It happened

The day I thought would never come- I, Jennie Councill, am the proud owner of a MINIVAN!!! After our Christmas roadtrip in the Murano, Clay and I both knew that we needed something bigger and something we could easily get to the kid(s) in during roadtrips and every day life. So we took the plunge and joined the ranks of Odyssey drivers. And I must say, in the few hours that we have had, I LOVE it! I love the space, love being back in a Honda (my first car love) and most of all I love...

the DVD entertainment system!!! Check out Jack in his wireless headphones watching Barney while I can listen to anything I want on the radio/cd. The dual entertainment system rocks! Jack sat in the van and watched Barney the whole time Clay was negotiating with the dealer! We knew we had a winner!

Snow day with the Smiths

I was so excited to see the snow still around when I woke up this morning. And I was even more excited when the Smiths invited me over to play. I love these girls! Mom was so thankful for them today b/c she just doesn't have it in her to traipse through the snow with me. Thank you thank you thank you Paige, McKenna and Macey! I had a great time!

Sidenote- my hat (which Mom loves!) is a size 4T/5T and is almost too small. That's how big my head is folks!

SNOW!!!!

We got over 6 inches of snow today!! It snowed all day long and I was so excited about the "thsno." Mom bundled me up to go outside in the morning but it was snowing so hard we couldn't stay out long. Daddy took me out sledding later but mom was napping so no pics of that. Hopefully we will get some tomorrow.

First layer

Second layer

A sidenote about my boots- we went to Target yesterday to get some and these pink ones were the only they had in my size and they were $3. So we went with them.

The backyard when we woke up- another 3 or 4 inches fell during the day

35 weeks and a fun night out!

Here I am ready for church today and Mom couldn't resist taking this picture b/c I looked so cute. Dad was trying to put my brown shoes on but I kept fighting him. He didn't understand why until I ran into my room and brought back my saddle shoes that I insisted on wearing. Such a fashion plate!

Here is Mom at 35 weeks. She is doing as well as can be expected. The baby is super high so it kicks her ribs alot but other than that she is thankful for this experience and knows that we are so blessed to be welcoming another member of our family in FOUR weeks!
Mom is also so thankful for all her friends who came to her baby shower last night! As you can see below she got lots of the necessities like diapers and wipes. She forgot to take pics at the shower but it was a fun girls night at Emily S's house complete with a yummy Mexican dinner and lots of good girl talk. It is amazing to Mom and Dad that this time last year, they were planning the move to Charlotte, not even knowing Raleigh was in their future nor all the great people they would meet here. The plan changed within a few days and we ended up in a great community with wonderful friends who have been so welcoming to us. We feel so blessed!

The winner of "most creative gift of the evening" goes to Mom's sewing guru Barb, who made this amazing diaper bag. The outside is awesome but I wish you could see the inside too. It has a ton of pockets and clips for all the stuff a baby and toddler might need! Mom can't wait to use it!

Playdates and babies

A week ago Friday, I met my friends Gray and Joanna at a cool kids play museum in Cary called Planet Child. Our moms came too and it was a really fun. There were all sorts of stations you could play make believe in. My favorite was the safari one with all the animals. Gray and Joanna like the dress up station the best. As they were putting on their princess costumes, I looked at them like they were crazy. They insisted I wear this skirt and bunny ears. I am so glad mom captured the moment!

Gray's mom Meghan was due to have a new baby on Sunday and when we said goodbye after lunch on Friday, we would have never guessed that baby Marlo would arrive the next day! Mom made these fun shirts for Gray and Marlo.

Mimi gave mom a sewing maching for Christmas and her first project was a hooter hider. Her fabulous friend Barb is the sewing guru and is helping Mommy through her first few projects!

Day with Daddy

Daddy had today off and we had such a fun day together! Mom loves that he takes off in the middle of the week and plays with us. Mom went out to run some errands and came home to find that Daddy had made me a fort with all the couch cushions in the playroom. I loved crawling under the tunnels but really I love climbing on top and jumping off.

My Aunt Eileen gave me this shirt with a book about NY fire trucks (she lives there) when I really really tiny. It is a size 4T and mom thought it would never fit me but look! I can wear it now and I love it!
Daddy also put together my new train from Mimi and Goose. I am obsessed. Mom tried to get me to look at the camera but I was way too focused on my "choos."

Christmas in Knoxville

We had Christmas #2 in Knoxville! Mimi and Goose spoiled us with yummy food, presents and down time. Mimi took Aunt Shannon and Mom shopping and to lunch and Goose took Cory, Ryan and Daddy to Outback for a guys dinner one night! Maeve and I played well together- the best yet and she loves to chase me and scream "Jack Councill, come here." When she would go home at night, I would stand at the door and yell "Mae! Mae!" Although it was a long trip we are glad we got to spend so much time with family before our new addition comes in 6 weeks!

Mimi and Goose had a fun party Tuesday night with all the usual suspects- the Donaldsons, Kohls, Ergens, Kuglers, Landers, Swerksys, etc. Maeve and I provided the entertainment. Mimi had Salsarita's cater dinner and we were not shy about sitting right at the buffet. I love me some cheese dip!!

As the night wore down, we took a bath and Maeve put on these new Owl pj's Mimi had for her. I think she will be a Chi O like Mom, Aunt Shannon and JuJu!
We love snuggling with Goose!
Sisters and kiddies

Thanks Mimi and Goose for a great Christmas! We can't wait to see you in February!!

Christmas in Knoxville 2

We celebrated Christmas on Sunday. Uncle Ryan came over and we chilled in the recliner with a good Dora episode. Ryno is a closet Dora fan :) I loved snuggling with him.

Mimi and Goose have set up a tree in the sunroom that is the "Maeve and Jack" tree and it was loaded with presents just for us! They spoil us so much! My big present was this new train set. As mentioned before, I love "choos" and cannot wait for Daddy to set this up on my new train table!

Maeve got an easel that has two sides so we were both able to draw!

Mimi made a fantastic dinner of filets, baked potatoes, salad, etc along with a chocolate cream pie and an apple pie. It is Daddy's favorite dinner and Mimi always makes it when we visit. Maeve and I weren't really interested in sitting at the table so we settled in the den to watch Dora. It was too quiet so Aunt Shannon asked Uncle Cory to go check on us. This is what he found:

Maeve had taken her new markers and colored all over my face. She told Cory ""I colored hims face. SEE? (Pointing to his face) Orange, blue, and green. SEE?" I apparently didn't mind. Everyone was laughing so hard! We are quite the pair!

Christmas in Knoxville- reunion

On Saturday after Christmas, we drove from Franklin to Knoxville with a stop in Winston to drop off Dottie. It was a long day but I did great in the car and was so excited to see Maeve. I said her name like 100 times from Asheville to Knoxville. We got to Mimi and Goose's and Mom and Dad promptly left me to go meet Mom's high school friends. I didn't even notice they were gone. I love playing with Maeve and Mimi and Goose!

Mom, Clarice Berry Cawood, Whitney Miller, Laura Slyman Piers, Betsy Kohl Couch

They had a great time catching up. Always lots of laughs when this crew is together. Mom is so thankful for their friendship!

Williamsburg

The farm is only an hour from Williamsburg and we go every holiday (Cmas/Tgiving). This year Grandma, Grandpa, Dottie, Aunt Ann, Uncle Ryan, Uncle Jordan, Mommy , Daddy and I all went to celebrate Dottie's 87th bday! We took the ferry across the James RIver. I loved getting out of the car and feeding the birds!

Family Pic

Who knows who you will run into on Duke of Gloucester Street? Well when you are with the Councills, lots of people! We saw 4 families we knew including the Bensons. Scott and Daddy worked together at HD in Atlanta and now Scott, Ella and Elizabeth live in DC. So random to see them in Wburg but so fun to catch up!

I LOVED the horses. I chased them all up and down the street. Grandpa was nice enough to run after me when Daddy needed a break.

Me and Grandpa in front of the Governor's Mansion. Look at all that green space for me to run. I ran and ran and ran!

Dottie and her birthday cake. Mommy and I feel so blessed that we have been able to get to know Dottie. She is so smart and tells the best stories! We love you Dottie!

Christmas at the Farm

We left W-S and drove to Franklin just in time for a big, yummy Christmas Eve dinner at Uncle Will and Aunt Arwen's. All my Councill cousins were there and Grandma got us new pjs. Here we are minus Chandlyr (not sure where she was)

L-R Enoch, Adelynn, Keller, Win, Bayli, Greyson and me

Then we took a whole Councill Family pic:

Christmas morning was low-key to begin with b/c I was the only kid sleeping at the farm. We took our time to get up and have breakfast. I serenaded everyone at the piano. I am very musical, if you didn't know

The lone grandchild enjoying my new truck and blocks before everyone comes over.

Uncle Jordan helped me open some presents.

Later on, everyone came over for lunch and more presents. It was madness but lots of fun!

Lovefeast in Winston-Salem

We started our Christmas by driving to Winston-Salem on Christmas Eve to pick up Dottie, my great-grandma and go to Lovefeast at the Moravian Church in Old Salem. They have a children's program in the morning with lots of singing and they hand out apple cider and love buns during church! Mom and Dad thought I might enjoy it. They were kind of right. I liked the food part. Check out the greenery in the church:

And this is how well I sat still:

It might be a few more years before we get invited back!

UPdates

Mom is slowly but surely working on Christmas posts but she has developed Carpel Tunnel with this pregnancy and it hinders pretty much everything she does. She is in a lot of pain but got some percoset today at the dr so hopefully that will help soon.

Baby C will make its debut 6 weeks from Monday- scheduled C-section on Feb 16. Cast your vote to the right if you think it is a boy or girl. We are all ready to know!!