Lots of Pictures. I Mean Lots.
I hope you all had a wonderful Christmas! And New Year! We sure did. There was a lot that went on in the past couple of weeks, and I have lots of pictures, so I had to pick and choose what to put on here (there’s a lot of ‘em), but I couldn’t put them all up. So, I’ll try to go in chronological order.
First, Tobin and I were hurrying to get a cabinet painted before the Boltons arrived for our Christmas celebration. Mostly it was Tobin, but I did get to help a little. Here is a before and after picture. It’s so pretty now! It has become our game cabinet, on the bottom, and we need something to display in the top. Still working on that. Oh, and Tobin did get it done in time. 
Before: After:
Also, we had to trim our crooked tree quite a bit to get it to look partially straight, so we had lots of clippings left over. I decided to make a wreath with the trimmings. Here’s the result! Haha, it looks so sad in this photo, but it looked good on the front door and smelled great! Our bush in the front of the house grows red berries in the winter, so I included those in the wreath as well. I’ll be an artist yet! Ha.
My birthday landed in the middle of our holidays. Twenty-three now, folks! Can’t believe it. I went to work on my birthday, but when I came home for lunch, I couldn’t wait anymore and opened my present from Tobin. Here’s his beautiful wrapping job; on top is a giant paper crane he folded for me with a poem he wrote inside. Isn’t he great???
This is one of the things he got me…a sweater dress and tights! Those are the balloons he put up…and the tree, of course! I also got a pair of white pants, they’re so comfy and warm!
After work on Christmas Eve, Tobin and I went to a Christmas Eve service. When we got back, the Boltons had arrived! I opened the rest of the gifts…here’s me with some of the haul.
Then, we headed out for a birthday/Christmas dinner at a local hibachi grill. Here’s all of us in the picture…and almost all of us have our eyes open! From left to right: Erin, Tobin, Jacque, Bill, Mike, and Kellan. Grandpa Jim and Grandma Dixie and Leighanna and Dominick couldn’t make it because Dominick had pneumonia. We missed them! It was still a great visit, though.
On Friday, since we knew the rest of the fam wasn’t going to make it and the forecast predicted no rain that day (false), we decided to head about an hour away to a motocross park where we could try out Tobin’s four-wheelers (we finally have them back!). Kellan had also purchased one, so we had three to drive. Here the boys are getting ready for their first time out. We mostly rode the trails, but there were also at least three great dirt tracks loaded with jumps and turns. The trails were great, tons of turns, hills, mud, and water…and obstacles! I thought I might hit something, but I made it out alright even with the narrow entryway. Tobin hit a tree once, but otherwise we were ok!
Here they go on their first trip!
Kellan…a little upset, his four-wheeler was acting up. But he fixed it!
After the trails. They were a tad muddy.
See. Very muddy. This was right after T rode on a track instead of a trail. Those jumps were CRAZY. Some of the dirt bikers were getting very high. We just tried to stay on the ground, although BIll and Tobin got some air. I was light enough to get a little, but that was more than enough for me!
Wasn’t this clean after a trail ride. My shoes will never be the same.
Tobin coming over a jump!
We had a wonderful Christmas and have been enjoying our New Year’s celebrations as well. Pensacola had a Pelican Drop (instead of dropping a ball like in New York), the pelican was HUGE!
Tomorrow, I go to the dentist to get my wisdom teeth out. Yikes! And that’s about all for now. Sorry the post was so long!
How fun! But, you won’t get me on a four-wheeler. You are very brave Erin. Great job on the cabinet. Great job on the decorations (both of you). Thanks for all the pictures – love seeing what you are doing. Praying for your teeth extraction (not fun, mind you). Love you two!
January 2, 2009 at 6:02 am
LOVE the post!
Your birthday/Christmas celebration sounds awesome! I’m so glad you had such a good time with the Bolton family.
I didn’t realize you were getting your wisdom teeth out so soon! I’ll be praying for a quick recovery!
January 2, 2009 at 6:35 am
Elyse says: “Cool four wheeler ride. Have a great late Christmas, because all the family is going to be here (except you two). For Christmas I got this huge playdoh jar, some American Girl books and pretend make-up and the “Sorry” game. What did you get? A boat load of stuff? I got a heart dot pajamas. Can’t wait to see you next. Loveyoubye!”
Zachary says: “I liked the cabinet – it looks good with the new paint. The wreath looked cute. I wish I could ride a four-wheeler. Since Elyse told you what she got for Christmas, I got a football with a pump and a tee, Prince Caspian DVD, Madden ’08 for the game cube and controller for the PC. For Christmas Eve, I got Chicago Bear Pajamas. Tomorrow I am going to get a present from Emily & Dan.”
January 2, 2009 at 9:28 am
How come it says you have “1″ comment when you actually have “4?”
January 2, 2009 at 12:27 pm
You two are so crafty! That cabinet looks amAZing! How did you get all the knobs to look new and shiny??
Erin, you’re real cute. I think you keep getting cuter. I like how happy you look in all these pics. Glad you had a good time! Your hair is seriously almost as long as mine! Crazy.
Did you make your 4-wheelers jump or did you go mudding? I’ve tried to make it jump before….I’m really bad at it.
Sorry I didn’t call you before your surgery! I would’ve warned you to eat pineapple. You’re not supposed to swell if you eat pineapple the night before. Hope you found that out from someone else.
Love you both! Enjoy the rest of your holidays!
-Buzz
January 2, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Well, Buzz, we didn’t have any super crafty tricks…we went out and bought new knobs and hinges. Expensive little boogers!
And we did both activities on the four-wheelers. I wasn’t a huge fan of jumping once I had a scary landing, so I stuck to more grandmotherly speeds. And I was trying not to get to muddy…haha, such a pansy. But I had fun nonetheless!
Love y’all, thanks for keeping me in your thoughts and prayers! I’m doing alright after the surgery, just trying to rest and popping pain pills like an addict.
January 2, 2009 at 10:48 pm
Ewww. I stopped after the first or second dose of painkillers, I think. I couldn’t handle the effects. I’m too big of a wousse for painkillers, what’s that say about me?? At least I know I’ll never get hooked. That stuff kicks my butt.
Is your tongue better? Mom and I were talking about it – parts of my mouth stayed numb for a lot longer than we thought they should…do you think maybe part of your tongue is just numb so it feels swollen to you?? Hope you get all that sorted out. Follow the instructions they give you for eating! Do NOT under any circumstances suck on anything! No straws, nothing. You do NOT want dry socket! Ask Luke; he got it. On both sides.
Oh, and don’t be surprised if odd things start cropping up in your mouth. My dentist left a tiny, sharp chunk in my left side which I didn’t know about until it started working itself out a couple weeks later. It’s like losing a mini-tooth.
I was a grandmother on the four-wheeler as well. Glad to see it’s a family trait.
Love you both! I’m very impressed with your wreath. Come make me one anytime.
-Buzz
January 4, 2009 at 2:56 pm
Nice display cabinet!! I love it- glad you posted the pics
We had a great time w/ you guys last night, thanks for making the long trek over here!
talk to you soon,
Ashley
January 14, 2009 at 9:06 am