Polar Express

 We were very excited to ride the REAL Polar Express as part of Nancy Carol's Christmas present for Dec 2012. She is beyond obsessed with that movie, mainly thanks to the avid train fanatic that happens to be our neighbor and best buddy, Miles. The train was actually the Great Smoky Mt. Railroad that she rode as a baby but has no recollection of it. Overall, great memories that we hope to make a tradition as long as she continues to love the book and movie  every holiday season.

Christmas Angel

I fondly remember complaining to Gramma that Nancy Carol had to know the first verse to EIGHT Christmas Carols this year for the preschool's nativity play in two weeks time.  So, she helped me with O Come All Ye Faithful, Away in a Manager, Silent Night, Joy to the World, Deck the Halls, and the easy ones such as Jingle Bells, Rudolph, and We Wish You a Merry Christmas.  With the school reinforcement, she got them down except the holy infant was "tender and Miles." (Her best guy friend happens to be Jewish which I will address in the next post about our daughter wanting to convert to Judaism being one of the best memories of 2012.) 

Most people that read the blog have seen the video of Winterfest 2012 last January at the preschool where Nancy Carol was on a stage of complete chaos! So, I didn't know what to expect this year except that she was the head angel with wings, and I added the tinsel because when I was a little girl, my Mama always added tinsel in nativity plays at church.  Parents were invited to a dress rehearsal before the real performance at the nursing home.  Michael couldn't go due to work, so there was Nancy Carol's media Mama with camcorders and cameras ready for action. 

The kids did a GREAT job!  Many were tired from the weekend, but overall, everyone sang the songs and behaved like precious children for a whole ten minutes! There were no tears or screaming, simply great toddlers portraying Joseph, Mary, choir of Angels, Gabriel, shepherds  kings, and lots of barn animals. I am still in disbelief that they did so well both at the dress rehearsal and the actual performance that Michael attended.  This will more than likely be the only nativity play Nancy Carol (and definitely Miles!) will be in because our church is so small and she will be in a public school next year.  Needless to say, we are very proud of her and all the three/four year olds at First Baptist Preschool.

Only picture of Miles, the cat in red shirt, before he moved away from my camera.

Pictures from final performance:

Thanksgiving 2012

We were extremely lucky to have Gramma McQuaid come down for a visit over Thanksgiving.  Thanks to her, we had a babysitter giving Nancy Carol a much needed break from preschool while we worked at our jobs. The start of our holiday began with the touring of the Gingerbread Houses at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC.  We were so excited to show Gramma this exhibit and beat the crowds arriving on the day it opened before Thanksgiving. . Here are a few pictures from the day:

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Mama's favorite Gingerbread House:

Diddy's favorite house, I think....

The overall grand prize winner:

Nancy Carol's favorite

Gramma's favorite:

Thanksgiving Day was spent getting lost trying to find an isolated  lake house in Western NC  where the Ezell clan had gathered, but we made it in time for the big meal which NC avoided with her cousin, Summer.  

While most people were shopping on Black Friday, we were trying to create our own Gingerbread Village.  Key word here is TRYING. 

Here are the collaborative projects after our little "helper" stopped eating all the icing and candy:

Wishing everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving!

Fall Frolicking

Instead of typing about all adventures in the Fall, here is the top five things we enjoyed as a family....


1) First Appalachian football game where she slept during the game amongst screaming fans!  (It was a work related outing, but fun nevertheless.)

2) Pumpkin farm, corn maze, and hayride with her class..

3) Apple picking at local farm

4) Saying farewell to Tweetsie Railroad for season....

5) Being out berry sweet Strawberry Shortcake for Halloween 2012!

Dance 2012

Nancy Carol is taking dance lessons in Morganton every Thursday from 5-6:00.  It's a big change for her because she doesn't have any friends taking it with her and it's a class of 20 girls! It's much more strucutured than her Princess Dance Academy two summers ago. Plus, as opposed to three weeks, it's nine months.  Hopefully lessons will teach Nancy Carol a little poise and social skills before kindergarden.




Due to her involvement, she got to be in the Christmas parade this year with the other dancers.

 She will have professional pictures in the Spring and a big rectial in June.  Overall, I think she will like it better next year when she is not the youngest one but she could surprise me after a little more practice.  Let's hope she DOESN'T break a leg ;)

First Day of her last year....

 

Hard to believe it was Nancy Carol's first day of her last year at First Baptist Preschool/Afterschool. Lots of memories from Mama Karma to potty-training with Miss Stephanie. Last year being a 'Senorita" to the head angel in the nativity play this year. She has grown leaps and bounds in communication skills and most recently with pre-reading and handwriting. Guess the best thing is her very first teacher, although brief, is also her teacher this year. Nancy Carol has stayed with her best friend Lily for four years and only this year was she seperated from Miles, her neighbor and best "guy" friend. So, you can bet there with be several tears at graduation in June from me.  

 

 

 

 Michael and I are most proud of the creativity skills she is displaying this year.  Here is her monster, with ribs, from open house in September.  The other children in her class are younger than her, but we are not complaining because the older four year olds are all boys. She has a busy year of field trips, Kinderbuddy program, three visits to sing at local nursing home, tons of class parties, and even homework!