Happy New Year!

I didn't mean to take such a long break from blogging.  I have lots to update, but I won't try to do it all in one post!

The Saturday before Christmas, one of our parents from school hosted a Mother/Daughter Brunch at her home.  This was something she did on a yearly basis before getting sick five years ago.  Her daughter is now a Senior and she brought it back this year.  My mom could not come in town to attend, but the members of our Varisty Girls basketball team made sure I was not left out of the fun.  I guess I am suppose to be the Mom and they are my daughters.  What a special group of young ladies!  They are currently undefeated this season and I could not be prouder to be a part of their lives.  Here is our photo..

Christmas was great!  We scaled back this year and didn't give as much to each other as we normally do.  Most of the gifts I received were very thoughtful and things that I can use.  I enjoyed getting to spend a whole week with my parents at their home.  I will update later with the some of the gifts I received.

I spent some time this afternoon with my nephew Connor.  He is a ham when it comes to taking pictures.  Here is his smile..

He will celebrate his 3rd birthday on Sunday, January 4.  Happy Birthday Rudy!!  He will be having a small party on Saturday with his classmates from preschool.  He loves rockets, so we will be making rocket sugar cookies and letting the kids decorate them.  He and I made a test batch tonight..  He insisted that we decorate one for Pop (my dad)!

Today I also created cards for one of our students who will be competing in the Alabama Junior Miss pageant in a few days.  She will be away from her family and school for ten days.  Her mom has created a box of encouragement for each day she will be gone.  I made ten cards and put quotes, scriptures and my own personal words on each for her to open each day.  They turned out really cute and I can't wait for her to begin receiving them.

Happy New Year..  May God bless you and your families in 2009!

Paige

"Rudy Two" the Elf on the Shelf

Just a quick housekeeping note - Connor is my nephew, not my son!  I didn't make that clear in my last post.  I am his "Aunt P."  He will probably be mentioned in many of my posts, so I wanted to make sure I explained our relationship.  I would claim him as my son any day though..

Speaking of Connor, he has an Elf named "Rudy Two."  I call Connor "Rudy" so they only found it fitting that his elf be named accordingly.  While they were out of town, Rudy Two came to stay with Aunt P.  This elf is a little mischievous!  Here are a few pictures of his stay at my house..

When I got home Saturday night, he was sitting in the box I put Christmas cards in.  Doesn't he look like he is up to no good..

I was in the front of the house cleaning up and wrapping a few more gifts.  When I came back to the bedroom to get ready for bed, Rudy Two was in my bed watching TV..

I convinced him to let me sleep in my own bed, and he promised he was going to behave and go to sleep.  Sunday morning I awoke to all my clean clothes in the kitchen floor.  He had taken them out of the dryer and piled them on the floor..

Sunday night, I found him in the freezer eating ice cream..

And Monday morning, I awoke to socks on my Christmas tree..

Rudy Two went home today!  Thank goodness..

Merry Christmas,

Paige

Christmas Cookies

My sister baked cookies the other night for Connor to decorate.  Here are a few pictures..

He was so excited about his name, and wants to keep them forever! 

While they were icing and decorating cookies, I was working on these snowmen cookies that were a hit with my co-workers.  They were not very hard to make and turned out cuter than I could have imagined.  Here they are right out of the oven.  

 

Here is one completed!  

And here is one completed tray!  I ended up making a total of 52 and there were none left!  This recipe is definitely a keeper and this will again appear next Christmas.

Merry Christmas,

Paige

"Fa La La" and Cute Gifts

I got my "Fa La La's" this week from Kim.  If you have not visited her blog, please check it out!  She is so creative and does it all while raising four kids.  Amazing!  We had our faculty/staff brunch today, and they were used as the centerpiece on the table.  I had to watch them to make sure no one thought they were one of the Dirty Santa gifts!  Here is a picture of my new favorite Christmas decoration.

Although I am not a teacher, I do get some gifts from our students. Here are just a few of my favorites..  If you are not a Tervis fan, you should be.  These are great cups and have a lifetime guarantee!

This is a cute sugar cookie set.  I love the bowls!

I love snowmen, and this is one of the cutest Koozies ever.  

This was a gift from one of our administrative assistants.  I love it, and have added it to my Christmas tree.

And last but not least is my "Dirty Santa" gift!  It is a cookie jar.  I am so excited to have kept it and can't wait to use it in my kitchen.

I have a busy day ahead.  Our undefeated Varsity Girls' Basketball team is in a tournament today.  Way to go girls!  I will also be attending a Mother/Daughter tea hosted by one of our parents.  We were asked to bring an unwrapped to for the Salvation Army.  Later tonight, I will attend our annual Alumni Holiday reception.  

Merry Christmas,

Paige

Connor

Connor is my almost 3-year old nephew who is currently the love of my life!  I buy a Christmas outfit each year for him to wear and take their Christmas card pictures in.  This week I went to my sister's home to take his picture.  Below are just a few of my favorite photos from my attempt to capture that "perfect" Christmas card picture.

Before we even really got started, he already had his hands on his head.  Bless his heart, he was born with a camera in his face...

This was by far the funniest moment of taking pictures.  We didn't tell him to cross his legs.  He looks like a little old man...

How sweet...

This was towards the end of taking pictures, and we ran out of things to promise him if we could just take "one more" picture...

This was the picture used for 2008!  The lighting was perfect, and I love the innocence of a child in photos!

Merry Christmas!

Paige

Boo Mama's 2008 Christmas Tour of Homes

I am still new to the blogging world, and hope that I do not disappoint in this post.  I did not put up as much Christmas decor this year because I will not be home to enjoy it, but I put up a little.

Here is my tree.  It is decorated in snowmen ornaments with a few others that are special to me.  Since I was a little girl, I have not been fond of Santa Clause.  I believed, but did not want anything to do with him.  That has carried on in my adult life, and I am gifted each year with snowman ornaments.  

Here are some of my favorite ornaments from my tree.

Here is a ceramic Snowman that sits on my kitchen island.

Instead of a "Cookies for Santa" plate, my Mom found this plate with a snowman and the word "Believe."  It sits in my kitchen.

This is a small metal tree that holds mini-ornaments.  Each year I change out the ornaments used.  This year there are red, green and lime balls with silver glitter trees painted on them.

Thanks for letting me share a little of my home with you!  So many of you have beautiful homes and great ideas on how to decorate for the Christmas season.  May you and your families be blessed during this season and in the New Year!

Merry Christmas,

Paige

Thanksgiving Wrap-Up!

I had a great Thanksgiving.  We spent most of the day with my Dad's family and then went to visit with my Mom's later.  It was a nice day and I enjoyed seeing my family.  Being two hours away I don't get to see them as often as I would like to.  Here is a picture of Connor and my new baby cousin Emma Preston.  She is almost 6 months old!  They were too cute sitting on the couch with each other.  Connor will have a new brother in May!  He was practicing being a big brother.

On Friday, my Mom and I did a little shopping, but were not crazy enough to get up at 4 a.m.  We hit the stores around 8 a.m. and with the exception of a few little things to stuff stockings with, I am finished shopping!  Woo-hoo!

Saturday was a day full of football with my Dad!  I have always loved sports, and watching football with m Dad is one of my favorite things to do.  I love being able to say "ROLL TIDE ROLL!" and listening to the crowd sing "Rammer-Jammer."  It is great to live in Sweet Home Alabama..

Saturday afternoon my nephew Connor and I put together a gingerbread train.  As you can see in the picture, he was more interested in eating the icing than he was helping.  We did have to add a "C" for Connor to the engine.  It was so much fun putting this together with him!

It was so good to be with my family!  Have a great week.