...Time for JOY and Time for CHEER....'twas our CHRISTMAS

What an awesome, blessed and Merry CHRISTmas it was this year...and every moment was extra special since it was our first as parents. The season got off to a wonderful start with the arrival of Mom and Dad T and Auntie Kallie on Sat, Dec 19. And in a sheer surprise of the year (one which Gena knew about), Troy showed up at the airport when Chad was picking up the crew...what an AMAZING gift for the holidays! So this year's crew would be the 4 GA Tutts and 4 TX Tutts.

We kicked off our week with a trip to Callaway Gardens...and it was worth every minute of the 1hr and 45 min drive to West Georgia...as we went to see their renouned Fantasy in Lights...a 45 minute trolly ride through a winter wonderland of amazing lights displays. It was a cold night, but jackets and blankets (and some great work by Uncle Troy to get us front row seats in the trolly) made the evening a pleasant one. What a great time we shared out there...and it was awesome to see how much Evan and Taryn took in the sights. And as predicted, Taryn was extremely taken in by the lights...her sweet little head rotating from left to right and then back again as she glanced as every light bulb they had out there....Evan liked the lights a lot...but Taryn LOVED them! We can't wait to go back next year!

While the week that family was here seemed to go by way too fast, we had some great times and memories as we celebrated CHRISTmas together. Evan and Taryn got to track Santa for the first time...and just as they were going to bed, noradsanta.org reported that he was over the Azore Islands out in the Atlantic Ocean. They each had left a gingerbread man-shaped sugar cookie for Santa and headed for bed. CHRISTmas morning started at 8:15 AM (guess we should take advantage of those "late" starts, 'cause it won't be long before their crashing our bed at the crack of dawn to get us up and see what Santa brought! ...but we'd give up any amount of sleep for when that moment comes, 'cause oh how precious it will be!! :-) ) We had a wonderful breakfast to get things started...and stockings and presents came in two phases bracketed around their mid-morning nap. Evan and Taryn were captivated by the sit and walk cars that Santa left for them. Along the way, they had a great time trying their little hands at ripping open the wrapping paper...and of course, everything within reach was headed for the mouth! It was a toy-filled day, and the twangels seemed to stamp everything with approval...there were even toys from their Aunt Gina & Uncle Spark and Aunt Megan and Uncle Zig...many thanks for those....amazing additions which E & T love!

Amidst soaking up their new toys, Evan and Taryn got to soak up so many hugs, kisses, laughs, and smiles with their Gma, Gpa, Auntie Kallie, and Uncle Troy. The two of them loved all the attention and interaction...stimulation overload, but they ate it up! All of which made it an extremely sad time when the four of them had to head back to TX. Gena also enjoy all the extra hands to give the twins love...as it was a nice break to not be on duty 24/7 :-)

Overall, what a beautiful CHRISTmas celebration this year...sharing that time with Evan and Taryn and GMa-T, GPa-T, Uncle Troy, and Auntie Kallie was nothing short of amazing. Evan and Taryn are the biggest and most awesome gifts in our lives...and this year was a special milestone with them and no doubt created memories to carry forward and traditions to look forward to in the years to come. Aside from not having snow on the ground, CHRISTmas this year was everything we could have hoped and prayed for. ...and the celebration continues as we get ready to ring in the new year.

....oh, and we'll take "Cute CHRISTmas Photos" for $1000, Alex: