The Holidays: A Brief Re-Cap

We had a WONDERFUL holiday season this year! In fact, it was so busy and so much fun, that I am just now getting around to posting about it!

We spent Thanksgiving here in Arkansas, with the whole Bates Clan.  Emily and David were so sweet to host everyone, and it was great to celebrate  We have SO much to be thankful for this year!

After lunch it was time to plan our Black Friday attack!  It has become a tradition that the kids look forward to every year.  First stop was Walmart, where the littlest Bates gave it up early.

After a little sleep, we woke everyone up about 4:30 am for round two!

After a lot of crazy shopping, we celebrated with donuts!

Christmas is always an exciting time for the kids.  And, this year, everyone liked sitting in Santa's lap (a  small miracle)!

One of our favorite traditions is Daddy reading "Twas the Night Before Christmas" to the kiddos.

Christmas morning was great! The kids loved waking up (well before the crack of dawn) and opening all their gifts.  

After a wonderful Christmas at our house, we headed to Honey and Sashi's for more fun!  The kiddos had a blast playing with their cousins!

While 2013 has certainly been a year filled with many bumps in the road, we feel beyond blessed.  Allen is in remission and sweet Braxtyn Eric arrived to keep us on our toes (as if we weren't already)! We are looking forward to what 2014 holds!