December Fun

December is my favorite month for many reasons: Jesus's Birthday, family-time, Christmas parties and my birthday. I turned  27 and recieved a Kindle. I love it and already read  Decision Points by George W. Bush. For my birthday dinner, William took me to JCT Kitchen and the southern food was wonderful. 
This December was special because my greystone friend, Gigi, got married in Roswell.  I was honored to be a bridesmaid and it was a fantastic celebration of Gigi and Howell's love. She is an incredible woman and a stunning bride!

Early Christmas at the Farm

We headed down to Sylvester to celebrate Christmas with William's grandparents. It was a 24hr trip but we had a lot of fun. Thank you for a wonderful time!

Thompson driving the golfcart with Granddad:

Grandma tried to make a gingerbread house but Thompson just ate the candy:  

 Grandma and me with my birthday cake:

Feeding the donkeys:

Elf Magic & Santa

After going back and forth on what role Santa would play in our house, we decided to go all in! T-lo "adopted" Thompson a magic elf. The company is called Elf Magic and they help you adopt an Elf. The best part of this story is how Jesus is the "best gift of all."

We visited with Jingle and Jangle Elf this week and they signed Thompson’s book. He enjoyed watching them and showing off his elf, Justin.

Friday, we went to see Santa in Smyrna. William brought Thompson to sit with Santa and Thompson started crying. I told him to ask Santa for toys for Christmas and his response was, "No toys, No Santa" What he meant was…I don't want to sit on Santa's lap for toys. Forget it.

So, we all got in the picture (even his elf, Justin):

A Brother

Thompson is going to have a brother in April and we're really excited! A prayer we have for our boys is that they will be best friends who build each other up in the Lord.

This weekend, we celebrated 5 years of marriage and that I am 5 months pregnant. God has been so good to us.

Zoo

 The Monk's took us to the zoo; it was so much fun! Seeing the zoo through our two year old eyes’ was delightful. Thompson rode his first carousel  and he choose the giraffe. We loved looking at all the animals and riding the train together.

On Saturday evening, the adults (Thompson had a sitter) went to dinner at Hal’s  and it is the best steak we’ve had in Atlanta. Thank you, Granmom and Granddad for such a fun weekend! We are celebrating Thanksgiving at their cabin.

The Future Mr. & Mrs. Thomas H. Henry

Congratulations to Thomas and Jessie on their engagement. My brother, Thomas, is one of the funniest, kindest, smartest, driven and just flat out grand people I know. Jessie is warm, loving, stunning, kind, and so humble! They will make a great team!  I'm blessed to NOW get to call her my sister! We love you both to the sky and back!  Congratulations and may God bless you with His amazing love and joy!

Marine Corps 10K

Last weekend we headed to D.C. for the Marine Corps 10k. GE was a sponsor;  it was a work trip for William but he was able to run the 10k. My mom, Lacey & Mary Beth all ran the 10k and Andy ran the Marathon.  On Saturday, my family toured the capital then we met up with William for dinner. Sunday was the race! On Sunday evening we had dinner with my cousin, William.  It was a fun filled weekend even for the cheerleader (me) of the group.

Andy & Lacey

Brother and Sister at the Finish

 After the Race

The Melting Pot with my family



A visit to Monk's Farm

The Monk Farm in Sylvester, GA is such a special place! We loved spending time with William’s family there.  David and Tracy had us for dinner and it was so much fun watching our boys play outside together. Thank you to Grandma and Granddad for hosting us and for the wonderful memories we made. Thompson loves the farm and we will be back soon.

 

Thompson and Ridley

Blue Angels

The Blue Angels performed at Wings over Atlanta show at Dobbins Air force Base. It was our privilege to go.  We ended up watching on the National Guard side with a fantastic view. Solo jets 5 & 6 took off right on the other side of the fence and all 6  landed there. Not to mention the amazing stunts in the air!

Saturday ended with the Monk’s coming to watch Thompson while we went out on a date (Thank You). Sunday was church, lunch at Yeah Burger and then a day of catching up on housework.

 C-130 Seat.

Fat Albert 

1-4 

Lead Solo 5 & Opposing Solo 6

Friday Night we got our Pumpkin. Happy Fall!   

Thompson is 2!

Thompson turned 2 in September. We celebrated with a MONKEY themed family and friend party at my Aunts house. She has a play set that is perfect for this age.  Both sets of grandparents came up and Auntie even flew in to surprise us. What a fun party!  Thank you for all the gifts and memories!

Monkey cake made by Honey:

The blocks from the Monks. They are a hit for both Thompson and Daddy:

Sam and Thompson playing:

Singing Happy Birthday:

Thanks T-LO and Pop for my Riding Thomas:



Europe

William served the Navy in Naples, Italy for a little over two weeks. I flew out to join him the last few days in Naples. We explored Naples and then headed to Capri on Saturday for the day. Capri was lovely and we were able to swim in the Blue Grotto. If you wait until 5pm in the fall you can swim for free. It was a very neat experience and I am glad were able to have that moment! We ate at Da Michele (pizza place in Eat, Pray, and Love in Naples (it was so yummy).

After Naples we headed to Innsbruck, Austria for a GE conference. I was able tour during the day while William was in meetings. Then we had dinners together that were very good. I loved Innsbruck its so clean and located in the Alps.

Finally, we ended our trip in Rome for 4 days to celebrate our 5 year Anniversary. I loved seeing all the ancient sites and eating very yummy Italian food. The weekend we were there most museums where free so we saved huge on cost! The Vatican was amazing and worth seeing the Sistine Chapel. We praise God that we stayed healthy and returned home to our precious 2 year old. Thanks to my parents who watched him and allowed us this once and a lifetime experience.

Capri:

Having our Sandels made in Capri:

The Vatican: 

The Forum:  

Spanish Steps: 

Trevi Fountain:  

Big Brother: Thompson

We have some very exciting news: Thompson is going to be a BIG brother. Baby Monk #2 is due April 17th (I'm 12 weeks). I had an ultrasound on Monday and everything looks great!

Football Fun

We've been busy this month. William spent 3.5 weeks in Europe for the Navy Reserve. I was able to join him for 12 days and it was a great trip! A big Thank You to my parents and McCord for watching Thompson and giving me miles to fly! I will post pictures later.
Early in September we went to our first GT tailgate of the season. We took Thompson and it was a fun family time. Thompson enjoyed runing around with all the other kids.

Snack Time: