February Fun (And a TON of Pictures!)

 February was full of action for the Thorne Family. 

Arnold Mill's Annual Bingo Night was a fun family outing with the boys. Maggie did not want to miss practice. While we did not win any rounds, we did come home with an amazing silent auction basket!

Maggie had her turn to celebrate Valentine's Day with her favorite Galentines! I organized an event for her gym team that included a bath bomb making class at Buff City Soap followed by hibachi for an early dinner. Both the moms and girls loved spending time outside of the gym together!

Daddy was in Miami for Valentine's Day, but the kids and I celebrated the day to the fullest! It makes me so sad that it is Maggie's last year bringing valentines to school, but she went out with a memorable design. She was able to share her love for rubber ducks with her class! :) Jacob opted for a football themed card and gift for his buddies. He also insisted on bringing a bouquet of flowers to his girlfriend and recited her an original poem: "Rose are red. Violets are blue. You are my gal. And my friend, too." 

Tuttle served everyone sparkling grape juice while we dined with heart shaped pizzas.

Maggie is halfway done with meet season for Level 6 and absolutely KILLING it. I am so proud of her dedication and drive. She is known for her consistency and focus.

While everyone was getting back into a routine after the holiday break, Cherokee County likes to mix things up with another full week break from school for "Winter Break" in February. Jay suggested we venture to Gatinburg, Tennessee for the first time on the back end of the vacation week. He visited several times as a kid and has so many specific memories. He wanted to recreate that magic for our three!

It really was the perfect mini vacation for everyone! We rented a cabin through Airbnb in the mountains with a log cabin feel. It had a hot tub, pool table, arcade, loft area, and a breathtaking view of the Great Smokey Mountains.

Our first day was spent at Ober Mountain. We went ice skating and snow tubing as well as rode the Mountain Coaster and raced on the Alpine Slide. Jay specifically spent time at Ober Mountain as a child, so we loved hearing his stories, and he assured us that nothing has changed!

Luckily we scheduled our outdoor activities for Friday because it rained constantly on Saturday. We visited Ripley's Believe It or Not Museum (a favorite!), competed for tickets at the arcade, grabbed snacks at a restaurant where the wait staff insults you (Tuttle's highlight of the trip!), and finished our mini vacation with the Hatfield and McCoy Dinner Show. 

The kids were pointing out many attractions that they want to check out on a return visit!

As soon as we arrived home, Tuttle had his first football practice. He has been interested in joining the uprising 8th grade team, and he made the commitment to the spring/summer training. Jay is convinced that Tuttle is going to mature and grow in just a few short months with his training.

Bring It, 2023

 January is always a hard month after the high of the holidays, but we survived and even had a little fun!

While Tuttle has taken a sports break during the winter months, Maggie has continued exceling at Level 6 meets, and Jacob dominated the court with his basketball team.

Maggie has always loved gymnastics. She has been training since she was 16 months old! But this year has been exceptional, and she seems to have solidified her spot on the team with consistently high scores and moving toward perfecting upgrades. January was a HUGE month for Maggie when she successfully completed her giant on high bar, and she has not stopped there! We have scheduled weekly privates to work on bars and vault, and she is excited to start her week with an hour with Coach Brandon on Mondays followed by a normal four hour practice. I cannot wait to see Maggie grow as an athlete.

Jacob's basketball team, The Green Knights, worked hard all season and really improved. It was Jacob's first time playing on an organized team, and his coaches gave great feedback and worked those boys with learning technique, passing, and defense. Ms. McGowan came to the last game to cheer on our baller.

This will most likely go down as one of Jacob's most memorable years in school. Ms. McGowan puts 100% into every lesson, activity, and student. It really seems like 1st grade was taking a toll on Jacob when he hit 100 days of school.

He recovered the following day to celebrate learning the "Bossy R" with a pirate themed day. Jacob brough in gold coins to share with his class, but the real treasure is Ms. McGowan. :)

With Maggie's gym practice and competitions and her booming social life with teammates, the boys have spent more time one-on-one. Tuttle even introducted Jacob to one of his favorite pastimes- stealing mints from the golf course clubhouse. (I always warn them that I am not giving them permission...)

Big brothers are also a great resource to pull loose teeth! Jacob was all smiles to lose his first tooth yesterday!

Jay is BUSY with work right now and pulling early mornings and late nights, but I have been able to pull him away for a couple date nights and adventures with the family. We are so proud of his commitment to his career and making it happen for our family!

Everyone is ready to be done with the longest month of the year and enter into the month of LOVE!

The neighborhood girls and I celebrated early with a Galentine's Night Out! It is difficult to coordinate schedules for everyone, especially since there are 28 kids between all of us! I cherish all the time with these friends. We enjoyed a delicious dinner and dancing at Roaring Social. So many memories and laughs!

We sure have it good.

Celebrating Jacob!

 We enjoyed a week celebrating Jacob turning SEVEN!

His actual birthday was filled with ice cream sandwiches, a steak dinner, and presents!

The day of Jacob's party started with a basketball game where the birthday boy was the high scorer! Gram and Gramps were there to witness his baller moves.

We immediately headed to Stars & Strikes for the party extravaganza! We kept it smaller this year with only his best buddies, and the kids played laser tag, rode on the bumper cars, ate pizza and cake, and spent unlimited time in the arcade area. We survived our 29th Thorne child birthday party!

Happiest 7th birthday to our sports enthusiast, nap loving, book devouring, adventurous eating, Nerf shooting, little boy!

Goodbye 2022, Hello 2023

 We celebrated the New Year with our favorite neighbors at an early evening party at the Harris house.

We pulled a YouTube countdown up on the television around 6pm for the kids along with fancy toasting drinks.

Our crew headed home to cheer on the Dawgs for a midnight WIN! What a way to ring in 2023 with a spot at the National Championship! 

Jay and I both have several resolutions for the New Year that focus on improving our health, marriage, strengthening our faith, and reading more. We hit the ground running with a family hike at Amicalola Falls on January 1st.

After a two week holiday vacation, everyone was ready to return to a routine today. Except maybe Tuttle.

We are rolling into 2023 with high expectations!

A Christmas to Remember

 Time did not slow down at all as we sped toward Christmas Day. The kids actually had school until December 22, so the week was filled with themed days, parties, and final tests for Tuttle.

Jacob's 1st grade teacher treats Christmas as her Super Bowl with all the activities, crafts, dress up days, and fun! I made a snack for Grinch Day and read a few of our favorite holiday books to his class.

Maggie had to skip school on Monday and Tuesday for gym practice, but she returned just in time on Wednesday for her class party. She helped create a "Poke-a-Tree" game, and it was a big hit with her classmates. I cannot believe it was her last elementary holiday party!

Jacob's class performed the most adorable play for the parents during their party. Since he is one of the tallest kids, he was on the back row, so he is blocked by Santa in the group picture. Luckily I took a complete video of the performance to share the songs and story line with Daddy, Tuttle, and Maggie. :)

I also used Christmas as another excuse to get together with my favorite neighborhood girlfriends for a dinner out in Roswell.

We ventured to Peachtree Road United Methodist Church for Christmas Eve service and were reminded again why it is so hard to find a church closer to our new home. PRUMC is such a beautiful and special place, especially during the holiday season. We always leave with the decision that we will make the drive more often to worship there.

Christmas Eve is one of the only nights that the kids willingly go to bed. All three were in their rooms before 8pm!

Despite all their naughtiness, the Thorne kids received a visit from Santa!

Maggie set an alarm for 6:50am, so everyone was up bright and early to investigate their loot. Tuttle was most surprised with his new iPhone 13!

Jacob spent ALL DAY assembling his two big Lego sets.

Even though it was very cold, the weather did not keep Maggie off her new scooter. Holland and Piper received the same scooter from Grandmommy and Grandaddy, so all three rode until it got dark!

We hosted Grandmommy and Grandaddy and the Peace Family on Christmas Day, so we had another explosion of gifts and fun once they arrived. Jacob's Pop-a-Shot basketball game was the biggest hit. Even Grandaddy was shooting hoops!

The next day we celebrated our final Christmas celebration at Larry and Beth's house. Beth and Gram have organized an outreach activity the past few years with the cousins. This year everyone assembled treat bags and stuffed animals for Hope House at MUST.

We have so much to be thankful for this Christmas season. This was a holiday to remember!