Mid January Jog

We are slowly jogging through this cold (so far) January. I am counting the days until warmer weather! We had a little tease of warm weather today, but I think it will start getting cold again later this week. I know I can't complain too much. We only get about 3-4 weeks of mildly cold weather, but it's still too cold for this south GA girl.

This week we've had some more basketball games. Ellie's team has won both games they've played so far, and Emma's team has lost 2 games and won 1.

Today the weather warmed up a tad and we were able to hang out outside for most of the afternoon (after Emma's basketball game.) Mack decided he wanted his training wheels off of his bike. We took them off and the little booger took off. Worth had put the assistive handle on the bike, and Mack didn't even need it. Mack's comment of the afternoon, "Mom, I'm really proud of myself!"

Got some more action shots of Ellie at her game Friday night. 

#13 passing the ball

Final score of Ellie's game. They did so good! 

Her team has wanted a group picture after every game so far. 

Worth and I were looking at shower heads in Lowe's (after having to buy a new dish washer because ours died,)  and I turned around to this behind me. I had to get a picture, because they were all just sitting there like that is what they were supposed to be doing. I really can't take them anywhere. 

Worth built a fire Saturday night. It was still a little too cold for Ellie and I to hang out by the fire, but Emma grabbed a blanket and pillow and cuddled up out there. Mack was like, "what cold weather?" with no jacket on. 

Emma bringing the ball in. 

Girl can get her hands on the ball. She was not afraid, they all just have to work on their shooting. She and one other girl are about the only 2 on the team of 7 that can actually catch a moving ball. 

Point guard on the move. This girl played the ENTIRE game. I was so proud of how hard she worked! 

Mack was dressed up as a "ranger" this afternoon. 

We finally got to pull out some of the outside Christmas gifts that we haven't had time or weather to play with yet. The step on rocket launcher was a hit, as well as the mini drones Ellie and Emma are attempting to fly in this picture. 

After playing an entire 40 minutes of basketball game, what does this girl do when we get outside to play. Practice her shooting. 

Mack taking a ride behind Ellie. The things these 2 can come up with. 

You lose some, you win some

This week started off with Worth and I traveling to Atlanta to see the Dawgs play in the National Championship against Alabama. Well, as well all know now, the Dawgs lost. I can say that with pride, however, because it was a well fought for game. They only beat us by 3 points and that was in overtime. I honestly feel like we were the better team, they just busted through for a touchdown at the last minute. The game, thankfully, was worth watching because our experience getting into the game was beyond bad.

We left our hotel (which was 1 block away) with some friends of ours at 6:00pm. We thought this was a great idea in order to go ahead and get into the stadium and get something to eat, then get our minds right and get to our seats to watch the game. Well, at 8:00pm (game time was 8:15pm) we finally passed through the gates. Worth and I, along  with 77,000 other fans were in a mob for 2 hours trying to enter the building. At one point, I honestly thought I might be crushed. I prayed the whole time that we would make it through and Worth wouldn't come to blows with other obnoxious fans around us. (Not saying Worth wasn't being obnoxious.😩) Anyway, we realized the problem was that the secret service was there scanning people as they came through since President Trump was making an appearance at the game. They were taking 30-45 seconds per person to check, and there were at least 2000 standing at our gate pushing to get in. They then proceeded to stop all entry for 45 minutes as the president entered the stadium. It was pouring down rain and cold. Y'all, I'm just saying, this claustrophobic female would have lost it if it had been 98 degree summer weather, I'm thankful it was cold, it made being slammed into back/neck of the man/woman/child in front of me a tad bit more bearable. I'm also thankful MY children weren't there. I would have gotten out of line if they had been and waited to enter the game after kick off if that had been the case. No child needed to be in that or around the behavior and language I was experiencing.

I felt really sorry for the secret service workers. They were having to check EVERYTHING. They had to wand everyone front and back, checked pockets, and even went through all the lipsticks in my bag after inspecting my iPhone. This is all while being screamed at by fans (my husband being one of those,) AL and UGA fans fighting each other all around, and people pushing constantly forward trying to just bust through. When I say I almost lost it, that is an understatement. I definitely won't be attending a big game like that again. I aged 20 years in 2 hours. It was awful. And, despite reports by the BENZ stadium, I can honestly say, it was NOT due to the rain.

On a lighter note, this weekend we ended our week by seeing both girls play in their first basketball games. Both of their teams won, and they both played so well. Emma surprised us by proving to be a very aggressive ball player! I couldn't stop laughing because I was just so shocked at how she was just getting in there and ripping the ball away from the other team almost every time they had it. She's the shortest one on the team, so she definitely needs to work on her shooting, but she definitely has her defense, dribbling, and passing skills down. Ellie did well also, she has improved so much since last year!

This was the view from our hotel room at the Omni in Atlanta before the game. It was rainy and cold. 

I got to meet up with some college friends before the game for about an hour. It's always good to see these girls. If nothing else, this made the trip absolutely worth it. From Left: Anna, Lauren, Kathryn, me. 

We finally made it in!

The man that caused the back up outside. It was nice, however, to see a president at a college football game. 

The Dawgs coming onto the field. 

A sideways picture taken by a drunk person sitting near us. I tried to post my panoramic picture on here of the stadium from our seats, but it won't load for whatever reason. 

Ellie in action Saturday morning, she's #13. I didn't get many good pictures of her. I was so into the beginning of the game that I forgot to pull my cameral out until the end. 

Final score of Ellie's game. It was a nail biter. 

Emma's team getting a pre game pep talk from their coach. Emma is #3 

Defense in their first play

Emma got the ball!

And she got the ball again. 

My pictures are a blur of her running down the court with the ball the entire game. The girl she kept passing to to shoot missed almost every shot, but finally got a couple at the end of the game for the win. 

Final score at Emma's game. 

Christmas 2017

It's January, and I'm finally posting pictures of our Christmas. It was a celebration that extended over 2 weeks, and we are exhausted but fulfilled. Santa was really good to the kids this year as well as to Worth and I. It was wonderful to spend time with (most) all of our family members, and we also celebrated a UGA win over Oklahoma in the Rose Bowl. Next up for the Dawgs, the National Championship in Atlanta!

A little fire side reading by Emma. We did amores this night and rode around and looked at Christmas lights in our neighborhood. 

Mack in his classroom before his class Christmas party      

The spread of sweets for the Christmas party

Mack and I went out for some Christmas shopping one morning when the girls were still at school. This is what he wore. 

Before the Christmas Eve morning service at St. Anne's in Tifton, I took the kids to see "Little St. Anne's." This is the church I was baptized in as a child and that my ancestors built. It sits on the same campus as the bigger "new" St. Anne's sanctuary. It is a beautiful building that reminds me of my childhood. 

Even baby Hardy joined us for the service Christmas Eve morning. He was so good! 

The new parents and baby Hardy. 

Grandma and Papa with their grand babies. 

Hardy was all dressed up after church and ready for a Christmas Eve lunch. 

Meanwhile, Mack and Amos were busy sword fighting 

Back in Valdosta, throwing out the reindeer food to make sure they found our house! 

To say Mack was excited about Santa coming this year, is an understatement. 

These three were a hoot Christmas Eve night. 

 I got some great video of Mack in his room once we made him go to bed. It took him FOREVER to get to sleep. Ignore the dark video, I was standing in the hallway outside of his door. Just listen to him!

Santa came! 

The Bowers kids lucked out this year!

Ipods for the girls and a Batman utility belt for Mack

Emma was thrilled with the Vivo Fit watch Santa brought her. 

These trucks kept Mack busy ALL morning. Santa knows how to make this little boy happy! 

New boots from Mama and Daddy

Emma got Mack a back scratcher. 

Worth and I scored giving the girls a box FULL of Bath and Body Works goodies. 

The girls shopped at a Candy Cane store at school in which all items were $2. (All of the items were from the Dollar Tree and it was a PTO fundraiser.) In this picture, Worth is opening a gift from Ellie which is a small bluetooth speaker. 

iPods were a hit. 

The Tifts came for an afternoon of gift opening, then dinner.  Baby Hardy was once again a charmer.  (He doesn't get this from his father if you can't tell.) 

Emma was obsessed with a baby in our house. 

More Batman gear for Mack. 

Uncle Amos is known for his crazy Christmas shirts/sweaters. 

a Mermaid blanket from Grandma

Grandma and Papa also gave the kids this mini claw machine. The song it plays while the kids tried relentlessly to get candy out of it will never leave my head. 

Ellie got her own lab coat, 

and she got very serious doctor play set. She was so surprised and excited about it. 

More fluffy things to go in the playroom baskets. 

The biggest and littlest of Tift cousins. 

Emma in full mermaid attire and Poppy (not boppy) pillow in place is holding Hardy for Aunt Anna. 

This kid didn't lay anywhere all weekend. He got held the entire night by everyone! 

Mia and Dubs came to our Christmas Day dinner. On the menu: Whole Beef Tenderloin, lobster tails, bacon wrapped carrots,  baked potatoes, salad, and green beans. We had pecan pie and German chocolate cake for dessert. It was all DELICIOUS! 

One of his Christmas presents. He has followed in his sisters' footsteps and LOVES to be in costume! 

Our annual Chancey family Christmas gathering was held at our house in Valdosta this year. The theme was "Mele Kalikimaka" because it's normally 75 degrees in south GA around Christmas time. This year, it was around 55 at the warmest, but the family still pulled out all the stops with their costumes. This is my cousin Mark. 

My mom with the girls. The girls had really cute T-shirts, but it was a little too chilly to go without their jackets. 

We had tables near the fire pit and my Dad brought his stand up heater for outside dining. 

From left: Ginger (wife of Mark,) Mark, Micah (Mark's son.) 

Mack and sweet Will. These two are best buddies when they get together and are growing up so fast! 

Grandma and Papa

My cousin Matthew (dad to Will, Mack's buddy.) Oh, and Worth to the left in the background. 

These were the winners: Matt and Haley with Molly Grace. Matt's belly was actually a  fanny pack. It was hilarious! 

It became even funnier when my Uncle Courtney decided to compare his belly to Matt's fanny pack. 

Everyone that made it this year! 

The kids got to do their white elephant gift exchange first. 

Molly Grace really liked her gift. 

Mack got a poop emoji pillow. Just what we need, another poop pillow in our house. 

Will picked the blue bag! 

Emma was the last to pick, and since we don't let the kids steal (mainly because they are too young to understand and not fight about it) she got one of the gifts we brought. She was less than thrilled but ended up being ok with the tattoo pens that were inside. 

Getting ready for the adult gift exchange. 

From left: Uncle Dale, Aunt Telie (ok, I invited some Tift family as well since it was at my house this year) Uncle Jim, Lou (Uncle Jim's new wife,) Grandma, Papa, Worth, Chancey, Mark, Courtney. 

Chancey, Micah, Mark, Courtney, Ginger

Mark scored a poop mug which Worth promptly stole later

Matthew got a good gift, a drill. 

Haley got the gift I bought. Potty basketball with a bottle of poo-pourri. Yes, poop is always a recurring theme in our family. 

Grandma got some chocolates and a waffle house gift card. This was also later stolen. 

Ellie just wanted to do hula dancing. 

Ginger got a double sweater. This one got stolen later 2 times!!

Uncle Jim got a blanket. 

Papa got a head scratcher. I'm pretty sure no one stole this one, because he is very skillful  in his ability to immediately put his gift in a safe place. 

Ellie recruited MG to hula dance with her. 

My gift. I stole it. A MERRY sign. I thought it was cute. 

I can't remember what she got, but Aunt Telie looks excited/scared about it! 

Round 3 - New Year's Eve at Mia's to do Christmas with the Bowers/Berryman crew! 

A yummy lunch started us off right! 

Emma loves a baby! 

Never a dull moment!

Sweet Cousins! 

Emma was able to do the reading from Luke this year. 

It was pretty hard to get everyone to sit still long enough to listen, but they did it!

We let the kids open gifts first this year and we opened after they went to bed. This is the aftermath of kid opening. They all open at the same time. I'm pretty sure we didn't come home with 3-4 gifts and a gift card was lost in the mix. It was crazy!!

Auntie Kate got Emma a pogo stick. She is obsessed. 

We gave Banks and Bo these blocks. They kept the kids entertained the whole time. 

Lots of team building skills here. 

The cousins once again before heading up in the cousins' bedroom to watch movies while the adults rang in the new year. 

A little dance party before settling in for the night.

Worth popped our bottle of champagne from Buena Vista winery for the new year. It was really good.! As you can see in the background of this picture, the kids had yet to go to sleep. 

New Years Day we had to hunker down for the Dawgs. I was hoping these earrings I got as a Christmas present from Amos would bring us luck! 

Worth was beyond emotional during this game, but it was worth every jump, scream, fist pump, and couch hurdle. The Dawgs won the Rose Bowl and we are headed to the National Championship!!

Not only did the Dawgs win this week, but God delivered snow to Valdosta. The first time since 1989!

The girls were still asleep, so Worth had to go wake them up.

It started getting heavier, 

and heavier. 

Then it started sticking to everything. 

Footsteps on the front porch

We then gathered enough for a small snowman. 

Mack had to take a short break inside just before this. Us being south GA people and all, excited about the snow, and running around in it, we didn't make him wear  gloves. He had frozen hands that we had to pack adult gloves on and fill them with hand warmers. Poor thing was on the verge of frost bite. 

Then we had enough snow for a snowball fight. 

It was a good ground covering. 

A real snow angel, not a beach sand angel! 

Mack was more interested in throwing snowballs than making snow angel. 

Sown the street in our neighborhood. 

The front of our house. 

We were able to make an even bigger snow man! 

Mack was learning about tire traction in the Frozen jeep. 

I didn't realize that we have never bought Mack  gloves. All we had that would fit his hands were Minnie Mouse gloves. He wore them without complaining though, he was cold!