christmas in dixie.....

braxton's cool whip hat...looks omish
mia's 1st 'my little pony'...sleeps with it every nite


brax 1st 4 wheeler & mia's only request from papoo-"em-ee-m's"

a proud daddy! she can now make it to darcy's house on it!

the most beautiful wrapped gift! & kids going thru mamoo's stocking

mia exhausted from throwing up & brax helping himself to some coconut cake

362 days left till christmas! as we watched the countdown till the ball dropped, at about 20 seconds till, i got really sentimental...started thinking how another year was just a memory...i started thinking about new years eve 1999...when everyone was afraid of what would happen at midnite...i was too young and wild to care...i can still remember clearly being at bonfire with and being so drunk that we called my mom to take us somewhere else...that was 9 years ago...alot has changed in almost this decade...my mom is now gone...i try to stick to only a glass of wine...and i'd really rather be on the couch under a blanket than in the wilderness by a fire...my life has literally been transformed from a carefree, reckless teenager that avoided the thought of consequences to a somewhat responsible (semi) adult who understands that a man named jesus came to give me abundant life...i cry as i write this because i understand that my life didn't have to be spared by Him...but what a great Love that He would rescue my life from destruction...now what a beautiful thing He has made out of a train wreck....i am so grateful and as i watch my children and know that 10 years from now, many more memories will be made- ones that they will be able to remember- my hope for each of them is that they will be filled with wisdom and joy and extreme gratitude for the life that God has for them, should they make the choice to accept it.