2022 Ornaments...

Every year I just love picking out ornaments for the girls.   Some years the ideas free more slowly than others, but this year the ideas for the ornaments came fairly easily.  Here are the ornaments for 2022.

Quinn

Driving/Car Keys

It's hard to believe that we have a daughter who learned how to drive this year and got her driver's license. Quinn is a quick learner and is a great driver.  

Bundt Cakes

This ornament was created to represent another first for Quinn this year.  She got her first job at Nothing Bundt Cakes. 

Minnie Ears

This ornament represents our trip to Disneyland with Quinn this summer to celebrate her 16th birthday.

Sullivan

Cheerleading

This ornament signifies a first for Sullivan and one that has turned into her passion.  Sullivan began cheerleading this year for her middle school football and basketball teams.  She is a natural!

Shopping

A shopping ornament couldn't be more perfect for Sullivan.  The girl LOVES to shop. You name the store and she will be there.  She definitely didn't get that from her mom.  

Family

White House

This ornament represents our trip to Washington DC this spring, where we got to walk on the White House lawn and tour the gardens.  

Buc-ee's

The love (or fascination) for Buc-ee's was real in 2022.  If there is a Buc-ee's in the vicinity, we will visit.  Got to get the pulled brisket sandwich, the gallon sized drinks, Buc-ee nuggets and souvenirs sporting all things beaver related!  

Picture Ornaments -

Another great year of ornaments, another great year of memories!  

Christmas Came A Little Early...

Traveling for the holidays, work, and life's craziness caused an early Christmas here in NC.  The girls convinced us to open their presents before we left for SD, making for some pre-Christmas joy!  

It stretched across two nights.  Night one was Sullivan and Quinn's gifts to one another...

Look at those faces!  It's pretty evident that they liked each other's gifts!

Their appreciation was shared with an unprompted hug.

The Christmas spirit brought a miracle.  Sisterly love!

Night two was the whole family...

Lots of great gifts... we are all spoiled beyond measure! 

Illuminated...

Downtown Raleigh hosted an Illumination Art Walk this holiday season, where businesses and buildings were illuminated with different light displays.  To get in the festive mood, we took in the light display this past weekend.  

It was a cold night (relatively speaking), with the temperatures were in the lower 40s.  We bundled up, as much as teenagers do, and hit the streets. 

I was warned that because of the cold, and Bum Humbug spirits of some (no names mentioned), that I was not going to get many pics of the girls.  In fact, I was told one picture.  That's it.  Here is that one picture.  

Light display #1 did not impress some.  The words "let's be done" might have been said.  But to some people's dismay, we carried on.  Some displays were more impressive than others. 

When I couldn't convince the others to take pictures, I took pictures of myself...

Then Ryan was a good sport and joined in on the fun...

Begrudgingly, the girls were kind enough to participate in a few more pictures. 

Was the Illumination Art Walk a success?  Meh.  It was definitely worth a try and fun to see some of the lights during the holiday season, but it is going to be a hard sell to convince the girls to go back again next year.  Nonetheless, we celebrated the season and made some (great) memories along the way.

Gingerbread...

We held our 3rd annual Pooley Gingerbread competition last weekend.  After the girls came up short to the parents last year, Quinn and Sullivan demanded a rematch this year.  

After much planning and thorough execution, the final Gingerbread houses were complete.  

House A- 

This house is a nod to Taylor Swift, with each section representing one of Taylor Swift's albums. A super creative, fun, and colorful house.

House B

This is your tried and true, traditional gingerbread house.  

A Side by Side Comparison...

Both houses were sent to family and a blind vote took place.  It was a tough close race, but in the end, this house came out victorious.

Much to the dismay of Quinn and Sullivan, Mom and Dad for the win... again!  And a three year, undefeated record for Ryan. The girls' Taylor Swift house was super creative (and I likely would have voted for theirs if I was able to do so!).  

Already looking forward to next year's competition to see what everyone has in store!  

Strolling Down Main Street...

Our cute town hosted their annual Christmas parade this weekend.  Cindy Lou Who and the Grinch stole the show, but not our hearts.  

This cheerleader stole our hearts...

Sullivan literally strolled down Main Street this weekend with her cheer team and the middle school band.  They did a great job and it was fun to see her do her thing.  

We are so proud of Sullivan...

Splurge...

The working girl splurged and treated herself to an upgrade...

She wanted a new phone and used a little of her working money to pay for it!  

She officially has the best phone in the family.

All Gussied Up...

We recently got all gussied up and captured these amazing family photos, thanks to our neighbor who is a professional photographer.  She did an amazing job capturing the best of all of us. 

These are just a handful of the amazing pictures that were captured.  Photo credits go to PORTraits by Lynne, who really outdid herself!  It's hard to pick a favorite!!