Long Time Gone!

So we are alive....just super busy lately!  There have been a million times I've wanted to write a post but timing is always an issue.  I promise to update with more photos and what's been happening over the past few months as soon as I can figure out blogger's limit on picture storage!  Hope this post finds everyone doing well! 

Here's a recent picture I was able to upload:

Thank You!

We sent this out as Christmas thank you notes.  It was too cute not to share!  :)

Christmas Pictures

Christmas Eve with the Lowman side of the family:

 Waiting to open presents

 My girls

Jules and Pop Pop

Tech and UVa singing ornaments

 Josie LOVED opening presents

Sugars!

Girls helping me open my presents from them

Grandma Lowman opening her surprise trip to visit her sister in Texas

Christmas Morning:

Waiting on the stairs to go open presents

Santa left some milk and cookies

 "We're ready!"

Trying out her new rain boots and umbrella

Excited about her train set

Hiking

Christmas Catch-up!

We had a WONDERFUL holiday season! Here's our Christmas in a nutshell:

The girls decorated their first tree of the season at Oma and Opa's house after Thanksgiving.  They got an adorable mini tree for Jules and Josie to decorate and they had a blast!

The first weekend in December we had Breakfast with Santa at the Commonwealth Club.  They had yummy food, pictures with Santa and Elves making balloon animals for the kids.  It was a fun event and a great tradition we look to continue in the future!

That evening we planned to get our Christmas tree. And oh, what a tree.  Long story but basically David talked me into a sub-par tree from a place that shouldn't sell Christmas trees.  They wouldn't let us cut it open and see what it looked like so I asked before we walked away if I could bring it back if I didn't like it when we got home. The answer was yes and no sooner did we get it home and open it up that needles started falling left and right.  The thing was dead!  David took it back the next day and 2 days later we had a BEAUTIFUL tree from Tom Leonard's.  I was happy and the kids enjoyed helping us decorate while listening to Christmas music.     

   

The next weekend we headed down to Fort Mill, SC to see Ryan and Meredith and celebrate their baby shower with both families.  And our elf, Dominick Buddy (don't ask!) made sure he found his way down to SC.  :)  


After a great weekend visit with David's family, we piled into the car with our hot chocolate and spent an evening driving around Richmond looking at Christmas lights.  David and I got a new Nikon from his parents for Christmas and enjoyed trying it out on the tree and gingerbread house at the Jefferson Hotel.    

 The girls were also able to see Santa a few times this year.  Each time we visited Santa, Jules enjoyed talking with him and telling him what she wanted for Christmas.  Josie...not so much!  Here are two of their Santa pictures.

 Bass Pro

  Commonwealth Club Breakfast with Santa

Josie looks okay in the CC Breakfast picture but rest assured that moments before, when I tried to put her on Santa's lap, she was screaming, red faced, and crying huge crocodile tears (kind of like the Bass Pro picture).  The only way she would take the picture was if I was holding her.  This is one for the memory books!  :) 

We celebrated Christmas in Amherst this year with my family.  I went down with the girls a week early and we helped Mimi cook and clean before the rest of the family arrived.  Mimi and Pop Pop couldn't wait to give Josie one of her presents-a ball pit!  They were able to play with it all week and it was hilarious to watch them!  BOTH girls loved it!  

During the week Jules and Josie also painted Santa's beard with shaving cream, made and decorated cookies and helped wrap some gifts.

We took sooooo many pictures over Christmas so I'm going to post them in a separate blog.  :)  Hope your holiday was merry and bright! 

Family Picture on Christmas Eve