I'm DONE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am happy to announce that as of this morning I am a graduate of the University of Central Florida. I didn't participate in the graduation ceremony, but being finished is reward enough for me! It has been a long 2 1/2 years, but well worth it. I absolutely could not have pursued my Master's Degree with two children (not to mention pregnant for the last semester) without Jay. I think he may be happier than anyone that I am done! He has been a wonderful husband and father and I am very thankful to have him!

I am looking forward to being full time wife and mom again for the next few months. Hard to believe that #3 will be here in ten weeks or less! I will be going to work to use this degree I just spent 2 1/2 years earning eventually...but for now the focus is on the family! Stay tuned for many fun holiday posts in the weeks to come and baby updates to follow!!

Teddy Bear Tea Party

Every year at Christmas, the Ritz Carlton in Orlando does a Teddy Bear Tea Party. Elle and I went with some girlfriends today and had so much fun! The girls all got Teddy Bears to have tea with and a live Teddy Bear visited as we had our snacks. After tea and treats, the kids gathered around the piano for Christmas Carols and then read Twas the Night Before Christmas. It was really cute and may be a fun Christmas tradition for the girls!

School Christmas Programs

Elle and Brooks both had their school Christmas programs this week. Brooks' class sang "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" and "Jinger Bells" (as Brooks calls it!). I wasn't sure how he would do because he really doesn't love school and wishes he could be with Mommy and Daddy (mostly Daddy) at all times. I was afraid as soon as he saw us in the audience he would want to be with us, but he did great! They were so cute!
Elle's class was one of two Kindergarten classes chosen to participate in her school's program. They recited "Twas the Night Before Christmas". I was so impressed at her ability to memorize it so quickly and learn the hand motions they put to it! We didn't practice much at home, so I was really proud! They all did great.

Dedicated Fan

Jay loves his Vols and in the recent years has become a huge fan of Bruce Pearl and his basket-Vols. So, he was thrilled when UT was invited to the Old Spice Classic in Orlando this year. He was even more excited when they made it to the championship game against Gonzaga and we got home from Tennessee in time for him to go! Unfortunately, they were not able to beat Gonzaga, and Jay's frustration shows a bit in this picture! I'm pretty sure that backwards hat was thrown shortly before or after this shot was taken. They had great courtside seats and our friend Jason was able to capture this shot of Jay at the game! Not bad for a picture of the TV - thanks Shag!

He's Making a List...

We decided to beat the crowds and try to get in our Santa visit early this year. It was a huge success! No line, and even better...no tears! Brooks was a little anxious, but did wonderfully once we were there. The whole car ride was spent discussing what they would tell Santa that they want for Christmas. This made me a little anxious since we're about done with that and they seem to add to or change their list daily. We are excited about the holiday season. We put our tree up on Sunday, which means our family elf, "Frisky", came to visit. If you aren't familiar with "The Elf on the Shelf" book and doll, I would highly recommend checking it out! It has been a fun tradition in our house! (www.elfontheshelf.com) Next week both Elle and Brooks have Christmas programs at school and Jay's work Holiday party is next week as well. So, needless to say the Holidays are in full swing! We are sad to miss the church Christmas Eve service and pageant this year. It is always a wonderful night spent remembering the true "reason for the season"! However, we are excited to be spending Christmas in South Carolina this year, so we will have lots of other memories and pictures to share. We should have plenty of blog updates in the weeks to come to stay tuned!

Thanksgiving in Tennessee

Happy Belated Thanksgiving! We spent this Thanksgiving in Tennessee with Jay's family and had a wonderful week. The weather was cold at first (to us Floridians), but was actually really nice. We hardly even needed our heavy coats after the first day. We had lots of great family time and way too much good food! Jay's sister Claire and her husband Brian and baby Lila were in too. It was so good to see Lila! She is just adorable. In addition to family, we got to spend some time with friends as well. It was a great trip!

It's good to be home. We made it just in time to watch the Vols and Fulmer end their season on a good note. It was a bit emotional to watch the players carry Fulmer off of the field for the last time. Although few Tennessee fans will argue that it was time for a change, it is still sad to see Fulmer go. He will be missed!

This is my last week of work/school! I will finish up my final externship this week and have my exit interview the next! Graduation is so close!!

Santa's Arrival

Well, it's that time of year again. I don't know if it's just Orlando, but everyone seems to be skipping Thanksgiving these days. As soon as the pumpkins and candy are gone, the lights are up and Christmas Carols are playing. This year was no different as the Millenia Mall celebrated Santa's arrival (two weekends before Thanksgiving!). It's really a great event, with live music, food, Mrs. Clause and various holiday characters entertaining the crowd...all in anticipation of Santa's arrival. This was our third year going and the kids (and adults) had a great time - even though this year it was 87 degrees that day, which made it a little harder to get into the Holiday spirit! You will notice however, that Brooks is not in many pictures, because he would not get near the characters. Santa makes his huge entrance in a cloud of smoke on top of the Cheesecake Factory with a firework display and "snow" begins to fall. He then makes his way throught he crowd and marches to his throne where he spends the next several weeks until Christmas. This year was special because the same night was also the final night launch of a Space Shuttle. After the excitement of Santa's arrival, we were able to watch the final launch before heading home (moon is on the left, shuttle on the right). The picture isn't great, but it was very cool to see!

Cousin Update

As you all know, Elle and Brooks are no longer the only grandchildren in the family. They have two wonderful cousins that they adore and wish we saw more often! My sister's little boy, Easton will be 2 in December and gets more adorable every day. We can't wait to spend Christmas with him!

Our newest arrival is Jay's sister's daughter, Lila. I haven't posted pictures of her since she was a newborn and she is growing so fast! She is almost 5 months old now and is just precious! We can't wait to get our hands on her over Thanksgiving!

Happy Halloween!

Happy Halloween! Hope everyone had a safe and fun night of trick-or-treating! Elle and Brooks a blast trick-or-treating with friends. Brooks was a fireman by day (for his school party) and Batman by night. Elle was a black cat. They are at such a fun age and are now able to outlast us! I miss the days of hitting a few houses and then home to bed while Jay and I hand out candy. They covered the whole neighborhood and then had even more fun handing out candy back at our house until the last piece was gone.

Annual Pumpkin Carving Party

Tonight was our neighborhood's annual Pumpkin Carving Party. Those of you who are veterans to our blog may remember that last year Elle and I came home with an award for the "Friendliest Pumpkin". We were unable to defend our title this year, but had a great time! As an added bonus, it is actually somewhat cold this week in Florida, which made the chili and hot cider much more appealing! We have had a stretch of hot Halloweens around here, so we are excited about a cooler, mosquito-free Halloween!

New Blog!

Welcome to our new blog! With "little Bloomer" #3 on the way, it was time for a change. I hope you like it! We will keep the other blog up for a while as you get used to the new address. Please bookmark this site, as it will be the only one I update from now on. Check back often for updates - we have a busy few months ahead! Thanks for your support thus far and we hope you will continue to watch our little Bloomers grow!