Pictures with Santa...

We took the girls to get their picture taken with Santa yesterday, at the local Mall. They did really good. He is the same Santa they had last year and he does an excellent job with the kids. I just had to share this cute picture of my baby dolls.

Catching Up...

This weekend we went, along with my in-laws, to Hobe Sound, Florida, to see their annual singing Christmas Tree. We left Thursday morning bright and early and headed to Florida. We had a great trip and made it in good time. We stopped at Golden Corral before we got to Aunt Lois' house and ate supper (she was not expecting us for supper). We were having a good evening visiting when Lauren all of a sudden started complaining of a stomach ache. I gave her some tums and put her in bed. All of a sudden at 11:15 I heard her throwing up. We thought it would never quit from then on. The poor girl threw up and had diarrhea for almost 3 hours straight. She even threw up ice chips. By the end she was so weak she couldn't even hold her head up. We felt so sorry for her. We were scared she was getting dehydrated. By the time we got all the mess cleaned up (from the first throw up on Aunt Lois's floor) it was going on 2:00 a.m. We all finally got some sleep. Friday morning she tried to drink too much to quick and she threw up one more time. After that she was just weak and tired. All we can figure is that she got a slight case of food poisoning. I'm just glad that she was better by that evening for the Singing Tree. We really enjoyed the program. They did an awesome job. All the little kids in their costumes stold the show. They were so cute. After the concert was over all of Aunt Lois' family came over and we had a big birthday party. My father-in-law turned 70 and one of cousins has a birthday Sunday. We had a wonderful time fellowshipping with family. Then this morning we got up bright and early once again and headed home for S.C. Once again we had a great trip. Below are a few pictures I could get of the Singing Christmas Tree. It was hard to get good pics.

The beautiful singing tree...

This was an ensemble that did a great job...

The brass quartet that played for the offering...

Another view of the tree...

The childrens choir joined them for a couple songs.

Hope you had a good Thanksgiving...

For Thanksgiving we went to Charlotte to be with Dave (Paul's brother) and Pris. There was 12 of us all together. We had a great time. Below are some pictures of us preparing the meal. The girls even got a chance to get their hands in something. They love to help in the kitchen. Everything was so tasty!!! Of course we ate too much. We tried to relax some as well by scrapbooking and playing the old fashioned "Yahtzee." Ashley's beginners luck blew us all out of the water. We also got in a little Christmas shopping. I actually finished my shopping that day except for a few odds and ends. It feels so good to be just about done.

Lauren cutting grapes in half for the fruit cups...

Ashley cutting up the strawberries...

Pris getting the potatoes ready to cook...

Ooh! Look at that yummy turkey....

The table is all set and we are preparing to eat.

New Coats...

My sister-in-law found these coats for the girls last fall in a Thrift Store. They still had the tags on them from the original store. What a STEAL!!! They are beautiful soft white coats with furry collars. The girls look so nice in them. I had them wear them for the community Thanksgiving service we went to. The coats just added a nice touch.

Pounding...

Back in the beginning of November our church had a pounding for a needy family in our church. We were quite pleased with the turnout, when we are just a small little church. I had a lot of fun arranging all the goodies in the front of the church. I thought it came out cute. The family was very thankful and appreciative of the goodies they received.

Trunk or Treat...

Last night we went to several churches in the area that were having "Trunk or Treat." For those of you who do not know what that is I will explain. Churches will line up their cars and open their trunks. They decorate them up and have candy to give to all the kids. It is a fun safe way for kids to enjoy Halloween. We have been going to them for several years now. Sometimes they have Fall Festivals with them where the kids can play games and enjoy a chili dog supper. The nice thing is that it is an outreach to the community so it is all free. We also went to a few houses from our church family. They always enjoy seeing the girls dressed up.

The girls decided to dress as Bridesmaids this year.

Sorry this pic looks so washed out.

Lauren with her bag all ready for candy...

Ashley is all ready to go...

Fall Festival...

Today our church had a Fall Festival for our Sunday school kids. We had a wonderful turn out with around 50 in attendance. Amongst them were several new contacts. We had a great time and several people told us they really enjoyed it. We had several games for them to play, for example: Ring Toss, Football Toss, Gone Fishing, Ker Plunk, Tic Tac Toe, Frog Toss, Get the Penny in the Cup, etc. We also had a Cake Walk and an Apple eating contest. The kids also enjoyed playing football and some of the adults played Ping Pong and Horse Shoes. We also provided a meal of Chili Dogs, Chips, Pickles, and a Dessert. It turned out to be a beautiful day and we had a great time of fellowship. Here are just a few pictures that I was able to get from the day.

Lauren trying to get the football in one of the containers...

get it in and you will get two pieces of candy.

Allanna trying to play Ring Toss...

looks like she is doing pretty good.

Paul making sure Chase gets three X's or three O's in a row...

get Tic Tac Toe and you'll get more candy.

Luke and Christopher in an apple race...who will get the first big bite?

Lauren and Ashley waiting patiently for their hot dogs...

yummy!

Field Trip...

Today, we went on our first field trip of the year, to Nivens Apple Farm, in Moore, SC. It is an apple orchard/pumpkin patch. They have it set up very nice. They have the orchard where you can pick your own apples, a pumpkin patch, a corn maze, farm animals, a market store, picnic areas, and a play area for the kids, where they can learn interesting facts about pumpkins and apples. It was a little chilly when we got there but, it warmed up nicely after awhile. We enjoyed the hay ride around the farm and they dropped us off in the orchard. The girls got to pick their own apples. They loved that!!! Then we entered the corn maze. We let the girls try to lead us through the maze, and we kept teasing them that we were never going to find our way out. Well, guess what, we did!!! Lauren, was especially interested in the animals. She could have spent all day watching them. Ashley, on the other hand, really enjoyed picking the apples. Before we left we had to get a few items from the market, like apples, pumpkins, fresh cider and homemade apple fritters, yummy!!! We had a very enjoyable time and we plan to go back next year.

One of the many fun things to do...

cute horsey, Ashley...

Lauren you make a cute sheep...

The girls learning apple facts...

Entering the corn maze...

Will we ever find our way out ???

We are standing at the maze exit...

The girls playing at the tepee, in the play area...

The Shetland Pony in the farm area...

Lauren loved these cute little chicks...

Daddy had to help Lauren reach the apples...

Ashley picking apples...

My beautiful girls in the apple orchard!!!

Family Photos...

While we were in the mountains of Georgia this past weekend, I decide to have some fun with my camera and tripod. I was trying to get some good pictures for Christmas. I think some of them came out pretty good considering I had to fight with the sun. Let me know what you think.

Ashley and Lauren...

My beautiful girls...

Lauren...

Ashley...

Paul, Dave, Ken Jr. and Mom and Dad...

All of the Youngs...

The Anniversary couple...


All the grandchildren...

All the grandchildren with their Mom-Mom...

The proud grandparents and their grandchildren...

The Youngs...