Christmas Parade and visit from MiMi and Pops

My parents made a trip to see my sister the week after Thanksgiving and made a pit stop at our house to stay overnight on the way home.  My mom went with me to get my hair cut and she got to be pampered as well.  It was fun to spend the afternoon just relaxing with my mom.  That evening was the Boerne Christmas parade so we all loaded up and went out to eat downtown on Main Street.  Then we walked to the parade once it started.  It was fun!  Chance LOVES parades and the marching bands.  Both him and Hallie would just sit and wave at all the floats.  Chance also really enjoyed all the candy that was passed out.  Chance also got to see Santa on the last float and he was excited to see him.  He does not like him up close and personal, but that will be our next post!

Mimi and Chance

Pops and Ben

One of the many parade floats

Parades are exhausting

She agrees (I love the leg prop)

Boerne Dickens on Main

On Friday night after Thanksgiving we went to Dickens on Main in Boerne with Ben's family.  They shut down Main Street and keep the stores open late.  They have it all decked out for Christmas with lights! There were bands along the sidewalks playing Christmas carols.  Chance and Gray really enjoyed listening to the trumpets and drums.  They even had snow machines on the corners of each street!  It was so fun to see Chance's face as the snow fell on him!  He had the biggest smile on his face.  They even had the square open with pony rides. We let him ride and he loved it as well!  This was his first time on a horse!  Hallie just sat back in her stroller enjoying all the lights and music.  We have really enjoying being closer to Boerne and taking part in all the fun small town activities.

Hallie and cousin Gray

Our happy girl!

Pony ride

Enjoying the bands

It's snowing!

Thanksgiving 2012

We spent our Thanksgiving this year in Boerne.  It was so nice being just 10 minutes from Ben's parents.  Once the boys got back from camping we headed over to take naps and prepare for dinner.  It was so nice to have a nice day to relax and reflect on how much God has provided and to be thankful for all his many blessings.  Ben and I both feel so thankful to have two healthy and wonderful children, our jobs, and the family and friends that God has blessed us with.  We had a great day!

Enter his gates with thanksgiving and his courts with praise; give thanks to him and praise his name.  For the Lord is good and his love endures forever; his faithfulness continues through all generations.
Psalm 100:4-5

Our two sweet babies

Hallie and cousin Gray

Gray and Chance holding a serious conversation

the three buddies

First attempt

Last attempt

The Collins family

Our whole family

Chance's First Campout

The Wednesday night before Thanksgiving Ben decided to take Chance on his first camp out!  They camped at our new lot and brought the fierce guard dog Bailey along for the ride. (We found out a week later that there have been two mountain lion sitings in the neighborhood!) Chance was very excited about sleeping in a tent with his dad and favorite dog!  They made it just in time to set up the campsite and get dinner going by the fire.  Dinner consisted of warmed up mac-n-cheese, beans from a can and sausage all cooked on the fire.  They had so much fun and really enjoyed bonding!  Big daddy even made a visit to check on the boys.  Chance slept the entire night next to his dad!  They woke up and cooked breakfast and hiked the lot.  They made it home around noon the next day.  I asked Chance his favorite part of the camp out and he replied The Fire!! He definitely is his daddy's son!  This I am sure is the first of many fun days ahead.

The boys and Bailey. Notice Chance's tools!

The campsite

View from our lot

While the boys camped Hallie and I had a girls night!  We ate out at a Chinese food restaurant.  I think people felt really sorry for me eating alone with my sweet baby!  I did not mind one bit!  I rented a movie and enjoyed my evening once the little girl went to sleep!  Love her!

She is so silly!!

Fall Marriage Retreat

Ben and I are so thankful for our Sunday School class at FBC Boerne.  A couple in our class planned a marriage retreat for the weekend and it was amazing.  We had to go late due to a throwing up Hallie but made it early Saturday morning and didn't miss out on much.  So thankful for Ben's parents for watching a sick baby and a crazy two year old so we could really enjoy some time together and with friends.  We had a total of 26 couples that came!  What a blessing!  When Ben and I started going to church in Boerne there was a total of 5 couples in a Wednesday night class and we didn't even meet on Sundays.  Oh how it has grown and blessed us tremendously. 

The retreat was wonderful and Ben and I both walked away with some great biblical perspectives of our marriage in today's society.  We both really underestimated what we were going to learn this weekend!  We are excited about making this an annual tradition for us to go one.  We felt it really helped us have a goal of not just living day to day to make it by, but really striving to have a GREAT marriage focused on God. 

We had lots of free time and enjoyed the afternoon canoeing, riding the four wheeler (my country girl came out in full force on this one, just ask Ben:)) and taking a tour of the property in Junction.  We had such a great time!

Flashback almost 7 years ago!

At the top of the property overlooking the Llano River

the group!

What a view!

Group of us after the property tour

Halloween 2012

We had a great Halloween this year!  My office has a Boo Bash every year for the referring dentists and families in the area.  We have bounce houses, carnival games and great food.  The kids got dressed up and loved it!  Then for Halloween night our Sunday School class sponsored an event in our neighborhood called Illuminate.  There was another bounce house that Chance literally stayed in the entire time until he got kicked out for other kids to have a turn.  Luckily Chance could really care less about candy and is more about the fun!  We did let him knock on a door for candy, but he wanted to go into the house to play not just to get candy.  I think he doesn't get the concept quite yet:)) 

Trip to Stacy's house!

In October my mom came and stayed with my sister for a week so the kids and I decided we would make the trip to Stacy's to see them on a Friday.  We had a great time with cousins just hanging out and playing!  They are really getting to the age where they play together and "seem" to really enjoy seeing each other.  We convinced MiMi to ride home with us so she stayed the rest of the weekend with us in Boerne! 

Blurry but with all the kids!

Sweet cousins

I love this picture progression of Hallie and Harlan!