Christmas in Arkansas

This year, as we usually do, we headed to Little Rock the weekend before Christmas to celebrate the holidays with Nan and Papaw Carl. They traditionally have a huge Christmas get-together that weekend, but due to Carl having surgery, and Nan getting over pneumonia, it was just us....and it was kinda nice that way, I have to admit! Of course, the night we got there, the kids were more than ready to go ahead and open gifts. Unfortunately for them, though, they had to "suffer" through another day before they got the "go ahead". They managed, though, and that made it even more fun when the time did finally come!

So, after much anticipation, gift giving and receiving took place, and I think you'll agree that all were pleased with the outcome.We had a great time visiting, shopping, relaxing, and Mark & I even got to go on a date! Thanks Nan and Papaw ---- we needed that!

Christmas in Arkansas

This past weekend, we traveled to Little Rock to be with Mark's mom and stepdad. Their family always has their big get-together the weekend before Christmas. It was a quick trip this time, but we had a lot of fun! Since the biggest part of the family was all coming over Saturday for lunch, we decided that we would do our family Christmas presents with Nan and Papaw after we arrived on Friday night. It was late and we were ALL tired, but we enjoyed it. The kids got some great gifts, Nan and Papaw liked theirs, and Mark and I even loaded up!!! Thanks, Carl and Charlen, again!!!

Saturday night, after the family meal, Mark and Parker took a quick, early Christmas present, trip to Fayetteville to watch the Razorbacks play. They had a great time! They said this team looked really good and they expect great things out of them the next few years. Like I said, it was a quick trip, but a full and fun one!!!

Quack, Quack, Waddle, Waddle.....

One of our favorite things to do in Little Rock is to go downtown to the Peabody Hotel at 11:00 am and watch the ducks walk into the fountain. We have done it since the kids were small (they've even been honorary "duck masters" a couple of times) and we still love it like it was our first visit. The best part is watching the ducks ride down in the big glass elevator. You can barely see their heads as they look out over the crowd. I'll never forget the first time we went. Parker was just a couple of years old, and he was picked to be the duckmaster and ride on the elevator with the ducks. He giggled and giggled when one of the ducks "peed" in the elevator. We were warned this time that this was a new set of ducks, and that they may go haywire. However, they did very well - they needed a little prompting to stay on the carpet, but all in all, they did fine. Also, we like to ride the trolley that runs over the bridge from Little Rock into North Little Rock. At Christmas time, it has heated seats and Christmas decorations all over it! I am sure we'll ride it again when we go back for Christmas. It is so pretty. I am thankful for cheap, fun entertainment, and that our kids still get excited about the simple things.