Below is the video of Emily’s first look Christmas morning. Debbie and I really enjoyed the morning with Emily. We were also lucky to have Grandpa Mark and Uncle Matt to enjoy in the fun. We all had a wonderful family time!

Debbie and I have started a new tradition of going into the mountains on the Saturday after Thanksgiving to pick out a Christmas Tree. It has been a really fun experience and we look forward to the memories that we will share. The last 2 years, we have gone to the Crazy Fox to get our tree. It is in Sparta which is about 2 hours drive for us. We get to pick our our tree, go on a hay ride, and enjoy warm apple cider. Of course, Emily just likes running around amongst the trees. She just loves the great outdoors. Take a look at the pictures. (I just love her little hat)

Yesterday, We took Emily to Mr. B’s Pumpkin Patch in Graham. Emily really enjoyed all of the activities. She was a little cautious around the animals, but she warmed up to them after a few minutes. I think that her favorite things were the hay ride and the walk through the forest. Take a look at the video link.

Video Link

Yesterday we took Emily to Burlington City Park. We have taken Emily several times since she was born, but yesterday was the first time that she rode any of the rides alone. It was really fun watching her play and ride for the first time. Of course, Debbie was stressed out at first, but after the first couple of times, she finally relaxed. We are looking forward to more trips where Emily can ride the Choo-Choo train, drive a 4×4, ride in a boat and fly an airplane. What an awesome afternoon!

Emily was so cute standing up in her crib, like she was ready to come downstairs and play!  We opened stockings and  her gifts at home, then put her down for a nap so Pete and I could open our presents to each other.  It was a nice, quiet, and very memorable morning.  Here are just a few pictures of our time together that morning on Emily’s 1st Christmas. 

After Emily’s morning nap we loaded the car and headed down to South Carolina to see our familes. We stopped at Pete’s parents’ house to exchange gifts and eat supper. Even some family friends came over to join in the celebration. Emily loved to spend time with her cousins! After a long day, we continued driving to Debbie’s parents house, where it was bedtime for Emily. She was able to continue opening presents for days! The time does seem to go by so quickly, and we truely cherish the moments we have with those we love.

We took a trip with our small group to visit Old Salem at Christmas time. We went on Friday evening, December 10th. I had been to Old Salem before, but this really was different! First, there are all the lights and fresh greenery to make things festive. Then, we went on a candlelight tour! This gets all the main points of the regular tour throughout the year, but we had different encounters at each place we stopped. At one house we listened to a young lady play a few carols on her flute by candlelight, in another, we all sung along to carols while a lady played them on an old piano upright, again by candlelight. We also saw the Morovian version of the Christmas tree, a table-top wooden pyramid shape with shelves, on which to place fruit, candles, nativity, and other decorations. We even got to sample some special cider and Christmas cookies…which were delicious! Then we topped the night off with dinner at The Tavern Restaurant. Even if you’ve been to Old Salem before, like I had, I absolutely reccommend you go during the Christmas season! Just remember to dress warm! It was a great evening spent with friends and a nostalgic way to get into the Christmas season! We had a lot of fun!!!

Well, it was really more than one day of snow! We got a few inches over a few days. While Emily still might not be able to run around and play in it, she can investigate it! We took her outside and let her touch and hold some snow…then Mommy showed her how to eat some! While we didn’t stay outside long, she had a great time.  As you can see, she loved the snow!!!

Emily loved to feel the tree, and would gaze at it each time we turned on the lights. Here’s a few pictures of her and Daddy with the lights on. She’s used to playing with Daddy, and of course, didn’t want to sit still for any pictures! We were so excited to prepare for her first Christmas!

The weekend after Thanksgiving, the whole family headed up to Sparta, NC to pick out a Christmas tree. We really ended up having a wonderful day. When we arrived at the farm, we enjoyed a short hay ride to the tree area. Then we quickly picked out a tree, but of course we had to compare it to almost every tree in the area. And in the end, our first choice held up against the competition.