

Tonight all the kids will dress up in their fancy frocks and we will head to the Great Hall where there are fireplaces, food, drinks and a band to help us ring in 2011. The kids especially love the big tree and sleigh found in this grandiose lobby.

And tomorrow morning, this mama is going to start her New Year off right with a trip to the awesome spa located at the hotel. Ranked #13 in the world, the spa is more than 43,000 square feet in size and hosts mineral pools, waterfall pools, steam rooms, contrast pools and even just quite rooms with fireplaces to sit near and soak it all in!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Three Christmases

Well we don't have Vince Vaughn and Reese Witherspoon, the stars of Four Christmases, but we do celebrate Three Christmases that I think are movie worthy! The first is our family Christmas on Folly Beach where Santa comes a little early and we enjoy a day of sitting in our PJ's playing with all the toys the big man in the red suit put under the tree.

Christmas One - Folly Beach!

Chapel - American Girl Dolls, books and games.....

Eli - Boat to sail in water, Kapla blocks, and Ghostbusters action figures...

Jude - big truck, kitchen supplies, books, and toy story video game....

Conor - kitchen, accessories, books and art supplies....

Enjoying the new goods!

Christmas Two - Papa Dan Dan and GiGi host a party in the building behind their house on Christmas Eve with aunts, uncles, cousins, granny, Robert, Jennifer and lots of fireworks and presents!

Tina and John Redden.

GiGi with her biggest fans...

Eli very happy with his tent...

Guess who did not like fireworks?

PaPa helping the kids assemble all the new goods!

Christmas Three - Papa Ed's and MaMa Annes house Christmas Day where we open even MORE presents and hang out with Brett's brother Eddie and all of his kids. This year Conor and Jude got ride on cars (a big hit) and Chapel got a karaoke machine and Eli got an ipad! They were all thrilled....

Waiting to open presents....

Finally....

Northern (Conway) Lights

We are now "home" for Christmas. Last night mom and dad and I took the kids to North Conway where this family has been decorating for Christmas since I was a little girl. It was part of my family's holiday tradition to go look at the lights and I was very excited to take my kids to see the Skipper family's light display. It did not disappoint. The kids were absolutely in awe and loved walking through the yard and seeing it all up close. Of course, they also wanted to try to ride, climb or sit on everything in sight!

The houses.

2nd Place.

My kids love the nativity scene. So much so they want to climb right inside.

Conor telling Santa she wants a Barbie car.

Another nativity.

The gang.

Capturing A Kid's Personality

By now, most of you have probably received our Christmas card with this picture on the front:

At first, I wasn't sure that I wanted to use the photo, but after careful consideration I realized it captures each child's personality perfectly.

Let's start with Jude. This is my baby that climbs everything, always trying to get in and out of whatever is around him. He never sits still and is always curious, always exploring.

Eli. Well, Eli is a bit of a grumpster at times. Although he is a sweet and funny child, he often wears this exact expression to show his displeasure. If he does't want to do something, he has no problem telling you how stooopid it is or what a horrible day he is having.

Chapel. Chapel is such a sweet and easy going child. She rarely complains and is always going with the flow. She is smart, sensitive and creative.

Conor. My perfect combination of sugar and spice. She is entertaining, silly and sometimes down right menacing. We are always wondering what she is going to do or say next. When getting her photo taken, she no longer says, "cheese" but instead screams, "princesses on ice". Which is exactly what she is doing in the above photo.

So that my friends, explains why this picture was on our card this year. No other photo I have captures each child's individuality as much as this little one.

Merry Christmas!

Rowdy Parade Tradition

Folly Beach always has the best Christmas parades. I think the reason it is so eclectic is because anyone can participate and Folly always draws a rowdy crowd. The kids love the parade for two reasons: Santa and a whole bunch of candy. The cold, cold weather did not phase the kids and we came home with 3 big bags of candy!

The Folly Grinch.

An entire float of Elvis impersonators. .

This strange looking fellow presented Eli with a free ice cream coupon from Jack's Cosmic Dog.

Trying to stay warm.

Chapel's friend Mallory.

One of our neighbors, Allison.

Taking in all the sights and sounds!

Pajama Party with Cookies!

Conor and Jude had a great last day of school. It was pajama day, class party and Santa made a surprise visit. My friend Caycee's little boy Carson also attends the same pre-school so we got together Thursday to make the cookies for their classes. It was nice to chat and have some mama time while making a little treat for the kids.

On Friday Morning, Conor and Jude got dressed in their matching PJ's that MaMa Anne bought them and were off to school. I especially love the little reindeer in their pockets.....

Getting ready to leave for school.

Arriving for the festivities.

Settling right into class. These two have LOVED school from day one - a huge blessing for a parent!