NYE in Atlanta

John and I headed to Atlanta after work on the 30th for our bowl game.  We had planned on going months prior but were very happy it ended up being in a city we could drive to.  We were thankful we could get away for a couple of nights just the two of us.   Just a warning, when you go out of town by yourselves, you take a lot of selfies.

We made it in late that night and were ready to go the next morning. The hotel staff told us there was a complementary shuttle we could use the morning of the game that would get us to the Marta (we actually stayed in Buckhead).  She also said most of the guests were planning on using it so we needed to make sure to get there early.

The game started at 12:30 which was early so we decided to get down there when the shuttle started running at 7am.  We woke up early, rushed around hurrying, got down to the lobby....and were the only poor souls down there.  Go figure. We couldn't be late if we tried.

But we got to ride the Marta and I was pretty excited about that.  John was still asleep. 

But we did get to see the parade with all the other old people in town. 

We were starving by 9 so we ate breakfast at a nice restaurant in one of the hotels downtown.  A sweet TCU couple asked if they could take our picture so we would take theirs.  

We spotted some Landsharks at a bar near the stadium.  It was filled with Ole Miss people and we had a great time before the game. 

Our horrible seats.
This does not look like the lower level seats we paid for...thank you Ole Miss ticket office.  Last time we will order through the school.  

And then about two minutes into the game we realized this was not going to be our day.  Second game of the season where absolutely nothing went right.  I'm not even sure our team made it off the bus....BUT we still love our Rebs and loved almost every minute of the season. 

Once we started losing, we totally snatched up lower level seats.  If we drove all the way there, spent all that money, and watched our team get their butts kicked, we were going to sit in the lower level by George. 

Fun times on the Marta. Headed back to the hotel with all the sad fans and interesting locals. 

We had already paid for Ole Miss' Sharktank NYE party.  Honestly, we felt like we should just drive home after the game, but we went back to the hotel, rested, and woke up happier people.  We ended up having a great NYE.  They had the Ivy rented out with a great band, DJ, and all the sharks they could find.  

We got to hang out with Ben and Melissa.  They were there all weekend but stayed at a friend's house.  

(the girl in the back must've lost her shoes...and maybe even half of her shirt)

My husband cannot handle a flash.  It's just impossible.  The first picture his eyes were completely closed.  After asking him to open them, this is what I got.  

Trying hard again....

First picture of 2015...

We had decided to stay an extra day since we were going to be so rushed the first two nights.  If we were going to go to Atlanta, we may as well enjoy it.  We woke up New Years Day and grabbed brunch in Buckhead.  

You can tell how entertaining my date was....on Twitter. 

We had a late lunch at a brewery and John sampled some beer.  He looks a little too happy here. 

My mom was sending us pictures just to make sure we remembered we were missing out on the best meal my Mamaw makes all year.  At least Mason enjoyed it.

Our 1,000,000 selfie of the trip.

I gained about 10 lbs in one weekend. 

We had a good time but were very happy to get back to the boys. 

Mason picked Corky's for dinner.  That boy loves his ribs. 

And this boy loves some fries. 

Sunday night I made my own version of Mamaw's New Year's day dinner.  I definitely gave myself a pat on the back.  

Then we had a little Nerf gun fight.

And played a pretty intense game of Guess Who.   This guy wins every time.  

We were happy to have the whole weekend with the boys before getting back into our normal routine!!!

Christmas Part 2 and a Little Karaoke

Still backtracking here.  It has been a busy, long break. 

The day after Christmas, John and I took the boys to see Big Hero Six.  Ya know Annie was out but seeing I am surrounded by a house full of boys....it was out of the question.  

This was Brody's first time at the movies.  Of course there wasn't a lot of people there but overall, they did really good.  Brody refused a picture before the show...

A little popcorn and Sprite never hurt anyone.  

The movie was really good.  I was hoping Brody would nap.  He definitely needed to, but he wanted to lie down and it was impossible.  I made the decision to take him out but as we were walking out, he fell asleep in my arms.  I ended up going back in to finish the movie while he slept. 

You can see we had a lot of downtime.  We got a competitive game of Monopoly Junior going and Mason destroyed John and I both.  

All the while Brody pulled up his favorite music on the iPad and sang it into the microphone.  

We had the Brower Christmas at our house on that Saturday.  We had brunch and Bloody Marys.

We opened more gifts.

And found out we are all going to see the Lion King at the Orpheum in February. 

John and Robert couldn't figure out how to put the boys' gifts together for a second...

 The little guys thought it was easier when they pushed each other.  

I brought the selfie stick out.  

Brower Family Selfie

We took our annual picture which seems to get a little harder each year.

We also got the props out...Brody was begging for a nap at this point. 

Anderson was not happy about being on the naughty list.

These two make me laugh.  I love Reese's facial expressions.

And that concluded our Christmas celebrations.  It was a wonderful, yet busy few days.  We have the BEST family and are so fortunate to get to spend it with them every year.  I can't imagine if we lived away and only got to see these people every once and a while.  

Lyndsey had her 2nd Annual Karaoke Bday Bash (a month later).  It was another successful karaoke party.

This was either Wilson Phillips or Ace of Base...

Love my friends.

Christmas Part 1

The boys' loot.  

Brody ran right up to his and kept saying "Woah". 

We ended up wrapping Mason's big Skylander gift but I did put a couple of the figurines out.  He fell on the floor all dramatically in disbelief.  It was great.  =)

"Oh my goodness!  I just can't believe it!"

The gift he found months ago....

This sweet boy just loves little figurines.  Here he is lining up the Disney characters. 

5 and 2 are great ages for Christmas. 

Headed out to Mickey Mouse and Pops' house in our jammies to open gifts. 

Just ripping through it all. 

My favorite picture of the day.

Mason had just told Mickey Mouse how much he loved her.  He was so excited about the SHIRT she bought him.  

John got a new watch. 

Fun morning with the gparents.  They are way too good to us. 

Mason woke up Christmas Eve assuming there would be snow.  I mean he was really disappointed (and Im pretty sure it happened last year also).  Mickey Mouse found some InstaSnow and we made some ourselves if Mother Nature wasn't gonna cooperate. 

Poor Brody was exhausted by this point. 

And we also made it across the street to Mrs. Connie and Mr. Jimbo's so Brinkley and Mason could exchange gifts. 

You think they were excited to see each other?!

Our annual Christmas picture since about 3 years old. 

We went back to my parents and began loading up the car.  Next think we know, Brody is passed out on the floor.  This kid has never done that.  He was beyond tired.

It was a great day with my awesome people.  We had a wonderful time celebrating Jesus' birthday and we have so many things to be thankful for.

I have been reflecting back on our year for a while now.  I cannot find it in me to think this was a bad year.  In fact, I think it has been an amazing year.  Sure there were some low points, some tears, and some "whys".....but those did not last long.

 

I am thankful for the opportunity for our marriage to become closer than I ever thought it could.

I am thankful I was shown how selfless my husband is - He only worried about the boys and myself....never himself.  This is something I know I need to work on.

I am thankful for John's strength.  Life went on for him even though he was really, really sick.  He did not let it show.

I am thankful for the medical team and medical advances that helped cure him because I cannot imagine life without him.

I am thankful God blessed our family much more than we deserve this year and we will NEVER forget it.



It is now the end of December and we are all healthy.

(Christmas Part 2 is coming but we are off to ATL tomorrow for our bowl game so who knows when that will happen!)