First Tooth

At the ripe old age of 7 1/2 Carter finally lost his first tooth!  WooHoo!  It's funny how different my boys are.  Caleb lost his first tooth just after turning 5.  We are very thankful for Uncle Shannon who did the deed.  Carter was thrilled to have his first tooth in the books.  Good thing we brought the tooth fairy pillow with us to the lake house!

The Tree House

 

Steve and Shereda had a huge surprise for their six grandsons.  For the past six months they've been under construction down the cliff side.  I guess this is something you dream up when you know you have six boys to keep entertained at the lake.  Shereda made up a scavenger hunt that ultimately led them down a secret path to the edge of the cliff.

 

 The boys found the stones and wooden walkway that led them to a gate.

 And what is beyond that gate?

An ultimate boy's hangout!

 The tree house!  Or as Shereda calls it, The Eagle's Nest!

 There is a 2 story little cabin with electricity (including lights and fans)

And a gazebo connected by a rope bridge.

 

 It's hidden pretty well until you get really close to it.  During the summer with all the leaves on the trees we probably won't be able to see it at all from the house.

Here's a view from the neighbor's property.  You can see how it's built right into the trees.  They are still working on it, but it was finished enough for us to play on it.  You can only imagine how much fun the boys had running across the rope bridge.

 

 Here's a view looking down from the tree house.  The lake is 75 feet down from normal levels.  Just so sad.

 

 Lots of fun memories to be made!

Thanks Grammy and Grandpa!!

Lake Fun: Tie Dying, Playing, Fireworks, and Smores

James Family Christmas

James Family Christmas in Spicewood

Grammy, Grandpa, and the 6 boys

 Brenner (2), Caleb (9), Mason (4), Grant (3), Carter (7), and Cole (6)

 

An attempt at a pyramid

The aftermath

 We let the children open gifts first.  I think I would call it controlled chaos- probably more chaos than control though.  6 boys and lots of gifts creates quite a mess.

 The adults opened after the kids and had an equally fun time.

Shanan and Shannon gave Steve a bobblehead of himself.  It was hysterical.  Only Steve would have a bobblehead of himself.

Christmas Morning

 The stocking were hung by the chimney with care...

 Santa left some super cool gifts for the 3 boys.

Much anticipation on Christmas morning.  Good thing Nanny and Papa were upstairs to keep them corralled until it was time to come down and see what gifts awaited them.

  Brenner got a new play kitchen and some choo choos among his many new gifts.  Carter got an ITouch and a remote control car, while Caleb got a new video game and a new bicycle.  The boys were so excited to open each package. 

 Brenner was the slowest of all.  He wanted to spend time playing with each new thing before moving on to the next gift.

Nanny read the Thomas book to Brenner and Carter.

 Our family- gotta love Christmas morning photos.

 Time to move on to stockings and all the fun goodies inside them.

 The kitchen fit perfectly and Brenner went right to work fixing us a meal.

The new 24" bicycle is a much better fit for our growing boy.

It was a magical Christmas morning!

Merry Christmas!

Granny's Christmas

Ready for Granny Gorham's Christmas

First we had appetizer and dinner at mom and dad's house.  Fun to spend the day with my aunts, uncles, cousins, and the great grandchildren.  Leah, Anna, Emily, and I all posed for our Gorham Girl photo.  The food was delicious, but the company was even better.

We headed to Granny's for dessert and gifts.  Brenner was all too excited to get a present.

Granny had her sugar plum tree up with lots of candy.  She made her traditional cookies, pecan pie, chocolate pie, and other desserts. 

 Santa (aka cousin Michael) came by with a bag of toys for the children.  Each had a chance to sit with him and give their wish list.

I think Caleb even enjoyed seeing Santa.

Brenner was thrilled when Santa arrived.  He kept telling me, "Santa! Santa!"  He was grinning ear to ear and couldn't wait for his chance to sit on Santa's lap.  Once it was Brenner's turn he ran right up to him and curled up to him.  Santa started asking various questions, but Brenner's only response was, "Choo-choos and cars"- as in to let Santa know that is all he was interested in telling him.  When Santa gave him a stuffed animal he looked at me and said, "That not choo-choo or car."  I really hope Santa can follow through on Christmas morning.  I'd hate for him to be disappointed.

We had our annual gift exchange.  This is always a favorite tradition with the Gorhams.  We brought a bear Heisman shirt that is no longer available.  It was a hot item that cousin Mark ended up stealing.

Another great gift was a canvas print of the Brazos river.  This is taken at the edge of Cloverland- exactly the spot that holds lots of special memories for all the Gorhams.  (Cloverland is on the right side of the river)

 Brenner and Nanny

Hanging out with Papa

Granny ended up with some X-Large Baylor house shoes (keep in mind she wears a size 5 narrow).  She loved the shoes.  We are all a bit worried about her walking around in those!

Jim, George, Granny, Girly, and Dan

Mother and children