Tuesday, December 16, 2008

Christmas at the Farmhouse!!

Christmas at the farmhouse in Abbeville, SC is one of our family's favorite part of the Christmas season. The farmhouse is my Uncle Ed's Aunt's house. It has been his for many years now & we are so grateful to have a fun place to get together with extended family. We get to see my two Aunts (my Dad's sisters) and their families. The family has added many new members over the years & we all really look forward to to this day. Enjoy the pictures of my family! (I will add pictures of the Russell family later - somehow I didn't get any of those on my camera).
My sister, Erin, her husband, Andy, and their two children, Braxton & Amberleigh.

My cousin, Amy, her husband, Todd, & their daughter, Emma.

My cousin, Logan, his wife, Jill, and their daughter, Hollie.

My Aunt Margaret & Uncle Ed.

The Butler Family.

My sister, Claire, her husband, Bobby, and their children, Brett, Caleb & Amelia.

The original six McKinney's.

My dad with his two sisters, Margaret & Brenda.

Mom and her three girls.

Our precious family.


Friday, December 12, 2008

Christmas Time is Here!

I know I haven't blogged much lately, but we have been very busy. I won't try to catch up on everything we have been doing, but I wanted to hit a few highlights. This post will be a compilation of several things that are "blog worthy".
Tree Picking -
The main reason I can't pull the plug on a real live Christmas tree is how much fun the kids have running through the Christmas tree farm & picking out the perfect tree each year. I really think they would be upset if this wasn't part of our annual Christmas traditions. Here are some cute pictures from this years hunt.





Tree Decorating -

The kids had a blast decorating our tree on the Saturday after Thanksgiving. It was an especially great day b/c for the 1st time in Rebekah's life, the Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets pulled off a BIG win against the "Boodawgs" (as the kids call them).


Breakfast with Santa -

We were invited to a breakfast with Santa event at a friend's house. We weren't sure what to expect, but went with hopes of a good time. We certainly weren't disappointed. I was in tears as the children rang their bells & sang very loudly so Santa would hear them & come in the house. It was such a magical experience. I almost thought I was a kid again & had to stop myself from yelling out, "Hey Santa, it's me, Melanie McKinney. You remember me don't you?" Anyway, we had such a great time - we are considering doing it here next year.